Second System

[Five minutes ago]

Inside the Fifth Hospital's main building, a cleaning lady took the elevator to the third floor.

She was assigned to clean the dean's office at this time, mainly for another reason: to check whether there were any problems with the dean's "interaction" with the special patient, Luo Di.

If there are any problems, she should immediately report them to the hospital management, who will arrange for someone to come and help as soon as possible.

When the aunt arrived at the office door, she faintly heard a strange noise, unlike any previous conversation or other noise; it sounded like a fight.

Instead of knocking, the aunt quickly opened the door with a spare room key.

As soon as the door opened,

The scene before her eyes stunned the aunt; there was no danger as she had anticipated.

The usually elderly dean was actually practicing Tai Chi with Luo Di.

Every move was precise and methodical.

Although the dean is Italy, he accidentally learned Tai Chi a few years ago from an event for middle-aged and elderly people. He found it to be a great form of exercise and has been practicing it every day.

Judging from the fact that the dean was covered in sweat, the Tai Chi session seemed to have lasted for quite some time.

The cleaner's sudden intrusion distracted the director somewhat, and he accidentally used a little too much force.

The balance of Tai Chi was suddenly broken.

Perhaps it was because the ground was slippery.

Luo Di's retreating steps suddenly stopped, and he fell backward, his head hitting the metal coffee table in the reception area squarely.

Clang!

The back of his head was hit and bleeding profusely.

The cleaning staff standing at the door were startled, but they immediately went over and took out the medical gauze they carried with them to help press on the bleeding spot on the back of Luo Di's head.

Fortunately, the wound wasn't deep, so it's not a big problem.

After giving the cleaning lady a thumbs up, the hospital director immediately contacted the medical staff inside the hospital.

Since the injuries are not serious, there is no need to be sent to the city hospital. He should be able to recover after resting in the hospital for a while.

However, the full-body examination of Luo Di was a bit strange. Even though he had only done half an hour of Tai Chi exercises with the dean, he felt like all his strength had been drained.

A sharp, stabbing pain emanating from my back was caught by my consciousness, as if several needles were pricking between my vertebrae.

The stinging pain quickly brought Luo Di back to consciousness, and he gradually opened his eyes.

Unlike before,

This time, I woke up neither in a hospital nor Mental Hospital.

A wisp of ashes drifted down, and he was still in the torture chamber, lying on the altar in the preaching room.

His memory was still stuck on the moment his shoulder was pierced by the hook; he had no recollection of what happened afterward and was completely unaware that a completely new system had been integrated into his spine.

Upon closer reflection, it was all too naive. Mr. Hook's strength was beyond imagination, and such a sparring match was simply impossible to achieve normally.

As Luo Di endured the pain in his back and got up, he faintly heard a very quiet conversation coming from above him.

Looking up,

Mr. Hook was chatting with the class monitor while suspended in the air, but the content of their conversation was unclear.

They seemed to be having a great conversation, and even after noticing that Luo Di had woken up, they showed no intention of getting down.

It only slowly descended after the conversation ended.

Mr. Hook remained deep in thought, seemingly having gleaned many interesting and thought-provoking insights from his conversation with Wu Wen.

"Your world is really interesting... The so-called 'corner' is probably some kind of very high-level spatial creation, which even makes your world 'active,' which is why you, Luo Di, can establish a connection with the True Hell from such a distance."

Miss Wu's descriptive abilities and intelligence gathering skills far surpass yours.

Hawke used to dislike Wu Wen, an outlier, but now he has completely changed his mind.

Just as Luo Di was about to say something, Hawke's fingers touched his back, and a hooked spike gently scraped against the surface.

"Congratulations! The 'Pain' unique to our Prelude Group has been integrated with your spine and has become your Second System, which will grow along with your spine."

Additionally, I need to clarify something regarding your spinal nutrition intake.

To achieve true saturation, you still have to adopt the methods of the "spine hunters"—to kill and to wage war.

However, if the spine is truly hungry or has an urgent nutritional need, "pain" can be used as a substitute. But it can only be used as temporary nutrition, like a snack or a meal backup.

The real staple food must be what the spine needs.

As Hawke's fingers moved across Luo Di's entire back like a massage, the pricking sensation hidden between his spine completely disappeared.

"Mr. Hook, you wanted to turn me into this from the beginning, didn't you?"

"What else? Let me train an individual from another faction, one I don't even particularly like. I'm not a good person, I'm just interested in you."

"Thanks."

"In addition..."

Hawke suddenly tightened his two fingers, using the hooks at his fingertips to grip the fifth Thoracic Vertebra. The seemingly light touch startled Luo Di, who instantly stood at attention.

"The spine shape you've shown is something I've never seen before."

Perhaps wait until you have fully fed your spine,

Once the Suffering System within it has also developed, this spinal structure will become even more complete.

At least in my opinion,

Your spinal shape and Spine Quality are rated [A] or higher.

In the future, if you are able to make contact with the spine, it is best to keep a low profile at first.

The Spine Clan values strength above all else. You are, after all, an envoy from beyond the borders; excessive ostentation in the early stages could lead to your spinal cord becoming food for others.

"Um."

The fingers that had been pinching his spine were slowly pulled out, and Luo Di regained his freedom.

"Alright, I still have to deal with matters related to the torture chamber. I've already wasted too much time on you all today."

"Luo Di, remember to treat Miss Wu well. Women as understanding and reasonable as her are rare. The 'females' of True Hell aren't so kind; they're all terrifying."

Hawke seemed to recall some unpleasant memory, and his body trembled slightly.

These words made Luo Di even more curious about what the squad leader had said to Mr. Hook while he was unconscious, that it could have such a big impact on the latter's impression.

Luo Di even suspected it was related to the squad leader's Pseudo-Human abilities.

Back when she was a student, the class monitor could win over everyone's favor with just a few words. All the teachers at the school knew her and had a very good impression of her.

Hawke waved his hand, severing the connection with the world.

Buzz!

When Luo Di woke up again, he was sitting in a chair receiving an IV drip, with his backpack hanging on his body.

The old dean also stayed here, waiting for him to wake up, and apologized in person for accidentally hurting Luo Di.

As it turned out, Luo Di didn't care at all; on the contrary, he was very grateful for the dean's cooperation.

"Thank you, Dean. Please come again next time."

He stopped the IV drip and left the Fifth Hospital as if nothing had happened.

The dean and the nurses exchanged bewildered glances. The dean lit a cigarette, silently returned to his office, and began fiddling with wire crafts, anticipating Luo Di's next visit.

[Youth Apartment]

It was already late at night.

After such a fulfilling day, he was exhausted.

Things related to the class monitor can only be discussed tomorrow, so I went straight to sleep.

The next morning

When Luo Di woke up in bed, he subconsciously looked at the makeshift bed under the bed, but the squad leader was nowhere to be seen.

The bedroom door was slightly ajar.

The sounds of stir-frying in the kitchen, along with the aroma of the dishes, seeped in through the crack in the door.

"Are you cooking?"

Luo Di walked towards the kitchen with a curious look on his face, wanting to see what kind of breakfast the class monitor was making.

Who knew,

Just as he approached the kitchen door and saw the woman standing in front of the stove, a bead of cold sweat slid down his forehead.

Waves of heat emanated from his back, and the faint sound of an engine could even be heard.