Second floor of an abandoned gymnasium, locker room.
The heavy smell of dust mixed with mildew, along with a faint trace of rust, permeated the cramped space.
This place had been abandoned for years. The shabby blue metal lockers stood crookedly, some with their doors fallen off and their dark, hollow interiors exposed.
A few pale rays of moonlight slanted in through a hole in a high window, barely illuminating a small patch of the wreckage-strewn floor.
Lin Xiao sat with his back against a relatively intact locker, leaning on its cold metal surface as he gasped for breath.
Every breath tugged at the searing pain in his chest and abdomen, drawing a fine sheen of cold sweat across his forehead.
His right arm felt as if countless red-hot steel needles were repeatedly stabbing through it. Even the slightest movement made his vision go black with pain.
Fatty Wang had already run back to get some medicine.
Lin Xiao had refused to let him take him to the infirmary—it would attract too much attention.
The matter with Zhao Hu was not over. Once that vindictive bastard woke up, he definitely would not let things go.
The most important thing now was to hide, recover, and then figure out what the hell that thing in his mind was!
He forced up his still-mobile left hand and wiped away the half-dried blood and grease on his face, revealing a pair of astonishingly bright eyes even in the dimness.
Excitement! It surged through his veins like magma, almost overwhelming the agony racking his body!
Everything that had happened outside the cafeteria moments ago was branded into his mind.
Zhao Hu's overbearing fist, that foot descending like Mount Tai, then the strange azure barrier, the scarlet X, and with a single thought, a powerful enemy had crippled himself!
"Martial Arts Modifier..."
Lin Xiao silently repeated the name in his mind, and his heart began to pound uncontrollably.
A wild joy bordering on trembling seized him!
This was not a dream! He really possessed this... nearly godlike power!
A greedy flame burned in his eyes.
With this, his life, Lin Xiao's life, would become completely different!
What the hell were some tuition collection notices? What the hell was Zhao Hu?
What the hell was struggling at the bottom?
He saw the possibility of breaking free from all these shackles and even climbing to a higher place!
Su Qingxue's cold and noble face flashed before his eyes, only to be replaced by an even stronger longing for power.
Power was the foundation!
However, the instinctive wariness forged by years of street fighting poured over his boiling greed like ice water.
This power was too strange, too terrifying!
Where had it come from? Why had it chosen him?
What price did using it require?
And what were the "Source Energy Points" mentioned by that cold prompt?
What could 1.5 points do?
Countless questions and deeply buried apprehension intertwined in Lin Xiao's heart, leaving him trembling all over with excitement yet uneasy at the same time.
"I have to figure this out!"
Gritting his teeth and enduring the agony, he forced himself to concentrate.
Buzz...
The thought had barely arisen when that cold, rational, azure-glowing rectangular screen silently reappeared deep within his consciousness, as if responding to his call.
Martial Arts Modifier - Core Status Host: Lin Xiao Vital signs: Moderate injuries (multiple soft-tissue contusions, hairline fracture in the right arm) Current Source Energy Points: 1.5
The information on the screen was concise and clear.
Lin Xiao fixed his gaze on the line reading Current Source Energy Points: 1.5.
One and a half points. This was the "currency of power" he had obtained after turning the tables in a desperate situation.
How was he supposed to use it?
He instinctively focused his thoughts on the screen, trying to find a way to operate it.
The screen seemed to sense this and gave an almost imperceptible ripple.
At the bottom of the screen, among several originally blurry and dim areas, a tiny gear-like icon glowed with an extremely faint, almost undetectable light.
Function module: Basic Modification (Unlocked)
Basic Modification?
Lin Xiao's heart jolted.
He tried to "touch" the glowing gear icon with his thoughts.
The image in the center of the screen instantly switched!
A three-dimensional humanoid outline emerged, formed from countless exceedingly fine, intricately interwoven lines that glimmered with different colors!
The outline's shape and proportions were unmistakably Lin Xiao's own!
However, multiple areas of this "Lin Xiao" image were shrouded in dim grayish-red light representing injuries. The light around his right arm and chest was as deep red as blood, and he could even "see" fine cracks in the bones!
Target locked: Lin Xiao (self)
Scanning modifiable attributes...
The cold prompt echoed through his mind.
Lin Xiao held his breath and stared fixedly at the image representing his injured condition.
A thought flashed through his mind like lightning—recovery!
If he could modify his injuries and accelerate their healing...
The idea was like a devil's temptation, instantly filling him with excitement!
Enduring the agony wracking his body, he focused all his concentration. His thoughts were like invisible tentacles, cautiously reaching toward the three-dimensional outline on the screen that represented "self."
Then he tried to "grab" one of the relatively dim grayish-red areas representing the contusion on his chest.
The instant his thoughts touched it, the grayish-red light in that area flashed violently!
At the same time, a new prompt appeared beside it:
Modification target: Local tissue cell activity (chest contusion area)
Modification direction: Increase activity, accelerate recovery (estimated effect: slightly shorten natural healing time)
Required Source Energy Points: 0.3
0.3 points!
Lin Xiao's heart began to pound wildly!
It worked! He really could modify himself!
A tremendous temptation lay before him.
The burning ache in his chest constantly reminded him of that fact.
And at 0.3 points, he could afford it!
"Modify! Accelerate my recovery!"
Lin Xiao roared in his mind and forcefully "confirmed" it with his thoughts!
Command received... Source Energy Points deducted: 0.3...
Modifying parameters... 1%... 100%... Modification complete.
The instant the cold prompt faded!
Buzz!
A strange, indescribably cool sensation, like the faintest electric current, precisely flowed into the contused area of Lin Xiao's chest!
The sensation was extremely faint, nowhere near as exaggerated as the miraculous transformation described in novels, but Lin Xiao clearly felt a weak vitality infused into the place that had been burning and throbbing with pain.
The pain diminished by the slightest degree at a speed visible to the naked eye, and his breathing seemed just a tiny bit smoother!
It worked! The effect was weak and could nowhere near heal him instantly, but it truly worked!
"Hahahaha!"
Lin Xiao could not stop himself from laughing wildly in his mind, immense joy washing over his nerves!
This ability was absurdly powerful!
This meant that as long as he had enough Source Energy Points, he possessed nearly all the prerequisites for an immortal body!
His wild joy clouded his mind.
His greedy gaze immediately turned toward the most glaring deep-red area on the screen—the spot representing the fracture in his right arm! If he could directly repair the bone...
He eagerly sent his thoughts over!
Modification target: Fracture in the right radius
Modification direction: Accelerate osteocyte division, promote healing (estimated effect: significantly shorten the healing period)
Required Source Energy Points: 3.0
3.0?
The wild joy on Lin Xiao's face instantly froze!
Current Source Energy Points: 1.5 - 0.3 = 1.2 points! Nowhere near enough!
A tremendous sense of disappointment surged through him, like a bucket of cold water dumped over his head.
Only then did he realize how precious Source Energy Points were, and that repairing serious injuries consumed far more than he had imagined!
"Damn it!"
Lin Xiao could not help cursing under his breath. He slammed his left fist into the floor, kicking up a cloud of dust.
His excitement ebbed like a tide, leaving behind the suffocating frustration of reality closing its grip around his throat and an unprecedented craving for Source Energy Points.
His eyes swept unconsciously around the dim locker room before finally landing on a corner.
A battered old punching bag lay there.
The canvas surface had been worn down so badly that its original color was no longer visible. It was covered in tears and stains, with plenty of sand and sawdust leaking from the holes. It sagged crookedly on the floor like abandoned trash.
Could the punching bag be modified?
The thought rose up uncontrollably.
If he could modify himself, what about external objects?
What could this broken punching bag be changed into?
Driven by intense curiosity and the unwillingness left by the number of points required to repair his fracture, Lin Xiao acted.
Struggling, he braced himself against the floor with his left hand, dragged his aching body over, and painstakingly shifted himself beside the broken punching bag.
He reached out with his left hand and touched the bag's rough, cold, dust-covered surface.
He focused his mind and once again connected with the screen in his consciousness.
This time, he tried to lock his thoughts onto the physical punching bag before him.
Buzz...
The three-dimensional humanoid outline in the center of the screen instantly vanished. In its place appeared a vague outline of a punching bag, sketched in simple lines.
Inside the outline, there were no complicated energy flows, only dim, nearly gray lines representing basic attributes such as "structure," "material," and "durability."
Target locked: Unknown-material filled bag (worn-out)
Scanning modifiable attributes...
Modifiable attribute: Structural integrity (durability)
Found it!
Lin Xiao's spirits lifted.
What would happen if he changed its durability to "indestructible"?
Or changed it to "shatter on contact"?
He chose the latter.
A mischievous urge to destroy and a desire to test the ability surged within him.
He locked his thoughts onto the gray line representing "durability" and tried to forcefully "drag" its value toward "fragile"!
Modification target: Structural integrity (durability)
Modification direction: Greatly reduce molecular bond strength (estimated effect: structural collapse)
Required Source Energy Points: 0.1
Only 0.1 points! Cheap!
Lin Xiao did not hesitate. "Confirm modification!"
Command received... Source Energy Points deducted: 0.1...
Modifying parameters... 1%... 100%... Modification complete.
The moment the prompt faded, the battered punching bag beneath Lin Xiao's left hand seemed unchanged.
He frowned in confusion and instinctively extended a finger, lightly poking a small tear that had already existed on the bag's surface.
The instant his fingertip touched the edge of the tear in the canvas—
A sudden change occurred!
Without any warning!
The old punching bag, whose edges had merely been worn and whose tear had not been particularly large, seemed to have all the inner strength supporting it ripped away in an instant!
The most basic connections within every canvas fiber composing it and every grain of sand filling it—the connections that maintained their "existence"—were brutally and completely severed by a cold force originating at the level of the rules themselves!
"Pfft—!"
A dull, bizarre pop sounded!
Under Lin Xiao's astonished gaze, the small area touched by his fingertip suddenly collapsed inward like the surface of water struck by a pebble!
But this collapse was not physical compression. It was disintegration!
Centered on his fingertip, the canvas on the bag's surface soundlessly crumbled into powder like ashes burned to nothing!
Next came the filling inside!
The hard grains of sand and coarse sawdust did not spray out or scatter. Instead, in that same instant, they lost all form and cohesion, directly breaking down into the finest, most primitive dust particles!
It was as if an invisible hand had instantly erased the "concept" of the sandbag's existence on a microscopic level!
The entire process was unbelievably fast and completely silent, yet it carried a bizarre quality that made one's hair stand on end!
It had taken less than a tenth of a breath!
Before Lin Xiao's eyes, the battered sandbag that had originally stood half a person's height had vanished completely!
All that remained was a tiny pile of extremely fine, uniform, grayish-white dust without a single sharp edge!
The dust lay quietly on the floor, radiating a deathly pallor beneath the wan moonlight.
As if it had never existed.
The changing room fell deathly silent.
Lin Xiao's hand was still frozen in midair, a faint, slippery sensation of powder lingering on his fingertips.
The expression on his face had completely solidified. His eyes were wide with shock, and his mouth hung slightly open, as if it could fit an egg inside.
A chill shot from his coccyx up along his spine and instantly burst into the crown of his head!
It hadn't exploded or shattered—it had been completely erased on a material level?
The effect was too terrifying! Too uncontrollable!
All he had wanted was for it to "shatter at a touch" and turn into a pile of sand!
Instead, it had turned straight into dust! Had even its molecular structure been scattered?
The modifier was more overbearing—and more dangerous—than he had imagined!
His wild joy and lingering fear were replaced by an even deeper dread.
He lowered his head and looked at his dust-covered left hand, then at the pile of dust on the floor that represented "erasure." A powerful chill enveloped him.
Could this thing really be used casually?
Could modifying himself cause problems too?
Thinking back on the cool sensation when he had modified his recovery speed, even that now carried a trace of icy fear.
He abruptly summoned the light screen in his mind:
Current Source Energy Points: 1.2 - 0.1 = 1.1
Two modifications—one to his own recovery (0.3), and one to erase the sandbag (0.1)—had instantly reduced his 1.5 Source Energy Points to only 1.1! And repairing a fractured bone required 3.0 points!
A massive expenditure!
Source Energy Points! This was the core!
Without them, this heaven-defying modifier was nothing but a display!
How could he obtain them? Aside from "battle settlement" and "first effective interference," like when he had dealt with Zhao Hu, were there any other methods?
Absorbing energy? What kind of energy?
Spirit stones? Or something else?
Countless questions coiled around him like vines.
The ecstasy of power was replaced by reality's cold shackles and an immense mystery.
At that moment.
"Rustle..."
An extremely faint scraping sound, almost swallowed by the dust, came from outside the changing room, from the direction of the dark corridor leading to the stairs.
Every muscle in Lin Xiao's body instantly tensed!
Like a startled cheetah!
He jerked his head up. The vigilance he had relaxed while studying the modifier instantly rose to its limit!
Those astonishingly bright eyes in the gloom shot toward the darkness where the sound had originated, fixed on it with fierce wariness like searchlights!
Someone?
Had Zhao Hu's people found him?
Or was it something else?
Outside the broken window on the second floor of the abandoned gymnasium, a blurred shadow like a bat merged into the night, silently clinging to the shadows outside the dusty, cobweb-covered window frame.
A monocular lens covered with a special film that reflected almost no light was aimed at Lin Xiao inside the changing room.
Behind the lens, a pair of cold, emotionless eyes clearly "watched" everything happening inside through the breach.
When it saw the battered sandbag silently turn to powder beneath Lin Xiao's fingertip, the pupils of those icy eyes contracted almost imperceptibly.
A minute ripple carrying shock and greed flickered across the shadow and vanished.
He slowly lowered the scope. His body, like weightless smoke, silently melted into the deeper darkness outside the gymnasium and disappeared.
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