The Marvel System's Energy Applications

The setting sun melted into gold, dyeing the Xiang family's villa's broad floor-to-ceiling windows a warm amber. In the living room, the television news was still broadcasting the aftermath of Hongyuan Trading's collapse. Xiang Haishan sat on the sofa, the pallor of his recent illness still lingering on his face, but a faint light had returned to his eyes as he spoke softly with his wife, Lin Wanqing. The faint sounds of the servants preparing dinner drifted from the kitchen, and the air was filled with the aroma of food and the relaxed feeling of having survived a disaster.

Xiang Yi sat quietly beside the dining table, a brand-new sixth-grade textbook spread out before him. His eyes were lowered, his thick lashes casting faint shadows across his pale cheeks. He looked gentle, harmless, and absorbed in his studies. Only he knew that his seemingly focused gaze had long since pierced through the pages, fixed tightly on that patch of deep-blue light within his consciousness.

195—a number that could be called an enormous sum at this stage—floated silently before him.

His mental power was at 65. Though it was recovering slowly, it was worlds apart from the previous predicament of constantly hitting bottom and suffering splitting headaches. Lanling King lurked in the shadows, the wound on his shoulder no longer bleeding, but that invisible drain continued: 64... 63... He could clearly feel every minute passing.

"Xiao Yi, take a break after reading for a while. Don't tire yourself out." Lin Wanqing's gentle voice carried an unconcealable concern. She came over with a cup of warm milk and gently placed it by Xiang Yi's hand, her gaze lingering over his pale face. "The doctor said you need plenty of rest. Studying isn't urgent." She reached out and softly brushed aside the loose strands of hair over his forehead, warmth lingering at her fingertips.

Xiang Yi raised his head and forced out an obedient smile. "Mm, I know, Mom. I'll just read a little longer." He lifted the milk and took a sip. The warm liquid brought a brief sense of comfort, but it could not dispel the heavy urgency in his heart. His father, Xiang Haishan, looked at him with relief.

"By the way," Lin Wanqing said in a brighter tone, "Teacher Wang called. If you recover well, you can return to school next Monday! The teacher will help you catch up on the lessons you missed."

Next Monday?!

Xiang Yi's hand paused almost imperceptibly around the cup. The warm milk suddenly felt a little scalding.

There were only three days until next Monday!

Three days! He needed strength! He needed to recover faster! He needed to stabilize his foundation! He needed to deal with the Ten Rings Syndicate's possible retaliation, and prepare for Iron Man's storyline and even more terrifying crises in the future! School? It was merely another battlefield that required him to expend effort maintaining a disguise! And what he lacked most was time!

A cold sense of urgency suddenly tightened around his heart. Yet his face remained obedient and "expectant." "Really? That's great! I miss my classmates already."

"Mm, our Xiao Yi is the best!" Lin Wanqing smiled with satisfaction. "After being sick, you seem even more sensible. Hurry and finish your milk."

Xiang Yi obediently lowered his head. Yet with a desperate determination, his will stabbed viciously into that deep-blue glow at the depths of his consciousness.

Exchange! That crystal!

Confirmed! Cost: 50 points!

Obtained: Basic Energy Crystal ×1!

The number instantly dropped from 195 to 145. A speck of deep-blue light, condensed like a tangible star, suddenly lit up at the core of his consciousness!

Absorb it immediately! Xiang Yi did not hesitate in the slightest.

Absorption requires focused guidance... Estimated duration: 3 hours... Interruption will cause dissipation... Effect reduced... Failure...

Three hours! His mother could come in at any time! His father might speak to him! Not to mention the mental power draining away every minute! Failure? Wasting the energy? Losing this opportunity? No! Absolutely not!

Confirmed! Xiang Yi gritted his teeth. No matter how great the risk, he had to bear it! This was the only shortcut!

The instant the command was issued—

Boom!!!

A torrent of energy, a hundred times purer and a hundred times more violent than meditation, surged brutally into his fragile mental pathways with searing heat and terrifying force!

"Urgh!" A muffled groan, suppressed to the absolute limit, escaped Xiang Yi's throat! His body suddenly tensed in the chair like a fully drawn bowstring!

The fingers gripping his pencil tightened until his knuckles turned deathly white. The hard wooden shaft let out a faint crack, yet his entire arm miraculously remained steady. Only the subtle lines of muscle beneath his sleeve bulged tautly. The veins at his temples and neck protruded like earthworms! It felt as though an erupting core of lava had been stuffed inside his skull! Tearing pain swept through every nerve! The edges of his vision were instantly swallowed by spinning stars and ripped darkness!

Warning! Impact overload! Risk of pathway damage! Forced guidance and diversion!

The cold warning exploded in the depths of his consciousness! An invisible force of order forcibly intervened, like a dam being erected to restrain the rushing, violent starlight and force it to move painstakingly along the mysterious path of the Returning to the Hidden Formula!

His will became a red-hot branding iron, holding firm in the abyss of pain! Xiang Yi clenched his teeth tightly, the metallic taste in his mouth growing stronger—he had silently bitten through his lower lip.

Every time an energy wave crashed through him, he used all his strength to suppress the cry of pain about to burst from his throat, reducing it to a nearly inaudible groan concealed beneath the sound of turning pages. He forced himself to maintain the posture of sitting upright and reading. Only his faintly trembling shoulders and the cold sweat that surged from his temples, then was forcibly "evaporated" by his powerful will, revealed the storm raging inside him. Every tiny act of control brought additional needle-like pain.

Guide! Divert! Circulate!

Under the system's restraints and the frenzied drive of his own will, the violent starlight moved through its cycle with difficulty like a wild horse forced into reins! With every completed cycle, the energy became a little more docile, the heat dropped another degree, and his mental pathways were forcibly widened and reinforced!

The pain was like being flayed alive, but a fresh sense of fullness and power shone faintly yet stubbornly like a candle flame in the darkness.

He did not know how much time had passed. It felt as long as a century. Just as Xiang Yi's consciousness was about to be torn apart—

Bzzzzz!!!

A strange hum rose from the core of his consciousness, as though it had come from the source of life itself!

The deep-blue crystal completely vanished! The final stream of pure, gentle origin energy flowed into the source of his mental power like a trickling brook.

Absorption complete!

Mental power limit permanently increased!

Current mental power limit: 120!

Mental power: 120! Full!

Boom!

An immense joy originating from the source of life swept through his entire body like a warm tide! It was as though he had broken free from heavy shackles, leaped from murky water, and breathed the freshest air! The splitting pain in his skull vanished without a trace, replaced by an ultimate clarity and transparency! His thoughts had never been so clear and swift! His perception expanded without limit! He could even clearly catch the faint rustling of leaves stirred by the evening breeze outside the window—could this sharp hearing allow him to detect an unusual footstep outside in advance? His gaze seemed able to pierce through the air and see the paths of dust motes that usually went unnoticed—could this meticulous vision let him instantly pinpoint a pair of eyes concealing killing intent in a crowd?

A full sense of power surged through every limb and bone! His weakness and exhaustion were swept away, every cell singing with joy! This was immediate growth in strength! This was the ecstasy of touching power!

Yet before the tide of ecstasy could recede—

Warning! Hero [Lanling King] consumption continues... Current mental power: 119...

The surging sensation of power filling his body, as though he could punch through a wall, suddenly deflated by more than half the instant he sensed that tiny loss, like a punctured balloon! The "strength" he had just touched was ruthlessly torn open, exposing the deeper anxiety beneath—this small increase was still a drop in the bucket before the shadow of the Ten Rings Syndicate and Lanling King's bottomless drain!

Just then—

Knock, knock, knock!

"Xiao Yi? Are you studying in there? Mommy's coming in, okay?" Lin Wanqing's gentle voice came through the door, her footsteps drawing closer.

Xiang Yi's pupils contracted sharply! Alertness instantly replaced all comfort! In one thousandth of a second, his disguise was complete!

His tensed body instantly relaxed, slumping softly over his textbook. His breathing adjusted to the even, prolonged rhythm of "sleep." The flush brought by pain and energy impact rapidly faded from his face, leaving only the pallor of "fatigue." The last trace of moisture at his temples was forcibly dispersed by his will.

Creak—

The bedroom door was gently pushed open a crack. When Lin Wanqing saw her son "asleep from exhaustion over his books," her eyes overflowed with heartache.

"This child... honestly, you just recovered and you're already studying so hard..." She tiptoed inside, picked up a thin blanket, and carefully draped it over Xiang Yi's narrow shoulders with boundless tenderness.

Warm, soft fabric settled over him, carrying his mother's familiar fragrance.

Xiang Yi kept his eyes closed, feeling the added weight on his shoulders and the loving gaze upon him. Deep in his heart, the turbulent waves of power gradually settled. The blanket's warmth seeped through his clothes into his skin, and the gentleness of his mother's fingertips seemed to carry a strange soothing force.

This unreserved love was both the warmest harbor and the heaviest responsibility. An indescribable bitterness surged in his heart, only to be replaced at once by an even colder resolve—he had to become stronger faster! Strong enough to protect this warmth, so it would no longer be a vulnerability that needed to be hidden with such care!

Deep within his consciousness, the full number quietly ticked down: 118.

Outside the window, the sun had completely set, and dusk gathered from all sides. Warm lights came on throughout the villa, while the scent of dinner grew richer and more enticing.

Yet beneath this warm household atmosphere of surviving a disaster, beneath the boy's "sleeping" figure sprawled over the desk, an even colder and more refined will was silently gathering and sharpening within that seemingly harmless body, like a blade newly tempered in a dark furnace. The strength brought by that deep-blue crystal was like the first stone cast into a deep pool. The ripples it raised would one day pierce the seemingly peaceful night and point toward the colossal beings lurking deep within the shadows.