Chapter 80: True Soul Resonance (PS Bonus)

[Option 1: Train under the old man until you reach C-Rank.]

[Reward: ???]

’...C-Rank?!’

Nero stared at the requirement.

He had barely learned the basics of Cellular Reservoir, and the System already wanted him to reach C-Rank?!

’How long am I supposed to stay here?!’

He checked the second option.

[Option 2: Refuse the old man’s training.]

[Reward: $1,000,000.]

Nero had to admit that the money was tempting.

1 Million could buy plenty of training supplies, but he hadn’t jumped into a chasm just to collect money and go home.

Besides, he hadn’t even reached D-Rank yet. Reaching C-Rank would require far more than repeating the exercises he already knew.

He also needed to understand his new eyes before they caused trouble.

’Well, the System brought me here for a reason.’

Nero decided to trust it.

He selected the first option after some consideration.

[Choice Accepted: Train under the old man until you reach C-Rank.]

As he accepted the choice, the old man continued speaking. "Don’t worry, disciple. This old man is very strong and knows how to teach."

Nero gave him a doubtful look.

"Do you even know what Talents I have?"

"Those eyes have already told me quite a bit."

"I have three Talents. My eyes are only one of them."

He decided to be truthful since this was the teacher assigned to him by the System.

"Oh?"

The old man seemed more interested now.

Nero had come here to train, so there was no point hiding all his abilities. He could explain them without mentioning the Choice System.

"My awakened Talent is Cellular Reservoir. I also have Telekinesis, and now these eyes."

To demonstrate, Nero lifted a wooden cup from the bedside table using Telekinesis.

"Out of the three, my Telekinesis is different from my other Talents. It uses Mental Energy instead of Mana."

The cup floated between them before Nero returned it to the table.

He then activated Cellular Reservoir, gathering blue energy in his palm.

The old man watched with surprising calm.

"Not bad. For a young High-Human, you’re progressing quite well."

Nero froze.

’...What?’

"Your body hasn’t completely adapted to its evolution yet, but your Telekinesis is developing nicely. Has it been a little over a week?"

"Wait! How do you know I’m a High-Human?!"

The old man chuckled.

Nero had expected him to be powerful, considering the System had personally selected him as his teacher.

But how did he know about High-Humans?

"Are you from Earth Star?" Nero asked suspiciously.

"Earth Star?"

The old man rubbed his beard.

"Of course I am. Where else would I be from?"

"Then how do you know about High-Humans? I thought hardly anyone knew we existed."

"Maybe they do. Maybe they don’t."

"...That’s not an answer."

The old man sighed.

"Enough questions, brat. You’ve already spent an entire day sleeping in my bed."

Nero stared at him.

"A whole day?!"

"Yes! And I’d appreciate getting my bed back sometime this century."

Before Nero could complain, the old man clapped his hands.

A folded training outfit appeared on the blanket.

"Get changed when you’re ready. We’ll begin with Cellular Reservoir."

Nero looked at the clothes before turning back to him.

He had expected the old man to be more interested in his new eyes.

"What exactly can you teach me about Cellular Reservoir?"

The old man smiled.

"Tell me, kid. What do you think your Talent can do?"

"Well, I can gather Cell Energy and release it as attacks. I’m still working on controlling it properly."

"And?"

"And what?"

"Is that all?"

Nero scratched his head.

"Once I improve my control, I guess I can increase the strength of my blasts and use the energy more efficiently as my Power Index rises."

Lilly had helped him understand basic Mana circulation, while Enis had taught him how to activate his Talent naturally.

He still needed to improve his accuracy, output, and overall control.

But beyond firing energy blasts, Nero wasn’t sure what else Cellular Reservoir could accomplish.

The old man pointed toward his palm.

"When you release Cell Energy, what do you make it do?"

"Hit whatever I’m aiming at."

"And what happens afterward?"

"The energy disperses, I guess?"

"Exactly. You’ve only learned to release your energy and let it break apart when it strikes something."

Nero frowned.

"Isn’t that how an energy blast works?"

"Yes, but why are you assuming that’s all your energy can do?"

"...What do you mean?"

The old man leaned back in his chair.

"Suppose you could keep that energy together instead of letting it scatter. Give it a shape and maintain that shape even when something strikes it."

Nero thought about his explanation.

"You mean something like a forcefield?"

"Exactly! A barrier capable of blocking attacks without requiring you to dodge."

Nero shook his head.

"That’s impossible. Cellular Reservoir can’t create forcefields."

"Oh? And who told you that?"

"It’s common knowledge. People have already experimented with it. Cell Energy can’t maintain a stable shape like other energy-based Talents."

The old man laughed.

"That’s because your people don’t understand the true nature of Life-Soul Energy."

"...Life-Soul Energy?"

"That’s what you’ve been calling Cell Energy, kid."

Nero blinked.

"Wait, you’re saying they’re the same thing?"

"Of course! Your Talent relies on the connection between your body and soul. That connection allows your cells to produce and store Life-Soul Energy."

The old man raised a finger.

"However, ordinary humans can only use a fraction of its true potential."

Nero was surprised.

He had always assumed Cellular Reservoir was simply a Talent that allowed his cells to store and release energy.

"Then why does everyone call it Cellular Reservoir?"

"Because that’s the part they understand. They see energy stored inside cells, so they name the Talent after what they can observe."

The old man smiled.

"But there’s much more happening beneath the surface."

Nero glanced at his hand.

"So you’re saying I can actually make forcefields?"

"Yes, and I’ll teach you how."

"But that’s something Ki users specialize in. Cellular Reservoir isn’t Ki."

The old man laughed again.

"Ki? That inferior energy?"

"...Huh?"

Nero stared at him in disbelief.

Ki was one of the most respected energy types among Awakeners. Many powerful fighters specialized in it, and some could create barriers strong enough to withstand devastating attacks.

Yet this old man was calling it inferior?

"How is Ki inferior? Ki users can do things Cellular Reservoir users can’t!"

"Because Ki is easier to manipulate, not because it’s superior."

"Life-Soul Energy is far more difficult to control. Without the right techniques, most people will never discover what it’s capable of."

"Then what’s so special about it?"

"Ki is comparatively impure, but that also makes it more forgiving. Life-Soul Energy requires much greater precision."

He stroked his beard.

"Of course, if you compare a High-Human using Life-Soul Energy against another High-Human using Ki, I can’t say for certain who would win. Their mastery would matter too."

"So Cellular Reservoir is only considered weak because it’s difficult to use?" Nero frowned.

Was that all?

The Old Man smiled hearing this. "That’s part of it, but there’s something even more important and that is your race."

"My race?"

"Tell me, Nero. Why do you think a High-Human can create forcefields using Life-Soul Energy while an ordinary human cannot?"

"I don’t know." Nero shook his head after a while.

"Because the problem isn’t the Talent itself. It’s the person using it."

"An ordinary human can never achieve 100% True Soul Resonance between their body and soul. Their connection is fundamentally incomplete."

"It’s the degree of harmony between the body and soul. Ordinary humans have natural limitations that prevent them from reaching perfect resonance."

"But High-Humans are different. Your race a more perfected evolution of the weak humanity. Your body and soul can achieve one hundred percent True Soul Resonance."

"And that’s what allows you to use Life-Soul Energy in ways ordinary humans cannot."

"It’s also the reason High-Humans possess Mental Energy. That power is a natural result of your 100% True Soul Resonance."

’...Seriously?’

Nero was dumbfounded.

He already knew Mental Energy was connected to soul resonance, but he hadn’t realized that Cellular Reservoir’s true potential was dependent on the race.

’So an ordinary human with Cellular Reservoir and a High-Human with the same Talent could have completely different limits?’

That was surprising.

For some reason, Nero still felt like the old man might be bullshitting him.

But his explanation about Mental Energy matched what Nero already knew.

’Could he actually be telling the truth?’

If so, Cellular Reservoir was far more useful than he or General William or the entire population of Earth Star had originally imagined.

He had spent the past week learning how to release Cell Energy, never considering that it might be capable of forming barriers or maintaining solid shapes.

’And he says he can teach me how to do all that?’

Nero was suddenly looking forward to training.

"Enough questions for now."

The old man rose from his chair and headed toward the door. "Get dressed and come outside. I’ll show you what Life-Soul Energy can really do."

Nero glanced at the training outfit.

"And if you’re lying?"

"Then you can call me a fraud afterward." The old man laughed as he replied.

With that, he left the room. However, as he walked down the hallway, a dark shadow appeared beside him.

"Do you think he’s worthy of being taught by you, Lord?"