[Process Displayed]
[Quadrant Anchored]
[Reload Completed]
[System Activated]
"!!!"
Hyuk jolted awake from her dream. If the voice echoing in her head could have been brushed off as a lingering sleep-induced hallucination, the virtual interface floating right before her eyes made it undeniably clear.
She had a system.
Data was rapidly scrolling across the screen, messages sliding upward one after another. At the same time, a surge of power erupted within her, quickly rushing through her limbs and bones until it saturated every single cell.
[Scan Result: Talentless]
[Executing System Compensation]
[Reload Completed]
Finally, the notifications stopped scrolling, settling on Hyuk's attribute panel. Her attention shifted from the sudden rush of power back to the screen.
——
[Name: Blair Hyuk]
[Race: Terran]
[Talent: Infinite Overload]
[Evolution Rate: 0%]
[Strength: 10 tons]
——
"Ten tons of strength..."
Hyuk clenched her fist, feeling the raw, immense power. She used her mind to click on the attribute panel, diving into the more detailed information. This so-called "ten tons" was the actual physical strength she now possessed.
But it wasn't just raw lifting power.
It was a comprehensive rating. It meant Hyuk not only had ten tons of force at her disposal, but she also possessed the incredibly dense muscles and bones required to actually exert and withstand that kind of power.
Her muscle density and bone strength had both skyrocketed, triggering a massive upgrade to her overall physical conditioning. Even her weight and sensory perception had undergone a dramatic evolution.
On the outside, she looked completely normal, but in reality, Hyuk was now a beast in human form.
Infinite Overload was likely the talent the system had granted her as compensation. However, she couldn't quite wrap her head around the details yet, the description simply stated that this talent granted her the potential for limitless growth.
As for how exactly she was supposed to grow? The system didn't say.
BEEP! BEEP!
The blare of a car horn outside snapped Hyuk back to reality. Her hearing had become so hyper-sensitive that the honking sounded like a clap of thunder right next to her ear.
She got up to wash her face, flicking on the living room TV along the way to fill her empty apartment with some background noise. The news anchor was speaking.
SHHH
The sound of running water echoed from the bathroom.
While the news broadcast played in the living room.
"This marks the third homicide in the past three months. The perpetrator's methods are exceptionally brutal, leaving the victims with horrific injuries that indicate severe torture prior to death. Public panic is rising as citizens demand that the police expedite the investigation and bring the killer to justice... This is Jpscan Morning News."
The third one?
Or maybe even more.
Hyuk quickly finished washing up and walked out to watch the broadcast. She tossed her snapped toothbrush into the trash can, she was so strong now that she had accidentally broken it in half with just a careless squeeze.
On the living room coffee table sat a framed photo of Hyuk and her parents. If it hadn't been for that tragic accident two years ago, her parents would still be alive and well today.
But there were no 'what ifs' in life.
Hyuk was twenty-four. Two years ago, right after her college graduation, her parents had taken her on a celebratory road trip. An "accident" along the way had claimed both of their lives.
She was the only survivor.
When she woke up, she told the police that a monster with vines growing out of its head had attacked their family of three. No one believed her. They all claimed she was just suffering from severe psychological trauma.
Nobody believed her.
Eventually, Hyuk stopped talking about it.
The news anchor's description of the victim's wounds matched the fatal injuries found on her parents' bodies perfectly. Hyuk knew the killer had to be the same entity.
"Since you guys can't find them, I'll do it myself."
Hyuk changed into her clothes.
And stepped out onto the streets alone.
She now possessed the power to enact her revenge. Since no one would give her the justice she deserved, she would seize it herself. She was going to hunt down that monster hiding in Jpscan City.
And tear it limb from limb.
...
On the street.
RING, RING, RING...
"Yeah, I'm over on Easton Road."
"I don't know. Yesterday you..."
A barrage of noise assaulted Hyuk's ears. Sounds she once subconsciously filtered out were now overwhelmingly clear and irritating. The clashing scents of perfume, sweat, and car exhaust made her nose itch with discomfort.
Hyuk was trying her best to adapt.
She visited the crime scene mentioned in the news report, hoping to discover something, perhaps a lingering, unique scent left behind by the killer.
Unfortunately, there was nothing.
The scent profile at the scene was too cluttered and chaotic, leaving her with no clear lead.
...
Day after day passed.
Hyuk searched for her parents' killer in her own way while continuously adapting to and familiarizing herself with her newfound strength. It was no exaggeration to say she could punch straight through a brick wall.
Once she got a running start, the sheer kinetic energy she generated made her destructive power even more terrifying. To test her limits, she frequently went to secluded, abandoned spots to unleash her full power.
Her resilient skin and dense musculature allowed her to exert the full ten tons of force without harming herself. Blades swung at her body wouldn't even leave a scratch.
She wasn't sure about bullets yet.
They would probably sting, but they wouldn't be fatal.
Sometimes, fate works in mysterious ways. Hyuk had been searching relentlessly for the vine monster without success, only for an entirely unfamiliar face to find her instead.
That night.
A shady, blonde-haired youth blocked Hyuk's path. In his eyes, Hyuk looked like an incredibly delicious meal. His eyes were bloodshot, and saliva pooled at the corners of his mouth.
"Sorry, I just couldn't hold back anymore. I was planning to wait until we reached a quieter spot, but the scent coming off you is making me drool."
Even as he spoke,
The blonde youth reached out. His five fingers morphed into vibrant green tendrils, lengthening at an astonishing speed. Spikes erupted from the wood as they slithered like serpents, lunging to bind Hyuk.
Hyuk stood her ground.
Her pupils shrank instantly as she stared at the vine-like fingers. The sight was hauntingly familiar.
In a flash,
BOOM!
A deafening crash shattered the night. The blonde youth was sent flying as if hit head-on by a semi-truck. An overwhelming, raw force slammed him backward, crashing straight through a brick wall bordering the alley.
Crimson sprayed everywhere.
The slithering tendrils snapped instantly.
Covered in blood, the youth was pinned to the rubble by a cold-eyed Hyuk. Searing pain racked his body, and he could barely comprehend what had just happened.
"Was it you? Two years ago?"
Hyuk choked him, her voice ice-cold. She punctuated her question by burying a fist into his face, shattering his nose in a shower of blood. The youth's head spun.
Hyuk demanded again.
"Was it you two years ago?!"
The excruciating pain jolted the blonde youth back to reality. Staring at Hyuk's blood-spattered face, he began to tremble violently. He coughed up blood, desperately trying to answer.
"Cough... what two years ago? I don't know what you're talking about!"
"Did you murder a couple two years ago?!"
"No! I swear I didn't! I only recently arrived in this city! Two years ago, I was..."
Pretending to submit, the blonde youth suddenly split his head wide open, morphing into the shape of a giant Venus flytrap. Spiked, leafy jaws gaped open like a bloody maw, snapping viciously down toward Hyuk's head.
Hyuk was utterly ruthless.
Without hesitation, she grabbed his split, flytrap head and ripped it completely off his shoulders with her bare hands.
SPLAT!
Hot, crimson blood geysered from the headless neck.
Soon after,
Before Hyuk's eyes, the corpse began to wither at a visible rate. Its human appearance dissolved, leaving behind nothing but a tangle of dried, shriveled vines.
The system interface flashed.
[Vinespawn: A bizarre lifeform whose true body is composed of parasitic vines. They survive by draining the blood of other organisms. On their menu, humans are considered premium ingredients and a rare delicacy.]
——
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 11 tons ⬆]
Feeling the palpable increase in her raw power, Hyuk finally understood what "infinite growth" truly meant. It meant that every battle she fought, or every enemy she killed, would directly feed and elevate her strength.
...
[Vinespawn...]
Hyuk typed the word into the search bar and hit Enter. The browser immediately loaded a flurry of related and similar search results.
She clicked through them one by one, but after hours of digging, she came up empty-handed. There was absolutely nothing online that resembled a real-world Vinespawn.
Most of the results were just fictional characters from games or books.
Hyuk couldn't be entirely sure if the system's description was literal. Were these "Vinespawns" actually extraterrestrial beings from another planet?
An alien invasion on Earth?
Then again, if their combat power was only average, it made sense why they hid. If the government ever caught wind of them, a single military squad could easily wipe them out with a hail of gunfire.
Hyuk had countless questions. If they really were aliens, how did they get to Earth in the first place? What was the level of their civilization and technology?
And if the one from last night wasn't the killer from two years ago, it meant there was more than just a single Vinespawn hiding on Earth.
She had no solid leads.
Hyuk decided not to overthink it. None of that mattered to her. Her sole focus was finding the specific Vinespawn that had slaughtered her parents.
She looked up. Across the street was the site of last night's brief skirmish.
There was no police tape, nor any officers investigating. Only occasional passersby paused to look. Inside the shattered brick wall lay a heap of dried, withered vines, completely ignored.
"Huh, who did this?"
"Talk about a terrible construction job. What kind of crew is this sloppy?"
"Wait... is that blood?"
"No way..."
Hyuk listened to the idle chatter of the pedestrians, quietly observing the scene. If the Vinespawn she killed had accomplices, wouldn't they eventually come to investigate?
They would.
Her theory was proven correct almost instantly.
A young man wearing a loose, casual jacket walked past the scene, lingering for just a moment before moving on. Once he gained some distance, Hyuk began tracking him. The distinct, metallic stench of blood blended with a raw, vegetal odor was impossible to miss.
On second thought,
Were Vinespawns technically plants or animals?
The random question crossed Hyuk's mind as she tailed him from a safe distance. The young man remained completely oblivious to her presence all the way until he led her to a secluded, abandoned villa on the outskirts of the city.
Hyuk scanned the perimeter. Finding no surveillance cameras, she leaped effortlessly over the two-meter-high perimeter wall. However, in a stroke of sheer coincidence, she ran straight into a burly, suited man stepping out of the house.
The suited thug froze.
"A human?"
Hearing those words,
Hyuk grinned.
Skipping the pleasantries, she struck instantly. The same powerful muscles capable of unleashing eleven tons of force allowed her to explode forward with terrifying velocity in a fraction of a second.
A shockwave of displaced air roared. BOOM!
By the time the man in the suit could react, Hyuk's fist had already punched clean through his chest. Blood gushed out, painting her arm crimson.
"You..."
Hyuk wrenched her arm back. The suited man collapsed to the ground, his massive frame quickly shriveling as it reverted into a dried heap of vines.
"So their hearts are a fatal weakness too."
It was fascinating how these alien lifeforms worked. Despite being made of plant matter, they still possessed hearts and internal organs, organs that doubled as lethal weak spots.
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 12 tons ⬆]
Her strength had increased once more.
It seemed every kill granted her a clean one-ton boost.
Hyuk noted the detail.
She walked straight into the house. A heavy concentration of the Vinespawn scent hung in the air, guiding her toward where they were gathering.
The basement.
Deafening, bass-heavy music thudded in the dimly lit space. Multi-colored strobe lights flashed, mimicking the wild, chaotic atmosphere of an underground nightclub.
The oblivious young man she had tailed sat at the bar. He turned to the middle-aged bartender and said, "Blondie's useless ass got himself killed."
The bartender finished mixing a glass of crimson liquid and slid it over.
"Did the humans find him?"
"Doesn't look like it," the young man replied, recalling Blondie's gruesome death scene. "If it were humans, the aftermath of the fight wouldn't look like that."
A Vinespawn's tendrils were highly flexible and resilient, giving them a physical edge over average humans. Even so, they would still bleed if hacked by a blade.
Let alone being shot.
The bartender couldn't care less about Blondie's demise. "Dead is dead. If it wasn't a human, it was probably one of our own kind. He was too flashy anyway; it was only a matter of time before he got put down."
"One of our own..."
BANG!
A massive explosion of sound cut their conversation short, freezing the partying Vinespawns in their tracks. Everyone turned to stare at the heavy iron door of the basement entrance.
Immediately after, another deafening slam echoed.
CRASH!
This time, the entire iron door was blown off its hinges. Hyuk strode inside with relaxed steps. Under the flickering strobe lights, she took in the horrific scene within the establishment.
This was no nightclub.
It was a Vinespawn feeding ground.
The heavy, metallic stench of human blood only made Hyuk's grin widen. Her gaze swept over the figures in the room as her killing intent erupted in an instant.
BOOM!
She slammed a Vinespawn against the wall, effortlessly crushing his skull with her bare hands. Seeing this, the other Vinespawns instantly snapped into combat mode.
No words were needed.
This human had come to hunt them, and they were going to slaughter her.
Their heads split open into Venus flytrap shapes, and vine-like tentacles erupted from their bodies, lunging madly at Hyuk. But in a mere heartbeat, she tore through them like wet paper.
Unstoppable, brutal strength.
Blindingly fast speed.
An ironclad defense.
It was a complete massacre. Hyuk could rip apart and shatter a Vinespawn's body with ease, yet they couldn't land a single effective blow on her.
Most terrifyingly, Hyuk's strength was still scaling rapidly. With every Vinespawn she slaughtered, her physical attributes surged to another level.
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 13 tons ⬆]
——
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 15 tons ⬆]
——
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 20 tons ⬆]
——
"Save me!!"
Hyuk snapped the vine tendrils trying to bind her like string. Dark fluids, it was hard to tell if it was sap or blood, sprayed in the dark. She grabbed the nearest Vinespawn's head.
With a casual squeeze, she crushed his skull. CRUNCH!
The desperate scream cut off instantly.
Suddenly,
A sharp, whistling crack sliced through the air beside her. Hyuk spun her head and casually leaned to the side, dodging a razor-sharp vine whip that slammed violently into the wall.
Stone chips exploded outward, leaving a gash in the concrete.
The bartender's entire arm had transformed into a thick whip. He stood composed and unbothered, showing absolutely no emotion at the slaughter of his kin.
He looked at Hyuk and asked, "Who are you?"
Hyuk scanned her surroundings. There were still several Vinespawns left to clear. She had a few questions that needed answering, but she only needed one of them left alive to talk.
With that thought, her figure blurred. The bartender's expression finally cracked. His clothes shredded as a massive swarm of heavy vines erupted from his torso, far exceeding the number of any average Vinespawn.
But it was futile.
Against her overwhelming, pouring force, his defenses were useless. Hyuk's fist punched through the bartender's vine barrier like a hot knife through butter, driving straight through his chest.
BANG!
The impact pinned him securely to the brickwork, Hyuk's fist sinking deep into the wall behind him. She yanked her arm free, letting his dark blood spray onto the floor. Turning around, she walked over to block the exit, locking her gaze on the remaining Vinespawns attempting to flee the basement.
Tonight, none of them were leaving this room alive.
Hyuk had never received any formal combat training. Her fighting style possessed absolutely no technique to speak of, it was simply the absolute peak of raw power, extreme speed, and ultimate defense.
A Vinespawn's attacks couldn't even scratch her skin, yet she could easily shatter and tear apart their fragile bodies. Their sluggish senses couldn't hope to keep up with her movements.
Therefore,
This was a complete, one-sided slaughter.
Blocking the exit of the basement, Hyuk crushed the head of the very last Vinespawn, letting the dark splatter dye her sleeves.
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 29 tons ⬆]
She shut off the music and strobe lights, switching on the harsh fluorescent overheads.
"Finally, some peace."
The previous music had been nothing short of deafening to her enhanced ears. Stepping through the puddles of dark blood covering the floor, she made her way over to the heavily injured bartender.
Her voice was freezing.
"Your life force is surprisingly more resilient than the others. Even if that last punch missed your heart, a wound like this should have already finished you."
"Cough... pretty much," the bartender wheezed, slumping against the wall in a pool of his own dark blood, completely unable to stand. "I'm down to my last breath anyway."
Hyuk wasted no more time on pleasantries.
"I ask, you answer."
The bartender could easily guess what kind of treatment lay in store for him if he didn't cooperate. He was already in excruciating pain and had no desire to be tortured further before the end.
"Ask away. I'm a dead man anyway, there's nothing left to hide."
"Are you aliens?"
"Yes. We are Vinespawns from Planet Lianis."
"What is your purpose here?"
"There is no grand purpose. We just wanted to survive comfortably here, eat, sleep, and live. We don't have any grand ambitions. Planet Lianis is far behind Earth in terms of technology and civilization."
Hyuk was genuinely surprised.
"Then how did you get to Earth?"
"We don't understand it either," the bartender said. "One day we just walked through a door, and the next thing we knew, we were inexplicably here on Earth. We couldn't go back even if we wanted to."
"Where is this door?"
"That one right there."
The bartender gestured toward the basement entrance. It was the same frame that had held the iron door Hyuk had just blasted off its hinges. It looked like an entirely ordinary doorway.
It was hard to believe that such a mundane structure could allow a group of extraterrestrials to simply walk across the vast cosmos and step onto Earth.
Hyuk asked her most burning question. "I'm looking for a specific Vinespawn. Are the ones in this room the only ones on Earth?"
"Cough... no," the bartender shook his head. "Not everyone likes to stick together. When we first arrived on Earth, there were far more of us than there are now. But as for where the others went, I have no idea."
"..."
The trail had gone cold.
Her parents' killer was not among this group.
She fell silent for a moment before asking one last question.
"When did you arrive on Earth?"
"About... about a year ago, I think... If that's all, I need to rest. I'm just so tired..."
With those final words,
The bartender's voice drifted into a faint whisper, and then he was gone.
[Infinite Overload · Potential Unleashed]
[Strength: 30 tons ⬆]
——
[Infinite Overload · Ultimate Leap]
[Evolution Rate: 1%⬆]
Silence reclaimed the basement.
Hyuk's gaze lingered on her evolution rate. It seemed accumulating evolution points was going to be a much slower grind. She was highly curious about what would happen once that rate reached 100%.
Would she evolve into a higher form of life?
Or perhaps unlock some kind of transformation?
She found herself looking forward to that day.
BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!
A default ringtone shattered Hyuk's train of thought. With a quick mental command, she dismissed the system interface and pulled out her phone, only to see a strangely retro smiley face flashing on the screen.
[^_^]
"Huh?"
Hyuk blinked.
That definitely wasn't her default lock screen. Unlocking the device, she realized it wasn't an incoming call, a text, or a notification from any messaging app. A sense of unease crept over her.
PING.
A soft chime rang out, and Hyuk's phone screen automatically transitioned to a blank white interface. Text began typing itself out across the screen.
[I deeply apologize for contact you this way. If my actions have offended you, please accept my sincerest apologies. Hello, Blair Hyuk. My name is Type Zero, a network-based lifeform hailing from an extraterrestrial civilization.]
Hyuk tried to type a reply.
Suddenly, the interface shifted. A pixel-art girl with short hair, dressed in a classic Japanese sailor uniform, appeared on the screen. She gave Hyuk a polite bow, her voice coming through the speakers soft, calm, and sweet.
"Please allow me to communicate with you this way. I can speak with you directly."
Hyuk asked her question.
"What is your goal?"
A digital lifeform.
This was the second type of alien lifeform Hyuk had encountered. Given her digital nature, it wasn't surprising that she could effortlessly hijack Hyuk's phone.
Type Zero spoke with absolute honesty: "Mutual benefit. As part of the first wave of unique entities to appear on Earth, we both need a sufficiently powerful ally, or rather, a comrade-in-arms, to withstand the unknown dangers of the future."
"Why me? I doubt I'm the most special one out there."
"Actually, you are."
Type Zero's response caught Hyuk somewhat off guard.
"You really are the most unique one. Out of all the humans I am aware of, you are the first to possess such overwhelming power without relying on any weapons, just pure, physical strength."
Hyuk was taken aback.
"I'm the first?"
"To the best of my knowledge, yes."
This was completely unexpected.
"You're an alien, right?"
"I am."
"How did you get to Earth?"
"I passed through a portal within my network world and somehow ended up on Earth. To use Earth's technical terms, I went through a one-way gateway. Just like the Vinespawns, that door deactivated the moment it brought me here."
Fresh intelligence.
There wasn't just one portal leading to Earth. These anomalous doors were continuously depositing extraterrestrial beings onto the planet, presenting a major threat to human civilization.
Hyuk remained on high alert.
"For now, I'll believe you're an extraterrestrial digital entity. But why should I trust you? I have no way of knowing if you're just using me to achieve some personal agenda."
"Those who are not of our kind will always have different motives."
Type Zero nodded in understanding, echoing the Earth proverb before offering an incentive Hyuk couldn't possibly refuse: "I can help you locate the Vinespawn that murdered your parents. Given my ability to freely roam the digital world, I can serve as your eyes and ears."
"Then I look forward to working with you."
Hyuk agreed instantly.
Everything else was secondary; her primary objective was vengeance.
"If I have any other purpose, there is only one."
"What's that?"
Type Zero fell silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice carried a profound depth of human emotion, a girl utterly lost in an alien world, small and desperately lonely.
"I am so lonely. I'm the only one of my kind in this network. Just being able to talk to you like this is more than enough for me."
Hyuk was curious.
"Does a digital lifeform actually experience complex emotions just like a human?"
Type Zero explained,
"You misunderstand my state of existence. I'm not some cold, unfeeling binary program. Compared to Earth's artificial intelligence, I'm much closer to a Digimon."
Hyuk understood.