...
Aurelian remained coiled, the warmth of rat's blood still lingering in his mouth. But his mind was elsewhere ashe stared at translucent panel, a familiar yet altered construct like an old friend who'd returned from a journey.
"Still clinging to me, huh?" He hissed softy, the sound far less intimidating than he'd intended. But there was no time to dwell. He forced his focus to the panel.
[System Panel]
Name: Aurelian Sors
Species: Small White Snake
Level: 2 (19/300 EXP)
Free Points: 1
Health: 510/600
Stamina: 480/500
Attributes: (Can be increased with level-up)
Strength (STR): 4
Agility (AGI): 5
Endurance (END): 5
Constitution (CON): 6
Special Attributes: (Cannot be increased with level-ups; increases through special conditions)
Spirit (SPR): 9
Perception (PER): 9
Charm (CHA): 3
Skills:
[Bite(Lv1)] (New)
• A precise and forceful bite attack.
• Consumes Stamina to use.
[Night Vision](Passive) (New!)
• Allows vision in darkness.
Talents:
[???]
• Upon killing an enemy, devour their ??? in the form of Experience to level up.
• After devouring an enemy, the host may extract Powers, but only those that the host's body has the potential to develop.
• Healing and recovery effects activate upon consuming prey.
• Similar skills or talents can be fused to create something stronger.
• ??? (Requires Level 10 to unlock)
[White]
• Unlocks a special stat: Charm.
• Grants a subtle, alluring presence (+2 Charm).
[Group Chat]
A miracle that originated from the fusion of a Space-Time treasure, Destiny Power, and System Panel. This mystical construct weaves the destinies of various individuals across space-time within a single world. The strength and capabilities of the system grow alongside its wielder.
Functions:
• Group Chat: A real-time communication platform connecting participants. Messages can be sent instantly, regardless of distance.
• Live: Allows members to share their live experiences as a visual, visible to others in the chat.
• Translation: Automatically translates all languages within the group chat, allowing communication between members.
• Pocket Space: A personal dimension accessible to all group members, usable for temporary storage or transferring items. Capacity is influenced by the host's power.
• Time-Locked Archive: Stores past conversations, live streams, and significant memories. Accessible only with authorization from the host.
• Host Authority: The host has ultimate control over the chat, including inviting members, expelling threats, or restricting certain functions.
Aurelian's mind raced to trying to make sense of information before him. The panel itself was familiar but now it had turned into something far more complex.
"Levels? Experience? This is practically a game system now." He murmured inwardly
Species: Small White Snake
His eyes twitched. Even after two deaths the world always found some ways to make fun of him. The words tasted bitter. Still, sulking won't change anything. He moved down.
His eyes fell onto Basic attributes. Mostly familiar concept from his previous life. "Four Strength," He mused, the number was quite low from what he had in his human form. "A normal human has 5 in every normal attribute. I'm weaker than an average person.
A bitter hiss escaped his mouth, but then something clicked. The surge of power he'd felt after killing the rat from before, "so it was a level up." His Attributes has increased by one point each.
"So that's how it works." Killing now gives me EXP and consuming or devouring the prey gives me its talents or skills. His attention then shifted to Special Attributes. "Spirit. Perception. Charm... these weren't in my previous system. So they don't increase with level ups?"
Spirit stood at nine, surprisingly high. Aurelian felt a sense of pride. Even now as a lowly snake. His core, willpower, determination, they hadn't diminished by fate's cruel joke.
"Spirit must be related to mind, my intelligence, willpower, something special for it to become special attribute. Now that i think about it in those novels those characters had intelligence as normal attributes but they were still dumb, they were never truly intelligence or willpower, it is something much more deeper, he concluded. "No wonder it's high, I've been through hell twice."
Then, there was also perception at 9, that was equally intriguing. "That's probably because, I'm snake no." He reasoned. "Enhanced senses, night vision, beast instinct, combined with my combat experience that has etched into my bones, oh.. i don't have bones now. Anyways it makes sense."
But his amusement faltered as his gaze met the last special stat.
Charm: 3. A blank stare, then a hiss escaped through his mouth. "I never had this as a human, is this.. mocking my looks from my previous life."Charm? Why the hell does a reptile like me has it?" He thought it might be a glitch, but the explanation was there.
[White]
• Unlocks a special attribute: Charm.
• Grants a subtle, alluring presence (+2 Charm).
"White? being white is some kind of talent? Am i some kind of rare, albino, heartthrob of the snake world? So charm isn't something everyone has, i only unlocked it due to this talent? alluring? To what? Worms? Other snakes? The sarcasm is so thick, i could spread it on a toast.
"But still, this is useful, maybe it affects how others perceive me, first impression, social interactions, that's very nice.
His gaze shifted to skills. "Bite level one, Night vision? Must have been what he gained from the rat, explaining the sudden improvement in his ability to see in the darkness. "Well, bite is.. biting more efficiently. Makes sense."
But, it was the talents section that truly captured his attention. The first talent, "[???]... That's Devour. But.. different." It was unmistakably the transformed version of his Devour superpower.
"Now it has become a talent? Yes, i feel more more deeper connection between us like something completely fused with me. So talents.. are like engraving upon soul, shaping who or what you are."
"Upon killing an enemy, devour their.. what? Soul? Life energy? Who cares? Whatever it is, it's now classified as 'EXP' for level-ups." The second description was straightforward, he could extract talents, skills from prey, but only those his body could potentially develop, "Restriction? No.. the talent has become stronger, i can feel it, there's something else.. much more deeper that I don't understand yet." Healing and recovery effect explained why he felt better after consuming the rat, it's quite convenient. "Atleast eating my prey serves multiple purposes now."Fusion.. so my favourite party trick is still there."
He paused, his mental gaze lingering on the final line, "Requires level 10 to unlock? This intrigued him the most. Evolution? Transformation? Some kind of super snake form?" He forced himself to stop speculating. "No point in guessing. I'll reach level 10 and find out myself." Even though he could change the name of the talent, he still waited till he reach level 10, to see what would change and then he'll name it based on that.
The second talent [White] he skipped it, as he had already gone through it. Then he moved onto the final talent.
[Group Chat]
The moment he read the name, Aurelian's expression froze. A wave of disbelief coursed through him. "Group chat? What the fuck..?" As he read the description, his memories flashed back. The treasure. The explosion. And now this talent stood before him, its description echoing like a whisper in the past.
Aurelian's thought raced. " That blasted supreme treasure... It came with me?" And even fused with me completely and became this so called Group Chat Talent. But what is this " Destiny power?"
"Was i caught in some current of fate while travelling between the worlds?" he wondered. "Did my Devour absorb some force of destiny during my reincarnation?" It was the only plausible reason he could come up, as this will also explain the change of his Devour superpower to [???], And why he came up with this was because he didn't think he was any special except for his Devour superpower and probably his luck as well which might have helped him in a reincarnations and performing this so called Miracle.
An absurd thought couldn't help but come to his mind, where he thought he might be Protagonist of some Novel. (lol)
He decided not to dwell on something he wasn't sure about. Instead, he focused on the applications of this new talent.
"A communication platform, live sharing, pocket space, translator, archive.. this is incredible," he marveled. "With this, I could gather information, store items, maybe even find allies." A sudden thought occurred to him. "How many people can I connect with for now?"
[Current Connection Limit: 1 person]
"One person? One? Well, better than no one. But still, seriously? He internally grumbled. Finally, his attention turned to that one 'Free point'. "A reward for leveling up? I suppose." He thought about where to use it. He considered his options carefully. Strength would help him in combat, Agility would make him faster, Endurance would give him stamina aka make him last longer, Constitution would increases overall Health Points.
But then he rememberd his Special attributes. Both Spirit and Perception sat at nine, just 1 one point away from ten. His instincts told him that something would happen at a ten. "Perception is quite crucial for a snake" he decided. "Better senses means better survival odds."
With a thought he allocated his Free point to Perception.
The word around him shifted. Colours became more vivid. His senses sharpened.
The air around him seemed clearer, richer. He could smell more, feel more. The vibrations of the ground were no longer vague sensations but precise movements. Then came something unexpected.
[New Skill Acquired: Thermal Vision(Lv1)]
• Allows thermal vision within 50 meters.
• Enhances eyesight.
• Consumes 100 Stamina upon activation, and 1 Stamina per second while active.
Aurelian was surprised, but before he could relish the upgrade, another line appeared.
[??? Reacts to Host's Evolution. Skill Fusion Available.]
[Thermal Vision and Night Vision can be fused. Proceed?]
"Fusion already?" he thought, again surprised. Without hesitation, he mentally confirmed.
[Fusion Successful!] [New skill created] [Nocthermal Vision(Passive)]
• Can see in darkness.
• Thermal vision range now depends on Perception. (Current: 100 metres)
• Enhanced overall vision
• Consumes 100 Stamina upon activation, and 1 Stamina per second while active.
The fusion had created something better. Previously, I would have to level this skill up to increase the range, but now after combining it with a passive skill and increasing perception. It has now become something that is passively connected to Perception and can be activated whenever i want.
...