When Ryan Miller opened his eyes, the first thing he felt was heat...
Not the pleasant warmth of a summer morning, but an oppressive blaze... thick and suffocating... pressing against his chest like a furnace... The air itself shimmered... dense, vibrant, alive...
For a moment, he could not breathe... His last memories were of betrayal... grief... and the suffocating cold of death... Yet here he was... alive again... heart pounding... lungs burning with air that felt far too real...
He staggered upright...
The world around him was familiar, yet wrong... The sky was a shade of blue too deep to be natural... Trees stretched like giants... their leaves glowing with unnatural brilliance... Down the street, a girl tugged at the leash of a beast so massive it looked more like livestock than a pet... Children laughed as they rode atop another creature the size of a pony... while cats with two swaying tails lounged lazily in the shade... sleek and predatory... more leopard than house pet...
Ryan's chest tightened...
This is not Earth... not the Earth I knew...
Memories surged... his family's fall... his father falsely accused and executed... his mother broken... his own disgrace and death... He had thought it was over... But fate had given him something no one else had...
Reincarnation...
A second chance...
And more than that... a gift...
A hidden system...
The ability to absorb the strength of others with a single touch...
In this new era... where warriors split rivers and shattered mountains... where the strong ruled everything... Ryan Miller was no longer starting from nothing... He had his memories... his resolve... and a divine cheat that bent the rules of this world...
This time, things would be different...
---
The Evergreen Martial Arts Academy bustled with activity... its training halls echoing with shouts and pounding footsteps...
Ryan had joined on a whim... originally for fitness... But now? The academy was a hunting ground...
Because when students trained, they dropped glowing, transparent orbs... bubbles of raw attributes... Strength... speed... techniques... skills...
And Ryan was the only one who could see them...
The only one who could collect them...
But there was a catch... each bubble had a time limit... Miss it, and it dissolved into nothing... Just minutes ago, he had watched a cluster fade away before he could reach them... The sting was worse than losing money...
"This routine is based on the ancient methods of the Singh Continent... Ninth set... War Spirit... Begin..." the instructor barked, adjusting the music system at the front of the hall...
Music blared...
Ryan froze... Why did it sound so damn familiar...
"First movement... stretching... one, two, three, four..."
The tall, broad-shouldered instructor demonstrated... muscles rippling like steel cables...
"Second... chest expansion... Third... kicks..."
Ryan's jaw dropped...
Wait a damn second... These were... the old radio workouts...?!
Except here, they were ten times more brutal... infused with real energy circulation... The upbeat rhythm... the military chants... it was surreal...
Yet it worked... He could feel the waves of energy pulsing through the hall... Every motion sharpened students' bodies... drawing out hidden potential...
The music stopped... The instructor wiped sweat from his forehead... "Got it? Or need another demo..."
"Got it... clear as day..." Ryan answered quickly...
The man blinked, faintly impressed... "Huh... sharp memory... Took me three tries when I was your age..."
Ryan smiled politely, but his attention had already shifted... Across the room, a boy hammered at a heavy bag... each punch sending tremors through the floor...
Glowing orbs scattered...
Ryan casually brushed past, scooping them up...
[Basic Fist Technique plus seven]
[Strength plus five]
A grin tugged at his lips... Goldmine...
"Kids pick and choose... I'll take everything..." Ryan murmured... "I'm grown now..."
---
On the academy's running track, a chubby teen thundered past like a locomotive... sweat flying... With every step, he dropped bubbles behind him like breadcrumbs...
Ryan's eyes lit up... Movement technique...
He followed discreetly, harvesting the trail...
[Speed plus one]
[Speed plus one]
[Basic Footwork plus three]
[Speed plus one]
The runner suddenly skidded to a stop, glaring... "Hey... why're you tailing me..."
"I'm not... just training..." Ryan replied smoothly...
"Bullshit..." The boy huffed, stomping off...
"Wait... don't stop... You were doing great..." Ryan called after him... The look he got in return made him sound insane...
By the time Ryan left, it was past one a.m... The academy had emptied, but his gains were real... His strength and speed had climbed noticeably... and more importantly... he had acquired his first skills...
[Basic Fist]
[Basic Footwork]
Strength without technique was wasted... Skills turned raw power into true combat ability...
Tomorrow, he would be back... And he would harvest more...
---
The Miller home was still lit when he returned... His mother, Ria, set dinner on the table with a gentle smile... while his father, Steve, ate quietly...
Steve's brows furrowed when Ryan walked in... "Where the hell have you been..."
"Evergreen Martial Arts Academy..." Ryan sat down casually... eyes already on the steaming bowl... "Mom... did you save me egg ramen... I'm starving..."
"Of course..." Ria said warmly... "I made it just for you..."
Ryan dug in, slurping noisily... Steve leaned closer, nostrils flaring... checking for alcohol... When he found none, his frown eased...
"You went to learn martial arts..." he asked, genuinely surprised...
Ryan nodded between mouthfuls...
Steve and Ria exchanged a startled glance...
"You want a proper master..." Steve pressed... "I can ask around... find you a high-level teacher..."
"No need..." Ryan shook his head... He had something better than any master... Something no one could give him...
Steve studied him for a long moment before sighing... "Fine... Evergreen's good too... Even if you only become an advanced student, it will toughen you up... Health comes first... A strong body is the foundation of everything..."
Ryan smiled faintly... His father had no idea... If Steve knew his son could one day become a true warrior... perhaps even reach the legendary General Stage... he would probably lose his mind...
For now, secrecy was best...
Steve seemed oddly reassured, though... Maybe his son was finally growing up... Or maybe... it was love...
"Son..." Steve said suddenly... "You are seventeen now... If you have a girlfriend, your mother and I will not object... Just do not let it distract you..."
Ryan did not hear him...
If he had, his face would have gone pale...
Because Steve's idea of a girlfriend...
Mr. Tandon's daughter...
The girl who weighed over two hundred pounds...