Soulless - Chapter 5 (Patreon)

Chapter 5 – “Interface”

The sudden appearance of the screen jump-scared Kai, making him stumble and hit his head against the moss-covered rock wall. While the moss definitely blanketed the damage, it still caused his headache to flare with excruciating pain once again.

"For fuck's sake." He mumbled angrily while rubbing the now very sore spot on the back of his head.

The screen was still in Kai's vision after an awkward tussle back to his feet, and by testing with a few hand swishes and the turning of his head, he realized that it wasn't actually projected out in front of him, but was instead directly in his head. This proved both convenient and disconcerting at the same time...

Another odd thing of note was that he, for some unknown reason, was able to perceive both the things in front of him and the screen simultaneously without any problems at all even though it wasn't actually transparent. The experience was a bit freaky, but to be honest, that was probably the least of weird things that had happened to him as of late.

"I suppose I'll have to get used to these kinds of things now..." He sighed.

Now calmed down, Kai took a seat on a half-decayed wooden log that was embedded in the muddy ground and finally took stock of what the hell this odd screen was telling him.

But with just an only cursory glance, it became obvious that this screen was the promised second boon of the mysterious goddess -cosmic being -ah whatever, goddess it is...

The screen presented a lot of terms that, while on their own Kai knew what meant, but in the context of his new circumstances, he hadn't the faintest clue. Luckily, it seemed that he wasn't just left to find out on his own as he could instinctually feel that he could inspect individual things on the screen by simply willing the information to appear.

Focusing on the first thing other than his name, he pulled the description up for his race.

"Pretty much what I expected. " He nodded to himself. "But... an affinity with the great Dao? Does that mean I learn things quicker or what the hell does it actually mean?" He couldn't help but wonder.

He attempted to open up another information tab about this affinity, however, no more information was presented than the meager tidbits that were already shown. As such, he could only move on to the next.

"I suppose that's also rather self-explanatory, but it definitely seems useful to possess one." Kai absentmindedly mumbled to himself, quite intrigued if a possibility for him to acquire one would ever present itself.

"Huh..." He muttered intelligently, slightly confused. "Rather vague."

Once again, minimal information was presented, and Kai was starting to get somewhat irritated by the lack of information. Wasn't this supposed to be some kind of boon that would help him survive in this alien world? But it only seemed to raise more questions rather than answering them...

"Okay, then." He muttered, annoyance clear both in his voice and the scrunched-up expression on his face. "This must have something to do with cultivation, but what the hell am I to make of it? Skin... bone... muscle -what? Are these 'augments', some kinds of different stages or something entirely else?"

It definitely seemed to have some importance in cultivation, but what these 'augments' were, and how they mattered, was just pure guesswork.

"Could've guessed that myself..." He sighed, annoyance now turning to dejection. "Would really like to know how one such as myself would start cultivating instead..."

"Please stop." He groaned.

"Oh?" He said, the sour expression plastered across his face lessening. "Not much, but it's something... So this is what it meant by Dao Affinity?"

"Now we're talking." He said rubbing his hands gleefully together. It was a bit surprising that the chosen 'medium' had been an interface like those of video games from back on earth, and although Kai was never really one to be able to indulge in such a privilege all that much, he definitely could recognize the fact of what this trait was.

Also being equipped with things like [Language Omniscience] and [Eidetic Absorption] could definitely prove immensely useful in his new endeavors as it would practically anywhere on Earth if he had the abilities then.

"The wheel of samsara? That was reincarnation, right?" He mumbled, remembering it being mentioned quite a few times on the old books of Callum's bookstore. Going over everything, Kai just sat there for a long moment. The gears in his head churning with the new information.

Coming to a conclusion, he just sighed.

"I'm fucked aren't I?" He said rather resigned.

When that woman had told him of boons, he expected some immensely powerful gifts and tools for his immediate survival, her being seemingly omniscient and all. But after combing through everything, he realized while they were all useful things down the road, they were ultimately useless to him now.

Without any tools for survival, not even a damned weapon, how was he meant to survive his currently distressing ordeal? Where were his special abilities? Where were his advantages and cheats that would allow him to ascend beyond that of his peers? At least something that would allow him to not meet a fate that meant dying face down in the mud?

Shaking his head of the abrupt illusions of grandeur that had appeared upon remembering the promised boons from a divine being, he realized how stupidly had been thinking. No, he did not wish for sudden unearned power and glory. What had not been earned was worthless.

He hadn't discarded a meaningless life to simply accept a new but ultimately still meaningless life.

Kai yearned for power, but not for it to be simply handed to him. He had accepted to woman's offer because he wished to forge his own path, his own power, and his own life.

In that moment of self-reflection, unbeknownst to Kai, a determination, a hunger for power glinted in his eyes; one so fierce that it even caused the small animals and critters all around him to shudder under an unseen pressure that went wholly unnoticed by even himself. The very same hunger that had made the cosmic being so apprehensive.

His newly acquired ability to affect the world on a spiritual plane with his Spirit Body already had consequences of which he did not know of.