Chapter 2: Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil

Chapter 2: Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil

"Ugh..."

Ji Xinghuo moaned, regaining consciousness. "I'm not dead!"

He shuddered and flipped over, realizing he was sitting on the ground. He was in his familiar bedroom, and there was a puddle of congealed blood where he had been lying.

Aside from a slight dizziness, he felt no other discomfort.

Ji Xinghuo felt a sense of relief.

Before losing consciousness, he had truly believed he was going to die. He was still so young, with so much of life yet to experience. The vast galaxy and starry realm lay untouched, countless majestic sights unseen, and thrilling adventures untaken. It would have been such a shame to perish now.

"It's good to be alive!"

Ji Xinghuo, feeling fortunate to have survived, tried to identify the culprit behind this incident. As expected, the gem was nowhere to be found.

"It really was an exotic species, and I successfully fused with it?" He felt both surprised and delighted, although he couldn't understand why the gem had fused with his eye. Nonetheless, it seemed like a favorable outcome.

"What about my ability?"

Climbing to his feet, Ji Xinghuo didn't seem to have gained any supernatural powers.

He wobbled as he stood, his hand on his head, feeling increasingly dizzy.

His vision flickered.

The images he saw were trembling as if he were looking at an unstable screen. Every few seconds, his vision would go dark for a moment, blurring before quickly regaining clarity, only to repeat the cycle. It was an uncomfortable sensation.

"There's something wrong with my eyes!"

Ji Xinghuo realized that this was most likely the ability he had fused with.

He stumbled to the bathroom, leaning against the wall for support. Standing before the washbasin, he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror and was startled.

His face was smeared with blood, and it had flowed from his eyes, nose, and ears. There were also some unknown liquids—white, red, and mixed with the blood—which had solidified, covering half his face. It looked like his brain matter had exploded, a truly frightening sight.

Splash...

Ji Xinghuo quickly washed away the grime from his face. He found no wounds on his head, nor had anything strange grown from it, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fortunately, my face isn't ruined." He touched his face gently.

While he might not be the type to captivate everyone he met, he was still quite good-looking. His features were distinct, and he had a sunny and resolute demeanor. Many female classmates at school admired him, and he could be considered a handsome young man. If he didn't make it big in the future, he could always fall back on his looks.

Ji Xinghuo glanced at the time; he had been unconscious for about half an hour.

By now, the dizziness in his head had lessened significantly, and his vision was no longer blurry or flickering. Everything seemed to be returning to normal.

Wait a minute!

Ji Xinghuo noticed something unusual. This was not normal at all! While his vision no longer flickered or blurred, it seemed like his visual nerve signals had stabilized, only to be amplified.

The world before his eyes was becoming increasingly clear, revealing more and more details.

Countless tiny water droplets floated in the bathroom air, and the originally spotless floor was covered in a thin layer of dust, some of which had flaked off his skin. When he raised his hand, the skin on the back of his hand resembled a parched and cracked earth, with deep crevices, and each individual hair stood out clearly, even the dust clinging to them visible.

The entire world had changed in Ji Xinghuo's eyes.

"Eagle Eye?"

Ji Xinghuo immediately thought of "Eagle Eye." After fusion, one could possess far-sightedness several times that of a normal person, as well as extremely keen dynamic vision, akin to the eyes of an eagle, hence the name.

Eagle Eye was an exceptional ability, but not a rare one.

Ji Xinghuo felt a bit disappointed.

If it was just Eagle Eye, he would be at a significant disadvantage. There was a vast difference between an exceptional ability and a super-limit ability; they were simply incomparable.

"It's probably not Eagle Eye."

Ji Xinghuo soon noticed a difference.

The most distinctive feature of Eagle Eye was its far-sightedness, but he was currently observing things up close, as if looking through a magnifying glass.

"Is this... Microvision?" Ji Xinghuo was puzzled.

Microvision, like Eagle Eye, was an exceptional ability. One allowed for enhanced long-distance vision, while the other enhanced close-up vision. However, Microvision was even more valuable than Eagle Eye as it provided not only enhanced vision but also served as a powerful aid in close-quarters combat.

How could two completely opposite abilities manifest simultaneously? Moreover, how could a single exotic species possess two different abilities?

Ji Xinghuo returned to his bedroom.

The apartment he rented was designed in a popular minimalist style, with no separate living room. Upon entering, one stepped directly into a spacious bedroom of over 60 square meters. The remaining 40 square meters were divided into two sections, serving as a study and a training room, both of which were also open to the bedroom, creating an unobstructed view.

The apartment had very little furniture. There were two rows of sofas and a coffee table in the middle, with a simple bar counter doubling as a dining table on the side, complete with a kettle and a few other dining utensils.

In the corner stood a virtual platform login cabin.

Apart from these, there were no other decorations, giving the entire apartment a spacious yet desolate feel.

A large bed was placed near the balcony, and embedded in the wall behind it was a large piece of dimmable glass.

"Open the window."

Ji Xinghuo spoke softly.

Instantly, the glass wall turned transparent, revealing the outside scenery.

From this vantage point, one could also behold the multi-layered superconductor highways that interlaced the buildings. Magnetic levitation vehicles sped along these roads, their taillights converging into streams of light that seemed to have no end. These luminous currents encircled the skyscrapers like the veins of a super metropolis, crisscrossing in a relentless torrent.

Ji Xinghuo was accustomed to this breathtaking vista.

Standing before the glass window, his gaze soon fixed on a distant building, three kilometers away.

The night's clarity, unobscured by clouds, offered an unobstructed view.

Ji Xinghuo could clearly make out four glowing Chinese characters atop the building: "Super Ascension Group."

In the past, he could barely discern the presence of characters, let alone their content. But now, not only could he see the large characters clearly, but he could also read the smaller slogan below: "Super Ascension Group is dedicated to serving you, helping you break through bottlenecks, and achieving an extraordinary life!"

"Hehe..." Ji Xinghuo couldn't help but chuckle.

The Super Ascension Group was indeed a household name, ranking among the nation's top companies that specialized in aiding Deviants in their cultivation breakthroughs. Listed for decades, its market value had long surpassed a trillion.

However, the name "Super Ascension" had an ironic ring to it, as it sounded similar to "super birth" in Chinese, which starkly contrasted with the country's population situation and birth policies, often inviting satirical comments.

"It's definitely Eagle Eye, but it's not just that ability."

Ji Xinghuo retracted his gaze, focusing on his hand, and noticed an enhanced tactile sense, as if his thoughts were quicker. He mused, "This is clearly the effect of 'Microvision.'"

Eagle Eye and Microvision, two abilities fused into one.

But there was more! After a moment of introspection, Ji Xinghuo realized that when he focused his gaze on a target, he experienced a mental locking effect. He intuited that if he had an object to throw, he could hit any target within a certain distance with absolute precision.

"As I thought, it's 'Precision' as well!"

Ji Xinghuo was delighted.

The Precision ability significantly improved one's accuracy in shooting or throwing objects.

With training, one could achieve perfect accuracy when shooting at stationary targets and even master the precise control of one's strength. Any action requiring precision would be enhanced.

Although Precision was classified as a superior ability, a notch below exceptional, the combination of Eagle Eye, Microvision, and Precision produced effects comparable to super-limit abilities, or perhaps even superior.

"It seems there's more to this than just three abilities..."

Ji Xinghuo closed the window and continued to explore his newfound powers.

Indeed, he soon discovered that he could see in the dark. In a pitch-black room, his vision formed a peculiar image, indescribable in color, but with remarkable clarity in terms of outlines and movement, almost indistinguishable from normal sight.

"This must be infrared vision!" Ji Xinghuo exclaimed excitedly. "Yet another exceptional ability, and it's also perception-based."

"What kind of exotic species was that gem?"

Ji Xinghuo's astonishment grew as he uncovered more abilities.

Even with his eyes closed, as long as he willed it, he could still "see" his surroundings clearly.

Moreover, he had an instinctual sense as if he possessed an invisible eye that constantly monitored his surroundings, enabling him to react appropriately in any situation.

The former ability was entirely new to Ji Xinghuo, and he couldn't find any similar abilities in the exotic species database.

The latter ability resembled the superior ability "Instinctual Reflex," but it was evidently more potent! Five abilities, all related to the eyes.

Ji Xinghuo began to speculate. Could it be that this was originally a single ability, but its quality was so extraordinarily high that it manifested multiple functions typically associated with lower-tier abilities?

It was common knowledge that each exotic species only contained a single ability.

He stood close to the mirror, examining his eyes.

His black irises appeared no different from before, with normal shapes, showing no signs of any anomalies, let alone traces of the gem.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo noticed a subtle anomaly.

The periphery of his right pupil, the tiny aperture at the center of the iris through which light entered the eye, flickered slightly, revealing a faint ring of light!

This luminous ring was extremely narrow, less than half a millimeter in width, barely perceptible to the average person, but it was clearly visible to him.

The ring was dim yet vibrant with color, perfectly hugging his pupil.

Several microscopic cracks appeared in the depths of his pupil, resembling the contours of a nebula. Ji Xinghuo was all too familiar with this shape, having studied the gem intently for the past week, committing every detail to memory.

"It has fused with my right eye!"

As Ji Xinghuo was about to continue his investigation, the luminous ring around his pupil flickered, and his vision suddenly superimposed an image of a human body. This image was composed of pale, translucent lines, revealing both the external and internal structures, and the facial features were identical to his own.

No matter which way he turned his head, the hologram remained fixed in his line of sight.

He calmed his mind and observed it closely, noticing several strange symbols beside the hologram that seemed to be a form of text, but he couldn't recognize it.

As soon as this thought occurred to him, the text blurred for a moment, and he felt a dizzy spell before the text reappeared in clear, familiar Chinese characters.

【Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil Master: Ji Xinghuo】

【Race: Earth Human】

【Tier: None】

【Ability: None】

【Spiritual Source Energy: 0】

Ji Xinghuo was stunned by the content displayed in the information panel, his breath caught in his throat. The panel was simple, resembling the attribute panels from games he had played, but its very existence completely overturned his understanding of the world!

"Jackpot!"

"Holy crap, I've hit the jackpot this time!" Ji Xinghuo exclaimed, barely containing his excitement. Fortunately, he had always been calmer than his peers, and he managed to calm down within a few minutes, proceeding to study the information panel intently.

The most crucial piece of information was in the first line: Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil Master.

"So the gem is called the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil!" Ji Xinghuo realized, the name fitting perfectly with its form and function. Abilities like Eagle Eye and See Micro Precision were likely derived from the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil.

The term "Myriad Phenomenon" in Chinese implied the myriad phenomena and objects in the universe.

The dizziness he experienced when the text transformed indicated that the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil was accessing his brain's knowledge and presenting the information in a way he could understand.

From this, he could deduce that the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil was an artificial creation.

It wasn't an exotic species!

Ji Xinghuo's heart skipped a beat as he contemplated the unknown civilization or race that had created the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil. They must possess technology far beyond that of Earth, perhaps belonging to one of the dominant civilizations in the Milky Way galaxy.

How did the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil end up on Earth?

Would it bring any future calamities?

"There probably won't be any trouble," Ji Xinghuo thought, not overly alarmed. If there were any problems, it wasn't something he could solve, so there was no use worrying about it.

He pushed aside these distracting thoughts and continued examining the information panel.

The race was self-explanatory.

Tier, he assumed, referred to the level of evolution of a life form.

In the galaxy and starry realm, the numerous civilizations and nations had their own unique systems for classifying strength and naming tiers. However, there was also a universal standard—the number of times a life form had evolved. Once was first-tier, twice was second-tier, and so on.

As he was not yet a Deviant, he naturally had no tier.

Similarly, he had no abilities.

The Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil, being an artificial creation, was a tool and didn't count as an ability, which meant he could still fuse with another ability!

However, he couldn't make sense of the last entry, "Spiritual Source Energy," no matter how long he thought about it.

The purpose of the human-shaped hologram in the interface also eluded him.

Before he knew it, dawn had broken.

Ji Xinghuo closed the information panel, lay down on his bed, and quickly fell asleep.

This time, he didn't have any nightmares.

When he woke up at noon, Ji Xinghuo felt refreshed and energized, the fatigue of the past few days washed away. He got up, washed, and dressed in clean clothes, feeling better than ever before. After a quick instant lunch, he stepped out of his home.

After a night of contemplation, Ji Xinghuo had come to a realization: to understand the true use of the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil, he first needed to become a Deviant.

This wouldn't be a difficult task for him.

Ji Xinghuo's apartment was on the 45th floor. He took the elevator down to the underground parking lot, where a driverless magnetic levitation car pulled up in front of him and came to a smooth stop. He opened the door and sat in the back seat, fastening his seatbelt. The car immediately started silently and drove out of the parking lot.

After exiting the building, the car drove for a few hundred meters on the ground before entering a ramp that quickly ascended to a height of several dozen meters above the ground, merging onto the superconductor highway.

Cars whizzed by outside the windows, disappearing from view in the blink of an eye.

Vrrrrrr...

The soft hum of the electric engine filled the air as Ji Xinghuo felt a gentle push against his back. The magnetic levitation car steadily accelerated in the acceleration lane while simultaneously changing lanes to the left.

After about ten seconds, when the car reached a speed of 350 kilometers per hour, the four wheels retracted into the chassis, and the entire vehicle hovered in the air, switching to the cruising lane.

Ji Xinghuo gazed out the window.

The buildings on both sides of the superconductor highway sped backward, their massive advertisement screens and neon lights still dazzling even in the daytime. As the car raced forward, the lights formed colorful streams of light in his vision, creating a mesmerizing, psychedelic effect.

In the past, Ji Xinghuo would have struggled to make out the scenery at such high speeds.

Now, with a casual glance, everything appeared crystal clear in his vision, as if a high-definition camera had captured every frame!

"This feeling..."

Ji Xinghuo couldn't help but marvel, "It's truly amazing!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end