The upper limit of one’s soul capacity was indeed an invisible constraint.
And just like elemental affinity, it varied from person to person.
After all, Su Chen had already obtained five Elemental Runes, surpassing the four-Rune limit that seemed to bind others.
’The depths of my own consciousness are a chaotic darkness. For now, I can’t see how many Runes this ’soul container’ of mine can hold, nor do I know where the boundary of that invisible spiritual barrier lies.’
Regarding this,
he suspected that increasing his Intelligence Attribute might be the key to breaking this limit. Alternatively, the rare upgrade material, Spiritual Dust Sand, might be able to handle the task.
’It’s all a mystery.’
’I’ll have to use the family’s Jade Pendant to investigate this further down the line.’
Soon,
Su Chen returned the favor, sharing the monster knowledge he possessed. He described swarms of Dark Element monkeys that lurked in the treetops and fed on human brains, phototactic Gold Element Iron-Eating Insects, and scavenging Mutant Giant Rats that could burrow into the earth to escape.
In addition to what he had personally witnessed, he also included intel he’d picked up from the broadcast, such as the basic behaviors of giant spiders and Vampire Bats.
His descriptions were brief, but he covered all the important details.
Not a single word was wasted.
Everyone listened, stunned. While they recognized some of the monsters he mentioned, many were completely new to them. The eight members of the Jingcheng University archery club, at least, didn’t doubt him in the slightest; Gong Jun and another female student even pulled out their phones to quickly take notes.
Understanding a monster’s habits was the best way to avoid getting killed on a first encounter.
This wasn’t a game. They didn’t have second lives to waste on trial and error.
Seeing Su Chen pick up his knife and fork to cut his steak again, the Jingcheng University girl in the knit cardigan was too embarrassed to ask him to repeat himself. Instead, she turned to Pang Peng to compare notes and see if they had missed anything.
"Is he for real?"
A young couple looked skeptical, but they weren’t tactless enough to question him to his face.
In the current situation, the archery championship contestants at the base were symbols of power and authority. And with Jingcheng University being such a prestigious name, it was only natural for others to hold Yan Ziqian and his group in high regard.
Now, seeing this group from Jingcheng University take this lone wolf so seriously—even taking meticulous notes—made the others both curious and a little awestruck.
’What’s this guy’s story?’
’He doesn’t have a bow on his backpack, so he’s probably not one of the archery contestants.’
When Su Chen mentioned a giant bear that could use Flame Burst and the Fireball Technique, everyone was taken aback. They hadn’t imagined that the giant Earth Element bear that had rampaged into the base also had a Fire Attribute version.
That rampaging, armored tank of a beast had caused immense trouble for the defenders on the west side.
Subconsciously, it never occurred to any of them that he might have fought the bear alone. That possibility was so far beyond their imagination that they just assumed he had heard about it on the broadcast.
With the conversation flowing freely,
others began to share their own insights. The topic soon turned to theories about why the entire city had been transported here.
With a group composed mostly of young people, their imaginations naturally ran wild.
One theory was that this was a trial of gods and demons, and that behind the starry veil, higher-dimensional beings were placing bets on them.
A second theory proposed a clash of civilizations, where Dongfu City had been chosen to represent Earth, ready to be pitted against powerful alien foes at any moment.
The third theory was more of a psychological thriller. It suggested that Dongfu City had already been reduced to ruins in the real-world earthquake, with devastating casualties. Everything they were experiencing now was nothing more than a large-scale, near-death hallucination, woven together by the resonance of their collective subconscious.
"That..."
Two people stared blankly, finding the theory strangely convincing. After all, there had been an earthquake at the very beginning, and after a flash of intersecting lights, the entire city had fallen into the Otherworld.
"So, does that mean we really died in the earthquake? Everything went dark, and all of this since then has just been a brainwave afterimage? If it’s all a hallucination, then what’s the point of fighting so hard to survive, of standing guard through the night? We might as well just let our consciousness fade into silence,"
a young woman murmured.
At that moment, the ever-silent ice beauty, Yan Ruoruo, lifted her gaze slightly and spoke in a cool tone. "He just used a pile of terms from modern psychology and neuroscience to cobble together a far-fetched, nihilistic hypothesis.
"And you," she continued, "are only inclined to believe this nihilistic theory because, deep down, you don’t want to put in the effort to fight back. You’re using it to numb yourself into believing that everything you do is meaningless."
In the wake of her chilling, quiet words...
Cao Yutang, the one who had proposed the theory, looked embarrassed and raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.
The young woman, however, flushed with shame and anger. She glared at Yan Ruoruo from across the campfire, shot to her feet, and opened her mouth as if to say something, but then stopped. Finally, with a frustrated flick of her wrist, she grabbed her boyfriend and stormed out of the canopy tent.
The atmosphere grew quiet.
Yan Ziqian lowered his head, a forlorn expression on his face. ’I have to accept my cold, detached sister for who she is,’ he thought. ’When it comes to medicine, she knows far more than I do.’
’As long as she’s alive, that’s all that matters. The damage to her prefrontal cortex, the brain cells that won’t regenerate... I can only hope that Rune Magic might one day work a miracle.’
Su Chen hadn’t participated in the conversation. As he finished the last piece of his steak, he mused to himself, ’Looks like the increase to my Physique attribute really boosted my appetite.’
’Maybe the increased cellular activity raised my metabolic demands.’
Full and satisfied!
He glanced at the time on his phone: 10:12 p.m.
’This new world probably doesn’t run on a 24-hour cycle,’ he thought. ’I’ll have to keep observing to figure out the actual length of day and night.’
Although Su Chen felt his Vitality and mental energy were still high, his old habits prompted him to stick to his biological clock and try to get to sleep before midnight.
After all, he had a long trek deep into the Mysterious Forest ahead of him in the morning.
"Does anyone want to trade for Elemental Essence? I can offer Earth Element Essence—its characteristic is defense. You all should consider it." He looked at the cool, detached girl beside him, his gaze then sweeping over the others nearby.
Yan Ruoruo met his gaze. In the firelight, her eyes were placid and still, like a pair of clear amber beads. She asked, "What do you need? Can you trade for two Thunder Element Essences?"
"I can." Su Chen nodded, pulling two small vials from his bag one after the other. Each contained a small, earth-brown orb.
Seeing this,
the fashionable girl sitting across from Yan Ruoruo didn’t hesitate for a second, immediately pulling two small vials containing the Thunder Element orbs from her purse.
To prevent the Essences from merging and becoming difficult to divide for trades, everyone had taken to storing them in separate containers.
"Hey, I have a Thunder Element one, too!" a man from the small group of three to the left called out from under the canopy. From his eagerness, it was clear he was trying to poach a deal.
Su Chen simply responded by calmly pulling another small vial from his bag.
It, too, contained an Earth Element Essence.
’Don’t tell me he has more...’
A few people couldn’t help but stare at his bulging canvas backpack, but he quickly cinched it tight, preventing anyone from seeing what was inside.
With those simple exchanges completed, Su Chen absorbed all three Thunder Element Essences right then and there, feeding them all to his Jingzhe Rune.
Advancement Requirement: Thunder (2/2) + Thunder (2/2) + Wood (0/2)
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