Get comfortable, turn the page, and let’s see what this story has been hiding 🔥 ✦ Kieran had once looked down on this world from the perspective of a reader.
Now that he had transmigrated here and become one of its inhabitants, he did not feel superior because of it.
He would not claim to understand this world thoroughly.
In the end, with the source material as incomplete as it was…
That so-called reader’s perspective had only allowed him to see part of the world’s map, much less the broader unknown land beyond it.
Therefore, since he had been staying indoors, he believed it was necessary to understand this world more deeply by reading as many books as possible.
Swampman was one of the fantasy novels he had read to change his mood.
Its themes were soul and the question, “What am I, really?” The story began with a person being struck dead by lightning while crossing a swamp.
Then the lightning and the swamp reacted in a strange way, creating a living being identical to the dead person in form, mass, and even soul.
Using that kind of restart as its opening, the story raised a question: If the preservation of the soul grants a new beginning, am I still me?
He stood before the bookshelf and opened Swampman.
He had read it not long ago, so his impression of it was still fairly complete.
His slender fingertips brushed across the pages before stopping at one particular place.
‘Shadow.’ He stared at the word that stood out most clearly to him among the lines.
The shadow was the medium that copied the soul.
But what if it was not copying?
What if it was fusion?
Thoughtful, he turned toward his own shadow and willed it to move.
The small amount of aura that had recovered inside his body slowly flowed out through his aura nodes, then merged into the shadow.
Mimicry.
As aura poured in, his shadow first separated from him.
Then it slowly shifted from flatness into three dimensions, constructing a pitch-black human figure exactly the same size as him.
“This is my Nen ability, but it is still only an embryonic form…” He carefully studied the motionless black humanoid in front of him.
It looked like a mannequin.
He murmured, “The burden of using it is much lighter now, and it consumes less aura.” The first time he used the ability, the shadow had only bulged into a bubble.
It lasted three seconds and nearly drained all the aura in his body.
This time, he had spent only a small portion of his aura to mimic a human shape, and it had already lasted longer than three seconds.
“Because my idea of the ability has grown clearer, I can use it more smoothly.
Even constructing the form has become easier.” He roughly understood the reason.
This Nen ability connected to his shadow was still only an embryonic form.
Once his aura reserves and techniques improved, he would be able to refine it further and develop more effects.
But only if his memory capacity could contain the effects he developed.
The more complicated a Nen ability was, the more memory capacity it occupied.
Generally speaking, a Nen user could fill all of their memory capacity just by developing one mature Nen ability.
However, a small number of exceptionally gifted Nen users could develop a second or even a third ability without burden.
“I will call it Soul Echo.” He gave his ability a name.
He also planned to use Water Divination to test his category once his foundational techniques stabilized.
Only after identifying his category could he refine his Nen ability in the right direction.
[Soul Echo] [Category: untested.] [First-stage ability: uses the shadow as a vessel for aura and performs mimicry.] [Current mimicry limit: unknown.
Initial estimate suggests the limit can be expanded through conditions and restrictions.] After naming his new ability, he began experimenting with the shadow mannequin.
“Raise your left hand.” Thinking along the lines of Manipulation, he gave the shadow mannequin a simple command.
The words fell, but the shadow mannequin gave no response at all.
“Huh.
Am I not a Manipulator?
No, that does not make sense.
Even with the wrong category, a simple command like that should not get zero feedback.” He lifted a hand to his chin.
Then he lowered the difficulty of the command and only tried to make the shadow mannequin move one finger.
The shadow mannequin still did not move.
“That is not right.” He raised an eyebrow and began thinking through the reason.
“Right.” Looking at the shadow mannequin, which showed no fluctuation of aura at all, he smiled.
“Even though you have separated from my body, we are still one at the core.
So…” At that point, he closed his eyes and issued a command to the shadow mannequin inside his consciousness.
The next moment, the shadow mannequin raised its left hand as intended.
He opened his eyes and looked at the mannequin holding its hand up.
Satisfaction appeared on his face.
Because he was not yet skilled with the ability, and because his aura was still insufficient, he needed to close his eyes to improve his focus.
Once his overall skill with the ability became more polished, it would naturally stop being so difficult.
He continued issuing all kinds of commands to the shadow mannequin inside his consciousness, enjoying himself like a child who had just received a new toy.
About ten minutes passed.
After playing too much, his vision suddenly went dark.
His aura exhausted, he fainted and collapsed to the floor.
The shadow mannequin broke apart with him, returning to its normal state.
From awakening Nen to the birth of an ability…
The entire process had taken less than twelve hours.
If anyone had been there to witness it, they probably could only have described Kieran with one word: exception.
Time passed slowly.
The sun climbed high in the east, scattered the morning mist, gave off scorching heat, and then slowly sank toward the west.
When the final strand of sunset disappeared in the distance, night fell.
He woke at that moment.
‘So hungry.’ The hunger in his stomach tormented him as soon as he woke.
‘I got carried away…’ He rose from the floor and put Swampman back on the shelf.
‘First, food.’ Perhaps because he had overdrawn his aura, this was the first time he had ever felt this hungry.
He felt around in the dark room and switched on the light.
Click.
Light filled the room.
He left his room and looked up at the sky.
Black clouds covered the night.
Not a trace of moonlight could be seen.
Everything around him was silent, and the darkness in the distance resembled a gaping mouth that could swallow the soul.
He switched on the corridor light.
The bright light shone over the surroundings, bringing a small sense of safety.
He crossed the corridor and headed straight for the kitchen.
In the silent, dark mountain forest, hurried breathing suddenly sounded.
A figure stumbled through the trees, panic and terror in their eyes.
Suddenly, the figure noticed the lights at the top of the mountain ahead.
Like a drowning person seeing driftwood, hope flashed in their eyes.
✦ ✦ ✦ Ready for more?
CREATORS’ THOUGHTS EmberHollow Thank you for reading.
I hope this chapter pulled you deeper into the story.
Stick around, because there’s still a lot waiting just ahead.