But what truly stunned Malakai wasn’t just that he could absorb vita.
It was the rate.
‘1 vita per second… that’s 3,600 per hour.’
He wasn’t exactly sure how his stat stacked up to those in the Genesis stage, but he knew this much: his capacity was just below theirs, considering the current strength of his body, and he hadn’t even awakened yet.
It would take him roughly 25 minutes to replenish all his vita. And he’d done the research himself. For most in the Genesis stage, it took over an hour.
‘Double the speed.’
His lips shook, almost forming a smile.
Valentine cleared his throat as he continued.
“Also… this absorption rate only applies to replenishing your body’s vita. It’s a lot slower when it comes to refining and advancing your power.”
His words pulled Malakai from his thoughts, and he nodded slowly.
‘Makes sense.’
If refining was as fast as replenishing, he would reach the Zenith stage in no time. Regardless, that time would come.
Soon.
Valentine continued speaking.
“Next is Evolution Stage. This represents what stage your body is at in your evolutionary journey. Right now… you haven’t evolved yet.”
The words sent a quiet jolt of excitement through Malakai. He kept his expression calm, almost indifferent, but deep inside, he was beyond excited.
‘Not evolved… and yet I can already absorb vita faster than most.’
Valentine went on, scratching his cheek. “Uhm… I’ve explained your stats before, right?”
Malakai nodded. “I still want you to explain exactly what each one means.”
Valentine blinked, then chuckled. “Alright. I had to figure it all out on my own back then, but… here’s what I know.”
He raised a finger. “Strength is your raw physical power. The higher it is, the harder you hit, the more you can lift, break.”
“Dexterity is speed and agility, how fast you move, react, dodge, and strike.”
“Vitality covers your endurance, stamina, pain resistance, recovery speed, and how long you can function at peak condition. That sort of thing.”
“Perception is your awareness, how well you notice things, your instincts, sensitivity, even your ability to sense danger.”
“And finally… Control. This one measures how precisely you can manipulate vita. Not just how much you have, but how efficiently you use it. Whether you waste energy or make every drop count.”
Malakai absorbed everything silently.
‘That’s why the number in front of it is zero.’
It made sense. Humans couldn’t control vita, not unless they evolved.
“The node maps,” Malakai said suddenly.
Valentine, who had been cautiously backing away, flinched at the sound of his voice. He turned and froze.
Malakai’s eyes were on him.
Valentine opened his mouth, then shut it immediately, stopping himself from spitting out his reflexive apology. He looked away, sighed, and muttered, “I told you… I didn’t get far with this power.”
“Just tell me what you know,” Malakai cut him off.
To Malakai, it didn’t matter whether Valentine’s knowledge was incomplete. While trial and error would reveal the answers eventually, he still wanted to hear from someone who had walked the path before, even if it was partway.
It would be very valuable. Then he could compare, cross-reference, and refine his understanding faster.
Valentine hesitated, then gave a reluctant nod. In truth, he was embarrassed about where he had reached.
“All I really understand is that each node links to a different aspect of your body. Awakening them means you gain access to that aspect and can begin to manipulate it. I only awakened one during my time… so I can’t help much beyond that.”
He exhaled, frustrated.
It wasn’t just the helplessness, it was also the fact that he couldn’t even say sorry. That simple word. It was something he’d leaned on most of his life. It felt like a piece of himself had been gagged.
His life before the fall had been miserable, mid-forties, unemployed, barely surviving in his late father’s rundown farmhouse, failing at farming, failing at everything.
But being kind had made him feel good. And he liked feeling good.
Now, he turned to Malakai, who already looked like he was calculating his next million steps into the future.
That was when it hit him.
‘I’m going to be stuck with him… forever.’
He fought the urge to rip out the last few hairs clinging to his head.
A life of never being able to apologize?
‘It’s going to be hell.’
But Malakai paid him no mind. The boy’s thoughts moved fast as he analyzed everything he had learned so far.
‘Life essence.’
He had bonded with a sentient being, one that had fallen from space.
Ever since the emergence of the darkness, humanity’s skepticism about life beyond their world had shattered. At the very least, they knew the darkness wasn’t from Earth… or whatever was left of it.
But now, Malakai had confirmed it:
They were definitely not alone.
Still, that wasn’t what unsettled him the most. He was certain of one thing.
‘The darkness came here for the life essence.’
It sounded cruel, but humanity had never been anything special, at least, not in a way that would benefit the darkness.
They killed humans, tore them apart, destroyed cities and families… but they didn’t consume them for power. There was no gain, no evolution. Just destruction.
So why were they doing it?
But the life essence had arrived, and shortly after, so had the darkness.
That was no coincidence.
Malakai’s mind moved straight to the implications.
He had just fused with the very thing that sparked the destruction of the 21st century. Which meant…
‘I’ll be a target.’
He remembered the scene Valentine had shown him. The way he was always fighting large clusters of darkness. They had been after him.
Now, it was inevitable. They would come for him too.
Still, despite all of this fact, he remained calm.
‘I’ve always been in danger anyway.’
Since the night his parents died, danger had been a constant in his life. If it wasn’t the Sovereign’s deadly missions, then it was his uncles and aunties who were after his life.
This was nothing new.
‘What matters are the benefits.’
He wouldn’t waste energy brooding about the risks. To him, the pros outweighed the cons.
He was always going to risk his life to achieve his goal.
Revenge.
The life essence…
He had finally obtained a means to fight.
And to him, that was all that mattered.