Li glanced at Assim; both of them understood the weight of his frustration.
"Let's get some lunch, Li. Don't stress. God's Way is the best Way. Whatever comes next, face it with an open mind and heart. In the end, it's all in His Hands."
Li nodded, and together they left the library, stepping into the courtyard.
He hadn't noticed how bright the day had become, and now he took a moment to savor the sun's warmth against his skin. The campus had quieted, with only a few disciples wandering between classes.
As expected, the Imbecile stood in the center, still as ever.
Even after passing through the courtyard daily for two years, Li could never shake the discomfort he felt near the Imbecile.
It made no sense, but the dread persisted—the eerie sense that at any moment, the Imbecile would lunge, tearing into him with sudden violence.
The main dining hall was empty as well—it was still early for lunch—but the food was ready, prepared by Master Chef, who used his eight tentacles to multitask with astonishing speed, crafting delicious, natural meals.
Though some scholars knew Li's name, his history was off-limits to most—Master Chef included.
The Chef greeted them with a broad grin as they stepped inside. The kitchen was rich with the scent of root vegetables and a warm, starchy stew. Cold, jewel-toned vegetables glistened under the soft firelight.
The room was dim, lit mostly by ovens and stove fires, but its glow was peaceful—comforting. In the back, a large oven radiated warmth as bread baked steadily within.
Assim spoke,
"Master Chef, peace be upon you. I'll have the special today."
Master Chef nodded with another grin, then turned to Li.
"I'll take the same!" Li said.
The Chef moved with practiced rhythm, adding the final touches before plating.
He placed fresh bread on two wooden dishes, surrounded them with finely cut, colorful vegetables, and added a small bowl of the stew on the side. Assim offered his thanks, and they headed out.
Li stopped by the freshwater stream to fill his cup, then joined Assim at the courtyard's edge. Together, they looked out toward the forest beyond.
Li picked up the bread first, judging it the driest. It crunched as he bit into it—not quite like the bread back in China.
It had a savory, slightly spicy taste, infused with herbs and berries.
Eventually, he dipped it into the soup, which reminded him of a clam chowder he once had—but deeper, warmer, with a unique umami kick. The cold vegetables were sweet like candy, but natural—refreshing after the heat of the stew.
Assim looked at Li.
"These vegetables are really good. Do you like them?"
Li nodded and laughed, still chewing a mouthful. He hoped Assim would make the request.
"Alright then, I'll ask Master Chef later to make these again sometime."
Li turned toward Assim.
"Master Assim, what do you really think we should do?"
Assim let out a sigh.
"You know, if we all just ran during a crisis like this, we would've never become scholars—much less 'masters,' as they call us. I've lived for exactly 325 years, and when my time comes, there won't be any way around it.
Right now, even if we don't know what kind of systems these criminals are working with, we still have our own strengths. You can't forget that."
Li nodded.
"But what about the disciples? If this place really is attacked, do you think they'll spare anyone?"
Assim stared into the distance.
"We've arranged transports for the disciples tomorrow, back to the systems they came from—but none of them want to leave.
We've urged them, but they've studied for who knows how long, and worked just as hard to be here. They have the same right to stay as we do. We can't force them to go if they refuse to."
A sudden stench filled both their nostrils, and Li had to fight the urge to gag. He already knew what it was, even before it revealed itself.
Assim turned around calmly.
It was the Imbecile, standing directly behind them. With his gnarled arms, he reached out and plucked one vegetable from each of their trays, then stumbled away without so much as a glance. He didn't even seem to eat them.
Li exhaled once the Imbecile was gone. Assim looked down at the tray.
"Don't dwell on it," he said softly. "Let it be. He's lived a hard enough life already. You don't know what he's been through. Have mercy on others, just as you would want God to have mercy on you."
They finished their lunch in silence, then returned to the library.
By now, it had filled with more disciples taking their lunch break, and Li gasped when he pulled out a book and saw a tiny green disciple sleeping on an open page. It looked like they had dozed off while studying.
Li turned to Assim, who was already absorbed in another book, deep in concentration. Feeling a little guilty, Li whispered.
Assim glanced up, surprised, then quickly shifted into mild annoyance as he realized what was happening.
"Disciple Meiko!"
The small green disciple jolted awake, panicking as they wiped away the drool that had smudged some of the text. Blushing, they stared up at Assim.
"Whose class should you be in right now?"
The little disciple shrugged and scurried off between the shelves. Assim shook his head.
"Don't worry about him. He comes from an extremely studious family. No matter how often we tell him to prioritize his health, he insists on staying up late studying ethics and philosophy."
Li laughed. It was the first time he'd seen this particular disciple. Though not the only non-human student, most of the others were much larger in size.
The documents Li had been sorting through weren't especially unique, but one paper caught his attention: On the Predicted Systems; Variations 1-3.
It had been a while since he'd reviewed anything on systems, but the concept remained relatively straightforward. It all began with a "catalyst"—a general term for the event or force that initiated a person's system journey.
Whatever powers or abilities followed were referred to as systems. Typically, users of these systems could grow in strength and knowledge at a much faster rate than others. This was why S-tier individuals advanced at an exponential curve once they were granted access to a system.
The paper went on to speculate about the various systems that the Anti-Covenant forces might have discovered.
Given the inherent randomness of systems, such speculation could only be based on current known systems and their associated variants.
By power-scaling existing systems and carefully analyzing the most dangerous traits from those classified as hostile, a sophisticated algorithm had generated a list of over a thousand of the deadliest systems within a single category.
By examining the shared traits of these hypothetical systems, one could begin to grasp the scale of danger posed by the Anti-Covenant forces.
It always sparked his curiosity whenever a list of systems were shown. It only made his desire to obtain one greater when he reached S-tier though two specific systems on this list stood out to him:
"Anti-System: Variation 1
This system specializes in nullifying the effects of any system within its operational radius. Once scaled, its power becomes formidable—capable of absorbing and neutralizing attacks from even S-tier systems that fall within its influence.
Historically, unregulated Anti-System users have caused significant disruption, often overwhelming S-tier operatives. Full extermination has typically required deployment of X-tier forces.
Adaptor System: Variation 1
The Adaptor System possesses the ability to mimic and counter the traits of any system within its own power class.
When sufficiently scaled, it can rival the capabilities of current S-tier Guardians, making it a highly dangerous threat.
Due to its escalating risk level, confirmed Adaptor criminals should have priority kill orders issued without hesitation."
This was the first time he had heard of these. It was interesting because he had always imagined systems as carriers of specific powers, but no one had told him about systems that could adapt to the powers of other systems—or more specifically, copy the literal properties of any system within a given power range.
Li figured maybe he should have assumed this was simply part of the universe he was in, and that he would just have to get used to it.
Assim glanced over and chuckled.
"Systems, huh?"
Li nodded.
"Master Assim, how do you think the Anti-Covenant obtains these systems?"
"Li, you've studied the basics of systems, haven't you? You know the three paths?"
"Yes—it's Inherent, Cultivated, and Interference."
"Exactly. If you look closely, most of the systems here are either cultivated or inherent.
The vast majority are cultivated. It stems from hatred of the Covenant, yet also an understanding of its power. We theorize that certain veterans or defectors of the Covenant are not only teaching cultivation but actively helping these criminals grow in power.
We also suspect there are a large number of system negators—you've heard about them. Someone is spreading system negation, which is effectively masking all the systems being cultivated. We can't actually make any arrests if we don't even know what to detect.
We've already sent spies, but we can't spy on every planet. Even their own armies can't do that. And hence, a great trouble is brewing.
Before, we used the powers of the Central System Monitor—but his influence is growing weak compared to the hate-filled souls of the Anti-Covenant militia."
"We can't counter them?"
"We could—but the greatest problem is their mystery. We don't know how many of them there are, nor do we know what their powers are. It's like going into an exam—but this exam could be about anything, and failing means torture.
The reserve S-tiers are preparing as best they can, but we don't know what to prepare for. So we can only cultivate in certain areas to a minimal level."
Li thought about it carefully. Without the Central System Monitor's input, they were effectively fighting in the fog. He recalled his training and reflected.
Since scouting was already limited, the only other option was massive spying missions—which were already underway, to his knowledge—though their effectiveness wasn't high. More often than not, the spies, even A-tier ones, ended up dead, according to his studies.
They had sent a few S-tier spies, but gathering intel and climbing the enemy's loyalty ranks took time—not to mention, it was better if the other S-tiers kept training so that when the attacks escalated, they would be ready to fight in greater numbers.
Li stared at the ceiling. The dark wood and other elegant designs made him dizzy. He looked back down, right into the eyes of Xiao Shu.