In the "Archive of Dreams," a place filled with mystical knowledge from countless dream dimensions.
The air inside was surprisingly cool. The scent of ancient paper, preserved for millennia, and the aroma of the ancient wood used to build the bookshelves mingled harmoniously in the air. Soft, gentle light shone from magical lanterns high above, causing tiny dust motes floating in the air to dance slowly, as if time itself had stood still in this place.
Owen sat cross-legged on the polished old wooden floor in the middle of the vast hall, perfectly still. He was deep in thought...
Around him were towering wooden bookshelves stretching as far as the eye could see. Ancient scriptures, papyrus scrolls, and leather-bound journals... Knowledge from fallen dimensions was collected here...
He had come here with a clear purpose: to find some skill or combat technique that aligned with the evolution path he would have to choose. Tomorrow, he had to return to Iris's lab to begin the body evolution process, which would take a long two weeks.
Therefore, with a nature that adhered to maximum "efficiency," there was no way Owen would just "sleep" idly and let time pass in vain. While Iris was upgrading his body, he would use that time to its fullest. Even if his body was "pinned" to machinery or Iris's biological tentacles, his "mind" and "consciousness" were still free. He could use this opportunity to learn new skills or combat techniques...
His goals now were twofold: first, choose 1 of the 5 evolution paths Iris had offered; second, find a "skill" or "technique" from this archive that was suitable, aligned with his chosen evolution path, and, importantly, could be trained through "learning and understanding" without needing to move his body.
In Owen's quiet thoughts, the 5 "choices" Iris had given him appeared clearly… [Strength], [Defense], [Speed], [Bio-Weapon], and [Brain].
He felt like a streamer sitting down to read the "Patch Notes" for a newly updated game, analyzing the best "Build" for his character...
Analysis of Option 1: [Bio-Weapon]
This was the first option he tossed aside without a second thought... because, in his mind, it was no different from a "Gacha roll." He still remembered Iris's warning clearly.
"I have to warn you about one thing, my love~ Even though the name sounds good, its serious drawback is that you can't determine what it will be. It could be a poison gland, claws, bone blades, or even a nuclear heart that generates immense energy for you. It could be anything, depending on what your body wants, not what you want. Understand, my love?"
Owen knew all too well how terrible his "gacha luck" was. He never won big prizes and always got unexpected results in the worst way...
'There's no way I'm risking my future on this salty gacha roll...' he thought, annoyed as he recalled the various gacha games he'd deleted after just a few days.
'What if I roll a "stink gland" or "tentacles" that grow from my face?... Or worst of all, what if it creates "claws" or "bone blades" that make me unable to wear the [Sun God's Gauntlets]?' Just thinking about those terrible scenarios made every hair on his body stand on end.
That would be a disaster... He didn't want to leave his future to stupid "fate" like that.
...Option [Bio-Weapon] was cut.
Analysis of Option 2: [Defense]
He considered it for a moment... Having higher defense or skin as tough as steel was certainly a good thing. But... his combat style wasn't being a "Tank" that stood still and took hits...
'The best defense is not getting hit in the first place.' That was his principle.
He saw it as an option that was "nice to have, but not essential." If he could dodge attacks fast enough, or kill the enemy before they could even attack, he wouldn't need to "endure" that attack and waste time.
…Thus, option [Defense] was cut.
Analysis of Option 3: [Strength]
This option was quite interesting... More powerful attacks were always good. A single heavy punch was better than a light one. But then... a principle he'd heard from many anime and novels flashed into his head: "Speed is power."
'Too bad I can only choose one evolution...' Owen mused.
If he had to choose only one, [Speed] was more "cost-effective." When he attacked faster, the destructive power would naturally increase from the momentum. Plus, he already had the [Reinforcement] technique to supplement his attack power.
Therefore, choosing [Strength] seemed like an investment with a lower return...
...Option [Strength] was cut.
At this point... only two "best" and "most efficient" options remained in Owen's mind...
1.[Speed]: This was the most "cost-effective" physical option. It was a 2-in-1 upgrade. He would get both "attack power" from momentum and better "evasion," which would substitute for the [Defense] he had just cut. It was a direct upgrade that would make him "stronger" with "immediate results" after leaving the lab...
2.[Brain]: This was the most "interesting" option and the "hardest to predict."
He recalled Iris's words: "It doesn't just make your memory better or make you think faster, my love. It also increases your speed of 'learning' and 'perception'…"
'If I can learn faster...' Owen's thoughts began to race. 'I'll naturally be able to train skills faster, especially [Mana Armor]!'
He thought of the grueling training with Nova... It was hard. Very hard... Even now, he could only manage "30% of the standard" Nova had set...
Upgrading [Speed] would make him "stronger" today... But upgrading [Brain]... was an investment in the "future." It was a "Multiplier" that would affect everything he did from now on. It would make him a genius at learning...
...
Owen slowly opened his eyes... His mind was in turmoil. He was still stuck at the crossroads, unable to decide. [Speed] was an excellent "physical" upgrade with immediate results. [Brain] was a "potential" upgrade that would grow over time.
'Damn it... This is harder to choose than I thought.' He felt slightly frustrated at not being able to find the "best answer." Owen let out a long sigh, then stood up to stretch his tense muscles from sitting for so long.
'Maybe... some knowledge or technique in this place will have the "answer" for me...'
Wasn't that why he came here in the first place? With that thought, Owen began to seriously scan the towering bookshelves around him for the first time. His eyes were searching for "inspiration" or "help" in making his crucial decision…
The sacred silence within the archive began to be disturbed by the sound of his footsteps on the ancient stone walkway, creating a faint, rhythmic echo. Owen walked down the narrow aisles between the towering shelves...
'There has to be something...' He scanned his surroundings. 'A skill that suits me... A fist technique... or some movement technique to improve my evasion.'
He kept searching... scanning the spines of books and scrolls arranged chaotically. Most were in ancient languages he couldn't decipher a single letter of. But fortunately, it seemed Tenzin or the previous caretakers had left small, handwritten "translation tags" on almost every book.
A few hours later... Owen felt like he was drowning in an endless ocean of knowledge. He had walked past hundreds, perhaps thousands of bookshelves...
The sacred silence of this place began to feel "heavy." The scent of old paper and ancient wood, which had been refreshingly cool at first, now felt like the dust of time settling on him.
He saw a title like [The Art of Alchemy: Toxic Blood-Explosion]... He immediately ignored it. 'Alchemy...' he thought. It required a lab, complex ingredients, and the patience for experiments. It was more suited for someone like Iris...
He walked on... and found a text: [Sword of the Moon Elves: Seven Star Dance]... 'Looks pretty...' he admitted to himself, seeing the line art on the cover. '...But it's not my combat style.' He had the [Sun God's Gauntlets] as his main weapon. Starting over from scratch with a sword skill now was "inefficient."
He walked deeper into an older-looking section... [Tome of Forest Summoning: Pixie Covenant]... 'A summoning tome?' Owen opened it with some interest, but when he saw it had troublesome limitations like "Must not harm trees" and "Must help every animal you see," he dismissed it immediately. The limitations from [Avatar of Asura] were already giving him enough of a headache.
Not far from that... [Chant of the Titan: Adamantine Steel Body]... 'Just from the name, I can tell this is a skill for a tank.' He huffed and put it back without even opening it.
And next... [Advanced Fire Magic: Phoenix Chant]... 'This is even less suited for me.' Owen sighed, exasperated. He imagined himself standing there chanting a spell while an enemy was attacking. 'Magic at this level requires "talent" in mana, plus the "cast time" is too long. The enemy would probably kill me before I could even shoot the fire out…'
None of this matched his fast, decisive, close-quarters combat style at all… And as time slipped by meaninglessly, the frustration he had tried to suppress at first began to grip his mind again...
'Or maybe I should just choose [Speed] and find a movement technique instead?'
Owen let out a soft sigh... His thoughts were starting to lean. He was about to give up on the [Brain] option, which was hard to measure, and was thinking that the "tangible" [Speed] option might really be the "safest" and most "cost-effective" choice after all...
The frustration that had built up for hours was clouding his judgment… But just as he was about to turn and leave the area, a strange feeling arose in his mind. A feeling like a "pull," something calling out to him...
He looked toward a corner of the bookshelves that was rather dim, a corner he had almost walked past…
On a high shelf, almost forgotten... between two imposing, thick-spined books of black and dark brown, there was "an old, yellow tome" "wedged" in, as if by accident.
It didn't fit in with the others at all... like an ordinary book placed among tomes of black magic. It thus stood out like a "beacon" shining in the darkness. Owen frowned. He unconsciously stepped closer and reached out his hand to take it...
Fwip!
A small cloud of dust scattered as he pulled it out. And the moment his fingertips touched the rough paper cover… the frustration... the hesitation... and all the "noise" in his head suddenly "disappeared" as if it had never existed...
He now felt strangely "calm" and "clear"… His mind suddenly felt cool, as if cold water were being slowly poured over his feverish brain.
Owen took a deep breath and looked down at what was in his hand...
What appeared before his eyes was a book that wasn't very thick. Its cover had a simple illustration: the image of a "palm," exquisitely drawn with a single, flowing brushstroke… It wasn't a "clenched fist" signifying power, but an "open hand" signifying "giving," "comforting," and "stopping." It looked both delicate and gentle at the same time...
Beneath the palm was the image of a "lotus flower" blooming beautifully...
And on the spine of the book was the "title," written in an ancient language he wasn't familiar with. It looked complex and beautiful, somewhat resembling the language of the dragon country...
Of course, he couldn't read it. But at the very bottom, a small "translation tag" was neatly affixed. With neat, easy-to-read handwriting, it had translated the name of the book:
[Instant-Mind Palm: Mercy of the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva]
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