The System Store flickered into existence in front of Ren, the translucent blue panels stacking themselves neatly in the air. Each page pulsed faintly, like they were breathing. Skills scrolled past his vision, rank tags glowing in soft colors—C, C+, B—until his eyes landed on the section he could actually afford.
He slowed the scrolling with a thought. "B-Rank. Let's see what's worth my money."
Lines of text shimmered and locked into place.
[Mental Cure] (Passive, B-Rank) – Allows the user to heal mental damage on targets below Demigod Rank. Cost: 20,000 Fear Points.
[Nerve Override] (B-Rank) – Allows the host to take direct control of a target's nervous system through physical contact, forcing involuntary movement or complete paralysis. Cannot affect beings above Demigod Rank. Cost: 25,000 Fear Points.
[Tissue Harvest] (B+ Rank) – Extract any biological tissue, keep it alive indefinitely within the host's body, and graft it seamlessly into another living subject. Cost: 30,000 Fear Points.
[Pulse of Agony] (B-Rank) – Emit a bio-resonance wave that triggers intense phantom pain in a targeted area of the victim's body. Has no lasting damage but can incapacitate most foes. Cost: 20,000 Fear Points.
[Disease Storage] (B+ Rank) – Absorb and store any disease into the host's body. Disease can be ejected into a target at will. Cost: 30,000 Fear Points.
Five more skills followed, each with their own gimmicks, mana manipulation, accelerated tissue regrowth, necrotic suppression, targeted nerve erasure but Ren barely gave them more than a glance. His focus stayed on the two.
"Mental Cure… good for cases like this," he muttered, glancing toward the row of patients lying unconscious in the temporary surgical ward. "And Disease Storage… yeah, that's twisted enough to be useful."
He weighed them carefully. Mental Cure meant more patients would live through trauma that would normally leave them broken shells. Useful, straightforward. Disease Storage, on the other hand, was a weapon disguised as a medical technique a way to turn the world's most lethal plagues into ammunition. In a place full of Hunters and monsters, that kind of leverage was gold.
"Alright. Both," he decided.
The System's acknowledgement was instant.
[Purchase Confirmed]
Fear Points Remaining: 0
Pain shot through Ren's tentacles before he could react. The black limbs quivered, twitching with spasms that rolled from base to tip. From the glossy surface of each tentacle, eyes began to open dozens of them some human-shaped, others narrow and alien, their pupils swimming in unnatural colors.
At the same time, the tips of four tentacles split open into circular mouths lined with delicate, hollow needles. The movement was organic, seamless, as though these parts had always been there, waiting to wake up.
Ren didn't need an explanation from the System. The knowledge of their functions sank into his mind instantly, like remembering something he had known his whole life.
The eyes were for mental healing probing into the psyche, unraveling damage like pulling apart tangled thread. The needle mouths were for disease extraction and storage, capable of drawing sickness out of a body and hiding it away in his own body.
"Let's put the needles away for now," Ren muttered, flexing the tentacles until the needle mouths folded back, sealing shut. He turned his attention to the eyes, their collective gaze focusing forward in eerie synchronization.
The five patients lay motionless on the makeshift operating tables. Ren stepped closer, his tentacles curling around his shoulders and over his head until the largest of the new eyes hovered inches from the first patient's face.
"Alright," he said, more to himself than anyone else. "Let's fix what's broken."
The massive eye blinked once, and the world seemed to narrow to a single point of vision. It stared directly into the patient's eyes, unblinking, unyielding. The patient's body reacted instantly limbs jerking, spine arching against the restraints. Foam bubbled at the corners of his mouth, his throat releasing a strangled gurgle.
"What the hell—" one of the medics blurted, stumbling back.
The reaction spread like a ripple. The other four patients began to spasm in turn as Ren's tentacles moved from one to the next, each eye locking on with the same merciless focus. Their muscles trembled violently, teeth chattering hard enough to draw blood.
"What the fuck is this?!" another medic shouted, backing toward the exit.
One by one, the medical team broke, bolting from the room with curses and panicked yells. Within seconds, Ren was alone with the five convulsing bodies.
Mental Healing Complete.
Secondary Effect Triggered: Target will now gone through a process of level up.
Ren's brow twitched. "What?"
"Oh, hell no—" Ren started, but it was too late.
Light burst from each patient's body, pale and cold. Their forms straightened despite the restraints, muscles locking as if seized by invisible hands. A sound like bones grinding echoed in the air, followed by the deep, resonant pulse of mana being forcibly reshaped.
[Evolution Complete. patient advanced by one rank.]
The glow faded, leaving five Hunters stronger than they had been minutes ago sitting upright on their tables. They swung their legs down in unison and moved to the floor, their expressions devoid of hesitation.
Thank you Mr Hector