Before I could even begin to feel confused, other things immediately dragged me into the depths of fear and panic. I was still underwater, and wherever my eyes landed there was only murk and bubbles.
I had no time to gather my thoughts. My body was moving rapidly, twirling and spinning, caught in the heart of the current and at its mercy. A moment later, my back slammed into something hard. Instead of stopping, I skidded along and then crashed into the next object. This time I hit jaw-first, and I thought it broke.
But I couldn't even worry about wounded flesh and broken bones. I was suffering something far worse, something more torturous.
I was drowning.
My lungs burned. I couldn't help but gasp for air, but only water rushed in. To call it painful was an understatement.
I had grown accustomed to pain, after years of harassment and even beatings at the hands of my brothers and parents. But this kind of pain was different. This was unbearable. I wanted to scream, wail, beg for mercy.
The worst part was that I couldn't even make a sound.
For a fleeting moment, I found hope. That familiar numbness of looming unconsciousness wrapped around me. Maybe at last I would be spared. Maybe I could finally rest in the comforting arms of death. I closed my eyes in surrender, yearning for eternal peace.
But something was wrong. Maybe this was what they called hell—just colder, darker, and wetter than I expected.
Each time I drifted toward unconsciousness, I was wrenched back. Dragged away from the jaws of death, only to be forced into the torture again. It repeated endlessly.
I would rather die than endure another second of it. But it was relentless. Seconds bled into minutes, minutes into hours.
The panic for air. The burn of water flooding my lungs. The sharp sting of jagged rocks tearing my skin. The violent shocks of my body slamming against the riverbed or boulders.
I felt it all. Every moment of it.
At first, I tried to think of a way out. But the agony was too overwhelming. My mind couldn't conjure plans—only questions. Why me? What did I do? Hadn't I already suffered enough? Why was I punished for things I couldn't control? Why was I even born?
And then… what was that strange blue shape that kept flashing before my eyes, covered in words I couldn't focus enough to read?
[Minor Trait Acquired: Cold Resistance I]
[Condition Met: Sustain continuous cold damage for 10 minutes without hypothermic shutdown.]
[Environmental cold damage reduced by 15%]
[Minor Trait Acquired: Bruise Guard]
[Condition Met: Endure 30 instances of blunt trauma]
[Skin density increased; blunt damage reduced by 10%]
At first it was only a fleeting flash of light in the midst of my suffering. I noticed it, but I couldn't care.
[Minor Trait Acquired: Oxygen Efficiency I]
[Condition Met: Maintain oxygen deprivation for a cumulative 3 minutes without losing consciousness.]
[Breath-holding increased by 50%]
But after a while, I realized something. Each time the blue light appeared, the torment lessened. The water didn't feel as frigid. The cuts didn't sting as sharply. The blows weren't quite as crushing.
At first I thought it was simply my body adapting. But then it happened—my lungs stopped burning. Water still filled them, but instead of agony, it brought relief.
[Trait Acquired: Amphibious Respiration]
[Condition Met: Experience 180 cumulative minutes of drowning damage within one cycle of consciousness]
I could breathe.
I had read of potions that let men breathe underwater like fish. But I had never touched one. All I had swallowed was river water. Yet here I was, alive, breathing in it.
I was still helpless, though. The current carried me wherever it wished, slamming me into bedrock and debris. But for the first time, panic loosened its grip. I began to wait—consciously—for the blue light to return.
Time passed. I didn't know how long. Minutes, hours—impossible to tell. But the cold grew bearable.
[Trait Progression: Cold Resistance II]
I tried to read the words more clearly, only to be interrupted by another crash. My skull struck stone, though this time the pain was muted.
I had endured enough. I wanted control. I remembered once hearing that to swim underwater, one must not fight the water, but move with it.
Easier said than done. I was weak, injured, nearly broken. Every motion hurt, and I could barely see.
But I persisted. The pain dulled. The current's violence became tolerable. I began to sense control.
[Trait Acquired: Dense Musculature]
The agony didn't vanish, but it grew faint, muted.
[Trait Acquired: Pain Tolerance I]
My wounds closed quickly.
[Trait Acquired: Rapid Clotting]
The water cleared. My vision sharpened. I could see through the murk, dodging silhouettes in the current.
[Trait Acquired: Low-light Vision]
My bones knitted together. The collisions that once broke me now barely slowed me.
[Trait Acquired: Adaptive Regeneration]
[Trait Acquired: Kinetic Conditioning]
The fear that had ruled me melted away. The river no longer smothered me—it embraced me. It felt like home.
My reflexes honed. I slipped past obstacles as if it were second nature. I felt I could outmatch a fish.
[Trait Acquired: Predator's Reflex]
[Condition Met: React to 10 lethal threats within 10 seconds of detection]
[Effect: Reaction speed increased 40% in hostile environments]
I had no idea how long I had been trapped in the river. But eventually, something changed.
The water's taste shifted—from fresh and earthy to sharp, faintly salty. The current eased. The roar softened into a low thrum. Light broke through above, blue and shimmering.
Beneath me, the river widened and deepened.
[Milestone Achieved: Survive 24 hours of lethal damage without respite]
[Trait Acquired: Damage Conversion]
[Condition Met: Remain alive under lethal conditions for a full day without external aid]
[Effect: Cumulative trauma converted into +300% Physical Attributes for 10 minutes]
A sudden strength surged through me. With that burst, I swam upward.
The sunlight welcomed me like a long-lost friend. The sky had never looked so beautiful. The air in my lungs had never tasted so fresh. Only then did I realize just how long I had been submerged.
My fear of drifting too far into the open sea faded as I lowered my gaze. The shore was only a few meters ahead.