The city library smelled of old paper and dust. Towering shelves loomed like silent guardians, their books whispering forgotten histories to anyone who cared enough to listen. Yu Chen moved quietly between them, feather-duster in hand, his steps steady and measured.
To the scholars who visited, he was nothing more than the quiet custodian who tidied their tables, stacked their tomes, and offered polite nods. Nobody paid him a second thought. In truth, Yu Chen preferred it that way. He had long since learned that shadows were safer than light.
For ten years, he had lived like this: reading, cleaning, and training in silence. Every dawn, before the library opened, Yu Chen would vanish into the forest beyond the city walls. There, he performed his System's daily routine---thousands of push-ups, sit-ups, and body breaking exercises, followed by running until his legs blurred like wind. He returned with no witness to his growing strength, blending once more into obscurity.
Yet the System never faltered. His strength grew year by year, a silent tide rising beyond the comprehension.
[STATUS PANEL - YEAR 15]
NAME: Yu Chen
AGE: 30
STRENGTH: 17,500
CONSTITUTION: 17,200
AGILITY: 17,000
INTELLIGENCE: 16,500
POTENTIAL: LIMITLESS
By thirty, Yu Chen was no longer bound by human limits. His fists could shatter steel, his leaps cleared mountain ridges, and his mind worked with the precision of a thousand scholars combined. He could remember entire libraries word for word, and his thoughts calculated strategy faster than generals could draw maps.
But still, Yu Chen dust shelves and carries books, the humble custodian who seemed destined to fade in history.
It was in the twentieth year that the world changed.
On a cold spring morning, the skies split with light. A ripple of energy swept across the world like a tidal wave. Men and women screamed as symbols burned across their skin---markings of something divine, something alien. From the poorest beggars to the highest kings, people collapsed, writhing in agony as new power flooded into them.
The Awakening.
Humanity's hidden potential burst forth, and the weak became strong overnight. Farmers lifted carts with ease, children summoned fire from their hands, and soldier roared as their bodies surged with newfound strength. The world trembled at the dawn of this new era.
In the library, Yu Chen stood quietly by the window, watching chaos erupt in the streets. People staggered, screaming as their gifts awakened. He could sense it clearly---energy rushing through them like rivers breaking their dams.
Yet when the light touched him, nothing happened.
No surge. No markings. Nothing.
He simply continued dusting the bookshelf, expression calm. For others, this was a miracle. For Yu Chen, it was little more than a ripple in the pond. His System had already carried him far beyond what these "awakened" could dream of.
[STATUS PANEL - YEAR 20]
NAME: Yu Chen
AGE: 35
STRENGTH: 25,000
CONSTITUTION: 24,500
AGILITY: 24,000
INTELLIGENCE: 22,000
POTENTIAL: LIMITLESS
At thirty-five, Yu Chen's stats dwarfed the newly awakened humans by thousands of times. While they marveled at their ability to lift stones or conjure sparks, Yu Chen's strength could crush mountains.
Still he remained a custodian, watching quietly as the world celebrated its new heroes.
The Awakening transformed society overnight. Governments scrambled to organize awakened fighters into armies. Cult proclaimed themselves chosen by the gods. Academies sprouted in every city, promising to train the new generation of humanity's protectors.
Yu Chen watched it all from the library steps. He saw young men and women rush in the streets, flames crackling from their hands, swords gleaming with newfound power. He listened as scholars debated whether humanity has entered a new golden age.
To them, the Awakening was salvation.
To Yu Chen, it was.... child's play.
One afternoon, he witnessed a duel outside the library gates. Two awakened warriors clashed, their strikes cracking the stone beneath their feet. Onlookers cheered, marveling at their strength. To Yu Chen, carrying a stack of books, simply glanced once and turned away. To him, their fight was slower than a dance between toddlers. If he wished, he could have ended both their lives before their first strike landed.
But he never interfered.
The world was awakening, yes. But he had awakened alone, two decades earlier, to something infinitely greater.
In taverns, whispers grew of dangers from beyond the stars. Some spoke of aliens ruins found deep underground, pulsing with strange energy. Others warned of visions of colossal figures descending upon the earth. The Awakened were hailed as humanity's shield against these future threats.
Yu Chen knew better. He could feel it too---an ominous pressure in the heavens, like the gaze of predators waiting for their prey to ripen. Something was coming.
And while humanity celebrated its newborn powers, Yu Chen quietly shelved another book, eyes calm, posture humble. He knew their strength would not be enough.
And when the time came, he alone would stand between the world and annihilation.
----End of Chapter 2----