Refused The System

The First Energy Core

Gerry stood perfectly still, lowering his center of gravity into the stance he had once watched the clan guards practice countless times.

His eyes locked onto the creature's throat.

"Come," Gerry whispered, his voice filled with challenge. "Be the first sacrifice to my rebirth."

The wolf lunged.

Gerry did not retreat.

At the precise instant its claws slashed toward his head, he threw himself sideways.

The wolf's claws ripped across his shoulder, but Gerry never lost focus.

As the beast landed, its abdomen was briefly exposed.

Using the momentum of his fall, Gerry drove the sharp stone in his hand into the wolf's hind leg with every ounce of strength he possessed.

The crack of breaking bone echoed through the silent abyss.

The wolf howled in agony and collapsed.

Gerry gave it no chance to recover.

Breathing heavily, rage surging through every vein, he charged.

He possessed no sword techniques.

No mystical powers.

Only an overwhelming determination to survive after years spent living beneath the contempt of everyone in the world above.

Gerry threw himself onto the struggling wolf, ignoring the claws that tore into his chest.

He raised the stone high above his head and smashed it into the beast's skull again and again, pouring every ounce of hatred into each blow.

"Die! Die! Die!"

Black blood splattered across his face and into his eyes.

He never stopped.

He kept striking until the creature's skull collapsed and its body finally went limp.

Panting heavily, Gerry remained seated atop the carcass, drenched in blood.

Nausea and dizziness crashed over him, yet beneath the exhaustion was a deep sense of satisfaction.

[Shadow Wolf Eliminated.]

[Reward Acquired: 5 EP (Energy Points).]

[Warning: Host energy remains at a critical level. Immediate absorption of an Energy Core is recommended.]

"Be quiet, Vesper," Gerry muttered as he wiped the blood from his eyes.

He tore into the wolf's chest with his bare hands, ripping through flesh until his fingers found a small, dim purple crystal pulsing beside the creature's heart.

The Energy Core.

The source of power in this world.

Holding the crystal in his trembling palm, Gerry asked quietly,

"Tell me... how do I absorb it?"

"Grip it firmly and direct its energy into your damaged meridians. However, remember that the pain will..."

"Just do it."

Gerry interrupted without the slightest hesitation.

The moment he closed his eyes and focused his will on the crystal, wild energy exploded from its core.

It surged through his palm, raced up his arm, and violently crashed into his blocked meridians.

"ARGHHHHHH!"

Gerry collapsed beside the wolf's corpse.

His entire body convulsed violently as every blood vessel felt as though it were being ripped apart from within.

Cold sweat mixed with blood poured from every pore.

[Warning: Pain threshold has exceeded normal limits.]

[The System recommends synchronization to reduce suffering...]

"NO!"

Gerry roared through the unbearable torment.

"Let me feel it!"

"Let this pain burn away every weakness inside me!"

"I won't let you touch my consciousness!"

In the endless darkness of the abyss, Gerry wrestled with both agony and newfound power.

He forced the System.

He forced the raging current of energy.

He forced both to submit to his own body.

Minutes passed before the violent trembling finally subsided.

Gerry lay motionless on the ground, staring blankly into the darkness overhead.

Deep within him, however, something had changed.

One tiny pathway within the meridians that had once been completely dead now pulsed with a deep blue light.

He was no longer powerless.

He had taken his first step.

[Initial Meridian Reconstruction: 1% Complete.]

[Status Updated: Body Refinement Stage 1 (Early).]

Gerry slowly climbed to his feet.

Fresh strength flowed through muscles that had once been empty.

He glanced at the scar across his side, now glowing faintly.

Picking up what remained of the wolf's flesh, he ate it raw to replenish his exhausted body, ignoring the metallic taste of blood and the stench of raw meat.

Then he looked deeper into the abyss, where unfamiliar sounds echoed from the darkness.

He knew his relationship with Vesper had only just begun.

His journey was still unimaginably long.

But for the first time in his life...

Gerry Sterling truly felt that his fate belonged to him alone.

"Prepare an analysis of the next area, Vesper," Gerry said as he stepped into the thick fog. "We've got a lot to accomplish before time runs out."

A pale blue screen suddenly flickered into existence before his face, forcing him to stop.

[Environmental Analysis Complete. Warning: Host logic has once again entered an anomalous state.]

"I didn't ask for your opinion, Vesper," Gerry said coldly. "I asked for my next target."

[Logical Recommendation: Stop advancing, Host Gerry. Three hundred meters ahead lies the hunting territory of a Gloom Crawler, a Body Refinement Stage 3 species. With your current Vitality rating of 3, your probability of surviving a direct confrontation is 0.02%.]

The faceless figure in formal robes materialized once more within the black mist, blocking Gerry's path.

"You possess administrative authority," Vesper's mechanical voice echoed, attempting to restrain Gerry's recklessness. "However, authority does not instantly mend fractured bones. The System recommends seeking shelter. Recover your Vitality to at least 40%, or your journey of revenge will end here."

Gerry stared at the glowing silhouette before lowering his gaze to his trembling hand, which still shook from the shock of absorbing the Energy Core.

The machine was right.

Raw wolf meat alone would not heal his broken ribs.

"So," Gerry said with a cynical smile as he tightened his grip on the bloodstained stone, "you want me to hide?"

"Correction. This is called tactical efficiency."

[A narrow opening has been detected in the western cliff wall. Distance: 12 meters. Estimated safety level: 85%. A four-hour rest period is recommended to stabilize your newly opened 1% meridian.]

Gerry stood in silence for a moment, steadying his breathing before finally lowering the stone.

"Good."

"At least your digital analysis is still useful."

"Lead the way."

[Route Mapped. Guiding Host to Temporary Safe Zone.]

As Gerry turned to follow the faint blue trail illuminating his path, Vesper spoke once more inside his mind.

[Use your recovery time wisely, Gerry. Once your Vitality stabilizes, the Analysis Eye function will be upgraded. I will then guide you to a larger Energy Core reserve located on the second level of the abyss. Your next step will be to hunt, not to be hunted.]

Gerry glanced toward the glowing path with cold determination.

"That was always the plan, Vesper."

"I'll claim every ounce of power hidden in this abyss."

"Then I'll return to the surface."

Above the abyss, the Sterling Clan was likely celebrating Dandy's recovery, built upon Gerry's suffering.

They had no idea that deep below, Gerry was gathering the strength that would one day make them pay for everything they had done.

The world above could keep its own systems and its own laws.

At the bottom of the abyss, only one law mattered.

The law of Gerry Sterling.