SOWER: My Cultivation Creates Gods

16 | Grow

A window appeared in the air before him. Glowing green text on a translucent background, hovering impossibly in the empty space above his hospital bed.

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「 Host Status — Authenticated 」

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Rome D'Angelo

Ascension Rank: 1

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「 Vessel Metrics 」

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VIT ·········· 10

FOR ·········· 10

REF ·········· 10

RES ·········· 20 ← Unusual

INT ·········· 10

Available Points: 0

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「 S.E.E.D.S」 ☆ 0 / 2

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「 Inherited Arts 」

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No Arts Acquired.

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Rome stared at the window with his mouth hanging open.

"What... is this?"

『This is your status screen. It displays your current attributes, abilities, and progress within the Ancestral Resonance Cultivation Ascension Nexus system.』

"The... what now?"

『ARCAN, for brevity's sake.』

Rome blinked. Reached out to touch the floating window. His finger passed right through it.

"So I wasn't dreaming. In the arena. That was real."

『Yes.』

"I was dying."

『Yes.』

"And you... what? Saved me?"

『In a manner of speaking. I offered you a covenant. You accepted.』

Rome touched his left arm. It felt solid. Real. Not like a prosthetic or a phantom limb, but his actual arm.

"Did you... regrow my arm?"

『I restored your vessel to its optimal state. The arm was part of that restoration process.』

"My vessel?"

『Your body, Rome. The physical form that houses your essence and consciousness.』

Rome swung his legs over the side of the bed, noticing for the first time that he was wearing a hospital gown. His clothes were nowhere to be seen.

"So what is this... ARCAN system? Some kind of essence power? An awakening thing?"

『It is neither. ARCAN predates the concept of 'awakening' as modern humans understand it. I am not a form of essence manipulation. I am...』 The voice paused. 『I am a function. A protocol designed to identify, cultivate, and empower specific bloodlines.』

"Bloodlines? Like... royal families?"

『Not precisely. Though there is a lineage component. Your grandfather's house in the dream space was not a coincidence.』

Rome's head spun. This was too much, too fast. He needed to focus on something concrete.

"Okay, so this status screen. These numbers. What do they mean?"

『They are baseline measurements of your physical and mental capabilities. VIT represents vitality, your life force and health. FOR is force, your raw physical strength. REF is reflex, your speed and reaction time. RES is resilience, your ability to withstand damage and stress. INT is intelligence, your mental acuity and processing.』

"And what's this 'unusual' thing next to my RES?"

『Your resilience score is higher than expected for your current Ascension Rank. This suggests either a natural predisposition or prior conditioning.』

"Yeah, well, getting your ass kicked repeatedly tends to build character." Rome snorted. "And what about this S.E.E.D.S thing? That sounds ominous."

A slight pause.

『That information is restricted until you reach the appropriate Ascension Rank.』

"Great. Super helpful. Thanks." Rome rolled his eyes. "And 'Inherited Arts'? What are those?"

『Skills and abilities passed down through your lineage. You currently have none unlocked.』

Rome stood up from the bed, testing his balance. He felt... good. Better than good. Like he'd slept for a week and woken up fully restored.

"So let me get this straight. I was dying in that arena. You—whatever you are—offered me some kind of deal. I accepted. And now I have a video game interface in my head and my arm back."

『That is a simplified but essentially accurate summary.』

"And what do you get out of this?"

Another pause, longer this time.

『I fulfill my function.』

Rome frowned. "That's not an answer."

『It is the only answer available to you at this time.』

"Right." Rome crossed his arms. "And what exactly am I supposed to do with this... system?"

『Grow, Rome. Become stronger. Increase your Ascension Rank. Cultivate potential.』