Zenith Online: Rebirth of the Strongest Player

Having this one-meter space around him where he became an omniscient being, aware of all proceedings that occurred in his surroundings, was an incredible feeling. Though, in exchange, the urge to vomit rose from the pits of his stomach.

Nevertheless, Kieran continued to maintain this state and move accordingly.

Unlike before, however, Kieran began employing Accel Shift on an even more minute level, barely leaving a hair's breadth between the projectile he dodged and his body.

When he used Surge Step, Kieran only employed it within a one-meter range. As he was the focal point of this sphere-like influence, Kieran realized his application and understanding of it was horrible.

If his movement happened too suddenly, his extended sense would falter, resulting in a lapse in the fine grasp of his surroundings. However, if he remained within the sphere's initial scope, the interruption wasn't as severe.

Sadly, this was his limit.

Though he had stepped into the Omniscient Phase, Kieran couldn't surpass Protocol IT-2, which required that he make it through untouched. As a result, the sequence was eventually terminated as Kieran dropped to his knees, heaving for air.

[...With your current completion of Protocol IT-2, your reaction speed has been recorded as an Inferior Inhuman on the mental spectrum. Physical abilities… unknown.]

As Kieran listened to this message, he felt Dr. Riley's soft hand touch his arms despite his blurred vision.

"Although the damage you've sustained isn't fatal, your readings are dangerously low. All of your vital signs have plummeted near the level of a terminally ill individual. Any lower and you'll be a bonafide corpse," Dr. Riley exclaimed.

However, her fraught voice didn't register in Kieran's mind properly.

A side effect of employing that Omniscient ability without sufficient energy was a momentary loss in the depth of all senses, though a severe reduction instead of total loss wasn't unheard of.

Despite kneeling on the ground, Kieran felt as if he was about to tumble over and fall.

It was similar to the effects of experiencing vertigo, but not exactly the same.

"Stay there and don't move." Dr. Riley told him before leaving him alone.

As he kneeled in the HRT chamber, Kieran replayed his earlier experiences. 'If I can maintain that state for longer, I can surpass Protocol IT-2. They're fast, but if I know the path of the projectiles, I won't need an absurdly fast body.'

Thanks to his understanding of combat, Kieran knew that the outcome of a battle wasn't just determined by how strong or fast someone was. Someone with superior senses and phenomenal timing could emerge victorious against a formidable opponent.

It wasn't the resources available to a person that guaranteed victory. Instead, it was how effectively one could utilize what was at their disposal.

Granted, this logic only rang true when there wasn't an unfathomable disparity between the opposing sides' power.

In the face of unquestionable might, most actions were generally for naught.

…

A few minutes later, Kieran looked up, watching as part of his vision refocused, landing upon the incoming Dr. Riley, who rushed to his side while holding a small case.

Due to the nature of X-hancers, especially those of a 20% concentration or higher, they couldn't be out of a chilled environment for more than 30 seconds before becoming unstable.

The instability led to a rapid decline in the serum's efficacy.

However, due to its strange properties, the decline didn't occur at a uniform pace. Depending on the concentration, an X-hancer could lose as much as 50% of its efficacy in an instant.

Furthermore, there were mentions that if the serum became too unstable, it could transform into something akin to a poison when ingested.

After all, it was meant to gain its warmth by precipitating reactions in one's body, not by absorbing heat from its surroundings.

"I don't know how receptive you'll be, but based on the readings of the diagnostic screening, your body should have completed the process needed to undergo another increase in concentration," Dr. Riley said.

She then helped Kieran move to the corner of the HRT chamber before setting him against the wall. Due to his injuries and his depleted energy, he could barely move on his own.

"I fear that the proper authorities are withholding a lot of information from us. There's no way that training and evolving one's body should be this dangerous. Even after studying you closely, I've yet to compile even a fraction of the data needed to track where the danger stems from," Dr. Riley muttered, sighing as she examined Kieran's body.

Her eyes mainly fell on his depressed ribs, where the projectile had impacted his body violently. Though she was tempted to touch, Dr. Riley didn't wish to inflict more pain upon Kieran's already battered body.

After setting Kieran against the wall, Dr. Riley opened the small case, revealing 10 X-hancers neatly aligned into two rows.

The five upper vials were 20% X-hancers, while the bottom row was made up of 25% X-hancers.

Generally, one would continue to follow weekly increases of 1%, so it was normal for an individual to increase by an average of 5% every month.

However, this average wasn't accurate after reaching high concentrations.

The higher the concentration, the longer it took for the body to become accustomed to it, which was why Ezra struggled to take that leap of faith and decisively increase the concentration she ingested.

Of course, that was normal.

Anyone familiar with X-hancers would be reserved in voicing their aversion to large concentration increases. On the one hand, they were intrigued by the possible increase in power.

On the other hand, they feared the repercussions of failure. Who could withstand the severity of that outcome without becoming a flesh painting on the wall?

Perhaps no one.

"Tilt your head back." Dr. Riley directed him, opening the first 20% X-hancer.

As Kieran opened his mouth and tilted his head back, the serum disappeared in an instant, producing a subtle warmth in his body.

However, there wasn't much change on the monitor, so Dr. Riley proceeded to quickly feed the remaining 20% X-hancers to Kieran.

Eventually, after they were all consumed, the monitor finally showed some changes, but the readings shocked and almost appalled Dr. Riley.

"K-Kieran…" Dr. Riley gasped, blinking incredulously.

The monitor beside her revealed that, even after consuming five X-hancers back to back, Kieran's body had only returned to 20% of its energy capacity.

Furthermore, as quickly as the number rose, it began to drop precipitously.

In exchange, the red markings on Kieran's body receded, becoming incredibly faint.

This change came as a surprise as Dr. Riley didn't foresee Kieran's body healing at such a ridiculous rate.

However, Dr. Riley's surprise petered out once she realized it was superficial healing. Though the bruises, welts, and markings were fading, the depression on Kieran's chest was still there.

In fact, Dr. Riley reckoned the pain remained as well.

"Haa…" Kieran sighed, exhaling deeply.

Dr. Riley blinked, continuing to kneel beside Kieran while watching him acclimate to the changes in his body. "Should we move on to the next set? I'm not sure if the readings are incorrect, so I'll have to rely on your opinion. I'm sure you know your body better than a machine."

After a moment of consideration, Kieran glanced at the case, with his now clear vision before nodding. "We can proceed."

This time, Dr. Riley proceeded with more caution. After removing one serum, she closed the case and let Kieran consume it, monitoring him closely.

The first change was an increase in perspiration, but Kieran's somewhat withered body also became more vigorous, returning to its initial state before surpassing it marginally.

As Kieran's chest rose and fell, the feeling of warmth vanished. "Next one."

Dr. Riley obliged, opening the case again and feeding Kieran another X-hancer. However, she did so in quick succession because the effect of one became negligible.

"I know I said this before… but your body's ability to consume and break down this energy without the risk of injury is phenomenal. I'm tempted to test your limits sometimes… but all it takes is one mistake for everything to go awry, so I can't bring myself to do it," Dr. Riley voiced.

Though Kieran's body had proved to be bizarre and resilient, X-hancers were not a forgiving serum. One mishap could quite literally result in the end of these two as they knew it.

Thus, Dr. Riley decided to proceed with utmost caution.

Following the ingestion of the last X-hancer Dr. Riley brought down from upstairs, Kieran exhaled and moved his hand from his torso, analyzing the remaining damage to his body.

"Normally, such an injury can take between 6 to 9 weeks to heal. But… based on everything I'm seeing thus far, I wouldn't be surprised if your ribs finish healing within 5 to 7 days," Dr. Riley stated, somewhat in awe.

After that, she slid her fingers down Kieran's stomach and marveled. Though, she grimaced after a while. "Ew! You're so sweaty, Kieran!"

All Kieran could do was blink blankly in response. "Oh no. I'd expect to be dry after an intense training session."

While rolling her eyes with a light giggle, Dr. Riley pinched her nose. "You really… really! Need a shower."

"Actually… before that, I think we need to begin your training," Kieran said, glancing at the equipment outside. "Strength, endurance, and flexibility—those are the aspects we'll target for you."

Once Kieran felt he had healed up sufficiently to where he wouldn't be hindered by his injuries, he stood up and held Dr. Riley's hand, leading her to the training equipment.

Flushed momentarily, Dr. Riley swallowed while looking at Kieran's large hand enveloping her own. 'That's not fair… he makes me seem so tiny!'

Aside from having these passing thoughts, Dr. Riley followed behind Kieran obediently. However, at that moment, Kieran received a notification from his holo-phone, which he generally used in its holographic watch form.

Soon, a screen appeared before Kieran's gaze.

[Attention, owner. Someone is attempting to reach you. The type of call seems to be a conference call. Would you like to accept or reject the caller? If the primary caller, «Allan Peters» is unfamiliar, it is advised that you reject.]

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