He rolled his shoulder once, and tightened his grip further.

The old body felt like a muscle car. Raw power pushed through, but control was rough.

This one felt more like a race car—balanced, responsive, built to follow his intent.

The trade was worth it.

His gaze swept around the storage room.

Still quiet.

Still empty.

But staying here too long wasn’t ideal. Sooner or later, this place would also become part of the search area.

He doubted that the Federation would just let this matter go, considering how much resources they invested.

’This can actually work in my favor.’

Right now, none of them would think to search for a human, believing that Lex already became a monster.

That misunderstanding gave him an opportunity to hide in plain sight while he planned his next hunt.

’Speaking of points.’ His gaze landed on Luke’s organ.

He opted not to eat it before because he was wary of any side effects it might cause while he was in a stable state.

’I doubt it would give me over a thousand, but it should be worth a couple of hundred.’

The only reason he gained so much from Lex was due to the crystallization.

Without ceremony, he began to devour it.

[DING]

[Congratulations, Host. You have absorbed a Special Category human target. The system is now assessing the acquired value.]

[+250 livers]

[DING]

[Host, this human carries traces of a unique bloodline.]

[Would you like to synthesize it?]

[Doing so will grant you 20 energy points. Keeping it will allow future use and yield greater rewards upon reaching Category 7.]

"Can you tell me more about the reward?"

[Negative, Host. You do not have sufficient authority to access that information.]

He touched his chin in thought. So the system was asking him to trade immediate gain for a possible jackpot later.

Saving it had its appeal, but Category seven was still far off. The extra energy would help now.

Plus, it wasn’t like this was his only chance.

As he grew stronger, he would run into more people with similar bloodlines. Aira’s team wouldn’t be the last.

"Synthesize it"

[Affirmative]

He didn’t feel anything at all, so he turned his focus to the next notification.

[Innate Talent Absorbed: Vibration Sense]

[Instead of relying only on sight or sound, the user reads movement through physical waves in the environment—footsteps through the ground, shifts in air pressure, impact ripples through walls, and even distant motion carried through connected surfaces.]

Francis raised an eyebrow, remembering how Luke’s attack pattern relied on sending metal spikes from the ground.

It seemed that unique power came from the weapon itself.

This made him more curious about where their weapons came from. He overheard mention of Legendary Rank and Diamond Rank.

The idea of using Lex’s body as material also suggested that high-level humans were needed as core components.

Weapon abilities likely came from what was used to forge them.

’Does it mean that if Lex’s body were used, the created weapon would also carry Momentum breaker properties? Or did they have a way to alter it during the process?’

More thoughts surfaced in his mind, so he decided to check his spear.

He studied the surface of the weapon and realized it was made of the same dark material.

Then he felt a faint vibration. It was so subtle that he only noticed it because of his new talent.

Closing his eyes, he focused and tried to strengthen the sensation. It worked.

A pattern formed. The vibration came in pulses.

Then something changed.

A sudden pull formed between him and the weapon. Like a thread snapping into place inside his mind.

His eyes opened slightly. The weapon didn’t just feel active anymore. It felt connected to him, as if it had recognized his presence.

"Let’s see."

He threw it a few meters away, then raised his right hand.

The spear only twitched a little, but there was no visible change after that.

Lex was able to call it back during their first encounter. But in the fight against the Federation, the weapon behaved differently.

His mind compared both times.

’What was different?’

Suddenly, it clicked

Lex wore a power suit back then. The gloves were metallic.

"Metal..." he glanced around the room before picking up a loose piece from the old shelves and holding it in one hand.

He raised it toward the spear.

For a moment, nothing changed.

Then the weapon vibrated.

Slow at first, then stronger—pulling itself free from the ground before snapping back toward him.

Francis caught it without moving his feet. "So that’s how it works."

’If my guess is correct, this weapon’s properties are related to magnetism. For a fighter, who relied on Momentum to generate powerful thrown attacks, it was a perfect match.’

Casually, he began turning it. "But it’s too long. I can’t carry this thing in the open—"

Before he finished, he noticed a stiff button on the base. Curious, he pressed it.

The spear clicked and retracted, shrinking until it was only the size of a police baton.

’Now this is handy,’ he nodded in satisfaction.

Next on his agenda, he double-checked his new skill, Momentum breaker.

[Momentum Breaker: The user can stop their movement at will, turning built-up momentum into force. The faster they move, the stronger the impact.]

[Current cooldown: 1 minute]

[Current top speed that can be stopped: 400 km/h]

He stared at the description for a while.

Simple on paper, but the real meaning started to sink in the longer he thought about it.

Anything moving too fast couldn’t just stop on command without consequences. Physics didn’t allow clean stops. Force always had to go somewhere.

In addition, no human could withstand such an abrupt paused.

That meant the innate talent also pushed the body’s durability to an extreme level during the braking process.

This was the only explanation that made sense.

Others might only see this as a good ability for generating powerful attacks, but if used right, that split-second full stop also put the body in a near-invulnerable state.

Lex might not have the reaction time or resources to pull off such a complicated technique, but Francis does.

’I can’t believe I already have a way to use Vibration Sense. It’s perfect for locking onto the exact moment my body reaches a full stop.’

The more he thought about possible uses and combinations, the better his mood became.

However, he stopped himself, realizing he was wasting too much time. All that simulation and practice could wait until later.

After putting the spear away, he checked his stats one last time, just to see how much he improved after reaching Category 4.

"STATUS"

===== STATUS WINDOW =====

Name: Francis Hall

Category: 4

Liver Count: 990 / 10,000

Energy Levels: 10 / 70

Status Effect: Body Lock (7 Days)

===== ACTIVE SKILLS =====

Infestation – Level 4:

[]Injects into a host to link vital systems; provides a 300% base stat boost.

Parasite Eyes – Level 4:

[]Grows independent eyes for 360-degree seamless vision.

[]Requires less energy to use.

[]Vision can now detect infrared.

Parashift – Level 3:

[]Allows for structural body modification and size manipulation.

[]Allows changing skin, eyes and hair color.

Integration – Level 3:

[] Improved neural control over the host and bypasses biological resistance.

[]Enables the user to fully adapt and synchronize with the motor memory patterns of the host body.

Berserk Mode – Level 2:

[] Triples stats for 1:10 minute; results in host explosion and a severely weakened state upon completion.

===== INNATE TALENTS =====

Momentum Breaker

Spring Joints II

Trajectory Reading

Shockwave Emission

Kinetic Calibration

Muscular Acceleration

Vibration Sense

====================

Quickly, his attention landed to Parasite Eyes. New functions appeared now that weren’t there before.

’Infrared detection.’

The world changed at once.

His normal view faded, replaced by a muted, dark field.

Shapes returned as heat signatures. Warmer objects stood out in soft reds and oranges, while cooler areas sank into deeper blues and black.

The room stopped looking like solid objects and turned into layers of temperature, where every movement left a faint thermal trail behind.

His own body stood out the most, a strong heat source in the middle of the view.

’Can I lower my temperature enough to bypass infrared detection?’

In his operative days, they used more practical methods for that.

Cloaking blankets, heat-dampening suits, even chemical packs that disrupted body heat for a short window.

Nothing permanent. Nothing perfect. Just enough to blur a human outline for a few seconds on thermal scanners.

He compared it to what he was doing now.

No gear. No support tools. Just direct control over his own body temperature.

His breathing slowed again.

The heat signature of his body faded further, but the result stayed the same. There was still a clear outline.

Useful, but not enough to fully disappear from infrared sight.

’At least I tried,’

His focus returned to the sight instead.

He scanned his hands.

Movement left traces. Even small shifts in position disturbed the heat field for a short time before it settled again.

That detail caught his attention.

It meant people couldn’t move through a space without leaving evidence behind.

Even if he faced an invisible foe, it wouldn’t be a problem anymore.

’This will help me in the future.’

***

Authors Note:

I’m slowing down to one Chapter for now since I’m stockpiling for a big mass release next month.

At the same time, I’m making sure the story stays top-notch, especially the progression, since we’re heading into Volume 2.

That’s why Chapters are taking a little longer to write.

After that, I’ll go back to two Chapters a day like usual.

I hope you’ll continue supporting my work so we can explore this world together. What you’re seeing now is just the tip of the iceberg.