The wind howled across the upper ridge of the Data Pillar, screeching like a corrupted audio file stretched too far. I stood at its edge, the Memory Core still humming under my skin, now glowing with stronger resonance. Integration levels were rising steadily.
[Memory Core Sync: 79%][Custom Skill Slot: Available][EXP Balance: 138,200]
I accessed the interface, letting it open like a blooming fractal in the air. Crafting, fusion, analysis—the whole system felt smoother now. Responsive. Like it was adapting to me, not the other way around.
I looked through the logs of every fight so far. Every mob, every boss, every anomaly.
I didn’t want to just react anymore. I wanted to dominate.
[New Skill Concept: Mirrorbyte Protocol]
- Type: Passive/Active Hybrid
- Function: Temporarily record and replicate one opponent skill per encounter. Permanently adds skill to Kai’s arsenal upon defeating the skill user.
- Restrictions: One mimic per battle. Cannot mimic boss-exclusive world skills.
I stared at the parameters.
[Crafting Cost: 92,000 EXP]
“Burn it.”
Confirmed. Accepted. Installed.
[Custom Skill Learned: Mirrorbyte Protocol]
Suddenly the world felt different. The field of battle would no longer be asymmetric.
I descended the far side of the pillar, entering a new region labeled simply: Core Verge. It felt like walking into an abandoned server farm. Massive towers of obsolete data hummed with heat and age. Broken bots twitched in corners, still trying to execute code written generations ago.
The first mob I encountered was already waiting for me.
Name: Glitch Troll Type: Heavy-Type Mob Traits: Reboot Slam, Firewall Breath, Regeneration Buffer
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The thing was twelve feet tall and constructed like a bad mix of corrupted rock and failed code. One of its eyes rotated like a surveillance lens, the other was just an empty socket crackling with sparks.
It roared and charged.
I activated Echo Drive – my afterimages flared to life, scattering to draw aggro. The Troll slammed through one, missing entirely.
It opened its mouth. A wave of burning, firewall-laced breath surged out—a shimmering orange torrent meant to melt my system armor.
[Mirrorbyte Protocol: Active][Skill Recorded: Firewall Breath]
I dashed behind it, avoiding most of the blast. The afterimages absorbed the rest.
With a counterstrike, I leapt up and brought Gravity Core Shatter down into its back. The impact cratered the troll into the ground.
[Skill Integrated: Firewall Breath]
The glow rippled through my interface. A new slot. My skill. Forever.
I moved deeper into Core Verge. Mobs became stranger. More glitched.
Name: Jitterwolf Pack Trait: Phase-Shift Dash, Echo Howl
Name: Redacted Observer Trait: Data Purge Beam, Neural Disrupt
Name: Fragmented Hydra Trait: Self-Replication, Toxic Kernel Spit
And one by one, I copied them. Fought them. Became them.
Firewall Breath became a tool of terror against ice-coded wolves. Echo Howl added to my own soundwave arsenal. And Data Purge Beam—clean, surgical, meant for deletion—let me vaporize low-level threats with grace.
This world’s danger no longer overwhelmed me. I was evolving with it.
At the center of Core Verge, nestled in a temple-shaped server hall, I found a strange console labeled Spectral Cache.
It flickered as I approached. A glitched voice spoke:
“Kai… skill convergence detected. Identity fusion at 34%. Continue or fragment?”
I answered aloud, voice steady.
“Continue.”
[System Notice: Hybrid Class Unlocked - Echoform Glitchwalker]
- You have begun to leave behind your base coding. Your decisions ripple into system architecture.
- Traits Gained: Passive Skill Craft Boost +20%, Mirrorbyte Cooldown Reduced, Afterimage Limit +1
I felt the change in my bones—or whatever this world thought my bones were.
But I wasn’t done yet.
Far on the horizon, I saw something new: a giant sigil in the sky. Like a celestial compass, slowly rotating.
And beneath it, a vast jungle of living, shifting code.
My next destination.
But for now, I smiled.
Because every fight I walked into…
…I walked out stronger.
END OF CHAPTER 9