With tremendous speed, the shiny object in the sky was falling down towards the ground. Within just mere seconds, the ball of light that seemed as big as a distant star was nearly big enough to cover the entire night sky. The dark forest became filled with natural light as the people grunted because of the light hurting their eyes.
"Arghh!"
"W-why is it so bright here"
"Everyone stay in your position! Find the prince and make sure he doesn't run away."
The leader ordered as the men started to move around subconsciously due to the pain. The person closest to the prince tried to find him while squinting his eyes. Suddenly, he felt something drip on his hand. "What's this?" he pondered while looking around, still slightly squinting his eyes. He looked back at his hand and tried to find out what it was. "Hmm?… This!" he found out what it was, as the metallic taste of blood could never be hidden from him.
"Kugh!"
He heard a cry from his left.
"Argghhh!"
Another one.
"Leader, someone's killing the men"
"Everyone! Pay attention to your surrounding and catch the prince! HURRY!"
"W-What is that light? Is this the end of me?" Yunwen sighed. Several tiny pieces of what appeared to be glowing rocks fell on him.
"huh?" he suddenly saw some of the pieces melting, if one could even say it was melting, and felt a burning sensation on his skin, it felt like the tissues of his body were being raptured by the melted substance. The excruciating pain of the molten substance was rendering him senseless, about to lose consciousness because of the insurmountable amount of pain and fatigue caused by it. His skin burnt, bones torn apart and insides burning; he sustained his life solely based on hope of surviving this hell. Although he could not see it, he thought that some of those pieces might have melted on top of his head as the pain he was feeling now in his temples could not be explained otherwise. It felt as if every cell in his brain was flowing backwards; causing ripples in his noggin.
As he was pressing his hands against his temples, he heard a voice, a voice so distant yet surprisingly clear without any source or direction.
[Syncing the system with the user's genetic data.]
"Am i hearing things now, is this what happens when you are dying?" Zhu Yunwen sighed at his discrepancy with life. His nerves bulged as disappointment and rage filled his face, he counted his last breath, or so he thought.
[User data found.
Name: Zhu Yunwen
age: 15 years old
state: immense blood loss, partially unconscious, being chased by assassins]
The voice in his head was resounding all over his body. It felt like every neuron in his brain was vibrating, giving him a feeling of migrane.
"W-Who is this?!" he became a scared cat when he heard the voice.
[My name is celaetheronium, I'm a collage of nano robots made up of an element from a distant timeline.]
"Celestial metal?" Zhu Yunwen trembled when he heard the name.
The burns that formed on his skin were being healed from within and a flush of internal energy washed over his body. It felt like his body had exceeded the human limits and reached transcendence. If one were to say, it was simply divine, as if the heavens itself had blessed him.
[Warning, the user's blood tissues are deforming due to interference of an unregistered form of energy.]
The rusty, wheezing voice spoke again but with a sense of danger that sent shivers down Zhu Yunwen's nerves.
"What does that mean?"
[Synchronizing the language base to the user's period setting.]
[The user's meridians are being disrupted due to an unknown internal energy.]
Zhu Yunwen clutched his head as the voice reverberated through his mind, a constant, low hum that threatened to split his skull. The pain radiated outward, coursing through every nerve, every bone. His vision blurred as he struggled to stay conscious.
[Interference detected. Celestial energy in conflict with the user's innate qi.]
"What is happening to me?!" he whispered, his voice ragged. His breath came in uneven gasps, and his body convulsed as the supposedly "celestial metal" fought for dominance within him. The molten fragments of the celestial metal, once unbearable in their heat, now seemed to merge with his cells, pulsing with an eerie, alienated rhythm. His body was no longer his own; it was being rewritten at a molecular level.
The assassins, still blinded by the intense light, were scattered in the underbrush, grunting and yelling at each other as they fumbled in the sudden chaos. But the sounds of their search grew distant, as if Zhu Yunwen were to fall into a deep abyss. The forest around him became a blur, trees and shadows twisting unnaturally in his vision, merging into indistinct forms. All that remained clear was the burning pulse of energy surging through his veins.
He gritted his teeth as another wave of searing pain shot through his limbs. His skin was knitting back together, muscle and bone reforming with unimaginable speed, but it was not without a price. Every cell in his body seemed to be at war, stretching and contracting under the strain of the foreign metal's influence.
[User synchronization at 24%. Increasing nanite adaptation to stabilize the flow of energy.]
Zhu Yunwen staggered to his feet, his legs trembling as he tried to regain control of his body. The world tilted dangerously as he struggled to focus, his vision swimming with strange colors and shapes that seemed out of place, as though they did not belong to this time. His heart hammered in his chest, its rhythm echoing the pulse of the Celaetheronium within him.
[Warning, unknown individual detected approaching the user. The user is found unable to move properly, forcing the mass release of adrenaline to support the user.]
Suddenly, a figure appeared through the haze, rushing towards him with a sword drawn. Zhu Yunwen's instincts kicked in, his body moving before his mind could fully comprehend the danger. He twisted to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade, and slammed his fist into the attacker's chest.
There was a sickening crunch as the assassin's rib cage caved in under the force of the blow. The man's eyes widened in shock, blood spilling from his mouth as he collapsed to the ground, his sword clattering uselessly beside him.
Zhu Yunwen stumbled back, staring at his hand in disbelief. He had barely touched the man, yet the impact had been devastating, far beyond what his slender frame should have been capable of. His mind raced as the realization sank in—this was the power of the celestial metal, the object of the gods. He could feel it coursing through him, amplifying his strength, his speed, his very essence.
But it wasn't just power. There was something more, something darker lurking beneath the surface. The metal wasn't merely enhancing him; it was changing him, reshaping him into something… else.
[User synchronization at 72%. Warning: heightened risk of permanent alteration to genetic structure.]
"Permanent alteration?!" Zhu Yunwen hissed, stumbling over the words as the voice echoed through his skull. His hands trembled as he looked down at the assassin's lifeless body. What had he become? Was this the price for survival?
He didn't have time to think. Another assassin lunged at him from the shadows, a dagger gleaming in the moonlight. Zhu Yunwen's body reacted instinctively once more, his movements a blur as he dodged the strike with inhuman precision. Before the attacker could even register what had happened, Zhu Yunwen had grabbed the man by the throat, lifting him off the ground with a single hand.
The assassin choked, his eyes bulging in terror as he struggled against the iron grip. Zhu Yunwen felt a surge of anger, his pulse quickening as the Celaetheronium responded to his emotions, amplifying his rage.
"Why are you after me?!" Zhu Yunwen demanded, his voice barely recognizable, distorted by the power coursing through him. His fingers tightened around the assassin's throat, and the man gasped for air, his legs kicking helplessly in the air.
"Ple… please, spar… meh…"
The assassin tried to speak, but the words were strangled by his failing breath. His eyes rolled back, and with a final, desperate twitch, his body went limp.
Zhu Yunwen released the corpse, letting it fall to the ground with a dull thud. His chest heaved as he stared down at the bodies scattered around him, a mixture of fear and exhilaration coursing through his veins. He had never killed before. Not like this. Not with his bare hands, nor with anything else. The thought made him shudder, but at the same time, there was an undeniable thrill, a primal satisfaction in knowing he had overpowered his enemies.
But that satisfaction quickly faded as the voice returned, more insistent this time.
[User synchronization at 85%. The interference of unregistered energy continues. The user's meridians are at risk of collapse.]
His meridians. Zhu Yunwen had heard of them in the ancient teachings, the pathways of internal energy that flowed through the body, the foundation of all martial arts. If the something was disrupting them…
"What… what happens if they collapse?" he whispered, but there was no answer.
He clenched his fists, fighting the rising panic. He couldn't let this power destroy him. Not now. Not when he had finally found a way to survive.
With a deep breath, he tried to focus, tried to suppress the energy raging inside him. It was like trying to hold back a tidal wave with his bare hands. The Celaetheronium resisted, pushing against him, straining to be unleashed. It wanted more. It demanded more.
But Zhu Yunwen wasn't ready to give in. Not yet.
He glanced around the forest, the light from the celestial object above slowly dimming, casting long, eerie shadows across the ground. The remaining assassins, those who hadn't been killed in the initial chaos, were nowhere to be seen. They must have fled in fear. He was alone.
For now.
Zhu Yunwen staggered forward, his legs weak but functioning. He needed to get away, needed to find shelter before more enemies arrived. He had no idea how long this newfound power would last, or if it would consume him entirely. But one thing was certain: he could not return to the capital. Not until he understood what he had become.
As he moved deeper into the forest, the voice whispered one final message.
[User synchronization at 90%. Complete integration in progress. Prepare for further changes. Upon utilisation, discharging remaining ounces of foreign energy from the host's body.]
Zhu Yunwen swallowed hard, his heart pounding in his chest. He had survived the fall of the celestial object. He had survived the assassins.
But could he survive what came next?
He was losing consciousness. Today's events had been too much for his fragile frame and weak stamina. As he dragged his measly body, he noticed someone far away from him, yet in a visible distance. Is it a friend or a foe?
"Hmm, it seems I can still not prevent destiny from taking its course. Oh well. Dear father, I shall be joining you soon in the afterlife. Do not feel lonely." As he had given up hope, he heard a voice again.
[User synchronization at 100%. Integration with the nano robots completed. All residual of foreign energy disposed from the host's body.]