As soon as Null concentrated and focused all his thoughts, a wavering light appeared in front of him in the air which was written in "Ancient or what kind of language it is, but it didn't belong to the writing from this world." But Null could understand it clearly as the knowledge and understanding about this language was already fitted in his mind.
Null didn't waste his time thinking about it, he looked at his status. He was amazed as well as frightened to see it.
Name: Null
Soul Name: Unknown Soul
Rank: Nascent
Line strips: 12/???
Ascribe: [Born of Unknown]
Facet: [Empty]
Facet Abilities: [Duality's Grip]
Soul stream: 20
Remnants: Eclipsed Blade
"Ascribe..What does it mean?" Null wondered to himself, Suddenly the Ascribe window was opened and in it a brief explanation was written on it.
Ascribe: [Born of Unknown]
Description: "Your origin is Unknown."
Ascribe Ability: [Soul Siphon]
Description: "Enables to absorb line strips from defeated monsters, enhancing its own abilities and strength."
Null was surprised to read it. "Ability...line strips". He tried to understand it, but he still had a lot of confusion. Null remained silent and again he stared at the word Facet.
Null stared at it continuously and after a while he whispered to himself, "Is it mocking me?". Then, suddenly its description also appears in front of him.
Facet: [Empty]
Description: "You are empty inside, devoid of anything. Your existence remains a mystery."
[Cloaked in Darkness] Description: "Undetectable in Dark".
"I am undetectable in the dark! Does it mean I am invincible at night?" Null talking to himself. He seemed happy as well as unhappy and wondered, "Did I get this ability because I have always lived my life in the dark?"
"Curses!"
He continued to stare at his ability, wondering, "What? Why am I worrying about these things? I never used to concern myself with this before. Am I changing?"Null thought about it for a while but again he started searching for other information in his status bar.
[Duality's Grip]: "Enhances physical strikes and provides a temporary boost in strength and resilience."
"So, it is an active skill, That's why it is written separately. Hmm... Enhances physical strength. It's quite good but can't be compared to those two passive abilities. Those abilities were like a part of my life before being awakened."
"I think Soul stream is required to use Active abilities."
Null eyes squinted on Line strips. " What?"
Line strips: 12/???
Description: "Can be used for advancement."
"What kind of advancement? And what is that question mark?"
Null's mind was full of confusion his eyes rolled upon his soul name.
Soul Name: Unknown Soul
"I have never heard of it. While I was in Nexum I never heard anyone talking about Soul names."
Null stood there, a look of confusion etched across his face. Selene noticed his expression and watched him curiously. Just then, the status bar that had appeared in front of him vanished without warning. He blinked in surprise, raising his hand as if to summon it back, then searched the air around him, as though it would reappear if he just found the right spot.
Selene chuckled softly. "Something troubling you?"
He paused, then turned to her, an idea forming in his mind. "What sort of things usually show up in a… status bar?"
After Null's question, Selene nodded, launching into her explanation. "The status bar, as you know, is like a personal gauge. It displays an awakener's potential and assists in their advancement. Beyond that, it shows the unique abilities an awakener possesses, and most importantly, there's the 'soul stream.' Think of it as a reservoir of your stamina, a source you can draw on to activate various abilities."
Null absorbed the information, nodding thoughtfully. He considered asking about the strange markings he'd noticed earlier—the line strips—but before he could speak, Selene anticipated him.
"Yes, the line strips," she continued, cutting him off with a knowing smile. "They're very important. When you kill an Inversians like how I killed the wolf like creature , did you notice the white line strip around its neck? After killing such creatures, we can absorb these line strips. They can be absorbed to enhance our soul stream, though the exact amount depends on the awakeners rank. Each rank has its own limitations on how much can be absorbed."
She glanced at him to ensure he was following before adding, "But line strips aren't just for boosting soul stream. They have other uses as well, things we discover with experience."
Null nodded again, intrigued by how deep these systems ran. Just when he thought he understood it all, Selene continued, "And then there are the remnants. If you're fortunate, after defeating an Inversians, you might find special remnants left behind. These could be tools or even weapons, their quality and type depending on the creature's rank."
This caught Null off guard. While he was digesting it all, he couldn't help but realize she hadn't mentioned anything about the 'soul name.' He mused to himself, I can understand about these line strips somehow being linked to my ability from the Ascribe. But why hasn't she mentioned anything about a soul name? What does soul name represents?
"Let's just forget about it for now. I will think about it later." He whispered to himself.
"Selene about this Remnants how to use it.", Null asks
Selene's tone filled with surprise, "What you already got is a Remnant. Getting a Remnant in the awakening process is extremely rare."
"Forget about it, just memorize the name of the Remnants and it will automatically be summoned here."
Null again concentrated and focused his thought, then again the status bar was summoned In front of him, he searched for his Remnants.
Remnants: Eclipsed Blade
Description: " A sleek, dark blade forged from the essence of the mirror image." [Upgradable]
Null closes his eyes and memories its name and calls it, then suddenly a gleaming blade materializes out of the thin air on his right hand. The blade shimmers with a faint, ethereal glow, reflecting a darkness around it which is wrapped in shadowy tendrils. The hilt is sharp as it can picer through stone.