After the inauguration ceremony, the master bedroom remained under renovation, and Kino temporarily took refuge in the guest room.
He shut the door behind him, drew the curtains, and opened the interface for the Triple Shackles, beginning to strategize the allocation of his emotional points for this cycle.
To harness the advantage of this world's momentum for his own purposes, he must first assimilate into it, which means he must avoid appearing out of place.
Imagine, in an era dominated by cold weapons, if you were to choose the technological route, drawing out machine guns or cannons at the slightest provocation, or even unleashing a Gundam to rampage around.
At that point, it wouldn't require the Reincarnators to take action—this world's native powers would immediately deem you a heretic, or worse, associate you with the Outsiders.
Thus, firearms, like guns and cannons, should be used sparingly until a detailed plan is in place. A rash attempt to trigger an industrial revolution in an era that hasn't yet reached that stage would be an act of high risk and minimal reward.
The 424 points of respect he had accumulated were untouched for now. Kino decided to leave them alone for the time being, as he needed to gain a deeper understanding of this world's productivity before deciding what to exchange for.
The 4043 points of fear, however, came from a dense array of sources—mainly from the bandits, Li Minkai and other Reincarnators, as well as those who had experienced or witnessed the Iron Moon massacre.
The fear system, compared to the respect system, had far fewer restrictions.
The supernatural powers in this world were incredibly intricate. Even within the Kingdom of Dorgaland, the five noble families and the royal family each had their own unique forms of supernatural ability.
Take the royal family's supernatural abilities as an example. Their power was derived from their worship of the "Sun." The stronger their devotion to the Sun, the more intense their power became.
Such an odd system was beyond Kino's capacity to explain with modern knowledge. Of course, given that the world's laws were different, perhaps no explanation was necessary.
In any case, in a world so rife with complex and mutable supernatural forces, it would be difficult for anyone to notice if Kino used the fear system in a way that might seem strange or unconventional.
Kino found numerous options within the fear system. There were fields focused on physical enhancement, primarily through various bloodline augmentations, emphasizing strength, agility, and cellular regeneration. Some bloodlines even became stronger the lower the host's vitality, favoring direct combat—essentially, the law of survival: whoever flinches is the dog.
Such paths were impossible for Kino, who had a strong aversion to anything that might taint his image.
The brutish approach—where you punch through ribs and I shatter your jaw—was, in his eyes, close to a form of mental stagnation.
On the other hand, there was the traditional Eastern cultivation system: washing the marrow to enhance potential, consolidating the foundation, and incrementally improving one's stage of cultivation. Eventually, one would reach a certain level, forging magical artifacts, summoning divine beasts, or activating intricate arrays.
At first, Kino was intrigued, but as he delved deeper, he realized that to summon these artifacts or beasts, one was required to shout out incantations or strange names—phrases such as "Summon the Demon Banner! Ghost Generals, heed my command!" or "Thunder God and Lightning Mother, manifest yourselves!"—and not just whisper them, but shout them loudly, for greater effect.
He quickly lost interest.
In his opinion, this method was only marginally better than the previous one.
As he flipped through the options, suddenly a striking name caught his eye:
**[Avatar of Death (Exclusive System for Rejecters)]**
**[Rejecters may only select one exclusive system. Once chosen, it cannot be changed. Please choose wisely.]**
Generally speaking, anything labeled "exclusive" would not be inferior, especially when it couldn't be altered once selected.
Upon selecting it, Kino discovered that "Avatar of Death" was not a singular ability, but a comprehensive system with numerous branches, forming an expansive tree of powers.
Soon, he found an ability that perfectly suited him:
**[Shadow of Death: Those on the brink of death will perceive the aura of death on the host, causing mental turmoil and deepening their fear. The closer they are to death, the more potent the aura.]**
This ability, at level 1, cost 3000 fear points—quite expensive, but perfect for Kino.
On the battlefield, those on the verge of death already have fragile resolve, easily overwhelmed by fear. When they perceive this aura of death, their mental turmoil would only intensify, and their fear would grow far beyond its initial levels.
This meant that Shadow of Death not only had the potential to weaken the enemy's fighting spirit but also to harvest more fear points.
For example, if a dying enemy initially had a fear level of 50, after perceiving the aura of death, that fear would likely escalate well beyond 50.
This type of augmentative skill would yield greater returns the sooner it was acquired.
Kino continued to examine other Rejecter-exclusive systems but found none more fitting than this one. Without hesitation, he exchanged for the level 1 Shadow of Death, locking in the "Avatar of Death" system as his own.
His second exchange was for level 1 Telekinesis, costing 1000 fear points.
Telekinesis was not part of a larger system but an individual ability that allowed him to influence material systems with his mind—providing both defensive and offensive capabilities from a distance.
With telekinesis, Kino would no longer need to engage with filthy enemies up close, and he wouldn't have to tread on Paladins to cross dirty water.
Having completed his exchanges, Kino glanced at his hand.
He extended a finger, and the surrounding air began to tremble. It twisted around his fingertip, forming a pressuring vortex that attached itself to the bed in the room.
A simple flick of his finger, and the bed levitated, floating in mid-air. A downward motion caused it to drop back to the floor.
Still not fully accustomed to the telekinesis, Kino miscalculated slightly when the bed fell, causing it to thud heavily against the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
As the dust filled the room, it seemed to strike an invisible barrier when it neared Kino, failing to settle on him. Instead, it arced away, settling in a circle on the floor, revealing a one-meter radius of clear space around him.
Kino estimated the bed weighed around 200 kilograms. He could feel the resistance when lifting it, so he conservatively estimated that his current telekinetic limit was about 300 kilograms.
It wasn't much, but it would suffice for now. The Shadow of Death was far too expensive, and with his remaining fear points limited, this would have to do.
As for testing the Shadow of Death, there was no one around to experiment with.
But it didn't matter—there would always be someone on the verge of death. The opportunity would come.
After completing his exchanges within the fear system, Kino turned to the final emotion: **Respect**.
The most mysterious of the Triple Shackles systems, **Reverence**.
Honestly, even with 528 points of reverence, Kino still didn't understand how it was acquired.
The reverence points seemed to have originated when he executed Li Minkai in public. Was it "killing Reincarnators" that earned them?
It didn't seem so.
When he killed Klin and Kess at the tavern, there were witnesses, but he hadn't gained any reverence points.
Like respect and fear, reverence came from specific individuals, and it too seemed to be a form of emotional feedback.
The trigger for this feedback appeared to be the public execution of the Outsider. How exactly should this emotion be classified?
Admiration? Not quite—it was more a combination of fear and awe than pure admiration, which was a fully positive emotion.
Reverence, with its element of "fear," was not quite the same as simple admiration.
What kind of psychological response had the public felt upon witnessing the death of the Outsider?
Kino had inquired of Paladin and others about their thoughts when they saw the Outsider's execution.
Their reactions had been varied:
From Paladin, the reverence value was 45 points. He knelt before Kino, trembling: "That scene was unimaginable, as though facing the vastness of history itself! I would follow you always, never to betray!"
From Baisa, the reverence value was 23 points, with an emotional outburst: "Master, you rid us of the Outsider, upholding justice in this world!"
From Lugo, the reverence value was just 1 point. He gave Kino a thumbs-up and simply said, "Cool!"
A cacophony of responses.
Based on the available information, reverence didn't seem to have a clear acquisition method like respect or fear. Kino could only wait and see if future opportunities could clarify its origins.
Now, he delved into the reverence system, eager to learn what it had to offer...