Volume One, Chapter One: The Divine Feedback System

This world was shrouded in an eerie mist, a veil so thin and subtle that sunlight pierced through, refracting into a kaleidoscope of colors—yet nothing could diminish the suffocating presence that clung to the air. This mist was not ordinary vapor but a lethal gas released by the flora, colorless and odorless, capable of corroding all things.

Within the poisonous haze, the plants grew with unrestrained frenzy, twisting and contorting. Gentle blades of grass became razor-sharp knives; once-delicate blossoms unfurled gaping, blood-red maws, devouring any living thing that dared approach. Animals fared no better; some lost their fur, exposing raw muscle, others suffered warped skeletons sprouting sharp bone spines. The most grotesque of all were those fused with bizarre plants growing from within, merging flesh and greenery into abominations—neither fully beast nor human.

Humanity, the so-called spirit of all things, was not spared. For survival, people were forced onto a thorn-strewn path of evolution—developing resistance to the poison. Only by constantly boosting their resistance could they eke out a precarious existence in this ruined world. Mutation was the extreme embodiment of this struggle. When the body could no longer withstand the toxins yet stubbornly clung to life, mutation occurred. These mutations were often accompanied by plants sprouting from within, pushing through the skin, fusing with flesh and bone.

To record and distinguish these mutations, people invented a unique method—tattoos. Each mark chronicled the changes within.

Humanity’s city stood as a colossal circular fortress, an inverted bowl pressed against the poisoned earth. The closer one drew to the center, the thinner the toxic air—a so-called paradise, playground of the powerful and privileged. In the outermost slums, however, the poison lingered like a festering wound, never dissipating through the endless years.

Yun Qianbai and Yun Miyang lived here.

The slum’s defenses were dilapidated beyond repair. Cracks marred the walls, like gaping, ferocious mouths hungrily gulping down the outside poisons. The toxins were not instantly lethal, but like a slow-working venom, they gnawed away at people’s health. Yun Miyang was one of the victims. Her mother had died in childbirth, and without the nourishment of breast milk, she had been sickly and frail since infancy.

In this world where only the strong survived, there were two ways to live: be born to privilege, enjoying the best resources at the city’s heart, or possess formidable resistance to the poison, risking everything as a hunter for the slim hope of a better future.

Yun Qianbai’s talent was abysmal. While others withstood over five percent concentration of toxins, he could not endure even one percent. This meant that the moment he stepped outside the city, or if the poison within thickened just a little, he would be the first to perish. He was relegated to the lowest menial jobs, his meager pay barely supporting himself and his sister.

But as Yun Miyang’s illness worsened, even this pittance was not enough to buy her medicine.

“Brother, am I dying?” Miyang lay in bed, her face pale as paper, lips cracked, her voice as faint as a mosquito’s drone.

Yun Qianbai held his sister’s hand. It was cold and fragile, as if the slightest squeeze would shatter it. Fighting back tears, he whispered, “Don’t say such things. You’ll get better.”

“But I feel so awful…” Miyang broke into a violent cough, spitting up bright blood that stained the sheets crimson.

It was as if a giant hand gripped Yun Qianbai’s heart, squeezing until he could barely breathe.

He gathered his sister into his arms and dashed from their home, stumbling towards the hospital.

“I’m sorry, but we don’t treat patients who can’t pay,” the nurse said coldly.

“Please, save my sister!” Yun Qianbai fell to his knees, begging.

“No money, no treatment. Leave!” The nurse waved him away like a bothersome fly.

Cradling his sister, Yun Qianbai drifted home in a daze. Today was his eighteenth birthday.

Once home, Miyang struggled to sit up and fished out a small ring woven from grass from beneath her pillow. “Happy birthday, Brother.”

He took the ring and slid it onto his finger—it fit perfectly. Gazing at his sister, tears finally broke free.

“Don’t cry, Brother. I’m not afraid of dying…” Miyang managed a weak smile. “I just… can’t bear to leave you.”

“You’re not going to die!” Qianbai hugged her tightly, as if he could meld her into his own body. “I will save you!”

At that moment, a mechanical voice sounded in his mind:

“Ding! Detecting intense emotional fluctuation, God-level Feedback System activated!”

“Ding! Detecting ambient toxins, beginning absorption…”

“Ding! Toxin absorption successful. Toxin value +1!”

“Ding! Toxin value can be used to enhance host’s attributes!”

Qianbai froze—this was… a system? After eighteen years in this world, his golden opportunity had finally arrived!

He glanced at his arm. A slender green vine tattoo was growing along his veins, glowing faintly. This was proof of his toxin absorption.

Suddenly, he realized that the deadly miasma was no longer a threat but a path to power. He looked at his dying sister, a spark of resolve igniting in his eyes.

He would grow strong. He would carry his sister step by step to the city’s heart and cure her. Those who had trampled them would pay the price.

“Miyang, do you trust me?” he asked softly.

She looked up, into his deep, smoldering gaze, and nodded weakly. “I trust you, Brother.”

“Good!” Qianbai smiled—a radiant smile, brighter than any in his eighteen years. “Then we’ll survive together!”

After settling Miyang in bed, Qianbai found his heart restless with excitement. He had started absorbing the toxins saturating their district—an unexpected boon.

He forced himself to calm down, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes. The air thickened around him, billows of gray-black gas eagerly pouring into his body.

As he absorbed the poison, he felt a fire burning within, comforting and warm.

“Ding! Toxin value +1, Strength +0.1.”

“Ding! Toxin value +1, Agility +0.1.”

“Ding! Toxin value +1, Constitution +0.1.”

“Ding! Toxin value +1, Spirit +0.1.”

The system’s notifications echoed in his mind. Qianbai felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, every pore greedily absorbing the energy around him.

He could sense dramatic changes within: muscles growing taut and powerful, bones hardening, senses sharpening.

In this world, the ranks of ability users were: Tempering Body, Blood Condensation, Innate, Inner Steel, Outer Steel, and Three Flowers Crowned. What lay beyond, Qianbai did not know. The lord of Boulder City, where he lived, was said to be at the seventh level of Three Flowers Crowned—a being at the very pinnacle of power, able to destroy a city with a gesture.

Qianbai himself was a nobody, not even at the threshold of Tempering Body.

Yet now, by absorbing poison, he could sense the stirrings of a breakthrough.

Tempering Body was the foundation for warriors, refining the body with each advance, purging impurities, and forging strength. At the seventh to ninth layers, true energy was born—an energy purer and more potent than poison, key to breaking through to Blood Condensation. Only when true energy formed a great circuit within and the bridge between heaven and earth was crossed could one enter the Blood Condensation realm.

Qianbai could feel the nascent power within, surging with anticipation. He was close to his first breakthrough.

“These toxins are far tastier than the industrial smog back home,” Qianbai thought wryly. “If only I could bottle them up and take them with me. If only…”

He opened his eyes and looked at the sallow, sickly slum dwellers around him, sympathy welling up in his heart.

“If I could absorb all the toxins here, would I be able to give these people a healthy place to live?” he wondered. “But with my current strength, that’s still far beyond reach.”

He shook his head, dismissing the fanciful notion.

For now, the most important thing was to grow stronger. Only by becoming powerful enough could he protect his sister and survive in this brutal world.