[Ding! You have received 3 attribute points!]
[Detecting that Physical and Charm are full, automatically allocated to Mental Power.]
[You gained: Mental Power *3]
Ning Yu felt that the taste of the [Awakening Preparation Potion] was peculiar, a strange flavor that couldn't be simply described as sour, sweet, bitter, or spicy.
After drinking it all, a cool sensation flowed down her throat into her stomach, and then a unique refreshing feeling spread throughout her body.
She immediately sensed the enhancement in mental power:
Her five senses became more acute, she could see further, her ears picked up clearer sounds of the night wind, and she could even faintly hear the zombies howling downstairs.
The fatigue from a day's journey instantly vanished. If it weren't so expensive, she'd love to use it as an energy drink.
Ning Yu decisively downed the second bottle of [Awakening Preparation Potion].
[As the host can only receive 2 attribute points, only 2 points will be granted.]
This was because her Physical and Charm had both reached 10, and her Mental Power had just reached 8, so she could only add 2 more points to Mental.
[Ding! You have received 2 attribute points!]
[Detecting that Physical and Charm are full, automatically allocated to Mental Power.]
[You gained: Mental Power *2]
At this moment, Ning Yu's attributes fully met the conditions for the Awakening Path task.
[Ding! Epic task: Awakening Path completed!]
[Initiating Origin awakening for host...]
The system didn't immediately grant rewards, seeming to enter some kind of process.
Ning Yu felt her body suddenly become burning hot, as if all her blood had been replaced with boiling water.
She furrowed her brows, enduring the burning pain, but soon waves of dizziness struck her.
The entire room was spinning, her brain felt like it had been thrown into a cement mixer.
Endless darkness surged in from all directions, and she finally couldn't hold on anymore, falling unconscious.
In her hazy state, she heard the system's prompt:
[Awakening complete: Host's Origin is 「」]
......
Gray mist.
Endless gray mist, Ning Yu suddenly opened her eyes.
This dream again, the last time she had it was when she fainted after activating [Dark Side of the Moon].
Ning Yu looked around, but this time there was no one else here.
A wet sensation came from beneath her feet. She quickly looked down and found that she had a physical form this time, in her current little girl body.
She was wearing the same elegant Western-style dress from when she first opened her eyes, with white over-knee socks on her legs, though her feet were bare.
She seemed to be standing on the surface of a lake.
The light around suddenly brightened, the surrounding gray mist abruptly dispersed, and the lake's reflective effect became extremely clear.
Ning Yu could clearly see her silver-gray hair and familiar amber eyes in the lake's reflection.
"Drip"
A drop of water seemed to fall in front of her, creating gentle ripples on the previously smooth lake surface.
Ning Yu looked up, and her pupils suddenly dilated.
She saw:
Another version of herself?
It definitely wasn't Ning Xuan's appearance. Though they were twins, there were obvious differences in their features, like how her sister's eyes were lake-blue.
But this 'self' before her was identical to her, with silver-white hair and amber eyes.
Ning Yu only made eye contact with this 'self' for a moment before countless images flashed before her eyes like a zoetrope:
From leaving her mother's womb to being cremated and placed in a grave.
Primitive humans eating raw meat, ancient emperors ascending thrones, bloody battlefields, white-collar workers on mobile phones, future cities with flying cars and light pollution.
When she snapped out of her daze, the 'self' opposite her was still watching her, completely motionless.
That 'self' suddenly opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Ning Yu had to strain to read her lips.
Fi...nal...ly...?
Root...?
Like in all dreams:
When you try hard to do something in a dream, you're bound to fail.
This torment of wanting to do something but never being able to continues until you wake up.
No matter how hard Ning Yu tried, she couldn't make out what her other self was trying to say.
The endless gray mist suddenly spread again, and the lake surface disappeared.
The 'self' disappeared too.
......
Opening her eyes again, Ning Yu saw the pure white ceiling of the apartment living room.
The burning sensation from earlier had disappeared, and she even felt an inexplicable lightness throughout her body.
Looking up at the clock in the living room:
2 AM.
She had been unconscious for several hours.
Shen Yiyue was still unconscious on the sofa. Ning Yu walked over and felt her forehead - the temperature was normal.
After checking other parts of her body and finding no abnormalities, it seemed Shen Yiyue had indeed just fainted from overusing that ability.
Now that her so-called 'Origin' had awakened, what changes were there?
Ning Yu opened her status panel:
Physical, Charm, and Mental were all at 10.
Items, Skills, and Points showed no changes.
Two new status lines appeared at the bottom:
[Awakening Status: Awakened.]
[Host Origin: 「」]
Ning Yu was completely puzzled by these empty brackets 「」.
She had expected some cool superpower name, but what did these empty brackets mean?
She casually tapped on it, and more detailed information popped up:
[You can copy parts of other awakened ones' Origin abilities, but must have a friendliness level greater than or equal to 'Friendly' with that awakened one.]
[Origin abilities gained through copying will be incomplete.]
[You can detect friendliness levels by touching other awakened ones' bodies.]
Below these explanation lines was a line of gray text, barely noticeable unless looking carefully:
[The usefulness of what exists lies in what does not]
"The usefulness of what does not..."
Ning Yu softly muttered these words.
If that's the case, for convenience, she'll call her Origin 'Void' from now on.
Being able to copy other awakened ones' Origin abilities, Ning Yu immediately turned her attention to the sleeping Shen Yiyue.
Their relationship should at least be 'Friendly', right?
Ning Yu slowly walked over and held Shen Yiyue's hand with her small, delicate hand.
In her sleep, Shen Yiyue seemed to feel something warm and directly pulled it into an embrace, wrapping around Ning Yu's hand.
Ning Yu froze, then quietly tried to move her captured hand away.
"Mmm.... Little Yu...."
She was sleep-talking again.
[Your friendliness level is: Intimate]
?
Intimate?
How did it become intimate?
How come I didn't know about this?
Or did this person just unilaterally raise her affection level?
Ning Yu looked at Shen Yiyue, who was tightly holding her hand, and suddenly felt a strange sense of reasonableness.
At this moment, the system's prompt also sounded in her mind:
[Detected target's Origin: Time]
[Detected target's copyable Origin ability: Future Reading]
[Copy?]