Chapter 23 – Experimentation (Part 1)
After finally closing the system menu, Zane let out a long breath and shifted his gaze toward the small, unsuspecting potato sitting on the table beside him. He was eager to finally start his experimentations with his new powers, so he couldn't wait any longer.
He had now explored every tab and option the system had presented to him. There were no more tutorials to hold his hand, no convenient prompts waiting in the wings. What lay ahead was the grind—the long hours of training, of trial and error, of pushing his limits to understand what this new power inside him could really do.
This was the most time-consuming part of all: experimentation.
He knew full well that raw power wouldn't be enough. Not for the upcoming Dimensional Knight License exam, and definitely not for surviving whatever lay beyond it. That test wasn't going to be a formality—it was the barrier between pretenders and the real thing. A true Dimensional Knight had to wield their energy with purpose and finesse, not just brute force.
"I can't go there as the current Zane... not even a slightly stronger version of myself," he muttered aloud, lowering himself onto the floor and sitting cross-legged. "I need to level up—properly. Strategically."
His plan was simple: start slow, build a strong foundation, and gradually push forward in his understanding of this new world he had entered. It wouldn't do him any good to rush in and accidentally blow up half his apartment trying to genetically modify a potato. Baby steps.
'I can still feel it,' he thought, closing his eyes. 'The Core Energy… It's there, just beneath the surface. Moving very slowly, but present. It's not flooding my body like before… probably because I suppressed it. But if I summon it again… will it respond?'
He focused inward. The moment the thought of activation crossed his mind, he felt a familiar tingling surge in his veins. Purple energy sparked beneath his skin, racing through his muscles and bones like a living river of power. With barely any resistance, it surged forth, obeying his will.
A quiet hum vibrated through his body as the energy wrapped around him like a cloak. Zane opened his eyes and moved his limbs, testing their strength.
"Yeah… I can feel it. It wasn't just my imagination, it does boost my physical strength. I feel so much lighter and energetic. If I had to estimate, I'd say a good thirty to forty percent boost to physical strength," he murmured, swinging his arm experimentally. "It's not a small increase, not at all. Still… I wish the system gave me exact numbers. It'd be nice to quantify this stuff."
His eyes scanned the faint mist now rising from his skin. Deep purple, almost regal in hue. It was strange—he hadn't seen other awakeners use Core Energy directly, so he had no baseline for what was normal. But something about the color struck him as… off. It didn't feel like the energy of a beginner. It was so profound and boundless, almost like an endless sea, moving rhythmically and elegantly.
"And yet, it's calm," he observed aloud. "Back when I first awakened, it was violent. Chaotic. Like a storm trapped in a bottle."
But now? Now it moved like drifting smoke, graceful and still. A complete contrast.
'Maybe I've already gained control of it without realizing,' he thought, rubbing his chin. 'Or maybe… what happened during my awakening was just abnormal to begin with.'
He sighed, setting the thought aside. He could spend hours theorizing and still end up nowhere. Better to focus on what he could test.
"Let's start with something basic," he said, glancing toward a random pen sitting a few feet away. "Can I direct the energy to a specific place? Make it move the way I want?"
With that question in mind, he closed his eyes once more. This time, he focused on condensing the energy into his palm. To his mild surprise, it responded effortlessly. Purple light gathered at his hand, forming a small, dense bump of mist that hovered just above his skin.
'Okay. Now comes the tricky part…' he thought, his brow furrowing.
'I want to separate this chunk. Cut it off from the rest of my energy—make it independent.'
That's when the resistance began.
The moment he tried to isolate the energy, it pushed back. It was subtle at first—like trying to pull apart two magnets. But the harder he forced it, the stronger the resistance became. It wasn't painful, but it was frustrating.
Opening his eyes, Zane sighed in annoyance. "Why isn't it listening?" he muttered, staring at the swirling orb in his hand.
It almost felt alive, or at least bound by an instinctive desire to stay connected to him.
'Natural resistance… that must be it,' he mused. 'But if it almost separated, that means it's possible. I just need to push harder.'
He closed his eyes again and focused, this time with unwavering determination. His jaw tightened. Sweat beaded at his brow as he strained to force the separation.
'No… this time, you will obey. You're my power. You follow my will.' He said in his head as if talking to his own Energy.
He grabbed his wrist with his free hand, anchoring himself. Every ounce of focus was poured into that single task. The resistance peaked—and then, with one final mental push, it snapped.
The energy detached.
Zane gasped and opened his eyes. In his palm hovered a perfect sphere of glowing purple mist, fully separated from his body.
His lips parted in awe. "It worked…"
The sphere was small, no larger than a ping pong ball, but it pulsed with raw, tangible energy. It was light as air, yet held shape like a solid object.
He rotated it in his hand. "It feels… weird. Not hot, not cold. Almost like holding clay, but lighter. Like I could mold it."
Just as he thought that, he poked the ball with his hand, and it surprisingly left a trace in the ball that quickly inflated back to shape.
'Yeah… clay is the best comparison. Malleable, but cohesive.'
He formed it into a miniature spike, then a cube, then a rough sphere again. The possibilities with this were endless.
"Alright. Time to test the next part," he said. His eyes flicked to the pen he had placed as a target. He raised the small energy ball and aimed.
But just as he was about to throw, a sudden spike of anxiety hit him.
'Wait… is this a good idea?' he thought, hesitation creeping in. 'That explosion from before—when I first awakened—wasn't small. If I miscalculate, I could reduce this entire apartment to rubble.'
He grimaced. "Yeah… maybe don't test nukes indoors."
Instead, he tore off a tiny fraction of the ball—just a crumb, really—and held it up.
"This much should be safe. Probably… Well, here goes nothing."
With a flick of his wrist, he tossed the small energy fragment at the pen. It floated lazily through the air before landing on target.
The pen tipped over and clattered to the floor. The energy fragment followed, bouncing once, twice, and then coming to a rest beside it.
Zane blinked.
"...No explosion?"
He stared at the fallen pen, then back at his hand. "Was I wrong?" he asked aloud, turning to check the fragment again. "Maybe it doesn't naturally explo-"
That's when it happened.
A blinding flash erupted in front of him, and all he managed to think was—
'Oh no!'
BANG.