Despite having some psychological preparation, Lin Hao was still thunderstruck by Daotian's words. It felt as if everything before him was an illusion, not reality.
Low-grade cultivation talent—a name that sounded ordinary, yet it represented a level of talent that only one in thousands possessed.
The proportion of cultivators to ordinary people in this world was extremely low. Those with intermediate-grade talent? Perhaps only one in hundreds of thousands.
As for high-grade talent, across all of humanity, there weren't many. That was the kind of exceptional, rare talent, a genius seldom seen in the world. It was dozens of times rarer than intermediate grade.
Lin Hao stared fixedly at the sphere containing the dense spiritual energy, his chest heaving, unable to suppress his excitement.
The more he looked, the more beautiful it seemed; the more he looked, the more hope he felt. He believed he could do it now.
"Ha ha ha ha ha..." Lin Hao covered his face and laughed heartily. If a doctor were here, they might have considered transferring him to the psychiatric ward.
Daotian looked at Lin Hao with an appreciative gaze. That feeling of excitement upon realizing one could truly step onto the path of cultivation was something he had also experienced.
Lin Hao tried to calm his excited emotions and looked at the continuously surging streams of spiritual energy.
Their colors weren't vibrant, flickering in and out of sight, yet they carried an oddly captivating allure.
He got out of bed and slowly walked toward the sphere. Unconsciously, his hand reached out to touch it.
The sphere was like a cheap soap bubble, bursting the moment it was touched. The spiritual power inside immediately scattered and completely merged with the natural spiritual energy.
Lin Hao frowned, his expression full of confusion as he looked at Daotian, seeking an explanation.
Daotian was dumbfounded. He hadn't expected this ability to be so fragile, dispersing upon the slightest touch.
"Wait a moment, I just received some information..." he said, then closed his eyes as if receiving something.
Lin Hao felt a sense of familiarity, as if he had encountered a similar situation somewhere before.
"Why do I feel like I'm being shown a demo version that needs to be unlocked first?" he muttered, shuddering at the thought.
If that were really the case, he had no idea what he could use to pay the price. For someone from another world like Daotian, money probably wouldn't be appropriate.
"Huh???" Daotian scratched his head, feeling utterly bewildered by the information he had just received.
"What's the matter?" Lin Hao asked curiously.
Daotian was very knowledgeable when it came to cultivation. For him to be this stumped, it must be something extremely strange.
"It's very odd. The information I just received says that earlier was just a feature introduction. To permanently unlock the feature, a task needs to be completed," Daotian replied.
Now he was feeling very strange. What exactly was this metal sphere that had absorbed his soul?
This thing was bizarre, as if it had already laid out a path for him to follow. But it seemed he only received information piece by piece, and only after certain conditions were met.
"It sounds like a video game," Lin Hao frowned.
A watch that looks like a superhero transformation device from a movie. A strange 'robot' from another world. Now add tasks to the mix, making everything even weirder.
Lin Hao had a feeling he was a character in a game, on his way to completing a storyline mission.
"What's the task?" he continued.
Daotian didn't speak but projected a screen from his finger. On it was written:
[Task: Heroic Quality
Content: Make a villain become a better person.
Reward: Can use peak spiritual energy affinity.]
???
Lin Hao stared at the task content, completely dumbfounded. He felt like these words had nothing to do with him.
He frowned at Daotian, pointed a finger at himself, and asked, "A hero? Are you sure the person mentioned here is me?"
He considered himself a good citizen. His criminal record was definitely a blank sheet.
But a hero... He didn't see himself as noble to that extent. He only wanted to protect the people important to him.
"Don't ask me; I have no other choice. If you want to cultivate, you have to complete this task." Daotian spread his hands and shook his head.
Lin Hao sighed, his fists clenching slightly. He shouldn't hesitate over a minor issue and miss out on the bigger picture.
"Okay, being a hero is fine too. Protecting someone important is still protecting; protecting everyone is also protecting. As long as it doesn't go against my conscience, there's no problem," he said, his gaze unwavering.
Daotian was momentarily stunned. He faintly sensed that Lin Hao had indeed become somewhat different.
"Not bad. That's more like the host I chose. Ah, right, you also have assistance. There's a new feature that's just been unlocked for a one-time free use to help with the task," Daotian said.
Upon hearing about a new feature, Lin Hao was somewhat curious. But after hearing "one-time free use," his face darkened.
Of course, nothing was truly free. Even if you didn't pay with money, you had to pay with something else.
"Tell me, what is it exactly?" Lin Hao asked. Though he felt a bit unhappy, who would turn down free stuff?
"It's a bit hard to describe. It's like... I can merge with you." Daotian scratched his head, his words vague.
He himself hadn't experienced this merging sensation before.
"Merge? Aren't we already connected now? Even though you're outside right now, you can instantly return to my wrist, right?" Lin Hao said.
"That's true. But the current state doesn't provide any boost. That other state provides weapons, increases damage resistance, and slightly enhances strength," Daotian said, raising his hand to project a 3D model.
The model was a suit of armor that looked no different from the transformation armor of superheroes in movies.