1285: 16 Seconds

16 Seconds

Seven Standard Minutes Later 1

"The sword is ready," Baracus informed.

"Just in time, the second beast is right ahead."

Hao Xuan made a grasping motion to take out the blade. It was a little over 1.2 meters long with a simple and traditional design. The only thing that stood out was its bulky "fat" blade almost 3 times wider.

He paused momentarily when the second beast was less than 40 meters away.

After taking a few deep breaths to regulate his breathing Hao Xuan held the sword in front of his chest while trying to recall the memories from that specific lifetime.

"First step....third step...fifth step...there are a total of Nine Steps in the Sword Scripture, I know that for sure but...Argh! I can't recall any of them! And this sword feels dead, it doesn't feel good to hold. I thought I was holding a corpse for a second."

It was like trying to hold water with an open hand, all the memories were slipping right through him.

Baracus's internal circuits suddenly came to life along with a few red notifications that Hao Xuan could not see.

[Kairotic Moment Attained!]

[Nexus Memoryline Discovered]

[Initiating Stage-2 of the Final Integration Process]

*beep*

"Would the host be open to a suggestion?"

"That depends on what you suggest."

"Perhaps recalling the start of the events will help in understanding the latter in more detail."

"You want me to absorb the entire lifetime's worth of memories?"

"Yes."

"I don't know about that. That will take a lot of time and I'm not so sure it's a good idea even outside of that."

"The system can utilize the nanites to create a portable 'memory injection apparatus' identical to the one that was used within the Progenitor's laboratory. The process would not last longer than 12-18 standard seconds per lifetime. All the memories will be properly organized and assorted according to the timeline of events."

"That is the optimal route. Otherwise you will have no option but to break through the beast horde with brute force."

"...."

"And what are the chances that I can make it out without doing that?"

The notifications in red appeared in the background again for a brief second with: [27.8 Percent] before it was changed to a different, much smaller value.

"0.0815 Percent"

"So...none then."

"Essentially. The apparatus has been prepared, you can begin at any time."

Hao Xuan didn't need to think about it for too long. Everything had been laid out in front of him.

'I don't trust Baracus after what he did but it feels like this was meant to happen. And it can't hurt to absorb the experiences of such a great warrior. If anything I should have done it sooner. At worse it will broaden my horizons even more.'

"Fine, go ahead."

After closing his eyes again Hao Xuan began to go down memory lane to the very beginning. And as he did so, an ethereal figure materialized behind him birthed from the chaotic energy of the falling world.

It was a man in a shattered grey armor holding a broken sword. What little of his actual deformed body could be seen was enough to make even the most seasoned warriors turn away. (Around Ch 1073 I think)

The man stared wordlessly at the back of Hao Xuan's head for a moment before extending a hand. When it came into contact with his body he began shaking from head to toe.

The roots of his hair started turning white one by one while the rest of his body was undergoing another series of changes.

The man behind him grew faint with every passing second and by the end, the last bit of him was also pulled into Hao Xuan.

At the same time, Hao Xuan himself was dropped head-first into the man's memories. They were being ingrained into his mind as if they had always been his own.

"AAAH!"

With a shout and a yell Hao Xuan fell to his knees 16 seconds later. He was covered in a thin film of sweat to the point that it gave him the appearance of being fished out of the water just seconds ago.

He was breathing heavily while clutching his chest, muttering in an unknown language.

"Urh ala. Ashi-qun...abeel. Kin bara...?"

[Integration Successful]

[Running Full-Body Scan]

[Muscle Loss Detected: 7.2%]

[Bone Density Growth Detected: 4.1%}

Hao Xuan rolled over and fell on his back weakly.

"Kina tres...jabalon..."

*beep*

"Foreign Language Detected! The host must recall their mother tongue."

"Mother...tongue?" Hao Xuan repeated, "Which one would...that be?"

"Welcome back. How are you feeling?"

"Like I was born...30 seconds ago. I feel...different."

[Internal Energy Reserves: 53%]

"Blood sugar levels dangerously low."

"And what...do you want me...to do about that? I have nothing left...to eat."

"There is an organic creature less than 35 meters away. After dispatch, you can place it within the storage space and the system can break it down for nutrients. It will not taste good but should be enough to create some emergency rations."

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