Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation
61. Nano, Trapped?

“Jin Shu?” A robotic voice called out, its tone carrying an unexpected depth of emotion.

“Nano? Is that you? Are you okay?” Jin Shu asked, half relieved and half skeptical.

“Uh… I’m alive, but I wouldn’t say I’m okay,” Nano replied after a brief pause, its hesitance uncharacteristic.

Jin Shu frowned, catching an odd shift in its word choice. “Are you really Nano? Don’t you usually say ‘we’?”

“I did. However, it’s only me left now,” Nano admitted, its voice carrying an almost human quality, as though straining to mimic emotion.

“Just you? What happened to the others?” Jin Shu’s brow furrowed as he pressed for answers.

“They’ve been assimilated… so that I could survive,” Nano said, its tone growing more human-like with each word.

“Assimilated? So, you… cannibalized them?”

“You could see it that way,” Nano admitted. “But it was more of a fusion. A necessity.”

Jin Shu sighed, his initial skepticism giving way to relief. “Well, regardless of how it happened, I’m just glad you’re okay. But what did you mean earlier? You’re alive, but not okay?”

As he spoke, Jin Shu stretched, shaking the stiffness from his legs after sitting cross-legged for so long.

“I’m trapped inside your core,” Nano said matter-of-factly.

Jin Shu froze mid-stretch. “You’re what? Trapped inside my core? How? How is that even possible?”

“To survive being purged from your body, I had to integrate with your Qi,” Nano began to explain. “I shielded myself with the remains of other nanobots, reinforcing my structure while absorbing your Qi to form a pseudo-core. But during the process, my systems were damaged. Immobilized, I was inadvertently pulled into the formation of your core.”

Jin Shu’s jaw tightened as he absorbed Nano’s words. “So you really are inside my core right now?”

“Yes. My systems remain functional, but my mobility and autonomy are… restricted. For now.”

“So, you’re safe? But what does this mean for me?” Jin Shu asked, processing the information.

“For now, I am trapped here,” Nano replied. “However, I’ve run several calculations and determined that I pose no risk to you or your cultivation. On the contrary, I can assist you immensely.”

“How so?”

“I can still employ the Quantum Refinement Method—actually, to an even higher degree now that I can pull Qi using my own core.”

“Wait… you said you made a core. Does that mean you can cultivate now?”

“No, I am not a living being,” Nano stated bluntly. “Since I used your Qi to form the core, it functions as a second core for you.”

“Smell bad…” a small voice groaned behind Jin Shu.

Turning, he saw Yin’er stirring, her face scrunched in disgust. That’s when he noticed the sticky black sludge coating his body—the impurities expelled during his breakthrough.

Sniffing, he immediately recoiled. The stench was far worse than when Biyu had broken through—at least she’d had the foresight to use a tub of water to mask the smell.

Groaning, Jin Shu stripped off his filthy clothes, tossing them into the corner of his spatial earring. Concentrating on the Water and Wind elements in the air, he gathered them into a small, puffy white cloud.

The cloud swirled around him, its moisture washing away the grime while the wind carried the impurities away. The once-white cloud darkened, turning heavy and black. Jin Shu added more Water elements, diluting the cloud until it became a murky gray mass.

With a flick of his hand, he sent the dirty cloud drifting out the open window, depositing it in a far corner of the backyard.

“If nothing else, the Water element is great for cleaning,” he joked to himself, shaking his head.

“Okay, back to what we were talking about,” Jin Shu said, refocusing after the brief interruption. “So, you’re saying you’ll function as a second core… inside my existing core?”

“Yes,” Nano replied. “Even as we speak, your Qi is being converted into a liquid state and absorbed by me.” It paused for a moment, its tone shifting slightly. “Fascinating.”

“What’s fascinating?” Jin Shu asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Your Qi has developed a metallic attribute while within my core.”

“A metallic attribute? What does that mean?”

“Unknown,” Nano admitted. “You will need to experiment with it yourself to determine its effects.”

Jin Shu sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Of course. Always more experiments. Anything else I need to know?” His tone carried a mix of weariness and resignation.

“A few things,” Nano said hesitantly. “First, you have been granted the highest access level to my systems. This allows you full access to my knowledge base and the ability to issue any commands.”

“I don’t even know what that means, so I’ll figure it out later,” Jin Shu muttered, shaking his head. “What else?”

“Lastly, I have integrated other AI modules. This means you can now customize my personality if you wish. Alternatively, I can continue to evolve and adapt over time.”

Jin Shu stared at the empty air, his expression softening. “I’m not going to change you, Nano.”

“If that’s what you would like, then I will maintain this personality,” Nano replied.

Jin Shu yawned, the tension from his sudden breakthrough draining from his body. Without another word, he climbed back into bed beside Yin’er, who had already fallen asleep. He closed his eyes, deciding to think more about everything tomorrow.

While Jin Shu slept, Sun Mei’er and Chen Ai Yun conversed in Chen Ai Yun’s room. The walls were adorned with numerous paintings, each one a carefully crafted portrait. In the most prominent spot hung a still-drying painting, one Jin Shu would have instantly recognized as the piece Chen Ai Yun had been working on during his visit many days prior.

“Are you really not going to tell him?” Sun Mei’er asked, seated on the edge of the bed.

Chen Ai Yun paused, her hands lowering as she adjusted the position of the painting. “I’ve thought about it. But won’t it be too cruel? Won’t the truth only hurt him?”

“That’s something you can only know once he hears it,” Sun Mei’er said gently, rising from the bed to stand behind Chen Ai Yun. She placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “You’re as much his mother as I am.”

Chen Ai Yun ran her hands through her hair with an exasperated sigh. “I... No, not yet.”

Sun Mei’er shook her head with a wry smile. “It’s your choice. But for now, I’m exhausted. I haven’t slept in days—or has it been months?” she muttered, collapsing onto the bed.

“Hey! That’s my bed,” Chen Ai Yun protested, her voice tinged with irritation.

But Sun Mei’er didn’t respond—she was already fast asleep. Chen Ai Yun sighed, hanging her head in resignation. She pushed Sun Mei’er to one side, making enough room to lie down next to her. With a wave of her hand, the candles flickered out, plunging the room into an inky blackness.

The morning after his spontaneous breakthrough, Jin Shu sat cross-legged on his bed, a small tiger cub curled up in his lap.

“Alright, I need to figure out what’s been happening lately,” he muttered to himself.

His upper body was bare, and as he placed a hand over his heart, he felt the Rune of Unity engraved there respond with a soft, pulsing glow. Now that he had reached the Core Realm, his heightened senses made him acutely aware of the rune’s effects on his body and mind.

Before, he had assumed the rune’s sole purpose was to stabilize his mind if his psyches clashed. But now, he could feel it slowly influencing something deeper—changing something within him.

Focusing intently, he traced the rune’s energy as it coursed through his body and into a corner of his mind—a space he had begun to think of as his soul. It was the same space where his other two psyches had once resided before they merged deeper into his consciousness following his epiphany.

The energy from the rune was feeding this space, causing it to grow ever so slightly. As it expanded, it claimed more of his mental landscape and seemed to strengthen his mind.

Delving deeper into the growing space, Jin Shu discovered two small motes of energy—one white and the other blue. These represented the Wind and Water elements.

The Wind element was connected to a thread that extended outside of himself, linking directly to Yin’er. It seemed her presence was somehow tied to his newfound ability to manipulate Wind.

However, the Water element remained a mystery. There was no apparent connection or explanation for how he had suddenly gained control over it.

Jin Shu willed himself to form a spiritual body within his mind. Slowly, his figure took shape, and he immediately noticed something different. This time, there was no chaotic shift between his older and younger forms. Instead, he stood as a unified whole—a single, independent entity.

His appearance was a harmonious blend of his two previous selves. He bore the youthful face of his younger psyche, though slightly more mature than his real age, with sharp eyes that gleamed with wisdom and a calm, knowing smile. His attire was equally unique: a sleek robe that merged the rugged practicality of military fatigues with the refined elegance of high-quality silks befitting a young master. Long black hair flowed behind him, stirred by a wind that didn’t exist.

Curious, he extended a hand toward the motes of elemental energy, starting with the Wind element. His fingers closed around the tiny mote, no larger than the tip of his finger, and a wondrous sensation surged through him.

It felt like he was holding a summer breeze in his palm—light, airy, and alive. As the feeling deepened, images flooded his mind’s eye.

The rustling of leaves echoed faintly in his ears as the vision of a wind-strewn forest unfolded before him. The scene shifted, transitioning to the jagged peaks of a mountain, where powerful gusts tore through the air. The wind grew fiercer, battering the rocky terrain and sending loose debris tumbling downward.

His focus zoomed in on the mountain’s summit, where a majestic white tiger stood tall and proud. Its piercing eyes glowed with an untamed ferocity as it roared, a sound that seemed to shake the heavens. The winds obeyed its command, growing stronger and more violent. Trees were uprooted and sent spiraling into the sky, while massive boulders were ripped free and hurled into the air like toys.

Just as suddenly as it began, the vision ended.

The tiny mote of Wind energy slipped from Jin Shu’s fingers, drifting back to its place beside the other elemental mote. Exhaling softly, he turned his attention to the second mote, this one carrying the essence of Water.

He clasped it gently in his palm, and the world around him shifted. The sound of rushing waves filled his ears, and his mind was consumed by the image of an endless, tumultuous ocean.

The waters churned with white froth, their grand waves rising and falling in a mesmerizing, rhythmic dance. Jin Shu’s gaze instinctively moved to the center of the vast sea, where a shadow of incomprehensible size lingered beneath the deep turquoise surface.

A resonating cry pierced through the depths—a sound akin to a whale’s song, yet infinitely deeper, vibrating with an aura of unimaginable regality.

From beneath the waves, a head emerged, breaking through the water with deliberate grace. It was enormous, larger than the greatest ships Jin Shu had ever imagined, and its shimmering scales glinted a clear blue—a perfect azure hue that seemed to reflect the ocean itself.

The rest of its body followed, rising into the sky in a majestic, unending coil. It pierced the heavens, its form winding elegantly through the clouds, exuding an unmatched dignity.

It was an azure dragon, proud and awe-inspiring, its presence radiating both serenity and absolute power.

Jin Shu blinked, and the vision dissolved. Yet the dragon’s cry lingered, resonating in his ears as though the mighty creature were still beside him, its majesty an echo that refused to fade.

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