Rapid Shadow
Xavier remained confounded over the next few days.
His family inheritance, the Snakebite Fist that was extremely difficult to train in, had been mastered just like that? It was too good to be true, leaving the teenager so distracted he didn’t even notice the change to the manual. In the end, he broke seven to eight more items in the house, being nagged by his little sister until he finally learned to control his own strength and stop crushing things.
However, Xavier soon put these issues to the back of his mind. There were more important things to consider.
“Greater Skill Proficiency Test…” Xavier clenched his fists as he looked at a date circled in red on the calendar, “I need to pass no matter what. The access to the Shadow Weave will give me stronger and more powerful spells, letting me find a good job and take care of my family…”
“Martial techniques only enable one to serve as a fighter or security guard even if you master them. Talents who can use high-level techniques are instead sought by many organisations…”
Hence, Xavier did not care much about the strange phenomenon that occurred to him, and immediately delved into a questionnaire and database to study for the test.
Leylin too did not idle around. He casually browsed through the books that Xavier had bought, and saw a small advertisement on one of them.
“Advance sale of answers, a 100% pass rate?” Leylin smiled as he called the number that was left on the note, and got an address.
“Lad, it’s you who wants that copy of answers for the high level skills test?” Leylin met two muscled hoodlums at a certain corner of Thousand Bears City. Their bodies were littered with piercings and tattoos, the kind of people one would avoid on the street. They were the type to get into trouble with the police often.
“Yes! Is it true, the 100% pass rate?” Leylin left his concealed state, looking like a youth who wore a jacket and jeans. He was also carrying the ad pamphlet.
“Hehe… Of course it’s true!” A hoodlum exchanged gazes with his partner. “We sell everything here, do you know Rapid Shadow 5.0? We can even get one of those, so the answer sheet is definitely not a problem!”
This expression on the hoodlum, as if he was looking at a fat juicy sheep, caused Leylin to sigh inwardly. However, he still put on an expression of unease, “Okay. But I want to see the item before we trade, and it has to be simultaneous!”
“Of course, what do you take me, Azure Dragon, as?” The hoodlum grinned and turned around, “Follow me…”
A group of thugs were littered across a messy underground basement. *Bash! Bam!* Many items fell to the ground, and a few pitiful wails resounded as well.
The two hoodlums which had led Leylin here were now lying on the floor, with blood splattered around them. The group’s leader was here as well, one with the tattoo of a black rose on his face. Leylin proceeded to step on his head.
“You have guts, huh? Not only did you use fake answers to try and fool me, you even wanted to rob me? Hmm?” Leylin threw a crumpled piece of paper on his face, “How many fingers do you think I should chop off?”
It was a rare chance for Leylin to be this rampant. He didn’t need to fear security cameras, since the underground wanted nothing to do with the country. Even their accounts book was by manual entry and not digitised.
As for any authorities colluding with them? Leylin looked at the boss in disdain and gave him another kick to his stomach, causing the boss to curl up like a prawn. It was not that Leylin did not think highly of them, but collusion occurred at a far greater level than that of this unorganised rabble.
“Do you want to live, or die?” Leylin looked at the boss toyingly, and the answer was immediate.
“So then, take out all the money you have on you! I only want cash! Also… Tell me which underworld organisation is the strongest here? And who is their head?” No matter how good a society was it always had its dark side. Several rounds of questioning gave Leylin the information he needed, and he left unworried that this group would seek revenge. They wouldn’t be able to find someone with the same looks Leylin had displayed here, and even if somehow they managed it that would be their bad luck, not his.
This encounter gave Leylin an understanding of how organised falsifying documents was here. Special providers had established good reputations in manufacturing identities, able to give him true blue documents that could withstand scrutiny. As for the source? It was the extra income of a government official working in the safety bureau.
‘Exploitation by selling real yet falsified identities? Why does it give me a feeling like I’m being tracked?’ Although Leylin complained in his heart, he still paid the money. After a round of genetic inspection, an identity card was now attached to his body. From this day forth he became a third-class citizen of the empire, not afraid of investigations.
The identity card allowed Leylin to rent a house, and buy a low-grade Rapid Shadow and even surf the net. Of course Leylin could’ve just stolen someone else’s identity by transforming into them, but he wanted to witness the authentication process himself.
‘As expected. All this genetic inspection mumbo jumbo is a lie to trick the people. The true goal is to let the Shadow Weave scan a person’s spiritual sea, huh?’ The surprise had caused Leylin’s eyes to turn darker, and even harder to read.
His experiences with the Weave in the World of Gods was why he had revealed no traces just now. Even if he’d forcefully assumed someone else’s identity it wouldn’t have ended up well.
However, through the help of that corrupt official, he was now an ordinary citizen living amongst ten billion others. Even Shar would not be able to find him.
“Hello, Mister Ley! This is your communication device, and the first generation Rapid Shadow. Since you don’t have any degrees or a greater skill certificate, you can’t use Rapid Shadow 3.0 or above…”
The service staff smiled apologetically to Leylin and took the cash that he handed over. This cash and the money used to buy his identity was funded by those unlucky hoodlums from earlier.
“Hmm… They are all portable retina displays, just a little worse off from my previous world…” Leylin looked at the internet that was similar to his past life, and the various tools and advertisements within. Nostalgia filled him, but it was quickly suppressed again.
“I also need to rent a place… Do you know anywhere that would suit me? I want a house that is close to the outer circle…” Leylin mentioned the area that Xavier and Jill were living in.
“This place?” The staffer was a woman in her twenties, with some slight makeup on. This question exceeded her authority, so she was rather stunned as she looked up at Leylin.
“I’m offering adequate compensation,” Leylin added immediately.
“No problem!” The lady very quickly replied, but it was unclear whether it was the promised money that coaxed her or Leylin’s looks. “My house is near that area, so it’s quite convenient for me as well. However, you have to wait for me to end work…”
……
After busying himself for a while, Leylin immediately moved into a house close to Xavier’s. Not knowing of their new neighbour, the siblings carried on with their own tasks.
“A first generation Rapid Shadow… Everyone in the empire has one now…” Leylin looked at the watch that had a black crown labelled on it, and activated the thing.
“Ding! ZESKNG988273221 activated, beginning automatic identity scan… Identity confirmed and locked. This Rapid Shadow is for your personal use, if it is damaged please call…”
Once the startup screen faded, Leylin immediately moved to the most important feature of the watch.
“Ding! Identity locked, account confirmed! Current Balance: 3000 Seres.” A notification appeared on the Rapid Shadow, followed by a list of spells and their prices.
“Rank 0 spell— Illumination. 200 Seres per use.”
“Rank 0 spell— Increase Resistance. 300 Seres per use.”
……
“Rank 1 spell— Shield. 1000 Seres per use.”
“Rank 2 spell— Shadow Ball. 3000 Seres per use.”
“Ding! Authorisation currently limited to rank 2 shadow spells. Please obtain increased authorisation and buy a newer Rapid Shadow to upgrade…”
“The wizards from the World of Gods would definitely cry at this sight. They take painstaking effort to learn spells, but here people can just buy and download the same things…”
Leylin shook his head. All his money had been used to buy his identity and pay for his rent, so he didn’t have much left. However, he had enough to buy a couple of rank 0 or 1 spells for fun. 3000 Seres was not even the salary for a normal office job. If the wizards came over here, they would definitely be devastated and cry.
‘However, is it really that easy? Would the Mistress of the Night be so nice?’ Leylin rubbed his chin, “Purchase Illumination.”
“Ding! 200 Seres deducted. Current Balance: 2800 Seres,” the Rapid Shadow notified. Leylin felt like this device connected to the Weave, leaving him with a ball of light in his hands.
‘It’s the same as wizards’ spells, but cannot be stored. If one can’t control these they’ll land in trouble easily…’ Leylin very soon discovered the disadvantage of this system. ‘Furthermore… Although it is in minuscule amount, the Weave steals spiritual energy from every person who makes a transaction…’