The SoulNet glowed with life.
Its threads pulsed with the soft rhythm of borrowed soul power—fifty-three threads weaving across the minds of humanity, invisible yet real.Su Yuan stood at the center of it all, seated quietly in the dilapidated lab, his consciousness half-merged with the core of SoulNet.
More than power, he could feel intention.
Hope.Desperation.Greed.And in rare places… purity.
His panel updated once again.
[SoulNet System Interface]
Connected Users: 53
Borrowed Soul Power: 198.22 units
Active Feedback Rate: 31.4%
Synchronization Drift: 0.9%
**Deduction Energy Pool: 23.87 units available]
But alongside that—
A prompt appeared.
[You are eligible to unlock the SoulNet Currency Exchange System.][Estimated Deduction Cost: 22.00 Soul Power Units]
Warning: Inconsistencies detected among contributing soul signatures.
Proceeding now carries a 17.4% risk of core corruption due to divergent will interference.
Su Yuan didn't move for a long time.
He simply stared at the number.
"Seventeen percent…"
It was more than a number. It was a sign.
Even now, while drawing only tiny fractions of power from users, their soul signatures weren't fully aligned.
One user carried violent ambition.Another, childlike innocence.A third simmered with chaotic grief.Even if harmless when passive—if he dared to let that energy converge into a single deduction…
"The result won't be a system. It'll be a… distortion."
A thought made real by a hundred conflicting thoughts.A desire shaped by incompatible fragments.
Corruption.
Not just code. Not just energy.
But the corruption of the SoulNet's direction.
Su Yuan closed the prompt.
[Exchange System Deduction: Postponed.][Suggested Prerequisite: Harmonize soul channels or filter input sources.]
He opened the internal architecture viewer—soul threads glimmered like fiber optic strands, each a color-tinted conduit from a different user.
Su Yuan reached toward one of them—the one connected to Liang Yuwei.
It pulsed with a soft, aching melancholy.
He let his consciousness brush it—
—and pulled back immediately.
His core trembled.
Even that gentle touch had returned emotional weight to him.
She had cried again last night.
"It's still too early."
He needed to stabilize, to gain control over the system's emotional resonance, before introducing exchange functions and competitive value loops.
But that didn't mean he would stop evolving the system.
A different prompt opened—one that required far less risk.
A structured, contained system.
One that could empower users… and create motivation.
[Available: Martial Arts Deduction Prototype v0.3]
Name: National Martial Arts (Beginner)Grade: F+Type: Basic Physique & Strength EnhancementCost to Deduce: 9.5 UnitsCurrency Price for Users: 100 SNC
Simple. Functional. Foundational.
He accepted.
"If they're going to crave power…""Let's give them something to work for."
And with that thought—
He confirmed.
[Beginning Deduction: National Martial Arts (Beginner Level)][Estimated Completion: 11 Hours 12 Minutes]
Note: SoulNet Users will be notified of upcoming release.]
As the system began processing, Su Yuan leaned back against the worn metallic wall of the lab.
The flickering lights above him seemed to fade away…
And in his interface, a side thread pulsed ominously—
A foreign signal.
Not strong enough to breach.But watching.
Waiting.