Chapter 118: The System Warning

Chapter 114

Orion shifted his attention towards his system.

After everything that had happened, there was one particular matter he wanted an explanation for.

He had woken up after being unconscious for five entire days. Although he had spent some time trying to recall the events that had led to his sudden collapse, he still couldn’t figure out exactly what had happened or why he had lost consciousness in the first place.

There had to be a reason.

Considering that the system was the only entity capable of providing him with a proper explanation, there was little point in wasting time trying to guess.

Orion settled comfortably before speaking.

"I believe I deserve a good enough explanation as to why I slept for five days straight."

His tone was calm, almost as though he were speaking to another human being sitting across from him. There was no particular urgency in his words, but he genuinely wanted to know what had happened.

After speaking, he waited for a response.

He wasn’t particularly confident that the system would answer.

No matter how unusual or seemingly sentient his system was, it was still a system. It wasn’t exactly something that could hold an ordinary conversation with him like a human being.

At least, that was what he would have thought before everything that had happened.

By now, Orion had come to understand that his system wasn’t quite like the ordinary systems people talked about. There were simply too many peculiarities surrounding it, too many things that distinguished it from anything he had ever encountered.

Sometimes, it almost felt as though there was an actual consciousness behind those notifications, something capable of understanding him rather than merely responding to predetermined commands.

Nevertheless, he wasn’t going to get his hopes up.

The possibility of receiving a direct response was still rather low, and he wasn’t particularly interested in wasting his time waiting for something that might never happen.

Seconds passed.

Then a minute.

Orion continued waiting, his expression unchanged as he occasionally glanced at the system window.

He wasn’t particularly impatient. If the system wanted to respond, it would. If it didn’t, he would simply have to find another way to understand what had happened.

Five minutes passed.

Then another few minutes.

Eventually, after nearly ten minutes without receiving a single notification, Orion began to lose interest. He had already started considering other possibilities when he decided that waiting any longer would be pointless.

He was just about to shift his attention elsewhere when...

Ding!

A new system notification suddenly flashed across his vision.

Orion paused, immediately directing his attention back towards the system window.

He had actually received a response?

A faint look of surprise crossed his face before he quickly opened the notification with his intent. However, the moment he began reading its contents, his previously relaxed expression gradually turned serious.

The notification read:

[WARNING TO THE HOST!]

[Prolonged use of Origin State will cause massive mental backlash to the host.]

[Origin State draws upon the user’s Soul Energy. Despite the host possessing a considerably high amount of Soul Energy, it is still insufficient to support prolonged usage of the state.]

Orion’s brows furrowed slightly.

He continued reading.

The message was considerably longer than he had initially expected, and the information contained within gradually helped him understand what had happened.

There were several important things he needed to take note of.

First, Origin State had a limitation.

Or, more accurately, it possessed a strict usage limit that he couldn’t simply ignore whenever he pleased.

The state wasn’t something he could maintain indefinitely without facing any consequences. Its power was extraordinary, but sustaining it came at a cost.

Soul Energy.

Orion narrowed his eyes slightly as he considered the explanation.

Because of his current level, the total amount of Soul Energy he possessed was still relatively low.

Of course, that was only when considering the absolute amount.

Compared to other individuals at a similar level, his Soul Energy was already considerably greater. In fact, it could even be described as exceptionally vast, far surpassing what most people at his current level could naturally possess.

However, even that amount wasn’t nearly enough to support the prolonged usage of Origin State.

Especially not for four hours or more.

And that was precisely what he had done back in Daylight City.

He had maintained Origin State for an absurdly long period, pushing his mind far beyond what his current Soul Energy reserves could reasonably sustain. He had essentially continued using a state that consumed more energy than he could afford to expend.

Under normal circumstances, doing something like that should have been impossible.

Then how had he managed it?

Orion continued reading, searching for the explanation behind this particular detail.

According to the system’s explanation, the only reason he had been able to maintain Origin State for such an extended period was the residual Origin Energy that had temporarily remained within him.

That residual energy had boosted his Soul Energy beyond its normal limits, allowing him to sustain the state for far longer than he ordinarily could.

It had essentially provided him with an additional reserve of energy that his current level and natural Soul Energy capacity couldn’t possibly support.

In other words, he had been operating with considerably more Soul Energy than he actually possessed.

However, even that temporary advantage wasn’t enough to make his actions safe.

He had pushed himself too far.

He hadn’t merely approached the limit.

He had thoroughly exceeded it, continuing to maintain Origin State long after his mind should have been unable to bear the strain.

And the consequences had been severe.

The prolonged usage had placed an enormous burden on his mind, eventually resulting in massive mental backlash. His consciousness had been overwhelmed by the strain, forcing him into an extended period of deep sleep.

Orion’s expression grew more serious as he finally understood the situation.

So that was what had happened.

He hadn’t simply become exhausted after the battle, nor had he collapsed because his body couldn’t keep up with the demands of the fight.

His mind had suffered the consequences of sustaining Origin State far beyond its permissible limits.

He continued reading, not wanting to miss any other important information.

There was another detail he needed to know.

The residual Origin Energy that had temporarily boosted his Soul Energy was now completely gone.

Whatever additional energy he had possessed during the battle in Daylight City had been exhausted. The temporary reserve that had allowed him to maintain Origin State for several hours was no longer available.

His Soul Energy had returned to its normal state.

Which meant that he could no longer rely on that temporary boost to extend the duration of Origin State.

Orion’s gaze moved towards the next section of the notification, and what he read next was even more important.

[Due to the host’s current Soul Energy capacity, the estimated duration of Origin State is approximately 10–30 minutes.]

[Exceeding this duration will place an increasing burden on the host’s mind.]

[Continued usage beyond the sustainable limit may result in severe mental collapse.]

[In the worst-case scenario, the host’s mind will be crushed, leaving behind an empty husk without a functioning consciousness.]

"..."

Orion remained silent.

He read the warning once, then went through it again to make sure he hadn’t misunderstood anything.

Ten to thirty minutes.

That was his current limit.

Anything beyond that would gradually increase the burden on his mind, and if he continued pushing himself past the sustainable limit, he could eventually suffer a complete mental collapse.

An empty husk.

In other words, he could lose his mind entirely, leaving behind nothing but a body without a functioning consciousness.

Orion leaned back slightly, allowing the information to settle.

He wasn’t particularly frightened by the warning, but he was certainly not foolish enough to dismiss it. There was a considerable difference between being confident in his abilities and deliberately putting himself at risk of destroying his own mind.

Besides, he had no intention of becoming an empty shell simply because he wanted to maintain an overwhelmingly powerful state for a few additional minutes.

Origin State was undoubtedly one of his greatest abilities, and its advantages were far too valuable to ignore. However, that didn’t mean he should use it recklessly, especially now that he understood the consequences of exceeding its limits.

Ten to thirty minutes was still a considerable amount of time in an actual battle. If used properly, it was more than enough to deal with most opponents he would encounter at his current level.

There was no reason to push his luck unnecessarily.

After remaining silent for a while, Orion finally smiled and nodded.

"Got it."