12 Skill Orbs

"Magic?" Jian Sheng looked at the man weirdly. Magic is a popular trope in fantasy novels. But this is the real world, how could magic exist.

'Wait, is he from another world? One where magic exists? Magic, it's basically science and maths but in a different form. Is it possible to learn magic and use it in my world? But do our world have the so-called mana in the first place?' Jian Sheng started thinking about it when the man said magic.

Wilbert looked at Jian Sheng for a while and coughed lightly. The man sat up properly and said in a serious voice, "Hey, stop daydreaming. We have things to talk about."

Jian Sheng snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the chair beside the table. He pulled it near the bed and sit on it and looked at Wilbert.

Wilbert nodded at the man. "Introduce yourself so that our little friend here will have a name to call you by."

The man smiled at Jian Sheng and introduced himself, "I'm Lin Ren. 2 wood characters to form Lin, a human character with a number 2 character to form Ren. I'm 27 this year and still single. If you know any cute girls, introduce them to me would you?"

'Is smiling his default expression? Why does he keep smiling? Our ancestors might be related since we both have the Lin surname. And why would I introduce a girl to you when I am also single.' Jian Sheng thought to himself.

"Like you, I also have a system. Although I wouldn't say what my system is. Now let's move on." Lin Ren chucked and ended his introduction like that.

Wilbert nodded and asked Jian Sheng to take out the box. Jian Sheng took out the box and put it in the middle of them. Wilbert reached out and opened the box. When the box was opened, the crystal which Wilbert said was the heart of a spectre floated up and the fragments that looked like black smoke swirled around the heart and slowly condensed into a humanoid form.

Jian Sheng looked at it with his mouth opened while Wilbert was expressionless and Lin Ren still having a small smile on his face. The fragments slowly formed a humanoid black smoke and Lin Ren threw his hand out. Jian Sheng saw a red liquid that looks like blood was thrown out when Lin Ren threw out his hand.

The blood was absorbed into the crystal and the smoke solidified. The humanoid form of the black smoke slowly got absorbed into a body that appeared inside. Soon, a person who is wearing a black hoodie replaced the black smoke.

It was clutching its heart. It slowly looked up and it was a guy with a pale face. He looked around for a bit and stared at Lin Ren. He opened his mouth but only a coarse scratching sound came out of his mouth. It seemed like he was trying to speak but there was something stuck in his throat.

Lin Ren stood up and walked to the cabinet to get a glass. He went into the toilet sink and filled the glass with tap water. Then he walked back and gave the cup to the guy in the hoodie.

The guy downed the entire glass not caring about it spilling over him and the floor. After that, he spoke, "Ren? Shen? How long has it been? How many did you guys use? I feel so weak right now." Although his voice was still scratchy, at least he is able to speak now.

"I think there's a little over 50. It's this friend here who collected them for you. Ah Gui, you better show your gratitude to him." Lin Ren replied with a smile while putting his arm around Jian Sheng.

The guy called Ah Gui looked at Jian Sheng. "Is he a new guy? Or did he join after I died last time?"

Jian Sheng looked at him in shock. 'Died? Last time? So that means he had died more than once? Who are these people? One is a creepy old man, one is a handsome guy who keeps smiling, and another was created- no, revived using a so-called heart of spectre and soul fragments. And somehow they all know each other. Wait, did the Ah Gui guy just called Wilbert a god?!' He then turned to look at the expressionless Wilbert standing by the side.

"A new guy. This is his first mission. He'll probably meet the others soon as well. Then, we can all finally get together again." Said Lin Ren who is still wearing the same smile.

The guy who Lin Ren called Ah Gui slowly got up unsteadily and sat onto the bed with some difficulty. "Hah, my name is Lin Gui. My Gui is written with a human character with a ghost character. You don't need me to tell you how to write your own surname right?" He chuckled.

"You can call me Ah Gui as well if you like since we are going to be connected now. Since this was your first mission, that meant you haven't met the others besides me and Ren right?"

Jian Sheng nodded while in shock. 'Connected? Others? I'm going to meet others like you guys again? What? Magic? Ghosts? What more will appear along the way?'

Lin Gui then looked at Jian Sheng. Jian Sheng felt a bit uncomfortable being stared at, before he could ask what was wrong, Lin Ren suddenly said, "Your turn for self-introduction. Unless you want us to keep calling you 'our little friend'. Not that that's a bad thing but a name is an identity." Lin Ren gave a shrug. "Although it may clash throughout history, it's almost impossible to find someone with the same characters as you during the era you are living in. That's what makes us who have more than thousands of different characters unique."

"Lin Jian Sheng. 2 wood characters to form Lin, Jian is taken from the Jian in healthiness, a moon and a born character to make Sheng. My parents gave me this name so that I could be healthy and win against everything life throws at me." Jian Sheng said while remembering what his mother once told him about his name.

Lin Ren smiled and Lin Gui said that it was a good name. Jian Sheng nodded as a sign of gratitude for them complimenting his name.

After they were done, they then turned to look at the expressionless Wilbert. Jian Sheng knew Wilbert was not really his name, since Lin Gui just called him a god.

Wilbert seemed to know what Jian Sheng was thinking so he introduced himself to Jian Sheng again. "I am a God. But I'm just an administrator for your systems. I cannot interfere in your business. That's why I had you collect the fragments instead of doing it myself. Jian Sheng, you are now their sixth brother. As the youngest one, your older brothers will try to help you in your journey to a certain extent that is considered acceptable by the rules we administrators need to follow."

Lin Ren suddenly clapped and Jian Sheng almost jumped up. He turned to Jian Sheng smiling. "I know, to commemorate our first meeting, I'll give you something good." He then made a glass orb the size of a palm appear out of thin air and handed it to Jian Sheng.

Jian Sheng looked at the orb and a panel appeared.

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Name: Skill Orb (Hide & Seek)

Rarity: Uncommon

Hide & Seek (Passive): Let's you hide from people trying to find you better and helps you focus better on the target you're tailing.

Remark: This is a passive skill meaning that it is always active. Hide from and find others easier.

Created by Lin Ren.

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"It's a skill orb. The system has probably shown you what it does, but I'll explain as well. This skill is called Hide and Seek. It's a passive skill that is active at all times. It allows you to hide and lessen your presence, as well as makes it easier for you to track and find someone or something." Lin Ren explained.

After Lin Ren finished explaining, he looked over at Lin Gui. Lin Gui nodded slightly and took out a black orb that looked like the one Lin Ren gave Jian Sheng. Jian Sheng received it with both hands and looked at the orb.

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Name: Skill Orb (Doppelganger)

Rarity: Rare (can be upgraded)

Doppelganger (Active): A doppelganger clone will be created that lasts for 30 minutes. The user can change the appearance of the doppelganger. The doppelganger can be controlled by the user or set on autopilot. Doppelgangers on autopilot can only follow simple instructions.

Remark: The number and duration of doppelganger clones will increase with each upgrade.

Created by Lin Gui.

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Lin Gui then starts explaining. "This skill is called Doppelganger. Legend has it that each person will have 2 doppelgangers in their life. If 2 met, the weaker one will be absorbed into the other thus making the weaker one will cease existence. What this skill does is it creates a clone that looks like you to be bait. You can also use it to do other things but the physical capabilities of the clone have is mirrored from the user's. This also means if you don't know how to swim, the clone can't swim either. You can change the appearance of the clone as well, this gives you the freedom to trail someone better. It is a good match for the Hide & Seek skill Ren gave you."