Shura

"What the hell is this?" Han Sen was shocked... literally and figuratively. He clamped down to withstand the electricity that surged into him, and then summoned the Ghost-Pawed Claws to slash wildly at the jellyfish.

But the Ghost-Pawed Claws went straight through the gelatinous skin and became lodged inside the creature as well.

Han Sen was taken aback - this jellyfish was like a living mound of viscous syrup. All slashes and punches were useless against it, as they would have no effect and his foe would maintain its grasp on him no matter what.

Han Sen was holding back the cramps caused by the surging electricity and desperately wanted to return to the Crystal Palace as soon as he could. But the jellyfish continued to attack, attaching itself all over Han Sen. Already, half of Han Sen's body had been consumed by the jellyfish and the rest was sure to follow.

This was the first time Han Sen had come across such a terrifying creature, and his heart was overcome with dread. His mind raced, trying to think of a way to escape his terrible predicament. Suddenly, in the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a shadow that was swimming towards him from the Crystal Palace.

Han Sen took another look, and saw Zero swimming his way. In his surprize, he wanted to shout and tell Zero to stay back, but being in the water made this impossible.

Zero was swimming swiftly towards Han Sen and came to his side. He reached out again with his hands, attempting to push the jellyfish away from him.

"No!" Han Sen screamed in his heart, but it was no use. Zero was now caught by the jellyfish, just as Han Sen had been.

More electric currents surged into his body and his body continued to convulse with spasms. It felt as if he would become charcoal any second now.

Han Sen withstood the pain and desperately tried to think of a way that he could save himself and Zero. But he then noticed Zero's eyes flashing with a strange purple light.

Her black pupils were now beaming purple, and the color spread to consume her black hair, too. Little purple horns appeared from the top of her head. All of a sudden, she became the royal shura that Han Sen had once seen during their first encounter.

Ching!

Zero, who had taken on the appearance of a shura, used her hands to tear the jellyfish apart. The creature, which was like mud, seemed to have lost its power under Zero's counter-offensive. As though it had been struck by a goliath knife, the monster was split into two halves.

Han Sen was shocked by what he saw. When Zero was in this form, it was quite difficult to believe how much power she possessed. Even the monstrous jellyfish could not withstand the power stemming from her small, delicate hands.

Zero's eyes continued to shine with a purple light, and her hands trembled. In a moment, she cleared Han Sen's body from the vine-like tentacles that had imprisoned him. Then she quickly hauled him back to the Crystal Palace.

Splash!

They both hurriedly emerged from the water. Zero quickly got back on board and lay down on the floor; the color of her now-purple hair began to fade and return to black, as the horns that had appeared on her head shrank and disappeared. All of a sudden, she looked like a typical human female once again.

Han Sen quickly went to check on her. He noticed that she had passed out but was free from any serious injuries. Once his survey was complete, he let out a long sigh of relief.

Zero remained passed out for over two days. When she finally awoke, her body was weak and she could not muster the desire to eat for the next few days.

"Is she a human or a shura?" Han Sen pondered in his heart, and the doubts he had over her heritage heightened.

But right now, he was mostly worried about her well-being. He did not know if Zero turning into a shura would damage her, because right now, she was in an extremely weak state. She looked like a patient who had undergone lengthy, intensive surgery; the complexion of her face was devoid of color.

Luckily, however, she was not in a critical condition. Han Sen gave her a nutrient solution to drink, alongside fluids that were designed to repair weary bodies. The latter medicine came straight from the Alliance. Through the grace of good fortune, her condition steadily improved.

After the incident with the jellyfish, Han Sen did not dare go hunting in the deep-sea by himself. He salvaged the jellyfish's corpse and cooked it so that he could understand where it had come from.

It turned out that it was a sacred-blood class Red Demon Jellyfish, and it increased Han Sen's sacred geno point score by eight.

Upon returning to the Alliance, Han Sen carefully investigated his puzzle a great deal, but he could not unearth anything that would give him any greater understanding of Zero's status.

Humans are human, shuras are shura. Although they shared similar attributes in terms of appearance, they were two separate species. It was impossible for someone to be both a shura and a human.

Han Sen even looked into the information alongside a biologist. The biologist proved to him that the genes separating shuras and humans were far too different to be compatible, or for even a hybrid to be birthed.

Even if it was an artificial culture, it was impossible for a cross-breed between a human and a shura to emerge, too.

"So, how would you best define Zero and the peculiarities of her situation?" Han Sen thought about it deeply but could not come to any remote conclusion. Han Sen was also curious about the nine-life cat tattoo on Zero's back.

"Sen, can you come with me please?" Han Sen had been scouring various outlets of information when Ji Yanran knocked the door and entered the room.

"Of course - where are we going?" Han Sen was surprized when he looked at Ji Yanran. This was because Ji Yanran rarely came to Han Sen's room, and usually resorted to contacting him only through a communicator.

If Ji Yanran was willing to come straight to his room, it had to be a matter of some importance. Therefore, Han Sen did not question her motive for coming and promptly agreed to go with her.

Ji Yanran opened her mouth as though she wanted to say something, but she stopped.

"Are there certain issues we cannot discuss between us?" Han Sen blinked as he asked.

Ji Yanran felt hopeless, and sighed. "Tomorrow, I am going to an exchange event. I was hoping that you could accompany me."

"What exchange event?" Han Sen looked at Ji Yanran with some confusion, as he had wondered whether she had come to him over something that had to do with her family. He hadn't expected that she wanted him for an exchange event.

"How do I best explain this... it is a semi-private exchange event. The people who take part in this event are young, like me." Ji Yanran spoke slowly, detailing her explanation with great care.

"It's not some dating event, is it?" Han Sen blinked his eyes.

Ji Yanran took offence, and said, "Use your mind! That has nothing to do with it! It really is just some exchange event. But you see, the people who are there will be "special". And so too will the goods on offer be. I hope you will be able to accompany me, as I am sure it will help you in the future."

"Could you tell me what sort of exchange event it is?" Han Sen asked, now curious.

Ji Yanran hesitated but then decided to tell him. "You must be aware that humankind has their surpassers, and that this is the true beginning of our evolution."

Han Sen nodded and said, "I was taught about it when I went to school. A surpasser can exceed the limits of what any ordinary human can achieve, and their existence means the beginning of humankind's genetic evolution."

"The exchange event will discuss our genetic evolution." Ji Yanran said.

Han Sen looked at Ji Yanran, but was not entirely sure of what she meant. If the surpassers were the beginning of humankind's next step, then the people who were to join such an event should be surpassers only. Ji Yanran was simply an evolver, so what was she going to do there?

Ji Yanran looked as if she knew what Han Sen was thinking. She started to explain further, "Theoretically, humans need to reach the level of a surpasser to evolve their genes by themselves. But there have been certain cases where those with impeccable talents have been able to evolve on their own. The exchange event aims to discuss this matter."