When Nylon woke up, it was still the same day. The time, however, had gone past his 18-hour shift. He would undoubtedly get beaten by the Wardens later because of this.
Rising with an aching body, Nylon noticed something unusual.
Off to the side, beneath a bunch of rocks, was a faint source of light. The light pulsated at exact intervals, giving off an ethereal ambience.
Approaching this light as if in a trance, Nylon bent down. One by one, he moved the rocks covering this light.
After moving the last rock, the strange light suddenly shot at him. It moved far faster than he could possibly ever hope to react to before seeping into his forehead. Luminescent ripples spread out as a mechanical ringing drilled into his mind, forcing him to his knees.
Clutching his head, Nylon groaned. The pain was unlike anything he'd ever experienced before—it hurt so much!
THUD!
With foam leaking from his mouth, Nylon fell unconscious for the third time today.
Several hours flew by in the blink of an eye.
"Hah!" Nylon jolted awake, quickly realizing that the pain had completely vanished.
But… something else had taken its place…
*Ding!*
A voice!?
[You have successfully awakened with the Infinite Multiplier System, Oh Destined Host!]
The Infinite Multiplier System!?
And this voice—who did it belong to!?
Nylon stumbled back. Shock and weariness were written across his soot-covered face.
However, that was when he saw it—an illusory blue and gold screen.
The screen was hovering an exact distance away from his face. When he moved, it moved as well. Even when he closed his eyes, the screen was still there.
"What are you!? Who are you??" Nylon was not one to lose his cool, but right now, his mind and emotions were too much of a mess. He didn't know whether to fight or flee.
[Calm down, Oh Destined Host. I'm not going to harm you.]
[On the contrary, I am your salvation.]
"My… salvation…?" Nylon repeated. "What do you mean??"
[Stop avoiding the screen; look at it.]
Unconsciously, Nylon did just that.
His eyes widened as soon as his vision focused on a floating blue screen.
[This is your System Screen. It has on it everything about you, even the summary of what happened during your time in the false world of New Dawn.]
"!?!?"
"How do you—..."
[I know everything about you, Oh Destined Host,] the System interrupted. [But before you make that scary face again, know that I really am only here to help you. Let's take another look at your system interface, so I can explain things to you in a more straightforward way.]
BLING!
The distant system interface enlarged in front of Nylon.
{[Infinite Multiplier System]} - [Lvl 1]
[Host: Nylon]
[Lifespan: 18/65]
[Cultivation: None]
[Martial Spirit: None]
[Inventory: Empty]
[Right now, except for your retained knowledge as the Unrivaled Supreme Sword Saint, you are a clean slate. You're weak.]
Nylon went silent.
[But worry not,] said the System. [For I'm here to change that. It's my reason for existence—to assist in your journey to infinite multiplication of all there is in this world!]
[Even the universe itself can be multiplied with my help!]
'The universe can be multiplied…?' Nylon questioned. What did that mean??
[Don't worry, everything will be explained in due time, and one day, not even the Universe will be the limit for your multiplication ability.]
[For now, though, why don't you open your eyes to the world around you—truly open them.]
"What are you—..."
SHA! SHA! SHA!
All inside the vacant Mine, digital numbers appeared. On every rock. On the floor. On the roof. Even on the droplets of water dripping down from ceiling stalactites.
Those numbers were formatted like X2 or X3, and so on and so forth. Moreover, the color of each of these digital numbers was different, but were strictly differentiated by orange and red—orange for the lower numbers, red for the higher numbers.
[Everything in this world can be multiplied, but each thing can only be multiplied once.]
[The numbers you see on the objects around you can only be changed by a random higher-denoting quantifier if the level of the System is improved. Leveling up the System will also allow for higher number multipliers to be applied to worldly objects.]
[Also, depending on what you're trying to multiply, it'll be a whole lot harder to score a higher multiplier than for something with less existential value. At Level 1, most common objects will have an upper limit of X5, but for special items and the such, you'll likely never see an available multiplier above X2, which is the minimum for all things.]
A lot of information was being received, but Nylon believed that he was following.
[You're a smart cookie. Why don't you click on the multiplier sitting over that rock beside you?]
Nylon looked over.
[Ordinary Rock] - [X5]
The flashing red multiplier seemed to be enticing him. His everything was screaming at him to touch that numerical value.
And so he did.
BLING!
What was once one ordinary rock turned into five ordinary rocks, each one an exact replica of the original rock…