Sky Arena.
Kevin Carpenberg looked up at the towering structure that seemed to stretch beyond sight.
"This thing is only the fourth tallest in the world?" he muttered in awe. He remembered that in his past life, none of the tallest buildings were this high.
The tech tree of this world really is bizarre.
But then again, it was another world—where even ordinary people were physically superior to those in his previous life.
No wonder it was called a giant arena and the holy land of martial combat.
All around him were various martial artists.
There were ones dressed like monks, boxers, swordsmen—each with their own unique flair.
There were also Nen users among them, although relatively few.
Under Biscuit's guidance, Kevin had already learned how to tell if someone was a Nen user.
He would look to see if the aura above their heads was naturally leaking upward. Still, he personally didn't think this method was foolproof.
After all, he could easily disguise his aura to appear ordinary, and he often let his aura drift upward like this on purpose.
With his level of control, he could even make it look like it was scattering upward—like he had an antenna on his head—while still maintaining "Ten" perfectly.
As he silently walked down the street, Kevin fell into thought.
He was no longer clueless about Nen. In fact, his knowledge had already surpassed most Nen users.
Those were Biscuit's words.
Because most Nen users were self-taught, having awakened their abilities through various accidents.
Many of them didn't even know about the Four Major Principles or the Seven Advanced Techniques.
But what concerned Kevin more was his own condition.
Though Biscuit never said it outright, all the Nen knowledge she'd been teaching him leaned toward one area.
Vows and Limitations.
And Post-Mortem Nen.
The former was to prepare him for building his Nen ability in the future.
Vows and Limitations meant placing restrictions on his own behavior or Nen usage to enhance other aspects of his power.
According to Biscuit, this could drastically amplify one's ability—but she warned him never to use it lightly.
Because such restrictions weren't just something you could invent; they needed past experiences, a strong emotional attachment—an obsession to manifest.
More importantly, Biscuit knew Kevin wasn't someone with strong obsessions.
Still, when constructing a Nen ability, such vows could appear subconsciously as self-imposed reinforcements.
But what he really needed to pay attention to was the latter:
Post-Mortem Nen.
Also tied to human willpower or obsessions—those with strong obsessions could leave behind powerful Nen after death.
And this wasn't limited to Nen users. Even ordinary people could produce Post-Mortem Nen, although the danger wasn't as severe.
There was no doubt—
A Moment's Dream was a Post-Mortem Nen.
From his fragmented memories and the notes found in the lab, it was clear that the original Kevin had a borderline obsessive passion for pharmacology.
That obsession had awakened his Specialist-type Nen ability, heavily related to alchemy and elixirs.
It all confirmed what Biscuit had said: Nen abilities stem from a person's past and their will.
And his poor learning ability when it came to other things might be tied to that—or possibly a side effect?
Kevin couldn't be sure.
Post-Mortem Nen always grew stronger after death, reflecting the obsession it was born from. So the A Moment's Dream he now wielded was stronger than in his memories—and in a good way.
But that improvement also brought some drawbacks for the living.
When others used the elixirs he made, they suffered side effects.
The stronger the potion, the worse the side effects.
Though the side effects never outweighed the benefits of the potion.
Still, he personally experienced no side effects.
Overall, this was essentially a "cheat," just like his inhuman level of aura control—a very good development.
As he mulled over all this, he returned to his rented home.
One room had already been converted into a basic laboratory. On a nearby shelf, he had laid out various rare materials brought from his luggage.
He hadn't brought everything from the previous lab—just the rare, hard-to-find, expensive materials. The rest were all things he could buy with money and were fairly common.
"Now, let's really get to know you."
Kevin rubbed his hands together, eyes shining with excitement and anticipation.
In that first week, he didn't dare use it too often—just tried it a few times before stopping.
After all, he didn't fully understand it.
During training, there wasn't even time to try—Biscuit's training could only be described as hellish.
He spread his hands.
A potion-making stand with three balance pans appeared.
He took out an empty vial and inserted it into the round socket at the base.
Following the recipe from memory, he picked three ingredients.
Bronze Scale: Sun-Red Flower (dried)
An herb that stimulated the muscles—not very expensive and easy to find in large herbal shops.
Silver Scale: Fire-Duck Liver and Heart (fresh)
Organs from a creature known as the fire duck—a highly aggressive wild duck found near lakes. It had body-strengthening effects. He had just bought some earlier.
Gold Scale: Savage Tiger Bone (powdered)
Bone powder from the savage tiger, a magical beast. It could increase heart rate, speed blood flow, boost adrenaline, and strengthen muscles.
The three ingredients were placed on the balance pans according to their attributes.
The gold scale was for the main ingredient—this determined the primary effect of the potion.
The silver scale was for the secondary ingredient—it would enhance or add effects.
The bronze scale was for the binding agent—it merged the main and secondary effects, and was the most difficult to select. A wrong choice could result in a poisonous or useless concoction.
And all the ingredients had to be his own. Whether or not they truly belonged to him depended on his subconscious—there was no fooling it.
Everything was ready.
Text appeared on the base. This ability hadn't existed before death—it had only emerged afterward.
[Enhances muscle strength. Increases aura output. Accelerates stamina and aura consumption.]
Kevin entered a trance. All of his aura surged into the alchemy stand.
Depending on the potion's strength, the process would consume varying amounts of latent aura and time.
Aura Output: maximum aura that could be released at once.
Latent Aura: total aura stored in the body.
To put it simply, a human was like a water gun.
Latent aura was how much water the tank could hold, and aura output was how strong the water jet could spray.
This potion wasn't especially strong, so it didn't take much time.
The total alchemy time was one hour.
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