Athanasia: My Hacker System-Chapter 46: Source Code Potion - Part 2

John looked at the five groups of similar codes while trying to make heads or tails of them. The logic seemed far more organic and biological than the rigid parameters of the Iron Codes.

"I can tell... If these 0.2 values turned to 1, then the False values will turn to True, and the potion will be coded..."

He reached with his thoughts this far, and somehow, he felt the presence of exactly five different code fragments wasn’t a coincidence. The dungeon had provided exactly enough to complete a singular potion of evolution. "Let’s give it a try then. Enter!"

He typed with his mind already, replicating the structure but overwriting the limiting variables. He set the Purge_Human_Weakness, Structural_Reinforcement, and Synaptic_Speed all to a solid 1.0, and flipped the Unlock_Limiters and latent_affinity to True.

[Ding! Congratulations! You succeeded in coding Bug Dungeon 51 Source Code Potion!]

[Ding! ’Coding Potions Proficiency’ unlocked!]

[Ding! Coding Potions Proficiency gained 10 points!]

John watched the notifications of his success with bated breath as a small, elegant bottle materialised in his palm. The colour of the codes pulsing within the white coded structure of the bottle was a vibrant green.

He wondered briefly if the colour would remain this way or if the reversed nature of the dungeon would swap the hues once he stepped out of here.

"I got you right in my pockets," John’s eyes gleamed in triumph. In his mind, he had already marked a certain person—someone who would not only appreciate this miraculous gift but could step up in the future to become his sword and shield in areas he had no access to yet.

[Bug Dungeon 51 Source Code Potion: Level 1]

[Effect: Once used, the user will unlock their attribute and add 5 points to it!]

[Side Effect: If the person taking it has no potential for unlocked attributes, he will suffer from backlash and die!]

[Note: In case the person has unlocked his attributes already, it can only add 5 more points to his unlocked attribute!]

[Note: The unlocked attribute is related to the user’s inherent potential and cannot be decided beforehand!]

"Hmm, why do you sound like not everyone can unlock their potential?" John raised an eyebrow. From his knowledge of Athanasia’s true nature as a game world, he knew attributes were a universal birthright, just waiting for the right catalyst. The warning of death seemed particularly unrealistic in his eyes.

"Forget it," he muttered when the system didn’t respond to his remark. He looked at the massive pile of loot he had painstakingly gathered. "I’m now ready! Take me out and give me my rewards!"

[Ding! The rewards will be delivered once you exit!]

[Ding! The dungeon will be destroyed in a minute!]

John stood in the middle of his hoard, bracing himself. He felt the familiar, gut-wrenching suction force that had brought him here. Yet, as the force intensified and the white walls of the hall began to crack, a sudden, terrifying thought struck him.

"Wait... Wait... Is it daytime or nighttime outside?!"

He didn’t have time to finish his sentence before the world around him spun into a blur of light and shadow. He was a bit late to ask the question, and the realisation hit him with a cold wave of panic.

If he appeared in the middle of the academy garden in broad daylight, surrounded by a mountain of different items, he would invite tons of trouble to himself.

The moment the teleportation force vanished, John hurriedly looked around. His vision was blinded. Before he could tell if he was blind from the brightness of a noon sun or the deep darkness of a moonless night, the system showered him with a final barrage of notifications.

[Ding! You completed ’Defeat Azure Academy Bug Dungeon 51’ Quest!]

[Ding! Azure Academy Bug Dungeon 51 is now destroyed!]

[Ding! You gained +1 to all stats!]

[Ding! ’Inventory’ unlocked!]

[Ding! Mental Point Cap increased by 50!]

[Ding! 3 hours have passed in the real world since you entered the dungeon!]

John blinked, his eyes finally adjusting. He let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. It was pitch black. The blindness was thanks to the deep darkness of the night, and the garden was silent. "Only three hours? Damn! The time dilation was that high? Ouch!"

Just before he could celebrate the success of his adventure, a throbbing, intense pain exploded in his skull. The pain quickly spread, assaulting every joint and muscle in his body. "What’s going on?!" He gasped, his voice a muffled groan of agony.

[Ding! Your body is adjusting to the temporal and physical differences between the real world and the dungeon!]

[Ding! Don’t worry, you’ll survive!]

[Ding! 1 Mental Point deducted for the medical reassurance!]

John felt his knees buckle. He was growing weaker with every passing second, his body trembling. He didn’t delay any longer. He reached out and touched the pile of items he had brought back.

[Ding! Do you want to save the ’Goblin Boss Club’ in your Inventory? Y/N]

[Ding! Do you want to save ’Iron Code’ in your Inventory? Y/N]

[Ding! Do you want to save ’HP Regeneration Potion’ in your Inventory? Y/N]

.

.

John frantically thought "Yes" to every prompt. He watched as everything he touched vanished into thin air, digitised into his Inventory. Once the ground was clear, he forced himself to stand.

He walked as normally as he could, but every step felt like he was being beaten with iron bars. Even in his state of near-collapse, he remained vigilant. He activated his Wireframe Sight, ensuring that no guards, teachers, or students were lurking in the shadows.

When he got into the dormitory building, he made sure to walk as tall and erect as possible. He knew there were monitoring devices all around the corridors, so he didn’t lower his guard, while putting a smile on his face, wiping sweat, giving the impression he had come from a gym.

When he reached his dorm, his vision was blurred. He hurriedly closed the door behind him, then collapsed on the ground!