learning

Darren was completely baffled by the system's explanation. After all, when you watch movies or read books, the protagonist always gets their ability right away—without complicated steps or having to quite literally crush their body through cement. And this was *his* original ability? Now, suppose he gains more abilities. Would he have to go through another complicated phase of learning all over again? 

Signing in frustration at the lack of user-friendly nature of his abilities, Darren heard the system notification: 

[Ding! Host need not worry about his learning. The more the host's mental strength increases, the higher his learning ability becomes, and the easier it is for the host to wield his abilities.] 

Hearing this, Darren was ecstatic. *This meant the stronger his mental abilities, the higher his learning capabilities! That explains a lot. After all, since the beginning of getting familiar with his ability, the more he practiced, the closer he came to mastering it.* 

Regaining his courage to try, Darren closed his eyes again. Drawing from the lessons learned in his previous failed teleportation—and the system's explanation—he began to sense the illusory world once more. As he did, he felt the lines connecting him to various directions. Focusing on one, Darren approached it with his perception. When he felt his awareness being pulled away, he quickly selected a destination. 

This time, learning from his past mistake, Darren didn't get thrown away. Though his landing wasn't beautiful, he managed to control it. 

Growing more confident, Darren tried various maneuvers. Some yielded good results, while others were failures. But the more Darren practiced, the more he grew uneasy about his learning ability, as if something had just "clicked" for him. In his apocalyptic dream, Darren realized that most creatures, including beasts, possessed strong learning abilities. For example, Darren and his team had once encountered a cat as large as a car. Strangely, the cat was never harmed by the same maneuver twice, which puzzled Dream Darren. Though they eventually killed it, he chalked it up to the mutant cat being unusually intelligent for an animal.

Now, however, Darren was certain the only reason Dream Darren had succeeded was because the cat hadn't experienced enough to defend itself—it had been gradually learning. If all other beasts adapt as fast as that mutant cat, humanity is doomed. Yet, since humans also had abilities, Darren believed the scales had balanced out. Even after 10 years in the apocalypse, though humanity had reached its lowest point, it still persisted. If this learning ability was consistent across the board, humans might yet survive. After all, no other creature had dominated the food chain solely with its intellect.

Snapping out of his reverie, Darren stopped standing still, staring into space like a fool, and attempted teleportation again. This time, he didn't need to close his eyes—he only had to focus slightly before activating his ability. Teleporting from one place to another exhilarated him. As he moved, Darren began launching space blades mid-teleport, seamlessly combining the two skills. To him, it felt effortless. In a short time, he'd mastered the technique, stopping only when he felt his space essence depleting past half after unleashing roughly 100 space blades and 30 consecutive teleports—a feat that left him impressed.

Calming his racing heart, Darren then decided to focus on his fire ability. Concentrating, he closed his eyes and visualized his ability wheel, where a small section glowed red like boiling magma. As Darren's focus touched it, and opened his eyes, it blazed crimson, revealing the silhouette of a tree engulfed in flames.

Unlike the struggle he'd faced with his space ability, wielding fire came far more naturally. Channeling energy, he conjured a glowing orb in his hands. Though unsure of the mechanics, Darren noted curiously that he felt no heat from the fireball—a mixed blessing, as it left him uncertain of its true temperature.

Testing its power, he hurled it with precision. This time, a section of the stadium melted like wax, the plastic structures liquefying instantly while the metal supports glowed red-hot, as though freshly pulled from a blacksmith's furnace. Seeing this, Darren froze, stunned once more by the jaw-dropping destruction.

Reducing the intensity slightly, he practiced until he'd familiarized himself with the ability's limits. Mastering fire took far less time than space. Finally, he turned to ice.

Darren followed the same process he had used for Fire and Space. After opening his eyes, a blue tree silhouette was visible in his gaze as he acclimatized himself to the nature of the Ice power. Focusing his mind and channeling his energy, the air around him began to gather. As he concentrated, the air grew rigid, and soon spikes of ice started to form—albeit slower than with Fire. Darren believed this was due to the limited moisture in the area, and while he was partially correct, he wasn't entirely right. The Ice and Fire attributes, being opposing elements, inherently hindered each other's use. Additionally, wielding an element in an environment where it is abundant could exponentially enhance its power.

After finishing, Darren shifted his focus to the final ability he planned to test: his Metal coating. Unlike his previous struggles, Darren mastered this skill swiftly. His eyes glowed golden, reflecting a shimmering tree silhouette. As he channeled his power, his body began to radiate a golden hue, and his feet sank slightly into the ground. Adjusting his posture, he waited until his entire body was coated before moving. Though initially unfamiliar, Darren soon adapted, his movements becoming fluid and athletic. Satisfied, he realized he was now fully protected.

Darren was ecstatic, knowing that with this metal coating, no one could hurt him unless a truly powerful weapon or ability was used. As he pondered this, an ambitious idea crept into his mind: What if he could use multiple abilities at once? Not wanting to waste time, Darren experimented and came to a mixed conclusion. His idea had merit, but there was a catch. When using different skills from the same ability tree, the transitions were seamless. However, when combining skills from different ability trees, a brief lag—lasting a few seconds—interrupted the flow. Though frustrated, Darren noticed the lag diminished slightly with repeated attempts. Determined, he resolved to train relentlessly until he could switch abilities at his fingertips without delay.

Surveying the mess he'd made, Darren felt satisfied. He called his assistant to order the stadium's closure for renovations—a task that would likely never be completed—and headed to his car. As he drove away, he noticed the sky had darkened. Glancing at the time, he saw it was around six in the evening. Pulling out his phone, he dialed the last woman he intended to recruit into his harem until the apocalypse began.