Chapter 69: Concept...

A few days later, Garo escorted Manman back to the military base. Immediately afterward, he returned to Heaven's Arena on his own.

He and Sigma, along with the others, would also "further their studies" at Heaven's Arena and attempt to get in touch with Nen. However, given their level, climbing to the two-hundredth floor would be quite challenging.

Regardless of how far they could climb, going there would definitely help them grow to some extent, and afterward, Xiang Nan could guide them further.

At the same time, the "Pandora's Box" project had begun.

The top ranks of the military moved with remarkable speed. They personally filtered out the most elite soldiers—those with all-around excellence—from each of the Republic of Padokea's military districts.

These individuals would enter Heaven's Arena in their personal capacity. Roughly speaking, along with the three who were already Nen users, there would be more than thirty people in total.

Moreover, the military would continually add and select more people in the early phases. Xiang Nan wouldn't need to manage them right away; he would let them train freely at Heaven's Arena. Later on, they'd pick out those who climbed the highest as Pandora's Box's initial members.

In Xiang Nan's view, the first cohort of military Nen users would likely number around ten.

If there were too many, he wouldn't be able to mentor or manage them effectively.

Still, the benefit of this plan is that it has the entire country backing it. Although most of these recruits won't be especially skilled overall, there will be a constant stream of new recruits to replenish the ranks.

In other words, even if Pandora's Box members get killed or injured, as long as the Republic of Padokea exists, the "Box" will never close—there will always be new potential Nen users.

And he would remain the master of that "Box."

All of this hinges on him remaining safe—otherwise...

Meanwhile, having military personnel stationed at Heaven's Arena would also serve as Xiang Nan's "eyes," achieving multiple aims at once.

…

"I've already figured out the direction for your Nen ability. First off," Xiang Nan began, "developing a Nen ability must be grounded in your current condition. You want a noticeable power-up that aligns with your fighting style. If your mental strength is great enough, you can leverage a strict 'vow and limitation' to magnify your ability—sometimes achieving unbelievable feats."

They were in a dormitory with just Xiang Nan and Manman. Manman's injuries had mostly healed. Xiang Nan was explaining things to her.

He intended to develop her Nen ability before his own. He could also use this trial run to gain some experience for creating his own ability.

Truthfully, he had already come up with a draft concept for himself while at Heaven's Arena—he'd even enriched the setup and thought through its feasibility.

"Clearly, your willpower is fragile. Even though you have that second personality, it still emerges from your subconscious and is influenced by your main personality. Hence, using vow and limitation isn't especially suited for you. So, from your circumstances—lacking mental resilience, fearing combat, and so on—your Nen ability can't be designed around the main personality. That means we'll rely on your second personality."

With those words, Xiang Nan snapped his fingers and said to Manman, "Have it come out."

Manman nodded, then closed her eyes. She opened them again, her gaze becoming vacant. Her aura shifted drastically—the second personality had awakened.

"It's faster now." Xiang Nan, sensing a quicker awakening, slightly curled his lips.

"Since your mind and mentality are far too simple, and your Nen fundamentals are poor, trying to develop a complex Nen ability is impossible. As for the main personality, you offer nothing at all; your second personality also lacks self-awareness and just reacts on survival instinct."

Sighing, Xiang Nan frowned. Although Manman's talent was phenomenal, like the saying goes, "If God opens one window, He'll close another." At least in terms of developing a Nen ability, Manman's situation was rather troublesome.

"Come back now."

He placed his hand on her head, transmitting a mental signal via Nen.

After a moment, Manman's eyes cleared up again.

"You're a Transformation-type Nen user, and your core personality isn't suited for battle. That's perfectly aligned for tapping your second personality. I've already thought about your ability—it should function like a 'substitute' or 'clone.'"

"A clone?" Manman blinked.

"Yes," Xiang Nan replied. "Given your psychological issues and fragile psyche, we can make good use of that angle—fully harness it. You can split off a second personality, so why not a third or a fourth? Normally that would be impossible because your condition is already set in stone, but with Nen, it's feasible. In practical terms, you, the main personality, can consciously decide which personality to awaken depending on the situation. This, in essence, is a branch of 'Transformation'."

He was basically letting her choose among multiple "accounts" to log in.

"A mental split…?" Manman was scared.

"Yes," Xiang Nan answered. "Nen ability development is an exceptionally long journey—strictly speaking, there's no end to it. If you have enough time, you can continuously build onto your skillset, but that depends on whether you've got what it takes."

"That said, I'm just offering a preliminary blueprint for your Nen ability. Even if I give you guidance, the final product depends on you—it could go off track! Note also that your second personality arises from real-world trauma, not from Nen. I just want to integrate the concept of a substitute or clone with your second personality."

Xiang Nan sighed. "You know, your ability could be better, but you're just too incapable. Sticking purely to Transformation is your best chance, without mixing in other Nen types."

"Your advantage is that awakened personality's innate fighting sense and reflexes. But your physical condition is poor, your stats are high in some areas but extremely weak in, say, defense and brute strength… In principle, you can exploit Transformation to compensate, but I figure that's too difficult. So, as a fallback, I'd prefer using clones or numbers to avoid damage."

He paused, seeing Manman still confused. Pressing his hand to his forehead, Xiang Nan continued, "But don't think that's all it takes. What I'm describing is merely a theory; it's not guaranteed you can achieve it. If you can't pull it off using your mental traits, then plan B would be focusing on 'forms'—various states of transformation to tweak your second personality's stats and damage potential."

"That's my minimal threshold for you."

Manman looked somewhat embarrassed—at last, she understood. In short… The main personality was extremely lacking. She'd gained a bit of growth in Heaven's Arena, but…

"Come in."

Just then, Xiang Nan clapped his hands. The dormitory door opened, and in walked a group of soldiers.

Manman was startled.

"I found a psychiatric hospital. During the period you're developing your Nen ability, you'll be confined there, reliving some of your old experiences… but don't worry, I'll remain by your side."

Xiang Nan smiled.

Upon hearing that, Manman instantly froze, going pale.

"I… I don't want to go."

"Don't worry. You'll just go to recapture that 'state.' They won't actually do anything to you," he reassured her.

"But… I-I'm scared…"

"It's fine. I'll stay with you the whole time."

"Do you think I'd do anything to harm you? If you're unwilling, you can refuse. That's your freedom."

"During the process, if you feel uncomfortable, you can stop at any time."

Xiang Nan gave her a gentle smile.

Hearing that, Manman bit her lip, glanced at him again, then seemingly steeled her courage, wiping away nascent tears and nodding.

She didn't want to disappoint Xiang Nan.

~~~

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