17: Initial understanding

After adapting to the armor's basic movements, Lu Jianchuan stood in place, somewhat bewildered. He could sense that the armor held more secrets, but didn't know where to start. The uncontrollable power from that night in the warehouse now felt like a stone at the bottom of a lake—visible but untouchable.

He threw a few punches at the air, hearing nothing but the whooshing wind. Growing frustrated, he instinctively punched a rusty iron cabinet beside him.

Thud! Zzzap—!

Amid the dull thud of his fist hitting the iron cabinet, a discordant, faint crackle of electricity mixed in. Lu Jianchuan jerked his hand back, seeing a few tiny blue-white sparks flicker and vanish on his gauntlet, leaving a faint charred mark on the cabinet's surface.

Electricity?

He froze, looking down at his fist. In that instant, it seemed... some emotion had stirred something within his body?

He stopped punching randomly and calmed his mind, trying to recall the subtle 'impulse' he felt inside when he struck the cabinet. He focused his intent on his palm, imagining power gathering. Once, twice... only silence in his palm.

Just as he was about to give up, an unintentional flicker of will, tinged with reluctance—

Zzzap!

A much clearer, more stable arc of electricity suddenly leaped from his palm, like a waking snake, slithering and flashing nimbly between his fingers!

Success! Not through brute force, but through this... guidance of will?

This discovery made his heart race. He carefully maintained the current, afraid it might vanish. He tried to make it brighter, extend it to his fingertips.

Then, a thought arose: What else can this electricity do besides flash?

He looked at the thick, rust-covered iron rod nearby. Hesitating briefly, he pressed his electricity-wrapped palm against it.

Hiss... a strange sound, like cold water dripping into hot oil, rang out. The rust under his palm quickly blackened and flaked off, and the hard iron rod itself began to soften visibly! Its surface turned dark red, even slightly indented, as if scorched by high heat like wax!

Before he could react, a clear suction force came from his palm! The softened, nearly molten dark-red iron was being 'absorbed' by his armor, like a sponge soaking up water!

This sudden change caught him off guard. He felt the absorbed metal flowing inside the armor but didn't know how to handle it. Instinctively, he thought: 'Out!'

The next second, the armor on his right forearm rippled slightly, and a rough yet exceptionally hard and sharp dark bone spike abruptly protruded!

Staring at this bone spike transformed from scrap iron, Lu Jianchuan was stunned. Electricity... can melt metal? The armor... can 'eat' metal and turn it into part of itself?

He tried swinging his arm; the bone spike cut through the air with a sharp sound.

Just then, he noticed several small screws and washers scattered on the ground starting to tremble slightly. At first, he thought it was vibration, but when he stopped moving, the small parts shook even more, even beginning to slowly roll toward him... or rather, toward the bone spike on his arm.

A thought struck him; he tried focusing his mind 'looking' at those parts, thinking 'come here.'

Whoosh!

A nut suddenly leaped from the ground, firmly attaching itself to the side of the bone spike!

Magnetism? Because the bone spike is metal, and the current created a magnetic field?

Maintaining the current, he tried moving his arm. The small parts attached to the bone spike clung tightly, impossible to shake off.

Standing in the ruins, he looked at his electricity-wrapped right hand, the abrupt bone spike on his right arm, and the metal parts attached to it, swaying with his movements. It all seemed so bizarre, yet so real, originating from himself.

No guidance, no instructions. Electricity, metal melting, bone spike generation, magnetism... these abilities were like scattered beads, painstakingly strung together through his clumsy attempts and accidental discoveries.

Lu Jianchuan immersed himself in the joy of discovery, repeatedly testing and verifying the few abilities he had just figured out. Taming the electricity, melting and reconstructing metal, and the resulting magnetic attraction—each confirmed ability deepened his understanding of this armor.

He focused on control and familiarity, losing track of time. Until he accidentally glanced at the sky through the damaged factory roof, the deep ink-blue had faded, its edges tinged with an extremely faint gray-white.

Dawn was approaching!

His heart jolted. All exploration had to stop immediately. He had to return silently to that 'box' before the watchers changed shifts or initiated more frequent scans.

Without a moment's delay, he began carefully inspecting and cleaning the scene. He covered the partially melted iron rod with discarded oilcloth, kicked scattered metal debris under piles of junk. Ensuring no overly conspicuous unnatural traces remained, he took one last look at this ruin that gave him his first sense of control.

The silver figure activated again, like a ghost blending into the dawn, silently returning to the apartment along the complex, hidden path—underground pipelines, maintenance tunnels, ventilation ducts. Throughout, the armor perfectly maintained its form, providing necessary mobility and concealment.

When he finally slid out of the bathroom ventilation duct and stepped back into his apartment with its deceptive setup, the sky outside was growing light. He quickly checked his camouflage: the computer tower still emitted steady heat, the lumpy outline on the bed remained, and the regular breathing sounds from his phone played softly.

Everything was intact; the watchers clearly hadn't noticed.

Only now, confirming he had safely returned to his 'cage,' did Lu Jianchuan allow himself to deactivate the armor.

He raised his right hand and pressed the crimson gem on the armband on his left wrist.

Hum... With a faint hum, the silvery-white biomaterial armor crumbled like a sand sculpture weathering away, dissolving into countless points of light that vanished into the air.

At the very moment the armor deactivated, the terrifying cost that had been forcibly suppressed and delayed settled in, bursting forth like a breached dam!

A far more intense hunger than before gripped his stomach like an invisible hand, violent spasms making him almost retch. Simultaneously, bottomless exhaustion and weakness swept through his body, his legs giving way as he collapsed onto the floor, his vision darkening in waves, ears filled with the roar of his overburdened heart.

He lay on the cold floor, gasping for breath, sweat instantly drenching his entire body.

But in his blurred vision, he saw the sky outside, the light of dawn brightening irresistibly.

He had succeeded.