254: Adaptive training and the surprise of "out of control"

Excellence's "New Recruit Adaptability Training"—Life Edition—was in full swing. It was conducted under the "iron-fisted" supervision of Instructor Su Mu (mainly characterized by 24/7 close-range guarding, incessant reminders, and occasional exaggerated exclamations) and the "scientific guidance" of Consultant Evelyn (including but not limited to being covered in micro-sensors, real-time data flow monitoring, and instant feedback adjustment suggestions based on complex algorithms). The primary training ground was his specially reinforced suite, embedded with energy buffering and absorption matrices. The training occupied every single minute outside of essential work, meetings, and the "spacing out" sessions mandated by Su Mu.

The training was systematically divided into several stages, each targeting a specific "control weakness" exposed by his new body.

On the first day, the theme was clearly defined as "Fine Tactile Sensation and Basic Strength Control." Su Mu simplified this into a more straightforward goal: Don't crush things.

The complexity and "fragility" of the training props rose in a stepped fashion. Initially, there was a set of custom-made grip testers made of materials ranging from ordinary engineering plastics and high-elasticity memory rubber to various grades of superalloys, all integrated with high-precision micro-pressure sensors and instant feedback lights. Next was a batch of 3D-printed models made of extremely fragile materials (such as ultra-thin crystal, unreinforced silicon-based gel, and bionic spider silk structures). These models came in various forms: birds about to take flight, flower buds ready to bloom, and a set of miniature, exquisitely detailed tableware, all densely packed with pressure and deformation sensors. The props for the final "graduation assessment," however, made Excellence's eyelids twitch—it was a full set of Rococo-style bone china tea sets that Su Mu had "requisitioned" from some treasure warehouse. The glaze was lustrous, the walls thin as a cicada's wing, and they were almost translucent under the light. They emitted a crisp, pleasant chime at the slightest touch, as if silently proclaiming their "preciousness."

"Start with the simplest one," Evelyn's voice was as calm and steady as the most precise instrument. "The goal is to establish a mechanical database of feedback from different materials and form a corresponding, minimized neuro-energy control reflex arc. Use your gentlest, most stable intent to drive the finger muscles and subcutaneous energy micro-circulation. Apply pressure slowly. When the sensor indicator turns from blue to green, stop immediately. Note, it's not 'stop as soon as possible,' it's 'immediately.' The time difference in between is the manifestation of your control latency."

Excellence took a deep breath, clearing all distracting thoughts, as if returning to the state of total concentration he had when first learning Energy Programming. He reached out his right hand, his index finger and thumb pinching the ends of the first plastic grip tester as gently as if holding a flower. Closing his eyes, he sank his entire mind into his fingertips, feeling the rough yet slightly elastic texture. He imagined his strength as a stream of the gentlest brook, slowly pouring in... bit by bit, increasing pressure... the sensors at his fingertips sent back extremely subtle deformation feedback, mapped directly into his Perception via the neural interface. He "saw" the virtual reading representing pressure slowly rising... Now! Stop!

The moment the intent was issued, the finger muscles and the micro-energy field enveloping his fingertips solidified simultaneously. The grip tester emitted an almost inaudible "creak," but the structure remained intact. The indicator light beside it glowed green steadily, and a number appeared below: Preset pressure value, error ±0.5%.

"Good. Control latency is within acceptable limits. Continue, change materials," Evelyn's voice accompanied the slight hum of data entry.

Next were several alloy grip testers of different hardnesses. Excellence gradually got the hang of it, with errors controlled within ±0.3% and control latency shortening. He breathed a slight sigh of relief; it seemed that basic strength modulation wasn't a big problem as long as he was focused enough.

Then, the challenge escalated. Facing the row of fragile models, the first was a crystal bird. As soon as his fingertips touched the cold, smooth surface, a sense of "fragility" a hundred times clearer than the grip tester surged toward him. It wasn't just a tactile sensation; it was more like a warning acting directly on the level of the soul: This object is extremely easy to destroy. He could even "feel" the subtle stress distribution inside the crystal, as if he were holding a dream woven from the finest spider silk.

He held his breath, and his heartbeat slowed down subconsciously, as if fearing the vibration of his chest would be transmitted through his arm. The "stream of strength" in his mind contracted even thinner and softer, enveloping the bird almost like a mist. He slowly lifted it, moved it ten centimeters horizontally, and then gently put it down onto the designated platform.

The crystal bird was unharmed, refracting pure light under the lamps.

"Control precision has significantly improved, the energy field is evenly wrapped, and interference with the target's microstructure is below the threshold," Evelyn commented, a hint of praise in her tone. "You're adapting very quickly."

Su Mu leaned against a nearby reinforced wall with her arms crossed, a smile on her face, but her words remained sharp: "That's just basic operation; don't get cocky. The real big test is coming up."

Sure enough, the ultimate challenge—the bone china teacup—was pushed in front of Excellence.

Just looking at those heart-stoppingly thin walls, Excellence felt a wave of invisible pressure. As if facing a formidable enemy, he adjusted his breathing again. When his fingertips touched the cold, delicate glaze, the "fragility alarm" feedback reached an unprecedented level. This feeling was indescribable, as if he weren't holding porcelain, but a fragile bubble maintained by the most minute laws of balance that could collapse at any moment.

He summoned every ounce of his focus, concentrating and refining the "strength mist," imagining it as a layer of "Order Field glove" even thinner and more flexible than a water molecule film, evenly enveloping the slender handle of the cup. Then, at an almost imperceptible speed, he slowly applied upward force.

The cup left the table smoothly. It hovered steadily at his fingertips.

Success? Excellence felt a surge of joy, and that extremely taut mind inevitably experienced a tiny, microscopic relaxation—the instinctive, momentary relief after successfully completing a high-difficulty action.

Click.

A tiny crack, almost non-existent but crystal clear to his now incredibly sharp hearing, sounded like the first fracture appearing on an ice surface.

Excellence's body suddenly stiffened, his gaze frozen.

On the inner side of the contact point between his fingertip and the handle, at that graceful curved junction, a crack thinner than the finest hair had appeared. The crack didn't extend, and the cup didn't shatter, but that mark was so glaring on the lustrous white glaze, announcing a flaw in his control.

"Uh..." Excellence looked at the crack and then glanced awkwardly at Su Mu, like a child caught doing something wrong.

Su Mu walked over, took the cup, and carefully examined the crack against the light, even gently touching it with her finger (covered in an insulating finger cot), then raised an eyebrow: "Not bad, it didn't fall apart, just a 'minor injury.' Do you know where the problem lies?"

Excellence recalled the sensation of that moment dejectedly: "It was at the very end... when I succeeded, my mind relaxed, and the control field had an extremely weak fluctuation? Even a billionth of a second of negligence was enough to leave a mark on a fragile structure of this level?"

"Correct!" Su Mu stuffed the cup back into his hand, her expression turning serious. "Control doesn't just exist at the moment of 'applying force'; it spans the entire process of 'contact-holding-moving-placing-releasing,' and even includes the 'wrap-up' after the task is done! Especially when facing these 'shatter-at-a-touch' things, any of your emotional fluctuations—nervousness, impatience, pride after success, frustration after failure—will be like a stone thrown into still water, creating ripples in your unstable energy field, which in turn affects the most refined force output. Again! This time, I want you to maintain a state of 'mind as clear as ice, unperturbed even if the sky falls' from the moment you pick up the cup until three seconds after you put it down!"

The next few attempts became a tug-of-war between Excellence and his own emotions and instinctive reactions. The more he told himself to be "absolutely calm," the tighter his nerves became, like walking a tightrope. As a result, either new cracks appeared at the handle junction, or the bottom of the cup showed spiderweb-like fine lines due to an imperceptible tremor when putting it down. That set of exquisite bone china cups, "injured" one by one, became the most direct "recorder" of his fluctuating state of mind.

"Stop!" Su Mu called a timeout. Looking at the five cups on the table with varying degrees of "scars," she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Relying purely on willpower like this is inefficient and prone to counterproductive results; the more you practice, the more nervous you get. Evelyn, is there a more scientific way? Something that allows him to more intuitively 'see' or 'feel' the flow and output of his own energy? Like watching someone else's posture when learning to swim, or watching a simulation animation when learning an operation?"

Hearing this, Evelyn pushed up her glasses, the light of thought flashing rapidly behind the lenses. A few seconds later, her eyes lit up: "There is a way. Excellence, your own 'Power of Order' is highly plastic and responsive, even responding to your 'mental visualization' to a certain extent. We can try to utilize this. Next time you touch an object, don't just passively control it; instead, actively 'imagine'—imagine the part of your 'intent' that controls the strength, and the 'energy circuit' that drives it, forming a clearly visible, simple 'light-flow' model in your own conscious field of vision. At the same time, try to slightly externalize this 'intent model,' causing the corresponding area of your body surface (like your fingers) to produce an extremely weak synchronized visualization effect. This way, you can 'see with your own eyes' the 'shape,' 'flow,' and 'stability' of your strength, making it easier to perform instant, intuitive adjustments. This is an advanced training method based on biofeedback principles."

"mental visualization? synchronized light effects?" Excellence chewed on the concept, finding it somewhat novel and seemingly feasible. He closed his eyes to concentrate again, clearing his mind, but this time the goal wasn't "emptiness," but "construction."

He imagined his core—that warm, pulsating Order Origin—as a miniature sun. A gentle, soft, stream-like silver-white light-flow branched out from the sun, flowing slowly along a path he "designed" to be the simplest and most stable, following the bones and Energy Meridians of his arm until it reached his fingertips. Then, this light-flow branched at his fingertips, gently and evenly "enveloping" the virtual cup handle, forming a glowing, stable "force field glove" model.

As his imagination deepened and his intent focused, a miracle occurred. Beneath the skin of his right index finger and thumb, an extremely faint silver-white halo, flickering like breathing, actually began to show through. This halo was very light, almost invisible under normal light, but in the training room's intentionally dimmed auxiliary lighting, it could be clearly seen softly enveloping the area of the cup handle he was about to touch.

He reached out again and pinched the cup handle. This time, the tactile feedback was still clear, but what he "saw" more was the interaction between that stable halo and the handle. The halo was even, with no violent fluctuations. He slowly lifted the cup. The shape and brightness of the halo remained stable. He moved it. Stable. He gently put it down, and only when the bottom of the cup touched the table did the halo quietly dissipate from his fingertips like a receding tide, retracting into his body.

The cup was perfectly intact, its glaze smooth and lustrous, without any new scars added.

"It worked!" Excellence whispered in surprise. He could clearly feel that this "visualization" aid gave his control over strength an observable and adjustable "reference frame," greatly reducing the ambiguity and uncertainty of relying purely on feeling.

"Excellent!" Evelyn's voice also carried a hint of excitement, her fingers flying across the virtual keyboard. "Biofeedback visualization model successfully established! Control precision increased by 42%, energy output fluctuation reduced by 67%! This confirms the feasibility of high-Order energy lifeforms using mental visualization to assist control! But remember, this is only a training aid; the ultimate goal is to form an internalized instinctive control reflex that requires no deliberate visualization."

With the powerful aid of the "visualized light-flow model," the progress of Excellence's adaptability training accelerated significantly. He could not only steadily pick up bone china cups but also complete "high-difficulty" lifestyle actions such as "pouring water into a cup" (requiring precise control of water impact force and surface tension) and "stacking two cups" (testing simultaneous multi-line control and sense of balance). Although he would still occasionally fail due to sudden external noise interference or brief personal distractions, causing the "light-flow model" to experience subtle disturbances and the cup to unfortunately get "scratched," the overall success rate soared, and his grasp of the "hand-feel" of his own strength became increasingly precise.

Instructor Su Mu expressed phased satisfaction but immediately announced the move to the more challenging next stage: "Life Edition Part Two: Environmental Interaction and Unconscious Energy Containment. In short: Don't walk around and mysteriously freeze things, turn them into jelly, or burn a symmetrical hole in them."

The difficulty of this training stage rose exponentially because it targeted the subconscious energy dissipation that Excellence himself found difficult to detect at all times. Evelyn transformed the training room into an extremely sensitive monitoring field for energy and matter states. Tens of thousands of micro-energy dissipation detection particles, high-precision molecular motion monitors, and space disturbance sensors were spread across the walls, floor, ceiling, and even in the air.

The training content became extremely trivial and lifestyle-oriented:

Static Control: Excellence was required to walk normally, jog, sit down, stand up, lie down, and roll over at different speeds within the room. The amplitude and frequency of his unconsciously emitted energy field fluctuations were monitored, with the goal of suppressing these fluctuations to a level close to or even lower than the bio-electromagnetic field of an ordinary healthy human.

Sensory Load Training: Music of different types and volumes, from soothing classical to intense electronic rock, was played; rapidly flashing complex geometric patterns or fast-switching natural scenery images were projected; and even some extremely light special scents (such as lemon freshener or old book pages) were released. The training goal was to let Excellence skillfully use the temporary sensory filters provided by Evelyn and gradually learn to autonomously regulate or even temporarily close some overloaded sensory channels, avoiding instinctive energy defense or stress reactions triggered by sensory overload.

Emotional Stability Training: This was the most subtle and difficult part. Su Mu had gathered various video materials: slapstick comedy clips, deeply moving documentaries, tense and exciting action movie trailers, and even an abstract art video said to induce subconscious anxiety. Excellence needed to watch these while simultaneously monitoring his heart rate, brain waves, micro-endocrine changes, and most crucially—the fluctuations of his Energy Core. The goal was to identify the correspondence between different emotions (joy, sadness, tension, excitement, calmness) and energy peaks, and to learn techniques such as breathing adjustment, thought transfer, and energy circuit fine-tuning to quickly calm unnecessary energy surges.

This process was riddled with mishaps and constant surprises. While performing "walking control" training, Excellence became so engrossed in optimizing an energy circuit that his steps unconsciously became slightly heavier. The unconsciously emitted Order Field instantly disturbed the timing circuits inside a passing cleaning robot, "freezing" it in the middle of the corridor for exactly twenty-eight seconds. The robot's system log later recorded an "unexplainable, brief, localized space-time reference frame disorder failure." During "sensory load training," when a high-frequency electronic sound was suddenly inserted into rock music, he frowned as a reflex, and his hair moved on its own for a moment, causing the intelligent dimming sequence of three rows of induction lights on the ceiling to become collectively disordered, flashing wildly for five seconds like a disco. And while watching that ancient movie known as a "tear-jerker," as the plot reached its climax, his nose twitched, his eyes reddened slightly, and his heart was filled with a mix of emotion and sorrow. As a result, seven humidity sensors in different locations in the room shrieked in alarm—monitoring showed that, centered on Excellence, the activity of water molecules in the air within a five-meter radius had mysteriously surged, and the vibration frequency of hydrogen-oxygen bonds had changed, presenting an extremely unstable, eerie state as if they were about to automatically condense into teardrop shapes at any moment... After every "accident," Su Mu would solemnly draw a bright red "X" on her portable recording board, accompanied by threats of "point deductions" and "extra practice"; Evelyn, on the other hand, would conduct detailed data analysis afterward to find the trigger points, conduction paths, and amplification mechanisms of the energy loss of control, and provide targeted optimization plans, such as adjusting the "damping coefficient" of a certain energy node, or suggesting the priority activation of a secondary energy circuit that acts as a "voltage stabilizer" when specific emotions surge. Excellence also went from his initial embarrassment and self-blame during every mishap to slowly being able to find joy in the hardship, even setting some "challenge goals" for himself—such as "strive not to trigger any level-one alarms during this afternoon's training cycle," or "control the energy fluctuation peak within eighty percent of the preset threshold while watching tear-jerking clips."

After several days of high-intensity targeted training, the results were obvious. Excellence's control over his new body rose steadily, like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. He was already able to use specially made tableware with multiple buffering structures to finish meals relatively freely (though the food was still specially supplied balanced nutrition paste or reinforced crops), walk and sit smoothly without leaving a trail of energy disturbance "ripples" behind him, and effectively channel or calm emotional fluctuations caused by external stimuli before they triggered large-scale energy loss of control. The most direct progress was reflected in this: when that annoying itchy sensation returned to his back, he had learned to instantly cover his fingertip with a thin but extremely stable film of Power of Order before subconsciously reaching out, forming perfect insulation and buffering, and then scratch—the result was naturally comfortable skin and intact clothing, with no more scorch marks appearing.

Of course, there was still a long way to go from what Su Mu and Evelyn defined as "perfect control" and "acting as an extension of one's arm." Especially when there was a need to instantly call upon greater power (such as simulating force in an emergency) or when encountering extreme emotional impacts (simulations in training were, after all, limited), the risk of losing control still existed. But at least, in terms of basic self-care in a daily non-combat state, Excellence had progressed from a "humanoid walking rule-breaking instrument" to a "precision instrument that needs to be handled with care," and was steadily advancing toward becoming a "stable high-energy living individual."

This afternoon, a full set of adaptive training sessions came to a temporary close. Su Mu was urgently summoned by Wang Jianguo to attend a meeting regarding the preliminary analysis report of the "World Devourer" wreckage, and Evelyn also needed to go to the main laboratory to coordinate interdisciplinary research on newly recovered samples. Excellence gained a rare period of unsupervised independent consolidation practice time.

He was the only one left in the training room; the various monitoring devices were in a low-power standby state, leaving only basic environmental readings. Excellence did not slack off; he walked to the area in the center of the training room that had been specially cleared, sat cross-legged, adjusted his breathing, and allowed himself to enter a state of deep introspection.

His vision turned inward, and his senses grew quiet. His "consciousness" seemed to dive into a vast, boundless ocean of energy composed of silver-white light. That warm, stable, and ceaselessly pulsating "Order Origin core" was situated between his chest and abdomen, like the heart of this ocean. With every expansion and contraction, it drove a majestic and pure flow of energy, surging and circulating along those incredibly strong and intricate "Energy Meridians" inside his new body, over and over again. These meridians were like a second circulatory system for his life, finer than blood vessels, carrying laws and power.

He could clearly "see" the Energy Core like a tree root, extending into countless trunks and branches, glowing brightly; those were the main energy channels he was already familiar with and could basically master. But around these bright meridians, deeper and more at the edges of his body, there were still large areas of "shadow zones." The Energy Meridians there were dim and lusterless, appearing and disappearing fitfully, some even in a physical state of being "closed" or "knotted," like unexplored wild lands on a map, or like unused functional modules on a precision instrument—exactly what Evelyn repeatedly referred to as "to-be-activated" or "potential functional zones."

His consciousness involuntarily "drifted" toward the area near his shoulder blades. There, two exceptionally thick and structurally complex energy main meridians, which felt like sleeping dragons in his Perception, deeply attracted him. The thrilling scene from a few days ago where he "almost grew wings from an itch," as well as that instant instinctive urge to "unfurl" and "release," were still fresh in his memory.

"Is this... the 'root' of the 'wings'?" Excellence's consciousness cautiously "touched" those two silent meridians, feeling the sleeping, heart-palpitatingly vast potential within them. It was a complex authority different from simple power output, seemingly involving the interaction of space, form, and higher dimensions. "Sister Evelyn said it takes a catalyst and practice to gradually activate them... My control has improved a lot these past few days, and I'm much more familiar with the 'feel' of the energy. How about... I just try to make contact? Not activate them, but just like knocking on a door, give them a gentle 'tap' to get a feel for it? It should... be fine, right? Like knowing where the faucet is, just gently turning it a crack to feel the water pressure..."

A thought, mixed with curiosity, a desire to explore, and a bit of adventurous spirit, quietly grew and quickly became difficult to suppress. Excellence convinced himself: this was just a cautious trial, a necessary step to deepen his understanding of himself.

He mobilized a wisp of pure, highly controllable Power of Order, condensing it into an "energy probe" even finer than a nerve ending. With great caution, he slowly and gently moved to "touch" the starting end of those two dim meridians.

Buzz—!!!

In the billionth of a second when that wisp of Power of Order touched the silent meridians, a sudden change occurred!

Those two dim meridians, as if they hadn't been "touched" but rather had an ancient switch flipped, suddenly erupted with unimaginable suction and light! Excellence's trial wisp of Power of Order was like a clay ox entering the sea, instantly swallowed without a trace! That wasn't even the worst part—his Order Origin core in his chest and abdomen seemed to receive some kind of highest-priority "activation command." Its pulsation frequency skyrocketed, and completely beyond Excellence's current conscious control, it began to frantically pump tsunami-like, majestic Order energy toward those two suddenly awakened meridians!

"Not good! It's out of control!" Excellence was shocked, a chill instantly racing from his spine to the top of his head. He immediately tried to cut off the energy supply and regain control, but to his horror, he found that once the starting ends of those two meridians were "awakened," they seemed to start some kind of irreversible, greedy self-growth and charging program! They were like two black holes suddenly connected to the ocean, beginning to autonomously and violently extract nearly infinite energy from his Energy Core, and even faintly from the surrounding space and the deep connections of "The Weave"! Excellence's will at this moment was actually unable to completely stop this out-of-control flood!

Blinding silver-white light shot uncontrollably from his shoulder blades. What were initially just two points of light quickly expanded into two violently surging spheres of light filled with destructive energy fluctuations! Inside the training room, all the alarms in standby mode seemed to have their tails stepped on at the same time, their shrill buzzing echoing in every corner! Red warning signs representing severely exceeded energy peaks, threatened spatial stability, and drastic mutations in biological signs flashed and jumped wildly on every control screen!

"Excellence!" Su Mu's horrified cry and Evelyn's hurried footsteps came from outside the door almost simultaneously. They were clearly alerted by this sudden, top-level alarm and had rushed back at top speed.

The alloy door was thrown open, and the two of them rushed into the training room. Seeing the scene in the center, they were instantly frozen in place as if a binding spell had been cast on them.

Excellence sat cross-legged in the middle of the floor, eyes tightly shut, his brow deeply furrowed into a " river" shape, and veins bulging on his forehead. Large drops of cold sweat were sliding down his cheeks; he was clearly engaged in an extremely arduous tug-of-war with the violent energy inside his body. And on his back, beneath his special training suit, two increasingly dazzling and unstable silver-white energy spheres were frantically surging, stretching, twisting, and deforming! The light was so intense that it made the back of the training suit nearly transparent, and the edges were even starting to show carbonized scorch marks! Inside the light spheres, countless silver-white energy runes and circuits, so complex they were dizzying, were spontaneously generating, colliding, and reorganizing at a terrifying speed. The energy fluctuations emitted made the air in the entire room hum and vibrate, and the screens of several nearby monitoring instruments had already gone white from overload!

"Is he forcibly activating an unknown high-level energy organ?!" Evelyn was the first to react, her face pale. She lunged toward the main control console like an arrow leaving a bowstring, her fingers dancing across the virtual keyboard in a blur as she pulled up real-time physiological and energy monitoring data. After just one look, her voice changed pitch due to extreme shock: "Energy output is showing out-of-control exponential growth! Target area—biological energy signatures are undergoing a fundamental mutation! Cell structure, Energy Meridians, and spatial affinity parameters are all reorganizing wildly! This... is this autonomous evolution? Or an energy rampage?! Excellence! Can you hear me? Try to gently guide and constrain it immediately! Forcibly interrupting the energy supply could cause permanent structural damage to your new Energy Meridians! It might even trigger a core collapse!"

Su Mu, regardless of the danger, was about to rush toward Excellence: "Excellence! Wake up! Stop! Don't force it!"

At this critical moment, the seated Excellence suddenly snapped his eyes open! The silver-white light in his eyes flashed like lightning, carrying a hint of the pain of straining for control, but even more so, a resolve and sharpness born of a sudden realization in a desperate situation!

"I... I can't stop it!" he growled, his voice carrying a strange resonance due to the agitation of energy. In the moment he realized that forcibly suppressing this out-of-control energy flood was impossible and might even backfire and cause greater harm, he made an extremely bold decision that was almost a gamble!

No longer resisting, but... guiding! Shaping! Controlling!

"Since you want to come out... then take form obediently according to my will and my shape!"

He fused all his willpower, all his spirit, all his understanding and Perception of the authority of "Order," all his firm belief in "protecting the Homeland," and even his ultimate cognition of his own existence into an invisible but star-heavy "Will Hammer," a non-negotiable "Law Mold," and slammed it accurately and fiercely into those two spheres of light on his back that were about to completely lose control and erupt with destructive energy!

Not blocking, but dredging! Not suppressing, but giving form! Not preventing the birth, but deciding the appearance of the birth!

Take form—for me!

"Roar—!!!"

A silent roar, not from the throat but from the depths of the soul resonating with the violent energy, exploded outward with Excellence as the center! All the light objects in the training room were pushed by the invisible shockwave, clattering loudly!

Blinding silver-white light swallowed everything in an instant! Su Mu and Evelyn subconsciously closed their stinging eyes, feeling as if they were in the core of a supernova, with pure light and energy stripping away all other senses.

This extreme light lasted for only a brief, almost unmeasurable moment before it suddenly receded and gathered inward like a low tide.

The two of them endured the afterimages on their retinas and their ringing ears, opening their eyes impatiently to look.

In the center of the training room, Excellence remained in his cross-legged position, but the back of his special training suit had completely turned to ash, fluttering down. And on his bare, smooth-lined, and powerful back, at the position of his shoulder blades—

There was a pair of... "Wings of Light" that surpassed everyone's imagination and could not be described by any known biological or mechanical creation!

They were not made of matter, but of the purest silver-white light of Order in a wonderful state of "energy entity." Their form shifted subtly between "light" and "substance," sometimes spreading out, with fine light points like star-river dust flowing down from the edges, their wingspan hazy as if they could shade a part of the world; sometimes they gathered, naturally forming two elegant and sharp arcs of light behind his back, like a deity's cape. The texture of every "Light Feather" was not a natural feather meridian, but was interwoven from countless minute, precise, and constantly appearing and disappearing cosmic law runes and energy geometric structures, emitting a vast, holy, stable, yet hiddenly sharp Order fluctuation.

They hovered silently behind Excellence, rising and falling with extreme subtlety and synchronicity as his breathing stabilized. Every slight flutter did not stir the air, but seemed to directly smooth out all unstable ripples in space. All the instruments that had been sounding alarms due to energy loss of control returned to normal readings almost simultaneously after being brushed by the soft field of Order naturally emitted by this pair of light wings; the alarm sounds stopped abruptly, as if the previous fury had never occurred.

Excellence slowly exhaled a long breath, which contained flecks of silver light that had not yet completely dissipated. The look of pain and struggle on his face had faded, replaced by a relief-filled exhaustion and an undisguised shock mixed with extreme novelty and inquiry. He tried, moving the thought of 'wanting to lift the left light wing'.

The flowing light wing on the left responded immediately, rising at an angle with a fluidity and naturalness that transcended machinery, the light spots on its edge flowing like a river of stars.

He tried 'slight levitation' again.

The wings behind him flapped downward synchronously and softly—there was no sound of wind, no airflow, but an invisible force field acting on his own mass and local spatial rules was quietly generated. Excellence's body slightly left the ground, hovering about ten centimeters up, and then slowly and steadily descended back to the ground with his thought of 'falling'.

'This...' Excellence looked down at his feet that had briefly left the ground, then tried to twist his neck to see the magnificent Wings of Light behind him that seemed to have a life of their own. The expression on his face reached an extreme of complexity, with shock, daze, disbelief, excitement, and a sense of absurdity—'I actually managed to tinker this thing out'—playing out in turns.

Su Mu and Evelyn had completely entered a state of petrification, like two exquisite statues.

Su Mu's mouth was open wide enough to fit an egg, and her finger pointed tremblingly at the Wings of Light behind Excellence, her voice changing pitch: 'This... this this this... wings?! Wings made of energy?! You really... really made a pair of glowing wings?! Can this thing... fly?!'

Evelyn, the moment she regained her ability to move, was like a scientist who had discovered the ultimate mystery of the universe. A terrifying light erupted in her eyes as she lunged toward the main control console at near-teleportation speed. A waterfall of unprecedented new data streams refreshed on the light screen, and her voice was sharp and even somewhat distorted with excitement: 'Energy output stable! Morphological solidification complete! Perfect symbiotic link achieved with the Host's vital signs, nervous system, and Energy Core! Energy utilization efficiency... increased by three hundred and twenty percent! Spatial affinity parameters have broken through theoretical limits! This... this isn't just external energy shaping! This is a... high-level energy life exclusive organ derived from the underlying protocols of the "Order Origin," combined with the Host's life form and will! My god! Excellence! You... you successfully manifested the prototype of the "wings of order"?! This theoretical model was only vaguely recorded in the oldest forbidden documents of the "Lost Star Cluster"!'

Hearing this, Excellence controlled the Wings of Light and slowly turned around to face them. The Wings of Light folded naturally behind him like two cascading waterfalls of light, making him look like a young deity in charge of laws walking out of an ancient mythological scroll. The shock and daze on his face were gradually replaced by novelty and excitement, and his mouth split open into a familiar 'Excellence-style' smile that was a mix of silliness, pride, and a bit of embarrassment:

'Um... it seems like, by accident, I played... a bit too much?'

He tried to control the Wings of Light, making a mental gesture similar to a 'shrug'. Although there were no actual shoulder joints, the pair of light wings did synchronously and spiritually lift the tips of their light arcs slightly, conveying a similar meaning.

'But... it feels like, it's actually... not bad?' he added, his tone carrying a bit of uncertainty, but his eyes were sparkling. 'It's just... this way of appearing is a bit hard on the fabric. Class Monitor, these clothes...'

Su Mu looked at his familiar face, which appeared both sacred and yet still carried that familiar 'clumsiness' against the backdrop of the dreamlike Wings of Light flowing with the radiance of laws. Hearing his down-to-earth complaint, she finally snapped out of her extreme shock.

She rubbed her eyes hard and pinched her arm fiercely to confirm it wasn't a hallucination or a dream. Only then did she stride forward and, before Excellence could react, reach out her hand with a hint of awe and infinite curiosity to cautiously and extremely gently touch the flowing 'feather tip' at the very edge of the left light wing, which seemed composed of solidified starlight.

The sensation... was beyond words. It wasn't solid, with no cold metal or warm fleshly feeling, but it wasn't nothingness either. Her fingertips felt a warm and soft energy pulsation, as if she were touching 'stability' itself, a presence combining the warmth of sunlight with the rhythm of cosmic string vibrations. There was no burning or stinging; instead, there was a strange sense of comfort that instantly calmed the mind, as if the soul had been gently brushed by the purest light of Order.

'Really... wings... energy, living wings...' Su Mu murmured to herself, her fingertips lingering in that warm halo. Then, she suddenly looked up at Excellence, a brilliant smile abruptly blooming on her face, though her eyes were instantly filled with crystalline tears. She was crying and laughing at the same time: 'You brat! I told you not to mess around! Don't just try things! You scared us to death, do you know that! My heart was about to jump out! But...'

She stepped back two paces, hands on her hips, looking Excellence up and down, left and right, as if admiring a peerless work of art—especially those Wings of Light that rose and fell slightly with his breathing. The tears in her eyes were replaced by an increasingly bright light, and finally, she announced with full vigor and immense pride:

'Cool! So damn cool! These wings suit you! They're practically tailor-made! From now on when you fight, you won't just use your fists to reason; you can slap people with wings too! Not bad, not bad! This wave wasn't a loss! It's just...'

She changed the subject, habitually starting to worry about practical issues with a mischievous yet serious expression: 'With this look, when you go out in the future, will Evelyn have to specially design several sets of "back-less energy-conduction combat suits" for you? Otherwise, you'll be bursting your clothes all the time, and that's just improper! Also, what about sleeping? Will lying on your side be uncomfortable? Will lying on your stomach crush them? When you retract them, will they leave two lumps on your back?'

Excellence: "..." The grand heroism and novelty that had just surged up from obtaining a cool, sky-breaking new ability were instantly knocked back to their original form by Su Mu's series of extremely realistic and mundane questions. His expression became somewhat blank.

Evelyn also walked over at this time. She even used a portable anti-gravity hovering device, circling Excellence and the Wings of Light behind him like a curious hummingbird. The scanning equipment in her hand flashed with light of different wavelengths as she conducted all-around testing from every angle, her mouth constantly muttering at a speed like she was giving an academic report: 'Self-energy closed-loop confirmed, no external dependency loss... stable spatial coordinate anchoring effect detected at the base of the wings, suspected to have the physiological basis for short-distance spatial folding jumps... dynamic changes in the light wing structure, can adjust form and density with the Host's will, possessing multiple potential functions including attack, defense, maneuverability, energy conduction, and even local rule influence... incredible... this is simply a living, growable manifested organ of the "laws of Order"! Excellence, I need detailed data on these "wings of order" now! All of it! Including but not limited to energy spectrum, spatial perturbation patterns, resonance frequency with "The Weave," stress response thresholds... this might be the key to our understanding of energy life evolution and even touching the edge of the "Creation Legacy"!'

She recorded basic data for a long time before stopping reluctantly. Taking a few deep breaths to calm her excited mood, she looked at Excellence with eyes so burning it was as if she wanted to put him and the Wings of Light together into an analyzer: 'Excellence, how do you feel subjectively now? How is your precision in controlling the wings? Mental response delay? Energy consumption patterns? Any discomfort or sense of burden?'

Excellence closed his eyes and felt carefully for a moment, then his mind moved slightly. The light of the wings behind him began to gradually fade and dim, and the flowing 'light feather' form also slowly contracted inward and blurred, finally turning into two wisps of soft silver-white light like a receding tide, silently sinking into his shoulder blades and disappearing. On the surface of his skin, only two extremely faint, beautifully outlined wing-shaped silver light marks remained, like natural tattoos, slightly emitting warmth.

'They can be retracted and summoned at any time. Controlling them...' He opened his eyes, savoring the feeling from just now, 'is a bit like controlling extra, particularly flexible and powerful arms, but more "mentalized." I don't need to think about specific muscle movements; I just need to "think," and they will make the corresponding movements and form changes. The response has almost no delay, like an extension of thought. Energy consumption...' He looked inward at his core and energy cycle again, 'In the basic maintenance state, the consumption is negligible. They seem able to draw what they need directly from the deep background radiation of "The Weave" and the "waste heat" of my own energy cycle. Only during high-speed flight, high-intensity defense, or when launching offensive skills is there significant core energy consumption. Um... it seems there's also a bit of a passive ability to automatically assimilate and absorb discrete, harmless Order-side energy from the surrounding environment for replenishment?'

Evelyn's fingers flew as she recorded, her wrists trembling slightly with excitement: 'Self-circulation! Environmental energy assimilation! Intent-level control! Zero-delay response! Multi-functional modularity! This design... is simply a perfect paradigm of the combination of life evolution and supreme laws! It is a gift from "Order" to its favored one!'

'To summarize,' Su Mu interrupted Evelyn's academic sentimentality which could have lasted a long time, and slapped Excellence's shoulder hard (remembering to use only a tiny bit of force this time), 'it's: a blessing in disguise! No, it's a proactive... a world-shaking blessing! Not bad, Excellence! Silent until the first cry, then startling everyone! No wings at first, but once they appear, they're these super wings that can blind people!'

Excellence scratched his head and couldn't help but chuckle. Although the process was fraught with danger and almost resulted in a disaster, these unexpectedly 'activated' (or rather, forcibly guided into form) 'wings of order' were undoubtedly a huge and surprising harvest. They not only greatly enhanced his maneuverability, defensive capabilities, and potential combat methods, but more importantly, they were like a key, opening a door for him to peek into the deeper potential of this 'Order Origin body.' His understanding of his own power and his use of the authority of 'Order' had both stepped onto a brand-new level because of this.

'It looks like the previous adaptation training outline needs a comprehensive upgrade and revision.' Excellence clenched his fist, feeling the energy flow within him becoming more and more responsive, and the Wings of Light behind him that could be called out at any time and seemed to possess infinite possibilities. His eyes became brighter and more full of expectation than ever before. 'I need to add "Basic Flight and Aerial Maneuvering," "Light Wing Morphological Changes and Applications," "Aerial Combat Adaptation," "Energy-Spatial Collaborative Operations"... so many new subjects.'

'In your dreams!' Su Mu immediately poured cold water on him, hands on hips and eyes glaring. 'You want to fly before you can even walk steadily? Get your ground control to be "flawless" and "harmless" first! Also, until you can ensure one hundred percent that you can retract and deploy these flashy wings at will, without scaring the kids in the base or accidentally burning a hole in the corridor ceiling or the neighbor's door, keep them tucked away on your back! Deployment outside designated training areas is prohibited without dual approval from Evelyn and me! That's an Order!'

'Oh...' Excellence's shoulders slumped, and the heroic ambition that had just risen instantly wilted by half.

Evelyn, however, was already immersed in new research and work plans, her eyes shining as she planned to herself: 'Ground control intensive training, basic flight principles and practice, advanced energy coordination exercises, tactical application simulations, spatial characteristic tests, interaction experiments with "The Weave," long-term stability monitoring... right, also need to evaluate the purification efficiency of the residual chaotic energy from "World Devourer"... data, I need massive amounts of data...'

Outside the window, the simulated sky of the "Homeland" base had already darkened, and star-like lights lit up one by one on the massive structure, outlining the warm silhouette of a civilization's habitat.

Inside the sturdy training room, the shock, discussion, planning, and new challenges regarding the "wings of order" had only just begun.

Excellence's new body, fused with the "Order Origin," always seemed to reveal deeper and more incredible "surprises" just when people thought they had seen its full picture. And behind every "surprise" often meant broader capability boundaries, heavier responsibilities, and... the inevitably stronger and more dangerous enemies that would be drawn by this increasingly dazzling light.

But at this moment, Excellence, who had just experienced the thrilling activation process, only wanted to get familiar with this pair of new "wings" that seemed born for him, to feel that freedom and power of walking with the wind (though there was none) and dancing with the light. At the same time, he also had to seriously think about how to convince the iron-faced Instructor Su Mu to occasionally grant permission, after completing necessary training and ensuring safety, to let these light wings out for some "fresh air," even if it was just a low-altitude stroll in a designated, reinforced training ground.

Well, the road is long and difficult, but the future is promising.

Especially since from now on, the sky is no longer the limit.

This feeling is really not bad.