Chapter 5: Fundamentals of Memory Armament "Class begins."
The female instructor stepped into the room, briskly closing the door behind her. With one hand, she pulled down the projection screen.
"Starting today, we begin system-based instruction. You are not weapons. You are Wielders . And to wield a Memory Armament, you must first understand it."
She wrote four bold characters on the whiteboard: Memory is Armament. "Currently, the system recognizes three key components of a Memory Armament: Memory Source , Emotional Anchor , and Manifestation Path ."
"A Memory Armament doesn't appear out of thin air—it must come from a clear, vivid memory fragment within you. But remembering isn't enough. You have to carry it— and survive with it ."
Many students in the class began taking notes.
Nie Shi didn't. He just listened.
His black spear leaned quietly against the wall by his desk, silent and unreadable as ever.
"Let me ask you something," the instructor said, scanning the class.
"If someone has no memory—can they form a Memory Armament?"
The room went still. Then Lu Jingxing raised his hand.
"Impossible. You have to have something to project."
The instructor nodded. "Correct. You need at least a sense of I am someone . Without self-recognition, the system won't allow a Binding."
Nie Shi shifted his fingers slightly.
He knew that line was meant for him.
"Next question," she continued.
"What is an Emotional Anchor?"
The bold, striking girl by the window raised her hand.
"It's the emotion triggered by the memory. Like anger, fear, regret, or belief."
"Exactly," the instructor nodded.
"If you just remember something, you can't generate a weapon.
But if you feel it—you just might."
"And the final question: What is the Manifestation Path?"
This time, the quiet girl slowly raised her hand.
Her voice was so soft it was barely audible.
"It's… the way the memory is… projected into reality…"
"Very good," the instructor said.
"Your path can be language, gesture, symbols, music—even stillness."
She tapped her screen, switching to the next slide.
"Next: we begin 'Basic Armament Perception Training.'"
The system activated. In front of each desk, a faintly glowing circle of light appeared—a personal sync interface .
"Your task is simple: close your eyes and try to perceive the internal state of your Armament."
"Nie Shi," she called suddenly.
"You're a special case. Your Armament has no recorded source. We'd like to know—does it respond to you?"
Nie Shi nodded and reached out to touch the black spear.
A familiar coolness met his fingers.
He closed his eyes.
Nothing appeared at first. Just silence.
But just as he was about to give up— Thunk. A distant sound. Like someone knocking from deep underground.
He focused.
Slowly, a gray forest emerged in his mind. Dense, lifeless trees. Dry branches.
And in front of it all—stood the black spear.
It wasn't lying down. It was upright.
Like a gate , blocking the path forward.
"…Who are you?" Nie Shi asked.
No reply.
But the air grew cold, and warning tones echoed around him. [Abnormal Binding Attempt Detected]
[User Clearance Insufficient]
[Connection Terminating…] His eyes flew open.
The circle shattered. The spear at his side trembled faintly.
"Status?" the instructor asked as she walked over.
"…I saw a gate," Nie Shi said.
"A gate?"
"Like… the gate to a memory," he murmured.
The instructor didn't press further. She just nodded.
"Then we'll add a bonus lesson today—'How Memory Armaments Grow.'"
She looked around the room.
"You all need to understand how your weapons get stronger."
She wrote four terms on the board: Emotional Deepening
Memory Completion
Pathway Expansion
Threshold Evolution "First: Emotional Deepening .
Your Armament stabilizes based on your emotional anchor. If a memory keeps influencing you, your bond strengthens—and so does the weapon."
"For example, say a student's Armament comes from a memory of being trapped in a fire as a child. Initially, it manifests as a basic shield. But after experiencing another explosion later in life, the memory evolves, the emotion intensifies—so the shield transforms into a shock-absorbing blast core."
Someone muttered, "Whoa."
"Second: Memory Completion .
Many Armaments are based on incomplete memories—or things you haven't fully remembered yet. As those fragments return, or are actively uncovered, your weapon will unlock new forms."
"Third: Pathway Expansion .
Most of you use words, gestures, or symbols to trigger your Armament. With practice, you can shorten the process—until it becomes thought-triggered .
Like going from yelling 'ignite' to simply thinking fire ."
Lu Jingxing asked, "And the last one? Threshold something?"
" Threshold Evolution ," the instructor said, her eyes darkening.
"The most dangerous—and the most powerful."
"When you hit extreme emotional states—rage, grief, madness—the system might temporarily unlock higher-level Armament states."
"But the cost—could be more than you can handle."
The class went quiet.
The instructor looked around, then said:
"So don't just chase power.
Chase stability ."
She looked at Nie Shi, and added meaningfully:
"Especially those of you… who don't even know who you are."  The bell rang.
Just as she was about to leave, the system interface blinked red: [System Sync Delay Detected]
[Anomalous Armament Pathway Fluctuation]
[Scheduled Maintenance Tonight] Everyone stared at the screen.
Xie Ping muttered, "Again? Didn't last time make the bugs worse?"
Su Xu smirked. "Maybe the system's just scared of you. You nearly fed it your weapon last time."
Xie Ping laughed. "Wasn't on purpose!"
The quiet girl said nothing. She just quietly packed her notebook.
Nie Shi stared at the warning.
He didn't think it was just sync delay.
He didn't know why, but one line from his dream came back to him: "It's not the weapon losing control… it's you who are falling apart."