Critical Return System: I Am Pampering Beautiful Maidens

Decided!

Li An picked up the items and walked toward the martial arts room, passing through the kitchen and arriving at the courtyard, where several artificial plants were arranged.

There was also a hallway leading to the bathroom and, in front of him, a door.

Upon opening it, he saw a room filled with various equipment: a strength meter, a device for measuring the speed of sweeps, and a scarecrow for honing skills.

At the center, there was a black meditation mat, several hanging sheets—used for wiping away post-training sweat—and incense to calm the mind.

At the back, a sink with an automatic faucet stood beneath a mirror.

After placing the items on the mat, Li An grabbed a sheet and walked to the back of the room. He turned on the faucet and began washing the blood off his cheeks, which still ached.

But he did not regret hitting himself.

He continued rinsing his face and, as he raised his head, locked eyes with his reflection in the mirror: a young man with straight black hair that softly fell over his eyebrows, and eyes of the same color.

His face bore the mark of a slap, leaving an ugly scar on his cheek.

"This is to remind me never to be a coward again."

He murmured to himself and returned to the mat. Sitting cross-legged, he picked up the True Sea Dragon Kidney Nutrient Potion, which contained several evenly sized pieces of meat.

He took one piece and placed it in his mouth.

A delicious flavor spread across his tongue, and he felt the urge to swallow immediately, but he resisted.

First, he had to prepare his mental state for the pain that was about to come.

. . .

After a few minutes, he finally adjusted his mind to the highest level of concentration and swallowed the piece of meat. As it traveled down his throat, it began dissolving, releasing a blue liquid inside his body.

Already prepared for this, Li An closed his eyes, reversed the descent of this energy using his vitality, and directed it toward his eyes. A single mistake could leave him blind.

But he was focused.

He gathered the energy at that point and continued eating more meat.

By the tenth portion, he felt as if his eyes were about to explode. This was the beginning of the crucial stage.

To open the first gate, Li An chose the eyes—one of the most fragile parts of the human body.

There were two reasons for this choice: first, if he failed, at worst, he would be blind; second, among all the gates, the eyes were among the most powerful.

Imagine breaking the limits of vision and controlling it with vitality, seeing farther, and slowing down enemy movements using one's life energy.

For these reasons, he decided to take the risk.

"I will succeed!"

Li An shouted with determination and began trying to break through the barrier of sight. In the illustration he had seen, each strike against the barrier made his mind tremble.

His eyes felt like they were about to burst out of his face—an agonizing pain—but Li An did not stop. He pressed on.

"Break, dammit!"

He cursed and struck harder, trying to shatter the invisible obstacle. The pressure nearly caused his mind to collapse, trembling like an earthquake.

Then, his eyes were ejected from their sockets, falling to the ground.

If anyone had looked at Li An at that moment, they would have been terrified by the sight of his face with two empty holes.

"Did I fail?"

He wondered, but he did not panic. He felt that all was not lost. If he could break the barrier, his eyes would return.

So, he struck harder.

"Ohhh?"

At that moment, Li An realized something. A wicked smile appeared on his face.

"Hit it! Hit it!"

He struck with even more force... stronger each time. Like a giant punching a wall, generating a large-scale earthquake.

With the impact, he had the impression of seeing cracks forming. His smile widened even more.

In a swift motion, he grabbed the potion and downed it all at once, chewing several pieces of meat.

The food transformed into blue liquid and was sent directly to his eyes.

Boom!

Without hesitation, Li An used this energy to strike the invisible barrier, causing a devastating impact. The barrier shattered into countless fragments.

At that instant, he felt something strange.

A part of him had detached.

He could no longer feel his ability to see. That sense had completely disappeared.

"Focus! Now is the most important part!"

He thought, and in the next moment, he did not try to see—but to visualize a gate.

In his consciousness, eight golden gates appeared, and one of them was open.

Seeing this scene, Li An was left speechless.

He pondered how strange the world was and how few people knew these secrets.

Who would imagine that we are born with eight gates in our consciousness?

"Humans are a mystery! Even the strongest may not know half of what exists within us. At the same time, it's fascinating... What would the world be like if everyone was born without limitations?"

He imagined this chaotic scenario and then recalled a bald man in a white cape who had no limits.

"All humans with infinite strength? That would be a disaster."

A true cataclysm.

That's why Li An deduced that humans were born with limitations.

After this reflection, he walked with his soul—which closely resembled his real form but lacked arms and legs—and crossed the open gate.

In the next moment, he returned to reality.

He felt his vision return, but it was different.

Now, he had complete control over it.

And at the same time, an influx of information appeared in his mind.

Eyes of the Half-True Sea Dragon…

After fusing and losing his human eyes due to the energy of a True Sea Dragon, his eyes had undergone a mutation…

Innate Ability of the Dragon Clan: Water Control.

Innate Ability of the Human Clan: Greater Comprehension.