As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

Recalling the pain of transforming into an Orphnoch, a terrible guess began to grow wildly in his mind, sending chills down his spine: Orphnoch transformation itself was a way of overdrawing one's lifespan.

Could it be that this power that allows him to contend with powerful enemies is not free, and that every time he transforms into an Orphnoch, he is risking his life?

Lin Chen clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white, the lifespan numbers on the panel stinging his eyes. He raised his hand to his chest, feeling the restless tiger-type factors within him, and the panic in his heart was gradually replaced by reason.

We need to confirm this further if that's the case.

Thirteen years is hardly enough for him to find his way home; if every transformation comes at such a price...

I'm afraid he'll turn to ashes before Decade even arrives.

Suppressing his surging panic, Lin Chen urgently called out to the system in his mind: "System, is there a way to increase lifespan?"

He stared intently at the pale blue panel in front of him, his fingertips trembling slightly from the pressure. He longed for a clear answer, even if it required a great deal of effort, rather than waiting to die.

But there was no familiar mechanical voice in his mind, and no new options popped up on the system panel. Only the cursor blinked at the bottom of the panel for a moment, and then a line of cold white text slowly appeared, as if it were engraved on the panel, clear and glaring: [Evolving life forms can extend lifespan].

There are redundant explanations, no specific methods, only this vague hint.

He asked a few more questions, but the system didn't respond. It must be a mindless, inanimate object, which relieved Lin Chen. He would have been quite uneasy if the system had sentience.

Looking at the 20 evolution points on the panel, those were from killing that leopard-type Orpheus last night. Every 10 points increases an attribute by one.

Lin Chen decided to add points first and see. However, seeing a plus sign on the panel for both human form and Orphnoch form made him hesitate about which one to add. He asked the system, but it didn't respond.

The system says that when the body's three attributes reach 100, it can evolve into a new form. I am currently in the initial form of the Tiger Orphnoch, and I will continue to evolve into my complete form. At that time, the Orphnoch form should gain even more attributes, so there's no rush.

He could try allocating attribute points to his human form first. Furthermore, enhancing his human form's attributes would allow him to better handle crises. He then allocated all 20 of his evolution points to his human form's physique. A warm current washed over him, and Lin Chen felt a surge of comfort, almost letting out a groan, but he quickly suppressed it.

Points added.

Constitution 18/83 (Human Form/Orphnoch Form): Physical Strength, Physical Defense, Wound Recovery Speed

Agility 19/83 (Human Form/Orphnoch Form): Movement Speed, Neural Reaction, and Dexterity

Spirit 21/58 (Human Form/Orphnoch Form): Sensory Range, Body Control, Mental Defense

Note: The average human being is 5

*The three attributes complement each other; a weakness in any attribute will limit overall strength. Maxing out all three attributes unlocks the conditions for form evolution.

Lifespan: 17 years

Evolution Points: 4

Lin Chen stared wide-eyed at the system panel.

My humanoid physique increased by 2 points, and my Orphnoch form was also enhanced. But that's not the most important thing; my lifespan increased from 13 years to 17 years.

"What's wrong with the system?"

The system still didn't reply. However, Lin Chen did recall a very interesting post from his previous life.

The post asked whether it was possible to achieve immortality if one's physical abilities were 100 times those of an average person.

Some people answered yes, some answered no, but a professional medical student gave a reliable answer.

Physical fitness x100 only gives you:

Less prone to injury, less prone to illness, and recovers faster

However, it does not change the biological upper limit of cell division.

You will still grow old, just a little more robust.

Oxidative damage and gene mutations continue to accumulate.

As long as you are breathing and metabolizing.

Free radicals and DNA replication errors will be continuously generated in the body.

A 100-fold increase in physical strength simply means a faster cleansing speed.

It's not that it doesn't produce anything at all.

Given enough time, it will eventually accumulate until it collapses.

Organs age, they are not immune to decay.

Heart, brain, blood vessels, nerves...

They will deteriorate over time.

100 times better physical condition = organs are more durable, but not indestructible.

How long can they live?

Rough estimate:

Ordinary person: ≈80 years 100 times repair + damage resistance:

They are most likely a few hundred years old, at most a thousand or two thousand years old.

While immortality is impossible, it can break the normal lifespan limit for humans. And isn't that exactly what I am now? My current human form is almost four times the length of an ordinary person. It's not surprising at all that my physical enhancement has increased my lifespan.

At this point, Lin Chen could finally relax a little. As long as he continued to kill monsters and obtain evolution points, further increasing his physique, his lifespan would also continue to increase.

Chapter 9 Patrol Mission

Night fell like an ink-soaked velvet cloth, heavily covering the Smart Brain Academy. The once bustling playground was deserted, the windows of the teaching buildings were pitch black, and only the streetlights cast dim yellow halos along the roads, distorting the shadows of the trees. The wind rustled through the treetops, making the entire campus even more tranquil, yet harboring an inexplicable eeriness.

Lin Chen leaned against the wall of the dormitory building, a cold five-cent coin between his fingers, repeatedly rubbing its edge. In the afternoon, a member of the disciplinary team knocked on his door, tossing down the order for the night patrol, his tone filled with undisguised contempt, as if he believed that this newly recruited wildling was nothing more than a tool to be used.

The mission is simple: from 9 PM to midnight, patrol the area bordering the teaching area on the west side of the campus and the back mountain, searching for any Orphnochs who have broken the rules and transformed in secret, and also tracking down Faiz. Once a target is spotted, either subdue them on the spot or immediately report to Kurosawa and Lucky Clover; no unauthorized actions are permitted.

This was his first mission after being recruited, and also the first test he received from Clover and Kurosawa. Lin Chen knew that his every move was probably being watched in the shadows, and if he showed the slightest resistance or slackness, he would only face more severe suppression, or even be treated as an out-of-control sample.

Lin Chen tucked the five-cent coin inside his collar and straightened his security uniform. He didn't move immediately, but stood in the shadows, closed his eyes, and slowly extended his mental perception.

A pale blue ripple of perception spread silently from him, covering a large area around the dormitory building. The scent of grass and trees in the night breeze, the damp smell of the sewers in the distance, and even the faint sound of a few mice scurrying around in the corner were all clearly imprinted in his mind.

More importantly, he could sense the scattered fluctuations of Orphic factors floating in the air. Most of them were weak and restrained, and they were the low-level Orphic Enoch hidden in the campus. At this moment, they were all staying in their residences and dared not show themselves easily.

The aura of the lucky four-leaf clover is solid and domineering, coiled in the four corners of the campus like four invisible fortresses, monitoring the entire academy's movements. Meanwhile, the aura of Kurosawa, hidden in the disciplinary committee's office building, is cold and sharp, like a lurking venomous snake, ready to deliver a fatal blow at any moment.

After confirming that there were no suspicious observers around, Lin Chen began to walk, his figure blending into the night as he headed towards the western teaching area. He walked very lightly, the advantage of his agility was fully displayed at this moment, and he made almost no sound as he stepped on the fallen leaves. When passing streetlights, he would deliberately walk along the shadows, keeping his figure hidden at the boundary between light and darkness.

The western teaching area, housing the lower grades, was now completely empty. The classroom doors were locked, and a thin layer of dust covered the windows, making them appear hazy under the streetlights. Lin Chen walked through each classroom, his senses remaining highly alert, not missing a single unusual fluctuation of the Orpheus factor.

Occasionally, he would encounter one or two security guards on patrol duty. When they saw Lin Chen, they would either ignore him or nod in acknowledgment. When he first arrived, a kind security guard asked him why he wasn't looking for a better job at such a young age. Lin Chen just smiled and made up an excuse.

The hours of heightened vigilance had left him somewhat exhausted. The spot on his back where the Black Swamp Energy Whip had struck him still throbbed with pain, occasionally tingling with numbness. He took out the water he carried with him, took a sip, and the cool liquid slid down his throat, slightly relieving his fatigue.

The patrol time passed slowly, the night grew deeper, and the temperature on campus dropped. The cold wind blew against our faces, carrying a biting chill.

Lin Chen shrank back, pulled his collar up, and continued patrolling back and forth between the teaching area and the fence. He deliberately slowed his pace, partly to carefully search for targets, and partly to secretly observe the campus's defenses.

As midnight approached, and the patrol was nearing its end, Lin Chen breathed a slight sigh of relief. In the past few hours, aside from some faint fluctuations in low-level Orphic factors, he hadn't detected any unruly Orphic Enoch, nor had he sensed Faiz's presence. Perhaps tonight would just be a peaceful night.

Just as he was about to turn around and return to the dormitory building, an extremely faint disturbance suddenly entered his perception range.

It wasn't just the fluctuation of the Orpheus factor; there was also an extremely subtle sound of energy collision, mixed with a few suppressed growls, coming from the left, no more than a hundred meters away. The sound was very faint; an ordinary person would not have been able to detect it at all. However, Lin Chen's mental attributes far surpassed those of ordinary people, and his perception was extremely sharp. Even through layers of trees, he could clearly hear it.

Moreover, the energy fluctuation contained a familiar aura belonging to the Orphnoch, as well as another unfamiliar energy fluctuation with a faint light attribute. The two were intertwined, appearing extremely chaotic.

Lin Chen's body tensed instantly, a cold glint flashing in his amber pupils in the night. All his fatigue vanished in an instant, and his senses were once again heightened, locked onto the direction from which the strange movement was coming.

He didn't move immediately, but instead retreated back into the shadows of the fence, holding his breath and carefully discerning the unusual movement. The growls grew clearer, and the sounds of colliding energy became more frequent, clearly indicating that two entities were locked in combat.

One of them must be an Orphnoch, while the other, with its energy fluctuations of light, could it be... Faiz?

Lin Chen's expression froze. He hadn't expected to encounter such a situation on his first patrol mission. Should he immediately report to Kurosawa as instructed, or sneak over and investigate?

Thoughts raced through his mind, but ultimately, he suppressed the urge to report. Faiz was a crucial part of his plan, and he needed to personally verify Faiz's strength and understand his situation. Reporting rashly would only allow Clover and Kurosawa to gain early access to Faiz's whereabouts, disrupting his plans.

Moreover, the aura of the Orphnoch was very weak, clearly indicating it was only a low-level species, and the energy fluctuations of the light attribute were equally weak, seemingly not powerful at all. Perhaps this was an excellent opportunity to both observe Faiz and test the true strength of the Faiz in this world.

Lin Chen moved slowly, his figure like a cheetah, silently blending into the dense forest, quietly approaching the direction from which the strange movement came.

The night grew darker, and the forest was pitch black, with only occasional slivers of moonlight filtering through the leaves. The suppressed growls and sounds of clashing energy grew closer, and Lin Chen's senses sharpened, allowing him to clearly perceive that the two figures locked in combat ahead had reached a stalemate.

Chapter 10 Faiz

The forest behind the mountain is lush and verdant, with towering trees intertwined to form a natural barrier that completely blocks out the moonlight. Only occasionally, a few sparse spots of light filter through the gaps in the leaves and fall onto the thick layer of fallen leaves, disappearing in an instant.

Lin Chen crouched low, his back taut like a bow, his feet crunching on the soft fallen leaves, silently approaching the source of the sound.

As a high-level tiger-type Orphnoch, his superhuman physical abilities allowed him to control his body to the extreme. With each step, he first dissipated the force, his toes precisely avoiding the dry branches and crisp fallen leaves. His movements were as light as a cheetah stalking at night, covering dozens of meters in the blink of an eye.

Throughout the entire process, they made almost no sound that could be detected, not even the chirping of insects in the grass.

The further they went, the clearer the chaotic energy fluctuations became. The Orphnoch's growl carried a hint of anxiety and ferocity, while the other energy fluctuations, which were of the light attribute, appeared somewhat disordered.

Lin Chen paused, then darted behind a thick tree that would take two people to encircle. Holding his breath, he peeked out half his head, his sharp gaze piercing through the layers of shadows and landing precisely on the clearing in the woods ahead.

It was a small clearing surrounded by trees, no more than a dozen square meters in size, which had already been ravaged into a mess. The fallen leaves on the ground were trampled into pieces, mixed with the churned wet mud, and there were claw marks and footprints of varying depths everywhere. There were also several saplings that had been knocked in half, with fresh sap still sticking out of the broken ends. It was clear that the fight here had been going on for quite some time.

On the open ground, two figures were wrestling and fighting fiercely. But the moment Lin Chen, who was hiding in the shadows, saw the scene, he couldn't help but twitch his lips and almost burst out laughing.

One of the figures was a cat-like Orphnoch. It was slightly shorter than an average human, covered in short, grayish-black fur, with the fur on its back slightly bristling. Its narrow, vertical pupils gleamed with an eerie green light in the thick darkness, and three-inch-long, jet-black claws extended from its fingertips, gleaming with a cold, sharp light. A slender tail was taut behind it, constantly swaying from side to side, suggesting extreme agility.

However, this cat-like Orphnoch's movements were ridiculously clumsy. Despite being a natural feline predator, its claw strikes, though cunning in angle, were weak and powerless, completely lacking the explosive force an Orphnoch should possess.

Although it was able to dodge with its agility, it was always a beat too slow and its anticipation couldn't keep up with its movements. Several times it could have completely dodged the attack, but it still crashed into it. Several tufts of short hair on its body had been pulled out, revealing faint scars on the skin underneath. It was clear that it had suffered a lot in the entanglement.

The low growl from its throat sounded fierce, but upon closer listening, it carried an unconcealed panic and a show of bravado. Even its sharp teeth were trembling slightly, suggesting it was a novice that had only recently awakened and whose body had not yet adapted.

The other opponent wore a suit of silver-black armor, the black armor covering his entire body with clean, cold lines. Bright red photon veins meandered across his skin, like burning veins, gleaming faintly in the shadows. Silver-white metal accents adorned his shoulder armor, breastplate, and limb joints, creating a sharp contrast with the jet-black background.

Its opponent stood on the other side of the open space, his silver-black armor gleaming with a cold metallic sheen in the darkness. The matte black armor covered his entire body, its lines sharp and hard, exuding a strong mechanical feel. Bright red photon veins meandered across his skin, like burning crimson veins, shimmering faintly yet strikingly in the night.

The shoulder armor, chest armor, and limb joints are adorned with bright silver metallic armor plates, creating a sharp contrast against the jet-black background. The iconic Φ-shaped antenna atop the head is strikingly bright red, and the large single compound eye in the center emits a calm yet slightly flickering golden light. The entire suit of armor has a cold and austere design; even just standing there, it exudes an aura of unapproachability.

It was Kamen Rider Faiz.

Faiz, who should have been a formidable fighter, was moving even more clumsily than the cat-like Orphnoch opposite him. His punches were stiff like a puppet's, completely oblivious to the armor's weight distribution, each punch accompanied by unnecessary swaying, his center of gravity wobbling.

His kicking angles were even more bizarre. Despite the Faiz armor's lightweight design being ideal for agile leg techniques, he stumbled and staggered even when lifting his leg, his movements being distorted several times due to the armor's joint restrictions. Even his most basic blocking was incredibly clumsy; he could only use his arms to block attacks without utilizing the structure of his chest and shoulder armor to deflect the force.

Several times he could have easily dodged the attacks of the cat-shaped Orphnoch, but he was always a beat too slow, and the claws grazed his armor, making a piercing metallic scraping sound and sending sparks flying across the black armor.

Lin Chen leaned against the tree trunk, watching the fight with great interest. He had only one thought in his mind: what a bunch of chickens fighting each other. As he watched, he also remembered how he had fought blindly based on instinct when he first awakened.

The cat-shaped Orphnoch hissed and lunged at Faiz again, its claws aimed straight for his chest. Faiz hurriedly raised his hand to block, the armor clashing with the claws with a crisp clang. Faiz was jolted back, stumbling and nearly falling. The cat-shaped Orphnoch seized the opportunity, its tail sweeping fiercely towards Faiz's ankle. Unable to dodge in time, Faiz was struck and fell to one knee, looking utterly disheveled.