I Hate Systems
chapter-359

"Because I don't wish to die." The Human Martial Spirit replied curtly.

"What do you mean by that?" Compass Carburettor frowned.

"Unlike the rest of the Martial Spirits, we Divine Martial Spirits are connected to this Realm. So, we can sense that you're not part of this world." It said, "When you leave this world, I'll be destroyed as a result."

"What if I device a method to ensure you'll be my Martial Spirit permanently?" Compass Carburettor asked in response.

"I still won't, because that would mean leaving my Realm." It shook its head, "A Divine Martial Spirit only chooses a cultivator when it feels the stability of the Realm is at stake."

"I see," Compass Carburettor nodded, not caring about it much beyond that as he looked further, noticing the many Earth Martial Spirits. He looked at them one after another, wondering which was the most suitable for him.

'It should be capable of destroying all traces of a System in both reality and the mind.' He thought. That was his goal all along.

After all, Dota's System Punishment, even though it was capable of killing Systems, wasn't perfect. It was only able to destroy them.

Compass Carburettor wanted to kill the Systems without destroying their abilities. And to do that, System Punishment wasn't suitable.

Moreover, there was a limit to the number of times he could use System Punishment before his body began to burn up, as if he too was suffering from its effects. So, in cases like in the Apocalypse World where a bunch of Systems showed up to kill him, it wasn't enough.

Besides, he also wanted to cure the problems in Stencil's mind. So, that too should be an option in the Martial Spirit he was looking for.

'Either an Earth or a Heaven Martial Spirit should have the properties I am looking for.' Thinking as such, Compass Carburettor patiently looked through them, surprised at the vast array of Martial Spirits that existed.

Unfortunately, he couldn't find any suitable Earth Martial Spirit among the ones that expressed willingness to become his Martial Spirit. There was still many swirling around beyond, but they hadn't expressed any interest in him.

Compass Carburettor then gazed at the Earth Divine Martial Spirit, noticing that it resembled a blob of lightning.

Finally, sighing a bit dispiritedly, he began to look through the Heaven Martial Spirits scattered about.

Fire Sword, Thunder Gauntlet, Lightning Squirrel, etc. There were all sorts of Heaven Martial Spirits around, but the one he wanted wasn't there.

And at the end, he gazed at the Heaven Divine Martial Spirit that was calmly gazing at him. It was a Fire Dragon.

"Wait, what's that?" He suddenly frowned, noticing a tiny figure situated behind the Heaven Divine Martial Spirit, flying through the space before arriving near it.

The Heaven Divine Martial Spirit frowned at his actions, "What are you doing?"

"There is something behind you." Compass Carburettor replied when he noticed the Fire Dragon's puzzled expression.

It turned around and gazed at the place he pointed at but still failed to spot anything.

Stretching his hand, Compass Carburettor gently grabbed hold of the creature hiding behind the Fire Dragon, "I was talking about this."

"What the heck? Something was attached to me all along?" The Fire Dragon was shocked, only now noticing the creature that Compass Carburettor had picked up.

It was a frog, lacking the blisters one usually had, sporting a sheen of yellow and blue. It was only palm-sized, tiny in comparison to the Fire Dragon. But, that wasn't the actual reason it had remained hidden all along, not after staying stuck to a Heaven Divine Martial Spirit.

Compass Carburettor gazed at the frog as its name slowly resounded in his mind, "Mind Frog."

The name was pretty simple, but upon gazing at it, Compass Carburettor grinned in joy, jubilant, "I was searching for you all along, cutie!"

Based on the presence it exuded, the Mind Frog was perfect for him. Not only was it a Heaven Martial Spirit, but its powers also fell in the category of the mind, exactly what he had been looking for.

As to whether or not it was capable of killing Systems, that'll depend on the material he fuses with after reaching the Martial Origin Stage.

He then gazed at the Fire Dragon, "I have a favour to ask of you. Can you do it?"

"What do you need?" The Fire Dragon asked curtly, "You're the first human to ever make me wish to become your Martial Spirit. So, I'll at least hear you."

"I'll send my daughter here next. Can you support her by choosing a Martial Spirit for her?" Compass Carburettor asked.

"I don't mind." The Fire Dragon said, "Is she in a state where she's unable to think?"

"Yes, she was attacked by a Syst…" Compass Carburettor spoke, surprised that there was no punishment as he continued, "She was attacked by a System and hasn't gained consciousness after that. Her mind is fragile."

"A System…" The Fire Dragon frowned, feeling helpless in the end, "We've lost a fair share of our Martial Spirits because of them."

Upon seeing Compass Carburettor's confusion, it spoke, "The Species and number of Martial Spirits have remained fixed since the creation of the Gaider Realm and the other Realms connected to it. There are more than one Martial Spirit of the same species. But, whenever a System Host obtains a Martial Spirit, during the course of their journey, all the Martial Spirits of the same species are either killed or devoured by them."

"Due to that, the number of Martial Spirits has been decreasing here." It sighed, "Normally, when a cultivator dies or even if his Martial Spirit dies in reality, it'll just return here. It wouldn't die. But due to the intervention of the Systems, the deaths of Martial Spirits are piling up."

As the Fire Dragon spoke, its eyes suddenly lit up, looking at Compass Carburettor with a new light, "I see, I now understand why I'm so inclined to become your Martial Spirit. It's because you oppose them. Have you already killed some of them before?"

"A dozen in the past two years." Compass Carburettor nodded, watching the Fire Dragon stare at him, slack-jawed.