Chapter XIII Rewards

[Tip: The "Snow School (Hard)" instance has officially ended. You have ultimately achieved a "Perfect" rating. You obtained the special item "Snow Umbrella", 6,400 Credits, and a massive amount of Contribution Points.]

[Tip: During the official launch period, the Singularity Platform supports Credit trading functions, but trading a large amount of Credits in a short period will incur a tax of 0.5 per thousand deducted by the platform.]

[Tip: Your character level has increased to Level 13. You have gained one Core Attribute and one Vital Attribute.]

[Tip: Because "Snow School" is a Tier 2 instance and you achieved a "Perfect" rating on the "Hard" difficulty, you will receive a random reward.]

There's even a random reward?

The unexpected discovery from the instance settlement slightly diluted the sense of lingering trance in Ember's heart. Then, he saw a roulette wheel appear before his eyes, labeled with categories such as Equipment, Skills, Coupons, Items, and Sundries. Needless to say, the higher the value, the smaller the area; the sundries section alone took up half of it. When Ember naturally landed on the sundries section and prepared to complain about this game's habitual stinginess, he discovered that not everything in the sundries section was junk.

"What the hell, I can actually roll a vehicle?"

Ember's eyes lit up. Although the width of the vehicle section was not even as wide as the noodles he had for breakfast, it was enough to pique his interest. Moreover, besides the vehicle, Ember also spotted a mysterious reward even "narrower" than the vehicle, which aroused his deep curiosity. No matter how mysterious a piece of "sundry" could be, to what extent could it go? As for the other options, they were all daily necessities or decorative items for homes and shops—things Ember truly looked down upon were actually very few.

"My standards aren't too high, just don't give me junk!"

Filled with anticipation, Ember confirmed the start of the random draw, and in the end, he still got some junk—to be precise, something related to junk: [Smart Recycling Trash Can]. Throwing certain items with recycling value into it could yield a tiny amount of Credits or related materials.

"Tch, seems alright, still better than curtains, especially pink ones."

Ember decisively confirmed the delivery location as his own shop, completed the settlement process, and reappeared in the school ruins.

Looking at the collapsed building, a sense of loss welled up in his heart once again. If possible, he really wanted to verify whether his guess was correct. Unfortunately, the Snow School instance was currently on cooldown; wanting to enter would have to wait until tomorrow, and he must obtain an entry item, otherwise there was a high probability of dying from spatial shearing.

"If there's a chance, I'll come back and take a look."

Shaking his head with a sigh, he always felt that the "Perfect" rating he obtained wasn't quite so perfect. Furthermore, Nina's performance didn't seem like that of an ordinary vengeful spirit; not only was she clearly aware of changes in the outside world, but her intelligence was frighteningly high, comparable to the important entities he had seen before, making it hard to believe she was just an ordinary instance boss.

"Yo! You're pretty fast, almost as good as those professional investigators! Get in the car, don't just stand there."

Clearing the Snow School instance took only about ten minutes in total. The driver had just started to feel hazy with sleep when he noticed Ember's return, and could only stretch while greeting Ember to get into the car.

"How is it? What were the spoils? I heard those investigators chatting before, and Snow School is no simple place—the three major organizations lost several people in there! Looking at your complexion, it doesn't look too good, I suppose you took a tumble... That's to be expected. After all, it's your first mission and you ran into such a tricky target; being able to come back alive is already pretty good. Oh, almost forgot, you Hearth Seeds have resurrection abilities, making it hard to die even if you want to. How enviable!"

Seeing that Ember's gaze was somewhat vacant, the driver subconsciously assumed his first instance experience had not gone smoothly. Recalling that both of them were ordinary people, yet he himself lacked the blessing of Hearth, a hint of jealousy inevitably crept into his words.

"Did those investigators mention any specific details about Snow School?" Ember suddenly realized this driver was quite suited to being an informant.

"Not really. They all signed confidentiality agreements, and even when chatting casually, they avoid me, the driver. However, I did accidentally catch sight of how those investigators died a few times!"

Seeing Ember cast an astonished look, the driver became a bit smug: "Let me tell you quietly, those people died of headshots without exception. That type of death is very typical, occurring only when the brain experiences severe shock. In that state, sanity doesn't just instantly drop to zero—it breaks through the minimum threshold all at once, directly pronouncing death without even needing a sudden-death judgment."

The driver's words caused a slight stir in Ember's heart. Throughout the entire game process, eerie segments involving willpower checks were extremely few. Since even he could withstand the sanity shock, there was no reason those investigators would capsize because of it. Therefore, the only possibility was that they saw something Ember hadn't, and this thing was very likely located in the first-floor elevator. This result both made Ember deeply grateful and increasingly curious: just how terrifying of an entity was hidden in there?

"Looks like I'll have to find a way to get another entry item. In addition, the allocation of core attributes needs to be somewhat focused. Logically speaking, as long as willpower is high enough, one can resist sanity damage, though I wonder how much willpower is required? At worst, I'll just try a few more times. Anyway, I can't die—I'm a player, who am I afraid of?"

Carrying the deep-in-thought Ember, the off-road vehicle sped all the way back to the safe zone. Coincidentally, as soon as he got out of the car, he saw Qiu Yinong also returning from the wilderness, though her expression was even more complicated than Ember's, instantly improving his mood quite a bit.

"If there's anything unhappy, feel free to share it and make me happy. Did the mission fail?"

Qiu Yinong rolled her eyes at Ember irritably: "No, this lady's martial prowess is unmatched; even the hard difficulty of a Tier 2 instance can be bulldozed through. It's just that the final random reward is a bit... hard to describe!"

"Sundries?"

"Yeah!"

"Then it's the same as me. I drew a trash can; surely you can't be worse off than me?" Seeing Qiu Yinong looking somewhat sullen, Ember coaxed her with an amused expression.

"It's not worse than you. Actually, no matter what kind of sundries you drew, it's impossible to be worse than yours!"

"Huh?" Ember raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. "Listening to you, did you get a mysterious reward? Isn't that a great thing? Why so gloomy?"

"If the so-called mysterious reward is just an automatic beverage vending machine, you wouldn't think it's a great thing. And if you want to drink a beverage and still have to pay for it yourself, you'd be just as gloomy as me..."

"Pfft!"

"What are you laughing at?"

Qiu Yinong pulled down her hood, revealing her puffed-up cheeks to let Ember know her mood was truly terrible.

However, in Ember's eyes, the gleaming parasitic crossbow was much more persuasive.

"I heard you opened a shop. I'll give you the vending machine, it's no use to me anyway."

With that, Qiu Yinong, pulling her hood back over her face, stared at Ember, her eyes filled with an incredulous scrutinizing look: "Are you really an artist?"

"Guaranteed genuine!"

"Your appearance has lowered my impression of artists quite a bit..."

"Huh?"

"I always thought artists were serious people."

"What do you mean?"

"Well... I want to get a skill card for continuous jumping. I'll provide the materials. Considering the vending machine, it's free of charge, sound good?"

"Free is fine, but first explain where I'm not serious?"

...

*Pop!*

*Glug glug glug...*

*Burp!*

"Who would have thought the vending machine's drinks would still use the most classic pull-tab design!" Ember spent 100 Credits to drink a bottle of unknown red canned beverage. It had a sweet strawberry flavor, with a lingering aftertaste that refreshed the heart and mind. He suddenly found that after wielding brush and ink in the game, coming over to have a drink like this felt quite leisurely and carefree.

On the other side, Qiu Yinong was admiring the card-surface animation with eyes full of astonishment. Had she not witnessed Ember drawing it with her own eyes, she simply couldn't believe such exquisite artwork could come from his brush. She had always thought Ember's real-life job should be the infuriating kind, but after he showed off his skills, her view of him drastically changed. A sudden thought flashed through her mind, and she couldn't help asking, "I remember you said before that you'd give me a portrait?"

"Burp... Yeah... Burp! This drink packs quite a punch!"

"Um..."

"You miss the boat, you miss the chance!"

"You!" Qiu Yinong gnashed her silver teeth, glaring fiercely at Ember. "Can you not be so petty?"

"Sorry, I'm an unserious artist."

"..."

Helpless, Qiu Yinong had to retreat: "Are you quite famous in the painting world? How much can a painting sell for?"

"It's alright! Burp... barely considered slightly famous. There's no fixed price for how much it sells for. What are you doing? Getting ready to buy my soul with money? Not to scare you, but my soul is very expensive!"

"Tch, no matter how expensive, can it be more expensive than Sister Song Zi's portrait?"

"Who?"

"Song Zi, didn't you just see her earlier? She accepted an endorsement for the Singularity Corporation, playing the Daughter of the Sun—of course, the current Queen of Shadows is too. She occasionally participates in games and interacts with players. Just now, relying on my 'Sun Executioner' title, I obtained a private audience with the Daughter of the Sun, and Sister Song Zi personally issued a special task for me! That's what you get for not choosing Guardian Knight, hehe, envious?"

"Hmm..." Pondering for a moment, Ember shook his head very seriously. "Actually, if you knew why I chose to become a Shadow Veil Envoy, you'd understand whether I'm envious or not."

"Why?" Qiu Yinong became a curious baby.

"Not telling you!" Ember casually tossed the finished empty can into the smart recycling trash can. "Wasted so much time, it's time to turn in the quest. By the way, let me mention something to you: every time this automatic beverage vending machine sells a can, I get a yield of ten points. Although it might not sell many, I won't take advantage of you—fifty-fifty split, settled once it reaches a thousand. Sound fair?"

"Consider you have a bit of conscience."

Qiu Yinong rolled her eyes at Ember and walked out of the shop first. Ember thought for a moment, ultimately deciding not to tell her that tossing the aluminum can into the trash can could additionally recycle five Credits.

"A man should always save up some private money, after all," Ember thought to himself. "At worst, I'll just give her that portrait another day."

Protected by shop regulations, he simply didn't bother locking the shop door. He casually scribbled sixteen bold characters on the shop's notice board—*"Drinks available inside, delicious and affordable, throw cans in the bin, protect the environment"*—and boarded the sightseeing cart hailed by Qiu Yinong, heading toward the Hilly White Tower together.

...

The anticipated obstruction did not occur. Led by the Shadow Veil Black Servant, Ember met the Queen of Shadows at the bottom of the white tower without any hindrance.

*Clang clang clang clang!*
*Clang clang clang clang!*

The Queen of Shadows was still playing the piano, and the tune was none other than Beethoven's Symphony No. 5. At the very least, those opening notes were hammered out quite decently. Seeing Ember return so swiftly, she immediately stood up and asked anxiously, "Did you get the snow umbrella?"

"Mission accomplished!"

Ember took out the snow umbrella, and the Queen of Shadows' face instantly lit up with joy. She raised her hand to take the umbrella, which also announced the completion of the first quest issued by the Queen of Shadows.

[Tip: You have completed the special quest "Beginning of Trust", gaining the favor of the "Queen of Shadows". The quest reward is upgrading "Detection Eye" to "Shadow Veil Eye".]

...

Skill Name: [Shadow Veil Eye]
Type: Active
Cost: 5% Stamina
Effect: Based on the existing information database, probe target information and gain an additional +2 Perception level bonus.
Requirement: Perception Level 5
Description: This is an advanced skill created by the Queen of Shadows by integrating shadow veil energy on the basis of "Detection Eye". It not only contains the database from the Foundation but also encompasses the unique insights of the Queen of Shadows, and can make it easier for you to break through perception suppression.

...

"An extra two points of Perception bonus? Not bad. At a critical moment, it might save some attribute points. A very practical effect."

Ember also noticed that the Shadow Veil Eye integrated the unique insights of the Queen of Shadows. In other words, certain information that the Detection Eye couldn't see might be recognized by the Shadow Veil Eye. Moreover, this information didn't take much thought to guess—it should undoubtedly be related to the Maple-Blood family. This would undoubtedly bring quite a few implicit advantages to Ember.

Let's not forget, the Isle's predecessor was the base camp of the Maple-Blood family; who knows which instance might feature related entities.

"Your performance surprised me. Bring this snow umbrella to the bottom of the tower before Grandmother Maple-Qin becomes suspicious." The Queen of Shadows' mood relaxed considerably, making Ember realize that the value of that snow umbrella was probably far more important than he had imagined.

Just as Ember wanted to ask about the various secrets of Snow School, Grandmother Maple-Qin, whom the Queen of Shadows had just mentioned, arrived right on cue.

"A Sun Defender who repeatedly apostatized, why are you so diligent in paying your respects to the Queen of Shadows?" Maple-Qin was a middle-aged woman dressed with grace and elegance. Although called grandmother by the Queen of Shadows, in Ember's eyes she looked at most forty, well-maintained, poised, and exuding an intellectual aura of someone well-read, making it hard for Ember to believe she came from the Maple-Blood family, whom he viewed as villains, and she was very likely the true leader of the Maple-Blood family.

"Grandmother, he's just here to turn in a quest. Although his demeanor is unpleasing to me, his ability is passable."

The Queen of Shadows immediately reined in her thoughts and deliberately put on a stern face, saying to Ember, "You can leave now. The tasks in the professional district are enough to keep you busy for a long time. Don't always think about reaping benefits from me. I will summon you if necessary. Dismissed!"

"Yes!"

Good at reading facial expressions, Ember knew this was the Queen of Shadows creating a retreat path for him. He directly bade farewell and left the bottom of the tower without looking back. Madam Maple-Qin didn't harbor any suspicions either; she merely glanced coldly at his retreating figure, then earnestly exhorted the Queen of Shadows: "This person's identity is suspicious; never trust him completely. The three major organizations are not to be trifled with. If one step is taken wrong, the entire family will be doomed."

"I know, Grandmother."

The Queen of Shadows lowered her head submissively, an attitude that won Maple-Qin's approval: "Continue practicing your piano, I won't disturb you."

"Take care, Grandmother."

"Ember, come quickly!"

Just as the Queen of Shadows was seeing Maple-Qin off, Ember received a message from Not Immortal Swordsman: "Your shop blew up!"

"Huh?"

Ember couldn't help being stunned. Couldn't shop protection regulations protect player property? How did it blow up in the blink of an eye?

"Who did it? Nine Divines? Are they that unhinged?"

"It's not that your shop was blown up, your shop blew someone up!"

"What?" Ember was dumbfounded, thinking this rhythm didn't seem right...

"Get over here quickly! I can't explain the details clearly. I just caught wind of it myself and am rushing over there right now! Good grief, I heard a bunch of people have surrounded your shop!"