100 Luck Points?

Brilliant light illuminated the stone cave. Amidst the golden glow, Nightmare's terrified screams echoed, as if encountering the greatest terror of its life.

"Ah... what... what is this... No, let me out, please let me out..." Nightmare shrieked in terror.

The Millennium Puzzle's light remained brilliant, illuminating the stone cave. After a long while, the light receded, its radiance gradually diminishing. The Millennium Puzzle calmed down, leaving behind a card that slowly drifted down.

The card depicted Nightmare's image.

Player EXP +59245.

As Nightmare was sealed, Xiao Wen gradually broke free from the seal. He opened his eyes, a strange expression on his face.

"Was that an illusion? Did I get out of the illusion? No, I don't remember doing anything! Wait, how did my level reach ten?"

Xiao Wen muttered, his gaze soon drawn to the card and the dark energy orb before him.

"A card? Could it be..."

Looking down, Xiao Wen glanced at the Millennium Puzzle on his chest and picked up the card.

Monster Card: [Nightmare].

[Nightmare] Level 2; Tribe: Spirit / Attribute: Dark

ATK: 0; DEF: 500

Description: One of the ancient Dream Eater offerings that escaped for unknown reasons. It possesses no attack power but has powerful illusion abilities, capable of creating environments for enemies.

Duel Effect: When this card is destroyed, you can control one monster on the opponent's field for one turn.

Summoning Effect: Can possess a monster's body and control it for 2 minutes. The control duration is affected by the monster's level and rarity.

"Nightmare, skilled in illusions? Was I confused by this thing just now?"

Xiao Wen glanced at the strange formation on the ground and then at the card's effects in his hand, his expression growing peculiar as he whispered.

He picked up the last offering orb and put it into his inventory. A prompt suddenly appeared.

Ding! Congratulations to player Halfway Through the Mortal World for collecting all nine offerings. Do you wish to open the Gate of Sacrifice?

Open!

Xiao Wen chose without hesitation.

In his inventory, the nine offering orbs merged into one. Vaguely, a massive portal seemed to rise. On either side of the portal were two lamps, their flames flickering gently, casting the patterns on the gate in sharp relief.

It was the image of a monster: its body like a bear, its nose like an elephant, its eyes like a rhinoceros, its tail like a bull, its legs like a tiger...

It was as if it were a collection of all the world's animals.

"Is this the Dream Eater?"

Xiao Wen stared at the monster's image before him, speechless. The orbs of light, transformed from the nine offerings, appeared in front of him, revealing the spectral images of the nine offerings within.

"Moo..."

A low sound came. The spectral image of the Dream Eater imprinted on the gate materialized. It raised its elephant-like trunk and inhaled sharply, drawing in the surrounding offering orbs. It then let out a few contented growls, its gaze falling upon Xiao Wen, the sacrificer.

A trickle of light descended from the sky, entering Xiao Wen's body, and then... then the Dream Eater vanished...

Ding! Congratulations to player Halfway Through the Mortal World for gaining 100 Luck points.

A prompt sounded, and Xiao Wen watched as the Dream Eater disappeared before his eyes.

"That... it's gone? What the heck? So after all my trouble, you only give me a hundred luck points?"

Now, Xiao Wen's mind was filled with question marks.

He had gone through so much danger, overcoming every obstacle to reach this point, only to receive such meager rewards?

"..." Xiao Wen.

In that moment, Xiao Wen felt like he had ten thousand curses he couldn't utter.

Can't utter them... can't utter them... must be civilized... must remain calm.

Xiao Wen silently comforted himself.

Regardless, this trip wasn't entirely without gain. At the very least, he had obtained [Ice Element Control] from the Frost Crocodile Dragon in the second stage. Additionally, when he defeated the sixth stage offering, [Centaur Archer], a purple-grade longbow had dropped.

With these two items, it was enough to console Xiao Wen's collapsing spirit.

A ball of teleportation light appeared, enveloping Xiao Wen's figure as he vanished from the Dream Eater's Forbidden Ground.

When his vision cleared, Xiao Wen found himself standing on the edge of a sheer cliff, a bottomless abyss less than half a meter away.

"Glad I didn't fall..."

Swallowing hard, Xiao Wen checked the time, his expression suddenly turning odd: "Damn, it's already three in the afternoon. I got so caught up playing the game, I lost track of time. But why hasn't my sister called me for dinner?"

Muttering to himself, though Xiao Wen wanted to keep playing, his empty stomach wouldn't allow it.

He found a safe spot and logged out. Opening his eyes, he climbed out of the game pod and stretched.

Feeling the warm sunlight streaming through the window, Xiao Wen's face was filled with an indescribable sense of comfort.

He opened his room door and sniffed the air.

ε=(ο｀*))) sighed...

The familiar aroma of home-cooked food was still missing.

He knocked on Xiao Ya's door, but there was no answer. Xiao Wen quietly pushed it open and saw Xiao Ya lying peacefully inside the game pod.

He silently withdrew from the room and closed the door.

"This older sister of mine, completely lost in her hobbies, and now she won't even cook lunch for her obedient, cute, and handsome younger brother. Oh well, today, the great chef Xiao will show off his skills!"

Xiao Wen sighed and headed towards the kitchen.

Even though his older sister cooked for 364 days out of the year, Xiao Wen was confident in his own culinary abilities.

Food, after all, is just meant to be eaten, right?

As long as it's edible, why worry about the taste?

It was precisely because he held this philosophy that...

The meals Xiao Wen made were mercilessly labeled by Xiao Ya as "Dark Cuisine."

"Alright, let's see what grand feast I'll make for my sister today."

Xiao Wen rubbed his hands together, his fighting spirit high, and walked to the refrigerator. He opened the door and was instantly dumbfounded.

Empty... It was empty...

No food?

It couldn't be, could it?

After rummaging through the entire kitchen, Xiao Wen gave up.

Little did he know, Xiao Ya had originally planned to go grocery shopping that day. However, upon seeing the balance in Xiao Wen's bank account, she was utterly shocked. Eager to return and question Xiao Wen, she completely forgot about buying groceries.

"Never mind, I'll just order takeout."

Shrugging his shoulders, Xiao Wen listened to his stomach growl and picked up his phone to browse.

After a quick glance, Xiao Wen casually ordered a two-person meal set costing over two hundred.

In the past, Xiao Wen would never have dared to be so extravagant.

But now... he had money!

Would you like to use VX payment?

Xiao Wen tapped "Yes," then entered his payment password to settle the bill.

Ding!

Payment successful.

Congratulations, dear user! You've been hit by our lucky draw for a free meal! You are our 24,102nd free meal recipient. The full amount of this purchase will be refunded to your account balance.