New Derivative World

"Tick, tock, tick, tock~"

The sound of a clock echoed through the quiet living room.

Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the sofa, his blade resting across his thighs as he entered a meditative state.

This wasn't the kind of meditation mages practiced. It was a technique Koshiro had taught him, one that allowed him to perceive himself more clearly.

Practicing the sword wasn't just about swinging and cutting. It was also a process of strengthening both body and mind. For others, this might seem tedious, but Su Xiao found joy in it.

The level of passion you have for something determines how far you can go with it. If you don't even have basic enthusiasm, you might as well give up—especially when it comes to mastering the blade.

"Hah~"

He let out a long breath and ended his meditation. Though he hadn't moved a muscle, he felt ravenously hungry.

Picking up his phone, Su Xiao ordered takeout for eight people. At his current appetite, a normal person's portion wouldn't even fill the gaps between his teeth.

Half an hour later, a knock came at the door.

Seeing the delivery guy drenched in sweat, Su Xiao gave a wry smile. The guy had carried eight portions of food up the stairs—that must've been rough.

"Click."

The door across from him opened, and a man in sunglasses with a stern expression stepped out.

The sunglasses guy glanced at Su Xiao and the delivery guy. When he saw Su Xiao, he visibly tensed up—probably because Su Xiao lived right across from him.

"New resident?"

"New resident."

With that brief exchange, the sunglasses guy headed downstairs.

After a hearty meal, Su Xiao thought back to the man in sunglasses. His steps were steady, his lower body stable—definitely not an ordinary person. But Su Xiao had no intention of investigating him. That would be meddling.

Having only stayed in the real world for a few days, Su Xiao felt strangely restless for no clear reason.

He actually found himself eager to dive back into Reincarnation Paradise for another adventure. That made him chuckle bitterly. Maybe he was just born restless.

Ding. A new Derivative World is about to open. The Hunter will return to Reincarnation Paradise. Please ensure no witnesses are nearby.

Teleporting... Teleportation complete.

Su Xiao felt his consciousness blur and a ringing in his ears. When everything settled, he was already inside his Exclusive Room.

A new Derivative World was coming. Su Xiao couldn't help but feel a bit of anticipation. He wondered what world he'd enter this time. If it was another nightmare difficulty like One Piece, things would get tricky.

Entering a Derivative World meant not only receiving the main mission from Reincarnation Paradise but also a Hunter mission.

If the Derivative World's difficulty was too high, his chances of successfully hunting were slim.

"Paradise, which Derivative World will I be entering?"

Hunter Level: Lv.2. Notification of the Derivative World will be received ten minutes before entry. The Hunter will enter the Derivative World in one hour. Please wait patiently.

Su Xiao understood now. He could find out which Derivative World he was entering in advance, but it required leveling up. The higher his level, the earlier he'd be notified, giving him more preparation time.

For now, he only got ten minutes. Not too short, but not long either. There wasn't enough time to prepare much.

Leaving his Exclusive Room, Su Xiao headed toward a trading market.

It was a circular plaza. While items were sold all over Reincarnation Paradise, this place had the most people—and plenty of good stuff.

The green firearm he'd seen before was right here in the trading plaza.

"Complete skill materials! Four-month-old shop!"

"That's way too expensive. Seven hundred? Why don't you just rob me?"

"Buying resources from Derivative Worlds. Fair prices!"

"Don't miss out! All kinds of recovery items for sale!"

The crowd was bustling, a mix of shouts and haggling.

Su Xiao still had 2,827 Paradise Coins left. He'd deliberately saved them for the upcoming Derivative World.

He stopped in front of a stall selling recovery items. A few Contractors had already gathered there, looking hesitant.

Su Xiao had seen this stall a few times before. The owner was probably a Worker who set up shop here regularly.

Compared to Contractors' stalls, Su Xiao preferred Workers' stalls.

Many Contractors treated items they got from Derivative Worlds like treasures, pricing them absurdly high.

Workers, on the other hand, spent all their time in the trading market and had a solid grasp of Reincarnation Paradise's pricing.

If a large number of Contractors had recently entered a world filled with dark creatures, the price of light-attribute items would rise noticeably.

Price fluctuations followed the Contractors' needs—that was an iron rule. Workers didn't dare inflate prices recklessly; they had to enter Derivative Worlds too and could face retaliation.

At the recovery item stall, Su Xiao found a few decent options.

Salt Rice Ball

Origin: Food Wars

Quality: White

Type: Recovery Item

Effect: After consumption, slowly restores 10% of health.

Rating: 3 (Note: White items are rated 1 to 10, with the rating representing the item's value.)

Description: A rice ball, a magical rice ball, a rice ball that can slowly heal injuries.

Golden Fried Rice

Origin: Food Wars!

Quality: White

Type: Recovery Item

Effect: After consumption, slowly restores 40% of health. (This item requires a longer time to eat; health recovery is based on the amount consumed, minimum 1%, maximum 40%.)

Rating: 5 (Note: White items are rated 1 to 10, with the rating representing the item's value.)

Description: It's not just a recovery item, it's also delicious. A dish that can't make clothes burst isn't a good dish.

XT-12 Life Vitality Potion

Origin: Reincarnation Paradise, Glow Potion Production Line No. 3.

Quality: White

Type: Recovery Item

Effect: After drinking, quickly restores 15% of health within a short time.

Rating: 8 (Note: White items are rated 1 to 10, with the rating representing the item's value.)

Description: Manufactured by a Worker, approved by Reincarnation Paradise: Safe.

Among these three recovery items, although the Golden Fried Rice had the highest recovery amount, it required full consumption and had a slow recovery speed.

The Salt Rice Ball was similar to the Golden Fried Rice, but it could be eaten much faster. Su Xiao estimated he could down it in two bites at most, or even swallow it whole in a pinch.

The most valuable was the XT-12 Life Vitality Potion. Though it only restored 15% of health, it could be taken in a single gulp during a lull in battle.

Reincarnation Paradise didn't have a direct-use potion function; he had to use it himself.

In the heat of combat, consuming a recovery item was tricky, but that didn't make them worthless. Using them to heal after a fight was the best option.

"Name your price for these three."

The Worker could tell Su Xiao intended to buy. Unlike the Contractors nearby, Su Xiao was more purposeful.

"Salt Rice Ball, 100 Paradise Coins. Golden Fried Rice, 200 Paradise Coins. XT-12 Life Vitality Potion, 700 Paradise Coins. Total, 1000 Paradise Coins.

Friend, I can see you're serious about buying, and I'm serious about selling. This is the best price I can offer. Call me Yao Guan. Consider it making a friend."

The first two food recovery items were cheap, but the potion was a steep 700 Paradise Coins.

But that was a lifesaver, so the high price made sense.

Imagine a Contractor on the brink of death—one bottle could save their life.

"Too expensive. How about this, I'll buy more..."

After some haggling, Su Xiao spent 1500 Paradise Coins to buy XT-12 Life Vitality Potion × 1, Golden Fried Rice × 2, and Salt Rice Ball × 5.

The Worker named Yao Guan was delighted and even gave Su Xiao proper usage instructions.

Yao Guan was obviously a fake name, just like Su Xiao's Byakuya. Contractors using their real names in Reincarnation Paradise were rarer than giant pandas.

The Salt Rice Ball only restored 10% of health, but it was convenient to eat.

Recovery items had no cooldown mechanic, but if consumed repeatedly in a short time, their effects would diminish, eventually losing all recovery power.

"Brother, hope you come back alive."

Yao Guan waved at Su Xiao, a sincere smile on his face.

Workers were different from Contractors. They hadn't experienced much cruelty; most Workers had never even killed anyone.

"Thanks for the good wishes."

After wandering the trading market for a while, Su Xiao received a notification from Reincarnation Paradise.

The Hunter would enter the Derivative World: Tokyo Ghoul in ten minutes.

Fei Wen felt the Ghoul world might suit his writing style well, even better than One Piece, so stay tuned.