Gourmet Captives

Gourmet Captives

--List all my current gains.

The quiet words in his mind and the corresponding data streams appeared only in Fang Xiu's eyes.

[Total resources carried over from the previous run: 12 reward points, 0 B-rank side-story rewards, 0 C-rank side-story rewards, 0 D-rank side-story rewards...]

[Total resources gained in this run: 2 B-rank side-story rewards, 1 C-rank side-story reward, 2 D-rank side-story rewards, 15,326 reward points!]

A bountiful harvest.

Even compared to the last purely beneficial world, Fang Xiu's gains in this trial were substantial.

Still, he hadn't let the rewards go to his head. The next world was genuinely worrying. Only by becoming stronger could he take control of his own fate.

As his thoughts turned, the two Zhongzhou construction workers in front of him finished their meeting. Countless gazes shifted back to him, waiting for instructions.

"There's not much to say."

"Reward points are money, and side-story rewards are currency."

"Only together can they be used to exchange for valuable things, like bloodlines, cultivation techniques, divine weapons, and high-tech products."

As he explained, the three newcomers gradually gained a rough understanding of the rules. The veterans, who had entered one world before them, would help with anything they still didn't understand.

"Lastly, until we get the intelligence for the next reincarnation world, I hope you'll hold on to the resources you have and avoid wasting them on worthless exchanges."

"So far, the Shazhou Team has been through one science-fiction world and one horror-movie hodgepodge involving the supernatural. And we've only scratched the surface of the latter."

Facing the veterans, who had grown in both mindset and ability after working together through two worlds, Fang Xiu felt that he ought to say a little more.

So—

"Based on my personal judgment, there's a good chance Main God will show its cruel side next."

"So don't let these first two easy runs fool you."

For a moment, everyone's thoughts diverged. They instinctively looked up, watching their rather quiet captain walk into the light curtain and head for his private space.

--The Shazhou Team's total gains in this reincarnation world had hit an invisible ceiling.

Like a pool, its total capacity was fixed.

Only by taking the risk of exploring beyond the main storyline could they earn anything extra.

It wasn't good news, but it wasn't bad either.

That was just how things were.

Those were the rules.

Atop a tower in the primeval forest, Fang Xiu silently endured the familiar threefold gravity of Earth, using it for his daily training.

At the same time, he began reviewing the mission.

"Leaving aside the main-story rewards and the outlier that was the Fusang Ghost King, the total side-story rewards in the Hong Kong Ghost World setting... probably came to somewhere between one C-rank and two."

"I casually wiped out the Nine Chrysanthemum Lineage and took two D-rank side-story rewards, along with a good number of reward points for killing various lesser ghosts."

"The remaining resources depend on how Tang Tian and the others develop things."

To be fair, in a cursed place like Main God Space, Fang Xiu did care somewhat about finding someone who felt like one of his own, especially if that person was sensible.

As for the three newcomers who'd joined them, they had a guaranteed B-rank resource package in hand. If they used it well, then even if the next world was dangerous and the elimination rate was brutal, they wouldn't be entirely without hope.

In fact, if they had enough personal ability, they might even seize an opportunity amid the danger and rise to prominence! His thoughts wandered again, but this time Fang Xiu didn't pull them back and force himself to focus. After all, returning meant absolute safety...

"John, the boxer and actor, managed to stand out among ordinary people. He must have a talent for close-quarters combat, so he could develop as a warrior."

"Ye Mei, the legal advisor for a multinational corporation, has a higher-than-normal level of spiritual power. She could be suited to..."

His muttering abruptly stopped.

When it came to spiritual controllers, was there anyone in the Shazhou Team better suited than Fang Xiu himself? He wouldn't even need to spend a mountain of resources training one. He could put an already-ready combat asset to use immediately! "It depends on what she wants. Having a high spiritual attribute alone opens up plenty of paths. She doesn't have to become an 'eye.'"

"As for that surveyor, like Tang Tian, he had unremarkable talent and relied purely on luck to make it back."

"But who says good luck isn't a talent? Someone like me, who came in with a head start and took part in this endless cycle with a body from the Uchiha Clan, could only be described as absurdly lucky."

And so Fang Xiu stood atop the tower, lost in thought all by himself. For the rest of the time, he didn't make any exchanges or rush to train.

Even though he always felt a sense of urgency deep down!

Reward points could buy him plenty of time. Scrambling to do something right this second wouldn't help at all. Besides, it had been a long time since he'd returned, and the plot world had already drained so much of his energy. Trying to get serious work done now would mean half the results for twice the effort.

He slept until he woke naturally, got up and changed into clean clothes, then seriously considered what he should eat, just like an ordinary person.

--In Main God Space, Reincarnators could exchange for any delicacy from the real world at a price far lower than cabbage.

Of course, if they wanted their food to come with special benefits, they'd have to spend more reward points.

"I've decided.

"Gala Bird meat over rice!"

After a little deliberation, Fang Xiu paid 300 reward points for his first try at this kind of exchange.

It came from the world of Toriko.

According to the anime, the ingredient was an unusually ferocious giant bird with a capture level of 3. Its body was covered in incredibly hard feathers that protected the soft, delicious meat underneath.

Once cooked, it was rich and fragrant. Beneath the smooth skin, juices dripped from the meat, which surpassed even premium Wagyu. Its marbled aroma spread through the air, and it melted as soon as it touched the tongue.

Main God's assessment, meanwhile, was particularly simple and practical: besides letting you enjoy the finest delicacy in the world, it could invigorate the spirit and bring a certain degree of evolution to your body, improving things like cell activity and organ resilience.

Unfortunately, the price was right there in plain sight. You got what you paid for, and finding a bargain in Main God Space was next to impossible.

Fang Xiu knew exactly how much leeway there was in the description's qualifier, "a certain degree"—

It probably only offered rapid improvement to complete beginners.

At his current stage, after injecting perfect-grade Hashirama Cells and attaining a rudimentary Sage Body, he was simply indulging himself and seeing whether dietary nourishment could also strengthen Yang Release—in other words, his physical power.

As the points were deducted, a bowl of rice topped with meat appeared, releasing a rich aroma. There was no exaggerated flash of light, but just smelling it stirred some primal instinct in Fang Xiu, urging him to eat it.

His throat bobbed.

As expected of something from the Gourmet World...