Organizing the Spoils

Zhou You had no idea about that conversation.

At that moment, he was sitting in his cramped rented room, carefully taking stock of what he had gained on this trip.

"You have completed the special scenario: Night Watchman."

"You eliminated the scenario's 'cause,' Liu Shang, and helped suppress its main constituent, 'Jixiang Jimiao Fumu Bodhisattva.' You will receive an additional reward."

"You have obtained 500 Soul Stones."

"Your completion rate for this scenario is: Extremely High."

"You have obtained a large amount of bonus Soul Crystals."

"You currently have 1,050 Soul Stones."

"You have obtained a reward: Sanchu Decoction."

"You have obtained a purple item: Guyu Qing."

"Effect: When this item is struck, no matter what time it is, the current scene can be changed to 'daytime.' Under these circumstances, all 'sinister' and 'flesh-and-blood' entities will be suppressed to some extent."

"This item can be used twice per scenario. Death does not reset the number of uses."

<Made from jade as its base and guided by white bone, it had been offered before the Buddha for over a hundred years. Somehow, it had acquired a faint trace of holiness.>

"You have obtained a special consumable: Three Incense Sticks of Buddha's Birthday (bonus reward for eliminating Liu Shang)."

"Effect: When this incense is lit, it will offer you unexpected assistance depending on the situation (this item cannot be used consecutively)."

<The sacrificial incense Liu Shang had offered to Ghost Mother Bodhisattva. Its appearance was extravagantly ornate, yet a strange bloody smell clung to it.>

"You have obtained one opportunity to remove an item's curse (bonus reward; purple items or below only)."

"For suppressing Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva, you have obtained a special lottery draw. You may randomly receive one of her divine abilities."

"Please note: Because the player rejected Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva's terms of trade, this divine ability is incomplete, and the player must seek their own opportunities to complete it. However, this ability will also not be affected by the Bodhisattva's 'flesh-and-blood contamination.'"

The next moment, something appeared before Zhou You.

It wasn't a familiar prize wheel or some sort of device, but a Buddhist prayer wheel. It bore no scriptures or Buddha images; instead, human facial features were carved into it.

"This is... asking me to give it a spin?"

As expected, no one answered.

So Zhou You could only shrug and give it a casual flick.

The prayer wheel spun rapidly, the facial features flashing past one after another, before it slowly came to a stop on one feature.

It was a mouth.

"The player has obtained the divine ability: Death Curse Sanskrit Sound (incomplete)."

"You can utter six-character mantras to achieve all kinds of miraculous effects. Please note that every time you utter a mantra, it consumes a great deal of your strength, so you cannot use it consecutively."

"The player can now use the Soul-Subduing Mantra: Om."

"Effect: Causes all living beings and inanimate objects within the mantra's range to enter a dazed state. The duration depends on the strength of those affected. It has no effect on entities far more powerful than you."

"The player can raise Death Curse Sanskrit Sound's level through various means. Once all six characters of the True Words are gathered, you may even deduce the origin of Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva from them."

That was everything the system had to report.

In short, there wasn't much, but almost all of it was useful.

First, Zhou You downed the Sanchu Decoction, his main objective on this trip. He felt the viscous liquid slide into his stomach, then checked his talents. He had obtained two in this scenario, but there wasn't much to say about them, so he chose to lock in Basic Acting.

Locking in a green talent cost considerably more than a white one, shooting straight up to 260. But Zhou You was now wealthy enough not to blink, and he confirmed the choice at once.

As for Five Viscera Connection... Like Broken Existence from Building Four, it had far too many restrictions, so Zhou You simply ignored it.

Next came the items.

Guyu Qing looked like a small rice bowl. It was translucent and pleasingly jade green, but when he held it up to the sunlight, countless white fragments could be seen drifting inside, together forming a strange image.

—It was a human sternum.

Zhou You tried lightly tapping the rim of the instrument with his finger. A mournful sound rang out, and the surroundings warped. He hurriedly put the thing back where it had been.

The other item was Liu Shang's three sacrificial incense sticks. They lived up to their description: each stick was wrapped in thick gold paper—not gold leaf—upon which entire Buddhist scriptures had been meticulously engraved by hand. Each character was no bigger than a grain of rice, and a translucent piece of jade was fastened to the bottom.

Zhou You had worked at a jewelry store during one summer break. Even with his limited knowledge, he could tell that the decorative jade alone had to be worth at least five figures.

"That damn capitalist. Even burning incense has to be so damn ostentatious." Zhou You thought for a moment, then curled his lips into a slight smile and reached for the jade. "—I mean, selling this thing to improve my life shouldn't be a problem, right..."

"Esteemed player, please note: Any damage to this item will be considered its use."

—But the system's cold warning shattered his dream of getting rich.

"...Damn, they don't leave me even the tiniest loophole." Seeing this, he could only shake his head and set the incense aside.

The item's description was vague, but judging by the wording alone, it seemed similar to the three life-saving hairs of the Monkey King. He probably wouldn't know what it did until he actually used it.

Next was the opportunity to remove a curse from one piece of equipment.

There was no need to think about it. Zhou You had two cursed items on him: the Blood-Stained Knife and the Brass Bell.

Both were actually quite useful. The Brass Bell had saved Zhou You more than once, and the Blood-Stained Knife's speed boost had helped him escape danger plenty of times. But the curse on the latter was mild; he only had to let it soak in blood once every half month. What's more, it didn't specify what kind of blood—chicken or pig blood counted too—so there was only one choice.

"I choose to remove the curse from the Jingrao Bell."

As soon as he said this, the bloodstains on the bell around his wrist slowly faded away like ice melting. He could faintly hear a few sobs, too.

But they soon disappeared without a trace.

Finally, there was Blood Curse Sanskrit Sound. By process of elimination, this had to be the greatest reward from this scenario. Its effects seemed rather average, perhaps even inferior to Zhou You's own Wuwo Ruding, but what made it precious was its potential to grow. And besides...

"It can even be used to deduce the origin of Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva?"

"Could it be..."

Zhou You recalled the enormous figure that had been like a demon god, and his brow suddenly furrowed.

"—Could I also gain the powers of those sinister objects and evil spirits?"