"Items" Can Come to Life...

Yang Qizhou never imagined something so coincidental could happen. The player who had nearly tricked him out of the Garment of the Hidden World last night was also a member of the Secret Cultivator Society.

Whenever something happened, Yang Qizhou could analyze it with perfect clarity. But when it came to taking action, he was easily swept up in the moment.

You either died with your head held high, or you lived for ten thousand years.

It was everyone's first time being human. Why the hell should he put up with this?

The problem was that World of Weirdness was a text-based game, and its limitations were severe. Players couldn't even chat normally with each other, let alone find one another in real life and have a proper one-on-one fight.

No matter how indignant he felt, there was nothing he could do about it.

But things were different now. They were all members of the Secret Cultivator Society, so they'd have plenty of chances to interact in the future.

When the time came, he'd find an excuse to lure him out. Then he'd pay him back for every grievance and every grudge... Yang Qizhou smiled cruelly.

Fox's plea for help brought many members out of the woodwork.

[ Rabbit (Member): An item of "Primal Darkness"? Never heard of it. What is that? ]

[ Fox (Member): I don't know either. All I know is that it's something extraordinary. Even gods of a higher rank can't ignore it. Anyone who possesses an item of "Primal Darkness" must be a super big shot. I'm done for. I'm going to die this time. ]

[ Secret Cultivator (Group Owner): Please read the group guidelines. The Secret Cultivator Society is merely a platform for communication. We have no obligation to protect our members. ]

[ Secret Cultivator (Group Owner): However, if you're willing to do me a favor, I can offer you some help and make it harder for the other party to find you. ]

The chubby guy's expression shifted uneasily.

In fact, he'd considered asking the Secret Cultivator Society for help last night. Secret Cultivator could block investigations by the relevant authorities and knew countless secrets. He was extremely mysterious, so perhaps he had a way to help him escape the pursuit of a super big shot.

But he also knew that nothing in this world came for free. If he wanted Secret Cultivator's help, he'd have to pay an equal price in return.

Just thinking about what he'd have to give up made the chubby guy wince. He couldn't bring himself to decide, and that was why he'd put it off until now.

But an item of "Primal Darkness" was a treasure that even high-ranking gods had to respect. Angel of Rest had even bluntly said that he wasn't qualified to get involved.

As the holder of an item of "Primal Darkness," that player had to be terrifying. He might even have a way to find him in the real world.

The more the chubby guy thought about it, the more frightened he became. Finally, he made up his mind to ask the Secret Cultivator Society for help.

Unfortunately, he didn't know that

the holder of the item of "Primal Darkness" was quietly watching from within the group.

[ Fox (Member): Group owner, can you guarantee that the super big shot definitely won't find me? ]

[ Secret Cultivator (Group Owner): No. Although different abilities can counter one another, rank, status, and symbolism matter just as much. ]

[ Secret Cultivator (Group Owner): Of course, you can also choose to refuse. ]

The chubby guy gritted his teeth.

He'd already been prepared to pay a steep price for this help, and he trusted Secret Cultivator's abilities. Naturally, he wouldn't refuse.

[ Fox (Member): All right. I agree. ]

The two didn't continue the conversation. They'd clearly switched to private chat.

But Yang Qizhou had no intention of letting the subject drop so easily. He was still fuming over nearly losing the Garment of the Hidden World, and now that he'd found the culprit, of course he wanted to tease out more information.

[ Honey Pot (Member): Newbie here, offering tea to the big shot. ]

[ Honey Pot (Member): Big shot, big shot, could you tell us how you managed to offend that super big shot with an "item of Primal Darkness"? ]

[ Fox (Member): Sigh, greed got the better of me. I even wasted a special item for nothing. In short, it's a long story. ]

[ Fox (Member): As someone who's been through it, let me offer you a word of advice, junior: never offend a player you don't know. You can't tell whether they're a sheep or a wolf in sheep's clothing. ]

[ Honey Pot (Member): Thank you for your wise words, big shot. ]

[ Honey Pot (Member): Big shot, I live in Magic City. Come visit sometime. I can treat you to the full sauna-and-spa experience, including a deluxe massage. ]

[ Fox (Member): Magic City? That's pretty close. I'm in Hang City. But let's skip meeting in person; it wouldn't be convenient. Besides, the group owner's given me a task, and I have to head to Kyoto soon. ]

The chubby guy was so dazzled by all those "big shots" that he'd lost track of everything, but he still had some basic wariness. He didn't agree to meet up in Magic City, though he failed to notice that he'd revealed which city he lived in.

Yang Qizhou, who enjoyed analyzing things, also gave it some careful thought.

Hang City was a little far. He was already short on cash, so traveling eight hundred li to get revenge clearly wasn't practical... But from what the other guy had said, he might be coming to Kyoto soon.

Yang Qizhou's smile grew even brighter. He was in Kyoto, so all he had to do was wait for that bastard to walk right into his trap.

[ Honey Pot (Member): All right then, big shot. Maybe some other time. ]

[ Fox (Member): 1 ]

What a show-off. He really wanted to beat him up.

Still, that little probing had paid off. He'd gotten the guy to reveal which city he was in. That was a secondary benefit; more importantly, he'd gotten a rough idea of the Secret Cultivator Society's limits. It was clear that Secret Cultivator didn't mind members meeting privately. As for why, he'd have to ask her.

Yang Qizhou was still thinking when a message came in. It was a private message from Secret Cultivator...

[ Secret Cultivator: As a benefit for new members, I can answer one question related to World of Weirdness for free. ]

Getting something for free made people happy. Yang Qizhou certainly wasn't going to pass up this chance, but deciding what to ask was a problem.

He had too many questions on his mind.

What did an item of "Primal Darkness" mean?

The new-member guidelines mentioned "Old Offering." What was that?

What would happen if someone recited the full hidden name of an entity on Ancient Earth in the real world?

What did it mean when it said that using items frequently in the real world would lead to something bad?

Yang Qizhou thought it over for a moment and made his decision. His fingers quickly danced across the phone screen.

[ Honey Pot: Group owner, I want to know what it means when it says that using items in the real world will release something bad. ]

Yang Qizhou had thought carefully before choosing this question. He hadn't been playing World of Weirdness for long and didn't want to get involved with other players, but if a conflict really broke out, he'd have no choice but to use his items—like when Bureau of Occult Investigation members surrounded Wang Chuang.

Yang Qizhou didn't mind facing the consequences, but he needed to know what to expect.

The reply came quickly.

[ Secret Cultivator: "Items" can come to life. They might become "Old Day Items," or they might turn into something even more terrifying. It's like opening Pandora's box and releasing a terrible calamity. I don't know the specific reason. ]

"Items" can come to life?

Yang Qizhou suddenly felt a chill. He had quite a few items in his possession: the Ancient God's Fire Lamp, the Stone of Truth, the Key to the Shepherd's Field, the Garment of the Hidden World, and so on...

Meanwhile, on the top floor of a luxurious high-rise building,

Secret Cultivator was lounging in a rocking chair. Her long legs were fair and smooth, her waist was slender as a willow branch, and the gems in her earrings and necklace sparkled like stars. Her delicate features and clear eyes made her look like a combination of angel and devil.

At that moment, she was fiddling with a tablet, a faint smile playing at the corners of her lips.

"Heh, this new member's interesting. Other people care more about how to get as much as possible out of the game, but he actually asked about the consequences of frequently using items in the real world."

"Find out who he is."

Secret Cultivator produced a mirror from who knew where. Its frame was blue-green and carved with angels. As time passed, ripples spread across its surface like waves.

After a moment,

the mirror reflected Secret Cultivator's stunning face. Beyond that... there was nothing.

Secret Cultivator abruptly sat up.

"What? The Mirror of Attilus actually failed? How is that possible?"