The Polluted Silver Relic

The negative effect of the Garment of the Hidden World erased the cola and duck snacks, so Yang Qizhou had no choice but to order takeout...

He couldn't exactly stay hungry until midnight.

Still, the incident served as a reminder to Yang Qizhou. The Garment of the Hidden World was a quasi-legendary Old Day Item, and its negative effects were no joke. Today, it had erased his dinner; tomorrow, it might erase an appliance; the day after that, it could erase an entire building. Sooner or later, the backlash would reach him.

If he wanted to keep the item, he had to find a way to solve the problem.

Otherwise, he could only give it up.

"I wonder if anyone in the Secret Cultivator Society can solve this problem..."

The takeout arrived soon. After eating his fill, Yang Qizhou had planned to summon the Root-Court Hound into the real world and spend some time with his new pet. But when he thought of the consequences of using the item, he reconsidered and ultimately gave up.

Midnight came quickly.

A strange realization surfaced in Yang Qizhou's mind. The protective flames sprang back to life, and the Doom-Bringing Raven let out another lively caw. His three chances to revive and five chances to turn back time had all refreshed.

"I hope I can resolve the crisis in Fire-Stealing Village today."

He opened the app, and the game continued.

"You wake up again somewhere within Dark Fog Town."

"You remember how you died and shudder. You feel an inexplicable fear of the wind."

"There are still many questions troubling you. How was Dark Fog Town destroyed? What is the source of the strange and terrifying power in the wind?"

"What leaves you even more bewildered is... Dark Fog Town has already been destroyed, and there is no hope of getting help. What should you do next?"

"The crossroads of fate lies before you once more, adventurer who was just blown to death by the wind."

"Will you walk around Dark Fog Town to see if there are any survivors, and search for a way to help Fire-Stealing Village weather its crisis?"

"Or will you return to Fire-Stealing Village now and explain the situation to Lena?"

"Please make your choice."

Once again, Yang Qizhou had reached his favorite part: choosing between two options. Someone else might have struggled to decide, but to him, this was an easy question. With the Doom-Bringing Raven's ability, even if he chose wrong this time, he could come back and choose again.

"See how awesome my cheat is? The game gave it to me for free."

With a broad smile, Yang Qizhou chose option one.

He would first take a walk through the ruins of Dark Fog Town. Maybe he'd find some treasure. The people in town had all mutated, so in theory, everything there was ownerless.

"You've endured the pursuit of Aliceina, a follower of the Old Gods, crossed the Wilderness where the unknown and the mysterious coexist, and experienced the horrors of Windbell Town before reaching Dark Fog Town. Unwilling to return empty-handed, you decide to search the area first."

"The Garment of the Hidden World takes effect. You enter a concealed state."

"You wander through the ruins of Dark Fog Town."

"You wander through the ruins of Dark Fog Town."

"You see a strange creature. It has a bird's head and fish gills, and its entire body is covered in slime. It lets out a pained groan, and you can faintly hear human words."

"The storm... so terrifying... The gods... have abandoned... us."

"Your curiosity gets the better of you. Boldly, you dispel the effect of the Garment of the Hidden World, hoping to ask more questions."

"The other creature can't resist its craving for flesh and blood. It lunges at you, biting wildly, while the monsters nearby catch the scent of blood and rush toward you."

"You are devoured."

"You died."

So Dark Fog Town had been destroyed by a storm. No wonder—it was the Ancient Earth, after all. The sun couldn't be looked at directly, the night couldn't be endured for long, and dreams were terrifying. Even the wind and rain themselves brought calamity.

Next came the familiar process. The character's soul arrived at the River of Death and drew the attention of an unknown presence. The protective flames flickered, and the Doom-Bringing Raven cawed.

This time, Yang Qizhou chose to revive normally...

He had only just begun exploring Dark Fog Town. Using the Doom-Bringing Raven's power would overwrite the moment of his previous choice. If he got trapped in a situation where he kept dying before he could make another choice, he wouldn't be able to turn back time and escape. With only three chances to revive each day, he would probably be held up for a long time.

The game continued.

"You open your eyes again in the ruins of Dark Fog Town."

"You immediately activate the Garment of the Hidden World, breaking into a cold sweat. Being devoured had been a truly awful experience. Even though you'd gone through it several times, you still couldn't stomach it."

"You are concealed, and the monsters around you don't notice you."

"You keep wandering."

"You keep wandering."

"You hear human speech again, labored, shrill, and distorted, making your eardrums ache."

"Help... help... me."

After being devoured last time, you don't dare reveal yourself. You continue wandering aimlessly through the ruins of Dark Fog Town.

"You find [Polluted Silver Relic]."

"You pick up [Polluted Silver Relic]."

Polluted Silver Relic (Epic): An ancient ritual vessel from the Silver Kingdom, used to worship the gods. It accidentally ended up in Dark Fog Town and was contaminated by the power of wizards in the previous epoch. It can no longer display its original brilliance. Effect: ???

So there really was treasure. It came from the Silver Kingdom and was connected to wizards. It must have quite a history. Not bad, not bad. But what did those three question marks mean?

Had he really just picked up something completely useless?

Yang Qizhou had been excited at first, but his enthusiasm vanished as soon as he saw the item's attributes. Damn it, he thought. He'd been awfully unlucky lately. Yesterday, he'd gotten an unusable quasi-legendary item, the Law Book of Windbell Town, and now he had the Polluted Silver Relic.

Was this ever going to end?

At that moment, Yang Qizhou actually found himself missing the Mother Goddess Flower Seed of the Dream Realm. Its ability to make people get pregnant and have children was a real pain in the ass, but at least he could use it as soon as he got his hands on it.

Forget it. Something was better than nothing.

Yang Qizhou soon put the thought aside and refocused on the game.

"You keep wandering."

"A giant python passes by and nearly crushes you to death, but you dodge just in time."

"You keep wandering."

"You find a pile of junk, then toss it aside in disgust."

"You keep wandering."

"You keep wandering."

"You keep wandering."

"Suddenly, you hear a cry for help coming from an ancient temple in front of you. It is filled with pain, despair, and resentment, and ends in a roar."

"An adventure always involves choices. You know this all too well."

"So, bold and greedy adventurer,"

"Will you rely on the Garment of the Hidden World and investigate?"

"Or will you ignore the cry for help?"

"Please make your choice."