[Night Watcher]: "Dear admin, I've been working hard to train my skills, using items, getting enough rest instead of staying up late, and entering the instance early in the morning, but I still don't really understand how to explore. What should I do?"
Group 7 Admin 01: "Then why not try going in around noon from now on?"
[Harvester]: "Bro, last time you told me to go home and work out, but my wife keeps demanding her conjugal rights. How am I supposed to get any training done?"
Group 7 Admin 01: "Then buy her a tape measure and tell her to show some restraint?"
[Medicine Pounder]: "Admin, save me! Last time I went into an instance, I ate a pill called a Seven Emotions Pill remnant, the one for rage. Now I'm irritable every day. I feel like if I'm pushed too far, I could do anything."
Zhang Anzai really wanted to tell him that if he had that much pent-up energy, he should buy a few sets of advanced math problems and work through them. But there was no helping it. At least this was finally a real problem he could solve.
"That means the pill was either poison to begin with or its medicinal effects haven't worn off. You could find an old doctor of traditional Chinese medicine in the real world and get checked out.
"Many pills in the Reflected World actually fall within the traditional practice of making medicine with Chinese herbs. They can be treated and regulated with herbal remedies. If that doesn't work, look on the forum to see if anyone's selling pills that can neutralize the poison or counteract the effects.
"But whatever you do, be careful. I haven't come across many pills that directly affect people's emotions."
After sending that reply, Zhang Anzai returned to the forum homepage.
He'd been fairly active on the forum and had worked at the company for nearly a month, so he was probably somewhat well-known among the players.
He had plenty of experience and knowledge, and every now and then he could crack a joke to ease the pressure of exploring instances.
Still, spending all day on the forum wasn't a good idea. For one thing, every forum had its share of bored trolls.
Lately, more players had gotten to know him, and a lot of weird stuff had started showing up in his private messages.
He could understand people who were still useless despite trying hard, but what was he supposed to do about someone whose growth was being held back because his wife demanded too much in bed?
Zhang Anzai was furious at the bastard who was showing off his love life on a game forum.
Luckily, this job was practically relaxing for him at the moment.
Zhang Anzai could even browse his phone while typing replies to forum messages.
That was right: it was the effect of his Dexterous talent.
At first, he'd thought it was simply the ability to draw a square with one hand and a circle with the other, like ambidextrous swordplay. But thinking about it more carefully, the point of that swordplay wasn't just drawing shapes. It was being able to run two sword forms at once—a single-core, dual-thread approach.
At any rate, he could now handle two fairly delicate tasks at the same time, and his work efficiency was astonishing.
Group 7 Admin 01: "Is Dexterous a rare talent? I spoke with the Fate Controller, and it seems pretty powerful."
Player Profile: Cheng Ye: "It's rare. From what I've found so far, this talent is among the best of the D-rank talents. It's a wisdom-type talent that only people with high intelligence are likely to acquire.
"There should be a few case studies in the file I sent you. Take a look."
Cheng Ye's account was as concise and efficient as he was in person. What was especially rare was that, despite being a junior manager, he hadn't listed his position on his account.
Zhang Anzai's team leader, for example, had specifically put "Head of Group 7, Administrator Department" in his nickname.
The reason they were discussing this was simple: Zhang Anzai and Cheng Ye had officially agreed to work together.
He hadn't expected the guy to be even more cautious than he was, though that might also have been the kind of high standards advanced researchers set for themselves.
Cheng Ye hadn't randomly approached administrators to work with them. Instead, he'd chosen to test things out with Zhang Anzai first. After that, he'd either get involved himself or have Zhang Anzai specifically seek out administrators with highly talented players under their supervision.
He said that players with a poor foundation trained their talents too slowly. Researching them as case studies would take too long; they might go through several instances without producing even one result, and even if they did, it might just be an exception.
Zhang Anzai had to admit, he agreed with that.
After looking through the files Cheng Ye had sent, he'd confirmed that while the instance environment allowed players to grow beyond their normal limits, cultivating a talent was genuinely no easy feat.
"[Dexterous] (D) is classified as a wisdom-enhancement talent, despite its description of strengthening the hands. Its effect is basically equivalent to doing two things at once. Players with this talent can perform two precision tasks simultaneously and remain focused for extended periods.
"Since it's only D-rank, it has its flaws. When switching from one task to another, the quality of the first task is also affected. Put simply, the player still doesn't have enough mental energy. There may be an undiscovered higher-tier advancement."
"Case study: Player [Heavenly Oversight Bureau] once used one hand to solve a complex door mechanism similar to a Kongming lock or a Rubik's Cube in the instance [Dynasty: Heaven-Reaching Tower].
"With the other hand, he used a repeating crossbow to take precise aim and shoot the joints and drive cores of twenty-six humanoid mechanical puppets, disabling them.
"Suspected conditions: Maintaining divided attention while performing two manual tasks that require complex adjustments, as well as remaining focused on those tasks for more than half an hour."
The other case studies were much the same. They all involved highly intelligent players with astonishing control.
And this was only a D-rank talent, yet it was already so difficult to obtain. Even if Dexterous was among the best of the D-rank talents, it was still only D-rank. Higher-tier talents certainly wouldn't be any easier to acquire.
Even if there were clear instructions, asking ordinary players to try meeting these conditions in instances full of danger really was asking too much of them.
"Of course, Section Chief Cheng has certified that I'm highly intelligent, so I can afford to hold myself to a higher standard."
Thinking this, Zhang Anzai studied the files carefully.
Cheng Ye really was capable. So far, he'd sent over only D-rank talents and a few C-rank ones, but there were already over a thousand in total—an astonishing variety.
For example, there were the talents Zhang Anzai had started with:
[Literati]: "Spend an extended period doing work involving writing or language, such as organizing ancient texts or solving arguments through debate, and achieve a certain level of success. Once acquired, this talent strengthens logical thinking, sensitivity to language, and eloquence."
[Indefatigable]: "Undergo at least three days of strenuous or complicated work (within an instance; in the real world, this must last at least half a year) without experiencing emotional fluctuations severe enough to cause mental illness.
"Its actual effect is that, even under intense psychological pressure such as extreme fear, the player will experience no physical response that interferes with activity or work."
Or:
"[Weightless Strength] (D): Carry something weighing at least 30% of your body weight and remain active as usual for more than a day. (The heavier the load, the shorter the required time, but your activity must not be significantly impaired.)
"Once acquired, your carrying capacity far exceeds physiological limits, and you receive an overall boost when carrying nothing."
"[Well-Read] (D): Read 500 books in the real world or 100 academic documents, fragments, or ancient texts in an instance, and thoroughly understand most of their contents.
"Gain the ability to apply knowledge and techniques from most fields to one another, with a chance of deciphering the meaning of unfamiliar writing."
As a high-level player who at least had a powerful talent, Zhang Anzai was now choosing which talent he wanted to try to acquire the next time he entered an instance.
Before you continue