Testing Strength

Wu Heng remained where he was as the Tower Seal projected a line of information:

[Current strength assessment: Tier 1 Intermediate. Upload to personal profile?]

Wu Heng selected "No," then gathered his strength slightly to execute a set of Chen-style Unrestricted Combat, continuing to check the assessment information:

[Current strength assessment: Tier 1 Intermediate. Upload to personal profile?]

The assessment information had not changed; it seemed the system had defaulted his comprehensive physical fitness rating to Tier 1 Intermediate.

Wu Heng took out the pistol he had seized from the raspy-voiced middle-aged man and fired a shot, but the assessment still did not change.

Just as he was preparing to upload his strength assessment to leave and was putting the pistol back into his personal space, he suddenly caught sight of the alloy briefcase and the Ice Crystal Ball resting inside.

The crystal ball remained unchanged in his hand, so Wu Heng picked up the briefcase, which had already been punctured by the Lesser Demon.

[Current strength assessment: Tier 1 Advanced. Upload to personal profile?]

"No."

Wu Heng was somewhat surprised that his assessment would increase while holding the briefcase, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt it was somewhat reasonable.

After all, something like a pistol did not pose much of a threat to him now.

Unless a dozen people fired at him simultaneously while he lacked blood reserves and cover, it would be difficult to break his limbs or pin him down.

According to the manual, anyone who reaches Tier 1 has already surpassed the limits of an ordinary human body, so a single pistol could not constitute much of a threat.

However, with Wu Heng's physical fitness, wielding the briefcase like an iron hammer allowed him to block and smash; with blood for energy storage, he was practically an infinite-stamina human pile driver.

Wu Heng understood the issue, put the briefcase away, and the assessment dropped back to Tier 1 Intermediate.

"Upload."

[Upload successful. Personal profile template updated.]

The Tower Seal projected a set of personal information:

Lighthouse ID: SL914

Identity: Tower Guardian

Strength: Tier 1 Intermediate

Survival Points: 7597.

"Return."

The environment around Wu Heng shifted, and he returned to his Lighthouse space. Since the Testing Room cost survival points every minute, he had kept the session under a minute.

Wu Heng sat on the sofa and checked his clothes; not a speck of dust had followed him back.

He began to review the two messages the Tower Seal had just transmitted.

[Strength reached Tier 1. Unlocked permission for advance notification of Lighthouse plot worlds.]

[Next plot world: The Screaming Skull. Countdown: 29 days, 17 hours, 23 minutes (Refreshable).]

Wu Heng frowned. Although he had spent his previous life staying home watching movies, he had never seen this one, and he didn't know if it was something he had missed or if the movie didn't exist at all.

If the movie truly didn't exist in his previous life, it proved that things were already heading in an unpredictable direction.

Wu Heng tried tapping "Refresh."

[Consume 500 points to refresh the plot world?]

"Yes."

The information before Wu Heng's eyes changed instantly:

[Refresh successful. Next plot world: Tumbbad (Refreshable).]

The plot world refreshed this time made Wu Heng heave a sigh of relief, as he had seen the movie. This confirmed his speculation that the plot worlds in the Lighthouse space were all horror movies from his previous life, or at least most of them were.

From Hellraiser 1, the Paper Person Tower Master's BGM, to The First Commandment and Old Corpse of the Mountain Village mentioned in the intelligence, it was all evident.

Wu Heng continued to explore the "Appraisal" function of the Lighthouse. He took out the alloy briefcase and touched the Tower Seal to select appraisal.

"The cost for this appraisal is 1 survival point. Confirm?"

"Confirm."

[Damaged alloy briefcase, originating from the Hellraiser 1 world. The main body is crafted from TA titanium alloy, weighing 10KG.]

Wu Heng tried the Ice Crystal Ball again, but the prompt indicated it would cost 940 survival points. He chose to decline, as he already knew what it was, and appraisal was only useful for internal trading within the Lighthouse.

After studying these items in the Lighthouse, he returned to his room in reality and took out his phone to photograph a century-old ginseng.

The camera quality on this phone is too blurry. Looks like I need to get a new one.

It took a great deal of effort to snap three photos that looked decent enough.

Although he still had the one million from the old man in the villa in his personal space, Wu Heng planned to take care of everything at once when he went out to sell the ginseng.

Wu Heng opened an app called "Omniscient Browser," but before he could do anything, the page automatically redirected to an art website from his last browsing history.

He glanced at it, but he was in no mood to pay attention to such things now. He closed the page directly and began searching for forums related to ginseng trading, then posted the photos he had taken, claiming they were left behind by his grandfather, and asked for a price.

Next was waiting for a buyer to take the bait. Wu Heng continued to browse the news of this world.

The technological level of Deep Blue Star is similar to that of my previous life, but its history has taken a different path.

The Red Moon Federation where he resides has been unified for over five hundred years and stands as the most powerful nation in this world.

Wu Heng tapped on the Moon Ring News Network once more to check the headlines:

"Seven renowned physicists from the Red Moon Academy of Sciences have gone insane one after another and been admitted to psychiatric hospitals."

"Police report on the major, bizarre homicide case in Linyu: 47 dead, 0 injured; the perpetrator has mysteriously vanished."

"300-meter tower erected at the peak of the Sennan Ecological Zone; the entire internet calls for its demolition, condemning the destruction of the environment."

"Heshan District in Baipo City has been cordoned off; suspected discovery of an unknown influenza virus."

"Chemical spill from a transport vehicle carrying hazardous materials in Chongyu City has resulted in thousands of casualties; emergency rescue operations are currently underway."

While these news items might appear normal, the frequency of these incidents and the scale of the casualties are undeniably too high.

Wu Heng couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. At the very least, he knew there must be many Tower Guardians within the Lighthouses in this world. However, lacking sufficient strength, he had to remain in the shadows, gather more information, and carefully plan his next move.

Wu Heng didn't dare use his phone to search for terms related to Lighthouses or Tower Guardians. He had heard that certain search histories were monitored, and who knew if a single search might expose him.

Wu Heng continued to browse the news to learn more about this world, and before he knew it, it was 9:00 PM.

The sound of the front door opening echoed from the living room, interrupting his browsing.

Click! The main light in the living room was switched on, and the white light pierced through the gap under the bedroom door.

It must be Mother coming home at this hour! This thought surged into Wu Heng's mind.

His heart felt inexplicably tense.

"Hengzi, come out and eat. The factory had some overtime today, so it's a bit late. I bought you some egg fried rice."

The slightly weary voice of his mother, Yang Huifen, rang out.

The sound of running water and chopsticks being washed drifted in from outside.

"Got it, Mom."

After hearing her voice, Wu Heng replied instinctively, then paused in surprise.

He felt no sense of distance or unfamiliarity with this word "Mom," as if it were meant to be this way.

Wu Heng had originally been wondering how he would face this family he had suddenly acquired.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed his restless heart.

Wu Heng put down his phone, put on the trench coat hanging on the rack to conceal his muscular build, and pushed the door open to walk out.

In front of the sofa in the living room sat a rectangular table with a black top and red edges, upon which two plastic bags of fried rice were placed.

Wu Heng walked over, scanned the room, and spotted his mother, Yang Huifen, washing bowls and chopsticks in the kitchen.

"Why are you out so early today? Usually—"

Hearing the movement, his mother, Yang Huifen, turned her head in surprise to look at Wu Heng.

Would you be willing to trade your collection, monthly tickets, or recommendation votes for two teacups from me?