As soon as the voice fell, a large wheel suddenly appeared in the void. There were no radiant beams of light or breathtaking visions—just an ordinary circular wheel divided into five sections. Twenty percent was a blank, 20% returned Source Points, 50% awarded an item worth twice as much, 5% awarded an item worth three times as much, and 5% awarded an unknown item.
Lin Maoxian looked at the wheel and couldn't help feeling a little frustrated. From the name Lucky Wheel, he'd thought he was guaranteed to get something good. He hadn't expected at least 40% of the outcomes to offer no benefit. And he still didn't know what the unknown item was. All in all, his chances of getting something good were only about fifty-fifty.
"Adventurers can start and stop the wheel by silently thinking the words."
"Start."
The moment Lin Maoxian spoke, the wheel spun rapidly. He couldn't make out what was on it with the naked eye. He'd hoped he might be able to see where it landed, but that plan had fallen through. He could only say, "Stop."
There was no slow-motion sequence. The wheel stopped as soon as Lin Maoxian's voice fell. He stared at it, eyes wide. It had landed in the 50% section.
"Great!" Lin Maoxian shouted happily.
"Adventurer has received a double reward. Randomly drawing item... Adventurer has obtained A-rank skill Copper Skin Iron Bone."
"Adventurer has three minutes remaining. After the time is up, Adventurer will be teleported back to Private Space. Please select the remaining rewards as soon as possible."
"Uh..." So there was a time limit, too. After receiving a skill, Lin Maoxian knew what he wanted to choose. The Space had mentioned several times that he didn't have enough Contribution Points, and he'd wanted to choose those for a while. But he didn't have any skills at all, so he'd been torn between the two options.
"Select reward four."
"Adventurer has received 5 Contribution Points. Adventurer will be teleported back to Private Space. Teleporting..."
When Lin Maoxian opened his eyes, he found himself back in his villa. Unsure what was going on, he cautiously asked, "Space, am I back in the real world?"
"Adventurer is currently in the Private Space within the Space. The current room arrangement matches Adventurer's real-world residence. If Adventurer is dissatisfied, contact the Space to make changes."
"No need to change anything. I want to ask what I can do with my Contribution Points." Lin Maoxian was quite pleased with the Space's arrangement, but he had more important matters on his mind, so he asked the Space for information.
"Adventurer currently has 14 Contribution Points. You can upgrade your clearance level in the Hall of Glory. You currently qualify for ninth-grade clearance."
"Hall of Glory? How do I go there to upgrade?"
"Adventurer need only think of teleporting, and the Space will send Adventurer to the Hall of Glory."
"That's convenient. Then teleport me right away."
"Teleporting..."
With a whoosh, Lin Maoxian appeared in a hall. This time he didn't pass out; it felt as if he'd simply opened and closed his eyes. The Hall of Glory was enormous, probably several hundred square meters, and seemed completely empty. There wasn't another person in sight. A ball of white light floated above the center of the hall. Lin Maoxian looked at it, then walked toward it.
When he was just over a meter from the light, the Space announced, "No. 258 currently has 14 Contribution Points and qualifies for ninth-grade clearance. Upgrade?"
"Upgrade!" Lin Maoxian said at once. This was exactly why he'd come.
"No. 258's clearance has been upgraded successfully. Current clearance: ninth grade. The next upgrade, to eighth grade, requires 20 Contribution Points. Adventurer, please keep working hard."
"Effects of ninth-grade clearance: purchases from the Space Shop are 5% off; you can learn the world of your next adventure five minutes in advance; you receive one cubic meter of Storage Space, in which living things may not be stored; and some information about the Space is unlocked."
Lin Maoxian looked over the effects of his upgraded clearance. Not bad. It wouldn't directly increase his strength, but cheaper purchases would help indirectly. Most importantly, he'd unlocked Storage Space. He wouldn't need to carry bags of stuff around anymore; he could just toss everything into the Space. How convenient. He could also learn about his next adventure in advance. As his clearance rose, he'd probably get even more warning, letting him prepare accordingly. There were also a few things he could ask about now.
"Space, I want to know what this Space is, what its purpose is, and who created it."
"This Space is called the Origin Space. Its purpose is to strengthen Adventurers' evolution. Your Contribution Points are insufficient to answer the remaining questions."
"Then how can I leave the Space?" Lin Maoxian asked, voicing a question he'd wanted answered for a long time. After all, nobody liked being controlled, even if the reins were fairly loose.
"After completing one world, Adventurer may return to the real world for seven days. After seven days, Adventurer must return to the Space and continue the next world's mission. For now, Adventurer may not reveal any information about the Space to anyone in the real world, by any means. Violators will be severely punished."
"I mean, how do I leave the Space permanently?"
"Insufficient Contribution Points. No answer."
"Damn, there it is again—insufficient Contribution Points. Looks like I'll have to stick around here for a while. Still, this is exactly the kind of life I want." Lin Maoxian wasn't particularly concerned about how to leave the Space. Being able to adventure through different worlds felt like a stroke of luck he'd earned through several lifetimes' worth of good deeds.
"How can I increase my character's attributes?"
"Adventurer can increase character attributes in the attribute enhancement area of the Hall of Enhancement."
"Fine. Send me there."
"The Hall of Enhancement is to the left of the Hall of Glory. Please go there on your own."
"There's no door. How am I supposed to get there?" Lin Maoxian looked around the empty hall. There were no doors at all, just walls in every direction.
"Adventurer need only think 'leave the Hall of Glory.'"
"Damn, what a hassle. Why not just teleport me there directly? Leave." Lin Maoxian grumbled, but still thought the word.
The instant Lin Maoxian left the Hall of Glory, he appeared outside. He looked around. It was a huge plaza, with a mirror floating at its center—the exact same kind of mirror that had sucked him in before. The Hall of Glory was due south of the mirror, so the Hall of Enhancement must be to the west. "Space, what are the north and east sides of the mirror for? And what is this mirror?" Lin Maoxian asked, on the off chance he'd get an answer to that last question.
"The north side is an area for Adventurers. It has a Battle Arena, where Adventurers will suffer no injuries anywhere in the Space except while on the arena. Adventurers may also set up their own markets there, free of charge. Please explore the other functions on your own."
"Adventurer's clearance is insufficient. No answer to the remaining questions."
Lin Maoxian had already suspected as much, so he didn't mind not getting an answer to the last question. At least he now understood a little more about the Space.
The entire plaza was empty. Lin Maoxian got his bearings and headed toward the Hall of Enhancement.
When he entered the Hall of Enhancement, he found that there were already people inside—and more than one. Lin Maoxian saw three of them: one standing by the area marked Space Shop, another by Equipment Enhancement, and the last by Skill Enhancement. Since everyone's appearance had been specially altered, he couldn't tell what they looked like.
As Lin Maoxian looked at them, the three noticed someone had entered and glanced his way. Then they paid him no further attention and went back to what they were doing.
Lin Maoxian waited by the entrance for a while. Seeing that none of the three seemed ready to leave, he headed for the character enhancement area. He'd originally wanted to check out the A-rank skill first, but in this unfamiliar place, it seemed best to keep some things to himself and not do it in front of others.
As soon as Lin Maoxian entered the character enhancement area, the Space informed him that no one else could see the enhancements there, and that everyone had their own enhancement space, so there'd be no crowding. Each attribute point from 1–10 cost 300 Source Points; each point from 11–25 cost 500 Source Points; and each point from 25–50 cost 1,000 Source Points. The Space gave no information about higher values.
Lin Maoxian checked his character panel: Strength: 6, Agility: 8, Stamina: 5, Intelligence: 5, Charisma: 6, Perception: 7, Willpower: 7. There was a +2 after Strength, obviously from the ring. However, equipment didn't count toward a character's base attributes.
After thinking it over, Lin Maoxian decided he'd still like to see what the A-rank skill was like before making a decision.
When he left the character enhancement area, he saw that the other three had gone. Two newcomers had arrived and were by the system shop. He ignored them and went straight to Skill Enhancement.
As soon as he entered, the Space informed him that he hadn't unlocked a skill slot yet, and that opening one would cost 500 Source Points. Each additional skill slot would cost the same amount. Lin Maoxian's first thought was that he'd run into a swindler, charging him even for this. But the Space wasn't just an ordinary swindler—it had a monopoly—so he had no choice but to pay and open a skill slot.
Before you continue