The Cheat Was Hers

Sis System, how did your further investigation go? Any conclusions?

System: [Please wait.]

The system worked hard, and Ming Jiu could even hear the crackle of electric current.

While she waited, Ming Jiu did not sit idle. She dug her crafting-table storage box out of her inventory slots, rummaged through it for a sewing kit, and waited until the system's voice sounded in her mind again.

[Host, scan failed. At present, I can only confirm that the spatial device came from another advanced civilization.]

[Host may try other methods yourself.]

Ming Jiu did not hesitate. She picked up a needle, pricked her finger, and squeezed out several drops of blood.

The blood vanished the instant it landed on the little mountain ornament.

Ming Jiu's eyes widened as she continued squeezing out blood.

This method actually works! I knew all those novels couldn't have been completely made up!

The system ignored her. The crackling electrical noise never stopped.

Come to think of it, why had the novel she read after her death never explained exactly how Zuo Junhao obtained the space?

More than a dozen drops of blood fell. Ming Jiu even switched fingers midway and pricked another one for more blood. The jade mountain carving was like a dry sponge, absorbing every drop that fell onto it.

Just as Ming Jiu considered slicing herself open to draw more blood, the final drop slid off the jade. Her vision suddenly went black, and it felt as though something had been forcibly shoved into her mind. Her head split with pain.

She immediately threw away the needle. Her hands clutched her head uncontrollably, and her legs gave out beneath her as she collapsed onto the bathroom floor. As the world spun, she heard the system's repeated warnings.

[Warning: Host is establishing a link with unknown energy!]

[Warning: Unknown energy intrusion!]

[Warning: Host's Mental Domain is being invaded by unknown energy!]

[Warning: Please remain conscious, Host. Your Mental Domain is expanding. You must remain conscious!]

Ming Jiu bit down hard on the inside of her lip. Within seconds, her mouth was full of the taste of rust.

It felt as though a massive bell inside her head was being struck without pause. The severe pain sent waves of darkness across her vision.

The system's voice became intermittent, but it continued reminding her without pause.

[Hold on a little longer, Host. Haven't you always wanted superpowers?]

[The stronger your Mental Domain, the higher the possibility of awakening a superpower.]

[In the future, you will live better than anyone else. Please remain conscious, Host.]

The entire process was not long, at most five minutes.

The "bell" stopped. Ming Jiu had curled up in the corner of the bathroom, and cold sweat had nearly soaked through her clothes.

Her head still throbbed from time to time. The moment Ming Jiu relaxed slightly, another aftershock hit. She grimaced, and the wound on her lip flared up viciously again.

For a moment, she did not even know where to cover first.

System: [Considering the Host's schedule and plans for the next half month, I recommend purchasing a mental power soothing potion.]

Ming Jiu barely recovered enough to respond through the pain. Will the headache last long?

Every gold coin was precious. She did not want to waste any.

[Yes. The side effects of forcibly expanding the Mental Domain will last around one month. Symptoms include, but are not limited to—frequent migraines, dizziness, blurred vision, palpitations, anxiety...]

Ming Jiu surrendered decisively. How much?

[Two thousand gold coins per vial.]

Will one vial cure it completely?

System: [It can alleviate eighty percent of the symptoms.]

That was well worth it.

Over the next half month, she needed to prepare a safe house and stockpile supplies. She could not afford to waste a single second.

Buy it.

A pop-up appeared before her. After Ming Jiu confirmed the purchase, only a little over fourteen thousand gold coins remained in her system account. In her hand appeared a silver metal vial the length of a finger.

Ming Jiu opened the cap. Inside the metal was another transparent layer that looked very much like glass. Without hesitation, she poured every last drop of the potion into her mouth.

The potion itself was tasteless. In less than half a minute, strength returned to her weak, aching limbs. Ming Jiu carefully put the vial into an inventory slot—both the outer metal and the inner "glass" were scarce materials.

The metal from half a vial could be used to modify a sharp, durable dagger. It would save her quite a few gold coins, so she could not waste it.

So, am I bound to the space now?

The system gave an affirmative answer.

[According to the scan, the Host's Mental Domain has expanded by nearly one-third. Your mental power has yet to recover; its strength and total amount are unknown.]

[Other than the system, there is now an additional link in the Host's Mental Domain. The system lacks authorization and cannot scan the unknown link.]

Before Ming Jiu could ask what a Mental Domain was, she braced herself against the sink and stood up. She pressed one hand against the jade mountain and silently chanted, Space.

However, nothing happened.

System: [...Host, please do not place too much faith in Blue Star online novels. The jade ornament has already lost its function. Please try sensing your Mental Domain and activate the mental link.]

Upon hearing that the jade ornament had lost its function, Ming Jiu immediately raised her hand and put it into an empty inventory slot. This time, it worked.

Another half hour passed. Sitting on the toilet, Ming Jiu finally stumbled her way into "finding" the mysterious and intangible Mental Domain under the system's guidance.

She really did see two links. One of them was familiar: the link between herself and the system. She did not know how to describe it, but it was extremely close and familiar.

The other came from the space. Ming Jiu tried to sense it, to touch it, and she succeeded. After a faint vibration, like the sound of a phone receiving a message, a clear image appeared before her tightly shut eyes.

The image flashed past in an instant, but she saw a hillside, a vast stretch of grassland, and a clear river winding through the middle of the grass.

This was the space? Zuo Junhao's cheat?!

It seemed different from how the novel described it. When Zuo Junhao opened the space, there had been nothing inside but emptiness. Its only function was storage.

More importantly, the space had never separated from its jade vessel while Zuo Junhao used it. He had been forced to carry the ornament with him at all times.

And what was going on with her mental power?

Come to think of it, should she secretly put the jade ornament back?

In an instant, countless questions and guesses flashed through Ming Jiu's mind. Perhaps because she had used too much mental power, coupled with her long lack of rest, her thoughts felt somewhat sluggish.

[Perhaps it is because Zuo Junhao's connection to the space was not as close as the Host's.]

Ming Jiu asked, Is it because I gave it enough blood?

The system fell silent for several seconds.

[I believe no one would begrudge a little venous blood when faced with a space.]

Ming Jiu nodded—true enough.

Because his mental power wasn't strong enough?

[Correct.]

Then what about me? What's going on with my mental power? What is a Mental Domain? Does this mean I have a psychic-type superpower now?