The Importance of Washing Your Face Before a Draw

By the time the library closed at 10 p.m., he had finished all four books: one copy of Higher Algebra, one copy of C Language Explained, Fifth Edition, and two others.

As he left the library, Lu Zhou glanced at the task bar. Seeing that only nine hours remained, he could not help letting out a soft sigh.

Fifteen hours had passed before he knew it. It was the first time he had felt time pass so quickly while reading reference books.

After studying for an entire day, he discovered something. Whenever he finished reading a book, not only did that book's value coefficient drop to single digits, but other reference books with similar knowledge points also saw their value coefficients decrease to varying degrees. Conversely, books whose value coefficients had originally been pitifully low, or even zero, had all improved in quality to different extents.

For example, that copy of Dieudonné's Foundations of Modern Analysis had initially had a value coefficient of only 10, but it had now become 30—a full three times as much.

On his way back to the dormitory, Lu Zhou could not help wondering what exactly would happen to him if the system's mathematics level changed from LV0 to LV1.

Would he become omniscient?

Would he be able to solve any problem the instant he saw it?

Or would it stuff all the knowledge he had never even heard of into his brain at once, turning him into a mathematical giant on Chen Jingrun's level?

Rather than feeling excited at the thought, Lu Zhou felt somewhat uneasy.

The human brain had limits. It was like holding a 1TB hard drive—you could not possibly cram 2TB of data into it. If the system forcibly accomplished that, he was instead worried that his brain would explode first.

Of course, Lu Zhou knew that worrying about it was completely pointless.

Only the system itself knew what he would become.

The answer would be revealed tomorrow anyway. Right now, he only wanted a good night's sleep and to let his overheated brain relax...

[Congratulations, Host, on completing the task. As a first-task completion reward, you have received one additional draw opportunity.]

[Task completion details: During idle time, you read New Lectures on Mathematical Analysis, value coefficient 100; Higher Mathematics, Tu Boyun Edition, value coefficient 100; C Language Explained, Fifth Edition, value coefficient 100; <Nikolsky's Mathematical Analysis, Translated Edition>, value coefficient 57; Detailed Solutions to CET-4 Past Papers, value coefficient 0. Total value coefficient excavated: 357. Rating: B+]

[Task rewards: 500 Mathematics EXP, 100 Informatics EXP, 100 points, one draw opportunity (90% junk, 9% sample, 1% blueprint).]

After another day of grinding through books, Lu Zhou had finally completed his idle task.

Congratulations, congratulations.

After leaving the library, Lu Zhou suppressed his excitement and found a blind corner beside the pitch-black outdoor basketball court, where the cameras could not reach. After confirming that no one was around, he took a deep breath and opened his status panel.

Black Technology System:

Host: Lu Zhou

Core Sciences:

A. Mathematics: LV0 (500/1000)

B. Physics: LV0 (0/1000)

C. Biochemistry: LV0 (0/1000)

D. Engineering: LV0 (0/1000)

E. Materials Science: LV0 (0/1000)

F. Energy Science: LV0 (0/1000)

G. Informatics: LV0 (100/1000)

Branch Technologies: None

Technical Blueprints: None

Points: 100 (two draw opportunities)

Task: Unclaimed

Although Lu Zhou was somewhat disappointed that he had not leveled up, the moment he saw the two draw opportunities sitting there, all thoughts of complaint vanished.

What kind of good stuff could the Black Technology System draw?

He was looking forward to it!

The two draw opportunities had different drop rates. In particular, the draw awarded for completing his first task was marked as having a 75% chance of junk, a 19% chance of a sample, and a 5% chance of a blueprint.

As for what a sample was, Lu Zhou had no idea. But judging by this system's usual style, it could not possibly be something like a toy car or a little water gun. At the very least, it had to have something to do with black technology, enough to distinguish it from "junk."

Of course, he hoped his luck would only be a little bad. It had better not be too bad and give him a Star Destroyer. Never mind that he had nowhere to park it—even if he did, he would not know what to use the thing for.

He could not exactly use it to swat mosquitoes, could he?

Back to business. Time to draw.

He would start with the task reward draw, the one with the lowest drop rate!

"I draw!"

A roulette wheel appeared before him. Lu Zhou could not make out the words written on it, only vague patches of color.

Holding his breath, he stared fixedly at the wheel, trying to follow the spinning pointer's trajectory.

Then, inspiration flashed through his mind. Following that mystical instinct, he shouted loudly.

"Stop for me!"

The pointer spun several more times from inertia before finally slowing to a stop.

[Congratulations, you have drawn junk.]

[You have received one bottle of cola. Please do not lose heart. Keep up the good work.]

Holy crap, you OOOO!

Forget it, there was no use cursing this broken system. Business came first!

Looking at the [Cola (Junk)] note after his points, the furious Lu Zhou swiftly left the system space. After confirming once again that no one was nearby, he stared at his hand and muttered in his heart as though he were constipated.

Cola, cola, cola, cola, cola...

Duang—

Without any warning, Lu Zhou's vision blurred, and a can of cola appeared in his hand.

The next instant, his expression became indescribably strange.

Holy crap?

He felt that his worldview had taken a blow. The law of conservation of mass was facing an unprecedented challenge.

How could the existence of this can of cola be explained using existing scientific principles?

Lu Zhou did not know.

Perhaps only black technology beyond LV10 could explain it.

In any case, upon seeing this can of cola, he was finally certain that the system was not something he had imagined. It truly existed and could interfere with the material world from the depths of his consciousness.

He temporarily put those random thoughts aside.

Pulling open the ring tab, Lu Zhou tilted back his head and took a huge gulp, then let out a long breath.

"Ha—!"

Though the system had rated it as junk, the taste was truly impeccable. Even Lu Zhou, who was not particularly fond of carbonated drinks, licked his lips with lingering satisfaction.

"Future? Is there a cola brand like that? Forget it, whatever."

Lu Zhou shook his head and tossed the can into a trash bin by the roadside.

He had checked it over and over again. It was just an ordinary aluminum can. Aside from its miraculous effect of making one feel refreshed, there was not the slightest trace of black technology about it. Even its design and packaging were filled with a "retro nostalgic" style.

The recycling station would be its only destination.

After washing his face at the sink beside the basketball court, Lu Zhou returned to the shadows and sat down, entering the system space once more.

Facing this final draw opportunity, Lu Zhou took a deep breath. Like a gambler with bloodshot eyes, he pressed it without hesitation.

"I draw!"

"Stop for me!"

The pointer began to slow, and Lu Zhou's heart rose into his throat.

The pointer stopped, and Lu Zhou's heartbeat seemed to stop with it.

[Congratulations, you have drawn a blueprint!]

Lu Zhou was overjoyed. Sure enough, washing his face made all the difference!

He had hit a five-percent chance! He had gone from terrible luck to European luck for real!

[You have received the blueprint—Precise Formula for the Distribution Law of Mersenne Primes and Its Proof Method.]

Lu Zhou froze.

WTF???