A Bountiful Harvest

He continued looking downward in disbelief, only to discover that the [Large Structures] category contained not only the pirates' former flagship and the coastal artillery batteries on Scarlet Lantern Island, but even colossal wonders like the Ring Tower and the Wall of Despair.

Only then did he understand what 200% memory manifestation access truly meant...

Of course, the exchange prices for these large structures were all astronomical. Even the cheapest "cannon" cost more than 5,000 points.

Xia Lun blinked, then looked at the notes.

[Note: Items manifested through memories will appear in your personal dream space. Based on your wishes, these items can be taken out during the game at any time, much like a spatial bag.]

[Warning: Your current personal dream space is not large enough to contain "Large Structures." If you wish to exchange for them, please use Memory Points to expand your personal dream space, or complete more game rounds.]

[Estimated cost to upgrade to a space capable of containing "Large Structures": 17,000 Memory Points!]

Seeing that shocking price, Xia Lun fell silent. He immediately gave up on spending any more and turned to the second mountain.

[Cold Weapons]

[Mosu Steel Short Sword "Night Plume" (Already Owned): An unassuming short sword crafted by a master. Though the sword appeared ordinary, it was in fact filled with ingenious design. Its balance, edge, and grip had all been carefully refined, making it a powerful symbol of practicality.]

[Memory Points Required: 500 points (Since you already own it, only 50 Memory Points are needed for manifestation.)]

Xia Lun considered it for a moment before making his decision.

—Manifesting items he already owned was clearly meaningful. It meant he could access weapons whenever he wanted, rather than being unarmed and at others' mercy like at the beginning of this scenario.

At the same time, storing weapons in his personal dream space might prove surprisingly useful in situations where weapons needed to be inspected.

With that thought, he immediately chose to manifest it.

"Buzz—"

Along with the cold hum of a blade, the outline of an illusory sword appeared in Xia Lun's hand. Then the surrounding darkness gathered like flowing water, transforming into the short sword he had used in the scenario.

He flicked his wrist and slashed forward. The cold hum instantly turned into a sharp whistle through the air, leaving what seemed like a silver arc hanging in midair.

"Night Plume. It does have a nice ring to it."

Xia Lun's index finger lightly brushed the cold spine of the blade. With a thought, the short sword turned back into nothingness and returned to the darkness around him.

"Now that I have a sword, it's time to look at guns."

As he thought, he looked toward the next mountain formed from phantom objects.

[Firearms]

Xia Lun's gaze swept rapidly over items such as "gunpowder barrel," "matchlock musket," and "fork-rest heavy musket," before settling on his target.

[Xia Lun's Single-Action Revolver (Already Owned): The revolver used by Xia Lun. This firearm was individually designed and manufactured by a gun design company. With its enormous caliber, reliable construction, and exquisite workmanship, it was a genuine masterpiece. At the same time, it was literally an expensive collector's item. More importantly, due to its long-term use by a sharpshooter, it seemed to have developed certain special traits over time...]

[Special Trait "Death Precision": Though it may be hard to believe, when this gun is aimed at an enemy's vital points, it truly allows its user to shoot more accurately.]

[Memory Points Required: 2,000 points (Since you already own this weapon and have used it for a long time, only 100 Memory Points are needed for manifestation. Includes 12 special large-caliber bullets.)]

[You may exchange for this weapon's specially made ammunition at the price of 1 Memory Point per bullet. No exchange limit.]

"Manifest." Xia Lun turned the thought over in his mind.

The next moment, the familiar revolver appeared in his hand.

His thumb rubbed over the familiar grip. Then Xia Lun spun the gun once, causing it to dissipate into nothingness.

"1,750 Memory Points left."

Xia Lun pondered for a moment, then spent another 300 Memory Points to purchase a [Gunpowder Barrel].

Although gunpowder barrels were expensive and limited to one purchase, their power was undoubtedly immense. If a gunpowder barrel were detonated at the right time and place, it could completely reverse the situation in an instant.

Xia Lun then looked toward the next category.

[Miscellaneous Items]

[Geliide's Pipe]

[Boatswain "Old Man's" Black Eyepatch]

[Records of the Civil War—An Examination of the Borlan Red Rose War]

[Accurate Star Chart]

[The Albowin Dramatic Works]

...

...

Xia Lun's gaze swiftly passed over the items, and he let out an almost imperceptible sigh.

—If used properly, the books among the miscellaneous items could make him a fortune in reality. After all, they were cultural treasures from another world.

But the problem was that his identity in the scenario was illiterate. Even if he exchanged for them, he would not be able to read them. Nor were there any language-related specialties among the exchangeable "specialty memories."

In other words, exchanging for those books would be no different from exchanging for waste paper.

"What a shame." Xia Lun shook his head and looked toward the second-to-last pile of items.

[Anomalous Items]

[Voidwood Box: A crudely made, strange box. Items placed within it can be brought into a scenario without undergoing memory manifestation. At the same time, the wooden box can shield against most forms of detection.]

[Detailed Classification: Paradox Item]

[Memory Points Required: 3,000 points (Since you already own this item, only 300 Memory Points are needed for manifestation)]

"The Voidwood Box saved my life this time," Xia Lun thought. "Without it, I probably would have died from suffocation caused by the illness."

The next moment, with a slight movement of thought, Xia Lun exchanged for the Voidwood Box.

He continued looking down. All the following information was an eye-searing crimson.

[Prayerbook of the Drowned: A sinister tome made of paper crafted from candle wax refined from drowned people's fat, written in the blood of corpses. To ordinary people, it is a book without words. But to those who have died and returned to life, as well as the mad, it is filled with blasphemous text. Between those crooked words are records of grotesque and insane secret arts.]

[Detailed Classification: Evil Flesh Codex!]

[Memory Points Required: 10,000 points! (Since this item has disappeared, you must pay the full Memory Point cost if you wish to manifest it again)]

[Note: If you look at it again, perhaps its contents will be different once more...]

"So expensive?" Xia Lun blinked in disbelief. "Uh, then again, this book really does justify that price. The power of Transcendent Regeneration is simply ridiculous."

Xia Lun's thoughts became active once more.

"Wait, perhaps I could try selling this book. Other players in reality might have a use for it. I wonder whether Memory Points can be gifted or traded. If they can, maybe I could make a profit from this..."

"No, no. This game has existed for nearly fifty years. The profits from such low-level speculation have probably long since been divided up. I can ask White Line, the intelligence dealer who sold me the game, about it."

He shook his head and suppressed those thoughts before continuing downward.

[Willow Effigy (Made by Geliide): A completely ordinary-looking doll that actually possesses special effects capable of enhancing its bearer's abilities. However, this enhancement can only be triggered after harsh specific conditions have been met.]

[Trigger Conditions: Unknown]

[Detailed Classification: Folk Ornament]

[Memory Points Required: 40 points]

"I'll buy it. Geliide made it, after all. I'll treat it as a keepsake." Xia Lun sighed, and a Willow Effigy appeared in his hand.

"I still have 1,410 Memory Points. My purchasing power should be decent." As he thought, he looked toward the final pile of items.

[Special Mechanism Items]

[Fantasy Casket: Spend 10 Memory Points to conduct a draw. The prize pool is not limited to the previous scenario, but includes all known worlds. Anything may be drawn, from poisonous feces to precious objects of fantasy.]

[Note: Anything is possible! This casket can only be manifested after receiving an A-rank or higher scenario rating, and may only be exchanged for once after each scenario!]

[We exist in an infinitely nested multidimensional temporal loop structure. Everything is dazzling, everything is bursting with life. Kaleidoscope, shattered prism! The past is the future, advancement is backwardness! Now, now, let us just take one at random, no refunds after purchase! Ya-ee-ee-ee, ah-ya-ya-ya-ya, draw a little flower, give it to Mommy—The ravings of a madman]

"Hey, I've always had good luck." Xia Lun's eyes lit up. "Time to draw a prize."

The next moment, as his Memory Points decreased, a wooden casket appeared out of thin air in his palm.

Compared to the battered Voidwood Box, this casket looked exquisitely crafted. The grain of the wood even seemed to give off the faint fragrance of cedar.

"It's time to witness my luck!"

Xia Lun set down the casket and rubbed his hands together expectantly.

A moment later, he took a deep breath, smiled, and opened the casket—inside was a ruined sextant.

[Damaged Sextant]

[Item Classification: Paradox Item]

[Item Effect: After equipping this item, the probability of being struck by stray bullets greatly increases, while the wearer suffers slight damage to intelligence.]

[Note: Good luck does not favor fools~]

"..."

What was this thing? Xia Lun's smile froze. It provided nothing but negative effects when equipped?

He carefully reread the item description and found that he had not misread it. Speechless, he placed the thing on the ground.

"On the bright side, it is still a paradox item." Xia Lun could not help mocking himself. "My luck isn't too bad..."

He shook his head and looked toward the final exchange under "Special Mechanisms."

[Information Panel Enhancement]

[Classification: None]

[Effect Description: Think the information panel is too vague? Now, a way to make the information panel clearer has appeared!]

[You may strengthen your information panel by investing Memory Points, allowing it to display attributes such as "Strength," "Agility," and "Constitution." It can also make the mental and physical conditions displayed by the information panel more specific and accurate. If you invest enough Memory Points, you may even see information about items and other people.]

[Memory Points Required: Variable. Maximum investment: 1,000 Memory Points.]

[Note: Can also be used outside the game]

Xia Lun blinked, then chose to exchange for it without hesitation!

[Memory Points have decreased.]

[Information Panel Enhancement has been exchanged!]

[Detecting attributes, upgrading panel...]

[Detection and upgrade will require 18 hours.]

"400 left. I can't possibly spend it all."

Xia Lun shook his head and summoned the list of learnable "specialty memories."

He looked for quite some time without finding any specialty memory worth recalling.

Most of the specialties possessed by the scenario's characters only stood at the beginner or basic level. Very few had reached proficiency, and there was not a single specialty at the mastery level.

Yet as he searched, Xia Lun suddenly furrowed his brow.

He had actually found a master-level specialty!

[Faulty Occult Knowledge (Mastery 2%)]

[Source: Mixed (Killing the bearded pirate Moen, the rotten-faced sailor Daolunte, "Mentor" Abyssal Hand, and your own identity)]

[Note: This is a complete set of occult theories that can neither be falsified nor proven. There may be correct elements within it, but most of it is forced interpretation and incoherent nonsense. Yet the mentor who invented this flawed occult system ultimately truly gained supernatural powers, transforming himself into Abyssal Hand.]

[Available Memories: 100/100]

[Memory Points Required: 2,000 points]

"Huh?" Xia Lun was stunned.

The amount of information in those words was so immense that Xia Lun froze for several seconds before slowly sorting it out in his mind.

"First, according to the notes, Monster's occult theory is completely wrong." He closed his eyes and muttered to himself. "But it gained real power from an incorrect occult theory... Was it simply lucky, or was there something else going on behind it?"

"Never mind that for now. I'll think it through carefully during the review later. There must be something wrong behind this."

"Second, judging from the source, the version of me in the scenario, the bearded pirate, the rotten-faced sailor, and the mentor all possessed this specialty. That means either this faulty occult theory was widely spread, or the four of us shared some special connection."

Xia Lun's brows drew tightly together. The next moment, he recalled something Monster had once said.

"'Even madness is betrayal. You should die with these stinking pirates!'"

"Could it be that my identity in the scenario, aside from being the whaling ship's navigator, also had some hidden identity? For example, perhaps I was Monster's occult apprentice?" Xia Lun scratched his head and guessed to himself. "Wait, that possibility actually seems... kind of likely..."

"If that guess is correct, then the normal course of the game should have been for me to, with Monster's help..."

"Forget it, there's no point overthinking it. I'll get some rest first, then review everything."

With that thought, Xia Lun stretched, turned around, and reached out to push the half-open wooden door.

[Scenario cooldown: 7 days]

"Creak."

The moment his hand touched the door, an intense sense of imbalance struck him again. Everything around him began to crack apart layer by layer, and in less than a few breaths, the scene before Xia Lun's eyes plunged back into darkness.

"Snap."

"Snap."

Familiar cold light shone through his eyelids and onto his retinas, dispersing the darkness before Xia Lun's eyes. He slowly opened them, grabbed the handrail beside the game pod, and sat up.

Xia Lun blinked and quietly felt the constriction of the blood vessels in his brain, along with the dizziness brought on by the sudden increase in blood flow.

"What a long experience," he muttered.

His voice echoed through the basement, lonely as a wandering shadow beneath a cold moon. But soon, it received a response.

"You have at most 2,159 hours remaining until your death," the mechanical announcer replied helpfully. "The current time is 1 a.m. on the 12th of Frostfall Moon."

Xia Lun stood and glanced at the clock on the wall.

It was still 1 a.m. The hour hand was in exactly the same position as when he had entered the game, and even the minute hand had not shifted in the slightest. Only the second hand had changed a little.

Although he had spent a full six days in the game, less than thirty seconds had passed in reality.

The second hand ticked along, its monotonous and rigid sound equally lonely.

Xia Lun stood where he was, quietly listening to the ticking of the second hand. After a long while, he suddenly shook his head, walked over to the mechanical announcer, and firmly pressed the power button.

His illness had been cured. He would never need that announcer again.

The Sword of Damocles that had always hung above his head had already shattered. He no longer needed to remain tense every day. Now, he was completely safe.

Though his heart was surging with excitement, Xia Lun somehow found himself unable to express it. Instead, a dreamlike sense of detachment welled up within him.

He stepped onto the dim staircase and slowly made his way upward.

"Thud, thud, thud..."

Xia Lun climbed step by step, his footsteps exceptionally clear amid the surrounding silence. He pushed open the door and entered the hallway on the first floor.

The corridor was empty. Cold silver moonlight streamed in through the windows. Xia Lun lightly drew a breath, then slowly walked toward the tall sliding glass doors.

It was winter. Outside lay a desolate, lifeless scene: withered old trees, dead vines covered in snow, and crows on the terrace opposite, all shrouded in dull, monotonous moonlight.

Perhaps having heard Xia Lun's footsteps, a crow suddenly spread its wings and took flight. It crossed the empty courtyard, the frost-covered artificial river, and the courtyard wall tangled with dead vines before disappearing into the night.

Xia Lun walked to the window and stopped.

A plain white snowflake drifted slowly down from the sky, landing on the gray brickwork and melting into a trace of dampness.

It was snowing.

Blinking, Xia Lun, who had survived the ordeal, looked up at the sky.

Countless snowflakes fluttered down. The long-silent cold wind suddenly rose as well, its chill seeping through the rattling windows and flooding into the corridor.

At that moment, something stirred in his heart, and he pushed open the window.

Whoosh!

The fierce cold wind suddenly slammed inside. Coarse ice crystals in the gale scraped across Xia Lun's face, making his skin sting, yet in that instant, he suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of being alive!

Silver moonlight, silver snow—Xia Lun laughed freely, his voice turning into silver mist.

"I'm still alive!" He clenched his fists, savoring the cold's piercing pain. "I'm still alive!"

The gale swept through the treetops, and the silver trees shuddered in layer after layer. Their rustling joined into one continuous sound, like the call of a newborn whale in the deep sea.

"Grrr..."

Suddenly, Xia Lun heard his stomach growl, and the near-frenzied elation vanished at once.

He was hungry. It was time to eat.