From Now On, You Are the Child of Calamity!

This was clearly a hint for clearing the next trial. By that logic, the Fool card was equivalent to the poison in the earlier trials: choosing it meant death.

Yet the hint from the previous trial had specifically said: [Do not choose who you wish to become. Choose who you are, or you will lose your humanity.]

In other words, he should not choose the ability he wanted most, but the card that best matched his identity...

And his identity was, of course, [Fool].

Mu You hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided to trust the hint and picked up the Fool card.

[The Fool? You actually chose the Fool? The Diviner stared at you in disbelief.]

[If you chose a card that did not match your identity, the figure in the card would kill you on the spot. Yet you're unharmed? Could it be... you're a Fool?!!]

Mu You's mouth twitched. So that was how it worked. Choosing a card that did not match your identity meant being killed by the figure inside it!

But since he had chosen the Fool and survived, hadn't he indirectly exposed his identity...?

[The female Diviner stared at you in terror, then hurriedly gathered the remaining cards on the table and fled. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.]

[You have passed the trial.]

"Huh?"

Mu You was baffled. What was that supposed to mean? Why had she suddenly run off?

Fine, she could run, but she could at least leave his reward behind!

Mu You didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He hurriedly made his character search the surrounding area, then lingered for a while, but no reward notification appeared.

"So there's no reward for this trial? Or is this card the reward?"

Mu You took out the Fool card and examined it, but found nothing special about it. It seemed to be an ordinary card.

"Whatever. Let's keep going..."

Mu You had no choice but to turn his attention back to the game.

[Following the crow, you arrive at the location of the fifth trial.]

[You glance around, only to find no bones anywhere nearby.]

[On the stone platform ahead, a massive balance scale blocks your path. Each pan holds treasures. You may choose some of them to take as your reward, but be warned: you may only choose treasures from one side!]

"No bones nearby?"

Mu You paused, immediately drawn to the second line.

No bones nearby meant everyone had died in the previous trial. No one had ever reached this place...

"Was the last trial really that hard?"

Mu You was puzzled. Everything about the previous trial had felt strange, and he himself had passed it without really understanding how.

Shaking his head, Mu You turned to the trial before him.

A balance scale, with rewards on both sides. He had to choose one side to take.

With the hint from the previous trial, the method for passing this one was clear: keep the scale balanced. In other words, whatever he took away, he had to replace with an equal amount.

Mu You first examined the rewards on both sides.

[The left pan holds a spell scroll.

Meteor Fall: Forbidden Spell-level black magic. Summons a world-destroying shower of meteors, dealing devastating blows to all living creatures around you except yourself, until the location you occupy is completely destroyed.]

[The right pan holds three items.

Midas Touch: High-tier black magic spell. When used on a creature of a lower level than you, instantly transforms it into a statue of pure gold!

Rejuvenation: Mid-tier black magic spell. Fixes your body's condition and appearance at a stage you have previously experienced, lasting 24 hours.

Little Fireball Spell: Low-tier black magic spell. Launches a small fireball forward.]

"Whoa, it's all black magic!"

Mu You swallowed. Especially the item in the left pan—a Forbidden Spell-level spell! Looking at its effects made it even more terrifying. Destroying an entire Earth with a wave of the hand—was this the legendary world-destroying magic?

That spell was far too unhinged. Mu You wanted no part of it and immediately turned to the other side.

The three spells on the right were much more reasonable. They covered low, mid, and high tiers, and all seemed pretty useful.

"I'll take the right side!" Mu You quickly made his decision.

[You step forward and pick up the three items in the right pan. The left side of the scale sinks three centimeters.]

Mu You wasn't surprised. He selected some of the monster materials he had collected along the way and placed them on the scale.

[You place the glowing eyeball, fleshy bat wings, and green-scaled snakeskin into the right pan. The scale rises one millimeter.]

"One millimeter?"

Mu You stared. An eyeball, fleshy wings, and snakeskin-surely all that weighed more than a few scrolls? Yet the pan had only risen one millimeter?

Puzzled, he tried placing all sorts of things on it, one after another, and finally figured out the rule: the scale did not measure weight, but value. The more valuable an item was, the heavier it weighed on the scale.

Unfortunately, all of Mu You's monster materials, plus the old Magic Wand he had retired, could only raise the scale nine millimeters in total.

His other treasures, such as the Pumpkin Lantern and the Bone-Shattering Knife, could raise it considerably, but there was no way he could bear to part with them.

Left with no choice, Mu You put the high-tier Midas Touch scroll back, then made a few fine adjustments with various odds and ends until he finally balanced the scale.

[You have made your choice and restored the scale to perfect balance. All the treasures in both pans dissolve into motes of light.]

[You have passed the trial!]

"I didn't get the most valuable spell, Midas Touch, but at least I got two new spells. That's not bad. Better than getting stuck here..."

Mu You was content with what he had. He turned back to the game, ready for the next trial, only to see...

[Congratulations! You have passed all the trials! From this moment onward, you are officially a member of the Mystic Arts Association!]

[You have obtained the Aries Ring.]

[Aries Ring: Proof of membership in the Mystic Arts Association, and an entry pass to the association. The Mystic Arts Association holds a gathering at precisely midnight every Thursday. At that time, you will be teleported into the Mystic Arts Association to meet its eleven other members and exchange insights on black magic. Please keep your identity concealed and manage your time accordingly.]

"That's it? What about the Witch?"

He had cleared the game, automatically joined that Mystic Arts Association, and even received a thumb ring, but Mu You hadn't forgotten that he had come to meet the Witch.

Fortunately, the text wasn't finished yet.

[The trees before you begin shifting again. After continually changing positions, they reveal a new path ahead of you.]

[You follow the path straight ahead and arrive in front of a cabin in the woods.]

"A cabin in the woods!"

Mu You's eyes lit up. He had finally found the place where the treasure was buried, as mentioned in the book box!

[Excited, you push open the door and enter the cabin, only to find it empty and dilapidated. A stake stands in the middle of the floor, with a long-desiccated female corpse bound to it by vines and thorns. The badge on her chest reveals her identity-she is the Witch of Calamity, Anthony Vivian.]

"The Witch... is dead?"

Mu You was dumbfounded. What was going on?

The Witch of Calamity had been portrayed as so powerful that even the Wizards' Association feared her. Who could possibly have killed her?

More importantly, if the Witch was dead, where was he supposed to find his treasure?

[The sight of the long-dead Witch of Calamity leaves you bewildered. At that moment, the crow flies in through the doorway and lands on one end of the stake. A spectral soul emerges from its eyes and floats before the female corpse. You notice that the soul looks exactly like the corpse behind her.]

[I am Anthony Vivian, the soul says.]

[I do not care who you are or what methods you used. Since you have passed every test and reached this place, from this moment onward, you are the descendant of calamity, my successor! You are worthy of receiving one of my legacies.]

[Congratulations! You have earned the Witch of Calamity's recognition!]

[You may choose one of the following three legacies left behind by the Witch.]

Three options appeared: [Black Magic Inheritance], [Potionology Legacy], and [Divination Legacy].

"Here we go!"

Mu You's heart pounded with excitement. Although he had no idea what was going on with this Witch, at least his reward hadn't slipped away.

But he could only choose one of the three?

What if he wanted to learn them all?