Chapter 11
The Paradise, a small restaurant tucked away on a street corner.
Mo Xi had just finished brewing a batch of potions. Sitting at her table and watching the catgirl across from her guzzle drink after drink, she couldn’t help twitching at the corner of her eye.
“I didn’t expect you to come all the way here to pay me back, meow. Lots of people run up a tab and never come back.” Xia Lu set down her bottle and slurred her words.
Mo Xi looked at the drunken catgirl who’d let her run a tab when she’d had no money for food, then shook her head helplessly. “If you didn’t drink yourself unconscious every day, I think half as many people would need to run tabs.”
“Meow, well...” Xia Lu smacked her lips, at a loss for words.
Suddenly, as if she’d thought of something, Xia Lu fixed her gaze on Mo Xi. “Come to think of it, you didn’t take out a loan, did you, meow?”
Mo Xi paused at that, then shook her head. “No. I went straight to the Paradise and took on a world mission.”
At this, Xia Lu stopped mid-motion. After looking Mo Xi up and down carefully, she said with a serious expression, “You know completing a world mission could cost you your life, right, meow?”
“I know,” Mo Xi replied calmly.
Seeing how calm Mo Xi was, Xia Lu nodded, then immediately returned to her carefree manner and continued guzzling her drink.
Watching this, Mo Xi shook her head helplessly. She transferred some Paradise Coins to Xia Lu, then took a potion from her storage space.
Tap~
The bottle made a clear clink against the table as Mo Xi set down a “Life Potion.”
“This is a thank-you gift.”
After saying this, Mo Xi turned and left. She was going to the Upgrade Hall to give herself a serious boost. Once she was gone, Xia Lu picked up the potion and took a look. At once, she sprang to her feet.
“This is so expensive, meow!”
Meanwhile, at the Upgrade Hall.
Mo Xi gazed at the upgrade pods, which were split into two sections, and fell into thought.
One side had ad-free upgrade pods, the kind only the wealthy could afford; the other had ad-supported pods that cost quite a bit less.
Before, Mo Xi would definitely have chosen the ad-supported section to save some money. But now...
She still chose the ad-supported section!
Come on, the price difference between the ad-supported and ad-free versions could be as much as 30%. Mo Xi wasn’t about to get extravagant just because she had a little money now!
A short while later, inside an upgrade pod.
Mo Xi watched the ads playing inside the upgrade pod with keen interest. She was no longer in the same frame of mind as when she’d angrily watched thirty ads just to earn a few Paradise Coins. This time, she was actually a little curious.
“For professional secondhand equipment, mining rigs, mechanical warships, Holit-series creations, and more, visit the Jingjing platform! Our platform guarantees fair offers!”
“Do you feel troubled by physical weakness? Do you regret your lack of energy? No need to worry, no need to worry! Our gold-medal carry service has prepared a brand-new package just for you. This package includes...”
“The Witch Coven is buying information at a high price. Anyone with a lead, please contact...”
After five minutes of ads, the upgrade pod fell silent. Mo Xi looked at her balance and skills on the panel, then decisively chose to allocate her points.
Since she’d only gained seven free attribute points this time, Mo Xi spent quite a while considering how to distribute them. In the end, she put six into Intelligence and the remaining point into Vitality.
After allocating her points and drinking the “Life Potion,” Mo Xi decisively confirmed her choice.
The next moment, Mo Xi felt a warm current rush into her mind. The currents cheered and leaped, making the mana within her surge with uncontrollable activity.
After an unknown amount of time, Mo Xi opened her eyes again. A faint green light flashed through them, and her attributes had increased dramatically.
Contractor No. 26126
Name: Mo Xi (staff)
Level: LV2 (Tier 1)
(Every 10 levels count as one tier. Gaining a level grants no attribute bonuses; it only reflects a contractor’s permissions within the Paradise and corresponds to world levels and mission difficulties.)
Talent—Blessing of Life: For every 3 points of Intelligence gained, also gain 1.5 points of Vitality.
Maximum HP: 203 (Affected by Vitality. This attribute cannot be fully quantified and is only a rough guide.)
Mana: 150 (Affected by Intelligence. Recovery speed is affected by multiple attributes.)
Strength: 7 (Related to attack and carrying capacity.)
Agility: 7 (Related to movement and attack speed.)
Vitality: 14 (Related to HP, defense, and resistance to negative effects.)
Intelligence: 15 (Related to spell damage, Mana, and mental strength.)
Charisma: 9 (Related to social interactions and summoning.)
Luck: -1 (Related to crafting, draws, and opening items. This attribute is extremely difficult to raise, and a negative value may cause dangerous events.)
Thanks to her talent, Mo Xi gained 1.5 points of Vitality for every 3 points she added to Intelligence. This meant that as long as she developed properly, she’d become terrifyingly tanky in the future.
It was worth noting that when Mo Xi’s Intelligence reached 15, the Paradise sent her a notification. In short, whenever any attribute reached 20 points, she would randomly gain a passive effect. Mo Xi couldn’t help looking forward to what lay ahead.
Once she’d raised all the attributes she could, Mo Xi turned her attention to her skills.
Since she’d obtained two small Soul Crystals in this world, Mo Xi had enough to unlock her third skill. So she chose to spend Paradise Coins and small Soul Crystals to unlock it.
At Mo Xi’s thought, the Paradise Coins in her account began to dwindle rapidly, while a strange sensation slowly welled up within her.
“Wait, no! This skill...”
Mo Xi sensed something was wrong, but before she could finish speaking, she fainted. After she passed out, her body began to float slightly.
Consciousness is like a sea of stars. When people fall unconscious and drift into sleep, they can often use that opportunity to discover what truly lies within them.
Darkness. Vastness.
That was Mo Xi’s first impression when she opened her eyes in her consciousness space. The silence here was frightening, and she could hear her own heartbeat.
Just as Mo Xi was trying to figure out what was happening, a meteor streaked across the sea of her consciousness. Then, to Mo Xi’s horror, it curved and came hurtling straight toward her.
She had no time to react. The meteor shot into Mo Xi’s body at incredible speed, and almost at once, she felt something inside her being torn apart and reassembled again and again. The sensation was excruciating.
After holding on for half a minute, Mo Xi finally couldn’t take it anymore. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted in the consciousness space.
After who knew how long, Mo Xi got up inside the upgrade pod, and a notification appeared before her.
“Soul Wings Unlocked.”
Skill Three: Soul Wings (Partially Unlocked)
Skill Cooldown: 10 hours
Skill Effect: After a brief charge, fly at high speed in a specified direction for 30 seconds. While flying, gain a shield equal to 1.5 times your maximum HP.
(Note: This skill is not yet in its complete form. Contractor, work hard to improve your attributes.)