Bao Zhe Fan sat frozen on his rickety bed, trying to determine if he was dreaming. The mechanical voice still echoed in his head, clear and real.
"A hallucination from hunger?" he muttered to himself, pinching his arm. It hurt. This wasn't a dream.
[Host, this is not a hallucination. I am the Strongest Blood Selling System bound to your soul.] The system's voice responded directly to his thoughts.
Bao Zhe Fan took a deep breath. After living in a post-Spiritual Rupture world where monsters and spiritual powers were commonplace, the presence of a system wasn't entirely unbelievable. But why him?
"Why choose me?" he asked in his heart.
[Selection criteria: High-level despair, moderate hunger, and possession of the rare Blood Element talent. The host meets all requirements. System's goal: help the host master the Blood Element talent and reach the pinnacle of the world.]
A transparent blue holographic screen suddenly appeared before his eyes, displaying a simple interface.
[Host Status]
Name:Bao Zhe Fan
Spirit Knight Level:Bronze Wheel - 1 Star
Talent:Blood Control (Rank G)
Points:
· Emotion Points (EP): 0
· Blood Points (BP): 0
Health:78%
Spiritual Energy:15/100
At the bottom of the interface, there were three main menus: [Gacha], [Shop], and [Inventory].
[Let me explain the basic mechanics,] the system's voice sounded enthusiastic. [Emotion Points (EP) are collected from the emotions of others directed at you. Every emotion, positive or negative, generates EP between 1-30 points.]
"So, if someone is angry at me, I get EP?" asked Bao Zhe Fan, starting to get interested.
[Exactly! Example: [+15 EP - Negative: Anger]. EP is used for gacha spins. Each spin requires 1000 EP. You can also do a 100-spin at once for 100,000 EP.]
"And Blood Points?"
[BP is obtained by donating your own blood or monster blood. BP is used to produce blood-related items in the [Shop]. For now, focus on collecting EP first.]
Bao Zhe Fan observed the [Gacha] menu. It looked like a wheel of fortune with three reward categories: Grand Prize, Twilight Prize, and Side Prize.
[The Grand Prize is a rare item. The Twilight Prize gives a temporary boost. The Side Prize... well, often common items with funny side effects,] the system explained. [[Inventory] is for storing rewards, and the [Shop] will open later.]
Hearing this explanation, Bao Zhe Fan's heart raced. For the first time in his life, there was a glimmer of hope. But he remained realistic.
"So, I need to make others feel strong emotions towards me to get EP?"
[Correct! The stronger the emotion, the more EP you get.]
Bao Zhe Fan looked around his shabby house. He needed to plan something. Tomorrow was his first day at Changzhi Twilight High School. That was a good opportunity.
The next day, the gates of Changzhi Twilight High School weren't as majestic as Devil's Sun, but they still looked decent. Students in dark blue uniforms crowded the yard, some showing off minor spiritual abilities.
Bao Zhe Fan stood in front of Class 1-7, took a deep breath, and entered. As soon as he opened the door, the classroom noise died down. Some students glanced at him curiously.
"Please introduce yourself," said the Homeroom Teacher, Mrs. Chen, a middle-aged woman with a warm smile.
"My name is Bao Zhe Fan, transferred from Devil's Sun." His statement caused some students to whisper. Devil's Sun was an elite school.
"My talent is Blood Element, Rank G." This time, the whispers turned into soft sneers. Even at Twilight, Rank G was considered very low.
He ignored them and took a seat at the back. Soon after, Wang Dawei rushed in breathlessly.
"Sorry I'm late, Ma'am!" he exclaimed, bowing. His eyes immediately lit up when he saw Bao Zhe Fan. "Wow, Brother Bao! We're in the same class!"
Wang Dawei immediately sat next to Bao Zhe Fan. "I was thinking yesterday, we should start a business! There are lots of opportunities in this school!"
Bao Zhe Fan nodded. His mind was working quickly. Business = interaction with many people = Emotion Points.
"I agree. Any ideas?"
Wang Dawei pulled a bottle of energy drink from his bag. "Look! This drink sells well on the market. But it's expensive. How about we sell it cheap? I have a distributor connection who can give us a wholesale price!"
Bao Zhe Fan examined the bottle. His sharp eyes immediately caught something. "The expiration date is almost up. That's why it's cheap."
"But it's still drinkable, right?" said Wang Dawei. "We can sell it at a big discount! It'll definitely sell!"
The idea was risky, but Bao Zhe Fan considered it. This could be a quick way to get attention and Emotion Points. And if problems arose... that would actually generate more EP.
"Alright," said Bao Zhe Fan. "But we don't sell it. We give it away for free."
"Free? What for? We'll lose money!"
"As a promotion. We'll distribute it tomorrow during break. Just say it's a sample from our new business." Bao Zhe Fan had calculated everything. Giving something away for free would create initial positive emotions. But if the drinks were problematic...
Wang Dawei was still hesitant but finally agreed. "Okay, alright! I'll handle the purchase. Coincidentally, that distributor wants to give a free sample carton!"
Hearing that, Bao Zhe Fan smiled faintly. This was perfect.
The next day, during the long break, Wang Dawei and Bao Zhe Fan carried a large carton to the schoolyard. Wang Dawei cheered excitedly.
"Everyone! Come here! We're giving away free energy drinks! Samples from our new business!"
The hungry and thirsty students immediately crowded around. 'Free' was a magical word.
Bao Zhe Fan helped distribute the bottles with a blank face. Each time someone received a bottle and said thank you, a small notification appeared in his view.
[+5 EP - Positive: Gratitude]
[+3 EP - Positive: Happiness]
[+8 EP - Positive: Excitement]
His EP started to increase, slowly but surely. Within minutes, he had collected about 200 EP.
"'Flying Dragon' brand energy drink! Boosts study spirit!" Wang Dawei shouted enthusiastically.
Bao Zhe Fan carefully checked one bottle. The expiration date was yesterday. But he didn't say anything.
About 15 minutes after the drinks were distributed, something started to happen.
A male student suddenly clutched his stomach. "Ouch... my stomach hurts..."
Then another. "Me too... so nauseous..."
Like a domino effect, one by one, the students who drank the beverage began experiencing food poisoning symptoms. Some ran to the toilet, others just sat weakly on the ground.
The schoolyard atmosphere, previously lively, turned into panic. Shouts and complaints filled the air.
Teachers rushed out, their faces anxious. Principal Huang arrived with a red, furious face.
"WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?" he roared.
Wang Dawei panicked. "I... I don't know! Those were sample drinks from a distributor!"
But all eyes were on Bao Zhe Fan and Wang Dawei. Strong negative emotions radiated from the entire schoolyard.
The system screen in front of Bao Zhe Fan began flooding with red notifications:
[+25 EP - Negative: Anger]
[+30 EP - Negative: Rage]
[+20 EP - Negative: Betrayal]
[+28 EP - Negative: Pain]
His EP skyrocketed: 500, 1000, 3000, 5000... It even reached 10,000 EP in minutes!
Bao Zhe Fan tried to keep his face neutral, but inside, his heart was pounding. His plan had worked—too well.
"Brother Bao... this is really bad..." Wang Dawei whispered with a pale face.
But Bao Zhe Fan was already thinking about the next step. With this much EP, he could perform gacha spins. Maybe there would be something that could help fix this situation—or at least, make it more interesting.
[Total EP collected: 12,450 points. Enough for 12 spins!] the system's voice was excited. [Host wants to spin now?]
Bao Zhe Fan looked around: the chaos, the anger, the mess. In the midst of it all, he saw an opportunity.
"Wait until we're in the principal's office," he murmured softly. "Even more emotions will be gathered there."
He was ready to face the consequences. After all, this was the price to pay to become strong. And for the first time, Bao Zhe Fan felt that his fate was beginning to change.