Liu Wei felt a wave of nausea and slight dizziness, as if the neon glare had finally overwhelmed him. Was he truly delirious? Hallucinating? But in the darkest moments—when all doors slam shut and options narrow—a person will cling to any thread of hope, no matter how flimsy or illogical.
With a jolt of anxiety, he raised his hand and pinched the meaty part of his palm hard. A sharp, undeniable sting of pain woke him up and confirmed he was conscious.
"System... are you truly real?" Liu Wei asked, his voice strained and thick with a desperate mix of suspicion and pleading.
[Yes, I am real, Host.] The reply resonated in his mind, cool and clear, with an unmistakable, robotic calm that felt alien yet undeniably present.
"What exactly are your functions, System?"
[My function is to grant the Host random Abilities. Everything you consume or use will have a certain probability of acquiring a related Ability.]
[System Reminder: For the initial activation, the success rate is 100%.]
Liu Wei wavered between utter disbelief and sudden, fierce certainty. Is this a dream? Am I losing my mind? But he quickly suppressed the doubt. In his current state—jobless, facing expulsion from university before he even started—he had nothing left to lose. A little madness was a small price to pay if it opened a genuine path to survival.
He scanned the crowded street, his gaze sharp, searching for anything that could be "consumed". His eyes landed on a modest, dusty stall tucked between two gleaming high-rises, selling antique coins and various cheap souvenirs. An electric urgency surged through Liu Wei. He dashed toward it with quickening steps, his heart hammering against his ribs.
"Uncle, how much are you selling this old-issue coin for?" Liu Wei asked, pointing at a shining bronze coin engraved with a familiar, stern historical figure. The coin felt ancient, carrying the faint, metallic scent of oxidation and age.
The elderly vendor, sitting quietly behind the stall, slowly lifted his head, a shrewd glint sparking in his weary eyes. "You have a good eye, young man. This is a popular piece for tourists. I'll sell it to you cheap, twenty yuan." He held up two fingers, trying to maintain a rigid demeanor.
"Twenty yuan?! That's highway robbery, Uncle! I'll only take it for ten yuan!" Liu Wei argued, already pulling out his last wrinkled banknote.
The uncle studied him for a moment, then let a slight, knowing smile crease his lips. "Fine, fine. You're a skillful haggler. It's yours, young man."
Liu Wei felt a pang of frustration, a hunch that the uncle had still won the bargain, but he couldn't afford to care. He immediately paid the ten yuan. The old man handed him the coin sealed in a small, crinkled plastic bag. "Keep it safe. Old coins are precious."
"Thank you, Uncle."
Liu Wei gripped the bag tightly and sprinted towards the closest Vending Machine. The coin was an old five-yuan piece—out of production and rare, yes, but crucially, it was still accepted by some older, less-sophisticated machines.
"What incredible luck! It's usable here!" Liu Wei muttered, relief washing over him.
He slammed the bronze coin into the machine's slot and selected a cheap, random soft drink—a can of fizzy orange soda—costing exactly five yuan.
The moment the coin tumbled deep inside the machine to finalize the purchase, the System's voice roared in the chambers of Liu Wei's mind.
[Consumption: Antique Coin (Historical Value, Rare, Usable)]
[Extracting Ability randomly...]
[Congratulations, Host, on acquiring the Ability: Fortune Detection.]
Acquired Ability Details
[Ability Name: Fortune Detection]
[Classification: Auxiliary Ability]
[Description: Enables the Host to detect and track physical fortunes (items of high monetary value or treasures) within a one-kilometer radius.]
[Displaying Detection Strength Classifications (Value Colors):]
[Gold: Incalculable. (Priceless archaeological treasures, rare and globally unique collectibles).]
[Red: Extremely Huge Fortune. (Starting from one billion yuan up to ten billion yuan).]
[Green: Large Fortune. (Starting from one hundred million yuan up to one billion yuan).]
[Blue: Medium Fortune. (Starting from one million yuan up to one hundred million yuan).]
[White: Simple/Small Fortune. (Starting from one thousand yuan up to ten million yuan).]