A steady stream of Curse Power poured out of Da Hei's body, to be absorbed and refined by the three hundred Disqualified Ones around him.
At the same time, their stats began to change under Lin Bei's watchful eye.
First came their skills—Corruption, Bloodthirst, Berserk, and Execute—after being strengthened by Curse Power, they directly evolved into Advanced Corruption, Advanced Bloodthirst, Advanced Berserk, and Advanced Execute.
Compared with their previous versions, these new advanced skills were far more than a little stronger.
Besides that, thanks to all the Curse Power they'd absorbed, the Disqualified Ones' Combat Power started skyrocketing.
3,000… 3,100… 3,500… In the end, every last one of them stabilized at around 4,000 Combat Power!
"Amazing! This rich high-tier Curse Power—just one whiff feels incredible!"
"I feel like I'm floating on air! This sensation… it's intoxicating!"
"Da Hei really is something! We've only been friends for a day and he's already given us such a huge gift! We've got to treat him well from now on!"
"No kidding! From today on, Da Hei is my best friend!"
…The group of Disqualified Ones, now brimming with energy, stared at Da Hei—who had finally calmed down—with undisguised longing in their eyes.
"Don't… don't look at me like that!"
Da Hei shuddered, a chill running down his spine.
He was only a projection; if it came to a real fight… he probably wouldn't stand a chance against these guys.
If any of them got inappropriate ideas… "Hiss—"
Da Hei sucked in a breath and, with a pleading gaze toward Lin Bei, cried, "Brother Bei—no, Daddy Bei—save me! I don't wanna die!"
Lin Bei snapped out of his daze and looked at Da Hei, half amused and half exasperated.
What on earth was going through this guy's head?
The Disqualified Ones simply saw him as a friend, yet here he was fantasizing about all sorts of obscene nonsense.
This Da Hei… wasn't pure at all.
"All right, everyone quiet down. Your friend's feeling a bit overwhelmed—give him some space; don't scare him off with your enthusiasm."
Lin Bei waved the Disqualified Ones back.
Then he stepped up to Da Hei, stretched out a hand, and said with a wry smile, "All right, hand over the communicator."
He was ready to face Overseer Aleria's wrath.
After fretting over the outcome, he'd finally made peace with it.
This had been an accident; once he explained, she couldn't go too far—no matter how upset she was.
Unless, of course, she was the eccentric type who'd resort to vicious measures anyway.
If that happened… he'd have to weigh whether he still wanted to work for her faction.
And if she really pushed it… once he'd powered up, he wouldn't mind returning the favor with a "grand gift" of his own.
He had a long memory for grudges.
"Sigh… brace yourself for Lady Aleria's punishment."
Da Hei sighed and handed Lin Bei a wristband set with a pink crystal. "This is the private communicator for contacting Lady Aleria. It has plenty of other functions—check them yourself."
With that, he slumped against the stone wall at the vault entrance, lit a cigarette, and puffed gloomily at the sky.
He looked like a tragic hero about to march to his death: "The wind sighs cold, the river chill; once this hero leaves, he'll not return again."
"Uh… is it really that bad?"
Lin Bei had praised Aleria non-stop in the Underworld, and she'd quickly looked away—she should be easy to talk to.
He couldn't figure out why Da Hei was acting like he was heading for his own execution over one little slip-up.
He just didn't get it.
"Relax, Da Hei. It'll be fine."
Lin Bei patted Da Hei on the shoulder, then headed back to his Manor Villa.
"Master, you're home."
Qing Qing greeted him at the door with a bright smile.
"Mm. Please get a Healing Pod ready—I want to take one with me from now on, just in case."
Lin Bei nodded, immediately giving the order that had weighed on him most.
Qing Qing didn't understand, but seeing his serious face she simply nodded and left without a word.
Without the Manor Villa's power supply, the pod would need high-grade prime stones to operate outside, yet to Qing Qing a few of those were nothing to Lin Bei.
If her master wanted to carry one around, so be it.
Hmm… didn't humans have a saying? Right: "The rich have quirks that always seem a bit… unique."
Maybe her master just liked lying inside a Healing Pod while traveling.
Qing Qing mused as she walked.
Then she remembered how much Lin Bei enjoyed "morning exercise," and a faint blush crept across her cheeks.
"Master's quirks… seem to be quite numerous."
Qing Qing murmured… Back in the villa, Lin Bei hurried to his bedroom and took out the pink-crystal wristband.
He drew a deep breath and began checking its functions.
Besides the communicator, it actually had a trade interface.
The rest was hidden behind a veil of mist.
Clearly the wristband had more abilities, currently sealed.
This thing… looks a lot like a Survivor Bracelet."
Lin Bei was surprised by the design, but quickly brushed it off and opened the communicator tab. Only one name appeared in the contact list—Aleria.
"Sigh… here goes nothing."
He gritted his teeth and tapped Aleria's name to place the call.
A short beep—and she picked up instantly.
A moment later the call window showed a pink-haired girl.
She looked about seventeen or eighteen, with delicate features and the hint of a smile. Her bright eyes studied Lin Bei through the screen, but she said nothing.
"Uh… h-hello there."
Lin Bei forced a smile that looked more like a grimace.
If the call had no beauty filter, then this girl named Aleria was easily a 9.9 in looks.
As for her figure… ahem, rather flat—barely a 6.6666.
Still, looking at her Lin Bei felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
As if… he'd seen her somewhere before.
"Wait! I remember now! Aleria's appearance... she's almost a dead ringer for Anya from Spy x Family!"
"Well... strictly speaking, this beautiful girl in front of me looks more like an adolescent, ultra-pretty version of Anya!"
"I just don't know... whether she can read minds like Anya!"
"Crap—if she really can read minds, then right now I'm totally..."
Lin Bei snapped back to reality and looked at the pink-haired beauty on the call screen.
Right now she was sizing him up with a half-smile.
"Oh, your brain's buzzing. Why'd you stop your wild daydreaming?"
"And... you actually know Anya—she's my little sister."
"But your eyesight must be pretty poor; my figure is absolutely Perfect, so how did it only score 6.6666?"
"I'll give you one chance to rephrase. Tell me—what score does my body deserve?"
Aleria's smile was radiant, yet to Lin Bei it sent a chill down his spine.
Super Intuition never lies!
So... Aleria right now was genuinely furious!
"Ahem, well... I didn't mean it like that, and in my human world '66666' is slang for 'amazing!' I was just marveling that your figure is Perfect and couldn't help exclaiming—no offense!"
"Oh? Is that really so?"
Aleria raised an eyebrow, then tapped a few commands on a complex interface, apparently checking something.
A few seconds later her smile returned.
"Looks like you weren't lying."
"I just pulled the lexicon from your human world—'66666' does carry the meaning you described."
"Good. Seems you're not only strong but also have decent taste."
Lin Bei's mouth twitched; he exhaled in relief.
Luckily he was quick-witted.
Otherwise... the consequences would've been unthinkable!
"Alright, no need to be on pins and needles. I'm easy to get along with! Since you've become the Lucky Ambassador, you're one of us—relax."
In high Spirits, Aleria beamed, "Actually, I contacted you because I think it's time to assign some quests, given your current strength."
Lin Bei's heart skipped a beat.
What you fear is what you get!
Thinking of the treasure map he'd recently obtained that recorded the location of a world core fragment, he grew uneasy.
She couldn't possibly—"Relax, you don't need to hunt for world core fragments yet."
Reading his thoughts, Aleria cut straight to the chase: "Your task is fairly simple. During the next Ice and Snow Season I'll secretly merge some enemy-camp Survivors into the sea-region world you currently occupy."
"When that happens, just wipe them out as much as you can."
"For the next few days, to boost your Combat Power quickly, I'll give you some special attention and prepare a few little surprises—hope you enjoy them."
"Well... that's about it. I'll contact you directly whenever there's a new arrangement."
"Oh, right—remember to have Stinky Treasure look me up later. I... need to take good care of him."
"Bye-bye~"
With a brilliant smile Aleria gave the camera a gentle wave.
The call cut off the next second.
Wiping sweat from his forehead, Lin Bei recalled her final mention of Da Hei and felt a twinge of dread on his buddy's behalf.
His own side of things was settled.
But for Da Hei... it might not go so smoothly.
Lin Bei silently offered three seconds of mourning, then left the Manor Villa without delay and delivered Aleria's message to Da Hei.
"Waaah... why me! And... why only me!!!"
Da Hei howled while Lin Bei hurried off, afraid misfortune might rub off on him.
Wait—he carried the Legendary Level item lucky goddess's pendant, immune to all bad luck!
Never mind then.
"Oh right, I forgot to ask Aleria how to repair the lucky goddess's pendant!"
He'd been so focused on surviving her scrutiny he'd let that crucial question slip his mind.
But she was probably 'taking care' of Da Hei and might still be in a foul mood; calling now could drag him into the line of fire.
After weighing the risks, Lin Bei decided to wait a bit longer.
"Uh... let's leave it till tomorrow."
...Later, Lin Bei shared a Perfect dinner with Nilu and Qing Qing, then settled contentedly onto the living-room sofa and opened the Mental Strength Training Method.
A Healing Pod had already been placed beside him.
He stretched, relaxed, and lay straight into the pod, choosing to use the Mental Strength Training Method.
The booklet turned into a stream of light that slowly dispersed and merged into his body.
Lin Bei felt his brain thunder.
The next instant he fell into a deep sleep.
On the edge of consciousness he seemed to hear a system prompt.
[Notice: Successfully used Mental Strength Training Method (Perfect)! Mental Attribute unlocked! Mental Attribute +1,000!]
[Notice: Congratulations—you triggered the Hundredfold Critical Hit effect!]
[Notice: Mental Attribute +100,000!]
...When Lin Bei woke again it was already noon the next day.
"Master, you're awake?" Qing Qing asked with concern.
"Uh... my head feels groggy. I didn't expect the Healing Pod would do so little to offset the side effects of a Spirit boost."
Climbing out of the pod with difficulty, Lin Bei shook his splitting head, a lingering fear in his heart.
He'd been reckless; although the pod helped, the effect was limited.
"Master, calculations show your blackout wasn't caused by the pod. You fell unconscious because this was your first time unlocking the Spirit stat."
"Besides... for some reason the attribute gain from your initial Spirit unlock was exceptionally high, leading to your current discomfort."
"Normally this wouldn't happen."
Qing Qing looked equally puzzled but still relayed her computed analysis to him.
"So that's how it is."
"Scared me—I thought the Healing Pod was faulty."
Lin Bei exhaled in relief and checked his status panel.
His stats had already changed.
Even he himself was now bewildered by the numbers.