Chapter 59: Harvest
Xu Huo then asked a few more questions about the instance, but Peng Fengnian had to cut off the communication and leave.
After the instance collapsed, he returned to the starting station. The station was a very dangerous place, and it wasn't easy for him to get a few minutes of time, so he had to hurry back to Zone 009.
"That box is fireproof and waterproof. You can store it along with the paper phone in your item slot." Peng Fengnian paused and said, "Mr. Xu, thank you for this. I hope we have the chance to cooperate again in the future."
Xu Huo put the box into his item slot, and the information for the paper phone immediately appeared:
[An E27 wormhole point mysterious player, the Paper Servant Master's B-grade item, unique to E27. Distributed as an item reward in instances, usually appearing in pairs. The range and method of use are for the player to explore on their own.]
"E27 wormhole point..."
According to Peng Fengnian, a wormhole point was essentially equivalent to a small universe. Under this universe, there were many independent spaces, each forming a world, which the game further divided into regions.
But such small universes didn't exist in isolation. Judging by the numbering of the regions and the timing of the Evolvers' appearance, the game's scope was constantly expanding. If there was a D13, there might be a C12. So there could be many more wormhole points like E27.
In the world he lived in, the existence of a multiverse was merely a theoretical deduction. But the Dimensional Rift game had confirmed the existence of the multiverse. Not only that, but the game also connected various universes and established a new order within the game world. Evolvers could be both instance participants and game managers. The instance boss at the E27 wormhole point might be a player from another wormhole point.
Given Peng Fengnian's level and the progress of players in his world, the information they came into contact with was likely just surface-level. Just because they hadn't discovered it didn't mean there wasn't mutual infiltration between wormhole points, just like the temporary pass the Skinner had mentioned.
This realization made Xu Huo relax a little. The game world was far vaster than he had imagined. Not being able to find a way to compensate for the Evolution Agent's defects now didn't mean he wouldn't be able to find one later.
Opening the game interface, he began to check the rewards from this instance.
Random instances, as their name suggested, had no fixed level, location, or method of appearance. They also didn't necessarily pull in players or ordinary people. In short, wherever they appeared, that place was unlucky, and whoever got caught up in them was unlucky. They were traps that even high-level players couldn't avoid.
Unlike instances that required a ticket to enter, random instances offered rewards but didn't give ratings. So no matter how many random instances a player completed, their level wouldn't increase. Moreover, most of these instances were harsh on random players. Ticket-holding players might be able to wait out the game's time limit, but random players couldn't. They had to complete the clearance task to escape. However, the upside was that if a ticket-holding player in the same session cleared, the random players could get a free ride.
Having defaulted to completing three tasks, the game's reward was a trait extended from "Tireless Legs":
[Stampeding Bison: A stampeding herd of bison is an invincible presence on the grasslands. Relying on their agile physiques, they force even the overlords of the plains to retreat. It is the perfect combination of speed and power. Note: Please refrain from randomly kicking people while running. After all, humans and bison are different, and you will be held legally responsible.]
The words "legally responsible" made Xu Huo's expression turn strange. So, did the game world also have laws?
But then again, at least on the surface, the game didn't approve of people like the Skinner, otherwise it wouldn't have issued a reward for the instance's collapse.
That was quite an interesting point.
This thought flashed through his mind, and Xu Huo stood up to test his legs. He had originally had a speed boost, but he had never tried to see if "Tireless Legs" really meant never getting tired. Now, his legs seemed to have become even stronger.
He lightly ground the tip of his foot against the floor, and the tiles instantly shattered, even cracking the cement underneath.
"Potions can increase the evolution rate and enhance physical abilities, but traits can do the same." He pondered for a moment and decided to delay taking the potion. He had only recently used one. Excluding instance factors, he could still last another month before his body started having problems.
The second item was an extended trait from "A Sad Thing":
[Good Friend Scoring: Being easily forgotten is a sad thing. Even a passerby wants to know if anyone will remember him, so this trait came into being.]
[When the score above someone's head is below 5, it means the passerby is just a generic face in that person's eyes. There might be a sense of familiarity, but it's not enough to accurately remember or recall features. If they see a photo, they will also think, 'This isn't an important person.']
[When the score above someone's head is above 5, it means that person has seriously remembered the passerby and is worth interacting with. However, please note that when the score reaches 9 or 10, that person either wants to be your stepmother or your wife. Oh, they could also be an enemy. The passerby must be careful.]
[Because this trait is an extension of 'A Sad Thing,' it lacks accuracy for those with strong memory or logical reasoning abilities.]
In other words, for people with strong memory and logical reasoning, forgetting him was inherently difficult. Even if they remembered him clearly, this score might not mean much, because they remembered everyone and everything.
Xu Huo hadn't expected the Passerby profession to yield such an interesting trait. He took out his phone and made a video call to Yuan Yao.
The person on the other end was wearing headphones, shaking his head and bobbing along. He stared at the phone for a few seconds. "Who are you... Brother Xu! You're Brother Xu!"
Xu Huo watched the number above his head jump from "4" to "5" and casually said, "I'm back in Ting City. Didn't you say you wanted to treat me to a meal? How about tomorrow?"
"Sure!" Yuan Yao was overjoyed and quickly arranged the place and time with him.
Xu Huo hung up the phone and pondered this primary trait. Although he and Yuan Yao had only just met, if the memory was relatively deep, it would be hard to be forgotten. And once reminded, he would remember.
From this perspective, this trait had a distinguishing point. A relationship that was merely "seen" should be the type easily forgotten, while a relationship that was "known," even if the memory was fuzzy, would be quickly recalled after a reminder.
Having a clear idea, he looked at the rest. This time, there were no item rewards. There were 5,000 White Notes, 2 bottles of P1 Evolution Agent, 3 bottles of D-grade Self-Healing Agent, and one bottle of E-grade Dream Come True Agent. Take it before bed for a guaranteed good dream.
Not just the traits, but even the potions were bizarre and varied.
The ticket holder remained unchanged, and the countdown to the next instance had become 34 days.
After reviewing the clearance rewards, Xu Huo took out the main prize from this reward: a "Light Gentleman" medal and a white mask.