"A serving of crab pot rice."

"Got it."

Leaving the third floor of the canteen, Ren Suo glanced into the distance. He noticed that the construction team, which had made a thunderous noise a few days ago, had disappeared. Where there used to be an empty space, several dormitory and teaching buildings had sprung up from the ground.

Replacing the construction crew were movers. Several large trucks were parked outside the dormitory buildings, moving bed frames, desks, and chairs. Ren Suo approached for a look and asked one of the workers, "These don't seem to be the bunk-bed-with-desk dormitory setups, right?"

"They never were." A bare-chested worker called to another man as they lifted a wooden bed frame, "The dorms inside are all two bedrooms, one living room, one bathroom, plus a balcony. The living conditions are better than my own."

Ren Suo was somewhat surprised too, glancing at the dormitory buildings. Could the living environment for university freshmen be this good?

But then he thought about how long it had taken to build these structures and felt reassured. They took only a week to construct; the only significant cost was the land, and land was the least of Heavenly Lotus Academy's concerns.

Ever since he'd heard about the Cultivator construction team from Dong Chengling, Ren Suo had looked them up on the internal network. He discovered Mysterious Country's spell tree was developed quite... well, with a very pragmatic, industrial approach.

The Spells in the Spell Network weren't worth discussing for now. Most were very basic, geared toward self-protection and hardly capable of harming others. In other areas, the most complete magic system wasn't Destruction, nor Healing, but Transformation!

Destruction had little significance for societal construction, and Healing could only benefit a very small number of people. Only Transformation had significant implications for national production: infrastructure was everything, and high-tech materials were most beneficial to technological development!

The terrifying Cultivator construction team was evidence of this; they could construct several buildings in a week. If they were to enter the market, it would likely cause a major upheaval in real estate.

But, without a doubt, that wouldn't happen. Only major national educational institutions like Heavenly Lotus Academy were fortunate enough to receive help from the Cultivator construction team.

At other times, the Cultivator construction team was certainly supporting infrastructure development or undertaking emergency tasks. For example, at Ailan Lake in Fragrance City, Ren Suo had heard that a complete set of protective facilities had been established outside the Secret Realm. The entire lake had been covered—literally covered, as if an inverted bowl had been placed on top, enclosing the entire Secret Realm, including Ailan Lake.

In the past, such a project would have taken months at the earliest, but with the Cultivator construction crew, it only took seven days!

Of course, the number of Cultivators working on the Ailan Lake project was several times greater than at Heavenly Lotus Academy. Moreover, those responsible for such large-scale projects were likely High-Tier Cultivators specializing in construction.

I need to quickly advance to the Second Turn and learn advanced Spells...

Thinking this, Ren Suo arrived home, put down the packed crab pot rice, and then exclaimed, "Minor World, endless fun!"

Rubbing his palms together, Ren Suo opened the Content Preservation Vault.

He now had four Keys. Aside from two one-star keys, the other two were a "Three-Star Flame Key" and a "Two-Star Flame Key"—all great stuff filched from Yu Kuangtu!

"Three-Star Flame: an extra 20% chance to receive fire-related rewards."

Yu Kuangtu had been 'milked' by Ren Suo once before his promotion; after his promotion, Ren Suo 'milked' him again, all within less than a month—Yu Kuangtu was truly 'milked dry' by Ren Suo.

By the way, Yu Kuangtu's Bond Level had upgraded due to last night's incident.

"Yu Kuangtu, Level 2 Bond, Bond Ability 'Flame Overlord': Able to use Spiritual Energy to condense flames."

As far as Ren Suo's use of it went, there seemed to be no change; he could still only use this ability to light cigarettes. But with the Bond upgraded, at least when the game character used 'Flame Overlord,' its effect would be further strengthened. It also meant Ren Suo's relationship with Yu Kuangtu was better. I should go to his barbecue stall next time and get him to treat me.

Alas, it's so much simpler to upgrade Bonds between men; just one or two significant incidents and it's done. But with girls, you need to slowly grind affection...

Back on the screen, Ren Suo looked at the three Treasure Boxes he owned. One was a Three-Star Treasure Chest from "Mage Under the World Tree"; another was a Three-Star Treasure Chest from "Infinite Intrusion"; and the last was a Four-Star Treasure Chest from "Midnight Walker."

The two Three-Star Treasure Boxes looked identical. Ren Suo couldn't tell them apart, so he decided to open one directly. As for saving Keys to forge a Four-Star Key... Ren Suo felt it was like saying, 'I'll travel once I start working and have money.' By the time you have money from work, you might not have time to travel. Similarly, by the time Ren Suo saved enough Keys, perhaps he'd already have a Four-Star Key.

One should live in the present. Besides... how could Ren Suo resist his own hands!?

"You've used 'Three-Star Flame Key' to open this Treasure Box."

"You've received the item 'Mage's Death-Defying Feather.'"

Still no trigger of the Key's additional effects, but Ren Suo was used to it. On the contrary, the item he drew this time made his eyes light up.

Without a doubt, this Treasure Box was still from "Mage Under the World Tree"; the "Infinite Intrusion" Treasure Box continued to sit on the cold bench.

Yet, the "Mage's Death-Defying Feather" was an Offering Ren Suo had never seen before!

Following the most straightforward rule for Offerings: within the same type, the longer the name, the better the performance. It was clear this Offering had to be remarkable.

"Mage's Death-Defying Feather"

"Quality Rank: Three-Star Item, Prerequisites: Lower limbs capable of supporting bodily movement, Spiritual Energy."

"Effect: After the Player equips it, they can consume Spiritual Energy for unidirectional ultra-high-speed movement. Ultra-high-speed movement is extremely demanding on the body; without a protective barrier, it is highly likely to tear the body apart.

After equipping it, the Player automatically enters a 'stationary' charging state. When the Player remains still (i.e., not moving), the Offering will guide Spiritual Energy into the body to protect internal organs, muscles, and blood vessels. Activating ultra-high-speed movement while in the 'stationary' state will greatly reduce harm to the body."

"Note: A toy used by Magician apprentices under the age of 12. Real Magicians would either tear their opponents to shreds with their magic or smash them into pieces."

Indeed, it's a speed Offering for Magicians... Seeing the prop's name, Ren Suo had already anticipated this.

When he played games, he had found that the Magicians' strongest aspect wasn't their Attack Power. No matter how high the Attack Power, a hail of bullets could compensate with sheer quantity.

It wasn't their defensive power either. No matter how strong the defense, one could be utterly trapped by factors such as terrain, smoke, and explosions.

What made Magicians the strongest was their speed!

Their nearly instantaneous high-speed movement was completely imperceptible to the naked eye. What good were fast bullets if the gun still needed human control?

The internal network already had strength evaluations of Magicians. Drawing on intelligence from the Changjiang Monks Corps, who had fought side-by-side with Magicians, and through frame-by-frame analysis of "Mage Under the World Tree" videos, the military had reached a conclusion: If a Magician couldn't be contained within a 25m x 25m area, or if their movement area exceeded this, conventional combat power would be meaningless against them.

Even if one maintained maximum range from a Magician, their teleportation ability allowed them to escape over 500 meters in a single second. As for disruptive props like Shock Bombs, it was hard to say if they had any effect—Magicians' defensive abilities weren't weak.

Magicians' offensive and defensive capabilities weren't terrifyingly strong, but their speed was truly frightening—reaching supersonic speeds at their fastest. How do you fight that? Magicians aren't colossal like fighter jets!

Of course, Researchers also found that, at such speeds, the human body could not possibly withstand the strain of supersonic movement on its own. They believed Magicians must have some ability to protect themselves at high speeds.

Indeed, they did. The Magician's Offerings are powered by Magic Power, which originates from the "Omnipotent Wishing Machine," the Holy Grail. Thus, Magicians could conjure things out of thin air—each use of an Offering equated to making a Prayer.

That's why it's called an Offering, because it's a tribute for making wishes. It was like praying to one's ancestors for blessings; one would at least burn some paper money to show sincerity.

From this perspective, Magic Power was a stronger form of energy than Spiritual Energy. When Magicians used speed Offerings, a protective barrier would almost instantly form around them. Using this Offering represented a Prayer for high-speed movement, which naturally included accidental death and dismemberment insurance, as well as life insurance.

But the energy Ren Suo used wasn't Magic Power; it was Spiritual Energy. If using an Offering with Magic Power automatically included insurance, then using one with Spiritual Energy was like joining a one-dollar tour. You're expecting not to spill some blood for it?

Therefore, although the speed Offering Ren Suo had drawn this time wasn't the best one in the game, he was quite satisfied. If he had drawn the best speed Offering, he most likely wouldn't be able to use it, at least not yet.

Unless he could learn an extremely powerful Defensive Spell, or his Physical Condition became strong enough to support supersonic movement, Ren Suo would incapacitate himself every time he used a speed Offering.

But this "Mage's Death-Defying Feather" he had now was perfect as his trump card.

Moreover, Ren Suo remembered that there seemed to be a Second-Tier Spell, "Rapid Step," and a Third-Tier Spell, "Ghostly Rapid Step," available in the Spell Network, which he could redeem after advancing to the Second Turn. There weren't many Combat Spells in the Spell Network, but there was an abundance of escape and life-saving spells.

Low-Turn Cultivators weren't incapable of learning High-Tier Spells, but it required endorsement from a High-Tier Cultivator or an institution, confirming an actual need.

Actually, Ren Suo had heard from Qiao Muyi that there had always been a trend of learning High-Tier Spells within their Tactical Bureau. Few First-Tier Spells were useful, but it wasn't difficult to get started with Second-Tier Spells. Just like when Ren Suo first learned "Heal," he had almost gotten the hang of it right away, though it was hardly effective.

If one was lucky and came across a Second-Tier Spell that suited them well, they would strike it rich—finding the direction for their future Spells. If not, it was no big deal. They could just grind away, and once they reached the Second Turn, they would quickly master the Spell. That was always better than practicing First-Tier Spells that weren't very useful.

Ren Suo hadn't redeemed a Second-Tier Spell before simply because he couldn't be bothered to ask for help. But now that he needed to learn a Movement Spell to cover for this prop, he wouldn't be shy.

"Li Dan!"

"Hmm?"

"Help me apply for two Spells: 'Rapid Step,' number 2023, and 'Ghostly Rapid Step,' number 3008!"

"Hmm."

After taking care of that, he placed the "Mage's Death-Defying Feather" in the standby column and casually checked "Midnight Walker." He saw that Collector Zhou Jin's area was now clean. The entirety of Mumbai was a shit-yellow, with just varying shades, but the Collector's area looked as if Mr. Clean had scrubbed it, appearing radiantly blue. Next to it, the Collector's efficiency was displayed:

"Desire Collection Speed: 3/hour."

Ren Suo moved the Collector to an intensely 'polluted' spot that resembled the aftermath of diarrhea. He then used up all the Collector's current Desire Collection Amount to purchase upgrades for "Ghost Walk Radius Range" and "Desire Collection Speed."

Seeing that the Collector's influence radius seemed to have increased by a tiny bit—really, just a fraction—Ren Suo felt an inexplicable sense of achievement.

That was the joy of idle games; he didn't do anything, yet the game character grew stronger. All he had to do was make a few decisions—such is human nature. People dislike the process of accumulation, yet they want to assert their presence when it matters. Simply put, they want the rights without the responsibilities.

It was like how underachievers envied the top students holding forth during final exams, fantasizing about creating a clone to study passively while they themselves played games. Then, come finals, they would suddenly know everything and produce a perfect answer sheet.

These underachievers had no idea that the top students often spent just as much time playing games during their regular days!

What, studying? Isn't that just something you pick up on the go? Does it require extra time?

Ren Suo remembered another idle game and opened his phone to check it.

How many energy points has the adventurer gathered?

With anticipation, Ren Suo opened the "High Energy Ahead" app. After entering, the image that popped up in front of him was a horrifying scene:

He saw a large room lit by an opulent chandelier. Ten large beds were lined up on both sides, their white sheets covered in minced flesh and dark blood. The muraled walls were splattered with blood; intestines and brain matter were strewn everywhere. The severed heads of beautiful women rolled on the ground, all facing the screen, the Resentment in their eyes practically piercing through it!

What's going on!? Ren Suo was startled.

After checking the information, he exhaled in relief, his heart settling. So it was the adventurer's doing; that scared me...

Wait, the adventurer did this!?

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