Chapter 9: Rewards
The system responded immediately this time.
[Detected that intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241 has questions about biological evolution. Exchange 10 Galactic Order merit points for related knowledge? (Approved by Origin.)]
Yes yes yes yes Yes!
Damn it, Liu Xiao couldn't wait any longer.
[10 Galactic Order merit points consumed]
[Biological Evolution: The process of changing a being's spirit core from biological energy supply to spiritual energy supply.]
[Spiritual Energy: As the foundation of all energy, spiritual energy is the life energy of a being's spirit core and can power all energy-based skills and the Central System.]
[Spirit Body: The spirit body contains the spirit core, spiritual energy and other special abilities. Spirit body strength determines defense against mental interference and spirit core attacks. Spiritual Energy attribute is an index of spiritual energy capacity - higher values mean more available spiritual energy.]
[Spirit Core: The life core of all beings. Destruction of the spirit core means true death. All memories, abilities, data information and thinking abilities are generated and stored by the spirit core. The spirit core's existence requires life energy to maintain.]
[Central System: An information core composed of higher knowledge entities. Intelligent beings interact with it by consuming spiritual energy.]
Alright, he basically understood now.
So his brain had always contained this "spirit core," but previously relied on blood oxygen for nourishment. Now he'd evolved spiritual energy to directly power the core.
What he'd thought of as the "system" was actually called the Central System. Interacting with it required spiritual energy, which explained why it ignored him before. Now that he'd completed evolution and could supply the needed energy, communication had opened up.
His authority level with the Central System seemed to have upgraded too, allowing direct queries.
The information overload was massive, but Liu Xiao found he could process it all effortlessly. His thinking was crystal clear - even childhood memories, images, fragments and conversations suddenly became vividly accessible.
Clearly these were benefits of spirit body evolution.
He could also sense a non-dimensional space in his mind filled with white liquid. The space's size was immeasurable, but the liquid seemed near capacity.
This must be his spirit body, with the liquid being spiritual energy.
In gaming terms, this was basically his MP (Magic Points) bar!
With a thought, Liu Xiao checked the Central System's newly unlocked functions.
First, Galactic Order merit point exchange:
[Galactic Order Merit Exchange: Current points 2790]
[Spirit Body Transmission - 100 points (enables spirit body transfer between original space and Origin)]
[Physical Attribute Replication - 20 points (copies single Origin physical attribute to original body)]
[Body Life Support - 20 points (maintains original body's existence energy)]
[Identity Protection - 1000 points (Galactic Order protects Origin identity from disclosure)]
[Body Module Replacement - 50 points (pico-scale carbon-based body part replacement)]
...
[Item Exchange (enables Galactic Order item transactions)]
...
Entering item exchange:
[Planetary Ownership - starting at 2,000,000 points]
[Stellar System Ownership - starting at 100,000,000 points]
[....]
What the hell?! Galactic Order merits could buy him a star system?!?!
Though that "starting at" probably meant minimum price.
Forget it - unaffordable. Let's check realistic options.
[Intelligent being directional search for exchange items...]
[Earth human civilization, equivalent exchange currency, RMB...]
[Exchange rate: 1 merit point = 100,000 RMB]
Thud. Liu Xiao sat down hard.
He suddenly remembered that woman's words - gains here would feed back to his Earth self. This was an unprecedented opportunity.
With 2790 merit points, exchanging all would net 279 million RMB. And this happened in barely over ten hours.
He'd become a multi-millionaire overnight?!
Plus he could exchange for Spirit Body Transmission to return to Earth anytime...
This was invincible!
This was reaching the pinnacle of life!
[Detected resistant thoughts toward Origin from intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241. Based on Origin Rule 103, no intelligent being's spirit may leave Origin for more than 1 Origin cycle (14 Earth days), otherwise the spirit will be indiscriminately erased by Galactic Order.]
.....
Fine, I get it. I'll stop thinking about it.
Liu Xiao realized the Central System could monitor his thoughts.
But he spotted an issue:
[Detected that intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241 has questions about Origin Rule interpretation. This information is free.]
[For unevolved intelligent beings, Origin Rule 103 does not apply.]
Liu Xiao immediately had another question:
[Detected that intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241 has questions about Spirit Body Transmission. This information is free.]
[Spirit Body Transmission can be directionally used on other intelligent beings. Origin bodies that have perished cannot execute two-way transmission.]
Good!
He sighed in relief. At least he could safely send his parents or friends back.
But if they'd already evolved...
[Detected that intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241 wishes to communicate with other intelligent beings. This information costs 10 Galactic Order merit points.]
Damn, sending a message costs 1 million RMB.
Steeling himself, this message was essential.
[The Central System cannot locate unevolved intelligent beings. Beings obtain identification numbers after evolution.]
Hopeless. Without evolution, there were no ID numbers to send messages to.
His heart sank. He'd wanted to warn his father not to evolve. Now he'd have to find his parents in person.
[Origin Basic Tasks]
[Explore unknown Origin regions]
[Raise total physical attributes to 51]
[Raise total spirit attributes to 21]
[Obtain any proficiency (primary level)]
[Obtain any faith (primary), elemental affinity (primary), or skill (primary)]
Clearly milestone tasks. Origin wanted evolved beings to grow stronger and keep exploring.
Now checking Galactic Order's mission system:
[Galactic Order Missions]
[Explore Origin regions]
[Eliminate cross-domain beings]
[Acquire spiritual energy crystals]
[Locate Origin settlements]
Key insights emerged. First, Galactic Order also wanted energy crystals. Second, it was hinting beings should find settlements in Origin - skirting the rules since Galactic Order had limited authority here.
Finally, inter-domain relations seemed hostile. The mission to kill cross-domain beings was blatant - whether for resource competition or Galactic Order's own merit accumulation.
Liu Xiao quickly processed everything. From the moment of evolution, he was no longer that fresh graduate. Earth's lifestyle was gone forever - like Peter Parker bitten by the radioactive spider, becoming Spider-Man meant no return to normal life.
Those job applications... seems unnecessary now...
....
While gathering items from the ground, Liu Xiao continued his endless stream of questions.
"So, what is faith? And what is elemental affinity? While we're at it, explain auxiliary masteries too."
[Faith: The deity worshipped within the spiritual body of an intelligent being. The Creator Deity receives the faith power of intelligent beings and transfers its own power and skills to them. Faith is activated and manifested through the being's spiritual energy. The higher the faith tier, the greater the deity's power granted. No deity faith detected within the spiritual body of this intelligent being.]
[10 Galaxy Merit Points consumed.]
[Creator Deity... Insufficient permissions.]
[Elemental Affinity: The elemental core nurtured within the spiritual body of an intelligent being. World-building elements include basic elements—water, earth, wind, fire, lightning, light, and darkness—as well as other hidden or derivative elements. Intelligent beings nurture elements within their spiritual bodies through elemental affinity and convert elemental power via skills. This process requires activation and manifestation through spiritual energy. The higher the elemental affinity, the greater the energy of the elemental core and the stronger the elemental skills mastered. No elemental core detected within the spiritual body of this intelligent being.]
[10 Galaxy Merit Points consumed.]
[Auxiliary Masteries: Masteries are divided into combat and auxiliary types. Auxiliary masteries focus more on the survival of intelligent beings in the Origin Point, creating environments and resources suitable for the beings themselves. Common auxiliary masteries include leatherworking, forging, smelting, drawing, cooking, planting, etc.]
[10 Galaxy Merit Points consumed.]
So, faith and elements lean more toward combat, while auxiliary masteries are survival-oriented—more like life skills in games. The rewards seemed decent, but none were what Liu Xiao wanted most at the moment. What he wanted were physical skills, archery-related physical skills. These so-called faith and elemental affinity sounded lofty, but with his 20-point agility attribute, they didn't seem very practical.
Of course, this line of thinking also carried a hint of sour grapes—after all, he had no deity faith or elemental core.
As for energy crystals... sigh... Who knew whether they were good things or just trouble?
After some deliberation, Liu Xiao chose Random Auxiliary Mastery (Beginner). At least it seemed somewhat useful now, and it skipped the entry-level tier. Another reason was that one of the Origin Point's basic tasks was tied to beginner masteries.
Let fate decide...
[Random reward: Auxiliary Mastery (Beginner) being calculated...]
Enter book title/author/main character to search.
[Random reward: Auxiliary Mastery (Beginner) confirmed.]
[Obtained Auxiliary Mastery (Beginner): Appraisal (Beginner)]
[Detected that intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241 has acquired Appraisal Mastery (Beginner). Automatically granted basic material knowledge, basic biological knowledge, and basic reconstructed object knowledge.]
Instantly, a flood of information poured into Liu Xiao's mind—or rather, his spirit core now.
The entire process lasted only three breaths.
No dizziness or disorientation. The difference between his original brain and his current spirit core was like heaven and earth. He could clearly feel that the spirit core's efficiency and capacity in receiving information and data were at least a hundred times stronger.
Alright, so this was Appraisal. To put it simply, it wasn't so much a skill as a fusion of knowledge.
Turns out this counted as an auxiliary mastery. From the digested information, Appraisal was about judging and identifying materials—biological, mineral, elemental, and special materials. It had to be said, this mastery was quite useful for Liu Xiao. While it wouldn't let him understand the habits and traits of every unknown creature, it did tell him which parts of them were valuable.
Not bad, not bad. Liu Xiao was quite satisfied.
As for reconstructed objects, they were items crafted from various materials. For example...
Liu Xiao picked up the lizardman's cleaver. Combining his newly acquired material knowledge and reconstructed object knowledge, the system immediately provided information about the blade.
[Name: Hunting Knife]
[Quality: Common]
[Origin: Origin Point]
[Blade Material: Bailo Iron]
[Handle Material: Rain Willow Wood]
[Item Details: A relatively sharp common cleaver.]
Hmm... Even with this knowledge, it still felt a bit useless.
Liu Xiao then took out two crystalline bottles looted from the dark-red lizardman. One contained two fingernail-sized red stones, while the other held a golden liquid.
He placed one red stone on his palm.
This was... a petal from a Blood Cherry Blossom!?
What the—!
Liu Xiao's lips twitched. This thing was actually a Blood Cherry Blossom petal!
[Name: Blood Cherry Blossom Petal]
[Origin: Origin Point]
[Item Details: The petal of a Blood Cherry Blossom tree, condensed with vast amounts of biological blood energy. Can be consumed directly. After consumption, the blood energy will transform into bodily tissues, slightly increasing Toughness and Strength. Beings with insufficient Toughness may explode due to excessive blood energy concentration.]
...
The item was genuinely good, but the risk of exploding was too terrifying to try.
With Liu Xiao's abysmal Toughness and Strength (both at 5), exploding was practically guaranteed.
He put the petal back into the bottle and stored it away, then proceeded to appraise the golden liquid.
This time, the appraisal wasn't as smooth.
Merely observing it had no effect—there were too many liquids of the same color in his knowledge database.
He sniffed it. The damn thing actually smelled faintly fragrant, reminiscent of roses. That ruled out a bunch of wrong options.
He dipped his finger in—not sticky. Good, another batch eliminated.
Ah, got it!
[Name: Tears of Sorrow Flower Juice]
[Origin: Origin Point]
[Item Details: The juice of the Tears of Sorrow flower. Can be consumed directly. After consumption, it neutralizes blood energy concentration in the body and can also counteract blood-based toxins.]
So that's it! This flower juice was meant to be used in combination with the Blood Cherry Blossom petals!
One increased blood energy concentration, the other reduced it. Perfect!
As for dosage... Liu Xiao's Appraisal mastery only told him the effects, not the proper amount.
Well, trial and error it is. Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.
Fortune favors the bold, and miracles come from daring! Here goes!
He took out one Blood Cherry Blossom petal and placed it in his mouth.
Gulp. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed it whole.
Holy sh—
The petal, no bigger than a capsule, sank into his abdomen and immediately unleashed its primal force.
Liu Xiao could practically feel a scorching heat spreading from his stomach, rampaging through his body. Almost simultaneously, he saw the veins on his arms bulge, and his muscles tensed as if something inside was trying to burst out.
Then, bruises began appearing all over his body.
This damn thing is making my blood vessels explode!
No time to waste. Liu Xiao downed half the bottle of golden liquid.
If he didn't drink it now, he'd be a goner.
The effect was immediate. The frenzied blood energy began to calm, replaced by a cooling sensation flowing through his body. Gradually, the bruises faded, and his muscles felt indescribably comfortable.
After a few more breaths, everything settled.
[Toughness +1]
[Strength +2]
Two inconspicuous lines appeared.
But they sent Liu Xiao into ecstasy.
Without hesitation, he swallowed the second Blood Cherry Blossom petal.
His reasoning was simple: with the Tears of Sorrow Flower Juice still in effect, maybe it could suppress this petal's blood energy directly.
As expected, the second petal behaved much more gently, contributing its value without any risk of explosion—as docile as a cup of goji berry tea.
[Toughness +2]
[Strength +1]
...
Huh? The stat boosts were randomized too!?
Or did the order of consuming the flower juice affect the attribute gains?
Whatever, he could study that later. For now, he'd already struck gold.
But the good fortune didn't end there.
When he obtained the Appraisal mastery, the system had also provided three messages. Only now did he check them one by one.
[Origin Point basic task completed. Intelligent being 87242-82231-25241-2241, please select a reward from the following options:]
[Item: Hunter's Disguise]
[Skill Clue]
[Free Physical Attribute Points: +2]
This was the first time Liu Xiao had completed a basic task from the Origin Point. He immediately dismissed the attribute points.
After metamorphosis, the system provided much more information than before. Reward items now displayed all their properties directly.
[Name: Hunter's Disguise]
[Quality: Good]
[Creator: Toroto]
[Creator's Note: Couldn't find Shadow Rock, couldn't achieve invisibility. Used Flower Vein Tree bark as a substitute.]
[Item Details: Resists a certain amount of skill damage. Comes with a disguise effect that can be activated via spiritual energy.]
[Disguise: When activated, changes color according to the surrounding environment.]
Liu Xiao couldn't help rubbing his hands together. This was clearly tailor-made for him—a piece of clothing with a camouflage effect activated by spiritual energy.
As for the skill clue... If it had been a direct skill reward, he might have hesitated. But since it was just a clue, forget it.
Without a second thought, he chose the Hunter's Disguise.
A dark-green leather outfit materialized in front of his chest.
No need for words. He put it on immediately.
Glancing disdainfully at his original black bodysuit:
[Name: Body Wrap]
[Quality: None]
[Creator: Galactic Order]
[Item Details: Covers the body, provides minimal defense.]
Liu Xiao had already experienced its "defensive capabilities" in battle—it couldn't even stop twigs from tearing it. At best, it was glorified underwear.
With his new outfit, he instantly felt more impressive. No wonder players in games were so obsessed with skins—they were symbols of both spending power and strength.
The Hunter's Disguise was clearly made from a single piece of animal hide. Its dark-green hue was already a form of camouflage in the jungle.
As soon as he put it on, he sensed something different about it. With a thought—
A fraction of his spiritual energy (about 1/10th) was consumed, channeling into the disguise's latent power.
Looking down, the dark-green surface subtly shifted, adopting the deep greens of nearby bushes and the browns of branches, complete with gradient stripes.
Once the colors stabilized, the Hunter's Disguise had fully blended into the surroundings—leaving only Liu Xiao's head floating conspicuously in midair.
Amazing!
Liu Xiao really wanted to leave Toroto a five-star review.
This thing was perfect for him—an ideal tool for ambushes, theft, and all sorts of shady business.
With the Hunter's Disguise, who needed a ghillie suit? The answer was obvious: no one.
Feeling pleased, Liu Xiao checked the remaining two messages.