30 - Dungeon Growth Log

Under the crimson of the setting sun, Xia Ge leisurely carried the girl down the mountain. The purple in her eyes had gradually faded. With some hesitation, the System spoke: "… I think he will definitely remember you." "Eh, so what?" Xia Ge whistled nonchalantly. "Everyone remembers Xia Ge. But who knows which onion Xia Wuyin is?" System: "…" Xia Ge continued, "Today, after Senior Sister left, I took the opportunity to check out the skills while waiting for the pill to form. If I remember correctly, the advanced [Soul Capture] has a memory-blurring function, right?" No wonder you were so bold in using it. System: "… It does. But the others definitely recognize you." Xia Ge: "I didn't use Soul Capture on them, and the name is fake. What am I worried about?" System: "…" Noisy as ever, they descended the mountain. After reaching the foot of the mountain, Xia Ge took the girl to a local doctor, paying her medical expenses in the spirit of doing good deeds anonymously. "Ah… I'm getting poorer and poorer." Outside Dr. Zhang’s house, Xia Ge pulled out half a piece of sparkling Luminescent Wood from her pocket, looking somewhat distressed. "Little Puppet, because of my benevolence, Senior Sister will surely forgive me for secretly cutting off the remaining half of the Luminescent Wood, right?" System: "…" One day, Senior Sister is going to throw you off Dan Peak, absolutely. Suddenly, the System had a lightbulb moment. Wait a minute, no wonder the furnace exploded! Producing some epic divine pill without the critical Luminescent Wood ingredient... What you refined was probably just a lump of carbon!! The System suddenly felt a strong urge to warn Constant Senior Brother, who might have mistaken a lump of carbon for a divine pill. The System decided to subtly caution its host: "That 'divine pill'…" "Hey, hey, don’t get it twisted. Though I took half, all the alchemy ingredients I used were according to the alchemy book! This was just left over!" Xia Ge said, then puzzledly scratched her chin. "I found this piece of Luminescent Wood left over after refining the pill…" The materials Senior Sister gave her should not have been extra… right? …right. As Xia Ge stared at the piece of Luminescent Wood in her hand, she suddenly recalled the words of the girl in red and white maple robes upon leaving the Dan Pavilion. "Xia Wuyin." "You can handle any leftover, useless materials." In an instant, Xia Ge felt the Luminescent Wood in her hand become somewhat hot. Was this Luminescent Wood considered useless material? But… it did seem to be left over. Didn’t it? "…Forget it." Xia Ge pocketed the Luminescent Wood, deciding not to think about it further. "Let’s go back." System: "Host, where do you plan to sell this Luminescent Wood?" Xia Ge: "…" For an instant, Xia Ge envisioned the elegant silhouette of the girl in red and white maple robes accompanied by a white-clad servant as they left the Dan Pavilion. "No, I won’t sell it." Xia Ge tilted her head, a faint smile playing on her lips. "How could I sell a gift from a beautiful girl to others?" System: "Host, did I forget to tell you that Luminescent Wood, used in puppet crafting, can be exchanged for points in the system mall?" Xia Ge silently opened the points mall and indeed found a [Redeem Points] button in the top left corner: "Ah, you definitely forgot to mention it." [Ding! Congratulations to the host for successfully selling the item {Luminescent Wood}, earning 10 points!] System: ???? System: "…" Xia Ge pat her now-empty pocket, looking surprised. "Wow, it sold just like that? A piece of Luminescent Wood only exchanges for ten sanitary pads, so cheap?" Ten sanitary pads? What kind of crappy conversion rate is that? Do you have to use sanitary pads for every conversion? =皿= System: "Wait, Host, didn’t you just say…" Xia Ge looked pure and innocent: "Hmm? Did I say something?" System, gloomily: "You said you wouldn't sell a gift from a beautiful girl." "But the little puppet isn't another person, it's one of our own." System: "…" Please, just uninstall me already. Goodbye. Xia Ge ignored the System's gloom. After busying around all day, it was now completely dark. The village was quiet, with just a few dim lights flickering. Although there was no curfew, the people of Lingshu Village had a very regular routine. They worked from sunrise to sunset and now, after a busy day, the village was exceptionally quiet. Strolling leisurely back to her small house, Xia Ge noticed that the door of a similar hut next to hers was tightly shut, with no lights or fire inside. Ye Ze had not returned. "Huh…" Xia Ge scratched her chin, "He hasn't come back." System: "That’s for the best." Xia Ge: "What are you afraid of? I've already delivered the invincible, all-healing, Mary Sue revival pill." System, coolly: "Wasn't it the world-reviving, supreme, invincible, Mary Sue revival pill?" Xia Ge: "… little puppet is right. Little puppet is so smart." System: "…" Could you be serious for once? Xia Ge: "Ah, I wanted to put in some effort for once and ask Senior Brother Ye about alchemy. Since he’s not back, forget it." It seemed like she missed a precious opportunity to gain alchemy wisdom from Ye Ze. System: "You must be joking." Xia Ge, expressionless, pushed open her door: "Recently, under Senior Sister’s influence, I’ve been wanting to study so badly that I can’t sleep. It's like my day-and-night obsession." System: "…" The System didn't feel like retorting anymore. Fine, whatever. Buddha. Lighting a candle, Xia Ge glanced at the corner where a giant scythe shimmered under the candlelight, sinking into deep thought. "Little puppet." System reluctantly responded: "… Hmm?" "Can you sell something that can shrink items?" The System subtly reminded: "Host, you might not have enough sanitary pads." Xia Ge: "Shut up. Yes or no, just one word." System: "Yes." Xia Ge: "Show me what I can afford, thanks." System: "…" Xia Ge opened the points mall while the System listed the shrinking items first. "[Miniature Elixir], applying it can shrink items. The downside is it cannot revert to its original state, use cautiously… pass." "[Compression Capsule], condenses items into a mini-capsule. Single-use item. Downside: Too small, easy to lose (ps: 3mm in diameter)." Xia Ge: "…What kind of three-millimeter nonsense is this." System: "You can’t afford the three-centimeter one." The System’s blunt reply startled Xia Ge, causing her to accidentally scroll to the bottom. A line of bold, scarlet text stood out— "[Space Ring], daily special item, 2 cubic meters of space, a must-have!" Xia Ge’s eyes lit up, "This is good stuff!" System: "Wait…" Xia Ge clapped her hands, "That’s it!" System: "Hold on…" [Ding! Congratulations to the host for purchasing the Space Ring for 15 points!] Two cubic meters! Really needed that! Buy, buy, buy! In the next moment, a small breeze whirled through the tiny room, pretty, shimmering light spots floating around, forming a mini tornado. At the center, a thin silver ring sparkled like moonlight. [Space Ring random teleportation, with bonus teleportation effect] Xia Ge reached out to the tornado's center and grabbed the tiny ring. Silver and cool to the touch, it shined beautifully. "So pretty." She opened her palm, and her black eyes reflected the glittering silver ring. The ring’s details soon appeared in her mind. [Flowing Silver] [Additional Effect: Automatically invisible to others (toggleable)] [Function: Two cubic meters of space] [Flaw: Occasionally fails to retrieve items.] [Bold Red Text] Xia Ge stared at the bold red text at the bottom for a long time. The System awkwardly cleared its throat: "I told you to wait…" Xia Ge: "…" The System attempted to comfort her: "It’s okay, good stuff is never cheap, and cheap stuff is never good…" Xia Ge: "…" Just shut up, please. The System persisted: "The daily specials in the points mall are actually quite fair…" Xia Ge tried to scoff but, after glancing at the dubious [3mm Miniature Capsule], [Miniature Elixir], and other shady items, she paused. … Fine, maybe it’s not so bad. Xia Ge consoled herself; it’s just fifteen sanitary pads, may as well consider it buying something pretty. Sliding the ring onto the pinky finger of her right hand, the silver ring gleamed under the moonlight, like flowing silver. Touching the giant black scythe, Xia Ge caressed its sharp, cold blade. With a glimmer from the Flowing Silver ring, the massive scythe suddenly vanished. Xia Ge waved her hand, and the ring shimmered. In the next moment, she grasped the dark scythe handle, its end chain rattling. The scythe's blade gleamed, and the flickering candle cast her shadow with the large scythe onto the wall—a slim figure contrasting starkly with the huge weapon, reminiscent of the Grim Reaper harvesting souls in the night. The System hesitantly spoke: "Host, a skilled puppeteer wouldn’t use a puppet’s weapon…" Xia Ge spun the scythe in her hand, reversing her grip. With a swift motion and a clanging of metal, the scythe's handle snapped into three segments, each connected by black chains that clinked and clanked as Xia Ge moved. "No, no, no—" Xia Ge shook her head. "I think that to become an excellent puppeteer, you need to start by making yourself an excellent puppet." System: "???" With a faint smile, Xia Ge looked at the scythe in her hand. "Those demonized puppets don't even understand their own weapons, so the puppeteers controlling them must have terrible skills." System: "…" Surprisingly, it couldn’t find a reason to refute that. Drawing from experience, the System began, "Back when puppeteers were prevalent, there was a specific branch called demonized puppeteers, who specialized in controlling demonized puppets." "Demonized puppets were extremely powerful but incredibly difficult to control. During that time, demonized puppets were considered at peace only when destroyed, which made this branch quite infamous." "However, those who became demonized puppeteers were undoubtedly very skilled." Xia Ge raised an eyebrow, reassembled the three-segmented scythe, and stored it back in her ring. Casually, she asked, "Was that remarkable puppeteer you mentioned also a demonized puppeteer?" For once, the System fell silent. "Never mind if you don't want to say. It's not like I absolutely need to know." Xia Ge shrugged. "… It's nothing much," the System hesitated, then changed the subject. "Besides, [Flowing Silver] is probably the best looking among those discount rings. You really got a steal there." "Oh, does that mean Little Puppet gave me an internal discount?" Xia Ge teased with a grin. "I always knew Little Puppet treated me best." "Hmph, I told you it was a bargain." Despite its grumbling, the System felt a bit better, realizing its host could at least say something nice sometimes. In the next second. Xia Ge glanced at the pretty ring on her slender finger. "But really, as long as it's practical, it’s fine. Too pretty, and it becomes gaudy." System: "…" Incredibly short-lived joy. "… Host, you are a young girl! Girls, young girls and their preferences, don't you get it!" Xia Ge dismissed it, "Yeah, yeah, I’m a girl, I’m a young girl, the best-looking girl and young girl." System: "…" "Alright, alright, this pretty young girl needs to get some sleep now." Unwrapping the bandages from her hand and neck, Xia Ge glanced at her reflection in a blurry bronze mirror. The wound on her neck wasn't deep and had already scabbed over, but it still couldn’t get wet. Perhaps because children heal quickly, her hand injury was half-healed but still hurt when touched. Carefully avoiding the wound, Xia Ge removed the ring and set it on the table. After washing up, she saw the moonlight shining through a crack in the window, casting a dreamy glow on the fine ring. ——[Flowing Silver]. Beautiful, just as its name suggested. Putting the towel aside, Xia Ge slipped the ring back on her finger, staring at it as it adorned her slender pinky. Suddenly, she remembered what Little Puppet had said. ——You are a young girl. Maybe the deeper the night, the more it stirs up the darkest corners of one's heart. In the quiet night, Xia Ge found herself unsure of her own feelings. She had almost forgotten. Once, she was a young girl who loved beautiful things. She would tug on her parents' sleeves to act spoiled, cry over trivial matters, and light up with joy at the sight of something pretty. When did it all change? Moonlight spilled in through the window, intertwining with the warm flicker of the candle, filling the room with brightness. Becoming reckless. Recklessly clinging to life. Like a beast with bloodshot eyes. After all, in the face of life and death and starvation, there is no one to pity a young girl—only the stark, unvarnished reality of a life battled and scarred. … Forget it. Xia Ge blew out the candle, climbed into bed, and snuggled into the blanket, murmuring to herself, "… Today, I am a young girl." If no one else pampered her, she would pamper herself. Yep, tomorrow, she’d buy a string of candied haws. Just like that. Under the peaceful, silent moonlight, Xia Ge settled into the warm bed and slowly closed her eyes. A long while later, the System's faint voice gently broke the silence. "Sweet dreams, young girl." Author's Note: Sweet dreams, young girl(s). = = season tossed a mine at 2018-05-28 06:25:50 Xue Li tossed a mine at 2018-05-28 07:41:19 Ning Yin. tossed a mine at 2018-05-28 12:56:02 28653085 tossed a mine at 2018-05-28 15:42:34 Thanks, everyone _(:3)∠)_ = = Readers "Sasa", poured nutrient solution 62018-05-28 22:53:03 Readers "British Shorthair", poured nutrient solution 1202018-05-28 19:49:06 Readers "Tun Baitu", poured nutrient solution 102018-05-28 17:57:26 Readers "Ning Yin.", poured nutrient solution 402018-05-28 12:56:04 Readers "Xiao Ming", poured nutrient solution 702018-05-28 10:15:28 Readers "Shidao", poured nutrient solution 12018-05-28 00:37:17 Readers "Cangyang", poured nutrient solution 302018-05-28 00:21:30 Readers "23687590 Pang Si", poured nutrient gel 202018-05-28 00:00:32 Readers "←ran", poured nutrient solution 132018-05-27 23:59:58 Readers "Miaomiao Adults", poured nutrient solution 202018-05-27 23:33:16 Readers "Xiao Langjun", poured nutrient solution 102018-05-27 23:31:58 Readers "Wang Si Yi Qing", poured nutrient solution 22018-05-27 22:58:24 Readers "Yuan", poured nutrient solution 22018-05-27 22:56:59 Thank you overlords for the nutrient solution! - - JJWXC is really toxic!!! It extracted my original draft!!! If you read the initial post, just ignore it!!! My original formatted one!!! So frustrating, it happens every time!!!