After obtaining a decent reward, Ningguang returned to the group, visibly satisfied. Her mind was already racing—if she encountered a powerful enemy in the future, how much Mora should she spend?
This required testing. Spend too little, and the damage wouldn't be enough. Spend too much, and it would be wasteful.
She began planning which unfortunate creature would become her test subject.
But after thinking it through… there didn't seem to be any enemy worthy of a "Heavenly Toss."
"…What a pity."
With the Rite of Descension approaching, most monsters nearby had already been cleared out by the Millelith. She suddenly felt like a wealthy person with no way to spend her money—frustrating.
At that moment, Keqing leaned in. "Say… if you threw one hundred million Mora at once, could you kill a god?"
"…No idea."
Ningguang shook her head. Gods were still too abstract to her. Aside from a few Archons, she hadn't truly encountered any.
Could she test it on one?
Nah.
She briefly considered Nahida—probably didn't need that much. Then Furina—she talked big, but Ningguang doubted it would take that much either.
As for Raiden Shogun… forget it. That deletion spear was terrifying.
Finally, her gaze drifted toward Zhongli.
"…No, no, no."
She quickly shook her head, dispelling the dangerous thought. That would be outright disrespect.
Off to the side, Valerius watched her expressions shift between several gods and immediately guessed what she was thinking. He almost wanted to tell her—don't worry, you'll get your chance soon.
More interestingly, from her earlier glance, he realized something—
She seemed to know Zhongli's identity.
That meant the upcoming Rite of Descension would definitely be entertaining.
He made a mental note: he had to go watch.
"Mr. Valerius, what is this?"
His thoughts were interrupted. Black Swan had already walked over, holding an item.
"…You already drew? When?"
She smiled faintly. "While you were staring at Miss Ningguang."
Instantly, several gazes turned toward him.
"…Don't talk nonsense."
Valerius quickly changed the subject. "Let me see."
Taking the item, he froze.
A magic staff—bird-beak shaped at the top, with small white wings.
And alongside it—
A stack of cards.
"…You didn't give me everything, did you?"
Black Swan calmly revealed the cards. "These are Clow Cards. Strike them with the staff, and their abilities activate."
"This one controls wind. This one—fire."
She nodded. "Quite an interesting ability."
The power wasn't overwhelming, but that wasn't what she cared about. She was more interested in unusual abilities than raw strength, and this suited her perfectly.
"As long as you like it."
Next up was Phantylia.
After seeing the previous rewards, she wasn't particularly confident. Six-point rewards clearly couldn't compare to ten-point ones. Aside from Silver Wolf's, nothing had truly impressed her.
She stepped forward, gave Valerius a faint smile, and inserted her coins.
"…Why is she smiling at me?"
Valerius blinked. Had something gone wrong with her personality? She was supposed to be a Lord Ravager—where was the cold arrogance?
The machine rattled.
A silver-white object dropped out.
"…Oh?"
Valerius raised a brow in surprise.
"Judging by your expression, I've drawn something good?"
Phantylia's interest piqued immediately.
"…Well… it might not be useful to you."
That single sentence made her heart sink.
"…Please explain."
Valerius examined the item carefully.
A silver-white cross, glowing faintly with soft light.
After confirming, he spoke:
"This is a Resurrection Cross."
"It has only one effect."
"It can revive the dead."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
"…Re… revive?"
Jingliu's eyes widened. Until now, all items had been about power. Her goal had always been simple—grow stronger and destroy the Abundance.
But this…
Her heartbeat quickened.
"…Baiheng."
A blurred figure surfaced in her mind.
Even if the memory had faded, she still remembered.
Nearby, Raiden Shogun stood frozen, the candy bag slipping from her hands unnoticed.
"…Resurrection… actually exists?"
Her expression shifted—from shock, to desire, to resolve.
She wanted it.
No matter what.
Just as she stepped forward, Yae Miko grabbed her.
"Don't."
"…Mm."
This time, Raiden didn't argue. She had nearly lost herself just now.
Snatching it wasn't an option.
Even if she could take it, Valerius would intervene. Worse—if he revoked her player status, everything would be over.
"…Player status…"
Suddenly, she looked down at the spear in her hand.
Then at the Resurrection Cross.
An idea formed.
She walked up to Phantylia.
"This isn't useful to you. Want to trade?"
"…With what?"
Phantylia raised a brow.
"This."
Raiden extended the deletion spear.
"…That?"
Phantylia hesitated.
It was powerful. Elegant. Perfect in design.
But—
Unusable.
Use it, and she'd be eliminated too.
Her gaze shifted away—
Then landed on someone else.
On Bronya.
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