She forced herself to perk up and continued drawing skills… making a wish, hoping for an offensive skill like "ingots falling from the sky"!
[Would you like to spend 200 points to obtain a random skill?]
Attack, go!
[Ding! Congratulations, you have obtained the skill: "This is the money I paid to stay alive!"]
[This is the money I paid to stay alive!]: Using this skill allows you to spend points/coins to escape a pursuit. (Limited skill, can only be used once per game.)
[Note: Points bribe players, coins bribe ghosts. Please pay attention to your balance and consume moderately~]
Ah—this… Mu Anqi was momentarily speechless. Is this skill powerful? Yes. It's a legendary limited skill!
But it costs money.
This newly acquired skill made Mu Anqi feel uneasy even while staying in Nirvana Paradise. She walked into a food shop, and for once felt like having a full set of luxurious grilled cold noodles. However, after ordering a portion of grilled cold noodles and a chilled sweet soybean milk, Mu Anqi couldn't help but sigh as she looked at her remaining points balance.
Player: Mu Anqi
At Age of Death: 20
Ability: I Have Plenty of Money
Points: 905
Transaction Serial Number: 64805368
Guansi: 2998
She still had to give General Ji a thousand Guansi, which left only two thousand. As for the nine hundred or so points… no matter how she looked at it, they wouldn't last. She was clearly already a VIP, and got double points each time she cleared a level—so why didn't it feel like she was living the rich life? She hesitated even when thinking about buying a slightly more powerful weapon.
…Well, now she could understand why, back in the experimental dungeon, those players thought she was some pro just from looking at her items.
For now, she wouldn't go to the training ground. Mu Anqi thought it was just the same to train in her room, though a bit boring. Maybe she could buy some books from the rental stall for entertainment.
Save up a wave of points, and strive for an A grade in the next game. That way… she'd just about be able to buy a portable handgun. Once she paired it with paranormal bullets and took a set of 1-on-1 lessons from a gunfighting instructor, she could become a sharpshooter! By then, ghosts would be slain if they blocked her, demons massacred if they stood in her way—dominating the Black Mirror Vortex would be just around the corner!
The flow of time in the Black Mirror Vortex was different from that of the Shattered Mirror Continent. After resting for a day in Nirvana Space, Mu Anqi found that her friends were still in the game… Was this another seven-day game? Or some kind of survival game? Come to think of it, if she hadn't received the Black Mirror Vortex invitation, would she have entered a ghost-themed dungeon in the Shattered Mirror Continent?
Would the ghosts in the Shattered Mirror Continent… be killed and eliminated by players? Next time she entered a dungeon, she'd ask little Xia Fenghua about it.
Thinking of Xia Fenghua, Mu Anqi couldn't help recalling the sweet smile the little loli had when twisting off a monster's head.
Hmm, children usually like candy, right? Mu Anqi thought that maybe she could go buy some gift boxes and packaging bags, and sort all the candies (other than the spicy syrup) produced by the candy cane. That way, she could give them to Xia Fenghua as a gift next time! That little loli helped her get through this dungeon, and from what General Ji said last time, Xia Fenghua would have to guide her through a few more, to help her get familiar with the Black Mirror Vortex. So, Mu Anqi felt it was necessary to prepare a gift for Xia Fenghua.
There weren't many props or weapons in the Nirvana Space that were suitable to give to ghosts. As for the items sold at player stalls… Mu Anqi had looked through them too, but didn't see anything appropriate for gifting to a ghost.
Candy, sure—but if she happened to see any new dolls at the stalls in the next few days, she'd buy them too!
If there really weren't any…
Mu Anqi thought, maybe she could give Xia Fenghua a little dress? Children's sizes should all be more or less the same, right?
With these thoughts, Mu Anqi peacefully spent three days of her vacation. Whenever she grew tired from physical training, she'd simply wipe off some sweat and lie down on the [Lounge Chair That's Especially Comfortable to Lie On] to rest for a while. After about twenty minutes of lying down, all her fatigue would vanish. The only downside was that it was really hard for Mu Anqi to get up from the chair—it was just too comfortable.
On the fifth day of her vacation, Mu Anqi received a message from the Shattered Mirror Continent.
[Ding! You have a message from the Shattered Mirror Continent. Please check~]
[Ji Huaichu: Prepare for the game. Continuing with Black Mirror Vortex.]
Upon seeing General Ji's message, Mu Anqi immediately packed her backpack. During this time, her main expenses were just meals. The gift boxes and bags had only cost 4 points in total, and the little dress—after a discount—was just 12 points.
After resting for five days, Mu Anqi still had 841 points left. Looking at this number, which was close to breaking a thousand, Mu Anqi felt a deep sense of security.
Phew!~ Hopefully this Black Mirror Vortex won't be too much of a mood killer. Mu Anqi silently made a wish: may it be a Black Mirror Vortex born purely from malicious thoughts!
Alright, bring it on!
[Drawing game event…]
[Ding! Special mark detected! Detecting invitation…]
[Ding! Special invitation detected! Entering Black Mirror Vortex…]
[Beep! Activating instance: Death Village!]
[Entering… please wait…]
[Beep! Passive · Chosen One activated!]
[Congratulations, player has received 999 + 500 Guansi.]
Death Village? What kind of Black Mirror Vortex is this? Could it really be one formed purely from malice? She was just casually making a wish—when did her luck get this good? Mu Anqi felt a bit helpless, especially since she hadn't even prayed yet…
Mu Anqi climbed up from the wasteland—this place looked especially desolate. She looked far into the distance and could see the outline of a village, but there didn't seem to be any signs of life.
Where was Xia Fenghua? It seemed the entry point into the Black Mirror Vortex from the Shattered Mirror Continent was different from the one via Nirvana Space. Mu Anqi quickly ran through a few blessing incantations in her mind, just in case. Then, she solemnly took out the gift box from her backpack, unfolded a gift bag, and placed the box inside. The bag also held the little dress and leather shoes, but since the box was too large, Mu Anqi had wrapped it in a plastic bag instead. She figured Little Xia Fenghua probably wouldn't mind such small details. As long as the thought counted, right? She took out another gift bag, opened it, and placed the little dress and shoes inside. Carrying the two gifts, Mu Anqi happily headed toward the village.
It wasn't that Mu Anqi lacked caution—it was just that with her current abilities, she could react to whatever came her way. After all, she could now even send red envelopes using mental power, and blessing phrases came to her as easily as breathing. Besides, this wasn't a solo instance—Little Xia Fenghua had proven to be very reliable! She might look small and adorable, but she was an unexpectedly powerful carry!
This mood lasted all the way until Mu Anqi, full of excitement, arrived at the entrance of the village—only to see General Ji standing there, tall and slender, dressed casually in a light jacket.
—What… is going on?!
Mu Anqi was utterly shocked, and General Ji had clearly noticed her too. Her gaze quietly settled on Mu Anqi. What was this feeling? Like you had made plans to go on a work trip with a little loli coworker, only to arrive at the airport and find out your boss was the one joining the mission instead?!
Mu Anqi walked over nervously. The little dress was clearly no longer a gift she could give now. She forced a smile. "Hello, General Ji, this… this is a gift." Mu Anqi handed over the bag of packaged candy.
General Ji remained perfectly composed. When she was waiting, her face was expressionless, which to others gave off a very clear "stay away" vibe. But the moment Mu Anqi spoke to her, Ji Huaichu's demeanor changed. She reached out and took the gift bag. Glancing at the other bag in Mu Anqi's hand, she easily guessed that both were probably prepared for Xia Fenghua.
…But, what did that matter?
Now, they belonged to her.
"This is… a little dress. I thought… maybe Xia Fenghua would like it. C-could you possibly help me—"
"You can give it to her yourself, after this is over," Ji Huaichu said softly.
"Ah, okay!" Mu Anqi responded with a nod. Feeling a bit awkward, she held the bag in one hand while taking the little dress and shoes out of the gift bag and putting them back into her backpack. Then she folded the gift bag as well, all the while reporting to General Ji the bit of information she had: "This Black Mirror Vortex is called 'Death Village.' Just from the name, it sounds dangerous—probably a dungeon formed from pure malice."
Ji Huaichu listened quietly. She took the gift box out of the bag. Inside, it was divided into three compartments, each filled with a different kind of candy.
Looking closely, Ji Huaichu's hands were actually quite pale. But considering she was a ghost, that made perfect sense. General Ji was tall and slender, with long, elegant fingers. When she curled her fingers to pick up a single bell-shaped candy, the beauty of that motion became even more apparent.
Dressed in casual clothes, Ji Huaichu was an absolute beauty.
On her pale, almost bloodless face, her long, dense lashes trembled lightly, and her thin lips carried a certain delicate fragility. She was like a thin layer of frost formed on a clear winter morning—seemingly cold, yet so fragile it could shatter at a single touch.
Those pale lips parted slightly, placing the bell-shaped candy into her mouth. Even a beauty eating candy looked elegant. But… while Mu Anqi found the scene both lovely and harmonious, she also couldn't help but feel it was a little… comical, given General Ji's identity.
The sound of hard candy being forcibly crunched came through. Mu Anqi stared blankly at Ji Huaichu, just in time to see her expressionlessly bite through and swallow the hard candy.
"Xia Fenghua doesn't like candy," Ji Huaichu said as she picked up another piece and popped it into her mouth. "Let's go. Dungeons made of malice are simple."
"Ah, okay!" Mu Anqi blinked. So General Ji already knew these gifts were for Xia Fenghua? But she still accepted them—and even ate the candy… Xia Fenghua doesn't like sweets? But she's a kid! Looks like Mu Anqi would really need to pay closer attention to their preferences.
As she was thinking this, the crunching sound suddenly stopped. She looked over and saw General Ji picking up another candy…
Ah—could it be… General Ji actually likes hard candy?
"By the way, I won't step in—this is to train you," Ji Huaichu said suddenly. "Practice how to eliminate malice."
"...?!" Mu Anqi's face was full of confusion and shock. Just then, a gust of chilly wind blew through, stripping the few remaining leaves from the old locust tree at the village entrance.
In the wailing, sobbing wind, the dilapidated village seemed shrouded in gray fog, filled with a sense of eeriness and gloom.
Author's note:
General Ji: First time guiding a player… not sure what the best approach is. Maybe I should consult some other ghost kings.
Mu Anqi: Weak smile of a money tree.jpg