Chapter 176: Preparing for the Next Game
Back in her room, Moira Lynch plopped down on the bed and patted her chest.
"That scared me to death."
But this time, the haul was unexpectedly huge.
Not only had she gotten two rare Artifice Beasts, but also a suitable item and an entire planet, Veridia.
Thinking of this, Moira Lynch entered her space and had the Calming Bell acknowledge her as its master. As for the Healing Device, that wasn’t necessary—Moira had it fuse directly with Patience.
Meanwhile, Snowy was extremely interested in the three new items Moira Lynch had brought back.
Seeing Snowy’s eager eyes, Moira Lynch knew it was only a matter of time before those three items ended up in its stomach.
She bent down, scooped Snowy up, and couldn’t help but tease it as she looked at its round, plump belly, "Still thinking about eating? You’re about to become a ball."
Sensing its master’s disdain, Snowy let out an indignant squeak. ’Who do you think I’m doing all this for, anyway?’
Snowy struggled out of Moira Lynch’s arms, looking for all the world like a long-suffering wife who had been cast aside.
’It’s only been a short while and she’s already tired of me.’
’I’m so heartbroken. It’ll take three new items to cheer me up.’
Moira Lynch couldn’t be bothered with it.
She had gradually figured out Snowy’s personality during this time. The more you pandered to it, the more airs it put on—give it an inch, and it’ll take a mile. If you just ignored it, it would get over itself in a little while.
She had to admit, its personality was quite similar to her own. ’As expected of my Spiritual Body.’
Moira Lynch had a very clear understanding of herself.
...
A new day began with the loss of three-quarters of her spiritual power.
A large portion of it went to Moon Wheel, while the remaining small bit was snatched away by the Calming Bell.
Originally, Moira Lynch had been a little worried that Moon Wheel wouldn’t accept the Calming Bell.
Although Moon Wheel acted affectionately toward her, that affection was reserved for her alone.
Inside her space, any animal other than Snowy that tried to get close to Moon Wheel would be sent flying with a single slap.
Just then, an alarm sounded in her ear.
[Spiritual power critically low. Activate auxiliary recovery?]
"You have this function?"
[The auxiliary function can increase the master’s overall recovery speed by two times. If focused on a single aspect, the recovery speed will be increased by five times.]
"Focus the recovery on spiritual power only."
Moira Lynch said without hesitation after hearing the explanation.
The moment she finished speaking, Moira Lynch felt a cool sensation spread through her mind, as if a gentle breeze had swept past, feeling exceptionally pleasant.
Even her previously muddled thoughts began to clear up.
For Moira Lynch, the side effects of low spiritual power were very similar to pulling an all-nighter. Although she was awake, her mind was a chaotic mess.
"Hooo..."
Moira Lynch let out a long, slow breath, feeling instantly refreshed and clear-headed.
’I never thought the Artifice Beast from the auction would have this kind of use. This is a godsend for me! That ten million was well spent.’
For a Spiritual System Talent like Moira Lynch, spiritual power was something she was extremely dependent on.
Spiritual power was like their hands, their eyes—it could even be said to be their second self.
When Moira Lynch came downstairs, Kai York, who was eating breakfast, couldn’t help but tease her when he saw her. "Looks like you got a good night’s rest."
Hearing this, Moira Lynch gave a slightly awkward smile.
Before, with Moon Wheel draining two-thirds of her spiritual power every day, her complexion had indeed been a bit poor.
Kai York had even joked that she must be secretly cramming for the SATs in her room, for which Moira Lynch chased him down and gave him a thrashing.
At that moment, Moira Lynch noticed that Kai York’s hair color had changed from a bright pink to a dark, inky green.
"You... Did you snap or something?"
Kai York explained while eating, "I went out last night to find this. Hugh Finch said this color would be advantageous for me. He changed his too."
Hearing Kai York’s words, Moira Lynch asked, "Are there clues for the next game?"
"Sort of. Hugh Finch said he saw a deserted island, surrounded by the sea."
Just then, Hugh Finch walked in from outside, his arms full of jars containing Dye-Bugs of various colors.
"My divination tells me that camouflage will be very important in the next game. Do you two want to..."
Hugh Finch looked toward Moira Lynch and Shane Rhodes.
"No."
The two of them refused without any hesitation.
There were many ways to camouflage oneself; there was no need for such a drastic sacrifice.
"I can just smear some grease paint on my face when the time comes. It’s the same thing," Moira Lynch said.
"Alright then."
Hugh Finch didn’t press them. The main reason was that he couldn’t win a fight against them, so he hugged his jars and returned to his room.
Moira Lynch and Shane Rhodes exchanged a look. Now that they had clues about the next game, it was time for them to start preparing.
Just then, Hugh Finch popped his head out of his room.
In that short amount of time, Hugh’s previously purple hair had turned dark brown.
"Oh, right. I also divined that tools will be very important in the next game. You should prepare plenty."
"Tools?"
"Yes." Hugh Finch nodded. "Items count too. When you think of a deserted island, what comes to mind?"
"Survival!!"
They all said in unison.
"I’m not completely sure, but I’m seventy percent confident."
The others had a great deal of faith in Hugh Finch’s words.
So, over the next few days, Moira Lynch and the others actively prepared food and various other items that would be useful for survival.
As the days passed and the one-month deadline approached, all the players on Caelus grew nervous.
After all, the start of every game was like opening a blind box.
If you got a good one, the game would be much easier. But if you got a bad one, like in the last game, the low temperatures at the very beginning caused numerous players to be disqualified.
At the very end, some players who hadn’t cleared the game were even forcibly left on Glacius for a period of time.
Even though it was only for ten minutes.
But according to those in the know, these people all seemed to have suffered severe mental trauma after returning.
When asked what had happened, they wouldn’t say a word.
This incident cast a shadow of fear over the players regarding the game.
Previously, they could still comfort themselves with the thought that failing the game at worst meant losing their qualification to play, but their awakened Talents would remain.
But after seeing what happened to those people, they suddenly realized things weren’t so simple.
As the game’s start drew near, a post titled "What Is the Next Game?" went viral online, instantly attracting a lot of attention.
With the game about to begin, any content related to it would receive massive public attention.
While waiting for the game to start, Moira Lynch received another email. The sender was the Flower Gardener from Snow Rabbit Village.
The item Moira Lynch had commissioned him to make was ready.
Moira Lynch received the finished product. To her surprise, it was a Snow Lily Crown.
The crown felt as smooth and gentle as jade, and warm to the touch. Crafted from seven Snow Lilies and accented with blue crystals, it was exceptionally exquisite.