Chapter 4: Sanctuary Evolution System
"Stop! What are you doing?!" He almost roared for his life.
Ni Mengxue blinked before saying innocently, "Help you wash up.
He was dumbfounded.
"No need." He replied sternly, genuinely wondering if this was her new way of humiliating him.
"Be good; your wound would fester if not disinfected." She coaxed like he was a child throwing a tantrum.
She was suddenly reminded of the time when she was injured and depressed in her past life due to one of her close subordinates’ deaths.
At that time, Lu Yucai had volunteered to take care of her. The history was repeating itself... only the roles had changed.
Stunned by her audacity, Lu Yucai almost roared, "No need to pretend that you care about me. Ni Mengxue, just being near you disgusts me!"
Ni Mengxue flinched a little, but she reacted quickly and maintained a distance. It wasn’t out of fear, rather... she didn’t want him to feel disgusted.
"Alright! Alright! I will leave the water bucket; just clean yourself up."
With that, she left.
When the silence returned, Lu Yucai was dazed. Was this still the same Ni Mengxue?
No... the main question was... his eyes moved to the bucket of water, and shock flashed in his eyes.
"From when does the base become generous enough to give a bucket of water for free?"
With a despair-filled sigh, he fell back on the bed and murmured, "Why now... I had finally accumulated the courage to die... Ni Mengxue... let me die."
....
Once outside, Ni Mengxue leaned on the wall and closed her eyes.
Internally, she was checking out her system.
"System? Sanctuary Evolution System?"
[Sanctuary Evolution System Activated.]
"Tell me about yourself."
With that, an interface opened.
[Sanctuary Evolution System (legacy #7)
Current Sanctuary Level: None
Sanctuary Core: Dormant
Civilization Rank: Extinct
Core Registry: 10
Registered Resident: 2
Purpose: Guide the Host in rebuilding civilization.]
"Why is the core registry 10?" She asked in confusion.
When she received no response, she asked. "System? Any answers?"
[Current authority insufficient.]
Ni Mengxue’s eyes flickered with interest.
"Oh? What about rewards, and is there punishment? Also, isn’t there a female lead? Why choose me? Are you the reason behind my rebirth?"
[Rewards will range from the novice tier to the Cosmic tier. The sanctuary evolution system itself is a cosmic-level reward. There would be no punishments in any mission. At most, the rewards will be nullified.]
Ni Mengxue waited for the system to continue, but when she heard no response, she changed her question.
"Then what about that Lu Yucai storyline route stuff that you had told me? And what are merit points? Are they useful?"
Another interface opened with a name ’Characters’
[Name: Lu Yucai
Occupation: ?? General
Current Fate: Will die due to depression.
Reward: ??
Trust: - 40%
Respect: - 100%
Dependency: - 30%
Story Status: Locked]
"I can’t even access his story?" Ni Mengxue asked. She knew Lu Yucai’s fate, but his past? It was unknown to her.
[Correct.]
"Then how am I supposed to save?"
[That’s up to the host to decide.]
Ni Mengxue pinched the bridge of her nose. "...You’re surprisingly irresponsible."
The system remained completely silent. She changed the topic. "What are Merit Points?"
This time, another screen named Merit appeared.
[Merit Points: 0
Purpose: Exchange for civilization rewards.
Current Authority: Insufficient.]
"So even that is locked?"
[Host. Authority increases alongside Sanctuary Level.]
Ni Mengxue was speechless.
"What about merit points?" she pressed.
[Merit points are earned by doing good deeds. With 10 trillion merit points, you can even get an antidote and vaccines for the zombie virus.]
Heaving a sigh of relief, she asked, "Alright then, tell me about my first mission."
[Mission 1: Find a suitable piece of land spanning over one acre. Reward: S-tier Shield for a month.]
[Sub mission 1: Find a source of water. Reward: Water purification unit.]
[Sub mission 2: Find a source of food. Reward: ???]
Ni Mengxue felt a bit discouraged seeing the mission. The original host indeed belonged to a wealthy family and owned acres of land.
But... all of it would be infertile. When she was reading the novel, she knew that by year 5, a drastic change had happened.
Extreme weather appears anytime, lands become infertile, buildings collapse, diseases spread, and even various overpowering, twisted institutions appear.
Since the author of the novel had gone on hiatus just as the storyline was becoming increasingly helpless, she didn’t know the ending.
Now... the system was asking her to find a source of food? It would require at least 5 months or so for her to come up with hybrid seeds.
Just the thoughts made Ni Mengxue have goosebumps. She suddenly recalled the legendary tier reward.
It shouldn’t be bad, right?
"System, open up the Legendary tier reward."
[Ding! You have won a chance to spin the Wheel of Fortune. Would you like to spin?]
The rewards list appeared in front of Ni Mengxue.
[World Tree Sapling, Phoenix Blood, Dragon Egg, Immortal Medicine Garden, Level Up Reward, Legendary Hero Summon Token.]
Though the rewards were tempting, Ni Mengxue knew that none of them could accurately solve her current problem.
She watched as the pointer stopped at Level Up Reward, and her expression eased a little.
Maybe she could get some god-tier seeds?
[Ding! Congratulations, host, your reward tier has changed to Mythic Tier. You will be gifted with 1000 merit points and a chance to spin the Wheel Of Fortune again.]
"Spin!" Ni Mengxue felt her spirit lifting.
[Floating Sanctuary, Eternal Life Pill, Hybrid Seeds, God Tier Cultivation Manual, Blueprints for SS-tier weapons, Level Up Reward, Celestial Beast Egg!]
Ni Mengxue closed her eyes and prayed from her heart, "Please stop at Hybrid Seeds!"
If she doesn’t get that, then... even with a treasure like the Sanctuary Evolution System... she would live like a pauper.
Her heart sank when she saw the pointer stop at the Level Up reward.
"No... There must be a good reason for this, right? My luck has always been excellent except for love life."
[Ding! Congratulations, host, your reward tier has changed to Divine Tier. You will be gifted with 5000 merit points and a chance to spin the Wheel of Fortune again.]
"Spin!"
[Ding! Insufficient Level to Spin Divine Tier Wheel of Fortune! The chance will be fortified.]
Ni Mengxue was about to fight when the screen flickered.
[We apologize for the inconvenience. As compensation for fortification we would allot you the following reward...]