"The Mini-World, endless fun."
Ren Suo noticed that the startup sound of the system seemed to have changed a bit, from the crisp and bright sound like a young girl biting an apple to a much calmer tone, akin to a middle school girl reading aloud from a textbook.
"As long as it doesn't speak with a chilling wind..." muttered Ren Suo. He used to like the animations from Thriller Paradise, but opening with a different eerie voice saying 'Welcome to Thriller Paradise' every time scared him so much that he always skipped the opening.
Opening the Content Preservation Vault, Ren Suo saw the shiny key and immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
'One-star Insight Key: Additional +10% chance to obtain insight-related rewards.'
Pretty standard, almost identical to the description of the One-Star Sleep Key. Sleep-related rewards he could understand, but insight-related rewards... what the hell?
A fifteen-times magnifying glass? An electron microscope with a magnification over three million times?
Anyway, this had nothing to do with Ren Suo—he had bad luck this time and didn't trigger that rare 10% chance.
Ren Suo went to the bathroom to wash his hands with soap and turned off the game controller, then carefully wiped it with an alcohol pad.
After all, it's better to believe that it is than that it isn't; who knows, perhaps the Mini-World Game Console is an Immortal Treasure. Seeing his sincerity, it might give him some preferential treatment. If licking the console could increase its affection for him, Ren Suo would lick it until it shone like waxed polish.
Nervously, Ren Suo opened the Treasure Box from 'If You Are Strong, Climb Ten Thousand Meters'—
'You used a 'One-star Insight Key' to open this treasure box.'
'You have acquired the skill 'Unlimited Energy'.'
'Unlimited Energy'
'Quality Rank: One-Star Ability, Prerequisite: Possessing a physical body.'
'Effect: After equipping, the player will have unlimited energy. Although still limited by the maximum physical strength that the body can exert, the base recovery rate for physical strength will be increased to the MAX limit value of the upright carbon-based life form on the third planet of the Solar System, located at the edge of the Orion Arm, and it will suppress all discomfort within the tolerable range.'
'Usage: While in 'Unlimited Energy' status, every second of maintenance consumes one second of lifespan.'
'Note: On the road to pursuing the supreme path, the near-ascetic Truth Seekers have exhausted the potential of mortal bodies, representing the limits of humanity—but merely the limits of humanity.'
"Hmm... It looks like a serious explanation of the game setting..."
In 'If You Are Strong, Climb Ten Thousand Meters', if it were just a stick-figure jumping game, it would be nothing much, but if it turned into an actual Female Seeker climbing the ten-thousand-meter Mount Hyjal, many irrational aspects would emerge.
Putting aside the Truth Seeker's ultimate Refining Void and Merging Way—this is a phrase that crops up frequently in barrage comments, a testament to how the rise of online novels in recent years has greatly promoted the spread of Taoism culture—the very fact that the Seeker climbs from 0 to 10,000 meters without sleeping, eating, or drinking, just begs skepticism.
On Earth, there are no people who can go without sleep. There are very few individuals (no more than five) who can remain awake nearly 24 hours a day, but in fact, their sleep is broken up into short segments. When they close their eyes for just a dozen seconds, they complete one sleep cycle, and the accumulation creates the impression they never sleep. The longest recorded attempt without sleep was 11 days.
On Earth, a human can survive 2 to 7 days without water, and up to 90 days without food, but those are extreme cases, and real-life scenarios often fall short depending on psychological and physical conditions.
Without a doubt, the Seeker's physical and mental states are at the pinnacle of human capabilities. It seems plausible that she could go without sleep, food, and water for five days... Bullshit!
During these five days, she was constantly engaged in the physically draining activities of climbing and cross-country trekking, unlike those survivalists who stay put to minimize energy consumption. And the whole journey was recorded on video without a single discrepancy, even featuring real people.
The individuals the Truth Seeker encountered were from Mysterious Country and foreigners. Now, the internet in other countries is abuzz over this video, and television stations have conducted remote interviews with those who have seen the Seeker. The veracity of the Seeker is no longer in doubt.
Consequently, some people quite naturally speculate whether the Seeker is one of the 'Transcendents' or 'Awakeners' that often pop up now and then on the internet. Especially in the final scene where she transforms into light, this just fires up the imagination.
'Unlimited Energy' this skill tells Ren Suo that she is not a Cultivator, she is just a mortal, the strongest of mortals!
"But this ability actually comes with a cost... That's troubling," Ren Suo scratched his head.
Maintaining "Unlimited Energy" for one second cost him a second of his lifespan, meaning that if Ren Suo could still live for fifty years, but he used the "Unlimited Energy" skill every day, he might very well die of old age 25 years later.
Ren Suo reflected deeper, suspecting he might not even live to half his lifespan—elderly people nowadays had lower mortality rates, usually passing away from diseases due to a weakened resistance from aging, rather than old age itself. Halving his lifespan, Ren Suo might prematurely enter an elderly state and also die early from various geriatric diseases.
But first, he thought, let's give it a try.
Ren Suo opened the "Equipment Interface" and unequipped "Combat Basics," replacing it with "Unlimited Energy."
The moment he equipped it, Ren Suo knew something wasn't right.
He had just been practicing the Advanced Breathing Technique, and actually, his body was already a bit tired, like how a person feels after sucking on snails, somewhat lethargic, his focus as scattered as after three hours spent on a comprehensive science test, so he had stopped to play video games.
However, the moment "Unlimited Energy" was activated, Ren Suo felt as alert and spirited as if he had read a few erotic comics, and his body felt as energized as if he'd just gotten off work, as light as if he'd shed hundreds of pounds of fat.
Ren Suo jumped and skipped around the room, starting with a hundred push-ups without feeling tired, then did sit-ups while performing the Advanced Breathing Technique, resuming his cultivation...
It wasn't until he had broken out into a hot sweat and started to feel uncomfortable that he stopped to wipe himself down with a towel.
Looking in the mirror, seeing his sweaty body, feeling the slight soreness in his muscles, Ren Suo had never felt better—he could continue exercising, continue cultivating!
"...Not too shabby," Ren Suo thought with a chuckle, and he unequipped "Unlimited Energy."
The second after he did so, Ren Suo's legs went weak, and he ended up kneeling in the bathroom. Fortunately, he grabbed the sink in time, or else he would have fallen completely!
Unrelenting aches attacked Ren Suo's body like an octopus's tentacles; he felt as though his body was no longer his, just a soul attached to a lump of rotten flesh.
"Switch, quickly switch back to 'Unlimited Energy'..." As soon as the thought crossed Ren Suo's mind, he immediately snuffed out the foolish idea with calmness.
It took a full ten minutes before he could slowly straighten his back and crawl back to the couch like an infant, casting a fearful glance at "Unlimited Energy" in the Equipment Interface's backup slot.
He had never smoked or tried forbidden substances, but Ren Suo knew that this skill had many similarities with addictive contraband.
Harmful, dependent, inescapable.
Ren Suo knew that if he now equipped "Unlimited Energy" to escape his body's ache and weakness and mental fatigue, he'd never free himself from the grip of this skill for the rest of his life, with half his lifespan surely spent here.
The feeling of emerging from hell and ascending back to heaven, that state of health, was far too tempting for humans. He even doubted whether this ability would cause his brain to secrete endorphins—almost all the fatigue and pain from his muscles had been blocked.
This was a medicinal tonic akin to poison; if he didn't want to age prematurely, Ren Suo could only use this skill to save his life when absolutely necessary.
Indulging in the luxury of staying up all night playing video games, using this skill, was something Ren Suo could only fantasize about.
After a while, Ren Suo knew he wouldn't be able to go downstairs for dinner, so he dialed Jian Ji's number downstairs.
"Hello."
"Got it."
Ren Suo glanced at his phone, wondering if the downstairs landline had caller ID...
Barely sitting up on the sofa, Ren Suo opened the "World Store," heading straight for the "Free Game of the Month"—
"It's you!"
After last night's reflection before sleep, Ren Suo had decided that the game fortunate enough to be played for free this month was—
"Over My Dead Body"!