"Unopened packs?"
Chase was curious about the unopened packs. It was only then that he recalled the Old Lady Meng Po gifting him a scroll. Because of all the terrible events that occurred around him, especially the surprise assassination attempt, he had forgotten about it. He dug through his pockets but couldn't find it. Did he lose it? Or perhaps–
"System, are these unopened packs related to my rebirth, and is the scroll entrusted to me by Lady Meng Po one of them?"
The system responded positively. Rather than commenting, it displayed the contents of the inventory slots, which stored three items. One of these is the familiar scroll with the inscription 「Gift from the God of Reincarnation」. The other two items are a black leather wristband and a silver token. Chase was confused as to why he had received two additional gifts.
The system supplied the answer as if reading his thoughts.
「The other gods had discerned the unfortunate fate of the poor soul, thus passing out gifts in tender mercies. The God of Reincarnation overlooked such conduct, since it would benefit the host. At the very bare minimum, it may make the host's life a little bit easier.」
"Isn't that quite comforting?" Chase sneered as he appraised the scroll item. "Do gods exist in this world?"
「Yes.」
That one-point answer is enough to prove their existence. Chase had also seen one of them. It's just that he was a little livid with these so-called "gods". In his previous world, numerous religions worshipped gods, some of them even generating wars. But when the apocalypse struck, none of these gods helped them. He wondered if the gods in this realm were far superior.
Chase didn't dwell on it and instead focused on opening the gifts given to him. He was curious about the item that Old Lady Meng Po had given him and had the system to open it. An amber glow flashed across the screen before a solid papyrus scroll manifested in midair in front of him. He grabbed the scroll and unfurled it.
The scroll's content, however, was inscribed in unfamiliar characters. There's no way for him to read it. The system was aware of the situation and promptly provided Chase with instructions on how to use the scroll.
「The scroll provided by a god contains secrets that are extremely dangerous in this world. As a precaution, the scroll will be inscribed with a combination of texts and characters derived from several world dimensions.」
「To read, the host must put five drops of blood on the lower right corner of the page, where a slot for affixing a signature has been drawn. This will be the final signature that seals the contract. Once sealed, it will serve as a covenant between the deity and the host on the confidentiality of the scroll's content.」
「Once the scroll acknowledged the signature, the contents could only be viewed by the owner of the blood. It should be noted that once the contract is signed, the host will not be permitted to divulge the information contained within the scroll. The world will automatically filter the related information while the host will be subjected to punishment.」
Chase didn't question the rules since the premise was plausible. A scroll bestowed by the gods would almost certainly cause trouble, so it's best if it's read by only one person. He bit his thumb and sprinkled five droplets of blood on the scroll. The scroll abruptly emitted a golden glow once the fifth drop was absorbed.
The foreign characters began to morph, creating a language that he was well-versed in. It is the universal language that people used in his previous life. It seems that the mechanism doesn't want to expose anything by using something not from this world. Chase is aware of the language barrier because he has seen this world's language through Chase's memories.
It wasn't, however, Chase's problem. It is far preferable to have a configuration like this. Even if he loses the scroll and a stranger finds it, they will be unable to comprehend it. Even if they correctly identify the scroll as a god's possession, they will be unable to glean any information from the strange language.
He studied the scroll's contents with great anticipation, but was left perplexed after reading the last words. This parchment... is a recipe scroll. Not only that, but it's a tea recipe.
"The Five Flavored Tea of UNforgetfulness?" He exclaimed, surprise written on his face. "Isn't this just a Traditional Medicine Recipe for retaining memories?"
Chase reviewed the contents again and thought, "This is starting to sound like some third-rate product, like those regularly advertised on television regarding memory enhancers." He's even familiar with some of the ingredients because he recalled a classmate brewing every night a week before the exams as if it could help them cram information into their heads. He couldn't believe the Old Lady Meng Po would give him something like this.
It seemed like a rip-off.
The Old Lady Meng Po specializes in brewing many types of tea, most of which could create miraculous effects like giving immortal life or a life-saving panacea. Surely, this tea recipe isn't useless since it was created by a deity, but he couldn't figure out any application for it. What does drinking the tea of UNforgetfulness do? Make his memory sharp?
Chase decided to set the scroll aside and examine the other two items. There is the black braided leather wristband and the silver token with a rainbow-colored nine-petal flower. He asked the system to list out the usage of the two objects.
[Braided Leather Wrist Band-Spatial Storage with mid-grade capacity.]
「Description: It can hold inanimate objects of any size or length. Although it was only of mid-grade quality, its capacity could hold tens of thousands of thousands of items. Time is stationary, thus decay and growth are ruled out.」
「Postscript: The Cheng Huang Immortals admire the pious hearts and loathe evil ones. It is proper to bestow a symbolic reward on someone who is deemed to have made pure karmic contributions. The immortals wished the soul safe travels and an artifact that could safeguard the host's treasures.」
His eyes brightened after reading the description of the wristband. Chase used to enjoy reading web novels before the apocalypse occurred. Spatial storage is one of the most well-known and useful things a reincarnator, transgressor, or whatever could obtain. It is even considered one of the "should-haves" when it comes to transmigration. He could not believe that he was having one for himself.
However, he was unsure of how this world regarded spatial storage.
Anyway, he really liked this gift and asked the system to give it to him. The screen only shone brilliantly for a moment before the bracelet materialized on Chase's left wrist. He examined the new item in his hand and couldn't help but praise the Cheng Huang immortals.
This is much better compared to that suspicious tea recipe!
The design of the wristband is very convenient. It's made up of black leather fastened in a braid. There are ten little gold-colored beads that seem to look ancient, as if they were made of wood that had been polished many times and was coated with gold paint. It doesn't look to be anything remarkable, just pleasing, but it does seem to be genuine.
Chase thought that this simple design wouldn't gather the attention of people that added cream to the top.
"How can I use this to store objects?" He asked.
「The host only needs to mentally probe it. It will come through intuition, so the host should not worry.」
Chase did as he was told and visualized a storage space in his head. He was then presented with ten enormous storage areas with no defined ends. He tried entering each area, switching after leaving the next, and found that everything was as wide as the sea. According to the system, this item is a mid-grade spatial storage that can hold tens of thousands of thousands of items.
Does this imply that it could hold up to ten million storage items?
According to our calculations, each bead should be able to hold up to a million materials!
"This is very overpowered! Ten million storage areas are quite a lot!"
It could also hold anything, regardless of size, so it was a great bargain. Chase expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the Cheng Huang Immortals and swore to worship them in churches or temples as long as he could escape here. Chase took a moment to admire the spatial storage before moving on to the next item. The information was displayed on the screen by the system.
「Deus Ex Machina - A Blessed Item Containing the Will of the Gods」
「Description: An item that can only be granted to a select few people. It's a sacred token that carries the wishes of many gods. Anyone in possession of the token could make a heaven-defying demand equivalent to the gods' will. However, becoming a god always comes with a risk – an expected backlash of an appropriate value would come in exchange hereafter.」
「Postscript: Within millions and millions of years, the Gods had witnessed the most evil and diabolical thoughts of humans. And throughout millions of years, a virtuous being will always be born amid a hundred people. The soul that occupies the unfortunate is now gifted with opportunities and must only utilize them for the good of the people; anything else would send the soul to the depths of hell.」
After reading the sentence, Chase gulped. He seemed to understand and not understand the token's uses. He had to reread everything thrice to get the idea. Chase is familiar with the term 「Deus Ex Machina」. Isn't this a plot device in which everything can turn over for whatever reason? It is often used in dramas or anime where some heaven-defying existence will come to the rescue despite being unreasonable.
"Does it mean I could use this token to avert some disaster, command leader, or something?" Chase wondered.
「It will happen as long as the host wishes.」
"So, this is powerful?"
「Yes, host. Extremely powerful.」
Chase couldn't believe it.
"No shit," he exclaimed.
It's as if the gods granted him a share of their strength. Don't underestimate the gods' might. He could use it to demolish a kingdom or to establish a new country. Although there are only three tokens in his possession, it is already enough. He could secure his life through this.
It's simply that if he ever intended to utilize the token, he'd face an equal amount of backlash. Chase had no idea what type of reaction to expect, but given that he was holding the will of the gods, it had to be massive. The limits must have been put in place so that users do not exploit them carelessly and cause a calamity. The token stated that it could only be used for the benefit of the many or else he would be obliterated.
That means he couldn't use it to get out of here. Chase considered his status as the most hated person in the country, which means that his existence won't really help people. Well, it's already an incredible feat to own such a godly token.
Apart from the tea prescription of Old Lady Meng Po, he has everything he needs for survival. He won't be afraid of being killed or robbed once he's out of here. That's right, provided he can get out of here alive.
Chase was reminded of his predicament once more. The darkness of the abyss could really blind the eye. He has to find a way to get out of here. Although the place where he fell looks safe, it will not remain so indefinitely. Furthermore, the danger level is still high, at ninety percent.
His death was inevitable.
"Then I have no choice but to leave," he grumbled, picturing the agony of walking. For a little while, his eyes gleamed, and he thought it was amusing.
"Well, if there's a will, there's a way. It's as if I have never been in this situation before. Actually, I'm still in a much better place."
He rested for a while longer to regain some of his strength. Chase also assessed his wounds to determine their severity. After making all the necessary preparations, he decided to stand. His bones groaned in protest, but he persisted. Beads of sweat formed on his temples, his teeth, and his jaw clenching, feeling the pain from forcefully moving his limbs around. He was only able to stand after much effort.
Chase exhaled a sigh of relief before beginning to walk.
He endured the pain until he got used to it. His breathing was labored, everything was painful, but Chase seemed to be smiling. These sensations that could make anyone cry indicated that he was still alive since only dead people could not feel pain. It also means that he still has a chance of survival and could strive further.
Chase is not going down without a fight.
The terrain is dangerous and full of sneaky traps, but he was able to escape most of the difficulties thanks to the system. He couldn't tell how long he had been walking on the mud-filled ground, or if he was going up or down. There was no light to determine the direction, and he could only go forward like a headless fly.
Though, probably due to staying in the dark for so long, his eyes had become accustomed to the darkness. He could now at least see more things than just the silhouettes left by the outlines.
That's why, after scaling a tiny boulder, he was able to spot a person dangling from a vine.