Chapter 33 - IRS Petitioned for Extra Printer and Printing Taxes After Florida Man 3D-Printed His Entire House
A hundred new system windows manifested around Felix, showing the renovation previews. Magically, the previews accounted for the environment, neighbors, and local roads in the images as if everything was hand-drawn instead of AI-generated.
Many stylish houses were gorgeous: a one-story glass cabin, a compound house with a swimming pool at the center, a treehouse condominium, a two-story bungalow with a huge courtyard, a townhouse-styled three-story house, a Minecraft-inspired block house, a UFO house on top of a giant pole, a cave entrance leading to an underground dungeon, and more.
Felix couldn't choose as everything was so attractive. However, when he considered practicality, suitability, security, and family-friendliness, he managed to eliminate some choices. In the end, Felix picked a four-story square concrete building with glass doors and walls. The building covered 80% of the land, leaving some space in front of the building as a parking lot.
There were four entrances: the front door, the fire exit at the back, the underground parking lot entrance, and the rooftop. Additionally, it featured six floors and one rooftop, including two underground levels.
The first floor was a wide and spacious area, partitioned into two sections: the front and the back room. The front area featured free shelves, display refrigerators, and 10 checkout machines, allowing Felix to set up a convenience store right away. The back area served as a storage room, connected to a staff elevator.
The B1 floor was partitioned into a parking lot area and a warehouse area. A metal shutter door served as a barricade, blocking the underground parking lot entrance and preventing trespassers from entering this area. A staff elevator was also there, allowing Felix's future workers to transport his goods to the first floor's storage room.
The B2 floor, unlike the upper floors, was not designed for residents but for electrical machines and waterworks. Various machines and containers, such as a boiler machine, a water tank, a septic tank, a water pump, an electric generator, batteries, and sophisticated pipes for electric wires and water systems, occupied 80% of the area, leaving a small room for technicians to monitor the machinery.
The second and third floors were left empty. The advertisement stated that they were purposely left empty so the house owner could use their imagination and skills to decorate and renovate these floors themselves.
The fourth floor, however, was reserved for the residents. Only the fourth floor was fully decorated and furnished, featuring three bedrooms, four bathrooms, one living room, one island kitchen, one dining room, one laundry room, and one suspicious isolated room located next to the master bedroom, hinting the existence of a trap door between them.
The rooftop featured a fire exit ladder and a helicopter pad, providing residents with guaranteed escape routes in case of emergency. Aside from the pad, a swimming pool and a 10-meter-tall water slide won Felix's heart. Aside from the luxurious entertainment facilities, the rest of the rooftop was filled with ventilation ducts, external air conditioner exhausts, another electrical house, a suspicious room with a diabolical magic circle and a bowl containing strange stones, and solar panels.
However, there was one issue. Felix froze when he read the building's description, which mentioned that it required one essence stone to continuously produce one million gallons of clean water every month. Felix's eyes were drawn to the magic circle room with strange stones. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that all stones were placed at the corners of the magic circle as if they served as catalysts for the weird spell.
He couldn't help but ask Jessica and Yao Qiqi, "What are essence stones? What is this room?"
Jessica answered what she knew, "
"So, I will lose one year of my freaking lifespan every month to maintain this house?"
"..."
Jessica was right. Felix couldn't argue.
While Felix hesitated if he should settle with this house, Yao Qiqi encouraged him as if she knew about his abilities.
[Dear customer, this house model actually features a smoking room that's isolated from other areas. If you pay attention to the magic circle room on the rooftop, you will notice that it is isolated from every area. The walls of this room are made from a special material that can withstand extreme weather conditions and extreme temperatures. The room is also airtight, which will seal all smoke and smell inside. If you smoke special cigarettes in there, the leftover smoke will be absorbed by the essence stones and recharge-]
The saleswoman hadn't finished explaining yet, but Felix already made his decision.
"I'll take this one!"
[…A good choice, sir! Please sign the documents on your system screen and confirm the payment. Then, we can start the timer! I have already prepared to order 10 pizzas for you.]
A long window consisting of a detailed contract replaced the preview screen. At the bottom, a shining blank area highlighted where Felix needed to sign. Felix touched the screen and skillfully wrote his name with his fingertip.
[Alright! The renovation plan and construction shall start right now, and it will be finished within 15 minutes! Yao Qiqi, signing off! Have a nice day, sir!]
[Oh, by the way, the chairwoman has whispered and asked to me to drop you some extras. Please check your inventory system after the construction is completed.]
"Huh? Wait, what do you mean?"
It was too late for Felix to ask as Yao Qiqi had already logged off.
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*RUMBLE*
A minute later, a rainbow beacon shone upon Felix's house. Everybody in Terra City looked up and stared at the light in a daze. Jane and Felix rushed out of the house and turned around to gawk at the beacon as well.
"What in the tarnation is that, Felix?! What is happening to our house?!" Jane panicked, not wanting to lose her new home.
Felix calmly pulled Jane away from the beacon and whispered in her ear. "Relax. I've cast a grand magic just now. The house will undergo a transformation for the better."
Jane looked at her husband. Earlier, Felix broke the roof. She wondered if he had stupidly used a strange spell to hide it, "Why didn't you use it from the beginning?"
"…I didn't expect to break the roof."
"Felix, you were supposed to hire the masons and the carpenters to do that job."
"…I was trying to save money."
"You have over 2,000 gold coins from the escort reward, but the labor cost is only 10 silver coins! Why didn't you spend a bit of money?"
Felix once again felt stupid. He couldn't argue, "I didn't know they were that cheap."
"Consult with me next time…"
While they conversed, their house disintegrated into nothingness. A large chunk of the soil also vanished.
Felix grumbled as he had invested so much time and money to renovate this house for nothing. However, the next moment, he received a new message from Yao Qiqi.
[I've noticed that you have purchased quite a lot of furniture and items from our store. We'll refund those items, but we can't directly return your lifespan. Therefore, we'll compensate you with essence stones instead. We're sorry for the inconvenience.]
*DING*
New items entered Felix's inventory. He glanced at the icon and saw a little round stone image, including its description.
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Essence Stone
This stone is commonly used as a currency in faraway star clusters and certain galaxies. It contains thick radiation energy from its creator, which can be converted into a magical battery or a cultivation resource. For regular people, this item can be hazardous as its radiation can mutate any mortal into heinous monsters if they carry it around for longer than five seconds.
**Please wear a full-body HAZMAT suit before you interact with this item unless your level is higher than 10 or you are a cultivator.
Cultivation Effects (Some incompatible cultivation methods may result in lower output):
- Increases Qi by 100 years of cultivation.
Utility Effects:
- Can be used as a catalyst for a magic circle or a formation array.
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Seeing the details, especially the radiation warning, Felix's expression darkened.
'Holy shit! Is this a rock under the Chernobyl's plants or something?! Will I die if I take this out?!'
*RUMBLE*
While Felix was having a conflicted impression of the new items, the rainbow beam began 3D-printing his house. A hundred small rays let out a loud hum, terrifying the spectators. Jane also gasped in shock and hid behind her husband.
Minutes later, the shock turned into astonishment as the house structure was slowly formed. Black steel rebar frames appeared while the underground floors were completed.
Ten minutes after Felix had finalized the order, the entire building was 90% printed, except for the water slide and other small details on the rooftop.
Felix awkwardly gazed at his new house and deeply sighed. Once again, he wished that he had done this instead of working on the backyard himself. Still, he was glad that he tried his best before choosing this method as he had learned his limits.
Not giving up his philosophy and mindset, Felix swore to try everything himself first before relying on the system. After all, he wanted to grow as a person and a husband.
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Outside the city, the light beams also attracted farmers and people from other cities. Although they couldn't witness the beam up close, they could still see it from the horizon as it came from space.
Among the spectators, an elderly bald man in a black long robe stood on top of a purple pine tree, holding a long jewel staff. He was only ten miles away from Terra City, and he was on his way to rendezvous with the men from Turo House.
Joxonu, the fifth-circle black mage, admired at the lights. His thick lips hid a toothless mouth and a slit tongue. His long droopy nose full of red acne and a face without eyebrows were his signature. When he smiled, monsters below flinched and ran away in fear.
"Rays from heaven? Interesting! VERY INTERESTING!" muttered the mage. He raised his staff, pointing at the sky, "That magic too, VERY INTERESTING!!"