Chapter 74: Game Rules

　　A feminine voice was heard once again, ” I’m Kong Sang, you can call me Xiao Sang.”

　　“Xiao Sang?”

　　“Yes.”

　　“What kind of existence are you? Are you the physical manifestation of the Heavenly Wheel, or a device that possesses spirit?”

　　“I am your facilitator.”

　　“And?”

　　“Sorry, I am unable to answer your question as you do not have sufficient credits.”

　　“…” It really has the feel of an online game. “Xiao Sang, what is the situation I am in now? And what about the newbie trial?” Lu Mingshu asked.

　　“To decode the Heavenly Wheel is only but a part of it. Making use of the Heavenly Wheel with caution and capturing its trust after getting it is the answer to activating the Heavenly Wheel.”

　　Lu Mingshu recalled that when she had just decoded the Heavenly Wheel, she saw a message asking to recruit a companion. Then shortly afterwards, the message was said to have been sent out to the wrong place … Later on, she was told that the place she was in was just the first layer of space. Only when she would be strong enough, would she be able to enter the later few layers of space — the world of the experts.

　　Was this what he meant?

　　“I can understand the newbie trial, but what’s the secret of the Heavenly Wheel? Could it be that the real use of the Heavenly Wheel isn’t traversing or exchanging?”

　　“Of course not.” Xiao Sang answered, “The real function of the Heavenly Wheel, is here.”

　　As soon as Xiao Sang finished her sentence, the tree turned into an imaginary Wooden Wheel which started to slowly rotate.

　　When the Wooden Wheel came to a halt, Lu Mingshu saw a big number ten in the middle of it.

　　“What is this?”

　　“Your accumulated points.”

　　“Accumulated points?”

　　“That’s right. Every action of yours will affect the number of accumulated points you have. These accumulated points can be used to trade for items, or gain access to the channel leading to other worlds.”

　　Trade for items? Where do I trade?

　　Xiao Sang’s voice cut her thought, ” Right here.”

　　Once she finished speaking, the Wooden Wheel started rotating again, only stopping after a full round.

　　The number ‘ten’ still remained in the middle, and revolving around this number were a few sections consisting of weapons, spiritual treasures, technique manuals, resources, miscellaneous goods etc.

　　Just as Lu Mingshu thought of it, the weapons section opened up. Inside, it contained a sword, a short blade, and an arrow.

　　The other sections were the same, each containing only a few items. Especially the ‘technique manual’ section, which contained a mere two items — Basic Swordsmanship and Meditation Formulae.

　　Lu Mingshu pointed towards the number in the middle. “Are these my accumulated points?”

　　“Yes.”

　　“Just this tiny amount of items aren’t that attractive to me!”

　　“It’s because your level and points are too low to unlock the rest of the items,” Xiao Sang replied in a monotone voice.

　　“Level?”

　　“Look at the space below your accumulated points.”

　　Indeed, there was a small ‘zero’ under her points.

　　“I’m at level zero?”

　　“Yes.”

　　“Then how do I level up and accumulate points?”

　　“Your credits are insufficient, so you need to explore ways by yourself.”

　　Lu Mingshu sighed. “Okay, I get it. What about activating the channel to other worlds? Wasn’t I able to access it before this?”

　　“The channel that you activated is only accessible to beginners and is at a low level. Only one person can access it at a time.”

　　“So you meant that the channel has levelled up?”

　　“Yes. When you’d successfully passed the test, the channel to the other worlds had also levelled up. It is now a channel that can be accessed by many people at once, which means you can invite helpers along on your traverse.”

　　“Where do I get the helpers? Do I have to bring them myself?”

　　“No. You can recruit companions.”

　　Once again, the Wooden Wheel started to spin slowly. However this time, there were no more words shown, as the image of her points has already been printed in her mind.

　　This was an area similar to the newbie district. The main difference was in the information that was passed around … Not only did the people here recruit companions, they also discussed topics that were much more advanced compared to the beginner’s zone.

　　Lu Mingshu could even see strategies written down. She noted this down so as to refer to it afterwards.

　　She pondered over the situation for a while. “Would the rewards be better if we were to traverse to worlds which are opened with points?”

　　“Of course. Not only would you get rewards, but you would also gain points as well.”

　　“So what do I need to give in return? Collect mystic force like I did? Or there’s a higher requirement?”

　　Lu Mingshu believed that every benefit came at a cost. That included the points and rewards that the Heavenly Wheel gave.

　　After a pause, Xiao Sang answered, “Your contributions will be calculated as points, please figure it out yourself.”

　　“…” Lu Mingshu sighed in defeat. She had to figure out everything by herself.

　　“Okay, so what can I do now?”

　　“As your spirit body has gotten hurt from the backlash of starting the Heavenly Wheel in the midst of your breakthrough, I suggest you rest in the Heavenly Wheel until you have fully recuperated before leaving.”

　　…

　　Lu Mingshu’s figure slowly faded away from the Heavenly Wheel. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself lying on her bed.

　　“Miss!” Hui Niang sighed in relief as Lu Mingshu woke up. “You’re finally awake.”

　　Lu Mingshu sat up to take a look at the time. “Did I stay unconscious for long?”

　　“Nope. It’s just dawn.”

　　Lu Mingshu nodded. “Go take a rest Hui Niang. I’m fine.”

　　“Are you sure?” Hui Niang seemed unconvinced. “Wait a while. I’ll go get the courtyard leader.”

　　Only after Hui Niang called Liu Jizhen over and was reassured by his nod, did she truly believe that Lu Mingshu was fine.

　　Before Liu Jizhen could leave, Lu Mingshu stopped him in his steps. “Master!”

　　“Yes?”

　　“Don’t you … have any questions to ask me?”

　　Isn’t master curious about what happened to me? With how I unusually fainted right after breaking through to the Harmonization Realm?

　　Liu Jizhen smiled and patted Lu Mingshu on her head. “I believe you are aware of what you are doing.”

　　“… Thank you, Master.”

　　Lu Mingshu got up from her bed as she watched Liu Jizhen leave. She unsheathed her sword. With a gentle flick of her hand, the mystic force surrounding the sword turned into light and fell onto the stone table, splitting it into two.

　　Harmonization Realm, this is what Harmonization Realm is.

　　The true energy in her body circulated around and the one hundred and eight aperture formed a net. Her inner breath surged on as if a powerful current.

　　Even though for Lu Mingshu to get to where she was today, was admittedly, all thanks to her hard work and her master’s guidance, the contribution of the Heavenly Wheel couldn’t be ignored. Without the Heavenly Wheel, she would not have acquired any resources, and getting to the Harmonization Realm would have taken her at least a few years.

　　She had not felt it earlier, but the opening of the Heavenly Wheel’s true function, as well as the appearance of Xiang Sang, had left a traumatic shadow in her.

　　Collecting points, exchanging for items and activating channels. What was the motive of the Heavenly Wheel’s owner? In this society, everything came with a price. The previous version of the Heavenly Wheel was still about equal trade to her, but the new Heavenly Wheel brought with it a faint hint of bestowment. Sowing before reaping. What exactly did the Heavenly Wheel intend to gain from giving so much?

　　Lu Mingshu dared not let her thoughts run wild in the Heavenly Wheel as Xiao Sang seemed to be able to read what was on her mind. Performing tasks under the rules set by others left her stressed and suffocated. Every single action of hers felt as if it had been scripted for a game made by someone else.

　　Whereas outside the game, there would be people watching the whole scene play out just as if they were watching a play that consisted of sad and happy scenes.

　　However, Lu Mingshu knew deep down that she was still not powerful enough to leave the Heavenly Wheel. She was still falling short by a far margin in terms of ability.

　　For example, the Heavenly Door competition that would start soon.