whonovel Chapter 1186 - 1: Starting Point? No, Already at the Finish Line
Chapter 1186 - 1: Starting Point? No, Already at the Finish Line
Su Xiao waits to enter the new world as the spatial fluctuation around him gradually becomes active. Just as he is ready, he finds that the few metal fragments in front of him have not disappeared.
These fragments are from the exploded [Space-Time Coin]. As Su Xiao reaches out to grab these fragments, they suddenly gather together and finally form a cracked coin.
Su Xiao grabs the [Space-Time Coin]. This coin had shattered before, which puzzled him as the description of the Space-Time Coin merely labeled it as a ’rare artifact,’ not as a disposable consumable. It’s strange that a legendary item would break after opening a world.
It seems that’s not the case after all. The reason the [Space-Time Coin] exploded was actually to release the space-time power inside it. After releasing a certain amount of this power, the coin gathered back together.
Su Xiao observes the space-time coin in his hand. This thing seems like it could shatter at any moment, but judging by its appearance, it should still be usable a few more times.
Having realized this, Su Xiao puts the space-time coin away. If it wasn’t for the derivative world he is about to enter being unsuitable for him, he wouldn’t use this coin.
Using the space-time coin, who knows what kind of world he might end up in? More importantly, Su Xiao is completely unfamiliar with the original world, unlike the derivative worlds where he has some understanding before entering.
While the unknown equates to danger, it also equals opportunity and brand-new experiences. Once entering the original world, anything might happen.
Space-time power envelops Su Xiao, and he instinctively touches the back of his head.
Su Xiao disappears from his place, and the next moment, he suddenly opens his eyes, multicolored radiance flashing before him, his body in a state of super-speed movement.
"Surprisingly... didn’t get hit once."
Su Xiao glances around. Nearby are the bewildered Bubu Wang and A Mu, who is picking his nose.
Bubu Wang is equally puzzled; usually, before entering any world, they must ’get hit once,’ unless it’s unnecessary to teleport, such as traveling by spaceship.
This time, it was a space teleportation, but neither Su Xiao nor Bubu Wang received a single hit. Such treatment... is definitely abnormal.
Whoosh~
Radiance flashes in Su Xiao’s vision, as if being tossed off a rapidly speeding train, his body uncontrollably falling.
Boom!
Debris scatters as Su Xiao’s body crashes into a boulder, his arm extending from the rubble.
"Where is... this?"
Su Xiao stands up from a pit in the rock, finding himself on a dirt-yellow stone platform with a diameter of about 5 meters, surrounded by pitch darkness.
Above is pitch dark, front, back, left, and right is all pitch dark, except for the stone platform Su Xiao stands on, the ground is also pitch dark, as if covered by a layer of black smoke.
"Is this the original world?"
Su Xiao observes his surroundings. If this is the original world, it’s certainly giving him quite the grief.
[Prompt: The Hunter has arrived at the Secondary level Starry Space Transfer Station.]
[A ’Life Lock’ mark has been branded on the Hunter.]
...
A golden wing branding appears on the back of Su Xiao’s hand, its function still unclear to him.
[Checklist on the Hunter entering the original world for the first time in its initial state, the Hunter must pay attention to the following regulations.]
1. The original world is an undeveloped derivative world, inaccessible through conventional channels.
2. Due to the special nature of the original world, Reincarnation Paradise only provides language functions (requiring Paradise coin consumption to activate), and identity disguises, item disguises require the Hunter to consume world merit.
3. The original world is fully open to the same tier, entering the native world tier: Third tier (Contractors Level 20~Level 30 may enter).
4. The Hunter is free to explore the original world, and the Main Task will be issued based on the Hunter’s identity, status, financial resources, and other comprehensive levels within the original world.
5. Before entering the original world, the Hunter must obtain World Merit inside the Secondary level Starry Space Transfer Station.
6. To obtain World Merit, the Contracts entering the original world at the same time must be defeated.
7. Based on obtained World Merit, the Hunter may redeem identity disguise functions, status, financial resources, and other factors will be determined by the World Merit quantity.
8. Inside the ’Secondary level Starry Space Transfer Station,’ the Hunter, when suffering fatal wounds, will be deemed defeated, resetting the World Merit to zero.
...
Seeing a series of prompts, Su Xiao understands the situation. In the past when entering derivative worlds, identity disguise or item disguise were free functions.
However, due to the nature of the original world, these functions are no longer free and are obtained by earning World Merit through combat.
Su Xiao receives a lot of information, but he is curious about one thing: what methods other Contractors used to enter the original world. As he ponders this, a slew of prompts appears again.
[Prompt: World Merit contest is about to begin.]
[Upon defeating a Contractor, 1~5 points of World Merit may be obtained, based on the Contractor’s level.]
[Prompt: A total of 76 Contractors have entered this world using ’Space Battlefield Honor Certificate (Third tier).’]
[Prompt: A total of 32 Contractors have entered this world using ’Original World Invitation (Third tier).’]
[Detected Hunter using Special Item ’Space-Time Coin (Legendary Level)’ to enter this original world.]
[Verdict in progress...]
[The Space-Time Coin (Legendary Level) contains a large quantity of space-time power, far exceeding the value of ’Space Battlefield Honor Certificate (Third tier),’ ’Original World Invitation (Third tier),’ triggering balance mechanism.]
[Compensated Hunter with 16500 points of World Merit.]
[World Merit contest has begun.]
[Due to upcoming arrival at unknown original world, Derived World Contact Platform has been activated in advance.]
[Derived World Contact Platform is undergoing change of status, has changed to Original World Contact Platform.]
...
Su Xiao understands the situation completely now; the basic idea is that the original world is quite special, so Reincarnation Paradise won’t provide free services anymore, which is reasonable given that the Contractors entering this time all used various special means to enter.
Among these special means, the space-time coin is evidently one of the higher-level methods. This is actually evident from the space-time coin’s price??? Generally speaking, items priced like this have extremely high value.
In simple terms, derivative worlds are ’free opportunities for Contractors to become stronger’ provided by Reincarnation Paradise, while the original world is a ’paid strong opportunity.’
The original world requires a ’paid entry,’ so all free mechanisms in Reincarnation Paradise are closed in the original world; for functionalities like identity disguise, Contractors must first engage in a grand melee.
The Contractor who ultimately prevails will receive the most World Merit and, consequently, achieve a higher status within the original world.
It seems the situation is somewhat special now. The [Space-Time Coin] used by Su Xiao ranks as a high-level item within the third tier; the space-time power contained inside is abundant, possibly even collected some of by Reincarnation Paradise. Reincarnation Paradise, in its consistent principle of equivalent exchange, grants Su Xiao some compensation.
While other Contractors at this stage might be at the starting point, Su Xiao’s 16500 points of World Merit aren’t just a head start; it’s as if he’s been born at the finish line, not even the same stage of competition.