Chapter 132

“The uniqueness is collapsing.”

“Sedatives? Sleep?”

Aivana knew that before being contaminated by the Other Realm, Xia’er had already shown some issues with her mental state, mainly manifested in the difficulty of restoring her spirit.

But now asking her to find a sedative temporarily was indeed a bit difficult for her.

Previously, due to the need for replication rituals, she did have quite a few potions stored.

However, those potions were mostly used for self-hypnosis and mental guidance, not suitable for Xia’er’s current condition.

There was one potion she bought earlier at Derton Manor…

No, no, no, that material was for making potions; it couldn’t be used directly… otherwise…

“I’ll take a look.”

Aivana stood up quickly and walked briskly to the study door. She opened it and left, leaving Xia’er and Nia staring at each other on the ground.

After a moment of eye contact, Xia’er looked at Nia and said, “Can you knock me out with a punch, Nia?”

“No.”

Nia shook her head.

Knocking out Nia might be feasible, but hitting her precisely to knock her unconscious would be quite challenging.

Hearing this, Xia’er didn’t argue further and got up, walking towards the study. As she walked, she said, “I’m going to the bathroom.”

Hadn’t she just been there?

Although Nia was a bit puzzled, she didn’t ask.

Xia’er walked down the corridor on the second floor and entered the bathroom.

In the simulation, sleeping could not restore spirit power and would continue to consume it.

Moreover, over the next 24 hours, Xia’er would have to endure the torment of mental depletion—a torture that most people couldn’t bear.

The simulated self spent almost half a day recovering their spirit before acting, whereas now, she had to maintain this torture for 24 hours…

To be honest, suicide seemed like a better option.

Since she had already obtained all the information and intelligence she needed and hadn’t logged in using No.0, she couldn’t digest the potion.

Could Xia’er endure such a headache to kill some extraordinary persons for points?

Sorry, let someone else do the hard work.

The “Inspector” Xia’er was allergic to words like “effort” and “struggle.”

Leaning against the wooden door of the bathroom, a spider crawled out from Xia’er’s long hair and settled on her neck.

A large amount of silk emerged from the spider’s back, and it climbed up Xia’er’s head along the threads. Soon, the spider had covered Xia’er’s mouth and nose with silk.

Finally, the spider climbed back to Xia’er’s neck with a small piece of silk. Holding her breath, Xia’er took the silk and pulled gently.

There was no pain, only a slight tightness in her throat, and within four seconds, Xia’er fell into a rapid coma.

After some time, a silver light flashed in front of Xia’er’s eyes.

…

[Reality]

[Sheng Year 741, June 25th, 02:00]

[Evaluation: Saving strength is indeed a good choice… But I must say, ‘Inspector’ is too boring!]

[Can you ban ‘Inspector’ when you need to work next time? How can you rest?]

[Take it, you deserve it based on your performance.]

[Reward: Mortality Point × 3]

[Mortality Points: 180]

Xia’er squinted her eyes and looked at the system panel in front of her.

Before the simulation, her mortality points were 187. The simulation cost 10 points, and adding 3 more points now made it exactly 180, which rounded off nicely.

Xia’er struggled to get up and walked to the desk. A flash of silver light appeared, and the “Endless Manual of Forgetfulness” appeared in her hand.

Raising her pen, she recorded all the information seen during the simulation in Chinese, then returned the manual to the warehouse. Xia’er then turned her attention to the sedative on the desk.

For the next eight hours, there would be no threat of doom. If she wanted to rest, drinking the sedative now would be perfect.

She also needed to recover her spirit quickly…

The matter of the “uniqueness” gear still needed to be discussed with the system after waking up.

Xia’er took out a bottle of sedative, enduring the throbbing pain in her brain, and drank it all in one go.

A faint minty coolness traveled down Xia’er’s throat and into her stomach, followed by a gentle warmth.

The effects of the potion were starting to take hold.

Xia’er got up, swaying slightly as she headed toward the bed, but the potent potion and weakened spirit caused her to collapse before reaching it.

Her head hit the hardwood floor, and she fell into a deep sleep.

…

A ray of sunlight filtered through the curtain gap and shone on Xia’er’s face.

Her long eyelashes fluttered slightly, and her eyes opened.

Immediately, a system screen displaying the time appeared in front of Xia’er.

7:00.

Five continuous hours without waking up… The effect was quite good.

Now, Xia’er’s brain still felt somewhat groggy, but it didn’t affect her thinking, though it might affect some bodily coordination.

She didn’t need to rely on her body for combat, so this impact was negligible.

Xia’er got up from the ground, dusted off her dress, and walked out of the room to the bathroom. After washing her face, she noticed a mark on her forehead.

The area where she fell had swollen purple, and touching it didn’t cause pain.

Drying her hands, Xia’er returned to the room and checked the endless manual in the warehouse.

Given her current mental state… she could definitely accomplish everything the simulated self did.

The only thing left uncertain was whether she had obtained the gear with the “uniqueness” trait.

If it was obtained in the Other Realm, was it detected by anyone or anything in reality?

When obtaining “uniqueness” in the Other Realm, the system was clearly involved since the drawings left by the simulated self were layered system screens.

“System, you know what I’m asking.”

Xia’er silently thought to herself.

“Where did the gear with ‘uniqueness’ obtained in the simulation go? Does obtaining ‘uniqueness’ in the simulation mean it was successfully obtained in reality?”

Xia’er’s idea was simple.

Since that item had the non-exchangeable “uniqueness,” logically, once the simulated self collected it, the “uniqueness” item in reality should disappear.

That’s right.

Otherwise, the simulated self could absorb once, and the real self could absorb again. Then, what would be the point of calling it “unique”?

[Although the host doesn’t know, the simulated host has already humbly and sincerely sought advice from the system on this matter and begged the system to tell the host. Under such circumstances, the system can reluctantly share the information about “uniqueness” with the host.]

Xia’er nodded expressionlessly.

These things should only be taken as hearsay; if half of them can be believed, one could praise the system for its honesty.

Xia’er didn’t quite believe that the simulated self would beg the system so humbly.

It would be more like a threat.

[Other sources of the “unique” trait still exist in different simulations.]

[But these existing “unique” traits in simulations cannot be touched or obtained; the host can still see their form or feel their power, but they are like mirages and cannot be touched.]

[And traits related to the “Echo of Silver White Time Binder,” the host, or the system, with the “time” path’s “uniqueness,” are different from them.]

[The “uniqueness” of the “time” trait exists simultaneously at all different points in time, and each is false and untouchable.]

[Only after the host touches and absorbs it in another timeline will it collapse into the host’s timeline and can be observed and touched.]

[Of course, if the host directly touches and absorbs it in reality, then it can be directly absorbed without going through such a cumbersome process.]

The “uniqueness” of the “time” trait?

And the way this “time” uniqueness exists…

Existing simultaneously in the “past,” “future,” “present,” or any point in time.

It sounds just like Xia’er’s simulation.

However, according to what the system said…

“System, if I touch and collapse the ‘time’ uniqueness,

Xia’er pondered for a moment and asked inwardly, “Then when I simulate other times, do those worlds no longer contain the ‘uniqueness’ I’ve touched?”

[Correct understanding]

Have all the unique gears on every timeline been gathered in reality?

“So, System, what’s the deal with the layered system screens that the simulated me sees?”

Xia’er continued asking inwardly.

[Updating for compatibility]

Xia’er: “Updating?”

[The system needs to reserve some capacity to store the will and knowledge within the “uniqueness” to avoid the host suffering a direct impact that could drive them mad or brainwash them]

[Of course, if the host can absorb everything directly, the system wouldn’t have to go through this effort every time]

[Thinking about having to do this repeatedly, how long will this hard life last TT]

Directly absorbing the “uniqueness” is equivalent to the brain suffering a DDoS attack. If you survive, you become the owner of this “uniqueness” trait; if not, you’ll end up like that raven, unable to distinguish yourself and completely mentally deranged.

What the system does is akin to building a firewall in Xia’er’s brain, reserving a large portion of capacity to store the information that would otherwise directly attack Xia’er’s brain, allowing Xia’er to access the “uniqueness” without being contaminated.

“Can I freely access that knowledge?”

Xia’er asked.

[Hehe, you’ll have to trade your Mortality Points for it ^^_]

Xia’er: “…”

Luckily, Xia’er had felt a bit sorry for the system just half a second ago; now, Xia’er just wanted to punch the screen.

Xia’er put away his thoughts and stared at the notebook in front of him, lost in thought.

Through the conversation with the system, Xia’er filled in much of the missing information in the simulation.

The result was not very optimistic.

The simulated self had already touched the “uniqueness” trait once, and that gear trait had collapsed to only be observable in this world at different times.

This means that even if the simulation is repeated, the raven in that world would lose the gear trait and its abilities would be greatly reduced. Not even Xia’er, let alone the other two people, could quickly identify it.

The real world and the simulation differ, and the deviation in timelines significantly reduces the meaning of the simulation.

Unless Xia’er follows the previous steps in reality to obtain that “uniqueness,” the simulation and reality timelines will align again without deviation.

Must follow the previous method to quickly pass through?

Xia’er’s knuckles lightly tapped on the wooden table as he thought about the pros and cons.

“Is this ‘uniqueness’ worth it?”

Xia’er asked himself again in his heart.

[This is “authority,” host]

[This is your chance to gain “authority”]

[This is something ordinary extraordinary persons can only dream of, something that transcenders compete for]

[This is yours…]

To grasp authority with a mortal body?

My thing?

Now, Xia’er was almost certain.

The system had concealed something from him.

There were secrets both in the system and on Xia’er himself.

“System, what exactly are you? And what am I?”

[When the host personally opens the path in the “bygone era,” you will naturally know]

As expected, another “bygone era” simulation?

Whenever the system mentions anything related to the path or itself, the answer always comes back to the “bygone era” simulation.

It seems that, no matter what, to learn the truth, Xia’er must undergo a “bygone era” simulation.

But before that, Xia’er must ensure his safety and eliminate all dangers…

At this point, Aivana’s personal maid should have brought the reply letter.

Xia’er got up and went downstairs, opened the door at the marked time in the simulation.

The morning sunlight fell on the steps, where a maid was standing, ready to knock on the door. Seeing Xia’er open the door, she looked surprised and puzzled.

“Aivana’s reply?”

Xia’er smiled and nodded at the maid, reaching out to take the envelope from her hand and saying, “Thank you.”

“N-no… trouble.”

After the door closed, the maid stood there stunned for a long time. Finally, she turned to look at another maid, both of whom had a hint of confusion in their eyes.

This Miss Xia’er… how familiar she seems?

She seemed to have known we would come here at this exact moment to deliver the letter…