Volume 1, Chapter 10: It’s the middle of the night, don’t tell me you’ve already gone to sleep?

Li Chuan stared with wide, furious eyes.

Inside that palm-sized gray-white plastic jar, there was only a thin layer of salt at the bottom. To Li Chuan, this amount was so pathetic that even if he dissolved it in a bottle of mineral water, he wouldn't be able to taste a thing.

He’d been scammed!

So much for "White Bear"—it was a "Scam Bear"!

He opened his private messages.

Only Petals No Thorns (Cold-Blooded One): "Is this supposed to be a jar of salt? Are you selling jars or salt? You shameless, black-hearted profiteer!"

White Bear: "What? That’s how much you get for one jar. If you’re so capable, go complain in the channel and see who everyone believes."

Li Chuan grew even angrier.

Only Petals No Thorns (Cold-Blooded One): "Fine, you’ve got guts! You just remember this, you hear me? Remember this!"

Li Chuan’s anger intensified. This woman was picking and choosing who to cheat! She was definitely skimping on the raw materials just for him. There wasn't a single decent person in this entire place!

[Edible Salt: White]
[Fine salt extracted from minerals, rich in nutrients.]

Cursing under his breath, Li Chuan poured out all the salt from both jars and sprinkled it carefully over his meat skewers.

Mm... delicious! It was wonderful.

He tore off a large chunk of fatty, tender grilled meat with his teeth, the rich, hot fat melting alongside the lean meat in his mouth. After a day of frayed nerves, the culinary delight made Li Chuan feel as if he had ascended to heaven.

"Is it good, Uncle? It looks delicious. Can I have a bite, please?"

Li Chuan looked up, puzzled. He had actually heard the young, delicate voice of his favorite little nephew.

"Luoluo? Luoluo, is that you?"

Li Chuan frowned, turning to his left—the direction from which the voice had come. A wisp of white mist seemed to be rising there, obscuring his view. Yet, vaguely, Li Chuan thought he saw a tiny figure.

Was it really Luoluo? Had he been dragged into this world too? Damn this doomsday game—it didn't even spare children!

Beside the campfire, Li Chuan’s pupils took on a faint white glow. Muttering "Luoluo," he slowly stood up and began walking step by step toward the left side of the boulder.

At this moment, the area within a nine-meter radius of the Miracle Tree was free of white mist, while everything beyond it was completely shrouded in the fog. And Li Chuan was walking straight into it.

Step, step, step.

"Don't be afraid, Luoluo. Uncle is coming to save you."

"Do you want to eat meat, Luoluo? Uncle will give you some."

Step, step, step.

Just as Li Chuan was about to cross the edge of the white mist, his Probability Spectacles, which he couldn't remove, suddenly flickered.

[Ding! The Probability Spectacles of the God of Delusion have been worn for ten hours. Requirements met; new function unlocked.]

[Identification Result: Tiwari Hallucinogen (Mist Form). Stimulates neurons, causing hallucinations and the loss of logical thinking. Extremely dangerous. Do not approach!]

Li Chuan slammed to a halt, his wooden expression slowly beginning to show signs of struggle.

"Damn it! I was careless!"

Li Chuan cursed and quickly retreated two steps. Could this place get any more treacherous? Someone had warned him about this—he should have remembered it the moment he saw the white mist. If the spectacles hadn't unlocked their new function in time, he would likely have died in this eerie forest.

The surrounding temperature seemed to be dropping; having just left the side of the fire, he was already shivering. Li Chuan hurried back to the campfire.

Little Green seemed cold as well; it slowly extended its only mobile vine toward the warmth of the fire. Seeing its delicate branches, Li Chuan carefully moved the fire closer to Little Green, though not too close, fearing he might scorch it.

Looking at the boundary between the white mist and his own space, Li Chuan had an epiphany. No wonder the game system kept reminding him not to abandon his Plant Spirit. It turned out that the Plant Spirit wasn't just a combat tool; it was the only thing in this forest capable of keeping the toxic mist at bay.

Sitting by the fire, Li Chuan opened his equipment menu.

[Probability Spectacles of the God of Delusion: ???]
[Everything in the world has a pattern; all causality has traces to follow. From now on, you possess eyes that see the truth.]
[A gorgeous exterior is never the most praiseworthy aspect. From now on, you possess eyes that see the essence of all things.]
[Other functions are sealed...]
[Evaluation: Evaluation? Who? It?]

So, a new entry had been added. Did that mean his eyes now had an identification function in addition to seeing probability? Why were they all auxiliary functions? Couldn't he get something powerful, like laser eyes that could destroy everything?

He added a few sticks to the fire, drank some hot water, and curled up between the wolf skin and lion skin, slowly closing his eyes.

Calls from relatives, friends, and past lovers echoed in his ears, but Li Chuan suppressed the urge to get up and investigate. *I won't sleepwalk, will I?*

"Little Green! Don't let me leave your attack range tonight."

...

In the cold forest at night, figures wandered aimlessly into the gray mist, muttering their longing for loved ones. Meanwhile, the Plant Spirits that had lost their masters stood in silent solitude, becoming a permanent part of this lethal forest.

...

[Ding, you have a new private message.]
[Ding, you have a new private message.]
[Ding, you have a new private message.]

Li Chuan, unsure if he had actually fallen asleep, was jolted awake by the constant notification pings.

"Who’s making all that racket? Wait—is it snowing?"

Before he could even check his messages, he was stunned by the sight of the forest covered in a thick blanket of snow. Large, heavy snowflakes drifted down like cotton wool, as if someone’s quilt had exploded in the sky. The only reason Li Chuan wasn't covered in snow was that Little Green was shielding him with its flower buds.

"I love you, Little Green."

Li Chuan quickly stood up, added some dry wood to the dying fire, and then opened his messages.

Black Friday: "Hey! Murderer! Hey, hey, hey! Hurry up and trade me that short blade!"

Black Friday: "Hey, are you asleep in the middle of the night? You jerk."

Black Friday: "Hey, uncle who does backflips, if you don't answer me, I'm going to come find you tomorrow!"

*It's her?*

A vision of a girl as agile as a black butterfly flashed through Li Chuan's mind. *She must have found me through the chat channel.*

Damn it! I shouldn't have said that extra sentence.

Only Petals No Thorns (Cold-Blooded One): "It's the middle of the night, shouldn't I be sleeping? Did you manage to get a green weapon?"

Black Friday: "Wow, you finally replied. I thought you’d been eaten by the monsters in the gray mist."

Only Petals No Thorns (Cold-Blooded One): "You're just worried you won't be able to find the weapon you want. Send me the equipment stats panel. I'll look at it before I decide whether to trade."

Black Friday: "[Image]"

[Standard Hand Crossbow: White]
[Required Level: 5]
[Armor Penetration +5, Attack Power +8.]
[Evaluation: The benchmark for single-shot hand crossbows. Well-crafted and durable.]

Only Petals No Thorns (Cold-Blooded One): "Are you sure this is green?"

Black Friday: "It's not just this one. There's more, there's more. [Image]"

[Class Advancement Scroll: Green]
[After use, you can choose a combat class: Berserker, Assassin, or Forest Hunter. (Note: Each player can only choose one class of this type; please choose carefully.)]
[Evaluation: High-level classes of the same type can perfectly override low-level ones!]