Chapter 6: The System is Online - Let Me Test You.
After a ding-dong sound, another long minute of waiting ensued. Just when Chu Jue thought the system had crashed again, a new notification finally appeared:
[Main quest progress updated, merit points +1]
Current total merit points: 81
Main Quest (Beginner) Required Merit Points: 81/100
Huh? It's been updated?
While it's good that 1 point was suddenly added, when did the previous 80 points appear?
What did she do during the system's offline period to update the main storyline progress?
The term "merit" has a broad meaning. Chu Jue only has some general ideas about how to solve this problem regarding the value of merit, and has not yet put it into practice.
Before she could even begin studying the main quest, the quest progress had already increased.
Judging from the system's name, the most straightforward explanation is that it requires her to accumulate merit.
That is, to do good deeds.
If that's the case, then she should have accumulated some merit points when she "saved" Fang Zhiyi—although it wasn't a subjective rescue, it was indeed an objective fact.
Chu Jue remembered hearing a "ding-dong" sound after she dealt with the ants. The system must have already bound itself to her at that time, but it took a long time to appear.
However, the system did not provide her with any progress updates at that time.
Could it be because the system crashed earlier? Did that cause the notification to be lost as well?
Just because the system notification came late doesn't mean all the good deeds we did before are for naught, right?
Chu Jue clicked into the task progress details and tried to check the historical data. Fortunately, the system wasn't completely unreliable; it still had these basic functions and quickly helped Chu Jue confirm the answer.
According to the historical records displayed by the system, the merit points increased many times. The first time was the largest, with a single increase of 50 merit points. Soon after, it increased by 5 merit points four more times, and then by another 10.
Including the 1 that came from who-knows-where just now, it was added six times in total.
In terms of timing, the first time seems to have been when she intervened and saved Fang Zhiyi, corresponding to a value of 50.
She then severely injured four defective products in a row, thus earning a score of 5 four times.
After finally saving the ants, I received a value of 10.
From this perspective, both positive and negative actions can be considered merit points.
Chu Jue found it hard to believe that such a good thing could happen.
If her guess is correct, it means that both "saving" and "burying" are within the scope of "merit" calculation.
"She's better at burying people," Chu Jue pondered. Saving someone means saving them alive; killing is far more convenient. And getting a puppet along the way is the most cost-effective thing imaginable.
But what is this last 1?
Is helping spirit stones to become imbued with spirit energy considered a form of accumulating merit?
Chu Jue mentally tapped the system a few times, but it remained unresponsive. Just when Chu Jue thought it was about to crash and log off again, it finally reacted. However, the system ignored her and simply updated another side quest:
[A side quest has been posted for you. Please select whether to accept it.]
[Side Quest to be Accepted: Repair Mental Strength]
[Mission Completion Reward: Mental Strength Restored]
Chu Jue was speechless after seeing it clearly.
Did the system just detect that her mental strength was damaged? Otherwise, why didn't it update the tasks immediately when she first logged in?
What kind of local network speed is this? It's such an outdated system.
Moreover, this reward is just some kind of nonsensical literature; what's the difference between this and having no reward at all? It seems like it was just forced in to create a "reward."
Did the system anticipate that she would definitely choose this path, so it created a reward that wasn't actually a reward?
But what's infuriating is that even so, she still needs to repair her mental strength, and she would do so even if the system didn't tell her to.
Combined with the seemingly useless "career ambition fulfillment," Chu Jue became even more convinced that this was a useless system.
Perhaps it should be renamed the Merit Limited System.
She casually selected to accept the task, and this time the system, which had limited merit, reacted quickly, immediately highlighting the task and moving it from "Side Quests to be Accepted" to "Side Quests Accepted," placing it alongside another side quest, "Become Number One."
[Side Quest - Mental Strength Repair - Progress Updated, Maximum Mental Strength +18]
[Current limit: 250/9999+]
250 and 9999...
That's easy to understand.
The system converted her mental energy level into a value similar to a visible MP value in a space game.
Unlike the abstract concepts of "stone size" and "coin size," this is made more concrete, with each sesame seed labeled with its weight.
Normally, mental energy recovers gradually according to one's own condition, and whether or not it is used does not affect the upper limit. Therefore, the higher the upper limit, the higher the corresponding level of mental energy.
However, the state of damaged mental power is equivalent to cutting off the upper limit. If this negative buff is not removed, even if it is restored to "full", it is only "full" after the upper limit has been cut.
For example, the 9999+ is her original upper limit, while her current recovery progress is the number in front, 250.
She used to be able to recover to 9999 in just one day, but now she can only recover to 250 at most.
The progress is encouraging.
Judging from the 18 newly added cases alone, the 250 must have been accumulated many times. After a series of operations, Chu Jue discovered that the history of this newly accepted task could also be found.
She clicked to read it, and when she saw the progress display at the top, she couldn't help but fall silent.
Current upper limit: ≈1/9999+
This was her data when she first arrived—the upper limit was only 1, or even approximately equal to 1.
Her mental strength, which was over 9999, was reduced to only 1. Even if it were restored to full strength, it would still only be 1.
Chu Jue: ...
What's the point of leaving her a mere 1? Compared to the number that follows, doesn't it feel particularly cruel?
……never mind.
On the bright side, at least they left her with a 1.
Haha, every little bit helps.
Chu Jue continued reading.
[Side Quest - Mental Strength Repair - Progress Updated, Maximum Mental Strength +231]
[Current limit: 232/9999+]
Next up is the latest notification I just saw.
[Maximum Mental Strength +18]
There were only two increases in total, which is easy to understand.
The "large number" 231 should be the spiritual power brought by the puppet, which was also the first time she felt the sense of "repair".
The number 18 that follows represents the spiritual power she has increased through "spiritual cultivation" here, which is more than two hundred greater than that of the puppet.
It seems that spiritual cultivation can only be used as a supplement; the righteous path still requires killing to seize... no, accumulating merit.
I wonder if the system can provide her with some hints? Right now, it can clearly provide numerical values, but she has to guess how to obtain them herself.
Chu Jue poked the system, and it finally showed some of the things a system should have.
Merit Points: The specific numerical value of one's achievements and virtues.
[How to obtain: Achieve meritorious service/Do good deeds/Please explore on your own]
[Maximum Mental Strength: The current maximum value of mental strength]
[How to obtain: Break the limit/Repair mental power/Please explore on your own]
Chu Jue: ?
This system is clearly just padding the word count, isn't it? What's the difference between giving a hint and not giving a hint?
...Forget it, the system's performance is clearly that of a competent artificial idiot. What can we expect from it?
Despite having a designer's voice, it now seems less impressive than a mechanical dog that can pick up takeout.
After receiving her complaints, the "artificial intelligence" sent her the following six points: [...]
"You can speak?" Chu Jue raised an eyebrow. This was the first time the system had given her a response outside of her mission, which could be considered a huge step forward.
Merit System: [√, ××]
Chu Jue: ?
Yes, but no.
Does it mean...able to speak, but not much?
But why reply with these difficult-to-decipher symbols? Does it mean that we can only communicate with her using symbols?
Chu Jue: "You can only send these meaningless symbols?"
Merit System: 【√√√】
Chu Jue: ...
Okay, this reply is easy to understand now.
Which source line was used when this system was built? How could it be so unintelligent?
Even dogs in the spiritual energy revival world can talk now, so why can't the merit-limited system improve a bit?
Chu Jue retracted his rambling complaints and asked directly, "Designer?"
Her intuition and speculation told her that the system had a close relationship with the designer. The designer's voice system was uncommon, let alone one that could connect with her.
Moreover, her mental sea could not be easily invaded by a strange system. The fact that a "system" has appeared out of nowhere and has not been rejected makes it hard not to think of the designer.
Merit System: [。]
What kind of answer is this... It's like admitting something, but also like not admitting it.
Why not use checkmarks or crosses like before? Because she is both yes and no.
There was neither confirmation nor denial.
He was connected to the designer and also knew about her "spiritual power"—
"empire?"
Merit System: [。]
Chu Jue felt that she saw "correctness" in a period, which shouldn't be a problem with her.
"Alright, ask what you can say." Chu Jue thought for a moment, "After the main quest is completed, will the quest rewards really be redeemed?"
Based on the system's current performance, Chu Jue looked at the "return to the empire" that seemed like a pie in the sky and felt that it had a fraudulent element to it.
Merit System: 【√√√√√】
The system was clearly excited, as it responded with five checkmarks at once. It would have been great if it could have evenly distributed two of those checkmarks to the earlier questions.
"Based on the mission details, you hope that I will eventually be able to return to the Empire."
Merit System: [。]
As expected, it couldn't answer questions related to the empire so definitively. Perhaps there are some limitations involved.
"Is the sealing of my spiritual power related to you?"
Merit System: [×]
Another guess was refuted, but Chu Jue felt his thinking became clearer.
She had intended to take advantage of the good signal to ask a few more questions, but found that the system was proactively sending her new messages.
Merit System: [8]
Huh? Besides symbols, it can even send numbers now.
8?
What does this "8" mean? The number "8" doesn't have any special meaning in the Empire, and her Far Star Army doesn't have a number "8"... What about her friend? Neither her friend nor the Third Princess should have any connection to the number "8"...
If she is the third princess, why isn't it a "3"?
The sudden appearance of this ambiguous number made Chu Jue feel as if the system was saying: Let me test you.
Is this system hoping she can solve puzzles using numbers?
A note from the author:
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