Chapter 10: The Terrifying Reward​​

“Hmph, Sister has never been this nice to me.”

Dinner finished, Ning Qingrou tapped her chopsticks against her bowl. Watching her sister push Wang Kong away, she pouted, jealousy twisting her lips.

“Honestly, your sister’s just too kind-hearted,” Ning Tianxiong added, his own tone thick with envy as he watched the departing figures. “Once that kid’s leg heals, he can get lost as far away as possible.”

Damn it! His own daughter hadn’t even tended to him this much, yet now she was taking care of that boy daily.

“But what about the marriage license?” Mrs. Ning frowned. “That boy Shikong is quite handsome. Should we perhaps…”

“No ‘perhaps’!” Ning Tianxiong cut his wife off sharply, pulling out a cigarette. “Getting married? So what? People divorce all the time nowadays. A license means nothing. Qingya is just feeling sorry for him. She doesn’t love the kid. Besides, he’s nowhere near good enough for my daughter. Just seeing him annoys me.” He lit the cigarette and took a deep drag. Damn it, it was his own house, couldn’t he even smoke?

Whoosh.

The atmosphere in the bathroom was somewhat charged, but thankfully, Wang Kong could manage his private areas himself. Ning Qingya only needed to help wash his back and legs.

Even so, after helping him back to bed, she hurried away, her face flushed crimson.

Though Ning Qingya had resolved to care for him for life and they were legally married, she was inexperienced. She’d never been in love or faced such intimacy.

Every time she helped him, her head spun and her heart raced.

Watching her flustered retreat, Wang Kong felt a mix of amusement and a deepening resolve.

He closed his eyes and entered Endless Continent.

Reappearing within the Radiant Holy Temple, Wang Kong resumed practicing Divine Radiance Technique.

He harbored no resentment over being confined to the temple on his first day.

On Endless Continent, leveling up was secondary. Just the three skills he’d already acquired could forge a powerful fighter and top-tier priest. Focusing solely on them for a year would keep him far ahead of others.

It was a case of mastering one skill to dominate all.

By midnight, feeling drained, he logged out to rest.

He had the cultivation method, but rest was still essential.

Grind non-stop? Possible, but mental exhaustion would halve his combat effectiveness and skill proficiency gains. Wang Kong maintained a strict eight-hour rest schedule.

​​[Ding! Congratulations! Your Divine Radiance Technique proficiency has increased, achieving Mastery.]​​

Three days later, Wang Kong finally mastered Divine Radiance Technique.

He switched to training in Light Healing Divine Technique. Slightly harder than Divine Radiance, it still took him less than four days to reach Mastery.

Finally, he tackled the considerably more difficult Divine Encouragement skill.

​​[Ding! Congratulations! Your Divine Encouragement proficiency has increased, achieving Mastery.]​​

On the fourteenth day, the notification sounded.

Wang Kong let out a quiet sigh of relief. His relentless, days-long immersion had paid off.

Hum!

The book Deus Dixit in his hands erupted in light, enveloping him.

​​[You have passed the trial of the God of Radiant Elements, inheriting a portion of His legacy.]​​

​​[Your Spirit Power +40.]​​

​​[You have gained the recognition of the Legacy Tome Deus Dixit. Soul Binding established.]​​

​​[When Deus Dixit is active, your Radiant Element spellcasting speed increases by 50%!]​​

“Congratulations, Divine Scion, on inheriting the great legacy of the Radiant God!”

As the notifications echoed, the elder priest materialized before him, kneeling on one knee, staff in hand. “Divine Scion, we beseech you to spread the glory of the Radiant God across the Endless Continent.”

​​[Ding! Main Quest initiated: Glory of the Radiant God. As the Divine Scion, revitalizing the glory of the Radiant God is your sacred duty.]​​

​​[Spread the Divine Radiance, purge the heretics. Raise your personal reputation, or that of a squad/guild you establish, to 10 million.]​​

​​[Upon completion, the second Radiant Holy Temple legacy shall unlock.]​​

Absorbing this influx of information, Wang Kong’s eyes gleamed as he looked at the kneeling priest. “I will ensure mortals witness the Divine Radiance once more.”

“This old servant believes in you, Divine Scion,” the priest said, rising and bowing. “With your trial complete, this Temple is now yours. My remnant spirit shall depart to serve the great Radiant God.” He dissolved into motes of light.

​​[You have obtained the Spatial Artifact: Radiant Holy Temple.]​​

​​[Radiant Holy Temple (Epic): Spatial Artifact. Radiant Element spell power +50%. Can transform into ring or jewelry for storage. Can store living beings. Soul Bound.]​​

The notification brought a look of sheer delight to Wang Kong’s face.

With a thought, the temple vanished. He found himself back in the Lost Mine.

“An Epic-grade storage artifact! Boosts light element spell power by 50%! Can store living beings!” Wang Kong’s excitement was palpable. The effects and attributes were staggering.

Endless Continent’s equipment tiers spanned: Common, Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Dark Gold, Epic, Legendary, Mythical. In his past life, even after five years, he’d never obtained an Epic item; his best had been a Dark Gold artifact.

“And that +40 Spirit Power reward? Insanely powerful. Equivalent to the gain from eight levels.”

Wang Kong understood the immense value of such bonus Spirit Power. When undergoing the First Advancement to open the Divine Palace, higher Spirit Power resulted in a larger, more potent palace core, significantly boosting post-advancement strength. It was akin to the Foundation Establishment stage in cultivation novels – divided into Common, Earth Grade, Heaven Grade, etc. Deeper early foundations enabled greater future power, potentially allowing one to fight opponents eight or nine levels higher.

Given his current Level 2 status... actual combat prowess was another matter.

His gaze returned to Deus Dixit.

​​[Deus Dixit: Legacy Tome of the God of Radiant Elements. Soul Bound. Holding this tome grants the passive ability: Truth Discernment. The God does not like liars!]​​

​​[Truth Discernment: You can discern the truthfulness of spoken words.]​​

“Truth Discernment. Passive. That’s an active spell usually only learnable by Fourth Advancement Transcendent Realm mages!” Wang Kong was immensely pleased. People wore masks; sometimes lies inflicted deeper wounds than the spells of some “Jeering God.” A constantly active Truth Discernment was invaluable.

“This haul is phenomenal. Half a month has passed; the wealthy should have pooled enough Yuan Coins by now, and I can offload these Black Iron weapons.”

Returning to Blue Star, Wang Kong stored the Black Iron weapons within the Radiant Holy Temple. The temple now manifested as an ordinary ring on his finger, utterly unassuming.

He summoned two skeletons to carry his wheelchair towards the mine entrance.

Emerging outside, he waved at the stifling air and headed straight for Sky Azure Town. His plan involved many tasks.

Propelled in his wheelchair, the surroundings were no longer as desolate as when he first arrived. The path was now filled with people riding bicycles, shared electric scooters, and even motorbikes, adding a touch of sci-fi to the fantasy world. This made his wheelchair less conspicuous, though Endless Continent’s ‘technology’ far surpassed Blue Star’s. Its history stretched back 100,000 years across five glorious epochs. Communication devices, teleportation arrays, elemental airships, spatial storage rings, projection arrays – its elemental technology was breathtakingly advanced.

“After selling the gear, first buy a communicator, then form a squad.”

He hadn’t forgotten the Radiant God legacy’s follow-up task: gaining Reputation. Reputation was notoriously hard to acquire; hitting 10 million was something only achieved years into the game in his past life. Furthermore, it wasn’t personal reputation, but Guild/Squad reputation. Establishing a full-fledged guild took time he didn’t have, especially since his ‘wife’ would build a formidable one later. A small squad suited his purposes – gaining reputation and tackling dungeons and quests that required a team.

Lost in thought, he arrived back in Sky Azure Town over an hour later.

Unlike before, the town bustled with ‘Countrymen’ entering and exiting, wielding weapons ranging from kitchen knives and sickles to baseball bats and even reinforcing rods. Few possessed proper arms. Sky Azure Town’s weapon shops sold Common and Black Iron gear, but Common weapons started at 500 Yuan Coins, Black Iron at a staggering 10,000 Yuan Coins. Given Endless Continent’s pitiful drop rates, getting 20 coins a day was considered lucky.

Wang Kong navigated the streets, stopping at a high-traffic intersection. He laid out four Guardian Longswords and placed a prepared signboard carved with words beside them:

​​Black Iron Longswords!​​

​​For Sale at 5% OFF Weapon Shop Price!​​

​​Yuan Coins ONLY!​