I Want to Sleep: Let Me Check Out the Cards

Liu Yuan was called out of the lineup by Old Li, her heart fluttering with unease.

She lowered her head as she walked up to him, her face wearing a faint expression of confusion and helplessness.

"Liu Yuan, your records show you're at the peak of the third-tier Spark Realm, but the power behind that punch just now was at least at the fourth-tier peak level," Old Li said, his voice calm but his gaze carrying a trace of scrutiny.

"If I had to guess, you must have equipped two four-star Epic-grade equipment cards?"

Old Li furrowed his brows, glancing down at the documents in his hand before looking back at Liu Yuan, as if weighing his words carefully.

Liu Yuan pressed her lips together and chose to remain silent, her mind racing for a suitable response.

Should she just blurt out, "I have an incredibly powerful card, a gift from my brother"?

Even if she wasn’t particularly sharp, she understood what it meant to have attributes perfectly stacked beyond her current capabilities.

Revealing it wouldn’t bring any benefits—only potential trouble for herself and even her brother.

The more she explained, the messier it would get. It was better to stay silent. If the teacher wanted to misunderstand, she was fine with that.

Compared to the truth, two four-star Epic cards were nothing. In a top-tier school like theirs, they might even be standard for average students.

Old Li stared at her for a few seconds before finally sighing. "Fine. If you don’t want to talk about it, I certainly have no right to push you. Teachers aren’t surveillance systems—we respect everyone’s privacy."

"But if you ever face any difficulties or unfair treatment, you can talk to me."

"I may not be particularly strong myself, but some of my students have gone on to make something of themselves. I can’t promise much, but in Jiangxia, I do have some connections."

Though he didn’t say it outright, the implication was clear.

He was worried she might have been subjected to some "unfair" treatment and was given those cards as "hush money."

Don’t be surprised—such things weren’t common, but they weren’t rare either.

Even a rice jar could breed worms, let alone a place like Jiangxia.

If you insisted Jiangxia was a paradise while the outside world suffered, just ask the locals—would they believe it?

Liu Yuan nodded, relieved. "Thank you, teacher. I’ll keep that in mind, but lately, I haven’t faced anything particularly difficult or unfair."

If anything, the biggest challenge today had been mustering the courage to say "Good morning" to her somewhat unfamiliar brother.

"Alright, if you say so. Then I must’ve overthought it."

"For now, step aside. You won’t be participating in this free-for-all."

This exercise wasn’t just a random decision.

Old Li had planned it because Liu Yuan’s class had two students at the peak of the fourth-tier Spark Realm. Normally, they would be the last ones standing, each leading a team.

But Liu Yuan’s unexpected display had disrupted his plans. A team with two fourth-tier peak fighters would dominate without contest.

"Attend the rest of the classes as usual, but your performance won’t be scored. Whichever team wins in the end, you’ll join them in entering the mystic realm."

With that, Old Li waved her off to the spectator seats below.

Liu Yuan quickly made her way to the observation area beside the training platform, where her classmates cast complicated glances her way—some envious, some resentful, others awed.

But not a single voice of dissent was raised.

Though the earlier interruption had briefly killed the mood, the students soon threw themselves back into the chaotic brawl.

Eventually, Old Li announced the final team leaders.

As expected, Xu Kun and another fourth-tier peak student were chosen to lead the two squads.

"Alright, the teams are set," Old Li clapped his hands. "Remember, teamwork is key. Don’t disappoint me."

The rest of the day passed with Old Li overseeing the students’ training.

---

After school, the moment she stepped out of the training hall, Liu Yuan couldn’t wait to share the good news.

[Iris: Brother, brother! The card you gave me is amazing! On the very first day, I got an exemption and passed the selection! I’m definitely going to the Source Realm now!]

[IWantToSleep: Really that good?]

[Iris: Mhm! Super good!]

[IWantToSleep: You sure?]

[Iris: ヾ(●′?｀●) Absolutely!]

[IWantToSleep: The negative trait doesn’t bother you?]

[Iris: It’s a little annoying, but it’s ignorable. You just lose some attributes for the day, but completing the condition gives a permanent boost.]

[IWantToSleep: Show me the card!]

...

Su Qi stared at the messages from "Little Iris," falling into deep self-doubt.

Why was it that every time he tested something, the negative effects made it unusable unless endured?

For example:

- A greatsword that could only be equipped if the user cross-dressed and surpassed 95% of women in appearance.

- Or a torch that required finding a new girlfriend and breaking up with her the same day for a single use.

But for Little Iris, it was just a temporary attribute loss?

Was it because women had higher magic resistance? Or was his ability just better suited for crafting cards?

Or maybe… it was adaptable?

What kind of attribute and [Pleasure Trait] was this?

No point overthinking it. Might as well ask directly.

[IWantToSleep: Show me the card!]

[Iris: Hmph, no! (╯＞д＜)╯]

Su Qi: ???

What was this about?

It wasn’t like he was asking her to send another selfie. Why the refusal?

[IWantToSleep: I really want to see it.]

[Iris: Hmph, even if you really want to, no! (╯＞д＜)╯]

Su Qi scratched his head, baffled at where things had gone wrong.

Why the sudden resistance?

Ah, a woman’s heart was as deep as the ocean.

And girls weren’t much different.

But this might actually prove one thing—

Three Flowers Gather at the Summit—the Daoist path is complete!

After endless trial and error, was he finally about to unleash his potential?

Tears welled up just thinking about it.

Three months… Do you have any idea how he survived these three months?

Every attempt filled with hope, only to be met with sweat-inducing [Pleasure Traits].

The disappointment nearly made him relive the humiliations of his martial arts school days…

Of course, someone might ask—why not just go all-in on [Radiance]?

To which Su Qi would counter—where was he supposed to gather that much [Radiance]?

He’d spent ten years collecting just over 1,000 points, only for them to be wiped clean upon activation.

"Changing someone’s life trajectory" sounded simple in theory…

But it wasn’t as easy as breaking someone’s leg so they couldn’t work as a wage slave for half a year.

That only altered their short-term path. Once healed, they’d return to the grind, still a wage slave.

Not entirely without rewards, but doing ten such things might only yield a single point of [Radiance].

The real gains came from cases like:

Making someone destined to slave away in medicine their whole life realize—medicine couldn’t save Great Xia.

Then watching them abandon medicine for martial arts, carving a bloody path through mystic realms.

That was true life trajectory alteration.

The greater this person's future achievements, the more [Brilliance] Su Qi would harvest.

Those 12 points he invested in card-making? That was the result of saving up for an entire month.

After painstakingly saving for a month, he ended up pouring all of it into Little Iris—you get it?

Still, the outcome wasn’t bad.

After going all-in, he nearly recouped his investment in just two days.

[Brilliance: 3]

[Radiance: 0]

[Joy: 1424]

Click!

The crisp sound of a closing door snapped Su Qi out of his grand delusions.

Liu Yuan walked in from the entryway.

Su Qi’s gaze traveled upward from the floor before finally meeting hers.

The same look of disdain as always.

Without a word, she quickened her pace, retreating to her room in four seconds flat and slamming the door shut behind her.

[Promotion Challenge: Ensure the target person does not gaze at this equipment for more than five seconds at a time for seven consecutive days. (1/7)]