Too Sacred

Xiyuan Dormitory was not far from the library.

Zhu Yan swiped his card to open the dormitory door and found the inside dimly lit.

The curtains were drawn. Yang Zhanbai and Qi Yinming were both sleeping soundly, their long, steady breaths filling the entire space.

The conditions here were much better than a normal university dorm.

It was about forty square meters. Aside from the bunk beds covered in soft mattresses and bedding, and the desks, there were actually computers, a projector, an en-suite bathroom, and a large refrigerator.

Next to the fridge, there was surprisingly a tiny kitchen.

The top bunk of bed number 3 was empty. In the dark, Zhu Yan could see a massive duffel bag on it.

This must be the so-called supplies Slime had mentioned.

Very nice, but now wasn't the time to worry about supplies, because he was already exhausted.

Zhu Yan took off his shoes, stepped onto the carpet, and quietly walked into the bathroom, washing away the dirt and fatigue from his body as quickly as possible.

He quickly climbed into bed, slipped under the covers, and casually stored the duffel bag on the bed into his [Silver Storage Ring].

Zhu Yan pulled his bed curtains shut, and sleepiness washed over him like a tidal wave.

...

He slept very deeply at first, not even having a single dream.

After waking up and falling back asleep intermittently for a long time, he was finally awakened by a pleasant melody—

A simple piano tune softly drifted around his ears. A few seconds later, Zhu Yan's consciousness slowly returned.

"Uh-oh, welcome back to the waking world," a cheerful female voice rang out. "This is a pre-recorded broadcast for you, dear [Hunter]."

Holy crap.

Zhu Yan was finally wide awake.

What [Hunter]? His mission hadn't gone wrong, so he should have leveled up by now.

"Congratulations," the female voice said. "You have broken through the psychological barrier required of a [Hunter] and completed the [Hunter] mission."

"Although we believe your method of completion was a bit opportunistic, we have still decided to give you your rightful reward."

Phew.

Zhu Yan stretched comfortably.

Awesome.

"Your [Hunter] level has increased to level one, unlocking the privileges of [Free Application] and [Data Access]."

"[Free Application] means that before you enter an instance each time, you can actively apply to the [Recitation Desk] for a [Hunter Mission]."

Zhu Yan understood.

That was actually pretty good.

For example, he was about to secretly participate in the instance [Twisted Relations].

Then, before the instance began, he could actively apply for a mission that could be completed within that instance.

Very convenient.

Killing the people he wanted to kill had a much lower psychological threshold than slaughtering the innocent!

"[Data Access] means you can go to the [Nightmare Bookstore] to review relevant files from the [Archives Department]."

"For details, please ask the [Nightmare Bookstore] librarian."

"However," the female voice chuckled softly, "you seem to already know this, dear [Hunter]."

Ah, Zhu Yan indeed knew.

Not only did he know, but he had already made use of it.

"Congratulations, you have obtained the item [Weapon Modification Blind Box]."

"You can use it to upgrade your existing weapons. It will randomly grant your weapon 3 new traits it did not originally possess."

"This item can be used twice."

"This item has been dropped to your left side."

Lying in bed, Zhu Yan casually felt around under the covers with his left hand.

His fingers were pricked by a rough, hard object with tiny wooden splinters.

Was this... a wooden box?

Zhu Yan carefully pulled it out from under the blanket and examined it in the dim light inside the bed curtains.

It was a rustic wooden box about the length of a forearm, with a raw white exterior that hadn't even been varnished.

The wooden box had a slide-out lid. It was large but very light, and there was nothing inside.

"You need to place the weapon you wish to upgrade inside and wait for 5 minutes."

The female voice continued to explain.

"Please note that if you insert an unranked, ordinary human weapon, there is a probability that it will grant the weapon an upgradeable trait."

Holy crap.

Zhu Yan's hand paused on the wooden box.

Even if it was a small probability, this was still incredible!

An upgradeable trait, what kind of concept was that?

Neither the dagger sold in the [Online Mall] nor the level-five dining knife he had snatched were upgradeable!

"This wooden box is exclusively for [Hunters]."

The female voice reminded him slowly.

"Please keep this a secret and do not let it slip in front of other players."

"Additionally, a level 1 [Hunter] must complete two missions per month. Your missions for the current month have not been met."

"Good luck, and goodbye."

The female voice disappeared.

Zhu Yan could no longer lie still.

He dawdled as he sat up in bed, hearing movements from below.

"Zhu Zeyu, are you awake?"

It was Yang Zhanbai.

Following that, footsteps approached, and a rich aroma of bread mixed with the scent of meat and coffee drifted into Zhu Yan's bed curtains.

"Coming down to eat? Damn this crappy school, buying groceries to cook yourself is five times cheaper than buying ready-made meals."

Zhu Yan cast an infatuated glance at the [Weapon Upgrade Blind Box] on his bed.

"I'm going to sleep a bit longer."

He wanted to study this blind box a bit more and throw a couple of weapons into it.

"I'm dead tired, I'll be down in a bit."

He was dying of excitement; he'd go down as soon as he was done.

"Alright, I'll keep it warm for you."

Yang Zhanbai agreed decisively.

"When you come down, we can discuss the expenses while we're at it."

Zhu Yan gave a hum of agreement, a gun already gripped in his hand.

This gun originally belonged to Guan En. Zhu Yan had picked it up during his confrontation with Guan En in the Cannibal House Landlord instance.

Human firearms could not be used to deal with horror creatures.

Therefore, Zhu Yan had not taken this gun out again in subsequent instances.

The gun had a good weight to it, and there were still four bullets inside.

Zhu Yan solemnly wiped his hands on the blanket, carefully slid open the wooden box, and placed the firearm inside.

The wooden box closed.

It was very quiet—there was no sound at all.

Zhu Yan pulled out his phone, nervously counting the time.

He stared intently at the wooden box. The moment five minutes were up, he heard a tiny click.

The wooden box popped open a tiny crack, and a receipt was slowly pushed out from inside.

...A receipt?

Zhu Yan hurriedly turned on his phone's flashlight and pulled out the slip of paper.

The words caught him off guard as they jumped into his mind.

"Item: Ordinary Handgun, containing four bullets

Granted Trait: Upgradeable, current level Lv.1"

Holy crap!!

What great luck!

A pleasant surprise!

Zhu Yan read so fast that by the time he realized what had happened, he was already overwhelmed by immense joy.

Good stuff, good stuff!

"Granted Trait: Suicide (As long as the gun is fired, the bullet will inevitably hit the person holding the gun)"

Zhu Yan was no longer happy.

Fuck.

What was this?

Misfortune always hides within blessings!

Zhu Yan felt his blood pressure rising.

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and offered a little prayer.

Please don't let the third trait be another mess!

"Granted Trait: Three Begets All Things

(When there are three bullets left in the gun, the bullets will never run out; there will always be three.

This trait is also known as the Eternal Three. Please note that the handgun has been sealed, and you can only extract bullets by firing them.)"

Zhu Yan fell silent.

Hmm.

This weapon, if used just right, could actually be quite divine.