Complimentary Gift

The [Mermaid]'s shell bag was not big, nor was it any kind of high-grade spatial equipment, so the things she dumped out were all quite small.

Chen Miemie counted—five items in total.

A glass bottle filled with sand, a feather that didn't look too great, a palm-sized little crown, a fishhook, and an unremarkable-looking pebble.

The [Mermaid] knew Chen Miemie was no appraiser, so she took the initiative to introduce them:

"These are all oddities I've collected over the years. Their value isn't set in stone—you'll have to decide for yourself what to keep.

The first item is a kind of magical sand called [Footprints of the Tide]. I've stored it in this specially made little bottle.

If you pour it on a beach, it will leave a trail of footprints permanently imprinted on the sand. No matter how the tide rises or falls, or how the wind covers them with sand, they always reappear after the tide recedes."

Chen Miemie waited for a moment, but when no further explanation came, he asked bluntly: "And after the footprints appear, what do they do?"

"Nobody knows what they do. This trail of footprints might have a story, but I don't know it. Anyone who steps into these footprints will suddenly see things beyond their own field of vision—but only just see them, nothing more."

Chen Miemie thought it over: "Alright, let's move on to the second one."

"The second I call [The Seagull's Last Wish]. It's a pure white seagull feather that always stays weightless. No matter how big the storm, it floats on the very surface and never sinks.

I got this feather from a safe aboard a sunken ship.

It came with a simple note, saying this was a feather shed by an old seagull as it flew over the sea one last time before dying. It used its final strength to make this feather 'never sink,' hoping the feather would see the sea for it one last time."

Chen Miemie grew a little curious and picked up the feather, holding it up to the sunlight: "Never sinks? So if I tie a small object to it, will the object stay afloat along with it?"

"Unfortunately, no. Only the feather itself will never sink."

Chen Miemie's interest instantly faded. It couldn't even work as a floatie—purely decorative.

Seeing that he had no more questions, the [Mermaid] understood and moved on to the third item.

"The third is a sea urchin."

"A sea urchin?" Chen Miemie had thought it was a little crown.

"Yes. This is the most dangerous item here—I'd consider it a true mystical object.

It's a sea urchin that died many years ago, but its spines never fell off. Instead, they grew longer and longer, twisting into the shape of a crooked crown.

A snake that was about to drown once coiled around it desperately, and the snake's venom seeped into the spines. From then on, every spine carried the malice of a snake.

If you wear it on your head, you can briefly gain a 'serpent's perspective,' allowing you to see hidden dangers or betrayals that are about to come.

The price is that the wearer becomes cold-blooded like a snake. For every minute you wear it, you'll be unable to love anyone for a week—and the time stacks without limit."

This was the most useful item so far, and its value was clearly high, but Chen Miemie didn't even give it a second glance.

He already had the beautiful [Flower Parasol Jellyfish Hat], which he had "seasoned" with his own brain matter. In looks, it completely outclassed this [Sea Urchin Crown].

"I don't need this one. Let's skip it."

"Alright. The fourth item is the [Self-Finding Fishhook]. It's a fishhook that, even if it breaks off in the water, will always return to its fishing rod on its own.

Of course, if it only served that purpose, I wouldn’t have kept it in my collection.

Because it always turns the side without barbs toward its owner, you can use it as a directional pointer when sailing at sea.

Chen Miemie still didn’t react. He didn’t sail, so he had no use for a compass.

“The last one is called the ‘Pebble.’

It’s an extremely smooth, round pebble, born from the sediment layers at the mouth of a river. It’s been washed by fresh water, soaked in seawater, and picked up and thrown back by countless hands.

It remembers the warmth of every hand that has ever held it.

When you grip it, it releases the temperature of the previous person—maybe a child from three days ago, or a fisherman from three hundred years ago.

Different temperatures reflect the mood of that person at the time.

Cold means fear, hot means joy, and room temperature means calm.

Alright, I’ve introduced all five items. I’ve given you every piece of information I possibly can. Make your choice.”

Even though the Mermaid was impatient when on land, she knew this was a hard decision to make. She planned to generously give Chen Miemie five minutes to hesitate, and when the time was up, she’d urge him along.

To her surprise, the moment she finished speaking, Chen Miemie had already given his answer.

“I’ll take the first one.”

“You’re choosing the ‘Tide’s Footprints’? Are you sure? That one isn’t very useful.”

Though the Mermaid phrased it as a question, she had already slid the small glass bottle containing the Tide’s Footprints in front of Chen Miemie.

She chuckled to herself: this fool picked the cheapest one—no take-backs now.

Chen Miemie took the Tide’s Footprints.

“Mermaid, even though this is an exchange of information, each taking what they need, I’m the one who came to you. The information I gave you cost me nothing more than opening my mouth.

Since you generously threw in a treasure and provided a detailed explanation, I won’t be stingy either. I’ll gift you a treasure of my own.”

The Mermaid was taken aback. “Huh? What treasure?”

“The friendship of Chen Miemie.”

The excitement on the Mermaid’s face vanished instantly. She didn’t think the two of them would cross paths again.

“I rarely even stay on land. What would I do with your friendship?”

With the conversation finished, Chen Miemie stood up to leave:

“The corruption in your body is already irreversible. If one day you dare to attempt a charge at [Mystery] 6, you’ll understand the weight of this friendship then.”