CHAPTER 94: CHAPTER 94 CAN SMELLY SOCKS ACTUALLY WORK!?

EDITOR: DRAGON BOAT TRANSLATION

Ren Suo was woken by a phone call the next morning.

"I am Yu Kuangtu. I’ve sent the information to your WeChat. You have one day to verify its authenticity and give a rough assessment—for example, trustworthy, untrustworthy, or completely trustworthy."

"...Okay, okay, okay."

Ren Suo checked the time: 10 a.m. He put down his phone to wash up, then turned on his computer, opened WeChat, and downloaded the file Yu Kuangtu had sent.

Although this period was supposed to be his ’pre-employment cultivation period,’ it seemed Yu Kuangtu considered him idle and decided he should start working.

The file was named only "0503," which appeared to be a date, but when Ren Suo opened it, he squinted slightly.

[Scientific Name: Ghost-faced Dazzling Bird]

[Category: Demon Species, Ghost Class]

[Origin: Born from carrion birds mutating in places with numerous corpses.]

[Features: Its wings can emit blinding flashes, its beak can project airwaves that pierce ironwood, minor sonic booms, flames; it is fond of lingering in cemeteries and hospitals.]

This was the Demon Intelligence Ren Suo had released through Fatty’s mouth in "Jedi Priest"!

On the internet, ’Ren Naiser’ hadn’t released a new video, yet this information had appeared. This meant that someone from the second trial had returned, and at least one person had spread this information as he instructed.

Although only a few Demons, such as the Starved Ghost, had appeared in Lianjiang City, it didn’t mean other places were without their own unique types. As long as this information spread online and was noticed by members of the Tactical Bureau in other regions, it would naturally be taken seriously.

However, Ren Suo had also planned to be the first to "discover" this information back then, possibly to gain some benefits. But with the uncertain timing of the Trial Participants’ return and where they might post, he wouldn’t have been able to claim this achievement unless he was constantly searching online.

He quickly skimmed through it, confirming it was what he had said before. After pondering for a moment, he added some minor details—he had omitted some elements discernible in TV dramas to reduce the content.

Now, by adding them, he could feign diligence.

It took him 15 minutes to finish this task. Soon after, the beef brisket yee mein with zhajiang sauce and a side of greens he’d ordered from downstairs were delivered. It was only after talking to his mother yesterday that Ren Suo realized he hadn’t eaten any vegetables for days.

While eating, Ren Suo turned on his game console and continued playing. In this game, a second save file couldn’t be started until the first was completed, which made it rather relaxing.

It had to be said, "Devouring the Spirit of the World" was addictive. Especially after acquiring the Skills "Tear" and "Survival of the Fittest," Ren Suo would play until the Pangolin was covered in scars. After a full meal at night, its overall abilities would increase by the next day.

So he would have the Pangolin rest until the next morning to see how much its overall abilities and combat power had improved.

With increased combat power, he naturally wanted to test its effectiveness. Monkeys he had previously struggled to kill were now easily taken down with a single bite to the throat—"Survival of the Fittest" not only enhanced digestive abilities but also the sharpness and strength of its Beast Teeth.

Moreover, the overall enhancement significantly increased the Pangolin’s strength, making it easy to hunt birds, spiders, and insects. Ren Suo, wanting to ’absorb nutrients in the best way,’ had the Pangolin eat fruits that were higher in nutrients.

So the Pangolin roamed around, killing creatures and eating fruits. Then it would sleep, and Ren Suo would check how much stronger it had gotten before it roamed again, looking for wild beasts to fight. Several hours passed like this.

The game’s time was 1:1 with reality, but if you wanted the game character to sleep or travel quickly, you could simply fast-forward time.

It was now midday in the game, and the Pangolin had just finished off a nest of snakes. Suffering from light injuries and feeling Satiety, Ren Suo decided to let it sleep until the next morning.

The Energy Slot wasn’t full yet, but there weren’t many animals worth hunting nearby. So, Ren Suo didn’t hesitate and had the Pangolin head towards the human urban area!

Ren Suo had already researched and found that the region where the Pangolin was located was roughly Jingnan Province, with several cities nearby. Sure enough, after the Pangolin traveled for about three hours in the game, it spotted a highway!

However, when the Pangolin reached the highway, it saw a car accident not far away.

A truck lay overturned by the roadside, having crashed into a poplar tree next to the highway. It was the only vehicle on the entire stretch of road, with no others in sight; the driver had probably fallen asleep at the wheel.

Ren Suo controlled the Pangolin to approach. He saw a man in the cabin, his head apparently having struck the steering wheel; blood streamed down his face from his forehead. It looked like the truck didn’t have an airbag installed. Most domestically produced trucks don’t, for cost-effectiveness.

Usually, if there’s no incident, everything’s fine; even a fool wouldn’t deliberately collide with a truck. But if an accident happens and you’re unlucky, this is the result.

Fortunately, there was a guardrail in front of the truck, and since it only hit a tree, the cabin wasn’t deformed. Otherwise, only firefighters would be able to rescue the driver.

Is there a chance to save him? Ren Suo assessed the scene. The truck hadn’t completely flipped; its front, the poplar tree, and the slope formed a precarious balance, leaving a gap underneath.

Although the game’s completion objectives weren’t related to rescuing people and might, on the contrary, involve killing—since killing small animals yielded Spiritual Energy, humans undoubtedly would provide it too.

If I ever feel like it, I could try a ’Path to Sainthood Through Slaughter’ save file, growing in power by killing. As long as I don’t upload the save, there probably wouldn’t be an issue, and I could have some fun.

But for this initial playthrough, I’ll see if I can complete it while sticking to my principles as much as possible.

Since the windows were already shattered, Ren Suo had the Pangolin bite through the driver’s seatbelt and carefully drag him out of the cabin. With the help of gravity, dragging an adult wasn’t too difficult, and the Pangolin’s bite force was sufficiently strong.

After spending a few minutes dragging the driver to a safe position, Ren Suo noted the forehead injury seemed quite severe. Since this stretch of highway didn’t seem likely to have anyone passing by anytime soon, he wondered if the driver would survive.

If only I could heal him...

Ren Suo blinked, switched to the external game interface, and opened the "Equipment Interface."

At this moment, in the game character section, a new entry titled "Devouring the Spirit of the World" had appeared, and it was currently equipped with "Unlimited Energy."

Unlike other game characters, many Skills were unusable by "Devouring the Spirit of the World": "Unlimited Energy," "Combat Basics," "Touch of Healing"... Many Skills could only be equipped by humanoid creatures.

Therefore, Ren Suo equipped it with "Magic: Garment"—which, in the game, granted 1 point of defensive power.

Since it could equip "Magic: Garment," it could naturally also equip "Spell Healing." Acting on this idea, Ren Suo equipped "Devouring the Spirit of the World" with "Healing." Upon returning to the game, he discovered—

—it had gained an additional 1 point of recovery ability.

The Pangolin doesn’t have a Qi Cyclone, so it really can’t be used... There was nothing Ren Suo could do; he had tried his best. Moreover, this save file might not even be uploaded, so he maneuvered the Pangolin to leave.

However, as the Pangolin moved the driver, a Jade Pendant slipped from the man’s neck. When the Pangolin brushed against it while leaving, a game prompt popped up: "Absorbing Spiritual Energy."

Huh?

Ren Suo was taken aback. After a dozen seconds, the Spiritual Energy absorption was complete, filling the Energy Slot entirely and even leaving a surplus.

Previously, Ren Suo hadn’t found any so-called spiritual energy items, which was why he was exploring towards the city. Even if this game allowed devouring humans, it would be impossible to match the growth rate of the World’s Strongest!

How come a Jade Pendant found on the road contains Spiritual Energy?

Or could it be that this driver is actually some kind of hidden master, like a ’school beauty’s personal expert,’ carrying many valuable items?

Ren Suo chose to Evolve and found the options this time were somewhat subtle:

"Claws and Teeth" was a Gray Stripes Red Card. Effect: The damage ability of Living Beings is permanently doubled, but cannot exceed the sum of their defensive power and recovery ability.

"Consolidation" was a Blue Stripes Red Card. Effect: The defensive power of Living Beings is permanently doubled, but cannot exceed the sum of their move ability and damage ability.

The most intriguing was the third option.

"Spirit Vision+," a Blue Stripes Red Card. Effect: The living being can activate Spiritual Vision to observe the amount of Spiritual Energy in perceived objects. The enhanced effect allows it to ascertain the time required to absorb Spiritual Energy.

The appearance of Spiritual Vision didn’t surprise Ren Suo. It’s indeed a necessary evolution; otherwise, how would I find those items containing Spiritual Energy?

But this "Spirit Vision+"... was it caused by the Spiritual Energy from the Jade Pendant?

Without hesitation, Ren Suo chose "Spirit Vision+." The Pangolin then gained an additional Skill.

"Press R3 to enter Spiritual Vision mode."

Upon entering Spiritual Vision mode, the entire screen background turned to black and gray. The grass on the roadside had a hint of green, the truck’s cab also had color, whereas the driver was red, but his clothes were a dark green!

The Pangolin touched the driver’s white vest (the kind beloved by old men), and immediately a small box appeared on the right side of the screen.

"A vest worn for six years"

"Spiritual Energy Quantity: Extremely Tiny"

"Enhanced Evolution Probability: 0.106%"

"Absorption Time Needed: 13 hours 25 minutes"

The vest as well!?

Disbelieving, Ren Suo had the Pangolin touch the driver’s socks:

"Socks worn for seventeen years (stinky)"

"Spiritual Energy Quantity: Fairly Tiny"

"Enhanced Evolution Probability: 0.03%"

"Absorption Time Needed: 24 hours 03 minutes"

Even stinky socks have Spiritual Energy!?