As expected!

Survival Points can be used to create replicas!

Jiang Ye's eyes flickered with excitement upon hearing the notification.

A new replica meant new labor power!

That meant he could earn money even faster!

But more importantly, a new replica meant a new ability!

Just as Jiang Ye was about to instinctively choose [Yes], something suddenly occurred to him, and he hesitated.

Instead of making a hasty decision, he had Replica No.1 take out his Personal Assistant, Little Bing, and place it on the coffee table.

There was already a tiny, pinky-sized miniature lantern sitting on that table.

At first glance, it looked just like an ordinary pendant.

But in reality...

It was an item Jiang Ye had obtained when he opened a package while bald!

And this tiny pendant came with an insane compensation fee of 188,000 yuan!

When Jiang Ye first saw the notification, he was utterly stunned!

That sky-high penalty was even higher than his daily rent!

He had almost stuffed the lantern back into the package on the spot, hoping to return it somehow.

But he knew one thing—the higher the penalty fee, the more valuable the item.

At this moment, he instructed Little Bing to use Detection on the miniature lantern.

Soon, Little Bing’s screen displayed the lantern's information—

【Lucky Lantern】

【Effect: Increases luck slightly for 1 hour upon activation.】

F***?!Just these two simple lines... and that cost 188,000 yuan?!

However…

Luck attribute?

Was this an undisplayed hidden stat?

If every player had a hidden Luck attribute…

Jiang Ye had a strong suspicion that Yang Wenchao possessed an insanely high Luck stat!

People like Wang Lingling and Gao Chang were probably quite lucky too.

As for Jiang Ye himself… it was hard to say.

If he was lucky, then why was he the only one who failed his Awakening?

If he was unlucky, then how did he later awaken an overpowered X-tier ability?!

Perhaps…

Extreme luck and extreme misfortune were just two sides of the same coin?

Jiang Ye couldn't figure it out.

But then—

A bold idea suddenly struck him.

Could Luck influence the initial ability of a replica?

His eyes widened in realization!

If he activated the Lucky Lantern before creating a new replica…

Wouldn't that greatly increase the chance of obtaining a more powerful ability?!

If he could get a replica with an SSS-tier ability, then forget 188,000 yuan—even 1.88 million would be worth it!

But now, Jiang Ye faced a dilemma.

The Lucky Lantern’s effect lasted for one hour.

If he could accumulate more Survival Points and create multiple replicas within that hour, the effectiveness of the lantern would be maximized.

But if he waited to accumulate more points, he would be wasting the chance to create a powerful replica right now.

He couldn't have it both ways.

Without further hesitation, Jiang Ye activated the Lucky Lantern.

The miniature lantern glowed with a soft, colorful light.

And at that moment, he made his choice—

[Yes!]

Ding! Congratulations! You have created a new replica!

A flash of white light filled his vision—

And the next moment, another “Jiang Ye” appeared!

But suddenly, Jiang Ye felt his head grow heavy, a wave of exhaustion washing over him.

His entire body felt weak and drained.

He quickly lay down on the sofa, coming to a realization—

His Energy attribute wasn’t high enough to effortlessly control three bodies at once.

This meant that his main body's attributes were crucial.

Either he had to increase his stats to handle more replicas…

Or he needed to merge his replicas, strengthening his main body while reducing the number of duplicates.

So in the end—

His main focus still had to be on improving his original body.

By midnight in-game, he would have to consider merging a replica to strengthen himself.

With this thought in mind, Jiang Ye quickly checked Replica No.2’s stats.

And the moment he saw them—

His exhausted eyes instantly lit up with excitement!

【Jiang Ye】

【Level: 0】

【Stamina: 5.2】

【Energy: 5.2】

【Combat Power: 46】

【Survival Points: 0】

【Ability: Hard Work Pays Off (S)】

【Effect: Your deliberate practice will always yield results.】

【Skills: Absolute Focus (A), Combat Stance (A)】

【Absolute Focus (A)】—When you immerse yourself completely in a task, you enter a state of total concentration for 1 minute. Depending on your level of focus, attributes and comprehension will increase accordingly.

【Combat Stance (A)】—When you enter a combat stance, your physical attributes receive a temporary boost. After exiting combat stance, your combat instincts will improve.

Holy sh*t!!

An S-tier ability!!

And it came with two A-tier skills!

Both of which could temporarily increase his stats!

Even "Absolute Focus" could enhance comprehension!

Which meant that Jiang Ye’s training efficiency in the Training Room would be far greater than anyone else's!

At the same time, "Combat Stance" would allow him to grow even faster in battle!

Moreover, this replica’s base attributes had already surpassed 5, and its combat power had soared to 46!

That was almost as high as Gao Chang’s combat power of 48!

However—

Gao Chang had powerful lightning-based abilities.

This new replica was clearly suited for close combat.

For now, it probably couldn’t beat Gao Chang.

But that didn’t matter—Jiang Ye’s potential far surpassed everyone else’s!

Of course, only if he managed to survive long enough to grow.

The Lucky Lantern’s effect lasted for a full hour.

Jiang Ye wasn’t about to waste it.

He had Replica No.1, who was about to start his cleaning job, wear the lantern on his body.

At the same time, worried that No.1 might be ambushed by monsters, he gave the Disguise Mask to Replica No.2 and had him stay invisible, tailing No.1 in secret.

After hesitating for a moment, he also handed the Poison Blade Blood Dagger to No.2.

Meanwhile, Little Bing, the Personal Assistant with a Self-Destruct function, remained with No.1.

With everything set up—

Replica No.1 moved in the open, while No.2 lurked unseen in the shadows.

Together, they left Apartment 2025.

As for Jiang Ye’s main body, due to his mental and physical exhaustion, he collapsed onto the apartment’s sofa.

No.1 had taken on a cleaning task for Apartment 2064.

To reach it, he had to walk in the opposite direction of the red-lit elevator.

From a distance, that side of the corridor looked much darker.

It gave off a dangerous, ominous feeling.

Even though No.2 was strong, Jiang Ye didn’t let it make him reckless.

He moved slowly, cautiously.

Under the dim light, No.1 carefully checked each apartment number.

Meanwhile, No.2 kept a close watch on their surroundings.

As they neared Apartment 2048, No.1 felt nothing unusual.

But No.2 suddenly sensed a wave of bone-chilling cold!

Instantly—both replicas tensed!

And in the very next moment—

A hissing sound echoed through the dimly lit corridor, accompanied by a chilling gust of wind!

No.1’s grip tightened on the kitchen knife in his hand—

But then, a strange cold and slippery sensation suddenly brushed against his wrist!

Shocked, he instinctively jerked his hand away!

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of black flying off his wrist!

It looked like…

A thin, snake-like creature!

Its pitch-black form blended perfectly into the darkness, vanishing in an instant!

A creeping numbness began spreading through No.1’s right hand, making it hard to even hold the knife!

Jiang Ye had zero combat experience.

And now, unable to see his attacker, panic crept into his heart.

But No.2 was different.

He acted immediately.

Without hesitation, he activated—

【Absolute Focus】

【Combat Stance】

In an instant—

No.2 entered a trance-like state of total concentration.

It was as if time itself had stopped in the dark corridor.

And in this frozen moment, even the slightest movement stood out!

"Hissss—"

"Whoosh—"

A strange sound.

A gust of wind.

No.2’s eyes snapped open, sharp and deadly!

His hand shot out, slashing with the Poison Blade Blood Dagger!

"Puchi!"

"Hiss! Hissss!"

"Splurt—!"

The hissing sound suddenly changed—turning into an ear-piercing screech of pain!

A foul-smelling liquid sprayed from the snake’s mouth, shooting toward the replicas!

But both dodged just in time!

No.2 didn’t stop.

Still in his trance-like state, he struck again—

His dagger flashing toward the snake’s weak spot!

Even though he couldn’t confirm what kind of creature it was, he followed the rule of striking at a snake’s “seven-inch” vital point.

"Puchi!"

"Splurt!"

"HISSSS!"

Back when Jiang Ye killed Ding Deng, his hands had shaken violently.

But this time—

His strikes were decisive. Ruthless.

A final, sharp shriek filled the air—

Then, a blinding white light flashed.

At the same time, a notification rang in Jiang Ye’s mind—

【You have successfully killed a Level 1 Shadow Ringed Serpent!】

【Gained +10 Energy Points!】

【Ding! You have leveled up to Level 1!】

【Stamina +1!】

【Energy +1!】

And in the place where the white light faded—

A Black Iron Treasure Chest appeared!