Chapter 39 - 36: Purification Spring

Chapter 39: Chapter 36: Purification Spring

"Three hundred points of Belief Value!"

"A pick-three-out-of-five reward! WOO-HOO!"

The last time he got to choose his loot, he had picked Employee Number One, Little Blood. It was precisely because of Little Blood that Shi An had managed to perfectly clear the initial Nightmare, and it was also how they were able to conquer this large-scale Nightmare.

Shi An had also been incredibly tempted by the lounge blueprint from the previous options.

"I can pick even more this time. There should be blueprints too, right?" he muttered to himself.

If it weren’t for the fact that the college student, the woman in pajamas, and the others were still in the store, Manager Shi would have been unable to hold back his cheers. Shi An restrained his trembling hands and his restless heart.

Soon, the fragmented and reconstructed information materialized before him.

[Option 1: Curse Dream Object: Corpse-Eating Stomach Bag (Complete)]

This was a Curse Object that could be attached to one’s own body, enhancing physical constitution by devouring corpses. It provided two types of effects: temporary enhancement and permanent enhancement.

Frankly speaking, the effects of the Corpse-Eating Stomach Bag were quite powerful. Setting aside its method of use and side effects, just looking at the permanent physical enhancement alone, its value might be even higher than a Rare Level Curse Object. However, it was impossible to simply set those aside. Perhaps it suited certain specific groups.

"No matter how strong a Curse Object is, its usefulness in my hands is limited," Shi An reasoned.

Or rather, the other types of loot were far too useful for him and the Safe Zone, exceeding all imagination. Let alone a Complete Level Curse Object, even if it were a Rare Level one, Shi An would most likely pass on it.

[Option 2: Special Building - Purification Spring]

[Description: A special spring pool. The Spring Eye will continuously produce spring water capable of purifying negative states, including erosion, pollution, mutation, and so on. Cannot heal physical injuries.]

[Note 1: This building is unique and one-of-a-kind. It is not a blueprint and cannot be additionally constructed, but it does not consume Belief Value.]

[Note 2: The current Safe Zone Level is Level 1. Only one additional area can be opened up.]

Shi An’s eyes widened.

"Purification!!!"

The background of this large-scale Nightmare World was that a special Spring Eye had been tainted, turning into a Pollution Spring. It continuously eroded and corrupted the entire world, causing trees to wither and humans to mutate. He never expected that after destroying the Nightmare centered around the Pollution Spring, the resulting building drop would actually be a Purification Spring.

"Excellent! Absolutely excellent! Although the Purification Spring can’t heal injuries and can only remove negative effects..."

This was the world of Dream Descenders!

And Dream Descenders were constantly subjected to negative erosion—from Curse Objects, from anomalies, and even from the Nightmares themselves. Physical injuries were actually a rare sight among Dream Descenders. After all, the human body was fragile. If Dream Descenders encountered danger and couldn’t escape, they usually just bit the dust immediately. It was hard to end up only half-dead.

On the contrary, in many life-and-death struggles where they unleashed the power of Curse Objects, they would suffer severe backlash. The Purifying Spring Water could cure that.

"I’ll just have to wait and test the purification effects, but it probably won’t be half bad.

"In the future, if I want to practice with Curse Objects, I won’t have to frequently exploit bugs to enter and exit. Taking a sip directly will do."

Shi An suppressed his excitement as the reconstructed information continued to manifest.

[Option 3: Wizard’s Alchemy Workshop (Blueprint)]

[Description: The workshop of a Wizard who devoted himself to Alchemy. It comes equipped with three basic Magic Potion/item crafting recipes. By inputting materials, items can be manufactured within the Alchemy Workshop.]

[Note: This workshop is rather crude. There is a high probability of failure during the manufacturing process, as well as a certain chance of mutation.]

[Remarks: ...]

—

[Option 4: Special Unit - Fallen Spring Spirit]

[Description: Converts into a special lifeform, the ’Fallen Spring Spirit,’ and contracts it as a Safe Zone employee. Employees are managed by the Safe Zone’s ruler, but the ruler must pay their daily wages. The current salary for the Fallen Spring Spirit is: 0.3 Belief Value/day.]

[Remarks: ...]

—

[Option 5: Special Item - Member Card x3]

[Description: This card is held by a Dream Descender. One card binds to one person; non-bound individuals cannot use it. When a member cardholder descends into a Nightmare World, activating the card will provide guidance to the Safe Zone. (The entrance to the Safe Zone is guaranteed to exist in the current Nightmare World; Nightmare Worlds opened and connected by members do not occupy the quota of currently connected Nightmare Worlds.)]

[At the same time, the holder can also enter other ’connected’ Nightmare Worlds through the Safe Zone. (Limited to once a week.)]

[If a member descends into a Nightmare World, the Manager can contact any Member Card holder.]

[The Manager can revoke distributed Member Cards at any time.]

After a moment of thought, Shi An concluded that the Member Cards were excellent items.

Not to mention their long-term value, his Safe Zone could currently only ’connect’ to one Nightmare World. But if all three Member Card holders were in a Dreamfall State, the Safe Zone would be able to connect to a full four Nightmare Worlds simultaneously. Not to mention that members possessed the authority to ’cross Nightmare Worlds.’

If he encountered a high-value Nightmare World, he could easily summon members to conquer it. Dream Descenders already needed his help as the Manager anyway. Combined with the traits of the Member Cards, commanding a few Dream Descenders wouldn’t be difficult.

"For Dream Descenders like Profound Sword and Xi Xue, Member Cards are an absolute godsend," Shi An realized.

After all, Dream Descenders had to be constantly on guard against being slaughtered by Nightmares. Even for those who had already visited the Safe Zone, it remained unknown whether they would be lucky enough to receive an invitation during their next Fallen Dream. Dream Descenders couldn’t be lucky every single time. And these Member Cards were the ferry tickets they could use to cross this boundless sea of suffering.

"I need to put these Member Cards to good use.

"Member Dream Descenders can definitely be considered the Safe Zone’s peripheral forces."

The malice that had shrouded the outside of the store not long ago weighed heavily on Shi An’s mind. The waters of the Nightmare World were deeply treacherous. He had the Safe Zone to rely on, meaning he didn’t have to keep his nerves taut every day, but he absolutely could not relax strategically. Of course, the most important thing was to figure out a way to strengthen the Safe Zone itself.

Shi An pondered silently. The Nightmare had been completely conquered. Xi Xue’s group should be returning soon. However, had he overlooked something?

Suddenly, the college student’s cry of alarm rang in his ears.

"Manager, this is bad! Boss Profound Sword and Boss Hair Ghost look like they’re... they’re not going to make it!"

What?!

The Blood Hand Seal dragged several people along, swaying as it flew back. Seeing that they had arrived at the Safe Zone, it hurriedly dropped them.

Among the group, Xi Xue’s face was deathly pale, but she could still force herself to stand and walk. Out of the trio of primary combatants, she was the only one whose condition could still be barely maintained.

As for the other two, Duckbill Hat was carrying the middle-aged Hair Ghost on his back. At this moment, Hair Ghost had already lost consciousness. The messy, long hair on his head seemed to be coming alive, growing and writhing. Eerie spots and streaks had also crawled all over Hair Ghost’s face.

The other person, Old Cai, was supporting the tottering Profound Sword. Profound Sword wasn’t unconscious, but his condition didn’t look much better. Both of his eyes were completely filled with a sickeningly blue and purple taint, and visible mutations covered his body.

He coughed, hacking up purplish-black blood.

It was pollution.

When he stepped into the spring pool to Slash through the Spring Eye’s core, he had inevitably been tainted by the pollution. By now, the pollution had seeped deeply into his body and soul. He was beyond cure! His life was like a candle in the wind!

Did he regret it? Perhaps a little. But Profound Sword asked himself, and if he had to do it all over again, he would still make the same choice. What he regretted was his own lack of strength, his inability to carve a path to survival from certain death.

His journey had reached its end.

At the very least, he had inherited his master’s conviction, and he hadn’t let down the trust of his teammates or the expectations of the Manager. Even though, in the end, it seemed they were only saved because of the Manager. Even though he still desperately wanted to go back and see his younger sister, his master, and his fellow disciples.

"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..."

The college student, Duckbill Hat, and the others all fell silent. Even the carefree Xi Xue was depressed and speechless. What was there to say? They couldn’t bring themselves to speak.

They had clearly conquered the Nightmare. This should be a time for harvest and celebration. Yet, their chests felt suffocatingly tight! This damn Nightmare World!

Shi An’s expression was also grave.

"They can still be saved!"

He was going to intervene.