Chapter 1: First Pot of Gold
Discovered Item: [Ink Jade Guanyin]
Quality: Ordinary
Evaluation: A value-preserving item, machine-carved with later manual touch-ups. Limited potential for appreciation. Selling price: 4280 Huaxia currency.
A stream of data flashed through his mind as Yang Ning fiddled with the red string tied to the jade Guanyin. "Uncle, how much are you selling this for?"
"Five thousand!" A scruffy, unkempt man raised his left hand, spreading out five fingers. After speaking, he let out a burp reeking of alcohol.
Yang Ning took a small step back to avoid the overpowering stench of liquor. "Five hundred."
"Five hundred?" The scruffy man widened his eyes, shaking his head like a rattling drum. "One thousand. I won’t sell for a penny less."
Yang Ning secretly rejoiced but put on a hesitant expression. Only when the scruffy man started showing signs of impatience did he swiftly pocket the jade Guanyin, count out ten red hundred-yuan bills, and hand them over.
The scruffy man left with a cheerful grin. Anyone could guess with half a brain that he was off to buy more booze.
Yang Ning didn’t care whether the jade Guanyin’s origins were legitimate or not. Squinting, a semi-transparent interface appeared in his mind with two options: [Warehouse] and [Store].
Selecting [Warehouse], a space of over a hundred square meters materialized in his mind. Inside were scattered items like stamp albums, commemorative coins, copper plates, and the jade Guanyin he’d just bought from the scruffy man.
Seeing his wallet nearly empty and these items having little room for appreciation, Yang Ning decided to sell everything to the [Store] in one go.
This Supreme System had come to him half a month ago. He remembered that day clearly. Yang Ning had gone out for lunch, probably without checking the almanac for an auspicious time. Barely a few steps out the door, he was hit head-on by a drunk driver. He was knocked out cold on the spot, nearly scaring his nearby friends to death.
But then came the strange part. After being rushed to the hospital, the diagnosis revealed that Yang Ning was completely fine, with nothing more than a few scrapes and bruises. This conclusion came after multiple examinations.
Even the attending doctor marveled at Yang Ning’s tough luck and deep blessings.
After waking up, Yang Ning became aware of the Supreme System’s existence. At first, he thought the accident had damaged his brain or that he was being monitored and mind-controlled by some high-tech American gadget. After days of fear, anxiety, curiosity, and excitement, he finally adapted and now felt quite calm about it.
"You have a new message. Please check it."
A notification sounded. Yang Ning casually swiped open his phone’s lock screen. The text was from the bank, notifying him of a change in his account balance.
"Just one week, and I’ve already made over ten thousand. This beats working for my second uncle by a mile."
Staring at the bright red five-digit number, Yang Ning felt a bit dazed before bursting into joy, grinning and chuckling foolishly.
Main Quest: [Ten-Thousand-Yuan Household]
Task Description: Time is money, my friend! Test your skills and earn ten thousand yuan to become a ten-thousand-yuan household.
Current Progress: 10000/10000 (Completed)
Task Reward: Title [Ten-Thousand-Yuan Household]
Scanning Host...
Scan Successful...
[Host: Yang Ning]
Age: 18
Gender: Male
Title: [Good-for-Nothing]
Strength: 49
Skill: 46
Speed: 51
Energy: 48
Body: 41
Evaluation Rank: E
Binding Host...
Binding Successful...
Yang Ning noticed a new option on the interface—[Character].
Clicking in, all his data was laid out clearly. Below each attribute was a brief description.
Strength and Speed needed no explanation; any RPG game on the market had already elaborated on these two attributes in every way possible.
Skill: Increases the Host’s agility. The higher the value, the more complex actions the Host can perform. Additionally, it allows the Host to quickly identify an opponent’s weaknesses and strike a fatal blow at the right moment.
From the description, it could be understood as agility.
Energy: The higher the value, the greater the Host’s stamina and adaptability, as well as endurance and explosive power. In intimate relationships, a higher value means greater lasting ability.
Intimate relationships? Lasting ability?
Holy shit, this is awesome!
A man can fail at anything, but lasting ability is non-negotiable under any circumstances!
This is a man’s most fundamental dignity!
Yang Ning’s eyes turned red as he stared intently at the Energy value. Only 48 points—he was far from satisfied!
Scrolling down, only one attribute remained—Body.
At first glance, it could be interpreted as defense. But reading further, Yang Ning’s breathing quickened!
The Body attribute wasn’t just gilded on the outside; it was gold encrusted with jade on the inside!
The higher the value, the stronger the immunity, and the slower the aging of organs. Reaching a certain value could even trigger secondary development!
Damn, this is amazing!
Higher immunity means no sickness. Slower organ aging means a longer life!
This is health!
As for secondary development, bones, muscles, and meridians were one thing, but Yang Ning discovered that even his ‘little brother’ could experience a second spring!
"There’s an unallocated attribute point?"
Yang Ning’s face lit up with joy. Without hesitation, he added the point to Body.
A subtle warm current surged through his skin into his pores, making Yang Ning stretch comfortably.
It worked!
Yang Ning was overjoyed, though unfortunately, the warm current vanished in an instant, lasting less than two seconds. Checking the attribute interface again, his Body value was now 42 points.
Looking at the title system, it indicated that different titles would grant the Host various effects.
The description of [Good-for-Nothing] was quite a blow to his pride: A worthless you, living is redundant and nothing short of a tragedy...
Damn, no need to hit so hard!
"Wait, didn’t I just get a new title as a reward?"
Yang Ning immediately opened the title selection. Sure enough, below [Good-for-Nothing] was [Ten-Thousand-Yuan Household].
Without hesitation, he replaced [Good-for-Nothing] with [Ten-Thousand-Yuan Household]. Instantly, it looked much more pleasing to the eye.
Checking the title’s effect, Yang Ning grinned. This title increased others’ trust in the Host by 5%.
Though a 5% boost might seem small, whether a deal could be closed often hinged on a mere 5% or even 1% difference in trust.
Suddenly, a notification caught Yang Ning’s attention.
Main Quest: [First Pot of Gold]
Task Description: Boldly dig out your first pot of gold, and you’ll have the chance to become tall, rich, and handsome, marry a beautiful and wealthy woman, become a CEO, and reach the pinnacle of life.
Current Progress: 0/500000
Task Reward: Energy +5
So stingy!
Yang Ning pursed his lips. Making him earn 500,000 yuan—not 50 yuan—with such high difficulty, and only rewarding five attribute points?
But soon, Yang Ning’s breathing quickened again. He saw a new prompt: For every 10,000 yuan the Host earns, they will receive one freely allocatable attribute point.
Make money!
I need to make money!
As a high school senior, Yang Ning had no real skills for amassing wealth. But now, with the Supreme System, earning money didn’t seem so hard.
The only downside was that the Supreme System was picky about what it accepted. Phones, laptops, and bicycles were all rejected outright.
After numerous attempts, Yang Ning discovered that the lowest standard for selling was value-preserving items. Things like phones and laptops depreciated too easily.
Of course, value-preserving items abounded in gold, silver, and jewelry stores, and the Supreme System accepted them. But a diamond ring worth over 10,000 yuan was appraised by the system at just over 3,000. Spending over 10,000 to buy something only to sell it for 3,000? Yang Ning wasn’t stupid; he wouldn’t do something so foolish.
These seemingly high-end specialty stores were all traps. The counter price and actual value were wildly mismatched, the difference absurdly unreliable. One word: shady! Two words: really shady!
Since this path was a dead end, Yang Ning turned his sights to the antique market. He’d heard bits and pieces about a profession called Treasure Picking.
Treasure Picking required extensive professional knowledge and a sharp eye. Otherwise, it was impossible to play the game.
People nowadays were savvy. If they had treasures, they’d hide them and wait for the right price, not foolishly bring them out. What was available on the market was mostly aged modern crafts, specifically made to fool kids and naive foreigners.
With the Supreme System handling appraisal and evaluation, Yang Ning didn’t need professional knowledge, wouldn’t misjudge, and didn’t have to worry about being unable to sell valuable items.
This was his advantage. With a heart full of anticipation, he embarked on the path of Treasure Picking.