"Let me see what tasks we have today."
Inside the Liu family apothecary, a black-haired youth sat behind the counter. Standing roughly 1.6 meters tall with a clean, handsome face, he appeared to be staring blankly into space, bored out of his mind.
In reality, his focus was sharp.
Over the past three years, Liu Yuan had continuously accepted suitable tasks on the platform. While he hadn't seen rewards as high-tier as the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record or the Light Bloodline again, he had secured a steady supply of Whale Gel. Furthermore, by absorbing the bloodline essence of various plant-type spirit beasts, he had pushed the Origin Willow through a series of subtle transformations.
Though no single evolution had been as explosive as the Light Bloodline, the cumulative effect of these small changes was leading toward a significant qualitative leap.
His current strength was proof of his efforts. The spirit power fluctuations emanating from him were nearly at the level of a Spirit Elder. His second spirit ring was a thousand-year-level ring, providing him with the powerful skill "Siphon." It allowed him to selectively drain an opponent's vitality, nutrients, spirit power, and stamina. If he weren't careful, he might easily be mistaken for an Evil Spirit Master.
[Ding!]
Liu Yuan pulled up the daily task panel, his expression turning to one of mild frustration. Out of the ten tasks, most offered meaningless rewards or required strength far beyond his current capabilities.
With a thought, he clicked the refresh button. He now had three refreshes per day.
The panel flickered, and ten new tasks materialized.
"Wait! This is..."
Suddenly, Liu Yuan's eyes burned with an intense heat. In the slot for Task 9, he saw a reward that made his heart skip a beat: the Devourer Spirit Carving Knife.
He knew exactly what that was—a massive chunk of Life Gold.
He had originally assumed he would have to wait for the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament to bid for it at the Starlight Auction House. He never expected a duplicate to appear on the platform.
He had to have it.
Liu Yuan quickly scanned the details of Task 9.
Task 9 (The Wasteful Evil Spirit Master): ...
"Quite the fitting nickname," Liu Yuan muttered before reading further.
... Requires an extremely rare metal (Time Limit: 1 year). Reward: Devourer Spirit Carving Knife (Non-negotiable).
Non-negotiable?
Liu Yuan didn't believe for a second that an Evil Spirit Master capable of creating such a tool had nothing else of value. Nor did he believe such a person would trade a powerful carving knife just for a rare metal unless there was a catch.
The truth was obvious: the Evil Spirit Master had likely realized the knife was a "cursed" item or a ticking time bomb and wanted to use the platform to dump the problem onto someone else. If he could swindle a rare metal out of a "sucker" in the process, all the better.
"Planning to treat me like a fool, are you?" Liu Yuan sneered.
But he would gladly play the part of the fool. Once he had the knife, he could use the life energy within to attract the consciousness of Electrolux. Even better, if he eventually obtained the version of the knife that existed in his own world, he would possess two pieces of Life Gold. It was a deal of a lifetime.
He immediately clicked Accept and moved the task to his Reserved Zone.
Obtaining a rare metal that would satisfy an Evil Spirit Master's requirements wouldn't be easy. In the current era of soul tools, rare metals were considered strategic military assets. For a family like the Lius, acquiring them was no simple feat. He would have to try his luck at black markets or auctions—or find an opportunity through another task.
He still had a year; there was no rush.
"Let's see if there's anything else." He scrolled through the remaining tasks, but most were disappointing. He kept refreshing until he reached his final chance for the day.
[Ding!]
The panel flashed one last time. Liu Yuan scrolled up, stopping abruptly in the middle of the list.
"Is this just good luck, or is fate on my side?"
His brow arched. Task 5 presented exactly the opportunity he needed.
Task 5 (A Future-like Protagonist): I want a suitable first Soul Spirit (Time Limit: 3 days); Reward: 30,000 Federal Coins; Additional items possible (Negotiable).
"Interesting."
A smirk tugged at the corner of Liu Yuan's mouth. If it were just the "Protagonist" hint, he might have been unsure. But the combination of a "First Soul Spirit" and "30,000 Federal Coins" made the identity of the requester crystal clear.
Tang Wu Lin!
In the era of The Legend of the Dragon King, rare metals were still precious, but that era possessed forging techniques that far surpassed the current Peerless Tang Sect period. He didn't necessarily need a naturally rare raw metal; a Thousand-Refined or even a Spirit-Refined metal would more than suffice.
In fact, a forged metal might be "rare" enough to satisfy even a "Wasteful Evil Spirit Master."
As for a Soul Spirit... Liu Yuan didn't have one. But what he did have was access to suitable hundred-year spirit beasts.
He clicked on the Negotiable tab and sent a counter-offer, replacing the Federal Coins with a specific request: [Thousand-Refined metal with a Light attribute. I do not have a Soul Spirit, but I can provide a living hundred-year plant-type spirit beast. If the metal does not have a Light attribute, any high-quality Thousand-Refined metal will suffice.]
The former was the reward; the latter was the message. It was a clever way to exploit the platform's communication constraints.
Once he uploaded the change, the "Negotiable" status on the task shifted to "Under Consideration."
Parallel Universe, The Legend of the Dragon King Era.
At home, Tang Wu Lin was lying on his bed, staring vacantly at the ceiling.
He couldn't believe it. After three years of hard work, he had finally saved enough money to buy a Soul Spirit, only to find out he could only afford a "random draw"—which meant he might end up with a defective product.
If it weren't for this mysterious platform he had discovered, he might have already gambled his future on a random draw. But his reward was only 30,000 Federal Coins. Would anyone actually take the job?
If this failed...
Knock, knock, knock.
The door opened, interrupting his thoughts. Tang Ziran stepped in, his heart aching at the sight of his son's dejected posture. "Son... don't worry. I'll think of something. Maybe I can borrow some money and get you the 70,000 you need..."
"No, Dad." Tang Wu Lin stood up and shook his head, a maturity beyond his years on his face. "You and Mom already work so hard for us. My martial soul is just Blue Silver Grass anyway. Let's wait three more days. If nothing happens... we'll just try our luck. Maybe heaven will look down on me and give me something decent."
"Sigh..." Tang Ziran didn't know why his son insisted on waiting exactly three days, but he didn't press the issue. He only sighed painfully. "Your father is useless."
Tang Wu Lin went to comfort him, but a sharp sound suddenly echoed in his mind.
[Ding!]