Sword pellet? What sword pellet? A huge question mark popped up in Xue Dongyu’s mind. Following Zhao Zhen’s gaze, she saw a glowing sphere floating motionlessly on the beam.
Seeing both of them staring at it, the System finally reacted and immediately exploded. “This System is not some lowly sword pellet! Have you no eyesight?”
After saying this, it charged fiercely toward Zhao Zhen, spinning around him in a full 360-degree orbit without missing a single angle. “Look here, can that worthless sword pellet match This System’s smoothness and beauty? And my light—I can even change colors! Can that sword pellet do that?”
As it spoke, the little light sphere shifted through dozens of colors in just a few seconds, flashing incessantly.
Xue Dongyu thought to herself, So the System isn’t limited to blue light—it can emit any color it wants. Another useless function of this trashy System.
She also looked at Zhao Zhen with admiration. Even with such a dazzling light sphere right in front of his face, he didn’t even blink, much like celebrities facing camera flashes in her previous life.
Zhao Zhen was anything but calm—he had actually been startled, his mind going completely blank. Fortunately, he was accustomed to keeping a straight face, and thanks to muscle memory, he managed to avoid losing his composure. Once he finally regained his thoughts, he noticed Xue Dongyu’s seemingly admiring gaze and quickly steadied himself.
The Emperor’s dignity remained intact. Ignoring the light sphere, he calmly sat down instead. “Since you can speak, you must possess intelligence. It was improper of me to compare you to mere objects—I was presumptuous. So, what manner of spirit are you? Why have I never seen you by Lady Xue’s side before?”
Hearing this, the System replied smugly, “Good that you understand. This System is the most capable subordinate of the Main System, traveling across worlds, completing missions, gathering energy, and helping the Host reach the pinnacle.”
Zhao Zhen struggled to comprehend the words of what he saw as a spirit monster. He had never heard of any “Main System,” but from what he could gather, the spherical spirit monster before him was driven by this Main System. What kind of spirit monster is spherical? Could it be a Cuju spirit or an egg spirit?
“Host” likely referred to Lady Xue here. As for “traveling across worlds,” that probably described its abilities. The Śūraṅgama Sūtra records: “What is called the world of sentient beings? ‘World’ refers to the flow of time, and ‘realm’ refers to spatial directions. You should now understand: east, west, south, north, southeast, southwest, northeast, northwest, above, and below are realms; past, future, and present are worlds.”
Thus, Zhao Zhen roughly understood the meaning of “traveling across worlds”—the ability to leave one’s own world and reach entirely different realms. Such an unheard-of, unseen supernatural power made him look at the spirit monster with new eyes.
Then, thinking of his own origins, the convictions he had held all along were shattered. He spoke with difficulty, “So… I did not simply return to the past, but left my own world and was brought here by you for some reason, wasn’t I?”
He couldn’t continue. The corners of his eyes were already tinged with red, and he felt utterly despondent. Xue Dongyu hadn’t expected him to be so perceptive—the System had merely been boasting, yet he had discerned the reason for his return to the human world.
Seeing him like this, Xue Dongyu couldn’t bear it and said, “It’s actually not that serious, Guanjia. Think about it—in your previous life, your era had already passed. No matter how ambitious you were, you couldn’t influence reality anymore; you could only watch helplessly. Isn’t coming here a new opportunity for you, Guanjia?”
After speaking, she turned and signaled to the trashy System: You caused this mess—fix it yourself.
The System spoke up awkwardly to comfort him, "Don't be upset. Other ordinary mortals wouldn't even have this opportunity. If it weren't for the fact that this System's previous Host had a problem with her brain and stubbornly refused to sign the contract, and this System accidentally made an operational error while exchanging Host souls, bringing you here—with such deep-seated obsessions, you wouldn't even be able to reincarnate."
With the comfort of both the person and the ball, Zhao Zhen steadied his mind. They were right. Compared to the bone-deep sense of powerlessness from before, this was already a pretty good outcome.
But an error? Seizing on the loophole in the System's words, Zhao Zhen quickly responded, "So it was the spirit's mistake that brought me here. Then, Lady Xue, you must be the spirit's master. Since you've been open and honest with me, is there something you need my cooperation with? A task?" If there was a need, there was room for negotiation, and perhaps even…
Hearing Zhao Zhen's words, Xue Dongyu sensed he was already trying to seize control of the conversation and immediately objected, "Of course we need your cooperation. I forgot you don't know yet—when the System transferred us, it incurred a huge debt. We all need to repay it. If we can't repay it, we'll die. And you're even worse off—you also need Achievement Points to maintain your own survival."
"Earlier, didn't your body experience some strange symptoms, and then suddenly improve when you got close to me? That was because you stole my Achievement Points. Do you think you can freeload?"
The System nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, without Achievement Points, none of us three can survive."
Zhao Zhen digested the meaning conveyed in their words. First, this spirit monster called the System had incurred a debt, which was why it brought them here. So, they had to repay the debt every month, and this debt was something called Achievement Points. Second, he was especially unfortunate because he needed additional Achievement Points to maintain his own survival; otherwise, he would experience discomfort or even death, as he had earlier.
So, the debt had to be repaid. The most important thing now was to figure out how to obtain Achievement Points. "I certainly won't evade the debt. What are these Achievement Points? Gold, silver, jewels, or land and grain?"
Xue Dongyu and the System exchanged a glance—successfully recruiting labor. "Achievement Points are…"
With animated gestures and vivid descriptions from Xue Dongyu and the System, Zhao Zhen finally understood what Achievement Points were. It was like immortals needing mortal faith to slay demons and monsters or aid the common people, or like demons and monsters feeding on humans and spreading fear, or emperors and generals governing the nation and leaving their mark in history—all intangible things, each different, yet all counted as Achievement Points.
"So, how many Achievement Points do we owe now? How much do we need to repay each month? And most importantly, how do I know you won't secretly pocket my Achievement Points? I need some guarantee." Zhao Zhen was already quite adept at discussing Achievement Points and began haggling over the details.
"It's not that much, around 3,500 points. We just need to repay 50 points each month. And to maintain your body, at least five points per month. The Host is currently following the favored consort route, so it mainly depends on her fame and influence—the Achievement Points she earns aren't fixed yet."
"Also, because she's carrying a male fetus, which could potentially alter history, there's a fixed daily income of two points."
"Because of your connection with this System, a transmission channel has actually been established. Otherwise, you wouldn't even be able to see me, just like everyone else. So, this System can grant you the right to view the System Panel." Before Xue Dongyu could organize her words, the System replied rapidly, its words flowing like oil.
Xue Dongyu felt a black line forming on her forehead. All her secrets had been spilled. She truly sympathized with the previous Host—having such a naive and simple-minded System must have been exhausting.
Zhao Zhen didn’t notice Xue Dongyu’s expression. At that moment, he could only hear the two words: “male heir.” He claimed to have let go, but in truth, the obsession remained.
“I will have an heir after all. That’s wonderful.” It wasn’t that Zhao Zhen didn’t love the Princess, but the world was as it was. No matter how outstanding a ruler’s civil and military achievements were, without a legitimate heir, the empire would fall into turmoil upon his death, and his own accomplishments would be diminished or even erased.
Zhao Zhen noticed the goosebumps on Xue Dongyu’s skin. She hastily took a sip of cold tea and quickly changed the subject. “Moreover, if we earn enough Achievement Points, we can exchange for items, even communicate with Hosts from other worlds and use Achievement Points to seek their help.”
Zhao Zhen smiled faintly, sensing that Xue Dongyu didn’t want him to focus too much on her pregnancy, and played along. “What kinds of things are there?”
The System interrupted Xue Dongyu, enthusiastically introducing, “From technology-side starships, orbital cannons, and mechas, to cultivation and magic-side magical artifacts, spells, and cultivation methods, all the way down to cola, popcorn, and high-yield crop seeds—everything is available. Hosts from other worlds are even more extraordinary, possessing all sorts of strange abilities.”
Xue Dongyu couldn’t stop rolling her eyes. Yes, everything was there, but even dismantling this trash System again wouldn’t be enough to afford it. Because of this semi-paralyzed System, both the System Mall and the exchange forum required an enormous amount of Achievement Points to unlock.
A tremendous opportunity unfolded before Zhao Zhen’s eyes. Without a doubt, he was deeply tempted. “What should I do?”
Xue Dongyu cleared her throat and said somewhat sheepishly, “For now, you just need to show extreme favor and affection toward me. I’ll be responsible for slapping faces, living luxuriously, flaunting wealth, and acting lawlessly—like Yang Guifei, Zhao Feiyan, Zhao Hede, Empress Dowager Dou, or Wei Zifu. But this is only temporary. Once we’ve exhausted this path, we’ll shift strategies.”
Zhao Zhen frowned and said seriously, “I understand. Grant me the Authority to view the System Panel.”
Xue Dongyu nodded. The System performed a series of operations, and suddenly, a translucent blue panel appeared before Zhao Zhen’s eyes, displaying Xue Dongyu’s data. He skimmed over the rest, but as expected, the Achievement Points section matched exactly what the two had described.