Chapter 52: Gains and Advancement

“If you ever want beef again, just come to me directly. I have connections with a large ranch, and the tenderest cuts are always supplied to me.” After the meal, Izo personally saw Ou Xiaolu and his two friends out of the restaurant.

Ou Xiaolu was thoroughly satisfied with the culinary skills of the Izo family. Especially after eating, he felt his whole body flush with warmth—clearly, some special marinade had been used. It was obvious this was one of Izo’s secret recipes.

Once they’d eaten their fill, Ou Xiaolu and his friends returned to their dormitory. Only then did he finally breathe a sigh of relief, for at last he could find a quiet place to deal with matters concerning the Water Element.

During the meal, the Water Element had sent five more messages. Ou Xiaolu had dealt with them between bites, making him feel like some big shot who couldn’t even have a peaceful meal.

Sitting down on his bed again, Ou Xiaolu was just about to check the results of the Water Element’s world exploration.

At that moment, Charles suddenly shouted, “I’m so inspired today! I want to draw everything that happened.”

“Are you talking about how we got locked up?” Miguel’s one-liner instantly chilled the room.

Ou Xiaolu glanced at the two of them but didn’t bother to intervene in their daily banter. He could tell there was no real malice between them; they simply couldn't hold their tongues.

So he ignored them, opened the scoring interface, and began to review the Water Element’s latest gains.

He first examined the discoveries made during the meal. Compared to spatial-type worlds, these time-limited worlds were quite entertaining.

During the meal, the Water Element encountered five opportunities: a chest drifting on the sea containing two plain items; a stone swept up from the seabed, which was inherently of green attribute; and a ship transporting a tiger.

It also fought two bosses: one was a crown-wearing octopus, the other a sort of spirit entity.

While fighting the spirit, Ou Xiaolu almost thought the Water Element wouldn’t manage, since whirlpools seemed to have little effect on it.

In the end, though, the Water Element handled everything and brought back some impressive spoils.

[Large sum of gold coins, item card, white, 500 coins of ancient appearance, can be used as currency in various worlds.]

[Waterlogged books, item card, white, three books soaked in water; their content is still legible when flipped through. A fine addition for collectors.]

[Shrine Stone, item card, green, a massive stone for spirits to rest upon. Divine beings and spirits who rest here see improved cultivation effects.]

[Maneater Tiger, character card, supporting role, combat power 553/553, skilled in Pounce, Tiger’s Claw, Tiger Sweep, Thunderous Roar, and Wind Summoning.]

[Abandoned Sea Crown, equipment card, blue, a crown forsaken by the Sea King, containing a seed of divine power. The creature that acquires it may, through the seed, comprehend divine cultivation.]

[Breath of the Qi Refiner, skill card, blue, the breathing technique of ancient Qi Refiners, the foundation of their growth. Even after death, their spirits breathe this way.]

If nothing else, just the blue-tier equipment and skills from the Maneater Tiger were enough to make Ou Xiaolu’s heart race. He wondered if, since he was about to reach level two, he might make the tiger his new incarnation.

Of course, aside from these spoils, Ou Xiaolu also received world completion rewards.

He didn’t forget his usual routine—before claiming the rewards, he moved [World: Broken Oar] to the surveillance interface, then collected the prizes.

Since the Water Element had faced three battles this time, the world exploration score was quite high, reaching B-. The completion of this miniature world granted 100% experience—50 points.

Adding in the experience from three bosses—10 points for the shark, 20 for the octopus, 25 for the spirit—that’s another 55 points.

In total, Ou Xiaolu now had enough experience to level up.

At this moment, he wanted nothing more than to drop everything and upgrade immediately.

But with the prize card pack right in front of him, he couldn’t just ignore it. So he decided to open it, thinking if it was all white light, he’d leave it for later and go level up first.

But as soon as he clicked, the dazzling flash of two white, one green, one blue, and one purple light nearly blinded him.

He couldn’t help exclaiming, “My name truly fits—I’m a man worthy of the title ‘Ouhuang’! There are only mistaken names, never mistaken nicknames.”

[Mysterious Potion, item card, white, a potion sourced from mysterious powers, restores 50 combat power upon drinking.]

[Mysterious Potion, item card, white, a potion sourced from mysterious powers, restores 55 combat power upon drinking.]

[Whirlpool Technique, skill card, green, creates a whirlpool on the water’s surface, tearing enemies apart or transporting them to another body of water.]

[Sunken Ship Key, item card, blue, opens secret doors or locked chests in shipwreck worlds, usable ten times in total.]

[Metal Essence, material card, purple, the concentrated essence left after countless metals are consumed by whirlpools and then fused together. If integrated into a weapon, it will upgrade the weapon by at least one tier.]

Staring at the fist-sized Metal Essence in his hand, Ou Xiaolu’s mind raced. He considered heading straight to Chinatown to ask Li Qinghao if he could forge a sword for him.

After these past few days of battles, Ou Xiaolu had realized his own abilities were fairly average—he’d gotten by entirely thanks to his character cards and spamming skill cards.

But after some thought, he decided to postpone this plan. He had more pressing matters: leveling up.

Switching to the level interface, he glanced at his experience—506 out of 500, just over the threshold.

Without hesitation, he clicked the upgrade button. His level increased, and his personal stats changed as well.

[Ou Xiaolu, Level: 2, Experience: 5/1500, Health: 300, Mana: 300.]

[Controlled Characters: 20+10, Worlds Unlocked Simultaneously: 6+3.]

[Incarnation Slots: 1/2.]

[Daily Tasks Unlocked: Maximum of 5 per day; main body up to 3, each incarnation up to 1.]

[Note 1: Daily tasks are randomly assigned based on events encountered by the main body or incarnations in daily life, and rewards are given according to completion, primarily in experience.]

[Note 2: There is a daily cap for tasks: the main body can complete up to 3 per day, each incarnation up to 1.]