Amidst this ominous premonition, Huai Shi finally noticed that among the pile of flowers, various books and picture albums of all sizes were mixed in. He picked up two, astonished.

"What is this?"

"...Ahem, these are fan-made doujinshi created especially for you." The goose-shaped creature coughed awkwardly and averted his gaze. "They've been selling pretty well lately. Shall we discuss a doujinshi licensing agreement later?"

"What 'fan'? What 'silk'? What 'same,' what 'person'?"

Huai Shi's eyes widened as he looked down at the covers: "The Overbearing Prince Fell in Love with Me," and then another, "Tangled Love: The Shy Prince's Bold Offense..."

Followed by "Living with the Prince," "Desecrate the Crown," and particularly a ghastly "The Story of Me, a Chūnibyō Idiot Who Fell for a Tenderhearted Prince Big Brother."

Amidst the various thick and thin books, there were also plenty of provocative picture albums scattered.

Yep, pretty provocative indeed.

He could vaguely make out anime characters that bore a resemblance to himself, dressed in an array of bold, spicy, devilishly charming, or outright GAY clothing, entangled with other men and women...

Huai Shi felt like his eyeballs were about to explode.

"Actually, there are four to five gigabytes of pictures on the Darknet. Do you want to take a look?" The goose-shaped creature offered a tablet, shattering Huai Shi's last shred of sanity.

"What the hell kind of fans would draw such blinding trash?!" Huai Shi roared. "Is there no law anymore! No copyright! Do you think you can just violate our Paradise's portrait rights whenever you please?! The Department of Justice, where is the Department of Justice... Just wait until I find someone from the Department of Justice, you're all dead meat!"

"Ahem, the business-minded Little Cat from Paradise takes a cut directly from the sales on the Darknet—a whopping seventy percent," the goose-shaped creature looked at him with pity. "In other words, yeah, all of this is official..."

Typical Little Cat!

That bastard! Is there any dirty money he won't take?!

"Ahem, the Hell Music Association, Abyss Food Club, and Odysseus Player's House, among other organizations, have all sent their congratulations and expressed their deep concern and best wishes for your recovery... The letters are all here; you can take a look later."

The goose-shaped creature swiftly tossed those eye-scorching books aside and sat up straight as if nothing had happened, "Now, let's discuss some serious matters."

"..." As Huai Shi stared blankly, the creature lifted its two little wings and held Huai Shi's hand tenderly. "You're from the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, right?"

So, everyone knows I'm from the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy already, huh?

Huai Shi's expression twitched slightly, and he nodded.

At this, the goose-shaped creature's eyes lit up. "So, to save the declining Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, please debut and become an idol!"

"What the heck?" Huai Shi was stunned, feeling like he was hallucinating.

"To save the declining Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy."

"No, I mean the last part..."

"Become an idol."

"Right, that's the one!"

Huai Shi's eyes bulged. "Become an idol, my ass! Has the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy fallen so low that I have to sell my looks to save it?!"

"Ahem, although times are tough, it hasn't come to that," the goose-shaped creature instinctively dodged Huai Shi's gaze. "But the prize for the champion of the popularity general election is the 'Create 10010 New Generation Idol Project,' a collaboration between Giant Goose Group and Yaochi Entertainment... Mr. Huai, with your current popularity, being so well-loved, and also being the Lord Prince of Paradise, isn't debuting as an idol the logical next step?"

"Forget it. I'm busy. Thanks!"

Huai Shi felt as though his quiet life of just getting by was waving goodbye and receding into the distance.

"Actually, you just need to give your authorization. We're currently launching an AI virtual idol project. Look, all the related plans have been prepared. Your 2D image, 'Huai Shi Zi,' hasn't even debuted, yet it's already ranked in the top three, even surpassing the White Emperor's Son at one point..."

RIP...

Huai Shi tore the proposal documents to shreds, his face devoid of expression.

He raised his hand, pointing to the door. "Leave."

"Hold on, please consider i—alright, I won't mention it again, okay?" Faced with Huai Shi's utterly disheartened gaze, the goose-shaped creature shivered involuntarily and hastily played its trump card. "Besides, you haven't even claimed your reward!"

Saying this, from his front pocket, in an extremely unscientific manner, he produced a massive iron chest, setting it before himself. "Soloist or King Xiang?"

"Hm?" Huai Shi hesitated for a moment. "Soloist?"

SMACK!

Another envelope was pulled out from the chest and placed on Huai Shi's bedside table.

"Please take a look. This is one of the third-place rewards, jointly sponsored by Tomorrow News and Giant Goose Group. It contains the list of advancement materials you'll need next, as well as a Black Gold membership card from the Stone Pot Society."

With skepticism, Huai Shi stared at him for a long while before taking a black membership card from the envelope. It was the legendary Black Gold VIP membership card, rumored to offer a twenty percent discount on all basic materials, with even further stacking discounts possible during promotional periods.

This was the highest-tier membership card an ordinary person could obtain through spending, but it required a single order exceeding five hundred million to acquire.

Just obtaining this significantly improved Huai Shi's mood. After all, this was money.

When he saw the list of advancement materials, a great weight lifted from his heart.

On Raven's list, all materials purchasable with money were already prepared. With just a phone call from Huai Shi, they could be delivered right to him within an hour through Yesterday's Express's advanced instant service.

Huai Shi, however, didn't need to collect them immediately. Many materials required special processes for maintenance and storage, and the preservation fees alone could amount to hundreds of thousands a month. It was perfectly fine to collect them when needed.

Regrettably, ultra-high-spec strategic resources like the Blood Revenge Crystal, Holy Grace, Undying Flames, and Sinister Ashes were not on the list.

The Blood Revenge Crystal was the core consumable for Curse-type Stigma Talents, capable of increasing any curse's effectiveness by more than sixty percent. Acquiring it meant spending a hefty sum at a Magic Gold Bank auction. The Dongxia Genealogy did have a steady output, but the problem was that Huai Shi had just mortally offended the Lin family, the main producers, during the rookie competition.

If they didn't come looking for trouble, that would be a relief. If I approached them now, wouldn't I be serving myself up on a platter?

Best to just spend the money.

The Holy Grace was a precious material monopolized by the Rome Genealogy. Its creation required a red-clad Bishop to lead over a thousand Believers in prayer, causing the crystal to form spontaneously within the Ark of the Covenant. Just one such crystal could instantly restore a dying Sublimator to full health and mana.

Undying Flames were occasionally found in remains within Hell at depths over 10. They weren't rare but were incredibly difficult to preserve; the flames would quickly extinguish if the depth increased. Only a few Alchemists could provide such material in the Current Circumstances. The demand was terrifyingly high, and the price astonishing.

As for Sinister Ashes, these precious materials were controlled by the Astronomical Society's Existence Institute. You couldn't buy them even if you wanted to. Their origin, creation, and manufacturing process were entirely unclear. They were occasionally used in top-grade Incense for Soul healing and were effectively priceless, unavailable on the market.

Obviously, the publicly available version of the advancement ritual from the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy didn't include any of these. Naturally, Huai Shi wouldn't be foolish enough to point this out. He was already extremely grateful that the organizing committee was covering the other materials.

With just this list, Huai Shi saved tens of millions.

Moreover, before collecting the 'four major factors,' he wasn't in a hurry for his advancement.

The Birth of Life, the Truth of Nothingness, the Soul Connection, the Phantoms of Yesterday—these were the 'four major factors.' Huai Shi had already comprehended the Truth of Nothingness in the Realm of Nothingness.

And to his surprise, during his duel with Luo Xian, he had grasped another, serendipitous insight:

'Soul Connection.'

When he used the Hand of Confinement to implant a minuscule amount of his compassion into Luo Xian's Soul, for an ephemeral moment, a thin line of connection was established through the Stigma Resonance between members of the same Genealogy.

It was as if the Sword of Virtue served as a bridge, allowing him to feel, in an instant, the deep pain within a shattered Soul, along with the bewilderment and despair of being human.

Was it because of that Resonance and connection that his Source Substance could truly be accepted by Luo Xian?

Just as the true meaning of the 'Truth of Nothingness' allows one to perceive the essence of things beyond appearances, the 'Soul Connection' endows Sublimators with empathy and compassion. It allows them to view others as themselves, without distinction. This fosters a more genuine and detailed understanding of changes within another's Soul and enables others to comprehend one's own intentions more clearly.

Although it outwardly only seemed to make one more sympathetic, it actually, in a peculiar way, increased Huai Shi's persuasiveness in both actions and words. Inadvertently, his Cowherd power leveled up, leaving Huai Shi with very mixed feelings.

"In addition, there is the specialized custom service provided by the Cavendish Workshop. Ah, while you were unconscious, a master already came and recorded your detailed physical signs and data. Just a few hours ago, the customization was completed. It's right here."

Saying this, the goose-shaped creature took a backpack-sized alloy case from the larger box. It was imprinted with a logo Huai Shi had seen once before, unmistakably representing Cavendish, now the world's largest high-tech Alchemy Workshop.

As a super-scale Alchemy Workshop, it boasted the most Scholars and Alchemists worldwide and was situated next to the headquarters of the Astronomical Society. This giant enterprise nearly monopolized the manufacturing of mass-produced Alchemy Equipment. Their active presence could be seen in everything from basic equipment to the development of large-scale war weapons.

But in reality, it was heavily funded and primarily controlled by the Astronomical Society Technical Department. It could almost be considered an extension of the department's own capabilities. Whether in the fields of Alchemy, physics, mechanics, Source Studies, or even in reverse engineering Border Relics, they possessed technical abilities that were second to none worldwide.

Huai Shi had already experienced the miraculous effects of the Enchanted Gloves. If not for the prohibition against carrying other Alchemy Equipment in this rookie competition, he would have certainly brought them.

And now, hearing that top-notch custom gear was being offered, a strong sense of anticipation naturally welled up within him.

Please, don't let it be another sword or knife! I really don't need any more of those!

The box opened.

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