Chapter 5: Eighteen
Zhang Yanyan sat in a wooden chair in the side room, rocking leisurely back and forth.
Mist from the spirit spring drifted over, carrying with it a fresh, soothing fragrance of grass and trees.
She raised a hand and tapped her temple before calling out to the system.
“How exactly am I supposed to cultivate that Soul Refining Art?”
“I’ve never even come into contact with a cultivation technique before. I don’t have the slightest idea where to begin.”
【The Soul Refining Art is an advanced technique for cultivating the divine soul. Its cultivation threshold is relatively high.】
【The difficulty of the technique depends on the practitioner’s divine-soul aptitude. Your basic aptitude is acceptable.】
Zhang Yanyan raised an eyebrow and sat up straighter.
“Where is the technique stored? I can’t cultivate it out of thin air, can I?”
“I haven’t even seen the incantation. Where am I supposed to start?”
【The technique is stored in the system space. The host only needs to silently think, “Extract the Soul Refining Art.”】
【Once you silently recite “Extract the Soul Refining Art,” the technique will transform into a stream of light and imprint itself onto your divine soul.】
【There is no need to memorize it by rote. It will directly merge with your consciousness.】
Hearing this, Zhang Yanyan obediently followed the instructions.
She squeezed her eyes shut and silently spoke the command in her mind.
“Extract the Soul Refining Art.”
The next moment, a gentle white stream of light suddenly exploded outward.
Fine as silken thread, it slipped through the space between her eyebrows and plunged straight into the depths of her divine soul.
Within her originally empty mind, an ancient cultivation manual radiating a soft glow unfurled in an instant.
The characters were written in archaic seal script, yet, strangely enough, she could understand every one of them.
Each character carried a warm, gentle power that slowly merged into her consciousness.
Zhang Yanyan drew a deep breath and followed the instructions of the technique, sitting cross-legged.
She chose a slab of bluestone beside the spirit spring. The ground was cool and clean.
The spirit spring’s vapor curled around her, perfectly suited to nourishing the divine soul and assisting her cultivation.
Honestly, this place had been chosen perfectly. It had everything going for it.
Following the guidance of the Soul Refining Art, she emptied her mind of all thoughts.
She cast aside distracting thoughts and concentrated her mind on the core of her divine soul between her brows.
Bit by bit, she guided the free divine-soul energy in the air into her body.
At first, the process was extremely clumsy.
Her divine soul was like a rusted gear, sluggish and laborious to turn.
Sweat beaded on Zhang Yanyan’s forehead, but she gritted her teeth and refused to stop.
Fortunately, time moved ten times faster inside Yunhua Space.
Only half an hour passed in the outside world, while five hours had already gone by inside the space.
Again and again, she pondered the incantation. Again and again, she tried to circulate the technique.
From rough and halting movements, it gradually became smooth.
From being able to draw in only a thread of feeble energy, she progressed to circulating it through half a minor cycle.
The sluggishness within her divine soul slowly faded, replaced by a refreshing sense of fullness.
Several more hours passed. By then, an entire day had gone by inside the space.
Zhang Yanyan slowly opened her eyes, a faint golden glimmer flashing through them.
She had finally managed to grasp the Soul Refining Art.
The cultivation route now circulated steadily within her divine soul.
Thread after thread of divine-soul energy flowed in an endless cycle, nourishing her entire soul.
The slight weariness brought on by her transmigration had vanished completely.
She stretched, and the joints in her bones gave off a series of soft clicks.
Her whole body felt light and relaxed, and even her thoughts had become noticeably sharper.
Now that she thought about it, all her earlier worries about being unable to learn the technique had been completely unnecessary.
With a thought, Zhang Yanyan directly left Yunhua Space.
Her luxurious bedroom came into view, sunlight pouring in through the bay window.
She glanced at the electronic clock beside the bed. It was only seven-thirty in the morning.
The moment she steadied herself, the system’s notification sounded.
【Host, today’s check-in is now available. Would you like to check in?】
Leaning against the headboard, Zhang Yanyan casually replied, “Check in.”
【Check-in successful. Today is an ordinary day, so ordinary daily rewards will be issued.】
【Green-tier reward obtained: Ten pounds of premium Wuchang rice.】
【Green-tier reward obtained: One package of naturally organic vegetables.】
【White-tier reward obtained: Five pure-cotton towels.】
【White-tier reward obtained: One package of disposable medical masks.】
【White-tier reward obtained: One household cleaning set.】
【Rewards have been automatically stored in the Stasis Space.】
Zhang Yanyan pursed her lips, though she wasn’t disappointed.
Yesterday had been her first check-in, and the doubled benefits had resulted in an orange-tier grand prize.
Getting two green-tier rewards from an ordinary daily check-in was already pretty good.
These daily supplies were better than nothing.
Time was frozen in the Stasis Space, so nothing would spoil no matter how long it was stored.
It was always useful to stockpile things. There was no reason not to take them.
As she leaned against the headboard and finally had a moment to relax, she suddenly remembered something.
“By the way, do you have a name?”
“How am I supposed to address you normally? I can’t keep calling you ‘System’ forever.”
【I am Check-In System 0018 under the Main System.】
【I have no personal name, only a work identification number.】
Zhang Yanyan mulled it over for a moment. The number was too awkward to say.
“0018 is too troublesome. I’ll call you Eighteen.”
“It’s easy to remember and rolls off the tongue. That’s what I’ll call you from now on.”
【Acceptable.】
Zhang Yanyan smiled and tossed out another question that had been bothering her.
“I’ve never really understood what happened with my transmigration.”
“You said earlier that there were no compulsory missions, so why did you bind yourself to me and make me transmigrate?”
【I am a laid-back Check-In System. My core responsibilities are to change the original host’s fate and provide daily check-in rewards.】
【The Main System oversees many different types of task systems, each with its own duties.】
【Villain Redemption System: Clear the villain’s name, reverse their fate, and rewrite their tragic ending.】
【Supporting-Female-Character Comeback System: Help cannon-fodder female characters slap the protagonists in the face and turn their lives around.】
【Apocalypse Survival System: Lead the host in developing wastelands after the apocalypse while upholding the bottom line of survival.】
【Palace and Household Struggle System: Assist the host in gaining a firm foothold in the imperial harem or a powerful household.】
【Entertainment Industry Comeback System: Turn the host into a top celebrity and sweep up the industry’s best resources.】
【Esports Ascension System: Help the host dominate the professional arena and win a global championship.】
【Ancient Imperial Examination System: Accompany the host from being a humble scholar all the way to becoming the top-ranked candidate and receiving a noble title.】
【Interstellar Development System: Travel to an interstellar planet, cultivate new territory, and build a home.】
【Adorable Pet Development System: Care for special pets and unlock their innate supernatural abilities.】
【Quick-Transmigration Revenge System: Help the original host take revenge and punish the scumbag men, vile women, and villains.】
【Mysticism Salvation System: Use feng shui and talismans to resolve crises and protect the people of an entire region.】
【Gourmet Business System: Open a restaurant and become a leading magnate in the industry.】
【Campus Domination System: Help the host rise from the bottom to become a top student and the center of attention at school.】
【Mecha Combat System: Pilot mechas across the stars and wage war on countless battlefields.】
【Antique Appraisal System: Identify ancient treasures and accumulate wealth and connections.】
Zhang Yanyan’s eyes widened as she listened, and she clicked her tongue in wonder.
“Good grief, there are so many systems. They really cover every possible niche.”
“So your Check-In System is basically the most useless one of the lot?”
【The Check-In System has no compulsory missions and no punishment mechanism. It is a leisure-oriented system.】
【The host only needs to protect the original host’s family and change their tragic fate.】
【The host can receive rewards through daily check-ins. Living a peaceful and stable life is the system’s core requirement.】
【Its drawback is that points are earned slowly, and the system takes a long time to level up.】
【Compared with comeback and revenge systems, it has fewer missions and poses no threat to the host’s life.】
【Its guiding principle is peace, stability, and a laid-back approach to survival.】
Zhang Yanyan nodded repeatedly, deeply agreeing.
“Exactly. Nothing is more important than staying safe.”
“I don’t want to fight and kill. Living a peaceful life is the best.”
“Your laid-back system was practically made for me.”
All she had ever wanted was to guard her space, grow crops, and stockpile supplies.
Stay away from the scumbag man and the shameless woman, protect the Zhangs' parents, and live a comfortable life.
As for whether she could level up through points, Zhang Yanyan simply didn’t care.
She and the Check-In System chatted for a while longer about other things.
Zhang Yanyan had figured out all the rules of the Check-In System.
She committed the reward tiers, uses for points, and conditions for unlocking the space to memory, one by one.
Just as they had nearly finished talking, a soft knock sounded at the door.
Auntie Chen’s kindly voice came from outside, gentle and warm.
“Miss, are you awake? Breakfast is ready. Come downstairs and eat.”
Zhang Yanyan immediately called back, threw off the covers, and got out of bed.
“I’m awake, Auntie Chen. I’ll be right down.”
She walked into the dressing room and casually picked out a pale pink dress.
The dress was made of pure cotton, loose and comfortable, with a simple design.
Paired with a pair of white canvas shoes, it gave her a fresh, girl-next-door look.
There was none of the spoiled arrogance one might expect from a wealthy heiress; it suited her personality perfectly.
She simply tied her hair into a low ponytail and went without makeup.
The original owner had been beautiful to begin with, with fair skin and delicate features.
She was already striking enough without makeup.
After opening the bedroom door, she made her way down the spiral staircase.
On the solid-wood table in the dining room on the first floor sat a steaming breakfast spread.
Millet and pumpkin porridge, steamed dumplings, boiled eggs, chilled cucumber salad, and small milk buns.
Everything was light, tasty, and home-style, with an enticing aroma wafting through the room.