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ArabicChat Group Crossover: My System Simulates Infinite Anime Worlds — Chapter 5
Chapter 5: Mechanical Puppets Are Good Things
As for the Penglai Jade Branch, it was indeed an excellent material, but to Nagumo, it was now little more than a souvenir—a memento from a life lived and lost in another world.
After placing the order for his new supplies, Nagumo retrieved a bottle of nutrient solution, the kind exclusively supplied to the military district. Without hesitation, he twisted off the cap and gulped down the entire contents. The viscous fluid had a sterile, chemical taste, but it was efficient. He then settled down on the floor and began to meditate, resuming the arduous process of tempering his physical body.
He chose not to start the next simulation just yet. It was better to wait until his delivery arrived. There was no telling what state he’d be in when he emerged from the simulator, and he preferred to have all his resources on hand.
A short while later, the doorbell chimed.
Nagumo rose and opened the door to find a mechanical puppet standing on his doorstep. It held a package out with perfectly steady arms, then performed a crisp, formal bow. Without a word, it turned and departed, its movements smooth and efficient. Nagumo watched it go, a thoughtful expression on his face.
‘Mechanical puppets,’ he mused, ‘are actually quite useful.’
He pulled out his phone and opened the Cultivator’s Home app. A quick search brought up the marketplace for mechanical puppets. He browsed the listings, noting the required cultivation techniques for operation and, more, the staggering cost of the materials. The long string of zeros trailing after the price tag made his eyes twitch. A single unit cost more than his entire monthly living allowance.
‘Sorry, my mistake,’ he thought wryly. ‘I’ll see myself out.’
Just as he was about to close the app, his eyes caught a listing tucked away in a corner of the screen.
The Paper Figure Technique. Valued at a mere 1,000 contribution points, it was by far the cheapest option available.
He knew of it, of course. It was a rudimentary art, primarily used for scouting, simple intelligence gathering, or just carrying things and performing odd jobs. It was cheap, practical, and almost every novice cultivator learned it as a stepping stone to more advanced constructs.
There was just one problem: he didn’t have enough contribution points. Even factoring in this month’s pension—a preferential treatment afforded to the children of martyrs—his total balance was only 200 points.
He stared at the listing for another moment before sighing. With a final, lingering glance at the Paper Figure Technique, he switched off his phone, set it aside, and turned his focus inward.
With practiced skill, he activated the simulator. The familiar interface materialized in his mind, and five streams of light began to scroll past, each representing a potential trait for his next life.
The first stream began to slow, coalescing into a single, distinct option.
And it was glowing with a faint, yet unmistakable, golden light.
Nagumo’s eyes slowly widened. His breath caught in his throat, his heart beginning to hammer against his ribs. His luck, it seemed, was finally turning.
A golden trait.
The very first one to appear was golden. In all four of his previous simulations, he had never once encountered a trait of this rarity.
[Heaven Rewards the Diligent (Gold): Heaven will reward those who are industrious; your hard work will inevitably lead to grand achievement.]
As he stared at the golden words, the remaining four traits began to reveal themselves, one by one.
[Scientist (Purple): You possess a deep interest in the sciences and are capable of achieving extraordinary success. Provides a slight bonus to intelligence. Surely no one is so stupid they can’t learn calculus in elementary school, right?]
[Thousand-Cup Champion (Green): In terms of alcohol tolerance, if you claim to be number one, no one would dare claim second. After drinking to your heart’s content, your physical functions will increase slightly.]
[Note: This trait has cooperation with the ‘Alcoholic’or’Brewer’ traits.]
[The Golden Rule (Blue): In your career and life, you will absolutely never have to worry about money, though you won’t necessarily be fabulously wealthy.]
[Dual Cultivation Physique (Purple): Those who dual cultivate with you will receive a 50% bonus to their cultivation progress, while you receive a 100% bonus.]
[Note: If it is the other party’s first time, you will gain a minor realm breakthrough.]
Looking at the five options arrayed before him, Nagumo felt a giddy sense of disbelief. His luck this time was simply off the charts. He suddenly felt a strange kinship with the Trailblazer from Honkai: Star Rail—on average, he was just as likely to end up with a wanted poster or thrown in jail.
His gaze lingered on the last trait. It was exceptionally tempting, a shortcut to power that was hard to ignore. But if he were to actually choose it… Nagumo had a feeling what little moral integrity he had left would quickly evaporate.
After a moment of complete consideration, Nagumo made his choice.
[Heaven Rewards the Diligent (Gold)], [Scientist (Purple)], [The Golden Rule (Blue)].
With the guarantee that his hard work would pay off, and the freedom from financial concerns, he had a solid foundation. Even if the next world lacked any form of supernatural power, he could rely on the power of science.
After all, he could still forge a path to the extraordinary. The end of science, as they say, is theology.
Through his previous simulations, Nagumo had come to understand that the simulator’s grading standard was based on one’s ability to influence the world—or, more accurately, to change it. The more he could promote the development of that world, the greater his rewards would be.
Just as Nagumo’s consciousness faded, sinking into the simulation…
On the other side of the dimensional veil, in the Myriad Worlds Chat Group, Kurumi Tokisaki had finished catching up on the conversation logs. She now understood the context behind the discussion about Itsuka Shiori and Itsuka Shido, and why they were considered so special in their world. The true nature of Phantom’s conspiracy, however, remained a mystery.
An idea formed in her mind. She would pay a visit to this new world, hunt some of its ferocious beasts and monsters, and see just how much “time” she could harvest.
With a graceful twirl, Kurumi Tokisaki stepped through a portal of shadow, traversing the void to arrive in the new world.
However, her destination was slightly off.
Perhaps it was some kind of tethering effect, a lingering connection to the newest member of the chat group, but she materialized not in the wilderness she expected, but on a quiet residential street—directly in front of Nagumo’s home.
A message soon appeared in the chat group.
[Group Owner Zhang Mengmeng]: “Kurumi, Kurumi, where are you? Didn’t you come over? Why don’t I see you?”
[Kurumi Tokisaki]: “Where are you all? I seem to have arrived on a street in a residential area. I don’t see you either.”
[Group Owner Zhang Mengmeng]: “Σ(;°Д°) Crap, the system can even make a transmission error? Logically, you should have appeared right next to me.”
[Hiratsuka Shizuka]: “Um, are there any landmarks around you? I’ll drive over and pick you up. This Chat Group really needs a member display function; if it had one, we wouldn’t have this trouble.”
[Myriad Worlds Chat Group]: “╥﹏╥ You aren’t the one in charge, so you don’t know how expensive everything is! You all haven’t finished a single mission! How am I supposed to develop new functions relying solely on my meager fixed salary?”
[Group Owner Zhang Mengmeng]: “(✿╹◡╹) Okay, okay, System baby, don’t cry. Those missions are a bit too hard. Are there any simpler ones, like fighting zombies or something?”
[Kurumi Tokisaki]: “Ara ara, fighting zombies? I can’t say I’ve ever tried that.”
[Hiratsuka Shizuka]: “Kurumi Tokisaki, I’ll send you a phone. Turn it on once you get it, and I’ll be there in a bit.”
[Kurumi Tokisaki]: “Thank you. You really are a good person.”
[Hiratsuka Shizuka sent a Red Envelope.]
[Kurumi Tokisaki claimed the Red Envelope.]
[Hiratsuka Shizuka]: “Don’t call me a good person, I’m no saint. My students all call me the Iron Fist Teacher.”
[Group Owner Zhang Mengmeng]: “Actually, calling you that is pretty normal. And you fit the title of Iron Fist Teacher even more now.”
On the other side of the screen, Hiratsuka Shizuka delivered a sharp chop to the head of the person sitting next to her.
“If you don’t speak, nobody will think you’re a mute.”
A girl, standing barely 1.5 meters tall, looked up at her with wide, pitiful eyes. She had jet-black hair, fair skin, and a pair of shockingly large breasts that seemed entirely disproportionate to her petite, Gothic Lolita frame.
“Shizuka-chan, you’re so mean,” she whined. “Don’t you know you shouldn’t hit people on the head? What if you make me stupid? Will you take care of me then?”
Hiratsuka Shizuka couldn’t hold back and gave her another light smack. When they had first met, the girl had been so cautious and timid. Now that they were familiar with each other, she took every opportunity to act spoiled.
Shizuka practically shoved the girl into their vehicle. Following the location ping from the phone she’d sent, she gunned the engine and sped off.
In no time at all, a sleek, futuristic vehicle appeared at the end of the street, gliding to a silent halt before Kurumi Tokisaki. The chassis was emblazoned with the logo of the Mohist Workshop and the designation: All-Terrain Mechanical Vehicle Version 5.0.
The vehicle wasn’t running on the ground; it was floating a meter in the air. It was, for all intents and purposes, a sea-land-air amphibious car.
Kurumi watched it approach, her curiosity piqued. What was its power source? In the short time she had been waiting, she had observed a bizarre variety of transportation methods. Some people zipped by on electric scooters, while others rode on the backs of enormous dogs. She’d seen people on horseback galloping down the paved streets, and others traveling on oversized gourds. She even saw one man on a bicycle, pedaling so furiously that his wheels were a blur, nearly igniting into the legendary Wind-Fire Wheels.
As the vehicle’s window slowly rolled down, Kurumi’s elegant smile remained, her crimson eye glinting with anticipation.