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"Huh? Did you say something, Edith?"

"Hm, no, I didn't. However, I have decided on the one I'll be choosing."

Edith answered and quickly selected his choice. Somewhere in the vast universe, a single book inside an ancient library suddenly disappeared. Moments afterward, a man burst into the library, ecstatic about the reward he was about to receive for conquering this ancient ruin. Yet, no matter how hard he looked, he didn't find anything of value and wondered if the map to the technique that would propel him to the pinnacle was fake. Edith closed his eyes as a flood of information rushed into his mind. Although it was inferior to the amount he received from the system, its quality was not even comparable. He quickly looked up at Luna and asked with an innocent tone, "What's the difference between cultivation talent and spirit roots?"

"Oh, a good question. A cultivator's spirit roots determine the attributes they are able to use and their effectiveness, while a cultivator may be born with a talent. Not all cultivators have a talent, and these talents can manifest in various different kinds."

"Oh, interesting."

"Did the technique you chose require a certain spirit root or talent?"

"Yes and no. It does require a few things; however, the technique will forcibly incorporate such things. Moreover, I need a special type of spirit root called a phantom root, whatever that entails."

"A phantom root? A phantom root!?"

"Mhm, the technique will change my root into a phantom root, or at least give it the properties of one. This will not only maximize my natural potential but also add on to it. However, the problem lies in the materials that are required for such a transformation. However, that can wait as I only need a phantom root by the Foundation Realm."

"…"

"Hmm, also, how would I even check my natural spirit root?"

"Sigh! Normally, a person of higher cultivation would check; however, due to your unique situation, that would be difficult. I can only advise you to cure your condition or find an alternative solution."

"I see. Well, I should still start my cultivation by gathering the materials. Hmm, I guess the only real resource I have is Earth. Although, that will have to wait a little bit as I need some capital. Moreover, I have no doubt most of these materials will not be found on Earth, like I would need 3 grams of the mysterious material Orion."

"Oh, yeah, I can see how that would cause some problems."

"Huh?"

"As the information was transferred into your mind through the system, as a being part of the system, I have access to it. Although I am unable to see past the blockade it put up to prevent you from falling into a coma. Moreover, it seems the system even has a more favorable impression toward you and even gave you something I'm quite surprised about."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"It will be happening any moment."

Luna said with a mysterious smile, and after waiting a few minutes, Edith started to get impatient. When he was about to question Luna again, a small system panel appeared in front of him, quickly followed by a barrage of system panels.

[ Increase of System Authority by 1 ]

[ Unlocked Housing Feature ]

[ Unlocked Expansion Feature ]

[ Unlocked Midnight Market ]

[ Unlocked Building Feature ]

[ Unlocked Cultivation Feature ]

Although all of the new features seemed important, Edith's entire focus was on the Cultivation Feature. He quickly asked Luna about its uses.

"This feature will not directly help you in your cultivation journey. The shop's priority is not for you to become the strongest being but instead to have a competent owner. However, this feature will help you with various other things. The main feature you can use would be the Adaption Service, a service that, through Dawn Coins, you can perfectly adapt to a cultivation technique of your choosing."

"I see, alright. I want to use that feature to adapt to the cultivation technique I had just gained."

"Very well. This procedure does not take into account the actual materials luckily; however, it still costs quite a large sum. In total, for the first procedure, it would cost a total of 100,000 Dawn Coins. Of course, if the material were put into account, it would cost well into the trillions, or even higher."

"T-trillions!? What kind of materials cost such an absurd amount!?"

"Absurd? While the material itself could be valued in the trillions, it's highly unlikely and would most likely be valued even higher. Moreover, more often than not, it's considered too valuable to exchange it for money."

"Guh! W-what the hell!? T-this feature won't change in the future, right?"

"Hehe, who knows?"

Edith stared at Luna, genuinely wondering if she was being serious or simply teasing him. After a few minutes of glaring, he couldn't tell and just admitted defeat, hoping she simply had an out-of-this-world poker face. He sighed and decided he needed to quickly amass a large amount of funds. With nothing better to do, he decided to use his Item Ticket he had gotten from saving Rinke. Moreover, he had gotten an item he was both surprised about yet also felt cheated.

[ Bottle of Dew:

A drink that has a taste that can only be described as divine. Moreover, the drink can heal mild wounds; however, it also alters the drinker's state of mind, bringing them into a state of intoxication and immense pleasure. ]

The Bottle of Dew was an item that he felt would become popular, yet he felt cheated because of a restriction it had placed upon it. Each guest may only buy three bottles a day, while Edith was only allowed to buy a single bottle a day. While normally this wouldn't bother him as he didn't care much for alcohol, the main reason he was so annoyed by it was due to the system remark.

[ Remark: A store's owner needs to be in a constant calm state of mind! Although this might be difficult for an idiot like you, I won't encourage your idiocy! ]

Edith kept glaring at the system remark in front of him, and his lips would twitch ever so slightly. Eventually, he couldn't keep himself composed.