9 Upgrade (1/2)
Eh?
The white screen covered the page Shi Li wanted to read. He tried to swipe the screen away, but every attempt ended up in failure as his hand just passed through the screen, touching the surface of the book page instead.
'How did this thing get here anyway?'
He flipped onto the next page of the book, and the screen was still there. He turned to another page, the screen was still there, revealing the same information.
Feeling like there was no hope for it to be removed, he closed his eyes for a while, and wished for a miracle to happen.
'Will I live a life of constantly looking at a white screen?'
Shi Li slowly opened his eyes, and to his surprise, the white screen covering the pages were gone.
Taking the chance of the white screen, he continued to read more information regarding the Azure Dusk Continent.
But happiness won't last long.
Not even 5 minutes have passed, the white screen blocked the page Shi Li was reading...yet again.
Sighing, he muttered, ”Is there any way to close this thing?”
As if there was a god watching Shi Li's every action, another screen popped up on top of the previous white screen.
~~~~~~~~
To remove the white screen, say 'Close.'
- Nonpareil Eye Interface
~~~~~~~~
Without delaying any further, he shouted, ”Close!”
And just like that, the white screen covering the pages were gone.
Every 5 minutes, the white screen would pop up at the page where Shi Li was reading, and Shi Li would just say ”Close.”
This routine would repeat for half an hour until Shi Li finished the book and closed it shut.
After closing it shut, he just realized...that the white screen was not an ordinary thing.
'Is it something created by the world?' Shi Li looked around and checked if there was any white screen in the vicinity. There was none.
Seeing that there was no white screen, he pondered for a bit.
'What could possibly be the origin of that white screen?'
Recalling through his memories, he remembered the statement the man from his dream said.
”The eyes would allow you to make anything happen as long as you pay a price of the same equivalent.”
”Wait...the eyes would allow you to make anything happen…” Shi Li muttered to himself.
After a while, he exclaimed in shock as he thought up of a possible answer.
”The white screen...came from the curse!”
After that, he rubbed his chin as he didn't know where he was going with this.
”What price did I pay in exchange for the white screen?”
Thinking about how the white screen wasted his time, Shi Li slapped himself in the forehead. How could he be so stupid.
”The price I paid for the white screen...was time.”
”But why did it pop up?” Shi Li wracked his brain for a solution.
”I was reading a book about the Azure Dusk Continent. And I wanted information on the Azure Dusk Continent.” Shi Li said these words but stopped.
”I wanted information about the Azure Dusk Continent. The screen gave me information about [The Azure Dusk Continent].”
”Wait...so the screen was basically where the output of my desires will show.”
He had no idea if this was correct, but he was willing to try the hypothesis out. He grabbed another book from the bookshelf where he got the book he was reading and placed it on the table.
As he looked at the new book, he willed in his mind, 'Identify the book for me.'
Shi Li's pupils glowed a faint crimson red after he was done saying these words inwardly. It seemed that the curse was taking effect.
In an instant, the white screen popped up.
~~~~~~~~
[Jade Creation Continent and You]
[Item Type]: Book
[Grade}: D+
[Author}: Duan Zhenduan
[Amount of Pages]: 325
This book's cover was made out of finely made leather while the letters were written with molten metal. The paper was made out of high quality reed, giving it a nice texture.
Flaws: 35
~~~~~~~~
”It worked!” Shi Li smiled which then turned into a dry chuckle, ”Kinda.”
'I guess the desire should be extremely specific,' Shi Li created another hypothesis. He based this idea from the research papers he used to do back then, needing him to go specific in terms of topic.
Taking a deep breath, he looked at the book again.
'Identify the contents of the book.'
Within a breath's time, the information on the screen was changed.
~~~~~~~~
[Jade Creation Continent and You]
[Item Type]: Book
[Grade]: D+
[Author]: Duan Zhenduan
[Amount of Pages]: 325
The book talks about the Jade Creation Continent, one of the three main continents of Xiuzhen Planet. The content goes quite in-depth as it explains the ins and outs of the continent.
Flaws: 83
~~~~~~~~
It turns out his hypothesis was correct. You need to be specific for the desire to be truly guaranteed. His crimson red pupils turned to black yet again after this. With this discovery, he placed the books he grabbed back onto their bookshelves and left the library, heading for his courtyard.
…
Shi Li's courtyard, ten to twenty minutes after he left the library.
As he ran from the library to his courtyard, another hypothesis was formed in his mind.
'If identifying books can work, then does that mean it could work on other items as well?'
So he decided to test it out with his cultivation technique, the [Skin Tempering Foundation Manual].
He walked towards his bedroom and grabbed the book on his bedside table. The cover was blue in color and it felt rough to the touch, as if it was crudely made. But looking at the pages inside, all the words were carefully written, allowing everyone to understand the words on the book.
He looked at the cultivation technique he was holding and his pupils turned crimson red yet again.
'Identify the contents of the book.'
Not disappointing expectations, the white screen popped up in front of the book, showing what Shi Li wanted to know.
~~~~~~~~
[Skin Tempering Foundation Manual]
[Item Type]: Cultivation Technique
[Grade]: D+++
[Author]: Han Linyong