Universe Infinite Canteen

Ma Lu glanced over the four options, his luck was so-so this time—all blue.

And three of them were related to psychic powers, Ma Lu eventually chose [Iron Lifting Expert: The entire team gets a 10% increase in strength].

The healing effect provided by [Blood of Immortality] was proportional to the damage, which meant you had to deal damage first to heal, the more you hit, the more you recovered.

So increasing the strength was the right move!

After choosing the blessing, Ma Lu found time to check the previous messages and located the points from the last round—27,344 in total.

This score was even better than the one from the last time he played the Explosion Flow, almost 6,000 points higher.

Once the Corpse Puppets accumulated to a certain number, they could indeed snowball in a beast tide, becoming a score-farming divine artifact.

With his remaining points and interest added, Ma Lu now had over 50,000 points, and even felt a bit unsure about where to spend them all.

He felt that in the future, just the 20% interest would be enough to cover his expenses.

When would an explosively effective strange item appear so he could put all these points to good use?

Mulling over this, Ma Lu clicked open the Strange Object Store once again.

And the very first item in the first column caught his eye.

[Golden Spoon]

Function: You were born with a golden spoon in your mouth, a fortunate child. At the start of each game, you get an extra Purple Blessing, three Blue Blessings, and five White Blessings. Price: 3,900

Ma Lu slapped his thigh, regretting not checking the store before starting the fight.

One Purple Blessing, three Blue Blessings, and five White Blessings might not sound like much, and if you had the money, you could buy fresh ingredients directly from the market to exchange for blessings—sometimes even receiving a Golden Blessing.

But in a special situation like now, where there's no time to gather blessings before battle commences, those nine blessings from [Golden Spoon] could be critically important.

Ma Lu didn't hesitate and immediately bought the strange object, then continued browsing and saw another item [Resurrection Armor].

Function: Designate a target. Provide one chance for resurrection, limited to once per round. The target must not be dead for more than 100 seconds, and will automatically enter a dying state upon resurrection. Price: 7,900

Ma Lu had just been lamenting not encountering any tough items, and here he stumbled upon the most expensive item the Strange Object Store had sold since its opening.

Yet its effect was truly top-notch, providing a resurrection opportunity that greatly increased the safety of the team.

Even though after being saved, it only left a sliver of health remaining, not like the Purple Blessing [Resurrected from Death] he had obtained before, which allowed for a full health resurrection on the spot.

But it had the advantage of being a steady trigger, usable once in every game, guaranteeing it wouldn't come to nothing.

Moreover, Ma Lu noticed that the item's function did not limit the target to being on the same team; in other words, this artifact could be used on anyone, including prey.

This gave rise to a new idea in Ma Lu's mind.

As is commonly known, capturing a target alive is usually far more difficult than simply killing it, especially those with formidable strength.

But with [Resurrection Armor], Ma Lu could simply kill the target creature and then revive it, rendering the beast nearly powerless in its dying state, ready for easy bagging.

Moreover, the blessings that were due weren't shortchanged; it's just that this procedure felt somewhat familiar... as if I'd seen it somewhere before.

After purchasing the strange object, Ma Lu activated the effect of the work plan, specifying the [Blood of Immortality], then he used the newly acquired [Golden Spoon].

The blessings that came with the strange object were similar to those that would emerge during combat, all requiring a choice.

And this time, Ma Lu's luck had returned.

When he chose the first Purple Blessing, he triggered the effect of the Heartbeat Lottery, and one of the Purple Blessings flickered and upgraded into a Golden Blessing.

[Berserker: When a team member is injured, their strength is proportionally increased while diminishing 40% of their pain perception.]

Looking solely at the effects of this blessing, one could only say it was average; after all, life is priceless, and trading blood for strength seemed like a bad deal any way you looked at it.

However, combined with the effect of the [Blood of Immortality], being able to deal high damage while in a critical state and then self-heal a significant amount not only enhanced the output but also survival, making the blessing much more usable.

Yet just how much the strength-enhancement effect of this blessing would actually be remained to be tested in later real combat scenarios, but being a Golden Blessing, one would assume the values wouldn't be too stingy.

Then, Ma Lu received 3 Blue Blessings and 5 White Blessings, all of which were primarily for enhancing attributes.

After selecting his blessings, he searched the room to see if Boggy and the others had left anything behind.

Ma Lu needed to know what had happened after he left, the current state of the Giant Curtain, and whether the other members of the Twin Sunflower Hunting Group were still alive before he could plan his next course of action.

However, whether it was because the other Hunting Group members had encountered misfortune or had retreated too hastily, they had left no clues at all.

In the bathroom, Ma Lu found the box where he stored his hunting clothes and other equipment, but the box was open and completely empty.

Having confirmed there was nothing of value left in the apartment, Ma Lu prepared to head downstairs.

Half of the small building had already gone, and without anything to shield it, the remaining half appeared ready to collapse at any moment and wasn't a place to linger.

However, getting downstairs was also an issue. With the corridor gone, of course, there would be no stairs left.

Luckily, Boggy's floor wasn't too high, just the third story, and Ma Lu's enhanced strength and reflexes allowed him to find a drainpipe on the outside wall and slide down easily.

But as soon as he landed, he was spotted by two Two-Headed Hyenas strolling on the street nearby.

Ma Lu had seen Boggy handle these beasts before and thought it seemed pretty easy; even without blessings, Boggy could take on two at once.

So, Ma Lu didn't try to hide but drew his Chef's Knife instead.

His plan seemed sound—dodge the first Two-Headed Hyena's attack, then counter with a knife to sever one of its legs and incapacitate it.

Next, he'd sprint a short distance to create separation and focus on dealing with the second one. After dispatching the second one, he would return to deal with the injured Two-Headed Hyena.

The plan was perfect, but implementing it didn't go smoothly.

Indeed, Ma Lu, with superior reflexes and speed, evaded the charge of the first Two-Headed Hyena and severed its left foreleg.

However, he underestimated the creature's agility, which was increased by having an extra head, as the hyena's neck could twist back further.

Ma Lu was bitten on the shoulder by one of its heads, the pain making him bare his teeth.

Thankfully, the [Berserker] blessing was in effect, so he only retained 60% of the pain.

He didn't scream in agony, bearing the pain while stabbing the Chef's Knife into the abdomen of the Two-Headed Hyena and stirring it around vigorously.

The Two-Headed Hyena let go due to the pain, but before Ma Lu could catch his breath, the second one lunged at him.