024, A New Contract Subject!

Qi Ran now found herself seized by greed. She secretly hoped to receive another prompt from the impassioned electronic voice.

Just as she felt a flutter of nervous anticipation, the voice did indeed resonate within her mind:

[Helpful Hint: The tester has proactively asked the guide a question! Good, effective communication and seeking experience from the strong are vital paths to enhancing one's power!!]

[Reward: The host's physical fitness, strength, agility, and mental fortitude have each been increased by 100 points!! The host is also granted 100 free attribute points!!]

[Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!!]

[Detection: Changes in the tester's physical fitness, strength, agility, and mental fortitude have been identified! Combat power assessment rebooting!!]

[Assessment complete!! The tester's combat power star rating has changed!!]

[The tester's combat power has been upgraded to 9 stars!!]

What? This was possible? Qi Ran was stunned. Thinking back to her previous life, where she had toiled to slaughter zombies, risked her life to hack down vicious beasts, and fought wits against mysterious, fickle, and terrifying entities—exhausting every possible method just to scrape together enough energy to level up and gain a mere boost to her four basic attributes—she found it surreal. Now, by simply asking a question in her mind, she had received a generous reward from the Alliance: 100 points to each of her four attributes and an additional 100 free points to distribute. Honestly, had she not been the beneficiary, she might have fallen into a deep depression.

Since such a windfall had fallen into her lap, Qi Ran was naturally excited to share it with Song Chen. "Song Chen, hurry, try talking to the impassioned electronic voice in your head! Ask it a question about how to improve your strength!"

After a moment, Song Chen raised his sharp, handsome brows. It was an expression of someone who had made an unexpected discovery. Qi Ran leaned in eagerly and asked, "How did it go?"

"My four attributes each increased by 50 points," Song Chen replied.

Huh? Only 50 points? Qi Ran was surprised. As his voice faded, the impassioned electronic voice rang out in her mind once more:

[Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!!]

[Detection: A new, most powerful combat entity has appeared within a hundred-mile radius of the tester!!]

[Skill 1: Contract (Passive) activated!!]

[Automatically searching for the most powerful combat entity within a hundred miles!!]

[Search complete, target locked!!]

A flash of alarm flickered in Qi Ran's eyes. Moments later, she found herself locking eyes with Song Chen, whose expression had turned abruptly stern.

"Song Chen... let me explain..." Qi Ran was on the verge of tears.

When Song Chen first heard the electronic voice announce that he had inexplicably become the "loyal servant" of another tester, his guard had instantly reached its peak. He did not dislike those who operated in the shadows; in fact, given his high intelligence, he rarely engaged in direct conflict himself, preferring to work quietly and insidiously to minimize unnecessary losses. However, the prospect of someone plotting against him was not a pleasant feeling. Although the other party had seized the initiative by binding him as a servant, Song Chen did not believe he was without a chance to turn the tables. He was never one to sit idly and wait for his demise.

As he mentally prepared to observe the enemy's next move and plan a counterattack, his gaze fell upon the young girl in his arms, who looked like she had been caught doing something shameful. He had a sudden flash of insight: the other tester who had bound him as a servant was undoubtedly Qi Ran. It made sense—besides the two of them, no one else in the vicinity had awakened. Only she could have bound him without his knowledge.

The impassioned electronic voice continued in Qi Ran's mind:

[Contract target: Song Chen!]

[Attribute Panel]

[Name: Song Chen!]

[Faction: Blue Star Human!]

[Level: Novice Tier 1 Tester!]

[Attribute: Luck!]

[Health: 700!]

[Contract complete! Congratulations to the Young Miss for acquiring a loyal servant!]

[The Young Miss may ruthlessly extract the servant Song Chen's luck attribute and his Immortal Physique!!]

[In return, after the extraction is complete, the Young Miss must bestow upon Song Chen a talent, skill, attribute, or physique!!]

[Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!!]

[Skill 4: Unspeakable (Passive) activated!!]

[Activation complete!!]

[All of the Young Miss's identity information has been masked from the servant!!]

Unfortunately, Qi Ran was in no state to listen carefully. With wide, innocent, and watery eyes, she hurriedly tried to explain to Song Chen: "Song Chen, I didn't mean to! It's my passive skill! I was just so happy and wanted you to improve your strength quickly that I completely forgot I had this passive ability! I'll try to see if I can break the contract!"

With Song Chen bound as her servant, a portion of the zombies he killed would count toward her own tally, which would severely slow down his leveling speed. There weren't many zombies left on the eighth floor as it was; if some of those were diverted to her, wouldn't it make Song Chen's progress even more difficult? Qi Ran was frantic. She quickly sought help from the electronic voice: "Guide, Guide, how do I turn off this 'Contract' passive skill? Now that the contract is formed, can I still undo it?"

Sadly, the electronic voice did not answer immediately. While it had offered many helpful hints, those were based on Qi Ran's excellent performance. Fundamentally, it remained a program set by the Alliance, following strict procedures. If Qi Ran asked too many questions or achieved too much in a short time, it would experience a lag.

At that moment, it was still answering her first question:

[Detection: The tester has a strong desire for light-type and healing-type talents!]

[When the tester meets the next reward criteria set by the Alliance, priority will be given to presenting light-type and healing-type talents for the tester to choose from!]

[Detection: As the tester is about to enter the 'Mayfly Test,' the Alliance will provide three healing potions! However, these will only be issued when the test officially begins in six minutes!]

[Additionally, a Spirit Spring has been detected in the tester's personal space, possessing minor healing effects! The exact potency can only be verified by the owner of the spring! Please explore this yourself!]

Spirit Spring! Qi Ran's eyes lit up. She immediately shifted her consciousness into her personal space to investigate the effects of the spring.