“Claim blessing,” Jack thought to himself, and the resplendent glow around the golden chest only intensified, his heartbeat slightly quickening in anticipation while a question floated in his mind— what if all this was for nothing? Jack could justify his means to himself if it meant increasing his survival chances, but the system had enough ways to offer misleading rewards. If all he got was some trivial items, then he wasn’t sure if he would be able to maintain his composure.

His agonizing wait came to an end as the chest fully opened, containing only two items— a sword and a small gem. The sword was identical to his one-handed bastard sword in length, but the moment Jack laid his eyes on it he could tell the difference in make, quality, and design. The first thing that stood out about the sword was the cross-guard, two angelic silver wings jutting out from either side, a scintillating orange gem inlaid in the middle radiating power. The sword’s body was cast in the bluish-silver metal that was used in his system issue blade, but Jack could feel the sharpness of this blade far outclassed his former weapon, its hue leaning more towards oceanic blue than metallic silver. The hilt was made entirely out of metal, a layer of white cloth wrapped around the surface for comfort, with a circular pommel inlaid with a translucent, colorless gem that could almost pass for a diamond.

The moment Jack reached forward to grab the sword, a notification popped up in front of him

Honor’s End, [F] Grade Sword Artifact.

Description: A blade awarded to one who has slain an Oathbreaker, maintaining the stability and harmony of the three realms. Those who have erred in life, are pardoned in death. May their end be quick and painless, by Honor’s Edge.

+1 STR, +2 AGI, +1 PER, +1 INT.

Jack gingerly picked up the blade, his hands quivering in excitement after reading the description. A blade that increased his stats by [+5], this was even better than he had anticipated. That was equivalent to an entire level's worth of stats, without considering the blade’s exceptional make in and of itself.

The orange gem in the center flickered, and Jack immediately felt power course through his veins— not the enhancing sensation of the blue flame, but a red hot surge in power the moment he held the weapon, flowing through his veins and empowering his body. It was not as exaggerated as dumping 5 points in constitution, but he felt a slight burst of enhanced clarity brought over his thoughts, allowing him to make connections that previously might have missed him. It was only for an instant, but he also felt that he could perceive the Qi flow in his body, snaking through vein-like structures whenever he channeled it, but the sensation disappeared a second later, besides feeling faster and stronger. Was that what intelligence and perception did? Fascinating. What about wisdom and willpower, he found himself wondering.

He deposited his old blade into his inventory, sheathing the new one with care— immediately feeling himself lose the enhancements the sword brought him, a sense of loss pervading his mind. That would take some getting used to.

Jack then reached for the small, blood-red crystal, the second and final item remaining in the [Treasure Chest].

Skill Crystal: Minor Cure

Heals minor wounds, poisons, burns and hastens recovery. Can be used to stem bleeding for intermediate and higher grade wounds. May be cast on the users or anyone in immediate proximity.

You have received:

TP x 1,000

“That is surprisingly useful,” Jack muttered to himself, holding the crystal above his head, sunlight shining down upon its exquisitely cut surface, the work of a master jeweler at the very peak of his craft. He was intimately acquainted with many professionals in the field of precious gems, more out of necessity than choice— though he supposed in the post-system world, it was just a worthless bauble that could be mass-produced at the flick of a finger.

He sent a sliver of Qi into the gem almost instinctively the moment he was certain of the decision, and the blood gem shattered into specks of red dust—floating away from his hand before he even had the chance to inspect it. Knowledge flowed into his mind, the information relating to utilizing intricate Qi control to heal damage instead of wreaking devastation, for once. The feeling abated a second or two later and Jack was satisfied with having received an additional useful skill that would let him preserve his healing pills.

As for the generous reward of a thousand TP, there was not much else to convey but his satisfaction—truly not having expected such a windfall of both powerful items and even TP in one go.

“Your turn,” Jack stepped aside for Sarah, who had been watching his actions with curiosity reflecting in her eyes but was perhaps too emotionally drained to ask him for specifics.

Sarah pulled out an ornate silver spear that had two dragons coiling across the haft, with a deadly sharp tip that glinted intimidatingly under the sunlight. The entire body was purely made out of metal, freeing the spear of any weaknesses in it's structural integrity, but even from afar Jack could tell that there was a certain heft to the spear, Sarah’s muscles jerking slightly as she got used to the weight.

She then pulled out a golden ring from the [Treasure Chest], slipping it over her index finger without much thought. The ring was inlaid with a mesmerizing violet gem, making him curious about the ring's effects. Though subsequently, Sarah burst out into a genuine smile, and Jack could guess why— she had noticed the 1000 TP reward they had received, a massive head start over anyone who avoided challenging [Blessings] for rewards.

“Not bad, eh?” Jack asked teasingly, in a not-so-subtle attempt to change the topic to anything else but the nature of their morbid reality.

“Not bad at all,” She grinned sheepishly, and Jack noticed that she was suddenly a lot more comfortable with holding the spear, having hefted it over her shoulder quite nonchalantly, with just a single hand.

“Out of curiosity, what exactly does that ring do?” He asked, slightly puzzled. At first, he thought it increased her strength, but that wouldn’t make the spear weigh any less as she leaned it upon her shoulder— not without increasing her constitution as well, and he doubted there was such an overblown artifact being offered just for a kill at Level 5.

“It reduces the weight of my primary weapon quite significantly,” she replied, making Jack feel a slight burst of embarrassment. This was a world of magic and endless possibilities, it was unrealistic to assume that he could guess an item's specific effects just by observing from afar. Not to mention, such assumptions could lead to dangerous consequences.

At that moment, the barrier around the arena shattered, unfortunately cutting their conversation short. It was time to get moving again.