"Pity my streaming account has few followers; otherwise, I'd definitely do an unboxing live stream."
Chen Ping An carried the two boxes into his room with a grin, shut the door and windows, drew the curtains, and left only the bedside lamp on. He sat back on the bed, rubbing his hands with excitement.
"First, the gift from my lovely Qingzhi!"
He used a nail clipper to slice through the tape and opened the box, his face instantly dropping.
Inside was just a sealed bag with a beaded bracelet. The beads were of unknown material, resembling glass marbles.
"Emmm… this feels a bit perfunctory."
Chen Ping An took out the bracelet. It felt smooth and cool to the touch. Whether it was his imagination or not, the air seemed fresher, and his morning grogginess vanished.
"The material's nothing special, the craftsmanship's poor, and the carved characters are painfully ugly," he said, looking at the crooked blessing on the beads. Yet, he still put the bracelet on his wrist, his eyes brimming with delight. "Just knowing it's a gift from Fang Qingzhi is enough to brighten my day."
Unbeknownst to him, the black cat in the shoebox on the table twitched its nose and slit its eyes open.
"Next, the big item!"
This time, Chen Ping An tore into the packaging more vigorously.
In moments, he revealed an antique-looking long sword. It seemed deliberately aged, with a bronze hue and black speckles like fish scales. The handle bore intricate, unreadable characters—probably the swordsmith's name.
"The Black Scale Sword—fitting," Chen Ping An murmured, holding it up to the ceiling light.
A cold gleam reflected off the blade, seeming out of place in this era. Chen Ping An thought it belonged to Fang Qingzhi's world—not a craft, but a real flying sword from the Cangyun Realm.
"I must be sleep-deprived, hallucinating," he chided himself.
Yet he admired the game developers' attention to detail. The previous amulet, though it faded, felt authentic. The bracelet's faint fragrance mirrored the amulet's—a testament to meticulous craftsmanship.
As for the sword… it was solid. Even as a home ornament, it was impressive.
"Is this sword sharpened?" Chen Ping An wondered, resisting the urge to test it with his finger. Instead, he plucked a black hair from the floor.
Dropping it onto the blade, he watched it sever the hair.
"Whoa! That's sharp!" he exclaimed. "This is a controlled weapon! How did it get shipped here?"
Panicked, he sheathed the sword and hung it on a nail by the bedside. Surprisingly, the modern decor complemented the ancient sword.
"I've decided—Black Scale Sword, you're getting cremated with me! Kkkk!"
Black Scale Sword: "…"
Black Cat: "…"
[This kid's crazy! He actually has a magical flying sword!]
[Does this era still have functional magical weapons? Why haven't I encountered any? Puppet tech is all over the place…]
The black cat, awakened by the spiritual energy from the bracelet, stared wide-eyed.
For it, this energy was invaluable. Even breathing air laced with spirituality aided its recovery.
Golden acupuncture, ancestral dragon protection…
Now spirit stones and magical weapons had surfaced.
The cat was baffled by Chen Ping An and this world.
These spirituality-related items should have vanished long ago. Its observations post-awakening confirmed that.
Yet this kid… why does he have everything?
This isn't metaphysics!
Never mind, leveraging this kid's resources to recover is priority.
The ancestral dragon's protection was troublesome, but as long as it didn't harm the kid, it was safe.
It planned to weakly meow to attract Chen Ping An but found the room empty.
[Where's that kid?]
Dragging its heavy body to the windowsill, the cat saw its target—Chen Ping An, in pajamas, clutching a clothes rod, sprinting toward the hotel's opposite plaza.
...
Old Man Li had practiced Tai Chi in the small plaza for 20 years. Among all the elderly in the surrounding seven or eight communities, he was the undisputed champion.
"Watch out for cars while gaming!" Li warned two kids crossing the road, eyes glued to their phones.
One kid flipped him off: "Old man, mind your own business!"
"Kids these days…" Li shook his head.
Youth today lacked vitality, always gaming. Unlike his era.
Technology advanced society but stripped away innocence.
"Alas—" Li sighed, approaching his daily Tai Chi tree.
To his surprise, someone was already there—a young man in pajamas, awkwardly holding a clothes rod in a strange pose.
Though the young man's form was off, Li saw potential in the darkness.
Vibrant youth, precisely what the times lacked and what Li cherished.
The kid's movements had flair but lacked foundation.
Li decided to guide him.
"Young man, your stance is wrong. A horse step isn't done like that!"
Chen Ping An was mid-practice on the Green Lotus Sword Manual when a hoarse voice struck from behind.
A pair of broad hands pressed down on his shoulders.
A foot slid between his legs and pivoted outward.
Chen Ping An gasped as pain shot through his plastered right leg. Yet he wasn't annoyed.
As the old man corrected his posture, Chen Ping An was thrilled to see the cultivation progress for the first chapter of the Green Lotus Sword Manual soar from 2% to 13%!