At 4:05 AM, inside the mirror-bald granite cavern of Pocket-World #50, fourteen-year-old Ye Xiao and twelve-year-old Gu Nian stood in front of the first row of ten Golden Ancient Inheritance Chests. Meanwhile, Ten-year-old Su Nuannuan tiptoed over to tuck the corner of the wool blanket around sleeping Jiang Tuntun and toddler Little Fifth.
Each of the 500 Golden Ancient Inheritance Chests scattered across the fifty pocket-worlds was five feet long, cast from heavy star-gold. Engraved with a pompous, glowing inscription written by Director Mo Yun himself:
[FATED ANCIENT SWORD-IMMORTAL INHERITANCE CHEST — ONLY THOSE BLESSED BY HEAVEN’S LUCK HALO MAY OPEN THIS SEAL! MORTALS AND HARD WORKERS WILL BE BLASTED BY DIVINE LIGHTNING!]
“Look at how shameless this lock mechanism is,” fourteen-year-old Ye Xiao whispered, adjusting his silver-rimmed spectacles as his Omniscient Scholarly Eye scanned the internal rune-circuitry of Chest #1. “Director Mo Yun claims these chests were ‘left behind by ancient primeval gods to reward Heaven’s Chosen.’ In reality. The serial number stamped on the bottom hinge says Batch #884-B, Manufactured Three Months Ago by the Academy Logistics Sweatshop!”
“And look at what triggers the lock!” twelve-year-old Gu Nian chuckled, leaning in with his Redeemed Chaos-Star Guardian Eye glowing a warm black-gold. “It doesn’t check for courage, swordsmanship, or morality at all! It just has a cheap olfactory sensor on the keyhole that sniffs for the synthetic ‘Protagonist Script-Halo Grease’ that the Academy puts in the VIP trainees’ hair-pomade!”
