Bai Youwei took out her long-preserved incense blend.

Shen Mo lit the incense and placed it inside the burner.

A faint, delicate fragrance drifted out from the burner — no visible smoke, no ember glow. If not for the scent they could plainly smell, Shen Mo would have had no way to confirm he’d actually lit it.

Because it was unclear which “certain items” the incense would affect, Bai Youwei brought out all of her items.

The starter pistol. The improved flower seeds. The friend invitation card. The snowflake. The white conch. The large pea. The firefly. The paper bell. The silver casket. The Queen’s Magic Mirror. The cuckoo…

And four nearly depleted clay tablets — including two that Tan Xiao’s former companion, Hu Dashan, had returned.

All around the incense burner, the soft fragrance lingered, faint and light — not heavy, not sharp. It seemed as though a slightly deeper breath might blow it away entirely.

Bai Youwei and Shen Mo stood at the table in hushed concentration, and waited quietly for a while.

Then they each reached out and touched the items arranged beside the burner.

No change whatsoever.

“Strange — could it be that the time is too short?” Bai Youwei murmured, puzzled. “Among these items there are attacking types, support types, healing types — nearly every category. There shouldn’t be zero reaction from all of them.”

Shen Mo thought for a moment, then said, “Perhaps it needs a bit more time to take effect. Let’s rest for now — it’s already very late, and you’ve just come out of the game. You must be tired.”

Bai Youwei gazed at the incense burner, hesitating.

She was indeed somewhat exhausted — but she also wanted to watch the items improve in quality with her own eyes.

They waited another half hour. Still no reaction from the items.

Bai Youwei finally couldn’t hold out any longer. Deflated and grumbling, she said, “Why is there still no reaction? Did we do something wrong? Ah… this burner cost five whole items. If it doesn’t work, can we apply for an unconditional return?”

Shen Mo laughed and lightly tapped her on the head. “Go to sleep. Whether it works or not, we’ll deal with it in the morning.”

Bai Youwei pouted and was reluctantly coaxed into bed.

She fell asleep quickly.

Although the game had required little physical exertion, her nerves had been taut the entire time — which was in its own way exhausting. Now that she was back at Shen Mo’s side, she let her guard down completely, and her whole body relaxed. She drifted off at an almost unbelievable speed.

She slept without dreams.

……

The next morning, Bai Youwei slowly woke.

The very first thought upon opening her eyes was to check the incense burner.

Shen Mo had woken before her and was currently standing beside the burner, observing it. Bai Youwei asked eagerly, “Well? Has anything changed?”

Shen Mo turned his head and beckoned her over. “Yes. Come and see.”

Bai Youwei tossed a blanket over her shoulders and crowded in beside him, soft and fuzzy. “Hss… it’s so cold.”

Shen Mo lifted his arm and gathered her into his side. “The temperature dropped again today. Fortunately the electricity is back on and the air conditioning is working properly — otherwise the people in the urban districts would suffer quite a bit.”

Bai Youwei caught the faint lingering fragrance.

Same as yesterday’s scent, and at roughly the same strength — which meant the incense was still working.

“Touch these clay tablets,” Shen Mo said.

Bai Youwei reached out and pressed her hand over the tablets — and was astonished to find that these clay tablets, which had previously had almost no uses remaining, had gained more. Of the four tablets, three of them had increased in uses by one.

“Oh my goodness…” Bai Youwei touched the tablets in amazement, then looked at Shen Mo, eyes full of disbelief.

The combined effect of the incense blend and the burner was absolutely extraordinary.

“What about the other items?” she couldn’t help asking.

“Most showed no change, but…” Shen Mo picked up a packet of flower seeds and a mounted insect specimen, placing them in Bai Youwei’s hands. “These two items changed.”

The improved flower seeds: after making contact with the ground, would bloom into a sea of flowers within 24 hours, regardless of season or environment.

Now, 24 hours had become 20 hours.

The firefly: could illuminate a space of 1,000 cubic meters.

Now, it could illuminate 1,500 cubic meters.

Bai Youwei marveled — then looked at Shen Mo.

“I… I feel suddenly rich.”

—