"Genie, why are you a woman?"
"Because you like women, duh. I take the form of whatever the summoner prefers."
"Oh... huh? Wait a second! Then what about Aladdin?!"
"Influenced by his cultural perception. In his eyes, divine beings looked like that weird form. Anyway, when are you going to grant my first wish? I want supreme power, okay?"
The female genie, curvaceous and hovering playfully around Qin Ming, smiled mischievously.
"It must be the most supreme, most supreme, most supreme kind! Anyone above me? Unacceptable! Even gods are out! Otherwise, it doesn't count as fulfilling my wish! And if you can't fulfill my wish, I'll keep haunting you, bothering and disrupting you until you either leave this world or die from my tricks. You—what's this?"
She hadn't finished her speech when she suddenly froze mid-gesture.
Both her eyes crossed inward in a derpy stare.
She reached out and grabbed the fork in front of her, her face filled with confusion.
Qin Ming, hands in his pockets, curled his lips into a smirk.
"That's your supreme power."
The genie blinked. When she processed his words, she grinned and waved the fork.
"Quit messing around. This is just a dinner fork. What kind of supreme power could it have? What, does it command all vegetables and chefs or something?"
"Behold: the Holy Fork of the Sovereign, ruler of the unified world, a god in the eyes of their subjects, the legendary savior, the supreme being above all—and this is the holy fork wielded by the Sovereign! The symbol of rulership! Whoever holds it is king!"
Before the genie could finish, Qin Ming cut her off with a solemn tone.
As she stared wide-eyed at him, Qin Ming flashed a toothy grin.
"So? Does this item meet the standards for your first wish?"
The genie's mouth twitched. She was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled and adjusted her hair.
"Well... this thing is pretty cool, I'll admit. And it's even a legendary item—super rare, you know. If you give it to me, it's gone for good. What a waste."
"No problem. I don't need it. The Hound Squad is enough for me."
"You're really giving it to me?"
"Yup."
"Just to fulfill one wish? I've still got two left, you know. If you don't fulfill all of them, it won't count. And you won't get the item back!"
"That's fine. I'm not short on legendary gear."
They stared at each other with friendly smiles. After a few seconds of this tension, the genie's grin suddenly collapsed into a flat look. She shoved the fork away with a sigh and put it away.
"Congratulations. You've fulfilled my first wish. Now for the second—I want you dead. Go die."
Hearing that, Qin Ming didn't get angry—in fact, he burst out laughing.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin.
"Hey, did you forget what kind of loot someone like me gets? Here! Kill me all you want!"
He held out an arcade revival coin in front of her. The genie, whose face had just gone sour, widened her eyes instantly. She smacked her own cheek with a groan.
"Dammit! I forgot about that! Fine! You win this round!"
"So, what's your third wish?"
"My third wish? Hm… I haven't thought about it yet. Give me time—I'll figure it out slowly. No rush."
With her mood adjusted, the genie once again showed a radiant smile.
Qin Ming's eyes flickered at her response.
"Can't handle it, huh? Trying to cheat, are you? Planning to stall for time?"
The genie raised an eyebrow and shrugged slightly.
"Just learning from you, Mr. Adventurer. I'm just painting the cat by watching the tiger."
"Then let's keep stalling. I'm in no rush. Before I leave, you still have to tell me your third wish, right?"
Staring at the smug genie, Qin Ming's eyes glinted.
"You'd better think of a wish I can't fulfill. Otherwise, I guarantee you'll regret it, you toy lamp."
The genie's smile gradually faded. She looked at Qin Ming expressionlessly.
"Watch your mouth, kid. You're just some dime-a-dozen third-rate pawn under the Space's command. Best not talk to me like that. Not even the Nightmare Space dares speak to me like this!"
Qin Ming simply shrugged and raised an eyebrow.
"Really? Then, oh mighty genie, how come someone like you ended up trapped here? The last big shot I met didn't need to follow Nightmare Space's rules. Unlike someone, who not only has to obey the rules but even got turned into a piece of equipment."
"You—!"
The genie gritted her teeth, and in the next second, bang—she turned into smoke and shot back into the lamp.
Seeing this, the smile slowly disappeared from Qin Ming's face, his brows furrowing slightly.
He was sure now—this genie didn't come close to the level of Nightmare Space or Tathāgata Buddha. She was definitely a step lower.
After all, when Buddha's arm got chopped off, the Space couldn't even determine its grade.
But this genie? She was an equippable item and only rated as "Mythical."
What did that prove? It meant her tier simply wasn't high enough!
Even if she was a being that had transcended Nightmare Space, at best she was a low-end one.
Still, even a low-end transcendent was miles beyond someone like Qin Ming—a mere grunt.
That's why he was willing to part with the Holy Fork just to complete her wishes.
Because she was a god—a real god.
According to the rules of Nightmare Space, if he truly completed this hidden quest, then this god would be forced to pay an enormous price.
Otherwise, someone so obviously prideful and dismissive of adventurers wouldn't have resorted to cheap tricks.
A reward even a god hesitated to part with—just imagining it made Qin Ming excited.
He might even receive a Mythical item... or something even higher tier! Something he might not even be able to fuse with yet!
As he gently rubbed the lamp in thought, he suddenly felt a loud rumble under his feet.
In the next moment, with the pillar shaking violently, a massive mechanical contraption shot up along the stone column!
It was the excavator used by the rebel army to dig through the pyramid—The Devourer!
Watching the roaring drill machine charge up, seemingly intent on consuming him, a very annoyed Qin Ming rolled his eyes.
The next second, he leapt down from the altar, dropping straight into the machine's gaping maw.
Just before he fell into the massive crusher, he brought his hands together and activated a skill.
Golden Arhat!
Ding!
His body instantly burst into golden light as he flew into the grinder!
The next moment, a screeching sound rang out as sparks exploded violently from within the machine!
It was as if someone had thrown a steel rod into a washing machine! The internals began to collapse from the inside out!
Unable to even scratch Qin Ming with his full defenses activated, the serpentine drill machine began to spew black smoke from its tip, and with a series of loud explosions, lost all power and plummeted back down...
(End of Chapter)