With anticipation in her heart, she opened the exchange interface. This could be considered the first time she had the freedom to choose a reward. Even if the reward had to be exchanged with points, it was still something she had earned by completing a task herself, right?
So far, she had completed two tasks. The first was "Main Quest ①: Debut of the Literary Girl," for which she received the reward "Loli Heart."
The other was a side quest. About two months after her literary debut, the system gave her the option to transfer to the private school "Sudi High." After discussing it with her parents, she decided to make the move.
First, her parents wanted her to grow up in a better environment. Second, she herself insisted on transferring—not just because of the task, but because she genuinely wanted to know why the system wanted her to attend this school.
That side quest wasn't particularly difficult. Honestly, it was only mid-level in difficulty, so the reward was 300 Culture Points. But she had never really looked into the exchange system before, so she didn't know what those points could be used for.
Upon opening the exchange interface, several point-based categories appeared:
① Goddess Points, ② Culture Points, ③ Skill Points, ④ Admiration Points, ⑤ Dream Points, ⑥ Item Points, ⑦ Integrity Points.
She admitted she was already confused. The categories were clearly too detailed—unlike the systems she had encountered in novels.
Other systems usually had one to three types of exchange currencies, maybe with a few additional side quest points, and that was enough to redeem anything.
But hers required specific point types to redeem specific things. She could only redeem things that matched the kind of points she had.
She turned her head, her big eyes full of pitiful longing, and looked at Ayase, hoping for an explanation of what each type of point did.
Unconsciously, her behavior was starting to match the age of her current body more and more. Maybe it was because she'd gotten used to it—or perhaps a subtle effect from "Loli Heart."
Of course, that wasn't to say she didn't have any intentional cuteness in her actions. Using your strengths to your advantage was perfectly natural.
Ayase's beautiful phoenix-like eyes narrowed slightly as she smiled with satisfaction. Clearly, Chu Lian's behavior confirmed the results of her long-term "training," and she was pleased. So she began explaining in earnest.
"The reason the exchange options are so detailed is because the creator of this system wanted users to experience all kinds of tasks and choices—to understand what they want, what they must give, and what they receive in return."
"Of course, that's what he said. Personally, I think he was just bored and made all these categories to mess with people. But I can't deny—it's pretty useful. You'll see in a moment." Ayase muttered complaints about the system's creator while slipping off her heels and resting her feet on the sofa. She crossed one leg over the other and gently swung it, the red polish on her toes drawing an alluring arc in the air.
Chu Lian chose not to comment on that. She honestly didn't know what to say.
After a bit more grumbling, Ayase finally began explaining the categories:
"Goddess Points are earned based on how many people consider you their goddess."
"Each person can only contribute one Goddess Point. Once used, it's non-renewable. This is the most important point type and one of the core elements of this system. As for why—well, you'll understand someday."
That again. Every time she didn't want to explain, she used the same excuse. Seriously, enough already.
"Goddess Points can't be used to exchange for anything directly, but many of the system's functions and exchanges require them. Also—and this is important—they link to all other point types. Many high-level abilities require Goddess Points. Plus, each time the system upgrades, it consumes Goddess Points. So now you understand how precious they are, right?" Ayase didn't elaborate much beyond that. As always, she said: some things weren't for Chu Lian to know just yet.
"Culture Points: As I mentioned before, these can be used to exchange for all kinds of cultural knowledge, including novels, films, poetry, anime, literary classics, critiques, music, and more."
"Once redeemed, the knowledge—say, a collection of poems—will be permanently etched into your mind, allowing you to fully internalize and use it effortlessly. If you want to cover songs, you can exchange for them under this category. Once redeemed, you only need a little practice to sing them well."
"There are many ways to earn Culture Points. Reading a book, memorizing a poem, watching a movie, listening to a song—all of these can earn you points. Of course, completing tasks gives you the most..." This category was essential for becoming a true goddess. After all, if a woman lacked inner depth, how could she be a true goddess?
"Skill Points: These let you acquire talents or abilities you currently don't have. You can also use them to enhance the ones you already do."
"The only way to earn them is through system tasks. You didn't get any from the first two main quests, but starting from the third main quest, you'll be able to earn them through various branch tasks."
So basically, she could use these points to unlock talents she lacked? That meant she could even exchange for something like 'Piano Mastery'?
"Admiration Points: Pretty easy to understand—however many people admire you, that's how many Admiration Points you earn. These points are renewable. Each person who admires you will grant you one point every ten days. These points can't be used directly by you, but they're considered a form of reward from those who admire and like you. Of course, they're required for certain special situations too."
Chu Lian understood this one. If you received affection, you should give something back to those who cherished you—that's how you became more likable. As for the so-called 'special situations,' Ayase didn't explain, and Chu Lian didn't know how to ask.
"Dream Points: When you achieve a dream, the wish power that results will be converted into Dream Points and returned to you. These can be used to redeem legendary abilities. The dream you complete can be something you actively pursue—or something you fulfill by chance."
"Oh right, the reward from that Fantasy-difficulty task, 'Whisper of the Nine-Tailed Fox,' can be exchanged here too. But it costs 100,000 Dream Points. Basically, unless you complete a Fantasy-level dream mission, there's no way to earn that many in one go."
"In other words, these points are extremely difficult to obtain." Hearing this, Chu Lian blinked in surprise. She already found Abyss-level tasks extremely tough—if she had to complete someone else's dream to earn these, it'd be even harder.
Also... Ayase, did you just say something very suspicious? What exactly is this 'wish power'? Don't just mention it and move on like it's nothing!
I'm not that dumb—I do think about these things. That term clearly isn't something to gloss over so easily.
"Item Points: These are earned based on how much money you spend. To put it simply, for every 10,000 Huaxia yuan you spend, you get 1 Item Point."
"If you use the money to help others, the conversion rate improves to 1 point per 1,000 yuan. Of course, bad deeds are not allowed. Doing bad things will deduct Item Points—at a one-to-one ratio."
"Item Points can be used to redeem all sorts of things—real-world items, those from anime, films, literary works, and even legends."
This part she understood well. These points were based on how much money she spent. And as long as she kept doing good deeds, the points would accumulate quickly.
With these points, as long as she avoided doing anything bad, she could pretty much get anything she wanted—as long as it was listed in the item exchange catalog.
That felt amazing! It was like: spend money to do what you want, the system accumulates what it needs, and then rewards you back—sometimes with something even more valuable than what you spent. Sure, it was costly, but it was absolutely a righteous path.
Ayase glanced over at Chu Lian and saw her lost in thought, clearly already planning how she could earn more Item Points and exchange them for all sorts of fantastical goods.
Even though it might've been a bit early to let her see that far into the future, Ayase smiled anyway. This was exactly the effect she wanted. The future was too uncertain, with too many unpredictable variables—even she couldn't account for all of them. She was afraid Chu Lian might stray off the path without realizing it. So she used this as a guide to help her stay on the right track.
Even with the system, it wasn't impossible for her to go astray. Human hearts were fragile and ever-changing. Preventing trouble before it started was always the wisest choice. Perhaps that was one of the intentions behind the system's detailed point classifications.
"Integrity Points: You gain these by doing 'shameless' things. For example, deliberately acting cute, accidentally falling and flashing your panties, uploading seductive leg photos, dancing with your skirt fluttering, making people think they'll see panties but only revealing safety shorts, teasing guys with no chance of touching or tasting—stuff like that."
"Basically, doing things that destroy your moral baseline—whether intentionally or not—earns you Integrity Points. Honestly, I have no idea what kind of mindset the system's creator had to come up with something this twisted!"
Ayase couldn't help but rant while explaining this category. And Chu Lian shuddered at the idea. Doing that kind of stuff... it was just too indecent! No way! Absolutely not! Never!
She couldn't admit that she had a tiny bit of mischievous streak in her. Acting cute on purpose? That was practically her daily routine. Letting guys get a glimpse but never a touch—yeah, she did that often too, usually just to mess with the boys who tried to get close.
Of course, she would never actually admit to any of that.
"Things you can redeem with Integrity Points are... let's say... highly questionable. Like this one: 'Touhou Pillow Companion Handbook,' 'Cat-Eared Maid Daily Photo Set,' 'Loli Is Justice Artbook'... What is this nonsense?! And look at these: 'Reimu's Donation Box (Note: For 100,000 points, I'll do anything.),' 'Yuyuko's Kimono,' 'Yukari's Worn Stockings,' 'Misaka's Safety Shorts,' 'Remilia-sama's Dignity'... and so on."
Hearing all these familiar yet bizarre references, Chu Lian's face twisted into a strange expression. She wanted to complain, but didn't know how. Not complaining felt unbearable. Why were all these private or oddly specific items tied to shamelessness?
Neither of them really knew what to say, so they quietly dropped the topic with unspoken agreement. Although Ayase enjoyed teasing Chu Lian, that didn't mean she wanted others to see this side of her.
And Chu Lian still firmly believed she was a guy at heart. Even if her past profession exposed her to these kinds of things, having to face them from a female perspective made her extremely uncomfortable. These kinds of things were not something they wanted to discuss.
"You can open your stats now and check how many of each point type you have. Points you earn over time will remain there even if unused, but the system won't notify you when you gain them. You'll need to check them yourself." Ayase, as if just remembering, gave a casual reminder—but that smirk on her lips totally gave her away. She had definitely done it on purpose!
"You totally knew and didn't remind me—Ayase, you're so full of twisted humor! Are all big-sister types this fond of teasing lolis?" Of course, she quickly buried that thought deep in her heart before Ayase could notice.
She reopened the exchange interface and carefully examined her stats. She was curious to see how many points she had accumulated over the past year:
"Goddess Points: 378 Culture Points: 4,965 Skill Points: 0 Admiration Points: 2,754 Dream Points: 29,524 Item Points: 17 Integrity Points: 143,232"
Ayase leaned over and peeked at the numbers, then burst into laughter: "Wow, you really are a loli—over 140,000 Integrity Points? Oh dear, just how shameless have you been to get that many? Deliberate cuteness—it's in your nature, ahahaha..."
She laughed for a while, and only stopped when she saw Chu Lian making a face that practically screamed, "If you keep laughing, I'll cry." Still grinning, she continued, "But hey, nearly 400 people already consider you their goddess. Are they your peers... or just hardcore lolicons with peculiar tastes? Kinda suspicious, don't you think...?"
"Your Culture Points are okay—it shows you at least did some reading this year. But as for those Dream Points... who would've thought completing that little boy Wang Tingsi's dream would net you so many. Looks like you got lucky that time, or it would've been impossible."
Hearing that, Chu Lian couldn't help but feel a little proud. Her eyes curved into happy crescent moons.
"Not to burst your bubble or anything, but people who genuinely love studying and reading or listening to music tend to earn at least 50,000 Culture Points a year. You barely scraped 2,000. What's there to be proud of..."
Chu Lian was used to it by now. Ayase always landed a verbal jab right when she was the most pleased, clearly finding amusement in her defeated expression. So she let it slide—getting used to it was key.
To avoid another round of teasing, Chu Lian quickly changed the topic: "Speaking of lolicons, you just reminded me—I think I know which song I want to sing now..."
After saying that, she tapped into the Culture Point section, navigated to "Music," then to "Japanese Songs." She typed in the name of a certain artist, found the song she had in mind, and said, "Found it! This one—Hatsune Miku's song『ろりこんでよかった～』. Cost: 3,500 Culture Points."
The translated title? "Glad You're A Lolicon"...
She couldn't even imagine what would happen if she actually sang that. Dropping a few million Integrity Points in one go wouldn't be surprising at all...