Free Web NovelChapter 36: 36 | Rewards! Rewards! Rewards!
The girls clearly didn’t believe him.
Selene’s eyes narrowed with worry. Lyra’s fingers hovered over her phone, ready to type another question. Mira just watched him, her expression unreadable but heavy with something new.
But before any of them could speak—
Dexter turned around.
"I’ll... be back in a minute."
He staggered toward the bedroom and quietly closed the door behind him.
Only then, alone, did he finally let out a groan.
"Urgh..."
The pain was unlike anything he had ever experienced.
He couldn’t believe someone had endured this for years.
And then, a familiar mechanical voice echoed inside his mind.
[Ding!]
---
Inside the bathroom, Dexter gripped the edge of the sink with both hands.
His knuckles turned white.
Every nerve in his body screamed in agony. It felt like thousands of red-hot needles were being driven through his muscles, his bones, his internal organs—all at the same time.
Cold sweat streamed down his face. His breathing turned ragged.
"...So this... this is what she’s been enduring..."
He had always known Mira lived in constant pain. He’d seen her expression tighten whenever she tried to move. He’d watched her force smiles despite the suffering.
But knowing and experiencing were two entirely different things.
Now that he was carrying the pain himself, Dexter finally understood.
No wonder she had wanted to die. No wonder she had lost all hope.
He’d once heard someone say that women possessed an unbelievable tolerance for pain. Back then, he hadn’t paid much attention.
Now, he believed it wholeheartedly.
"How... did she endure this for years...?"
He let out a long breath and forced himself to relax, bit by bit. His body slowly adapted. The pain never disappeared—but it became... bearable.
Just then—
[Ding!]
A familiar system notification appeared before him.
---
[Overall Affection Threshold Reached 100%]
[New System Function Unlocked: Cultivation Sharing]
---
Dexter blinked. "Cultivation... Sharing?"
The system continued immediately.
---
[From now on, whenever an investor breaks through, the host will automatically receive cultivation according to that investor’s affection level.]
Current Investors:
Mira — 50%
Lyra — 10%
Selene — 20%
Jasmine — 70%
Rachael — 30%
[0% → Stranger → 10% → Acquaintance → 20% → Familiar → 30% → Friendly → 40% → Friend → 50% → Trusted Friend → 60% → Best Companion → 70% → Lover → 80% → Romantic Partner → 90% → False Soulmates → 100% → True Soulmates ]
---
The very next instant—
A tremendous amount of mana flooded into Dexter’s body.
His eyes widened.
"So this is... Mira’s breakthrough!"
The cultivation she had gained from reaching the Fifth Stage surged into him. Fifty percent of it merged directly into his own.
Immediately afterward, another wave arrived. Lyra’s. Then another. Selene’s.
The three streams of cultivation merged together like rivers flowing into the sea.
"Boom!"
His aura erupted.
The Eighth Stage, which he had only recently broken through, stabilized in an instant.
Then his cultivation kept climbing.
Early Eighth Stage... Middle Eighth Stage... Late Eighth Stage... Peak Eighth Stage...
The mana still hadn’t stopped.
Another explosion echoed inside his body.
"Boom"
Dexter’s eyes flew open. "I broke through again?"
His aura expanded once more. He had stepped into the Early Ninth Stage of the Awakening Realm.
Dexter stared blankly at the notification. He had advanced two entire stages in a single morning.
"If this continues... it won’t be long before I enter the Superhuman Realm."
His heartbeat quickened. The stronger the girls became, the stronger he would become as well. No wonder the system called them his Investors.
---
Just then, another notification appeared.
Knowing the multiplier reward would soon activate, Dexter rushed out of the bathroom and went to the girls.
They were still staring at the door in confusion. Of course they had felt the blast from his breakthrough and were stunned.
They were even more stunned when Dexter smiled at them, stepped forward, and patted Lyra’s shoulder. Then he gently held Selene’s palm with his hand.
She didn’t flinch—just as he had expected.
"Pain absorb."
Dexter’s face turned pale. Sweat dripped down his body. Pain from broken meridians flooded him. The ringing sensation from Lyra’s ears. The burning feeling she had been enduring in her throat. The pricking sensation Selene had been feeling in her eyes, and the icy flames burning through her body constantly.
Dexter wanted to scream. He wanted to roar and deactivate the ring immediately—but the system rewards hadn’t come yet.
"What?" Lyra’s glasses spoke for her, the mechanical voice tight with shock. "What did you do?"
The two girls were stunned. The pain that had been their neighbor for more than three years had simply vanished at Dexter’s touch.
It didn’t take long for them to figure it out, with their intelligence.
"Excu—" Dexter couldn’t form any words. He rushed back into the bathroom.
Pain! Intense pain colliding with every single one of his senses. His eyes, his ears, his throat, his meridians, his skin, his muscles, his brain. It was inconceivable.
[Ding!]
---
[10,000× Investment System Activated]
Investment Target: Mira, Selene, Lyra
Investment: You sincerely bore your three wives’ pains
Multiplier: 100×
Calculating Returns...
[Rewards Obtained:]
• D-Rank Talent Card — Pain Perception
A passive talent that allows the host to sense the physical and emotional pain of bonded targets from a great distance. Danger, injuries, illness, and suffering can all be detected instantly.
• Type-6 Relic — Ring of Shared Burdens
An upgraded version of the Pain Transfer Ring. Effects: No distance limitation. Can transfer any form of physical pain, chronic pain, poison agony, soul pain, and curse backlash. Can be activated or cancelled at will. The transferred pain is borne entirely by the wearer.
• Sixth-Tier Legendary Body Cultivation Technique — Eternal Buddha Endurance Scripture
A legendary body-refining art that converts pain into strength. The more suffering the practitioner endures, the stronger the body becomes. Pain is transformed into vitality, increasing regeneration, durability, mental resistance, and poison resistance.
• Grade-4 Divine Medicine — Phoenix Heart Elixir ×3
A precious healing medicine capable of repairing damaged organs, restoring vitality, and greatly reducing permanent injuries.
• Mana Affinity Increased
A-Rank → S-Rank
Mana absorption speed increased dramatically.
---
Dexter’s breathing became uneven. "So many rewards..."
The Ring of Shared Burdens immediately caught his attention. "No distance limit..." That meant even if Mira, Selene, or Lyra were thousands of kilometers away, he could still take their pain upon himself.
His gaze softened. "If Selene’s illness acts up again... I won’t have to just watch her suffer anymore."
Then his attention shifted to the Phoenix Heart Elixirs. Although they couldn’t completely heal shattered meridians like a Divine Pill, they were still priceless treasures. "They’ll be useful later."
Finally, his eyes settled on the Eternal Buddha Endurance Scripture. A slow smile spread across his face. "This technique... it was practically made for me."
He was already cultivating the Demon Tempering Body Technique, a cultivation art that constantly pushed his body to its limits.
Now, with the Eternal Endurance Scripture, every bit of pain he experienced would become nourishment for his body instead of just suffering.
The stronger the pain, the stronger he would become. And with the girls always in pain... wouldn’t he become a god in no time?
Dexter closed the system window.
He tried to cultivate, tried to pull his mind away from the pain. He washed his face with cold water and took a deep breath. His expression gradually returned to normal.
Only then did he leave the bathroom.
Outside, three pairs of eyes immediately turned toward him.
Shock was written across their faces, and now a hint of awe and respect could be seen there, too.
