After opening the system shop, Sylvus noticed that it contained only three items.

"System, isn't this shop a little too empty? Are the items going to disappear once I buy them?"

Sylvus frowned and asked.

In the novels he had read, the protagonist's system shop usually had thousands of items to choose from.

But here, there were only three—how stingy.

*[System Notification: The system shop refreshes once every seven days. Each refresh brings three random items from across the multiverse. The host need not worry.]*

Sylvus rolled his eyes. Even if it refreshed, three items still felt too few.

However, there was nothing he could do since this was how the system worked. He then turned his attention to the three items.

*Meteor Shower:* A Grade-Three spell. Summons a hundred fiery meteors. Price: 1,000 points.

*Beast Trap:* Allows the capture of magical beasts. If the beast's strength is equal to the user's, there is a 100% success rate. For every higher rank the beast is, the success rate decreases by 10%. Once captured, the beast will never betray the user. Price: 10,000 points.

Looking at the first two items, Sylvus frowned.

The fire spell could be somewhat useful, but he couldn't afford it.

As for the Beast Trap, he had no use for it right now, and it cost a staggering 10,000 points. Who did the system think it was fooling?

1 magic crystal = 1 point.

This meant that these two items together cost 11,000 magic crystals.

Even though he had made some sales today, he had only earned a total of 405 magic crystals—not enough to buy anything.

"These two items aren't important. Let's see what the last one is."

Sylvus thought as his gaze fell on the third item.

As soon as he saw it, his breathing quickened.

*Forbidden Codex (Fragmented):* Contains ancient forbidden magic. Price: 100,000 points.

"It's another fragment of the Forbidden Codex? I can't believe it's already available in the shop, but…"

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While Sylvus was excited, his enthusiasm quickly dampened when he saw the price.

100,000 points!

Even if he sold himself, he wouldn't be worth that much.

Unless he could get Meylan to pay him back soon, he wouldn't be able to buy it anytime soon.

"Right! I'll get Meylan to repay me later. He did say he had money, and now that he's working for me, I don't have to worry about him running off."

Sylvus' eyes lit up. Why hadn't he thought of this earlier?

The other two items were unnecessary.

But the *Forbidden Codex (Fragmented)* was a must-have.

If he missed this chance, who knew when it would show up again?

"For now, I should focus on cultivation. I'm too weak as I am."

Closing the system shop, Sylvus took out the *Great Rejuvenation Pill* and swallowed it.

At the same time, the forbidden meditation technique he had just learned appeared in his mind.

---

"Great, I'm now a Two-Star Mage! I'll be able to pass the family's annual test in three days."

After leaving Sylvus' shop, Kennan walked home with a smile on his face.

The Sloane family was one of the top magical families in the Sacred City.

Not only did they have powerful Saint Archmages, but the current head of the family was the chief archmage of the Boc Empire.

Naturally, the family took great interest in the progress of its younger generation.

As a direct descendant, Kennan was under even more scrutiny.

Unfortunately, he had been stuck in his cultivation for the past three years.

Many of his peers had already become mages, and some with exceptional talent had even reached the Archmage level.

The annual family test had long been a tradition of the Sloane family.

Anyone who failed to show progress for three consecutive years would be expelled from the family.

This year was Kennan's final chance. He had already resigned himself to being expelled, but now, unexpectedly, he had broken through.

"Well, if it isn't Kennan. You seem confident about the test in three days; otherwise, why would you be out strolling?"

As Kennan walked, a voice called out. His previously cheerful expression darkened as he turned to face the speaker.

It was his cousin, Sloane-Debb.

Debb was considered the family's prodigy of their generation. He was the same age as Kennan but had already reached the Nine-Star Mage level.

He had bullied Kennan frequently in the past, and now, by chance, they had crossed paths.

Kennan hesitated but chose to ignore Debb, turning to walk in the opposite direction.

Although Kennan was frustrated, there wasn't much he could do.

Debb was far stronger than him, and even as a Two-Star Mage, Kennan stood no chance against him.

"Don't be in such a rush, my dear cousin. I know you're a failure, so why not challenge me during the family test in three days? I'll even go easy on you. How about it?"

Debb blocked Kennan's path with a mocking grin.

Kennan's brows furrowed. Clearly, Debb was trying to make him look foolish.

"If you challenge me during the test, I'll even give you 10,000 magic crystals. After all, you're not going to pass the test anyway, so why not earn some money before you're kicked out of the family?"

Seeing that Kennan wasn't responding, Debb pulled out a spatial ring and smiled.

Kennan glanced at the ring in Debb's hand.

Normally, with his previous temperament, he would have ignored him.

But this time, after a few seconds of hesitation, a smile crept across Kennan's face, and he took the ring.

"As you wish, dear cousin."

With that, Kennan turned and walked away.

Debb was momentarily stunned, not expecting Kennan to actually agree.

"Hmph, when I cripple you during the test, I'll finally get revenge for what your father did to mine!"

Debb's lips curled into a sinister smile as he watched Kennan's departing figure.