Chapter 36: This mission is clearly designed to make things difficult! As if it were that easy to conquer Tomoyo's lips!

"This is a notebook cover made from talisman-like paper. When you want to store items, you can place them inside the cover. For the other pages, you can choose to record your diary or other important notes. Once it recognizes its owner, it also provides a certain degree of protection..." Ye Hui explained.

If not for his limited artifact-refining skills and the lack of suitable materials, he could have easily crafted a proper storage ring. As it stood, modifying a "storage talisman" into a magical item that could be used cyclically without requiring spiritual power was already his absolute limit.

He really had his work cut out for him!

"Thank you, Ye Hui-kun!"

[Sakura Kinomoto emotional value +12]
[Tomoyo Daidouji emotional value +12]

Ye Hui mused internally; it was rare to see Tomoyo provide emotional value for a gift he gave! Tomoyo did not place much importance on material things—in fact, she placed very little importance on them at all. This time, perhaps it was because she saw the difficulty of Ye Hui’s crafting process and the sincerity behind using ordinary materials to piece together equipment. Or perhaps... it was because this gear would allow Tomoyo to carry more batteries and film Sakura better.

"Sigh, if only every piece of equipment could generate emotional value..." Ye Hui recalled the previous artifacts he had gifted her. Sakura would always generate some emotional value for him, but Tomoyo only rarely did so. However, she would often return the favor with a small gift of her own. He guessed that was one of the reasons why she didn't immediately show emotional value after receiving his gifts—after all, the social debt had been repaid.

Just then, the system log updated.

[You racked your brains to provide trial equipment for everyone and gave away the gift you had prepared for Tomoyo Daidouji, who once protected you!]
[You recall being saved by her and feel a strange sensation! Even though you know Tomoyo Daidouji would save any sect disciple in danger, you still feel you are the most special to her!]
[She accepts the gift, and you have a realization: the value of a gift lies not in its price, but in the heart behind it!]
[However, Tomoyo Daidouji has an extraordinary background, and you don't believe she will cherish this gear after the trial ends. Thus, you realize that trying to win her over with gifts brings half the results for double the effort!]
[You remember your hard-earned culinary skills, and since Tomoyo Daidouji happens to be a huge foodie, you decide to cater to her tastes and let her continue to feel your sincerity...]
[Ding! New character bond quest refreshed—"Small Gift, Great Sincerity"! Successfully gift Tomoyo Daidouji 5 servings of Spirit Cuisine, with each dish providing no less than 20 emotional value points!]

"Hiss!" Ye Hui gasped. This task was exceptionally difficult! Even with his improved sub-professions and skills comparable to a master chef, it was not guaranteed that Tomoyo would provide him with over 20 emotional value points every time because of food.

"System, a question: if I don't complete a bond quest, will a new one refresh?" The moment he saw the task, Ye Hui was already considering giving up. He knew Tomoyo could make Italian cuisine, which was known as the ancestor of Western food. Although his own cooking sub-profession had improved significantly, he had to remember what kind of system this was. It was a cultivation mini-game, definitely leaning toward Eastern Xianxia styles! The "Spirit Chef" skills he gained through leveling up mostly provided knowledge of Chinese cuisine.

"Just for a bond quest, do I have to go learn how to cook Western food just to farm a few emotional points?" Ye Hui was reluctant. It was difficult, troublesome, and the rewards weren't high. True, culinary techniques were universal; a master chef could understand how to make food they had never cooked before just by looking at it. But Western and Chinese cuisines were truly two distinct styles. Ye Hui felt the cost of the task was too high. To make Western food good enough to earn 20+ emotional points from the discerning Tomoyo every time, he would likely have to practice for years! If the reward were high, it might be worth it, but this damn system kept the rewards hidden until the task was completed. Forget it, I'm done!

At that moment, a system prompt popped up: [The host will not receive a new bond quest until the current one is completed.]

"Fine, fine, fine. Playing me like this, are you? You’re locking my progress? Do you think I’m some boss that needs to be cleared?" Ye Hui, who was just about to give up, felt helpless. What kind of nonsense was this? Giving a gift had spiraled into such a troublesome bond quest... Ye Hui felt a headache coming on.

...

The next day, during P.E. class, the students were testing their vaulting skills.

"Chiharu is so pitiful!" Sakura said to Tomoyo. Tomoyo had told her about a rumor going around: whenever someone visited a certain toy store, things would go missing... and Chiharu's home had recently been robbed.

"Ye Hui!" the teacher called out, startling Sakura. She looked toward the center of the field.

"Here!" Ye Hui replied, stepping forward quickly to find a good position. The vaulting equipment was a wooden box, stacked trapezoidally, with adjustable height. Ye Hui looked up at it. Was this box really that high? From a distance, it hadn't seemed like much, but up close, he realized it was a bit exaggerated for ordinary elementary school students. But what was even more exaggerated was that many students had already vaulted over it. Ye Hui clicked his tongue. If it were the old him, he wouldn't have been sure he could do it. But after practicing cultivation, his physique was far beyond his peers; he was nothing like the weakling described in the system logs. Jumping over it was quite easy. In fact, the vault wasn't meant to make things difficult for the children, but to train their hand-foot coordination from a young age. As long as one used their hands to push off the lid of the box, they could leap over it.

Ye Hui took a running start. Leap, support, launch. No extra movements, no fancy flips, just a fluid, seamless motion.

"Good!" the teacher nearby instinctively praised. "Next, Kinomoto."

"Ah, it's my turn!" Sakura realized and ran over, successfully completing the vault before rejoining Tomoyo and Ye Hui.

"Well, as expected of Sakura. Even without any cultivation, you have such good athletic ability. It seems the magic power within you will be very strong..." Ye Hui praised.

[Sakura Kinomoto emotional value +8]

Sakura scratched her head shyly. "Really?"

Tomoyo looked a bit regretful. "It's a pity that it's not suitable to film during P.E. class..."

Good grief, the director was truly dedicated!

Sakura said, "Ye, you jumped very well too. When I was coming back, I heard the other students talking about you..."

Ye Hui smiled. "By the way, Ye, have you heard?" Sakura told Ye Hui about Chiharu's situation. "Is this also the work of Clow Cards?" Sakura asked.

"I'm not sure. I just have a feeling about it."