I created a safe zone in the nightmare world.

Shi An returned to the safe zone.

Inside the store, the decoration style and environment are not much different from before, but the area has doubled and there are a few more small round tables set up inside.

"besides……"

Shi An didn't need to walk around; he could perceive the changes in the entire shop simply by observing it closely. Every brick, tile, flower, and blade of grass in the safe zone was already imprinted in his mind.

"The tool room now has some basic tools, such as brooms, gloves, wrenches, and so on."

"besides……"

Shi An walked to the water dispenser next to him.

This water dispenser looks like just a water dispenser at first glance, but actually...

It can dispense not only water, but also tea, coffee, milk tea, soda, orange juice, beer, and more.

"What you chant, you can pour out."

The cabinet next to it, which looks like a black box, also contains snacks such as bread, small cakes, and cookies.

This is all a bit unscientific.

But it feels like a dream.

"This is far more magical than any cursed object!"

"Or rather, these are two special cursed objects."

Milk tea freedom was achieved so unexpectedly.

Shi An had thought about brewing tea in the shop, and now that the tea is available, the tea that is poured out directly seems to lack a certain soul.

"besides……"

"The storage room next door has been tripled in size, and now it can hold a lot of miscellaneous items."

Open the door through the wall behind the bar; the tool room is on the left and the storage room is on the right.

Shi An had previously complained that the storage room was too small; he couldn't even fit many of the local specialties from the Nightmare World in it. Now, it seems that the upgrade and renovation of the safe zone is exactly what he wanted.

Not only that...

Further down this not-so-wide corridor, there is another small room.

Store Manager's Lounge

It's not very big, only about ten square meters.

But it has everything: a single bed, a desk, a toilet, and a wardrobe.

The idea of ​​sleeping in dreams can finally be realized.

Wonderful!

"Furthermore, once we enter the safe zone, we can directly appear in the manager's office, so that we don't have to perform a magic trick to reappear when there are Dreamers outside."

……

Shi An toured the entire safe zone, inside and out, and was fully aware of the changes that had occurred after the renovation.

In addition to the manager's office, unlimited water dispenser, and bread box, he also discovered a strange item in the store.

——"Value Assessment Machine"

This is a device that can assess the approximate value of an item.

The device was placed in an inconspicuous corner of the store, about the height of a person. At first glance, it looked a bit like a weighing scale, except that instead of a person, valuable dream items were to be placed on it.

Shi An tried throwing a damaged cursed object up there.

The evaluation machine emitted a soft beeping sound.

About two or three seconds later,

"Beep~!"

The text on the screen above is printed out one by one.

"Item being evaluated: Cursed Artifact - Fang (Damaged)"

"Description: A relatively sharp object that can be used directly by holding it in your hand. Using it to cut living beings can make the wounds difficult to heal."

"Evaluation: A cursed item of relatively high value among the damaged grade, appraised at 1700g Dream Dust."

"Is it about appraising and assessing value?"

"As for the value, it seems to be similar to the current market situation—or this assessment is based on the market and will fluctuate with the market."

Previously, the Dreamers who arrived in the safe zone would also engage in some transactions with each other.

Although the number of transactions was not large, it still allowed Shi An to gain some understanding of market conditions.

As for the identification...

"Appraisal is a capability inherent to the safe zone itself. When I'm within the safe zone, I can already discern the abilities and usage methods of cursed objects through mere observation. But now, has this capability extended to the value assessment machine?"

After a moment's thought, Shi An realized that the valuation machine had great value.

Currently, the three pieces of equipment in the safe zone, the "unlimited water dispenser" and the "bread black box," are considered luxuries. Under normal circumstances, the time it takes for a person who has fallen into a nightmare to experience one is not long, and water and food are not essential for them.

but,

"The development of unfamiliar magical artifacts by Dream Fallers comes at a considerable cost in the early stages."

"In the nightmare world, there are many materials and precious medicines that those who have fallen into dreams cannot recognize."

These can all be identified by a valuation machine.

At least, the vast majority can be identified.

"The value assessment machine can indeed charge a fee, especially for the use of cursed objects. For those who have fallen into dreams, spending a little dream dust to get a result directly is much more valuable than trying again and again. The latter also requires consuming dream crystal dust, and one has to endure the corrosive effects of the cursed object time and time again."

In the world of those who have fallen into a dream, identification is a strong need.

And what about 'value assessment'?

"Perhaps, the safe zone could start a recycling operation in the future?"

Shi An felt that there were more and more things that could be done in the safe zone.

However, even now, he still hasn't been able to find the "cursed object containment area" mentioned in the prompt.

Where did they hide?

"What about my huge cursed object containment area?"

Perhaps it triggered a keyword.

In an instant,

Two blank boxes appeared in front of Shi An.

He got it.

"This is the containment area? What's it for?"

Judging from the name, it is undoubtedly used to contain cursed objects.

However, he piled the cursed items in the corner of the storage room, so the impact on the surrounding environment was not significant, and it didn't have to be contained.

Moreover, this containment area only has two compartments.

Shi An thought for a moment and placed his strongest cursed artifact, the Invisible Corridor, inside.

In an instant,

"Ding!"

"Notification: You have contained the cursed artifact 'Invisible Corridor (Rare)'."

"Note: You can directly use the abilities of contained cursed objects without being affected by their side effects. The extent to which the cursed object is developed still depends on yourself."

No prompts are needed.

As he contained the invisible corridor, Shi An subconsciously understood what he could do.

It seemed to be an instinct.

After thinking it over, Shi An decided not to attempt it within the safe zone.

Instead, he returned to reality.

We arrived at the cramped restroom.

Raise your hand.

In an instant,

The cramped bathroom suddenly expanded, the walls changed, transforming into the shape of the nightmare corridor from the past, extending deeper and deeper into the darkness.

At this moment, Shi An did not experience any burden or pressure from frantically activating the cursed artifact.

He only sensed a close connection between himself and the containment chamber. Strands of cursed power flowed into his body along the containment chamber; it was cold but not uncomfortable.

It easily and quickly activated the invisible corridor, producing an effect ten times stronger than the last time.

The consumption is negligible.

"Is this really something I can do?"

"That's so true to me!"

Shi An has never actually fought, but based on this skill alone, he can definitely be considered a master among the Dreamers.

Moreover, his potential is far greater than that.

As he continues to develop and master the use of cursed objects, he will be able to unleash even greater power.

"In other words, I don't need to go through the path of borrowing, integrating, controlling, and refining. Or rather, I can continuously forge and utilize it, skipping several intermediate stages, until one day I can directly refine the cursed object in one go."

After all, the purpose of the previous stages was to completely refine a cursed object.

Shi An pondered.

With the safe zone upgraded to level two, more Dreamers are about to arrive, and an important question arises.

That is--

The operational policy of the safe zone.