Chapter 6: Hunters
Seeing this exchange option, Su Xiao's eyes showed a hint of surprise. He then filled in his own brand number. Reinforcing one's own side with a Hunter cost 5 Honor Medals per use. Reinforcing another side, such as the little rich girl from Apocalypse Paradise, cost 10 Honor Medals per use.
It was worth noting that a [Basic Passive Skill Scroll Chest] only cost 5 Honor Medals, but it was often out of stock. This made one suspect that every time a World War was won, the ninth-rank Hunters would rush back and stare at the Honor Shop, snatching up any restocked inventory immediately.
From the Reinforcement Rankings, it was clear that Hunters were the most frequently chosen as reinforcements. This was partly due to the Hunters' strength being recognized by the other five factions, and partly because a reinforcer could not attack the one being reinforced. Otherwise, the Hunters' ranking would certainly not be this high.
As for Hunters requesting reinforcements the least often, this could be seen from the stock of [Emergency Aid (Permission)] in the Honor Shop. The stock on their own side had accumulated to 999. Judging by this, no one normally exchanged for this permission.
Su Xiao continued scrolling down through the Honor Shop. He realized that the previous Honor Shop was incomparable to the one after reaching ninth rank.
[Original Sin Object (Fake)]
Category: A counterfeit 「Original Sin Object」 produced by the Night Temptation Witch Guild. Upon exchanging for this, you will randomly draw one 「Original Sin Object (Fake)」.
Price: 5 Honor Medals.
Stock: 57 items.
Note: The price of an Original Sin Object (Fake) ranges from 1 to 45 Honor Medals. It can be sold back to Reincarnation Paradise at any time for the corresponding number of Honor Medals.
...
Seeing this exchange, one didn't need to think to know that someone must have tried to get rich this way, obtaining a large number of Honor Medals.
Su Xiao was very clear about his own luck. If he exchanged for this, randomly getting an [Original Sin Object (Fake)] worth 5 Honor Medals would be a mercy from heaven.
If heaven was cruel and gave him an [Original Sin Object (Fake)] worth only 1 Honor Medal when sold, Su Xiao wouldn't be discouraged. The reason was that, fundamentally, he wouldn't give heaven this opportunity. He wouldn't exchange.
Drawing an [Original Sin Object (Fake)] = Losing Honor Medals = Losing Resources = Losing Soul Coins = From the start, not drawing = Preemptively preventing losses = Profit.
Su Xiao continued scrolling down and found the list ended here. It could be said that the first refresh didn't have many exchange options. Although it seemed like twelve types, six of them were supply potions.
Of the remaining six, [Soul Supply Box], [Basic Passive Skill Scroll Chest], [Emergency Aid (Permission)], and [Original Sin Object (Fake)] were not refreshed and always existed in the exchange options.
So, this time, Su Xiao had only randomly refreshed one exchange option: [Bloodbath Frenzy (Overlord Equipment)].
This thing looked too familiar. It had been in the exchange list before. Even the [Honor Recovery Potion (Eighth Rank)] had been refreshed out, but it stubbornly remained.
Judging by its attitude, this Overlord Equipment was almost saying in human speech: 'If you don't exchange for me, I'll stay here forever, taking up one of your exchange list slots.'
Su Xiao pretended not to see [Bloodbath Frenzy]. He needed to get 4 Honor Medals as soon as possible. The World War in the Gloomy Continent was about to begin, and their side had a high chance of winning this time.
Mr. J and his three companions, the Three Brothers of National Football, and the Phantom Master, Gulu, Witch, and Spirit Crow from the Traveling Group were all participants this time. This lineup had everything. What was even more reassuring was that that bastard Caesar had likely received a punishment mission and was thrown into this world.
Caesar's own 'lethality' was fierce enough. The key point was that he had just come out of the Gloomy Continent. This wasn't just a matter of having a head start; it was that Caesar, along with Su Xiao, Zuiyasi, and Wood, had already run to the finish line. Now he was running the second lap.
Several high-ranking officials in High Wall City knew that Su Xiao and Caesar had a connection. Now, the Duke of High Wall City and Lady Smoke had the most power.
Under these circumstances, their side had a high chance of winning this World War. Naturally, Su Xiao had to find a way to get another 4 Honor Medals. After winning the World War, he could secure a [Basic Passive Skill Scroll Chest].
Su Xiao closed the Honor Shop. Except for Amu, who had just woken up and gone to eat, Bubu Wang, Baha, and Beini were all there. He took Bubu Wang and the others, left the Exclusive Room, and headed towards the Trade Street.
Before going to the Trade Street, Su Xiao stopped by the Equipment Enhancement Hall.
[Welcome to Equipment Enhancement Machine No. 859.]
The tray on the equipment enhancement machine popped out. Su Xiao placed [Pure White Sacred Heart] on it, and the tray retracted.
[Equipment verification in progress...]
[Verification complete. To enhance Pure White Sacred Heart (Immortal Rank), 670 Soul Coins are required.]
The reason for this was:
[Pure White Sacred Heart]
Rating: 1499 points (Immortal Rank equipment rating is 1000~1500 points).
...
With just a little enhancement, this Immortal Rank healing necklace could reach a rating of 1500 points. Although the difference between 1499 and 1500 points was small, it would make a difference when selling.
He paid the Soul Coins, and the enhancement began. As the equipment enhancement machine started running, the sound of electric current crackled inside, and steam emerged from the top.
A few minutes later.
Pfft~
Steam gushed out from the bottom edges around the equipment enhancement machine, and a prompt appeared.
[Pure White Sacred Heart +1 Successful.]
Good, it didn't fail at +1. Continue.
An hour later.
With a pfft of steam, a prompt appeared.
[Pure White Sacred Heart +9 Successful.]
Su Xiao frowned. Back when he was enhancing Dragon-Slaying Flash, it was a real pain. In the end, he had to bring in Caesar to enhance it in an unconventional way.
But this time, from +1 to +9, Pure White Sacred Heart was so smooth it was unbelievable. However, there was a problem. Enhancing from +9 to +10 was a hurdle. If successful, the equipment's price would skyrocket. If it failed, the equipment would most likely be destroyed by the enhancement. Especially for accessories, if +10 enhancement failed, it was no exaggeration to say the probability of destruction was 99.9%.
After a moment of thought, Su Xiao took out [Hunting Ring], pried off the gem embedded in it, and with a click, the gem was removed. He then embedded it onto [Pure White Sacred Heart].
[Elegy (Legendary Rank Gem): If enhancement causes the equipment to break, Elegy will replace the embedded weapon and shatter.]
This was a gem Su Xiao had obtained a long time ago. It was originally reserved for Dragon-Slaying Flash. There was no need to keep it now. Dragon-Slaying Flash would need to be re-enhanced only after it advanced to Origin Rank. This gem named Elegy would have no effect on an Origin Rank Dragon-Slaying Flash; the rank gap was too large.
Legendary Rank, Epic Rank, Holy Spirit Rank, Immortal Rank, Origin Rank. Whether [Elegy] could work on [Pure White Sacred Heart] was still unknown.
A short while later, Su Xiao walked out of the Enhancement Hall. He realized that when enhancing equipment for his own use, even +1 would fail. But when enhancing equipment to sell, from +1 to +10 was so smooth it left him with mixed feelings.
[Pure White Sacred Heart +10]
Origin: Gloomy Continent · Healing Church · Dead Silence City.
Quality: Immortal Rank
Category: Accessory · Necklace
Durability: 40/97 (Increased by 25 points).
Equipment Requirements: True Intelligence 247 points, Charm 130 points, Willpower 65 points.
Base Bonus: Healing intensity increased by 20.7% (Increased by 4%), Adaptive body energy increased by 1800 points (Increased by 500 points).
Note: Healing intensity will affect healing effects, healing priority, etc.
Note: This base bonus is unique to Immortal Rank or above healing-type accessories.
Equipment Effect: Pure White (Core · Passive): When you heal an allied target, there is a chance to activate this equipment's Pure White energy. There is an 85% chance to cause a double healing effect (Probability increased by 15%), a 30% chance to cause a triple healing effect (Probability increased by 10%), and an 8% chance to cause a quintuple healing effect (Probability increased by 3%).
Note: Triggering a multi-healing effect will not consume the wearer's body energy. Instead, it will consume the Pure White energy stored within this equipment. This energy can be naturally replenished or quickly replenished using Pure White Stones, Soul Crystals, etc.
Rating: 1500+ (Immortal Rank equipment rating is 1000~1500 points).
...
Su Xiao thought for a moment and decided to sell this item rather than keep it for now. As far as he knew, a certain healing-type contractor had a necklace that was Immortal Rank +14, which was superior to [Pure White Sacred Heart].
Putting away [Pure White Sacred Heart], Su Xiao arrived in front of a fog wall. He walked through it and traversed the entire Trade Street. He stopped in front of an old but clean building. Entering it, a stone platform came into view. He followed the steps around the platform and walked onto the platform, which was over ten meters in diameter. The next moment, his vision blurred, and he completed a stable and fast teleportation.
The slightly noisy sound of human voices came from ahead. Su Xiao was still standing on the stone platform. The building he was in was ninety percent similar to the previous one, except for some different signs of wear.
Walking out of the building, Su Xiao saw a ф mark on the top of this building. On both sides of this building were several other buildings with similar styles but different details. They bore marks like and £, the former representing Apocalypse Paradise and the latter representing Death Paradise.
The place Su Xiao was in was a vast circular plaza. The plaza was very large, surrounded by buildings that encircled it. Some of these buildings were restaurants, some were temporary inns, etc.
[You have arrived at the Great Gathering Place.]
[Within the Great Gathering Place, you can rent stalls or conduct material trading through negotiation.]
[In this location, some materials cannot be traded, such as Space-Time Power, Refined Immortal Stones, etc.]
...
After checking the dozens of prompts, Su Xiao walked among the crowd in the plaza. Ninth-rank contractors from all six paradises could come here, which kept the place from being deserted. However, it wasn't too noisy either. Those who could fight their way to ninth rank had exceptional qualities in various aspects; otherwise, they would have died long ago.
Arriving at an empty stall, Su Xiao sat down behind it. Behind him was a gray rock wall that rose high into the white mist above. Even though he knew this was a safe area, he still liked having his back covered.
At a price of 10 Soul Coins per hour, Su Xiao successfully rented this stall for two hours. Bubu Wang, Baha, and Beini came to his sides. Beini jumped onto his shoulder and started meowing, telling him about the recent market prices.
"Don't talk for a while."
Su Xiao looked at Baha beside him. Baha, who was eating crispy broad beans, shrugged a wing.
Taking out various items, Su Xiao began setting prices. The price list was as follows:
「Star Flow Ore x 127 pieces, 705 Soul Coins each.」
「A few very ordinary gems, bundled for 7200 Soul Coins.」
「Filth Insect Fossil (Immortal Rank item), priced at 8700 Soul Coins.」
「Child of Sin (Class/Bloodline item), priced at 13800 Soul Coins.」
「Karma Heartfire (Skill Scroll), priced at 9120 Soul Coins.」
「Original Sin · Celestial Imperial Slaughter (Ultimate Rank Ability), priced at 1 Soul Coin (Stall-type auction).」
「Pure White Sacred Heart +10 (Immortal Rank · Necklace), priced at 1 Soul Coin (Stall-type auction).」
「Technique Soul · Shadow, priced at 85000 Soul Coins.」
「Shrill Scream (Immortal Rank · Accessory), priced at 11500 Soul Coins.」
「Myriad Insects (Soul System · Skill Scroll), priced at 27000 Soul Coins.」
「Stuffed Soul Coin Pouch, priced at 7500 Soul Coins.」
「Greed Coin Pouch, priced at 5300 Soul Coins.」
「???, priced at 5000 Soul Coins.」
「Origin Stone · Chaos Flame, priced at 9999999 Soul Coins.」
...
The main item of this sale was not the Ultimate Rank Ability Original Sin · Celestial Imperial Slaughter. If possible, Su Xiao wouldn't sell this kind of Ultimate Rank skill. The problem was that this was a Scythe of Sin type Ultimate Rank ability, which he couldn't master.
The main item this time was the ??? 「Daddy Rank」 artifact priced at only 5000 Soul Coins. Compared to knowing the true nature of this 「Daddy Rank」 artifact, selling it was safer. Such a great opportunity should be left for those who were destined. Su Xiao and the 「Daddy Rank」 artifact mutually disliked each other, so he wouldn't conspire with it.
When Su Xiao placed this 「Daddy Rank」 artifact on the stall, he could feel the fluctuation of the thing inside the charcoal box become active for an instant. This was its tacit approval of Su Xiao's approach.
Less than a minute after the stall opened, the first customer arrived. This was a person whose entire body was shrouded in thin mist, unwilling to reveal their appearance.
In the Great Gathering Place, one could roughly estimate which paradise a contractor came from at first glance. Those who slightly covered their appearance were either from Sanctuary Paradise or Watchful Paradise.
Those who were covered from head to toe, like a walking mist person, half of them were from Apocalypse Paradise or Holy Light Paradise.
Those who didn't bother with any appearance or figure concealment were either from Reincarnation Paradise or Death Paradise.
The newcomer paused in front of the stall for a few seconds before sweeping up all the 「Star Flow Ore」 without even haggling. Previously, Su Xiao had seen someone selling it for 706 Soul Coins each at a nearby stall. That person wasn't selling fast. He didn't expect that being just 1 Soul Coin cheaper would lead to a complete sellout. This type of ore was really easy to sell.
A burly man with a big beard stopped in front of the stall. Seeing the various items on the stall, he became interested and asked, "The reward for killing a Sin God? You went to Dead Silence City?"
As he spoke, the burly man looked up at Su Xiao behind the stall. He paused and said, "Oh, Reincarnation Paradise. Never mind then."
"Dark Soul, I'll take it for 80k."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak.
"You could at least counter-offer."
The burly man stared at Su Xiao.
"..."
Su Xiao glanced at the burly man opposite him. This made the burly man's cheek twitch. He felt that the person opposite seemed to be telling him to get lost if he wasn't buying.
Baha beside him was dying to speak, wanting to say a lot.
Seeing that Su Xiao was ignoring the customer and Baha's look that seemed ready to open a microphone and communicate, Beini quickly jumped onto Su Xiao's lap and started communicating with the burly man.
A few minutes later, over a dozen people had gathered in front of the stall. Beini used a terminal projection to negotiate prices with these buyers. In fact, both Bubu Wang and Beini could purchase language assistance devices. It wasn't that they couldn't speak; they simply didn't want to and weren't used to it. To put it in perspective, would a person like to communicate by meowing all day long without speaking?
Amidst Beini's meowing, the items on the stall quickly decreased. One by one, Soul Coins entered Su Xiao's storage space. Among them, [Original Sin · Celestial Imperial Slaughter] was sold for 40,700 Soul Coins, finding a buyer with high compatibility.
Surprisingly, [Pure White Sacred Heart +10] sold for 32,000 Soul Coins. This made one look at the healing-type contractors of Holy Light Paradise with new respect. Upon reaching ninth rank, these charming or elegant healers were unexpectedly wealthy.
Unlike [Original Sin · Celestial Imperial Slaughter] and [Pure White Sacred Heart +10], [Myriad Insects (Soul System · Skill Scroll)], which was originally intended to be sold for 27,000 Soul Coins, ultimately sold for only 18,000 Soul Coins. This was only because of its origin and Soul System ability.
Of course, this price was acceptable. If sold on the Trade Street within Reincarnation Paradise, it would be around this price, and it wouldn't sell as fast.
The prices for [Filth Insect Fossil], [Child of Sin], and [Karma Heartfire] were not ideal. The three combined sold for 21,900 Soul Coins.
Su Xiao gradually understood the trading style of the Great Gathering Place. Items, equipment, and abilities with positive characteristics like light, flame, and divinity could fetch high prices. Conversely, they sold at more conventional prices.
After setting up the stall for over half an hour, an acquaintance passed by. It was the Undead girl wearing an oversized witch hat.
The Undead girl came to the stall, browsing the items while casually chatting, "This is really good. Why don't you open it yourself? I've been relying on opening these to avoid being too broke to eat."
The Undead girl picked up two coin pouches. If someone else said they couldn't afford to eat, it would be a joke. But for the Undead girl, it was a real possibility.
The Undead system developed by Solomon was different from the Undead girl. Solomon's path was slightly more elite Undead. He himself was a Mage Lord and didn't lack large-scale killing methods.
The Undead girl was a more traditional Undead system. One person was an Undead Legion. In fact, she also wanted to develop some other abilities to prevent being ambushed by stronger enemies, but she simply couldn't afford to develop them.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't answer the Undead girl's question. He wasn't worried about the low profit from opening the Soul Coin Pouches; he was worried about losing money.
After the Undead girl bought the two coin pouches, she crushed one with a snap. Soul Coins scattered and then converged towards her, all disappearing into her storage space.
"?"
The Undead girl looked at the broken pouch in her hand with confusion. This pouch, which could yield 200 to 15,000 Soul Coins, had given her 201 Soul Coins. This situation pushed her already meager wealth to the brink of bankruptcy.
The Undead girl chose to open the Soul Coin Pouch because she had a high Luck attribute. Usually, this kind of Soul Coin Pouch would yield at least over 7,000 Soul Coins. This wasn't just luck; it was an accumulation of fortune-related strength.
But she never expected that her Luck attribute would seem fake this time. Nothing like this had ever happened before.
She looked at the [Greed Coin Pouch] in her hand and vaguely guessed the problem. At that moment, she finally understood why Su Xiao chose to sell these two coin pouches.
"Want a refund?"
Su Xiao spoke. Hearing this, the Undead girl's eyes widened slightly. She tightly gripped the empty coin pouch in her hand. She had opened no less than 50, if not 100, of these, and had never been this unlucky.
Under the Undead girl's hopeful and grateful gaze, the refund for [Greed Coin Pouch] was completed. After all, they had cooperated before, and it was a mutually beneficial cooperation. Moreover, in the matter of mass purchasing [World Core (Fragments)], she needed the Undead girl to act as an intermediary to contact more Undead system contractors.
"Seriously? You've disgraced all Undead systems. Move aside, let me handle this."
A pale-faced man with deer antlers on his head spoke. Judging by his appearance, he was an Undead system contractor. He pushed the Undead girl aside.
The Undead girl held up her fair pinky finger. Her expression wasn't angry, indicating she knew the Deer Antler brother.
The Deer Antler brother bought the [Greed Coin Pouch] and decisively opened it. Everyone around looked at him.
"Nothing special."
The Deer Antler brother smiled slightly, turned around, and walked away. When his back was to everyone, a mask of pain gradually appeared on his face. Having opened at least over 100 coin pouches, he had been taught a lesson by a coin pouch today.
In front of the stall, the Undead girl looked at the distant back of the Deer Antler brother and said to Su Xiao, "Bai Ye, the big seller I mentioned before is him. He has a large batch of World Core Fragments."
"Oh."
"Bai Ye, why are you so unlucky? Is it natural?"
"..."
Su Xiao turned to look at the Undead girl. The Undead girl smiled and spread her hands. She wasn't afraid of Su Xiao's blood aura at all.
"From now on, when you sell World Core Fragments, it's 350 each."
Su Xiao spoke in a calm tone.
"!"
The Undead girl immediately grabbed Su Xiao's sleeve with both hands and said, "We're friends, you can't do this to me. Please, I'm sorry, I was wrong."
When it came to Soul Coins, the ninth-rank Undead system powerhouse instantly became humble. The three apologies came out in one breath, and her speaking speed was faster than usual.
They agreed to meet at a restaurant in two hours. The Undead girl left. Su Xiao checked the stall. The only items left were [Technique Soul · Shadow], [???], and [Origin Stone · Chaos Flame]. His assets had now reached 304,940 Soul Coins. It was time to contact the Goblin Merchant Guild.
But before that, Su Xiao had another matter to attend to. He materialized a contract. A piece of Contract Parchment formed in front of him, and he activated it.
Time passed minute by minute. Over ten minutes later, a figure walked briskly among the crowd and finally stopped in front of the stall. It was Sacred Poem, dressed in a gold and white dress.
"You know, a contract that deducts 20 random physical attributes from me can't bind me."
Sacred Poem spoke in a gentle tone. But in her heart, she was not calm. She still couldn't understand how Su Xiao had tampered with that [Dark Stone]. She had clearly checked the attributes of that [Dark Stone].
Sacred Poem wasn't bluffing. Randomly deducting 20 physical attributes sounded terrifying, but when you included Strength, Agility, Stamina, Intelligence, Charm, Luck, Soul Strength, and Willpower, a total of 20 random physical attributes deducted was relatively acceptable.
At this moment, Sacred Poem wasn't angry. In Dead Silence City, she hadn't contributed much, but she had managed to gain a lot of benefits by cooperating with Gulu. The current situation was within her acceptable range.
"I'll give you temporary tracking permissions. Next world progress, come with me to a world and act as combat support for one world progress."
Hearing Su Xiao's words, Sacred Poem raised her hand. A Contract Parchment covered in blood-red patterns formed in front of her. She said, "The worlds you go to are all extremely dangerous. 20 physical attributes, I..."
Before Sacred Poem could finish, Su Xiao raised his hand and snapped his fingers with a crisp *crack*. The Contract Parchment that Sacred Poem had materialized instantly split into fifteen layers.
One contract deducted 20 random physical attributes. Fifteen copies meant deducting 300 physical attributes.
"Deducting a mere 300 physical attributes, as you said, can't bind you, right?"
Su Xiao lit a cigarette. Opposite him, Sacred Poem's pupils contracted. She looked at the fifteen contracts in front of her, as if wanting to say something but not knowing what to say.
Finally, Sacred Poem came behind the stall and sat sideways beside Su Xiao. After taking a few deep breaths to stabilize her emotions, she smiled gently and said softly, "When do we leave? I'm ready anytime."
Sacred Poem smiled very gently, with the temperament of a kind older sister, combined with her gentle smile. However, the fist clenched tightly inside her sleeve showed that her heart was very unsettled at this moment. This was the most contracts she had ever signed at one time in her life.