Apocalypse Gachapon

“Brother Ye, I don’t really get it…” Xiao Xuan scratched his head, confused by Ye Zhongming’s words. In his view, Mechanical Genius’s choice wasn’t wrong—

Choosing to fight when it’s easy and buy when it’s difficult seemed like a clear strategy. Why would the boss call it stupid?

Ye Zhongming chuckled while watching Mechanical Genius’s ongoing battle and explained: “Many things aren’t black and white. They’re not just one or two.”

“Often, it depends on the situation. Our Cloud Peak warriors have many strengths—bravery, fearlessness, loyalty, obedience… But as we grow, there will be times when I or the captains can’t always be by your side to give direct orders. In those moments, you’ll need to assess the situation yourselves and choose the best solution.”

Many, especially the young fighters of the Youth Army, froze momentarily before focusing intently on the task at hand.

They understood—this was the boss training them for independent operations, even leadership roles in the future.

Ye Zhongming pointed at the Bright Star where the deceased black warrior had fallen: “You all saw that monster. How strong was it?”

“Very strong. Didn’t you say it was level eight?” a Youth Army member answered.

Several Female Guard fighters stifled laughs.

“Was I wrong?” The young fighter, realizing his mistake, scratched his head sheepishly.

“Beyond level eight. It was very close to level nine,” Dai Zhi stated.

Their experience and skill allowed them to estimate the Nether Moth’s strength at a glance.

Ye Zhongming agreed.

“If the Bright Stars’ difficulty progresses step by step, and the early ones are already this tough, the later ones will be far worse. At first glance, challenging the easier early stars to save resources for later purchases seems logical—but that’s precisely the problem.”

He paused, watching the battle on the Bright Star. Mechanical Genius was indeed skilled, controlling his mechanical army with precision, already gaining the upper hand.

Yet, the star’s native lifeforms were equally formidable. Despite losing ground, they fought fiercely, having already destroyed over ten combat puppets.

“I believe the final trial won’t be something you can buy your way through.”

Everyone nodded. The last challenge for the Mountain King Crown would never allow purchase—that would render previous trials meaningless and defy the wheel space’s nature.

“So it’ll be extremely difficult.” Ye Zhongming sighed faintly. “Facing such a final test, what should we do?”

Without waiting for answers, he continued: “We must conserve strength for that ultimate battle.”

“If we emulate Mechanical Genius and challenge early stars, with our strength, we’d win—but to what standard? How many challenges? Once we enter the chaotic central zone, do we just buy? What if we run out of funds after a few purchases? Fight every star manually?”

Each question plunged Cloud Peak into silence.

For an ultra-wealthy faction, these concerns would be irrelevant—they could just buy their way to the final trial.

But reality was harsh. Each Bright Star’s price was exorbitant. No faction, not even Ye Zhongming and Cloud Peak, could afford to purchase them all.

Currently, Ye Zhongming was strapped for resources—most materials went into equipment, magic crystals, and potions were invested in the Youth Army, and the rest of their assets remained at the mountain villa.

This created a dilemma:

They couldn’t rely solely on money, yet needed to preserve strength for the final showdown. What then?

“There’s no perfect solution, but we can keep things within our control.”

By now, Mechanical Genius’s battle was reaching its climax. Victory seemed certain.

“We can’t emulate Mechanical Genius by sending our entire force into challenges—only individuals can enter. Using myself as the benchmark, I’ll gauge our opponents.”

Ye Zhongming pointed again at Great America’s failed star: “If I faced that creature, I’m confident of victory—especially since I can bring Yellow Ball, Yangos, even Red Hair. At worst, I’d sustain minor injuries, easily treatable with potions and healing crystals. So if our Bright Star is of this difficulty, we’ll challenge it.”

“Other factions all chose to purchase, so we can’t judge their stars’ difficulty. Only Mechanical Genius challenged—his was the eighth star. There, the enemies weren’t individually strong, but their numbers are overwhelming. If I entered that challenge… honestly, I wouldn’t be certain of victory. Even with a 70% win rate, I can’t guarantee the extent of post-battle damage.”

Hearing this, the Youth Army erupted in murmurs. They’d known the challenges were tough, but not this tough. Even their boss, with Yellow Ball, Yangos, Icebird, Ball Ball, and Red Hair, couldn’t guarantee victory?!

“Yet I don’t want just to purchase outright. We need to save funds for stars we absolutely can’t defeat. So what do we do?”

Ye Zhongming scanned the Youth Army’s youthful faces.

After a few seconds of silence, a voice piped up:

“Lower the difficulty first, then challenge.”

Ye Zhongming smiled approvingly at the speaker—a rare female Youth Army member nicknamed “Sister Hui” (not due to age, but because she’d taken care of several younger members). Those few called her that, so the others followed.

“Correct. Lower the difficulty. For stars we can’t confidently conquer unscathed, we spend just enough to reduce the challenge to a winnable level—then fight!”