Chapter 525: Three Peoples Worth of Joy

Chapter 525: Three People's Worth of Joy

After losing three straight rounds of rock-paper-scissors to Iger, with the latter looking thoroughly disgusted the entire time, Ashe opened the Material Purchase menu and bought the Box of Source Crystals for 328 points.

[Received sixty-six Source Crystals.]

[First Recharge Bonus Activated! Received another sixty-six Source Crystals!]

Adding the 32 Source Crystals accumulated from daily logins over the past few days, he now had a total of 164 Source Crystals, enough for 54 pulls.

If only he could have rolled on this event-exclusive banner back in the Gospel Kingdom. There, he could have prayed for the Gospel's blessing to amplify his intent. He firmly believed the intensity of his desire would have yielded at least the Swordswoman's and Witch's costumes. Had it been the Bride series, his intent might have even warped the entire Recruitment System's probabilities.

Now, all he could do was build up his luck by repeatedly losing to Iger in rock-paper-scissors, praying the Recruitment System would show him a little mercy.

With fifty-four pulls, surely I'd get something good, right? No way anyone would go through five consecutive ten-pulls without getting what they wanted!

[Confirm consuming 162 Source Crystals for 54 recruitments?]

"Confirm!"

Then came the results. First came thirty white beams cluttering the pool.

[Energy Potion], [EXP Potion], [Basic Combat Card], [Career Potion]

Next were eighteen purple beams.

[Spirit Joy Potion x8], [Pure Radiance Tonic x7], [Advanced Trial Card]

Along with those came a new gadget, the [Aurora In-Car Immoral Navigation System], and a new item, the [Umbral Sacred Realm Potion].

Finally, six golden beams appeared.

[Death Maniac Swordswoman's Silver Coin], [Black-White Witch's Magic Mirror Fragment], [Aurora's Dream Treasury], [Orchid Weiser], [Empress in the Rain · Witch], [Moon Star Swimsuit · Swordswoman]

Ashe was caught off guard. He rubbed his eyes before carefully examining the rewards again.

A moment later, Iger opened his eyes from resting against the padded wall, only to find Ashe crawling toward him. "What now? Another round of rock-paper..."

His words stopped abruptly as Ashe threw himself forward and hugged him tightly.

By the time Iger recovered, Ashe had already rushed over to Harvey and slung an arm around his shoulders. Harvey's head nearly shook off from the overexcited cult leader. The necromancer reached up and stretched Ashe's cheeks in retaliation.

After the brief horseplay, Ashe retreated to a corner of the room, turned his back to them, and waved dismissively. "It's nothing. Nothing at all. Just ignore me."

His voice barely contained his laughter. Iger and Harvey immediately knew something good had happened to him.

The problem was that all three of them were trapped inside the same psychiatric ward. As prisoners of the Four Pillars Cult, they had no means of contacting the outside world. Where could Ashe have found something worth celebrating? Has he forged his fourth wing? Did he summon a new spirit?

Confused, Iger glanced at Harvey. Harvey checked the Catnip cigarettes and Snow White Candies in his pocket, then shook his head. Nothing was missing, so Ashe definitely was not high.

My dear cult leader... You really are quite something. When something good happens, you refuse to tell anyone, but your barely contained laughter says it all. Somehow, you still insist on dragging us into your joy, as if it's meant to come in servings for three people, thought Iger.

The fraudster and the necromancer exchanged helpless, bewildered looks. Despite their helplessness, the corners of their own mouths slowly lifted into smiles.

After letting his excitement out, Ashe finally managed to calm down. He had really gotten the Swordswoman and Witch's costumes. At long last, he could finally give them gifts, and everyone got their fair share. Just pulling those two costumes made the entire banner worthwhile.

Taking a deep breath, Ashe pressed a hand against his pounding heart before checking the other new items.

The first was a brand-new item from the white pool.

[Career Potion]

Description

- For seven days, an operator engaged in work or business will be more likely to gain inspiration, display their talents, and genuinely enjoy life.

Unlike the Stamina or EXP Potion, the Career Potion could not be used during training events. It did absolutely nothing to improve an operator's combat strength, and it might even have a negative effect.

Pursuing a career and pursuing sorcery cultivation often pulled in opposite directions. The more attention an operator devoted to work, the more likely they were to neglect their spellcraft. It was much like work and gaming; spending most of the day working often left a person too mentally exhausted to enjoy a large game afterward.

The old Ashe had been completely focused on squeezing every last bit of combat potential out of his operators, so he would have tossed every Career Potion into storage to gather dust. Neither the Swordswoman nor the Witch particularly enjoyed cultivation. The Swordswoman dreamed of becoming an actress, a diva, and an idol, while the Witch simply delegated her training to her sisters. Giving them Career Potions would only cause their hearts to drift further away from cultivation.

Ashe guessed these potions were really meant for operators with ambitions like "I want to become the King of Sorcerers," the sort of relentless overachievers squeezing every ounce of potential out of themselves outside dedicated training.

Now, Ashe no longer thought that way. Perhaps because she spent every day bragging about her achievements, Ashe had gradually grown interested in the Swordswoman's life. He wanted to watch her drama where she played the second female lead, listen to her upcoming album, and attend the Meteor Calamity finals. Sitting among the audience, he wished to watch her shine brilliantly on stage, ready to stand up and applaud regardless of the outcome.

The Witch rarely discussed her real life. But whenever danger caused her hair color to muddy, the ones to pull her back from fear would be her family, rather than Ashe or the Swordswoman. The Swordswoman only needed to ask if someone was waiting for her at home, and the Witch immediately regained her courage, restoring her hair to vibrant colors. Both fought with everything they had, whether in the Virtual World or their everyday lives.

Furthermore, the Gold Blessings of the Swordswoman and the Witch, Radiant Star and Rebellion, were tied directly to their careers. Giving them Career Potions would indirectly strengthen their combat abilities. Even without those Gold Blessings, Ashe hoped to hear them talk more about their lives outside the Virtual World. He wanted the Swordswoman to fulfill her dream of becoming a true Radiant Star, and he wished for the Witch to spend every day doting on her loved ones. Their bond no longer seemed limited to sharing knowledge, as they could now share one another's happiness, warming Ashe's heart whenever he saw them smile.

Ashe refined all eight Career Potions using the Alchemist's Refining Flask. One refinement failed, leaving him with three Advanced Career Potions.

[Advanced Career Potion]

Description

- For seven days, an operator engaged in their career will perform at their absolute best, achieve the finest possible results, and seem to enjoy fate's favor.

Next came the newly acquired purple rarity items.

[Advanced Trial Card]

Description

- Grants the operator a high difficulty trial. The operator gains a large amount of EXP and a small bond increase while becoming more obedient to commands. Limited to one use per operator per week.

[Aurora In-Car Immoral Navigation System]

Description

- A navigation system designed for Aurora's self-driving vehicle. Based on the owner's exploration objective, it plans the optimal route and automatically runs over every target along the way that can be one-shot.

[Umbral Sacred Realm Potion]

Description

- Immediately completes Sacred Realm construction or greatly accelerates Sacred Realm synchronization.

Note: once a sorcerer completes their Sacred Realm, they will automatically resist The Forbidden Ritual of Wind, Flower, Snow, Moon Resonance, greatly reducing Space Class-related insights gained from the rite. Use with caution.

The Advanced Trial Card required little explanation, implementation-wise. The line about making the operator more obedient felt a little strange to Ashe, making him wonder if it beat them into submission.

The navigation system was excellent. The River of Flowing Gold on the Continent of Time never stayed in one place, frequently blocking paths he faithfully followed on the Virtual World Map. On top of that, this navigation system ran over sorcerer projections, Fish-Slaying Dragons, and ordinary Virtual World creatures. It was practically a must-have tool for murder and arson.

Unfortunately, Ashe was no longer on the Continent of Time. The Distant Sky Domain was not a place for driving a sports car. It felt like buying a long-forbidden game console at twenty-five after starting work, where the fantastic item no longer had any practical use.

The Umbral Sacred Realm Potion was the only item from the purple pool worth considering. Completing Sacred Realm construction instantly would raise their combat power by an entire tier and allow them to skip the resonance ritual during future explorations. However, that rite was a reward as much as a trial, providing the primary means for sorcerers to rapidly improve their Space Class. Completing a Sacred Realm early meant giving up that gift package, making the potion seem unwise for long-term growth.

Ashe's situation, however, was different. His bonds allowed him to share operator experience. Using the Umbral Sacred Realm Potion now hardly mattered, since the Swordswoman and Witch would naturally pull his Space Class up later.

That being said, Ashe felt he no longer needed the potion. During his time as Aine, he had fought dozens of Sacred Realm sorcerers in the rain and shattered countless Sacred Realms. Aine's near-omniscient perception constantly improved his Space Class mastery, leaving Ashe one final step away from constructing his own Sacred Realm. These two potions could be saved for the Swordswoman and the Witch, with Space Orbs fed to them later to make up for lost insights.

Setting that matter aside, Ashe turned to the gold pool rewards.

[Death Maniac Swordswoman's Silver Coin], [Black White Witch's Magic Mirror Fragment]

With that, he moved another step closer to fully upgrading both operators. Using the items updated their profiles.

[Death Maniac Swordswoman]

Species

- Human Female

Age

- 18 years old

Bond Level

- 4 (75% experience shared)

Bond Resonance

- Never Enough: When acting together, there is a chance to obtain better loot.

- Unwavering Resolve: Traveling together increases the Swordswoman's chance of obtaining Experience Orbs.

━━━━━━━━━━━━

[Black-White Witch]

Species

- Human Female

Age

- 19 years old

Bond Level

- 4 (75% experience shared)

Bond Resonance

- Manipulating Hearts: Even without relevant Mind Class spirits, you and the Witch possess a supernatural ability to influence others' hearts.

- Promise of the Future: Grants a supernatural ability to influence destiny through promises, even without Fate Class spirits.

The initial Bond Resonances had all carried villainous names like Never Enough and Manipulating Hearts, whereas the secondary resonances took on names like Unwavering Resolve and Promise of the Future. Ashe couldn't help wondering if this was moral growth... or if the system was just messing with him.

Unwavering Resolve offered an excellent effect. More Experience Orbs meant faster advancement, helping their lagging sorcery classes catch up to their overall strength. Ashe recognized that this resonance reflected the Swordswoman's unwavering pursuit of glory, status, and success. Promise of the Future remained harder to grasp, leaving him to wonder if promises he made would automatically be fulfilled by the world.

That aside, Ashe also noticed the Witch's Bond Level had quietly reached Level 4, matching the Swordswoman. The rapid rise in affection confused him, since the Swordswoman had constantly badmouthed him to her. He wondered if he had misunderstood the Swordswoman or if the Witch simply possessed excellent judgment.

Finally, Ashe examined a fascinating new item.

[Aurora's Dream Treasury]

Description

- Entering a Mirage Bubble allows drawing three treasures from the treasury. Clearing specific numbers of Mirage Bubbles grants additional treasure draws. These treasures function exclusively inside Mirage Bubbles; they do not carry over to future expeditions or affect reality.

Sample treasures included:

Color Treasure · Hand of Infinite Light

Description

- Restores 2% of maximum mana with every successful attack.

Gold Treasure · Veil of Omniscience

Description

- Strengthens or weakens any understood spell within the field of vision up to 50% or 100%, respectively, proportional to spatial understanding. Affects one spell at a time, targeting friend or foe.

Silver Treasure · Blood Saint's Vigil Over Death

Description

- Killing a unit, including sorcerer projections, Virtual World creatures, or Mirage Bubble residents, grants one stack of increased damage for thirty seconds, stacking up to ten times.

Mirage Bubbles were unique to the Distant Sky Domain, making this Virtual World item specifically tailored for that region. Upon first ascending there, Ashe had noticed how much it differed from earlier layers. Sorcerers in the Sea of Knowledge and Continent of Time were inexperienced, using vast distances to temper themselves into independent truth seekers[1]. Someone like Ashe, relying on teammates to carry him, was as much an exception as he was a disgrace to the title of sorcerer.

By the time sorcerers reached the Distant Sky Domain, the "journey" itself no longer posed any real challenge. Thus, the Virtual World generously opened spatial passages for them, doing away with the old routine of "traveling for two hours just to fight for five minutes."

According to the Law of Conservation of Pressure, Sacred Realm sorcerers who no longer had to waste energy traveling naturally had to face far higher-intensity battles instead.

This marked the first time Ashe had seen an item directly enhance combat power so significantly, fully deserving its place in the gold pool despite being limited to the Virtual World.

The treasures were absurdly powerful. Hand of Infinite Light restored 2% maximum mana per attack. The Swordswoman's Blood Blossom Watermoon unleashed far more than fifty slashes. Equipping her with this treasure would practically give her infinite mana!

Beyond their power, names like Countless Radiance, Omniscience, and Blood Saint struck Ashe as remarkably familiar. It almost seemed as if the Sorcerer's Handbook had noticed Ashe's relative weakness and snuck into the Divine Lords' vaults overnight to steal their treasures.

Lastly, he turned his attention to the new Operator.

[Orchid Weiser]

1. The raw mentions 万里路 and 万里海, which translate literally to Ten-Thousand Miles of Road and Sea, respectively. In my case, I have decided to omit them and replace them with vast distances in this context, considering the author hasn't mentioned these two locations or mechanisms in earlier layers. Still, I believe it is worth noting in case they appear again in future chapters. ☜