[You have created 9 Legendary Soul Enhancement Potions. Experience Points +2,000,000. Skill Points +1. Additional Experience Points +2,000,000.]
[You drink the Soul Enhancement Potions ×9. Saint Spirit +15.]
[Your soul has been greatly strengthened. The Holy Soul ability is triggered: Strength +10, Agility +10, Endurance +10, Charm +3.]
Bai Yi finished the last potion and let out a long sigh of relief.
His eyes glowed blue as elements swirled around him, the dark side obediently yielding without a hint of resistance.
With 118 points of Saint Spirit, equivalent to 1,180 spiritual attributes, Bai Yi knew he was far beyond the capabilities of most first-tier legends.
He extended a finger, and a shimmering blue shield materialized around him. Closing his eyes, he focused on the shield's integrity.
If the Scarlet God Family were to attack again, their claws would struggle to breach this barrier.
The weakened Cersis would be unable to break through within ten strikes, even with a pseudo-artifact.
"Strong. Very strong." Bai Yi breathed a sigh of contentment.
He glanced at Zero, who had compiled various reports during his retreat. The two months of inactivity had led to significant changes in Tobu City.
The gradual rise of the Internet had benefited Dongwu City immensely, comparable to the city's tax revenue.
While Internet fees might not be exorbitant, the real profits came from various VIP subscriptions, games, and transactions conducted online.
The monopoly was staggering. Some capitalists sought to exploit the Internet as a broader platform for commerce, generating substantial revenue.
Even though Tobu City only captured 20% of this income, it was enough to fuel continuous development.
In less than six months, the inner city had begun mechanization, while the outer city was already preparing to demolish certain treasure houses.
Plans were underway to build entertainment venues, training facilities, and other unexpected developments.
Having reviewed the reports, Bai Yi felt satisfied with Dongwu City's progress.
After replying to Luo Ning, he pondered. Last time, he had used his powerful soul to erase part of Irene's curse, seemingly postponing the looming crisis indefinitely.
But what must come will come.
He examined his experience points and allocated the additional rewards.
[Level: 69 (8,531,000/9,000,000)]
With over 500,000 experience points remaining, he wondered what advanced task awaited him at level 70.
"It seems there was no advanced task when I entered the middle of gold rank. Is the gap too small, or do I need to reach legend to unlock it?"
Bai Yi contemplated the rules but felt uncertain.
"It would be troubling if I had to complete a task for each level between 81 and 90."
However, there was another possibility—that no tasks existed between the bronze and silver ranks, but reappeared when surpassing silver and entering gold.
He decided to set the matter aside. For now, he would use the 500,000 experience points.
Bai Yi planned to study the M-type transformation. Mechanical transformation was of little concern.
Due to the X-type transformation, M-type soldiers felt inferior and always compared themselves to their L-type counterparts.
There had even been competition over their roles.
To maintain balance within the Whispering Legion, Bai Yi needed to expand his knowledge in this area.
Reflecting on his progress with the X-type transformation, Bai Yi was almost a master of transformation. Imitating low-level curses should be straightforward.
Both L-type and M-type transformations stemmed from the same principle. The M-type transformation merely enhanced combat effectiveness based on the L-type model. It should be feasible to create a similar bonus.
Determined, Bai Yi set out to find suitable experimental subjects. Though he deemed them experimental, he had confidence in his transformations. Even if the advanced M-type transformation didn't succeed, it would still surpass the original.
Bai Yi's confidence in creating a new transformation was unwavering. Unlike the madness or evil thoughts he had encountered before, he was proficient in both, and the madness surpassed his original expertise.
"It's akin to a top mathematician revising a primary school textbook; it may not surpass the original, but it won't deteriorate either."
Upon arriving at the Soft Language Legion's station, the legion commander, Garrett, greeted him respectfully.
Following Bai Yi's orders, ten M-type transformation warriors with the best combat achievements and seven L-type transformation warriors quickly assembled.
Their combat skills weren't adequate to qualify for the X-type or the new Y-type transformation.
However, the NPC combat merit exchange system differed from that of players. They needed only one million combat merits to exchange for the X transformation here, rather than the 19 million required by players.
For players, crafting costs around 1.68 million gold coins in materials, plus an additional 300,000 gold coins for the transformation fee.
The merit-to-gold coin exchange rate was 1:10, hence the high merit requirement.
Players were aware of this disparity. While some were frustrated, they felt powerless, as the entire Federation operated this way.
It was merely a means of offering them an exchange channel.
Bai Yi was aware of Xiahou Fuxing's transformation and was not surprised.
However, he had no intention of creating a player transformation legion, as they tended to be chaotic. Once players mastered golden power, Bai Yi doubted they wouldn't cause trouble within the Federation.
"A sharp sword can be too rebellious, potentially harming the wielder."
As the transformed soldiers gathered, a higher-level transformation and explanation began.
To his surprise, Yue Fang and Bato were present. Although they had opened an alchemical technology store, they quickly closed up to witness Bai Yi's demonstration.
Bai Yi welcomed their presence. As materials were absorbed by the M-type transformation soldiers, a brand-new transformation appeared on the panel, aligning with his expectations.
[New Transformation Created: Y-Type Transformation]
**[Name: Y-Type Transformation]
Attribute: Flesh and Blood Transformation.
Effect: Grants stable and extreme physical attributes: Strength 210, Agility 330, Endurance 200, Intelligence 200, Charm 0.
Gains Expertise:
Rapid: Activates stored power, increasing Agility by 30%. (Cooldown: 5 hours)
Ghost Walk: Illusionizes the body for 30 minutes, ignoring most physical damage while increasing Agility by 20% and Intelligence by 10%. (Cooldown: 8 hours)
Ghost Backstab: If the enemy turns their back or you disappear from their sight, the next attack deals +50% damage.
Transformation Requirements: Bronze Middle Position.
Note: This transformation consumes all potential of the transformed individual.
Introduction: The art of assassination. What defines a ghost assassin? Perhaps an alchemist can tell you after mastering powerful assassination abilities.
[You used 2 skill points to enhance the proficiency of the Y-Type Transformation skill.]
[Your Alchemical Transformation proficiency increased by +1,000.]
The disparity between Y-Type and X-Type transformations was stark. Female elves, originally around 1.8 meters tall, shrank to 1.6 meters post-transformation, exuding an intimidating presence.
The bronze alchemists observed the composed elf before them with a hint of fear, sensing a strong aura of danger. It felt as if the elf could strike them down at any moment.
Bai Yi felt satisfied with his creation.
As the Y-Type transformation began to spread within the Soft Language Legion, M-Type soldiers saw a glimmer of hope, and previous grievances vanished.
The entire army stabilized once more.
Bai Yi continued his transformational work. With all seventeen reformed soldiers completed, the Whisper Legion now housed twenty golden-level combatants.
However, the cost of Y-Type transformation was even higher than that of X, reaching a material value of 2.4 million gold coins.
This didn't imply that Y was inherently stronger than X; rather, the materials required for the Y transformation were more precious. Yet in combat, X typically held an advantage.
After all, X transformations gained strength as blood volume decreased.
[You have performed seventeen high-level transformations. Experience Points +170,000. Additional Experience Points +170,000.]
Bai Yi exited the Whisper Legion, frowning slightly. As his levels increased, he found himself viewing low-level tasks merely as experience fodder.
"I should return to the city and begin crafting lucky potions. Their materials are rarer, but fortunately, as the lord of Dongwu City, I have ample resources."
As time passed, after about three days, the lucky potion finally materialized on his panel. He promptly filled his skill points into it.
Suddenly, a wealth of knowledge surged into his mind. While it consumed his mental strength, he found the experience exhilarating.
With each piece of knowledge absorbed, Bai Yi felt a clearer sense of his position and purpose.
Gradually, the pressure that had weighed on him began to dissipate under the influx of understanding.
With his skilled manufacturing, three bottles of pink potions appeared before him.
These three small vials were worth tens of millions of gold coins, as they contained the essence of fate.
The materials used were extraordinarily rare, adding to their value, but this potion was designed to alter fate itself.
[Name: Favor of Fate]
Attribute: Amplitude-Increasing Agent.
Level: Legendary.
Effect: Luck +8. The second bottle is ineffective.
Requirements for Use: None.
Introduction: In a gamble with the devil, I trusted my luck, but they were not fortunate enough to win—Desi Thornton.]
Bai Yi eagerly uncorked the vial and drank it without hesitation.
[You drink the potion of Favor of Fate. Luck +8.]
He felt a subtle shift within himself and quickly checked his panel. The conspicuous 1 in his Luck attribute had increased to 9.
This was a significant breakthrough. Typically, a person's luck starts at 1 at birth. As they grow, exposure to knowledge can elevate their luck, with most extraordinary individuals reaching around 3, while the exceptionally lucky might hit 5.
Silver extraordinary beings generally have a luck cap of 3-8, while gold extraordinary individuals range from 5-10. Those exceeding 10 points are considered extremely fortunate, often winning fair gambles.
Thus, a luck value of 9 was indeed appropriate for Bai Yi.
However, his joy was short-lived as he noticed his luck slowly drop from 9 to 8.
Looking at the panel, he found no warning or explanation for the decline. "Am I not worthy of good fortune?"
Moments passed, and to his dismay, it fell to 7.
"This is frustrating; it feels like a waste of time to keep the panel open."
Yet not all was bleak; he also noted positive developments.
[You have created 3 Favor of Fate potions. Experience Points +300,000. Skill Points +2. Additional Experience Points +300,000.]
[You have leveled up to level 70.]
[You trigger a promotion task.]
[Mission: Ranks of the Strong.
Attribute: Promotion Task.
Mission Description: You are approaching the pinnacle of gold. For now, you have successfully entered the ranks of top-tier warriors. In the grand scheme, you no longer seem weak.
Sufficient combat power does not guarantee stable strength. As an alchemist, knowledge is paramount.
Please advance to Master of Alchemical Science, Alchemical Pharmacy, and Alchemical Transformation.
Rewards: Alchemical Transformation Energy ×1, Special Skill Points ×1, Attribute Points ×10, Random Reward ×1.
Task Limitation Period: None.
Failure Punishment: None.
Introduction: Accumulation is an inevitable process for an alchemist. You choose the path of holistic development. This is the way of the saint and the sage. In the near future, you may lead the field of alchemy and become a beacon for all alchemists.]
Bai Yi was momentarily taken aback, realizing the last promotion task emphasized strength, while this task focused on knowledge accumulation.
"There seems to be a connection."
Previously, his knowledge had been sufficient to propel him into the gold ranks, necessitating a focus on combat power. Now, however, his research time had dwindled, making it imperative to bolster his knowledge to support his magical transformations.
"It's time to accumulate knowledge," he concluded, gaining a deeper understanding of these growth tasks. To a degree, this panel had been quite forgiving.
He examined the progress of his three subjects.
[Master Alchemical Pharmacy (13,630/50,000) (Expand)]
[Master Alchemical Science and Technology (40,820/50,000) (Expand)]
[Master Alchemical Transformation (47,500/50,000) (Expand)]
Bai Yi decided to focus on Transformation first, as it was the most relevant to his recent endeavors. The ongoing battles had left his knowledge of pharmacy lagging. Using others' extreme drugs could eventually hinder his growth.
Relying on others' materials, he understood, would not suffice for long-term success.
With Zero monitoring external developments, Bai Yi exited the laboratory and entered the Hall of Knowledge.
After establishing a temporary workbench, he began his serious study of alchemical knowledge.
With 88 skill points remaining, he recognized that while these could elevate all three disciplines to mastery, it would take time to initiate the process.
Once he got started, skill points would rapidly enhance his proficiency.
(End of this chapter)