Chapter 199 – The Sunwatcher
Of course, the price of becoming powerful was that all the massive experience points he had painstakingly accumulated were now completely wiped out. Like a gust of wind blowing away an eggshell—wealth gone, peace returned. It came with a strange sense of satisfaction, like blowing through money with reckless abandon.
Thankfully, he still had the players as a massive source of experience.
According to the forum data, over 50% of players in both Darkland and West Lin Town had chosen to transfer to the Wandering Gunslinger class. Thanks to his MLM-style promotion and that misleading class analysis thread by XB, the once most popular class from his previous life—Warrior—had now become the lowest of the low. Only 12% of players chose it, a truly pitiful number.
To be honest, he did feel a little bit guilty about it.
Now that his strength had improved, he could continue gathering experience and clearing hidden quests—but more importantly, it was time to start tackling major objectives. Especially dealing with the Curse God Cult. Even though the main questline had already gone wildly off track, Zhou Ning was certain that the primary storyline in the first version was centered around the Curse God Cult. As long as he kept attacking them, he couldn't go wrong.
With things a little less hectic now, he planned to discuss with the Sunwatchers whether he could get his name registered with them.
This way, he wouldn't be completely in the dark about intelligence and could gain access to an incredibly powerful side profession. The Sunwatcher side class had a skill that passively increased attack range and firearm damage—perfect for him.
Meanwhile, in a vast underground chamber that looked almost like a temple, "Wisdom" Count Robbins sat kneeling in a pool of darkness, dressed in a hooded black robe, engaged in devout prayer.
In front of him stood a statue over three meters tall—a grotesque god with two massive ram horns and a terrifying appearance.
Numerous tentacles extended from its shoulders and sides, each one carved with an eye—some open, some closed—densely packed and eerie.
Beside this statue stood another one, even larger at over four meters tall, covered with a black cloth so its appearance couldn't be seen.
At that moment, a cultist in a black robe and hood entered and said in a low voice:
"Mr. Robbins, as you instructed, we've gathered a large number of Chosen Ones and have conducted a series of tests in collaboration with Mr. Bedrock."
"Well done." A smile curled on Robbins' lips. "What were the results?"
"As you predicted, they do possess immortality. However, when dissected for research, their flesh and blood were indistinguishable from ordinary humans. Some were even more frail than the average person."
"Moreover, they vanish from their cells without warning from time to time and then reappear just as mysteriously. When interrogated, they spout nonsense about where they went or how they disappeared."
"We also tested their obedience. It turns out that even without brainwashing, they'll carry out tasks flawlessly if offered a little incentive. They seem quite easy to control."
"Perhaps… they're born cannon fodder. If used correctly, we could even employ them for large-scale sacrifices or to carry out difficult assassinations."
At this point, the cultist looked a bit puzzled and asked, "But the goals of the Life Alchemy Society are completely different from ours. With our current strength, wouldn't it be easy enough to directly release the true god Nayastora? Why must we cooperate with them?"
"Who says our goals are completely different? They seek life. We seek chaos. This is Darkland—a land blessed by the righteous gods! Only by using every force available and uniting with all who can be united can we create utter chaos, draw everyone's attention, and truly usher in our Lord's return."
With that, Robbins fell silent and resumed his prayers.
The black-robed cultist followed in prayer for a while, then left the underground chamber about ten minutes later. Once outside, he removed his hood. Under the sunlight, he revealed slicked-back brown hair, icy blue eyes, a slightly receding hairline, and deep nasolabial folds on both cheeks.
He was none other than Harrison Rivers, patriarch of the Rivers family.
...
Early the next morning, thanks to Jacqueline's efforts, Zhou Ning had his first hot and hearty breakfast since arriving in this world.
One fried egg, some matsutake, and a portion of roasted mushrooms that looked incredibly appetizing.
Compared to his previous frugal meals, this breakfast cost about 6 Roshens…
Absolutely decadent.
As he ate, Zhou Ning casually browsed the forums. He was now highly focused on player activity.
Currently, two topics dominated the forums. One was the Gnomeregan dungeon, closely tied to him.
After circling around both West Lin Town and Darkland, 28 players now possessed Dungeon Summoning Stones, and even more—around 80 or 90—had participated in the raid.
The [Gnomeregan] dungeon had become a craze among players in both regions. The experience gain was far better than grinding regular quests, and it occasionally dropped fine or even rare-quality gear—a total upgrade. However, players were still stuck on the second boss.
The other hot topic was that a large number of players in Darkland City had been captured by the Curse God Cult.
Though Zhou Ning cared deeply about this, and knew roughly where players were being held, the descriptions posted by others were vague, and he couldn't post on the forums himself. There were too many similar buildings nearby to pinpoint anything, so he had to wait for feedback from Qingbai Wild Sake and Haicheng.
Before long, fully dressed and ready, Zhou Ning boarded his rented carriage, bringing along a crate full of firearms and two Devil Fruits, heading for the West Lin General Store in the old district.
From his residence at 117 Gibson Street to the West Lin General Store was about a 30-minute walk. If he hadn't already rented a carriage and hired a driver, Zhou Ning might've preferred to go on foot.
Soon, the carriage stopped in front of the store, and Zhou Ning knocked on the door.
This time, it was Sherlock who answered. It had been a while since they last met, and the guy looked noticeably more haggard. Upon seeing Zhou Ning, he gave him an enthusiastic hug.
A wave of body odor hit him!
Zhou Ning stepped back in disgust and handed him the crate.
"Fourteen long guns, twelve short guns, and two Devil Fruits. Total comes to 2,198 Vecktas."
After a quick check, Sherlock pushed a stack of cash toward him and asked, "I heard something big went down in the Meteorological Tides. What exactly happened?"
"It was pretty major." Zhou Ning gave a wry smile. Following Edwin's instructions, he left out Archibald's involvement and shared only what he could.
"Troubled times indeed. I didn't expect the Meteorological Tides to be such a mess," Sherlock sighed. "It's not exactly peaceful on my end either. I really need a good break. The recent string of cases has been both dangerous and mentally exhausting."
After some small talk, Zhou Ning cleared his throat and smiled. "About what you guys asked me to consider earlier—I've made up my mind. I'll join you. But I have one condition."
"Oh?" Sherlock perked up. "Why the sudden change of heart? What's your condition? Let's hear it."
"I want to join in name only. I'll participate in operations when needed, but I don't want to be as busy as you," Zhou Ning said.
Sherlock chuckled and shook his head.
"No choice—that's just life as a Sunwatcher."
"I don't have the authority to approve this. I'll have to check with Lord Kien, but it shouldn't be a problem."
(Support me and read ahead on Patreøn: patreøn.com/craxxtranslations.
3 new chapters are released daily—thank you for your support!
Powerstone Event: For every 50 powerstones, 1 chapter will be unlocked.)