Chapter 162: Attribute Tags and Enlightenment Pills?
Seven full days had passed.
On the first floor of the Trial Tower, the outer areas of the Death Isle no longer satisfied the players' hunting needs. They began pushing deeper.
More and more players were encountering Red-Robed Wraiths.
"Gomu Gomu… Mental Drive!"
Luffy swung his arms and removed the straw hat from his head, slamming it into the ground.
A light tremor rippled outward.
Centered on the straw hat, a special green energy field spread five meters in all directions.
All surrounding wraiths froze in place from the shockwave.
Empowered by the green energy field, Luffy's fists became faster and more ferocious, pounding the wraiths until their health bars were emptied.
"What a powerful move!"
Zoro opened his eyes and locked onto his captain, who was dominating the wraiths.
The skill had dropped after they had hunted a Red-Robed Wraith: a blue-rank skill called [Mental Drive].
It allowed the user to embed a weapon into the ground, generating a field of [Giant Force] that slightly increased critical damage.
Under the Mental Drive effect, one's awareness heightened—like a sixth sense—making it easier to strike enemies accurately.
But on second thought…
Zoro felt [Mental Drive] didn't quite suit him.
He was someone aiming to become the world's greatest swordsman. What kind of swordsman stabs [Wado Ichimonji] into the ground and brawls like a brute alongside Luffy?
"If we keep pushing forward, we'll be nearing the island's center soon. I wonder how strong the tower guardian is—will they be worth drawing my blade for?"
Zoro's gaze turned sharp.
Black mist surged behind him as a ghostly figure slowly materialized—his summoned ghost god.
This appeared after upgrading [Ghost Affinity] to Lv.5.
The system prompted him: Spend 8,000 reward points to upgrade the skill.
Zoro, puzzled, signed a debt bond, and [Ghost Affinity] evolved into a new skill.
[Phantom Armor Keija]: Envelop yourself with ghost god power to enhance critical damage and movement speed. All slashes inflict ghostly energy.
"The power of an afterimage…"
Zoro gripped his sword in his mouth, grasping two more in hand. With a heavy stomp, he burst forth in a flash—blitzing through multiple wraiths.
Wraith claws slashed down, but they phased through his ghost-shrouded form, dealing no damage.
Slice.
A slash of purplish-black ghost energy tore through the wraiths' chests.
This ghost deity came from Arad Continent, once a Shadow Maze guardian and a shadow demon swordsman.
Even in death, he resisted fading away, his powerful will forging him into a ghost god.
"If I were to fall on my path to becoming the world's greatest swordsman, my unresolved grudge would probably turn me into a roaming ghost god too…"
Sheathing his sword and feeling the presence of the phantom god swirling around him, Zoro thought quietly.
Be it wraith or pirate—no one would stop him.
Every obstacle in his path, he would cut down!
"That idiot Smoker… he's openly poaching from Marine resources?"
In Marine HQ, Admiral Akainu—Sakazuki—slammed the conference table in rage.
"He's using our funding to upgrade and feed the Game Merchant, someone who poses a massive threat to the Navy! Is he betraying us!?"
In the projection den-den mushi feed, Smoker had yet to sign any debt bond, but he generously spent Marine funds to upgrade his [Poison Mastery] to Lv.5.
It evolved into: [Toxic Blood]: Developed by street brawlers through toxic training. Their blood now carries potent venom.
This was the core of the street fighter class.
Aokiji, calm as always, interjected: "Smoker's still doing it for the Navy. The stronger he becomes, the better he can investigate the Game Merchant—and protect the Celestial Dragons."
Just as they were about to clash again, Sengoku stepped in.
Over the past few days, all top Marine officials were required to observe the den-den mushi feeds—analyzing the gameplay content.
There were two goals:
One, decipher the Game Merchant's powers to help Vice Admiral Tsuru prepare.
Two, help the Marines in the Trial Tower first floor locate weaknesses on Death Isle so they could defeat the guardian boss first.
Sengoku massaged his temple. "Some Marines have already signed debt bonds to get reward points from the Game Merchant."
Debt bonds.
They sounded shady—and meant those Marines would be forever bound to the Game Merchant unless they repaid the points through constant monster hunting.
No one knew what happened if they defaulted.
If the consequences were deadly, the debt would be like chains. Any Marine with a weak will could betray the Navy just to survive.
A note was handed to Sengoku.
His face darkened. "That damn Garp! I told him not to act rashly, and he went and became a contract player—and even snuck into the Trial Tower!?"
"Vice Admiral Garp too?!"
"Unbelievable!"
The conference erupted.
Vice Admiral Garp was one of the Navy's strongest—he refused promotions, but his true strength rivaled the admirals.
He had cornered the Pirate King multiple times and was a symbol of Marine pride.
If something happened to him, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Not like losing a few rogue Marines or even Smoker.
A few minutes later, the den-den mushi cameras locked onto Garp.
"Koby, you coward! You'll never make a proper Marine like this!"
BAM!
Garp smashed a fist down on the head of the pink-haired teen cowering from the ghosts.
He'd received orders from Sengoku and arrived at the East Blue's Trial Tower region.
Along the way, he ran into Koby and took him under his wing, thinking he was a promising recruit.
But after a few days, he was disappointed. Koby was too timid.
Maybe he should pass him off to Sakazuki to toughen him up?
BOOM.
Garp's fists were like iron.
When he struck a ghost, it was like tearing through cotton.
He was one of the strongest in the One Piece world—not a Devil Fruit user, but a master of Haki and battle.
Age hadn't weakened him—it had refined him.
He hadn't brought much money, but it was enough to unlock his real strength.
His Lv.5 Armament Haki was rated as a blue-grade skill, but his technique made him a monster in battle.
"This is the kind of fight I love!"
Garp laughed heartily as he smashed through ghost after ghost.
Each punch exploded like a cannon blast.
Wearing his iconic dog-head cap, Garp danced through the battlefield.
Each ghost he passed disappeared in a puff of mist.
"What's going on…? We have Lv.5 Armament Haki too, but Garp's punches are way stronger…"
The Marines trailing him watched in disbelief.
They were all capable of fighting alongside Garp, with none of them weak in combat. Armament Haki was an essential skill for surviving in the Grand Line and the New World.
In order to keep up with Garp and Bogart's pace, they had all signed contracts and used their reward points to unlock Armament Haki.
But even though they had the same skill level, they didn't possess the same power as Garp.
"Maybe it's because my Armament Haki skill has comprehended a trait?"
"A trait?"
The marines all wore confused expressions.
Garp directly displayed his skill panel, and at the bottom of the [Armament Haki] skill, a new line had appeared.
[Armament Haki Lv.5 (Blue)]: A special ability in the world of pirates. Upon activation, it greatly enhances both defense and attack power.
Lv.5 Trait: Increases fist penetration power by 15%.
The marines exchanged glances and quickly opened their own skill panels.
After a round of investigation, they discovered that trait comprehension had to be either realized on one's own or achieved by purchasing a Perception Pill from the in-game shop.
Each Perception Pill cost 5,000 reward points—and there was no guarantee of success.
Afuu looked at the newly listed item and asked in confusion, "Master, would anyone really buy a Perception Pill?"
Traits.
To put it simply, even with the same skill, every player's comprehension could differ, resulting in different effects.
It was like martial arts manuals in a wuxia world, or secret techniques and battle auras in a fantasy world—everyone cultivated them differently.
The stronger a player's soul potential, the deeper their understanding and interpretation of a skill. Even with the same level, they could unleash much greater power.
These subtle differences had been fully gamified by the master.
"Of course they'll buy it," Fang Yi said with a slight smile. "Can't you see the envy in those marines' eyes? The skill levels are the same, so why is your power greater?"
Afuu responded as if it were obvious, "That's because Garp's comprehension and understanding of Armament Haki are much deeper. He integrates his own techniques, so his Haki packs more punch in terms of fist penetration."
This had a lot to do with soul potential.
Although everything in the Reincarnation Game was framed as a game, its essence remained grounded in the real world. Natural talent couldn't be completely overlooked.
Just like Mihawk and Zoro, who had extremely high soul potential and an innate comprehension of swordsmanship. Even in a world without magic, some people could apply what they learned immediately, while others couldn't connect the dots no matter how much they memorized.
"That's the very reason the Perception Pill exists," Fang Yi said, overlooking the steady stream of players flooding into the first floor of the Trial Tower. "The Reincarnation Game's purpose is to change everyone's fate and fulfill all dreams."
"Players with high soul potential will naturally be the vanguard in hunting pollution sources, the spearhead team—but we can't ignore our foundation."
"That's the ordinary players."
"Why should they, being players of the Reincarnation Game too, not have the power to change their fate? If Mihawk can achieve lord-level power with the same gear and level, why should Pirate Palu be stuck as an elite monster?"
"The existence of the Perception Pill is a declaration to ordinary players: as long as you have enough willpower and fight hard enough to earn reward points, you can catch up to those 'chosen ones'—and even surpass them!"
"That is the true meaning of the Reincarnation Game."
After hearing this, even Afuu was feeling a surge of excitement.
Her tiny fists clenched tightly—fate was in her own hands!
But then she hesitated and asked, "But Master, isn't the Perception Pill priced a bit too high? You could use that same amount of reward points to upgrade a skill instead, and that would make you stronger, wouldn't it?"
That was the core issue.
The attribute increase from leveling up a skill was far greater than the bonus from a trait.
And yet, the Perception Pill—which helped players comprehend or change a trait—was more expensive than a skill level-up. Would anyone really be foolish enough to buy it?
Fang Yi smiled reassuringly. "Pirate players might need some more time. But players from the Ninja World? They've already given in. Forget 5,000 points—even 50,000 points, some would still take the gamble."
"No way! I'd never buy it!" Afuu shook her head in disbelief. "There's no way someone would be that foolish—spending so many points for such a small bonus?"
Take Garp's trait, for example: the Lv.5 trait granted 15% increased fist penetration. Yes, it was stronger than the average marine's Armament Haki.
But rather than spend 5,000 reward points on a gamble for a 15% trait, wouldn't it be smarter to just level the skill up?
Even without a trait, a Lv.10 Armament Haki would easily overpower Garp's Lv.5 trait-enhanced version.
That's the power of level difference.
Even a purple-quality skill at Lv.1 couldn't match a white-quality skill at Lv.10 in terms of power.
Fang Yi sneered. "That's because you underestimate the players' obsession with perfection."
Back in his days as a game designer, he had seen countless players fully equipped with top-tier gear still throwing money at the game for single-digit improvements.
Trait reroll scrolls, stat refinement pens, equipment grade adjusters—players would stop at nothing to chase perfection.
"Perfection?" Afuu tilted her head, not quite understanding.
Fang Yi paused, then asked, "What's the maximum attribute boost for a level-five trait?"
Afuu thought for a moment and replied, "Twenty percent, or twenty attribute points."
Fist penetration, sword crit rate, guard-breaking power, shadow damage, physical dodge, defense—
Traits could add all sorts of bizarre stats.
But they all had a cap.
Just like a deadly sword move in a wuxia world, no matter how deep one's understanding, one couldn't surpass the technique's own limit.
20%.
That was the max attribute bonus for a level-five skill trait.
Fang Yi grinned and said, "Do you believe that someone, even if they've already hit 19.9% attribute bonus, will still keep buying Perception Pills just to hit the 20% cap?"
"No way!" Afuu shook her head furiously. "Even if players fall for your schemes sometimes, they can't be that stupid!"
"Let's wait and see."
Right now, maybe not.
Pirate players were still building up their gear and skills.
But when they reached the level of the Ninja World players, and began preparing to enter the New World—
The Perception Pill would become a hot seller.
Fang Yi looked into the Trial Tower at the swarming players, his gaze filled with anticipation—
Like a farmer watching a golden crop of leeks ready for harvest.
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