"In other words, it's time to roll again."
After a brief pause, Obsidian murmured softly, quickly rising from his seat and grasping the [Lunacy] firmly in hand. Despite this, his mind was still absorbed with the current situation.
Up to this day, Obsidian had yet to dare venture onto The Great Lake next door. As for the rest of The Outskirts…
Truth be told, the situation wasn't looking optimistic.
He was steadily reaching a new frontier. The explored region of The Outskirts so far was basically the territory once dominated by The Food Chain, and most of the monsters there had already been cleared out.
However, Obsidian was now approaching areas neither he nor The Food Chain had ever reached. Precisely because of this, Obsidian held no illusions—if he continued exploring outward, he'd inevitably encounter monsters far more dangerous and powerful.
He'd already glimpsed unsettling signs: disturbing shadows, scorch marks from lightning, burned remnants… Such evidence made Obsidian strongly suspect the existence of [Aberrations] and other distorted beings deeper in The Outskirts.
"It's about time I found a solution for these monsters… and the ones dwelling in The Great Lake. Besides, diplomatic issues are starting to surface as well…"
He rubbed his temples, quietly lamenting the developing headache.
Diplomatic issues were inevitable, given his current trade situation. The City's exports were severely limited in variety.
Obsidian had several trading partners—Kazimierz, Kazdel, Babel, Yan—but apart from Kazdel, demand for [Ampoules] had declined significantly among the others.
After all, [Ampoules] were essentially lifesaving medicine reserved for critical situations. Once stockpiled, further purchases became excessive. True, they could distribute [Ampoules] to lower-level personnel, but considering their current high price, would they really be willing to do so?
The answer was clearly no. Only Kazdel and Babel, embroiled in constant warfare, maintained high demand. Yet both were Sarkaz factions, chronically lacking funds, incapable of fully meeting The City's import demands.
Even if they resorted to raiding the neighboring Sankta, acquiring sufficient funds was a challenge.
Yan, their largest client, used [Ampoules] primarily for life extension. But Obsidian had already supplied them generously. After distributing to key figures, Yan wouldn't require more [Ampoules] for a long time—not until life expectancy again reached critical levels. Consequently, Yan's demand was steadily dropping as well.
Combined, these factors had created a rather awkward situation: The City's export chain was weakening, and imports necessary for maintaining operations were becoming increasingly insufficient.
"We're still overly dependent on imports… Internal production isn't enough. Right now, The City lacks self-sufficiency and a more universally appealing, widely-marketable export."
Obsidian considered this carefully, eventually reaching his conclusion.
Addressing productivity internally wouldn't be easy in the short term, so he had to look elsewhere to balance imports and exports.
Either adjust the [Ampoule's] market position from a luxury good to an affordable everyday item—something currently difficult due to limited supply, even though there were already dozens of barrels of [Ampoule] concentrate in storage—or consider introducing an entirely new product.
"I hope these forty pulls yield something more universally useful…" Obsidian mumbled to himself, tossing all his [Lunacy] into The [Well] without hesitation.
A brilliant golden light flashed instantly—nothing surprising there. Getting at least one gold-tier item in forty pulls was common. The only uncertainty was the exact number and quality of the items.
However, upon seeing the actual results, Obsidian's face darkened considerably. Only one gold-tier from forty pulls… He couldn't help wondering if he'd need to scrounge up more [Lunacy] soon.
Is there even anything useful here?
Counting the numerous Spindles and assorted weapons, a troubled expression crept onto his face. He sighed, setting aside the [ID Credentials] and [Identity Extraction Tickets] for later.
At least those were somewhat useful. Aside from them, the only other notable two-star item was a belt—some Fixer's relic. Obsidian spared it a single glance and ignored it. It was inferior to Hai's gear anyway, and he had no immediate use for it.
With complicated emotions, he finally clicked open the last three-star item.
Why did he suddenly feel this gacha pull was a complete bust…?
However, the instant he saw what had emerged, his eyes widened in shock.
[Random Singularity Tech Voucher]
Holy shit—
Wait, sorry. I spoke too soon. Let me take back everything I just said.
Whoever said this roll was trash? This was amazing!
[Singularity Technology]! Finally, after so long, he had obtained his second piece of [Singularity Technology]!
"All right… this temporarily solves the immediate issue. With [Singularity Technology], no matter which one it is, there'll be a market for it. Even if it eventually hits the same problem as [Ampoules], it'll buy me enough time to strategize…"
He breathed out slowly, steeled himself, and decisively pressed the redemption button.
The pool for [Singularity Technology] was enormous—Obsidian had no clue what he might get. But just as excitement surged, he noticed The [Well] seemingly lagging for a moment.
"Huh? What's going on…?"
Confused, he stepped closer, about to tap The [Well], when suddenly, the golden glow flickered, dimmed—and then immediately reignited, even brighter than before!
It was as though the reward had just been replaced.
He retreated half a step, squinting intently at the emerging text. And at that moment, he froze completely, stunned.
[Singularity Technology: Mental Manifestation]
As soon as Obsidian read those words, countless familiar terms flashed through his mind—
[Cogito], [Aberrations], [EGO], [The Tree of Light]…
His mouth parted slightly, and a torrent of information flooded into his mind.
There was no mistaking it. This was undoubtedly the [Singularity Technology] belonging to Lobotomy Corporation itself!