Seeing Xiao Yan's stunned, thunderstruck expression and the subtle reaction from the ring on his fingertip, Ning Chen knew he'd made his point.
He knew when to stop. Without saying another word, he gave Xiao Yan a meaningful look, then resumed his calm, unruffled air.
"These are only speculations based on common sense, not definitive conclusions." He waved a hand, his tone once again indifferent,
"Everything in this world has its blessings and its misfortunes. Whether this is good or bad for you remains to be seen."
With that, Ning Chen didn't wait for Xiao Yan to ask more questions. He headed straight for the East Wing Elegant Courtyard, a tranquil place they had just reached.
He pushed open the door and walked inside without looking back, leaving only an inscrutable silhouette behind.
"Creak—"
The door closed softly, separating the inside from the outside into two different worlds.
If Yao Chen were awake right now, he'd probably be scared shitless... Ning Chen's lips curled slightly. He felt like laughing.
Putting everything else aside, it felt pretty good to scare a Dou Zun expert.
After that, Ning Chen stopped worrying about Xiao Yan. His most urgent task now was to figure out everything the system could do, then exchange for resources and quickly raise his strength.
After all, although the Wu Wu Kai System made him invincible in this world, it was fine to fool other people—he shouldn't fool himself.
When all was said and done, he was still an ordinary person with no cultivation. On the Dou Qi Continent, having no cultivation made it almost physically impossible to take a single step.
He'd be panting after a long walk. How could that possibly work?
"System, open the shop."
Ning Chen sat cross-legged on the bed and opened the interface.
The number in the Astonishment Points column had risen from "0" to a whopping "61,000."
It looked like a lot, but whether it was actually worth much depended on the prices of the items in the shop.
As he browsed the shop's wares, however, Ning Chen's eyes grew brighter and brighter.
"They even have Heavenly Flames?"
The shop held everything, from ordinary First-Grade Pills, Yellow Tier Cultivation Techniques, and Dou Techniques to Ninth Grade Golden Pills, Heaven Tier Cultivation Techniques, Heavenly Flames, and other treasures of heaven and earth.
But even though they had everything, he couldn't afford any of it right now.
A Green Lotus Core Flame, ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking, cost five hundred thousand Astonishment Points to redeem. And what Ning Chen truly needed right now were cultivation techniques, Dou Techniques, and pills.
"Wait, I can draw lots here, too?" Ning Chen suddenly noticed a lottery section in the lower-left corner of the shop.
According to the description, the prize pool contained everything available for purchase in the shop. Each draw cost one thousand Astonishment Points.
"One thousand per draw... That's not too expensive." Ning Chen rubbed his chin and decided to test his luck,
"Let's try one!"
At a thought, the wheel began spinning with a whir. He called out "stop" in his mind, and the wheel began to slow down.
"Better luck next time!"
Damn it!
A vein throbbed on Ning Chen's forehead. He'd been prepared to draw at least a First-Grade Pill, but he hadn't even gotten a pill—he'd gotten nothing at all!
What the hell was the point of this wheel?
Ning Chen exited the lottery and returned to the shop, focusing on choosing the things he needed.
However, after looking at the exorbitant prices of the regular items for half a minute, he silently clicked back to the lottery.
Rather than buy a pile of junk, he might as well blow it all on the lottery!
He had a full sixty thousand Astonishment Points. Ning Chen refused to believe he couldn't draw something good!
Soon, the lottery wheel began spinning again...
"Better luck next time!"
"Better luck next time!"
"..."
"Heh..." Looking at the Astonishment Points he had left—only fifty thousand—Ning Chen laughed in exasperation.
"Fine, fine, all I get is 'Better luck next time,' huh? I refuse to believe it. Today, I'm going to see whether your prize pool has anything in it besides 'Better luck next time'!"
"Going all in! All in! I'm betting it all!"
"If I win, I'll be living it up. If I lose, I'll have to go work at sea! System, give me fifty draws!"
In an instant, his Astonishment Points balance hit zero.
At the same time, the enormous seven-colored wheel began spinning like crazy, as if it had been injected with a stimulant, blurring into a dazzling swirl of light.
Ning Chen held his breath and counted to ten, then gave the command without hesitation,
"Stop!"
Ding, ding, ding, ding—!
A series of bright and faint glimmers flashed across the system interface, accompanied by crisp chimes.
When the lights faded, thirty items of all shapes and sizes appeared neatly lined up in the temporary inventory.
"Fifty draws... and I got thirty items?"
Ning Chen froze for a moment, then realized what had happened,
"So, in those ten draws just now, I managed to dodge every single prize and hit all the forty percent of draws that gave nothing?! What kind of luck is that..."
He shook his head with a rueful laugh and started tallying up the spoils from his "all-in."
[Storage Ring (1,000 cubic meters)] x1, not especially valuable, but at least it solved his storage problem.
[Qi Recovery Pill] x5, Third-Grade Pills that quickly restored Dou Qi.
[Blood-Coagulating Powder] x3, First-Grade healing medicine—not much, but better than nothing.
[Five-Grade Beast Flame · Chi Xin Fire] x1, this one was decent. At the very least, it meant he hadn't lost out.
[Three-Pattern Green Spirit Pill] x1, a Peak Fourth-Grade Pill that could help Da Dou Shi or even Dou Ling cultivators improve their strength, with a chance of success. It was quite valuable.
Most of the prizes were pills and ordinary items. Though there were a few valuable ones, such as the Three-Pattern Green Spirit Pill and the Beast Flame, Ning Chen's most anticipated prizes—cultivation techniques and Dou Techniques—were nowhere to be seen.
Just as he was getting disappointed and preparing to close the interface—
Bzzzz—!
A brilliant golden beam of light suddenly shot up from the inventory, bathing the entire system interface in dazzling gold!
"Whoa! A legendary gold drop!"
Ning Chen's spirits soared, and his heart began to pound despite himself.
He eagerly looked at the few items radiating golden light.
[Three-Star Da Dou Shi Cultivation Infusion]
Effect: After use, instantly advance to Three-Star Da Dou Shi. Your foundation will be stable, with absolutely no side effects!
Ning Chen's eyes lit up. "Cultivation! The thing I need most! I'll finally stop being an ordinary person!
[Mid-Level Earth-Tier Cultivation Technique · Nine-Layer Phoenix Fire Art]
Effect: A top-tier Fire Attribute Cultivation Technique. The Fire Attribute Dou Qi it produces is pure and domineering. It has nine layers, and with every layer, the quality and power of the Dou Qi undergo a qualitative leap. It has tremendous potential!
"Mid-Level Earth Tier! And it's even fire-attribute!" Ning Chen's breath caught. This cultivation technique alone made the whole thing worth it!
[Three-Piece Dou Technique Set]
Phoenix Wings Soaring (Low Earth Tier): A movement Dou Technique that condenses a pair of flaming wings. It offers tremendous speed and can be used for both flight and surprise attacks.
Great Sun Heaven-Burning Sword (Low Earth Tier): An ultimate offensive sword technique that compresses Fire Attribute Dou Qi to an extreme degree along the blade. When swung, it becomes a beam of pure light and heat.
Up to three sword strikes can be stacked. Its power is enough to rival a Mid-Level Earth-Tier Dou Technique.
Nirvana Shield (Mid-Level Earth Tier): A defensive Dou Technique that summons a phoenix phantom to form a flaming shield. It offers formidable defense, and when the shield breaks, it can absorb part of the damage and convert it into vitality to restore the user.
"Offense, defense, and speed—all covered! And they're all Earth Tier!"
Ning Chen was overjoyed. This set of Dou Techniques perfectly made up for his lack of offensive abilities!
[Dou Zong Trial Card (Three Seconds)]
Effect: After use, temporarily grants the strength of a Three-Star Dou Zong. Duration: 3 seconds.
"Three seconds as a real man..." Ning Chen's lips twitched, but he soon realized the item's strategic value,
"If I only ever defend and never attack, sooner or later some reckless fool who isn't afraid to die will test me. But with this, I can at least stop worrying about that in the Jia Ma Empire."
[Tiangang Sword Formation Diagram · Fragment (Can Kill Dou Emperors)]
Effect: A fragment of an ancient sword formation diagram. Activated with Dou Qi, once the formation is set, sword energy will crisscross through the area and create its own domain. At full power, it can trap and kill top-level Dou Emperor experts!
Requires a massive amount of Dou Qi to activate and can only be used once.
"A trump card!" Ning Chen's gaze burned. "Even though it's single-use, it's definitely the strongest trump card I have right now, apart from the Dou Zong Trial Card!"
Summary of the spoils.
Although he'd lost badly at first, the fifty-draw haul had completely changed his fate by the end!
The most important prizes were the Three-Star Da Dou Shi cultivation, a Mid-Level Earth-Tier Cultivation Technique, three Earth-Tier Dou Techniques, the three-second Dou Zong trial card, the sword formation diagram that could kill Dou Emperors, and the Five-Grade Beast Flame along with several pills.
"I hit the jackpot... I really hit the jackpot this time!"
Looking at the dazzling array of treasures in his inventory, especially those few beams of golden light, Ning Chen couldn't help grinning. His frustration over drawing "Better luck next time" had vanished without a trace.
Before, you called me a degenerate gambler, and I didn't hold it against you. Now, what should you call me?
"No time to waste. I'll start cultivating right now!"
Without hesitation, Ning Chen chose to use the [Three-Star Da Dou Shi Cultivation Infusion] and the [Mid-Level Earth-Tier Cultivation Technique · Nine-Layer Phoenix Fire Art].
In an instant, a vast surge of pure energy poured into his limbs and organs. The system's power ensured that the process was painless and extremely efficient.
The meridians in his body rapidly widened and strengthened. His Dou Qi cyclone quickly took shape, swelling...
Before you continue