Dungeon Slots

"Pṛtyaya" meant attachment, reliance, or something to lean on.

What Zhang Zhe meant by a pṛtyaya was a special item imbued with the aura of a Time Fragment.

By using a special method to link one's own aura to the item, one could use it to pry open a Time Fragment and bring people inside.

It was much like the quest items in games that opened dungeons.

That was why they were also called quest items, though they didn't come with any quests that had to be completed.

Just as dungeons were divided into five-player, ten-player, and twenty-player instances, the number of people different items could bring in varied as well.

This time, the pṛtyaya had been provided by Lao Mountain Shangqing Palace. According to the information, it could definitely bring in thirty-six people, but all those slots had gone to the Special Affairs Department.

Apparently, Shangqing Palace and the Special Affairs Department had made some kind of deal.

The department had also used ritual methods to forcibly increase the number of slots by a little over a hundred.

But the success rate was only seventy percent, meaning just over seventy people could get in. Tian Yong and the others had slots of this kind.

The last kind was for people on the outskirts of the ritual.

Since they were close to the ritual, their odds of success were somewhat higher than those of people elsewhere.

The increase was limited, but it was still much better than leaving everything to luck in other places.

The Special Affairs Department also required anyone qualified to enter to have means of dealing with demons and ghosts.

After all, dungeons were extremely dangerous. The country didn't want to see too many people die inside.

But at this stage, most people had only obtained some martial arts manuals. How could they possibly have any means of dealing with demons and ghosts?

That requirement did at least shut some people up, preventing them from fighting tooth and nail over the slots and breeding resentment.

Zhu Guang himself had ways of dealing with ghosts. He was skilled in talismans and knew a great deal about myths, strange tales, and legends. He was the one who had taught Tian Yong about zombies.

But most of his methods required preparation in advance. If an evil ghost ambushed him, even the greatest number of tools would be no use if he had no time to use them.

That was why he was willing to pay a price to trade when he learned that Ling Qing had Ghost-Repelling Pills with potent effects.

"So, whether it's a slot tied to a pṛtyaya or one within the ritual's range, we don't have the means to get you one.

"As for a slot on the outskirts of the ritual, I can get you one.

"But first, the success rate is very low, so I can't promise you'll get in.

"If it doesn't work, won't all your efforts have gone to waste?

"Second, even if I get you a slot, you'll still need to prepare some means of dealing with ghosts and monsters to meet the department's requirements."

After Zhu Guang finished, he paused to let Ling Qing think. Then he continued, "It'd be a better deal to trade for items you need now and improve your strength.

"Of course, if you insist on a slot, that can be arranged. I just can't guarantee the outcome."

Even if it was only an outskirts slot, he'd be more than satisfied.

During the dozen or so days he'd spent at the villa, he'd talked with others. Most people had entered a Time Fragment only once, and only a few had gone in twice.

That was due not only to how hard it was to come across a dungeon, but also to the way dungeons selected their entrants.

Sometimes, people could be standing within the area covered when a dungeon opened and still have no choice but to watch others vanish before their eyes, simply because they lacked the right opportunity.

Ling Qing had no idea when he would be able to enter another dungeon. Now that he had a chance, he wasn't willing to give it up, however slim his odds.

They were only Ghost-Repelling Pills, after all. If he couldn't get into the dungeon, they wouldn't be of much use to him.

He didn't know whether ghosts existed in the real world. Even if they did, the country had probably dealt with them in secret; ordinary people wouldn't see them at all.

As for bypassing them and asking the Special Affairs Department for a slot directly, that wasn't very realistic either. For one thing, he had no connections and didn't know how to go about it. And for another...

"Then I'll trouble you to get me an outskirts slot. As for the Ghost-Repelling Pills, I still have some." Ling Qing pondered a little longer before speaking.

Last time, he hadn't just obtained Ghost-Repelling Pills; he'd also gotten the recipe and had made some himself. Naturally, he didn't mind trading them.

"You have more? How many?" Zhu Guang asked, his eyes lighting up.

Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe leaned forward with interest as well.

"I can spare ten." Ling Qing held up one finger.

While he'd been in the dungeon, he'd used the money Old Master Liu had given him to buy plenty of materials for making Ghost-Repelling Pills, just in case.

After seeing what the pills could do, and knowing how to make them himself, Ling Qing had naturally wanted to stock up.

After all, no one knew whether he'd run into ghosts or zombies in the next dungeon. Druid methods for dealing with undead creatures were quite limited.

Of course, he had far more than ten pills on hand. But he didn't say so. People didn't value things as much when they had too many.

Still, he couldn't offer too few either. The pills were, after all, a consumable of sorts.

He'd caught a lucky break. The Special Affairs Department had kept the high-quality Ghost-Repelling Pills for its own use.

On top of that, Zhu Guang was asking for the pills to protect himself, which had given Ling Qing this opportunity.

If he missed this chance, Ghost-Repelling Pills alone might not be enough to get him a slot.

Then he turned to explain to Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe. "I didn't tell you before, but what I got was the recipe for Ghost-Repelling Pills. I bought the ingredients afterward and made some."

Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe waved it off. They weren't bothered. They hadn't gone into detail about what they'd obtained, either.

"Ingredients from the dungeon?" Zhu Guang asked again.

"Of course." Ling Qing nodded firmly.

For an item to be brought into a dungeon, half of its ingredients had to come from one.

The materials brought out of a dungeon also contained more or less spiritual energy, making them more effective against ghosts and monsters. Ordinary materials lacked that quality.

"Brother Ling Qing, could you spare me a few more?"

Zhu Guang added, "I can trade you something for them. I have Corpse-Suppressing Talismans, Speed Talismans, Evil-Warding Talismans, and Golden Light Talismans.

"I've also got Nine-Yang Talismans to improve performance in that department, Peach Blossom Talismans to boost your romantic luck, and so on. Take your pick."

As Zhu Guang pulled various Yellow Talismans from all over his person, Ling Qing felt his eyes open wide. He curiously examined the talismans before him, things he'd only seen on television.

Unlike the special effects on TV, these were all real.

But it seemed there was something strange mixed in among them.

Ling Qing took a wooden box from his bag. Inside were ten crimson pills, each the size of a longan. They were the Ghost-Repelling Pills he'd made.

After giving Zhu Guang four, he picked out a few practical talismans from the many on offer.

Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe each used points to trade for three pills.

Ling Qing had meant to give them the pills, but they refused to accept them.

After the exchange, Zhu Guang hurried off to make preparations. Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe also said their goodbyes to Ling Qing.

The "Lao Mountain Daoist" dungeon was set to open on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. It was already the beginning of the month, so there weren't many days left.

Before then, they had to sort out Ling Qing's slot and make plenty of preparations.

In a world overrun by ghosts and monsters, one could never have too many means of protection. After all, a person only had one life.

Ling Qing had planned to leave, but after this came up, he gave up on that plan.

He went to the front desk and extended his stay by a few days. While he waited for news from Tian Yong and the others, he also began preparing.