Huo Yuhao had expected his rating to be low. After all, he had inexplicably been dead for ten years, losing a whole decade, and all his levels had come from items. He could hardly claim to have done anything himself, so a low rating was only natural.
But he could not quite understand why it was merely a pass.
Was a pass actually a thoroughly middle-of-the-road rating? What ratings were above it? What about below?
Huo Yuhao really wanted to know. He was desperate to improve.
"Host, ratings are divided into five grades: abysmal, poor, pass, excellent, and perfect."
"An abysmal rating reduces the chance of rolling a Sacred Cup by two hundred percent. A poor rating reduces it by one hundred percent. A pass reduces it by fifty percent. An excellent rating leaves the odds unchanged. A perfect rating increases them by fifty percent."
"Rolling a Sacred Cup is already extremely difficult, so any change in probability will have a significant impact on the host's final rewards. Please complete your missions proactively and earn higher ratings."
So that was how it worked?
Huo Yuhao understood now. His pass sat right in the middle, with two ratings on either side.
As for the probabilities the system mentioned, he could certainly understand those. Mission rewards were not guaranteed; he could only obtain them by rolling Sacred Cups. If his luck was bad, he might fail to roll even one Sacred Cup in nine attempts, leaving him with nothing but the three guaranteed rewards for the entire mission.
Those were the guaranteed rewards he had received for killing the three harms. Perhaps the system had considered that possibility and given him those three guaranteed rewards so he would not return empty-handed.
Moreover, even after he rolled a Sacred Cup, the mission reward was still random. It could be something good or something bad. What surprised Huo Yuhao most was that the options actually included an empty draw.
That was the most disgusting option of all. It meant rolling a Sacred Cup was no assurance, because he could still randomly draw an empty reward.
Who the hell designed this thing? An empty draw was such a rip-off! Wasn't this just recruiting slaves?
"System, what are the rating criteria? If you're giving me a pass, surely I have the right to know where I lost points!"
This was the question Huo Yuhao was most curious about, because it directly affected his later missions. He had to get to the bottom of it.
"In light of the host's request, an explanation can be provided. The rating criteria are tied to three factors: the host's strength, the time the host takes to kill the three harms, and finally, the host's age."
"Reaching the Titled Douluo level, completing the mission within thirty years of effective time, and being no older than twenty-five will earn an excellent rating."
"The host reached the Titled Douluo level, which was satisfactory. The host's age was also satisfactory, but the rating for the time taken to kill the three harms was abysmal."
"The host was nine years older than Tang San. Despite such a tremendous advantage, the host still took twenty-two years to complete the mission. The effective mission time was thirty-one years. After all, the Three Harms System primarily concerns Tang San, so mission time is measured against him."
"The host's completion time was not especially long in itself. Thirty-one years exceeded the limit by only one year, which could easily have been offset by additional points in the other two categories. However, the host began with nine Sacred Cups and still achieved only this result, so the rating could only be a pass."
Now Huo Yuhao understood.
The rating criteria were tied not only to the time taken to complete the mission, but also closely to his starting conditions. If he had started with one Sacred Cup, or even zero, achieving this result might have earned him a perfect rating.
Reaching the Titled Douluo level, completing the mission before twenty-five, and taking no more than thirty years of effective time would only earn an excellent rating. How difficult would it be to achieve a perfect rating?
Perhaps only a nightmare start combined with an excellent rating could earn a perfect rating. But how could anyone achieve an excellent rating with a nightmare start?
It was undoubtedly a vicious circle.
This mission was no easy undertaking. Nor were its rewards as easy to obtain as he had imagined.
But Huo Yuhao immediately spotted a loophole.
"System, doesn't that mean the younger I am compared to Tang San, the shorter the effective time will be, and the higher the mission rating?"
"Yes."
After answering, the system promptly doused Huo Yuhao with a ladle of cold water. "But host, do you think you could still defeat Tang San if you were younger than him? Would you even have a chance to complete the mission?"
Huo Yuhao: ...
That stabbed straight through the heart!
Huo Yuhao froze, then found himself speechless. Only now did he realize how stupid his question had been.
Still, Huo Yuhao immediately changed the subject. He already understood all of this, so it was time to get to the main event. He had been salivating over those rewards.
After all, he was no longer that extraordinary prodigy with twin martial souls and an innate level of twenty. He was merely a little weakling with level-one innate soul power who had only reached level ten after cultivating until the age of eleven.
"System, I want to roll the Sacred Cups and draw my rewards."
Huo Yuhao was tremendously excited now, because for the first time, he could exploit a loophole and make use of his heaven-defying luck in this world.
Just as the system had said, the first mission was nothing more than a giveaway round. As long as he could obtain even one of those things of his, he would be satisfied.
"Very well. Host, please seek Lord Guan's guidance, then begin rolling the Sacred Cups."
The system was, after all, the Three Harms System, so it treated rolling the Sacred Cups with great seriousness and solemnity.
Soon, an illusory statue of Lord Guan appeared before Huo Yuhao. He looked imposing and majestic, radiating a chivalrous aura.
Huo Yuhao began to calm down, murmuring, "Lord Guan above, your disciple Huo Yuhao lives on the mountain behind the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. Please bless your disciple."
With that, Huo Yuhao began rolling.
His heart raced and his hands trembled. His heart was practically leaping into his throat, because these rewards would shape his destiny.
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received one empty draw."
"Fuck."
Huo Yuhao cursed under his breath, and then the system's voice rang out again.
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received the martial soul: Six-Winged Angel."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received the martial soul: Glazed Divine Fire Eyes."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received the martial soul: Six-Winged Blood Angel."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received one fragment of Angel Godhood."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received one Dark Demon Evil God Tiger inner core."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received one Storage Soul Tool."
"Congratulations on rolling a Sacred Cup. You have received the immortal herb: Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum."
"You did not roll a Sacred Cup!"
Huo Yuhao froze at the final attempt. He had actually failed. That fifty-percent reduction in probability must have taken effect. But his heart already felt as though it was about to explode.
Because his rewards were simply too astonishing.