Chapter 124: The Wind Departs, the Clouds Do Not Return
Clack, clack, clack!
As Luo Yong spent his gems without the slightest hint of emotion, jewel after jewel was stuffed into Bull Devour. One golden card after another burst forth, followed by glowing orbs appearing around him.
Pang Ding, who had been clamoring to make his way into Bear Devour, stood dejectedly to one side, keeping a distance of three meters from Luo Yong.
It was not because he was afraid of Luo Yong, nor because he was being rational and trying to let Luo Yong quickly gather enough mana-powered combat puppets for farming monsters.
Rather, Luo Yong had brought out his trump card—
The Empress.
If Pang Ding did not move aside, Luo Yong would summon the Empress and unleash her affection at point-blank range!
Fatty, did he dare accept that?
The answer was obvious.
He did not.
Luo Yong did not dare, either.
Ahem.
It seemed the Empress’s enthusiasm had gone completely to waste...
Then, amid a chorus of astonished exclamations, Luo Yong continued buying Bull Devour. Each time, another golden card with the exact same design burst forth, granting him an item from Ancient Devour.
It was practically as if the Goddess of Luck had bestowed a halo upon him!
The spectators gathered outside to watch could no longer remain calm. They stopped drinking, stopped chasing women, stopped eating melon, and even stopped cracking sunflower seeds.
One by one, they rubbed their fists and flexed their fingers, all eager to enter Ancient Devour.
Romance was boring. Drawing prizes was far more interesting!
“Come on! Again! Again! Again!”
After watching for a long while, a human hero finally could not restrain himself any longer and stepped into the magic-item shop.
The shop belonged to no organization, and its origins were extraordinarily mysterious. It seemed to have been there ever since the town itself had come into existence.
There were countless legends about it.
The endings, however, were rarely pleasant.
But today, everything seemed different!
That mercenary who appeared to have a mine in his backyard had used his unparalleled luck to rewrite the entire story!
A new legend was about to be born!
“Golden card! Golden card! Golden card!”
“It appeared!”
“The designs match!”
“Oh-ho!”
“He got it! He got it again!”
The spectators began shouting, all of them wildly excited, as though they were the ones who had won the prizes.
They were even more thrilled than Luo Yong himself.
“Quiet.”
Luo Yong swept them an emotionless glance. Then he took out another gem and stuffed it into the mouth of the bull-shaped totem.
“Will another one come out?”
“Oh my heavens... He’s already received ten... fifteen... twenty-three magic items in a row!”
A human hero counted the glowing orbs hovering around Luo Yong. He swallowed involuntarily, then rubbed his hands together and said to his companion, “Do you think he’ll sell me a few if I make an offer later?”
“Sell you a few?”
“Idiot! With the odds this high, money should be spent where it matters most! Draw them yourself!”
“I’m going into Bull Devour later!”
“I need to study this. Logically speaking, the odds cannot remain this high forever. They should be about to drop...”
“Why don’t we go into Bear Devour later? It ought to have some good items as well!”
Although these people watched with eager eyes, all of them were clearly quite capable, and none had low levels. Yet not one dared approach.
The reason was simple: the shop had restrictions. Once inside, they were stripped of their combat power. Even a single rabbit-person could exploit them at will, empty their pockets, and trample on their dignity.
What was more, several armed mana-powered combat puppets stood beside that absurdly lucky mercenary, making everyone even more afraid to advance. They feared being crushed mercilessly.
The rabbit-person shop assistant trembling in the corner was a perfect warning.
For now, all they could do was watch to their hearts’ content, learn from Luo Yong’s prize-drawing techniques, and apply everything they had learned when their own turn came.
“Whoa!”
“The twenty-fourth!”
“That luck is insane!”
“Do you think there’ll be nothing left by the time it’s our turn?”
“No one can say how many magic items remain in Ancient Devour. Maybe there are still some, or maybe they’re all gone!”
“Hero, leave a few for us!”
Several spectators unconsciously edged closer, wanting to step forward.
Swish!
A cold gleam flashed.
One Peerless Sword Dancer swept her blade sideways, forcing them back again.
Beside her, two other Peerless Sword Dancers who looked exactly like her also raised the swords in their hands.
“Quiet!”
Being disturbed by these people prevented Luo Yong from spending his gems properly, and it irritated him immensely. He raised a hand, tapped open the glowing orb that had just appeared before him, and contracted with it immediately.
Flash!
A beautiful figure appeared.
She was another fair-skinned beauty with long legs, and she seemed no shorter than the Empress.
Unfortunately, she wore a pair of glasses, which diminished her beauty somewhat.
Her long ponytail fluttered behind her.
The weapon in her hands emitted a series of clicking sounds.
It was a Gatling gun.
“Eh?”
Luo Yong was somewhat surprised. The character’s appearance seemed familiar, as though he had seen her somewhere before. Could she be another figurine he had once placed in his shopping cart?
But none of that mattered.
What mattered was that this mana-powered combat puppet was exactly the kind he wanted: a unit designed for area attacks!
“The Gatling gun should have formidable firepower, right?”
Luo Yong looked rather pleased and turned his attention back to Ancient Devour.
“Stop making noise. Once I reach a hundred, it’ll be your turn!”
“...”
No one replied, and no one disturbed him.
Yet Luo Yong could clearly sense a powerful wave of resentment.
The feeling was so intense that it had already begun to affect his mood as he spent his gems.
Thus, when the twenty-fifth glowing orb appeared before him, he reached out and tapped it as well, contracting with it immediately.
A sweet-looking girl in splendid clothing appeared before him.
In her hand, she held a battle staff nearly as thick as an ordinary person’s arm and almost a meter and a half long.
She first bent her knees slightly and offered Luo Yong a mage’s salute. Then she turned around and cast a wave of negative magic at the spectators craning their necks to watch.
“Shut your mouths! Close your eyes! Cover your ears!”
With a delicate but commanding shout, a hazy radiance lit up on her staff.
The group had no time to dodge. Every one of them was struck, their senses sealed away. They seemed to plunge into an endless, absolute silence.
“Terrifying!”
Pang Ding hid behind his own mana-powered combat puppet and could not help crying out in amazement.
“Mm!”
But when the sweet-looking magical girl turned her gaze toward him, he instinctively shut his mouth and covered his eyes as well.
“This one should be suited for area attacks too! Excellent. Keep going!”
Whether Luo Yong truly needed so many puppets or had simply become addicted, even he could not say. He continued stuffing gems into Bull Devour, then excitedly pressed the draw button.
...
Time passed second by second, and the number of glowing orbs around Luo Yong continued to increase.
As the hours went by, the total gradually reached one hundred.
“We’ve got a hundred, Luo Yong! Hurry! Go over there and complete the contracts, then see whether they’re what you wanted and whether you need any replacements. Move aside already! Lord Pang is going into Ancient Devour!”
Perhaps the wait had been too agonizingly long. The moment Pang Ding finished speaking, he lunged forward, his spherical body wobbling as he shoved Luo Yong aside.
He stood before Ancient Devour, strange light shining in his eyes. His lips moved as he muttered something no one could understand. Then he swiftly took out a gem and stuffed it into the mouth of the bull-shaped totem.
His prize-drawing journey had begun.
“Ah-ha-ha-ha! As expected, Lord Pang’s luck is invincible! I got one! I got one too!”
Pang Ding shouted at the top of his lungs. Luo Yong, who was counting the items he had obtained, turned his head to glance at him and discovered that the fat man really had won.
And not just once.
He had drawn three golden cards bearing the same design.
A dazzling orb of light floated before Pang Ding.
Then, following Luo Yong’s example, he did not hurry to complete the contract. Instead, he continued spending gems.
After that, however, he barely won anything. Even when he did, three silver cards with matching designs appeared only once, and three bronze cards appeared once.
Afterward, the levels and designs of the three cards never matched again.
But the thrill of the draws made it impossible for him to stop. He continued spending and drawing.
On the first day, he drew prizes.
On the second day, he drew prizes.
On the third day, he drew prizes.
On the fourth day—
“Ah! How could I have fallen this far? How could I become addicted to something like Ancient Devour? I have to leave this place and resurrect my former lover! Belinda, wait for me!”
On the fifth day, he drew prizes.
...
Pang Ding could not resist the temptation of Ancient Devour. He sank deep into the joy of drawing prizes and became utterly unable to pull himself free.
His odds, however, were truly pitifully low.
By then, Luo Yong had already left Sunset Town and returned to the Blood Moon Continent by the route he had taken before.
After taking a moment to adjust to the light here, he went alone to the Demon Secret Realm.
Naturally, while Pang Ding was not paying attention, he also took away the three glowing orbs hovering beside him.
Ahem.
At the time, Luo Yong had put it this way:
“Fatty, I’m leaving. I have serious business to attend to back home!”
“Don’t bother me! I’m about to get another card!”
“Then I’m leaving on my own.”
“Go, go, go! Stop bothering me!”
“I’m taking your items with me too.”
“Take them, take them! Just stop bothering me!”
“...”
The Demon Secret Realm.
“Stand within the eternal holy light. Wherever I go, no evil shall remain hidden!”
Standing beside Luo Yong was a tall, mature woman whose entire being radiated an aura of sacred inviolability.
She was the Holy Light Guardian, specializing in defense.
After an angry roar, holy radiance descended.
With her at its center, a holy-light domain formed within a radius of ten meters.
Evil could not enter. Demons were forced to retreat.
The invisible corrosive force that constantly gnawed at the bearer of the secret-realm key—or rather, at everyone who entered this secret realm—was completely driven away.
“Whew!”
Luo Yong let out a relieved breath.
Now he could finally farm monsters here without worry!
Otherwise, he would have to remain constantly vigilant, making sure he did not lose himself.
Within this secret realm, the desires buried deep in the human heart were magnified without limit.
No matter what kind of desire it was—
Whether obsession or greed,
even someone who killed monsters without emotion would, given enough time, truly become a soulless killing machine.
It was like standing on the edge of a cliff and gazing into the abyss.
Stare long enough, and sooner or later, the abyss would swallow you whole.
“All right. Let’s secure our position first!”
Luo Yong summoned Dodo and had her establish a temporary camp there. He could farm monsters while practicing alchemy, improving his proficiency in both without wasting any time.
“Then, next comes—”