NOVEL NEXT chapter 53 - Beyond Legendary? (1/4)
Unlike a normal summoning altar, the [Red Chamber] only had a chance to spit out a hero. Wu Chi had already blown 2000 Void Crystals on it and gotten nothing but a pile of dresses, jewelry, and other miscellaneous crap. You always needed a stash of crystals on hand for emergencies, so he couldn't just go nuts pulling whenever he felt like it. The standard procedure was to allocate a portion of the post-battle loot to try his luck.
"What a fucking scam. It's just a gacha game."
And that first 10-crystal pull got me Lin Daiyu…
Why does this have the unmistakable stench of every pay-to-win gacha game from my past life?
Wu Chi's face twitched. After that first miraculous pull, the cheap 10-crystal summons had never produced anything worthwhile again. Even the common clothing drops were miles behind the stuff from premium summons. One was rough linen; the other was exquisite silk with jade ornaments.
So, he had a love-hate relationship with the [Red Chamber]. The love part: it was genuinely awesome. Every hero was a perfect, beautiful, and charismatic embodiment of his fantasies. The hate part: he {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} was broke as shit. If he had infinite crystals, he'd have summoned the entire "Twelve Beauties of Jinling" on the spot.
Fantasies aside, he habitually went for a 10-pull of the cheap summons.
An ink-wash scroll materialized, ethereal figures swirling within a rising mist, like a scene from a celestial paradise.
Notification: You have received [Bronze Mirror] x1.
Notification: You have received [Osmanthus Cake] x1.
Notification: You have received [Towel] x1.
…
Notification: You have received Hero - [Lin Daiyu].
Notification: You have received [Palace Gown] x1.
"Yup, another pile of garbage," Wu Chi sighed, watching the notifications pop up, his disappointment palpable.
Then, a brilliant golden notification flashed, and his brain short-circuited.
"Wait, Sister Lin again?"
Can you summon duplicates?
He looked around, but a second Lin Daiyu hadn't appeared. Instead, lying on the table was a shimmering golden scroll. He unfurled it. Inside was a portrait of Lin Daiyu. It had its own stat panel.
…
[Vain Sorrows - Lin Daiyu]
Type: Destiny Portrait.
Quality: Gold Legendary.
Function: When used on the hero [Lin Daiyu], it increases the hero's quality, base attributes, stat growth, and enhances her innate talent and bloodline.
Description: As you already possess the hero Lin Daiyu, this summons has manifested as her exclusive Destiny Portrait.
…
"So that's how it works!"
"You can upgrade a Gold Legendary?"
Wu Chi's expression shifted. He thought for a moment, then decided not to go find Lin Daiyu just yet. His first 10-pull had struck gold. That meant his luck was hot, right? He checked his crystal balance, gritted his teeth, and dumped another 2,900 crystals into the cheap summon pool.
…
A few moments later, Wu Chi walked out of the [Red Chamber], a completely blank expression on his face.
Back at the palace, in a lavishly decorated bedroom, Sister Lin was resting on a fragrant couch. Her eyes fluttered open as she sensed him at the door. Wu Chi walked in and saw her sitting up. "Were you sleeping?" he asked with a smile.
"Just a short nap. I was about to wake up anyway," Lin Daiyu said, stretching languidly, her graceful, enchanting figure put on full display for him without a shred of inhibition.
"Young Master, did you need something?" she asked, a knowing little glint in her beautiful eyes.
Wu Chi didn't overthink it. "Found a cool new toy for you." He handed her the Destiny Portrait.
Lin Daiyu took the scroll and examined it, a look of astonishment on her face.
"This… it seems to be a portrait of myself!"
"Try using it," Wu Chi said with a mysterious grin.
Her trust in him was absolute. Without hesitation, she mentally willed it to activate. The scroll dissolved into points of light and flowed into her body.
…
[Lin Daiyu]
(Stats omitted)
Quality: Gold Legendary (1/9)
Talent: [Unrivaled Strength and Spirit] +2
Bloodline: [Crimson Pearl Immortal Herb] +2
Constitution: 1010+21 (Base: 90, Skill: 10, Multiplier: 1000%) (Gear: 21, Bond: 10)
Spirit: 240+7 (Base: 13, Skill: 10, Multiplier: 1000%) (Gear: 7, Bond: 10)
…
The first thing Wu Chi noticed was the change in her quality.
1/9?
Does that mean at 9/9, she'll ascend to a whole new tier?
What the hell is beyond Gold Legendary?
Wu Chi frowned. He'd never heard of any quality tier higher than legendary. But that was probably just because of his environment. You don't learn this kind of stuff in school or from browsing the forums. It meant one of two things: either no lord in history had ever achieved it, or the existence of a tier beyond Legendary was a taboo, a secret locked away from common rabble like him.