Chapter 8: The Unlucky Ones Revitalize the Cultivation World (8% progress)
Only Xiao Tingyuan remained in the private room. It was quiet and private there, and he finally opened the beginner's gift pack under the urging of the God of Cookery.
[Newbie Gift Pack used, obtained items: Beginner Appraisal Skill x1, Beginner Portable Storage Space x1, Basic Qi Refining Cultivation Technique x1, Random Item x1]
Random items will be drawn from the daily prize pool. Would you like to start the draw?
"Start it." Xiao Tingyuan said, quite nervously.
[One draw determines your luck, 1314 will start your lucky draw now!]
"What does 'European and African' mean?" Xiao Tingyuan asked, encountering a term he didn't understand.
【欧非 (Oufei) and 非酋 (Feiqiu) respectively represent the lucky and the unlucky, you can think of them as the fortunate and the unfortunate.
1314. Explain patiently.
[New players have a twelve-hour protection period. Usually, the random items included in each new player gift pack are from the player's first lottery draw. With the protection, those who are lucky will be even luckier, and those who are unlucky will at least avoid getting junk items. We use this to assess a host's luck when communicating internally. If a host still gets junk items even in this period, we will try our best to prevent the host from becoming addicted to lottery draws in the future.]
Xiao Tingyuan was full of confidence.
1314 said he was lucky.
[Random items are being drawn...]
[Extraction complete. Congratulations, host, you have obtained 1 pill that has no effect, tastes extremely bad, and will leave a lingering aftertaste for three days.]
Xiao Tingyuan blinked as he looked at the pill in his palm: "Could it have some hidden, unknown effect?"
No, dear. Its name clearly states that it has no effect whatsoever.
1314 went to the system backend and searched through the prize pool of the newbie gift pack for a long time.
No matter how hard it tried, it couldn't find anything more useless than this pill in the prize pool.
The culinary genius chimed in: "Impossible, Tingyuan has always been very lucky."
Luck and fortune are linked and represent the general trend. A lucky person may not necessarily have good luck in the end, but a person with good luck in the end is definitely lucky.
1314 comforts its own host.
[Maybe it was an accident the first time, but why not try one more time? The newbie prize pool is connected to the low-level roulette wheel, which costs 10 points per spin. I've already drawn the worst one, it can't get any worse.]
Xiao Tingyuan felt as if an arrow had pierced his heart.
It couldn't get any worse...
"Try it again, I'll try it one more time."
He couldn't believe his luck was that bad, so he decided to try again.
[Exchange for 1 low-level lucky draw chance]
[Drawing items...]
[Draw complete. Congratulations, host, you have obtained 1 copy of Ghost Cultivator Xu Buhui's masterpiece, "Ghost Stories Collection (Unsigned Edition)"]
Xiao Tingyuan was taken aback: "Who?"
Xu Buhui, a ghost cultivator, whose Daoist name was Guixu, ascended to immortality ten thousand years ago.
Xiao Tingyuan's eyes widened: "The Daoist Master of the Mysterious Void!"
The God of Cookery hurriedly said, "1314, are you out of your mind? Shh! Don't call out the names of powerful beings directly, they will sense it!"
Don't worry, dear, they can't sense me. I was created by a higher-level god and have built-in concealment capabilities. Even those at the Tribulation Transcending stage can't detect my presence.
"That scared me to death." The God of Cookery breathed a sigh of relief. "However, so this is the real name of the Dao Lord of the Mysterious Void. The Dao Lord's name cannot be mentioned, so now we only know his Dao title."
Xiao Tingyuan held the book and asked, "Is there anything special about this book?"
[...No, it's not even an autographed copy. Because the writing is so horrifying, it's been sitting in the store with zero sales for years.]
Xiao Tingyuan: "..."
The God of Cookery's curiosity was piqued: "The books of Daoist Guixu have been lost for a long time, and you even have these. Do you have the books of Daoist Tianyan?"
Yes, but only in the highest tier of the prize pool.
"The highest level is to be expected!" the Chef God exclaimed excitedly. "Ting Yuan! Focus on completing tasks to earn points. Let's try to empty the junk in the prize pool and then try to draw the Heavenly Evolution Dao Ancestor's secret manual!"
"That Heavenly Dao Ancestor who saved the world ten thousand years ago?" Xiao Tingyuan's breathing quickened, and his pupils involuntarily dilated due to excessive excitement.
According to available information, there is only one person in the cultivation world who can be called the Dao Ancestor. Also, the prize pool will automatically replenish its inventory, so it's never empty!
Xiao Tingyuan was stunned by this information.
He couldn't believe how fortunate he was to have drawn the secret manual of the Heavenly Evolution Dao Ancestor.
He was extremely conflicted: "Is my luck set? Is there really no chance of turning bad luck into good luck?"
1314 hesitated for a long time before saying:
[These two coincidences might be just that. Maybe I should try the magical cauldron again before the newbie protection period ends? I checked the forums and talked to other players in the same system. I learned that there has never been a case in history where the newbie rewards, the prize pool, and the cauldron were all filled with junk.]
It also wanted to know whether its host's situation was an accident, a coincidence, or something more.
By the way... by the way, I'll also help the Lord God promote the items marked as "slow-moving products" in the backend. It's a win-win situation.
"What is this magical cauldron?"
[The last item in the first row of the system shop, a limited-time offer for new players. It only costs 100 points, with 15 in stock. Limited to one per person, while supplies last. You can't go wrong buying it!]
Oh, there are only 11 left now.
Sure enough, all of its classmates wanted to curry favor with the Supreme God!
Would you like to check out the store?
"yes."
The panel redirects to the system shop, which has detailed categories, including pills, talismans, magical artifacts, and daily necessities.
Xiao Tingyuan saw that all the products were either grayed out or blacked out and could not be clicked, so he hurriedly asked what was going on.
Items in the system shop become available as your level increases. Gray indicates that you have reached the corresponding purchase level but do not have enough points, while black indicates that you are not yet at the required level and the item is not yet unlocked.
After hearing the explanation, Xiao Tingyuan suddenly sobered up when faced with the gray surroundings.
He still owes system points, and if he wants to buy items, he has to continue taking out loans, which is an unwise practice of compounding interest.
He pondered for a moment before clicking on the details page of the magical cauldron.
[A Guide to Using the Magical Cauldron:]
1. You will receive three free trial opportunities after purchase. Each subsequent use will cost 10 points.
2. Input always yields output. Inputting materials will most likely produce items of the same or lower quality, with a very low probability of producing high-quality items.
3. Upgrades can be made using points. Upgrades increase the points required for use, but also increase the probability of producing high-quality items.
4. An indestructible cauldron, a miraculous creation, possessing subtle sentience. When in a good mood, it can cook normally; don't be surprised if it produces anything.
Just as he was checking the details, the text below the image labeled "The Magical Cauldron" changed from "Inventory 11" to "Inventory 10".
The promise of "once sold out, it's gone, limited time offer" was too tempting, and he couldn't help but ask, "Is it really worth 100 points?"
[Even the slightest bit of spiritual awareness makes it worthwhile. Rest assured, we're partners. Your excellence is my reputation in the system world, and my suggestions are absolutely sincere. This cauldron is friendly to everyone except those with bad luck. If all else fails, you can wait until you unlock the internal trading function for quest participants and list it for resale. Limited-edition items might even see their price inflated.]
"There's such a way to do this?" Xiao Tingyuan said, indicating that he had learned something new. Looking at the still decreasing inventory numbers, he skillfully chose to purchase with a loan.
"Bang."
The massive object landed, smashing a crack in the floor of the side room.
"Young master, are you alright?" The waiter didn't rush in but stood outside the door and asked.
Xiao Tingyuan said helplessly towards the door, "It's nothing, I just tripped and fell, don't worry about me."
He couldn't imagine what the waiter's expression would be when he walked in.
Perhaps just like him now.
"1314, where's the cauldron you were promised?" he asked, looking at the heavy, black cauldron on the ground.
This is it, dear.
Xiao Tingyuan glanced at the picture of the three-legged bronze cauldron in the system shop, then looked at the simple and unadorned (?) large pot on the ground, which had a crack on the rim upon closer inspection, and his breath hitched.
[You can click on the larger image in the store to take a look.]
Xiao Tingyuan, his eyes filled with suspicion, clicked on the image of the three-legged bronze cauldron and squinted to see the small text in the lower right corner—
Images are for reference only.
"A genius!" the culinary master exclaimed sincerely. "A business genius!"
For the first time in his life, Xiao Tingyuan experienced what it meant to be deceived by online photos that didn't match the description.
[System Announcement: Due to numerous complaints received regarding the "Magical Cauldron" item in the system shop, it has been renamed "Magical Pot." Additionally, please note that each Magical Pot has a unique design, ensuring you won't find the same one as someone else!]
Xiao Tingyuan sighed as he looked at the pots: "Fifteen large pots that are not the same as each other are destined to be complained about. At least no one will be fooled this time."
No.
1314 Correction.
[The system announcement will attract everyone's attention; it's an alternative promotional method. Exposure and traffic increase the probability of sales. Curiosity, the newcomer exclusivity, subtle spiritual awareness, and the human gambler's mentality make it easy to sell.]
As soon as he finished speaking, the "magical pot" was emptied of its stock instantly, leaving Xiao Tingyuan stunned.
Taking the opportunity, the God of Cookery delivered a heartfelt lecture: "Tingyuan, you have to be this dark-skinned to truly enter the world of cultivation."
He couldn't help but feel fortunate. He was so good at tricking his own people, let alone dealing with outsiders in the future. Luckily, the system found his descendants, so they would share both glory and loss.
[If it has no value, exposure is useless. The fact that it sold out quickly shows that everyone recognizes the value of the pot. Why don't you try it first? You have three free chances.]
Xiao Tingyuan muttered to himself, "Same quality or lower quality."
He poured a cup of tea directly into it.
The large pot shook three times and exhaled a puff of white smoke.
"The tea just vanished into thin air? Isn't it supposed to be a matter of input and output?" He poked his finger into the pot. "Logically, for the same quality, you should at least give me some water."
[It's already been produced!]
"Where? I don't see it." Xiao Tingyuan looked around.
Air was produced.
Xiao Tingyuan: "..."
Then, defiantly, he put in a jade pendant, and the dust produced almost hit his face.
Xiao Tingyuan couldn't believe it, so he simply threw in the worthless pills he had just drawn from the low-level prize pool.
One person, one soul, and one system anxiously waited around the large pot.
"My luck can't be that bad," Xiao Tingyuan wondered.
"I can't be," the chef said uncertainly.
[No way, no way, someone can really have gone completely broke, right?]
This time, the cauldron didn't just produce a wisp of white smoke as a perfunctory gesture; instead, it emitted a seven-colored light.
As the light faded, a brightly colored pill appeared at the bottom of the pot.
Xiao Tingyuan stood up excitedly in an instant: "1314, what did it produce!"
[Hi, you can use basic identification techniques to identify it!]
Reminded by the prompting, Xiao Tingyuan remembered the beginner's appraisal skill from the newbie gift pack and immediately applied it to the pill.
[Identification Successful: 1 pill that has no effect, tastes even worse, and leaves a lingering aftertaste for ten days]
The air was eerily quiet.
"Ahem." The master chef said cautiously, "In a sense, the quality isn't any worse."
Xiao Tingyuan was stunned: "I'm not smoking anymore, I'll never smoke again."
[Three times is destiny; how terrifying is the unlucky one?]
1314 is breathtaking.
A note from the author:
----------------------
I'm going on a business trip tomorrow and won't be bringing my laptop, so I'm asking for a day off. *kiss*
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com