036 The Lucky Draw
Karen’s expedition to the Murloc Lake took a total of seven days. Of course, those seven days were not spent in vain, and the harvest was quite substantial.
Not only did Karen himself benefit, but the four undead subordinates who accompanied him also saw significant improvements in their strength. Among them, "Little Green" and "Death Wing" saw the most growth. Through sacrifice, Little Green’s strength soared to the peak of [Tier 4 Excellent], needing only a territory upgrade to advance further. Meanwhile, Death Wing rose from Tier 3 to Tier 4 Elite, also making a significant leap.
Beyond the growth of his subordinates, Karen found many valuable items in the murloc tribe. The most surprising discovery was an item called a [Water Stone].
...
Water Stone
Item Category: Magical Material
Quality: Common
Description: A special magic stone birthed in areas rich in water elemental energy. It is a material for crafting magical items and can also be used to assist in cultivation. Naturally, you may also sell it to the Territory Shop.
Territory Shop Purchase Price: 100,000
...
Karen found 37 such [Water Stones] in the murloc tribe. This meant that on top of his subordinates' gains, he had also scavenged 3.7 million in territory energy. One can imagine his mood at that moment.
However, Karen’s good mood vanished the moment he opened his attribute panel.
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Karen
Age: 16
Race: Human
Strength: Tier 4 (Excellent) (100%)
Skills: Basic Swordsmanship (Lv3) (Maxed) (Battle Qi Seed: Activated)
Heavy Strike Lv15 (Maxed) (Increases slashing power by 800%, can unleash 8 consecutive heavy strikes)
Eyes of Insight Lv5 (3%) (Can perceive information on entities Tier 5 and below)
Corpse Manipulation Lv5 (Maxed) (Has no practical combat use other than manipulating corpses)
Ghost Burst Lv5 (1%) (Active skill: upon activation, increases attack speed by 330% and movement speed by 330%)
Talent: Mark of the Dead Lv1
...
These were Karen’s stats after taking down the murloc tribe. His strength had reached the peak of Tier 4 as he had hoped. However, what made him frown was that this peak was not the one he wanted. His strength remained at [Tier 4 Excellent], and he couldn't even see the path to advancing to [Tier 4 Legendary]. This was a great disappointment, as reaching the [Tier 4 Legendary] rank was the true purpose of his mission.
Fortunately, Karen had prepared himself mentally from the start. While disappointed, he was not overly dejected.
"In that case, I have no choice but to pin my hopes on the lottery function of the [Territory Shop]!"
Although it was somewhat unreliable, it was the only method for increasing his strength that Karen could think of at the moment.
"Come to think of it, I haven't really used the lottery much since the Territory Shop was upgraded. I wonder if it will let me down."
After making his decision, Karen did not hesitate. He opened the [Territory Shop] interface and tapped on the [Lottery Function].
"Hmm, including the 3.7 million from the Water Stones, I now have 6.97 million in territory energy. Since I'm going to gamble, I might as well go big. It costs 5,000 per draw, right? System, go ahead and run 470,000 worth!"
As Karen gave the order, system notifications began to ring frantically in his ears.
...
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a "Better luck next time" reward!]
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a [Language Proficiency Scroll]!]
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a [Skill Upgrade Scroll]!]
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a "Better luck next time" reward!]
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a [Talent Upgrade Scroll]!]
[Ding, you have consumed 5,000 territory energy to activate the [Lottery] function. You received a special item: [Fragment of Fear]!]
[Ding, you have reached the limit for the territory lottery function. To continue, please upgrade the Territory Shop.
Upgrade Requirements: Territory Product Catalog 10, Territory Lottery 50 times, Acquire items worth 10,000,000 territory energy: 0/10,000,000!]
...
In one breath, 250,000 territory energy was spent. After fifty draws, Karen had only obtained four items.
...
Language Proficiency Scroll
Item Category: Tool
Quality: Common
Description: After use, you can automatically learn a language, but you can only communicate; you cannot write it, nor can you master languages containing special powers.
Skill Upgrade Scroll
Item Category: Tool
Quality: Fine
Description: Can upgrade basic skills, allowing them to break their limits and become intermediate skills.
Talent Upgrade Scroll
Item Category: Tool
Quality: Excellent
Description: After use, it can increase the level of a talent. It is a quite powerful item.
Fragment of Fear
Item Category: Special
Quality: ???
Description: A fragment of a special, mysterious power. Can be fused!
PS: Fusing will greatly increase your strength, but it carries significant risks.
PSS: Even if you succeed in fusion, there is a 99% chance you will be transformed into a non-human species.
...
Karen immediately ignored the requirements for upgrading the Territory Shop and focused his eyes on the attributes of the items. Looking at them, he couldn't help but frown. To be precise, what truly made him frown was the last item: the [Fragment of Fear] wreathed in black aura.
The moment that thing appeared, Karen’s heart began to beat violently. Deep down, a voice seemed to be calling out to him, urging him to reach out and take it into his hand. For a moment, Karen almost thought he had a special affinity for the [Fragment of Fear]. Fortunately, just as he was about to act, the Soul Searcher stepped forward, blocking the path between Karen and the fragment, and pointed at the [Fragment of Fear].
An invisible ripple emerged, sealing the black smoke of the fragment within it. At the same time, the voice in Karen’s mind vanished. Seeing this, cold sweat broke out on Karen’s forehead.
Even someone as dense as he was could see that the voice had come from the [Fragment of Fear]. If Karen had actually reached out to grab it, no one knew what the result would have been. This completely extinguished any thoughts Karen had of using the [Fragment of Fear] to improve his strength.
Yes, Karen was eager to improve his power, but he did not want to use methods that were beyond his control and carried clear, hidden dangers.
"It seems relying on the Territory Shop system to increase my strength is truly unreliable. If that’s the case, I’ll just have to find a way to have the market collect some cultivation techniques from this world to study."