Chen Luo lost his smile.
Chen Luo had always considered himself lucky, but it turned out he was actually quite the opposite.
Well, perhaps not entirely unlucky—it was just that all thirty pulls yielded only purple-tier items.
Objectively speaking, the pity system guaranteed a gold-tier item only after a hundred pulls, so not getting one in thirty was perfectly normal.
But what Chen Luo had lost were his hard-earned Primogems!
"No, I refuse to believe this! Since I don't have enough left for a ten-pull, I'll go for single pulls. Single pulls can work miracles, I refuse to believe I won't get a gold!"
With trembling hands, Chen Luo stared at his remaining 1,130 Primogems and clicked the single-pull option.
At this moment, Chen Luo was like a gambling addict.
His breath hitched!
"Gold! Gold! It's really gold!"
Right now, Chen Luo was indeed like a gambling addict—except for one difference: Chen Luo had won his bet, while others might not be so fortunate.
[Teleport Waypoint] (Five-Star Talent Expansion): Unlocks the Teleport Waypoint function upon acquisition.
After unlocking this function, you can spend 10 Primogems to purchase a Teleport Waypoint. Waypoints are reusable and can be placed anywhere the Traveler has visited, remaining permanently active.
Teleportation via Waypoints is instantaneous. Additionally, while near a Waypoint, negative status effects on you will gradually be removed, and your HP will slowly recover (this effect can be enhanced by increasing the Primogem cost during construction).
(Can be dismantled and reused. Waypoints allow for group teleportation.)
"Damn it! Why is it another support function?! Though, to be fair, this support function is ridiculously strong..."
You can't deny how overpowered this support function is, but at the end of the day, it's still just a support function.
All in all, Chen Luo had gained another life-saving tool.
He felt like he was straying further and further down the path of survival specialization.
In terms of survivability, Teleport Waypoints were far superior to both Midnight Bar and War Domain.
With Midnight Bar, you had to perform a door-opening action—if you were too slow, you could get killed before escaping.
War Domain had a similar issue. If you had teammates nearby, you could pull them in and then leave via Midnight Bar.
But if you were alone, after entering War Domain, you'd still have to open Midnight Bar's door. If you were too weak and your enemy too strong, you could easily die before even opening it.
Teleport Waypoints, however, completely eliminated all these drawbacks—no door-opening needed, instant activation, and even cross-world teleportation. Plus, the area around a Waypoint could cleanse negative effects.
If he ever faced a life-or-death crisis, he could just place a Waypoint inside the bar, teleport there, lie down, and let the Waypoint remove his debuffs while slowly restoring his HP.
Was this a budget Statue of the Seven?
The only downside was having to spend 10 Primogems to purchase one. Chen Luo couldn't help but grumble internally.
Couldn't they at least give the first one for free?
Staring at his now meager balance of 930 Primogems, Chen Luo sighed.
Still, this thirty-pull session had been quite fruitful.
Five-Star: [Teleport Waypoint]
Four-Star: [Judgment Time Recipe], [Stealth Grandmaster], [Fried Egg], [Demon Modified Thermobaric Bomb]×5
Three-Star: [Decoy Grenade] (Limited Zombie Edition) ×10, [Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers], [Equipment Enhancement Material], [Tricolor Dango Recipe], [Fist Mastery], [Sigil of Permission]
Two-Star: [Durandal Photobook]…
A total of 31 pulls had yielded 31 items. The three-, four-, and five-star items were all quite useful.
The three-star Tricolor Dango Recipe, Chen Luo realized, was only three-star because it required the prerequisite skill Master Chef. Its effect was: "Restores 34% HP upon consumption, followed by an additional 10% gradual recovery."
Items like the Decoy Grenade and Thermobaric Bomb were perfect for quickly clearing out Honkai Beasts—almost too perfectly timed.
Equipment Enhancement Material could upgrade three-star top-tier items to four-star with a certain chance.
Fist Mastery went without saying.
Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers could be used to refine the copy Chen Luo already owned.
[Sigil of Permission]—this thing was likely the real deal, a credential granted by the Adepti of Liyue.
As for the four-star Fried Egg… it was essentially an alternate version of a resurrection token. This item could be bound to the inventory and would automatically activate upon death.
[Master of Stealth] was, naturally, a master-tier skill.
And then there was the [Judgment Time Recipe]…
This was a dish that undead or evil gods would find delicious, while normal people who ate it would be so revolted they'd turn into undead.
Even gods would fall before this dish's might!
As for the only two-star item Chen Luo had singled out—[Durandal Photobook]—opening it revealed a collection of candid photos of Durandal in various situations.
Just waking up, during training, fresh out of the shower, asleep…
Photographer: Rita Rossweisse
"...Well done!" Chen Luo snapped the photobook shut.
"I'm going to confront Durandal right now!!!"
"...Actually, never mind. Let's calm down, calm down."
Chen Luo had a feeling that if he showed this to Durandal, her pursuit of him might escalate from capture to outright murder.
The difference in severity was enormous!
All in all, this round of gacha had been extremely rewarding, boosting Chen Luo's survivability in every conceivable way.
Yet, in a strange twist, it hadn't actually improved his combat prowess much.
* * *
"Little Senti, are you sure there's no one left in the downtown area?" Chen Luo stood atop a skyscraper, asking the figure sitting on his head.
"Who are you doubting here? I'm the Herrscher of Sentience! Sensing human consciousness is child's play, especially after getting Heart Demon's Essence—it boosted this ability. So I guarantee, there's absolutely no one around. Just zombies and Honkai beasts." Little Senti replied.
"Those zombies are all brawn no brains—they don't even have consciousness. If you want survivors, head to residential areas. More people there," Little Senti replied.
"Got it." Chen Luo nodded, then pulled the pin on a grenade and tossed it toward the open plaza in front of the commercial building below.
A few seconds later, a loud explosion echoed, followed by a peculiar, pungent odor rapidly spreading through the air.
"Gotta admit, this decoy grenade smells pretty good. Even I, the Herrscher of Sentience, think so. Other zombies and Honkai beasts would definitely agree—and they lack the intelligence to resist temptation." Senti nodded approvingly at the 10 decoy grenades Chen Luo had pulled from gacha.
Chen Luo had gotten decoy grenades before, but those didn't work in the Honkai world. Only this "zombie-limited edition" could attract them.
Since the Third Impact happened during daytime, downtown was undoubtedly the most densely populated area—meaning the highest zombie concentration.
First, lure most zombies to the plaza with decoy grenades. Then, drop a Thermobaric Bomb.
A quick farming trick.
Too bad this method could only be used five times—he only had five Thermobaric Bomb bombs.
Of course, this farming method would cause problems. A massive zombie gathering would inevitably catch Durandal's attention.
But Chen Luo couldn't care less. If Durandal interfered again, he'd trap her in the War Domain and starve her for seven—no, six—days.
As the decoy grenade's effect intensified, its scent spread further, drawing more zombies to the plaza.
"This decoy grenade works way too well. It's a zombie mosh pit now."
The plaza was now packed tighter than a celebrity concert—standing room only.
But Chen Luo wasn't satisfied yet. Since the grenade's peak effectiveness lasted five minutes, he decided to wait longer.
With only 10 of these grenades, he had to maximize their use.
Nagazora's population exceeded 3 million. No shortage of people meant no shortage of zombies.
Buzz. Chen Luo's short-range tracking talisman began vibrating.
"Durandal's here again." Chen Luo sighed.
BOOM! A furious Durandal hurled her lance at Chen Luo's position.
Having sensed her approach, Chen Luo dodged easily—but watching the lance pierce clean through the skyscraper still made him break out in cold sweat.
This Valkyrie was way too violent.
If that hit him, he'd lose at least half his life.
Tch.
"Captain, why so angry? Did someone upset you?" Chen Luo called out cheerfully as the lance returned to its owner, watching Durandal approach from afar.
"You tricked me!"
"I didn't. I left a note on the TV tower afterward, didn't I? Hide-and-seek." Chen Luo defended himself.
"But you sent me to the restaurant first." Durandal's voice was icy.
She descended onto the rooftop, planting her lance firmly beside her.
"What choice did I have? I can't fight you head-on. Should a weak, pitiful, helpless civilian like me brawl with an S-rank Valkyrie?" Chen Luo spread his hands helplessly.
In raw combat power, ten Chen Luos couldn't beat one Durandal—at least not yet.
But in escape skills? Ten Durandals couldn't catch one Chen Luo.
"There's nowhere left to run. I already figured out you need that fixed door location at the TV tower—which I've now destroyed. Surrender quietly. I'll go easy on you." Durandal cracked her knuckles.
She'd realized this opponent genuinely couldn't fight her—probably couldn't even handle Rita.
So she'd forego the lance. Too much risk of permanent damage with that. Fists allowed better control—and were more stress-relieving.
"Wait, you're not guaranteeing my safety—just promising to 'go easy'?" Chen Luo caught the wording immediately.
"Mn. Knocking you out and dragging you back to HQ is simpler. No more weird escapes." Durandal nodded.
"Can you honestly say there's zero personal vendetta here?" Chen Luo probed.
"...None."
"I don't believe you."
"Your disbelief changes nothing."
"Hold on, Captain—can I clear these zombies first? Went through a lot of trouble gathering them." Seeing her resolve, Chen Luo negotiated.
"...Fine." After a pause, Durandal agreed.
This many zombies concentrated posed risks, especially to potential survivors.
Plus, observing his methods and exhausting his stamina had tactical value.
"Thanks." Chen Luo nodded, then pulled out the thermobaric bomb—the Demon Modified version.
The decoy grenade had reached peak effectiveness. Time to harvest—before the horde dispersed.
"An RPG?" Durandal eyed the weapon curiously.
"Why does a thermobaric bomb look like an RPG?" Chen Luo wondered too.
[Demon Modified Thermobaric Bomb]: All fear stems from insufficient firepower. Custom-designed by a pyromaniac, this bomb boasts greater destructive power and radius. Its RPG appearance lowers enemy vigilance. Blessed by a master, it damages spiritual entities and partially ignores defenses. Use with extreme caution.
*(Note: Rated 4-star not due to weak power, but because blast radius exceeds firing range—hence downgrade.)*
"A'Luo, my instincts say that bomb's dangerous. Better back up," Little Senti warned.
"Why worry? We're on a skyscraper, plus I've got Wind Barrier." Chen Luo mentally scoffed at the Herrscher of Sentience's "useless" intuition.
"Trust me this once. The moment you fire it, teleport far away using the Waypoint." Little Senti was deadly serious.
"Fine, fine." Unable to dissuade the Herrscher of Sentience, Chen Luo could only nod.
Pfft. What's there to fear? It's just an RPG-shaped thermobaric bomb. How bad could it be,
Chen Luo pulled the trigger, aiming at the densely packed zombie horde below.
The instant the projectile launched, primal survival instinct screamed at him. He activated the Teleport Waypoint instantly to teleport to a distant place.
Chen Luo had already bought five teleportation waypoints and placed them in the five most densely populated areas.
After all, the teleportation anchors can be recycled and reused, so there is no need to worry about waste.
KABOOOOOM!!!
The detonation deafened Chen Luo even 10 kilometers away.
"Holy—holy shit! A m-mushroom cloud?! THAT HUGE?!"
Staring at the multi-kilometer-high fireball, Chen Luo finally understood "Demon modified."
Just call it a tactical nuke already!
No wonder a single-use bomb merited 4-star rating. This modification was downright psychotic.