"You mean to say, you used three Longevity Pills to get everything you wanted, and on top of that, you were given the position of Head of the Flame-Chasers' Engineering Department?" Mobius stared at the young man who had suddenly become her equal in rank, finding it hard to believe.
"No, don't misunderstand. I didn't want to be the department head; they forced it on me," Chen Li said, shaking his head.
However, Chen Li was quite satisfied with the job. Becoming the department head had earned him an additional Crystal and a small number of Star Stones.
"...Tsk, this Flame-Chasers organization is doomed sooner or later," Mobius said, displeased.
Mobius had originally thought that as long as Chen Li stayed with the Flame-Chasers as a guest, she would eventually find an opportunity to beat him to his knees, drag him to her lab, and force him to be her little guinea pig.
She was incredibly curious about the principles behind Chen Li's world-traveling abilities.
But now, it seemed the difficulty of that plan had just increased significantly.
"You're not much better, are you? You pre-ordered quite a few things from me before they even arrived," Chen Li retorted.
"I'm different. As a researcher, the things I requested can genuinely aid my research, advance the Flame-Chasers' technological level, and increase our chances of resisting the Honkai. They, on the other hand, used the resources on themselves," Mobius refuted his words.
However, Mobius had long anticipated this kind of situation.
The current Flame-Chasers was nothing but a makeshift crew.
"If the Flame-Chasers ultimately lose to the Honkai, it will definitely be because, from the very beginning, they lacked sufficient authority to manage the resources of the entire civilization," Mobius stated with conviction.
"That makes sense," Chen Li nodded with a serious expression.
"You have the gall to nod, you little calamity. That face of yours is handsome, but your method of bringing ruin to a nation is the very immortality that countless rulers have dreamed of," Mobius said, reaching out unexpectedly and pinching Chen Li's cheek.
"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. I haven't brought ruin to any nation."
"Alright, alright, don't be so serious," Elysia stepped in to smooth things over.
"Hmph, whatever. At least the Flame-Chasers can afford a bit of Soulium. In a while, the advance team will begin constructing a new city on the moon based on the ruins there, called New Atlantis, I believe. I hope they can unearth more useful things from those ruins," Mobius said, stroking her chin.
"That sounds interesting. But don't misunderstand me. Although our deals involved Soulium, the transaction for the Longevity Pills wasn't a direct demand for it. Rather, I requested that the Flame-Chasers provide me with sufficient forging materials, and I will forge weapons for you. You will then compensate me with an equivalent value of Soulium at market price. That's fair, isn't it?" Chen Li explained.
Of course, this was only the price for one Longevity Pill. It was equivalent to trading one pill for the right to exchange for Soulium.
The other two Longevity Pills came at a different price.
"Oh? Why would you choose to do it that way?" Mobius was genuinely surprised.
"First, it's to improve my skills. Second, three portions of Soulium are enough for my needs. Third, while I won't necessarily save the world, I will certainly not let it be destroyed at my hands," Chen Li said, holding up three fingers.
"The moment I first saw Chen Li, I knew he was a good and trustworthy person. My judgment was spot on!" Elysia clapped her hands.
"You think everyone you meet is trustworthy. Step aside."
"Ugh, Little Li is so cold. And I don't give that kind of praise to just anyone, you know," Elysia said with a forlorn tone.
"In any case, maybe I can even help you save the world. So... do you admit that the goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, possesses a beauty that is unparalleled in this world?" Chen Li asked, turning to Mobius.
"Hm? What's that?" Mobius frowned.
"A goddess."
"Boring. Let's go, Elysia. Didn't you want to see Griseo? I'll take you," Mobius said, turning and walking away.
"Okay, okay! Little Li, do you want to come?" Elysia nodded happily.
"No thanks, I have to start forging. It won't be too late to see each other again later," Chen Li said, shaking his head as he looked at the forging materials that had just been delivered.
Women will only slow down the speed of my forging... unless she's a rich woman.
---o---
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The melodious sound of a hammer striking metal echoed through a special workshop in the Engineering Department.
This was a rather strange forge for any blacksmith, as there was no blast of hot air nor any trace of grime or grease.
"Whew, I never had conditions like these back in the day," Chen Li, shirtless and wiping away sweat, looked with satisfaction at his new creation resting on the forging table.
As long as it wasn't the Flames of Miracle used for forging Curios, burning ordinary flames didn't consume any of the forging table's energy.
"This way, this alchemy pistol should be able to withstand being charged with Honkai energy, right?" Chen Li looked at the pistol, which he had repaired after it was destroyed during the fight with the Herrscher of the Void.
Once repaired, the alchemy pistol could be used by him personally or serve as a carrier for a Curio.
In fact, all 100 items Chen Li had forged over the past seven days were made with this goal in mind. It was to save on Crystals when forging the carriers for future Curios.
However, Chen Li's profession level was too low, so the probability of his forged items gaining a special property (a professional trait) was only about 10%.
This pistol, for example, had gained the "Rapid" effect, increasing its rate of fire and bullet velocity by 10%.
But because this effect was granted by a professional trait, these "effects" could not be used to extract Entries.
However, if an item's effect proved to be exceptionally good through use, and was imbued with new meaning by time and fate, it might just give birth to an unexpectedly wonderful Entry.
At the same time, forging these weapons was also a way to complete his beginner's quest.
The Guide to Forging Curios materialized in front of him, and Chen Li tapped it lightly.
Beginner's Quest (Part 1):
Forge one Curio √
Forge 10 Curio Embryos √
Complete one Miracle Check-in √
Store one [Entry] using Crystals √
Complete one Forging Commission (0/1)
There were five tasks in total, each rewarding two Miracle Crystals.
Completing all of them would grant an additional 10 Crystals and a special reward with a "?" on its cover.
This was a professional skill for a Curio Forger and also part of the "gift" the pixie had mentioned.
In other words, while the pixie didn't force Chen Li to save the world, it did provide him with a clear, profit-driven objective.
Because of this, Chen Li suspected that later beginner's quests might involve tasks like saving a world.
The reason he crafted 100 Curio Embryos (carriers) in one go over seven days was because he felt this was likely a series of quests.
"Well then, now I need to figure out how to complete this commission," Chen Li said, looking at the only unfinished task among the five.
[Forging Commission] was a new system.
This commission log served as both a notebook for Chen Li the forger and an opportunity for him to acquire more materials.
Because besides accepting commissions himself, Chen Li could also receive them randomly.
[Rose]: Forge a rose that never wilts and can scatter countless rose petals.
Posted by: Argenti
Reward: 10 Crystals
Risk: None
[Scalpel]: Forge a miraculous scalpel.
Posted by: Mobius
Reward: 10~100 Crystals
Risk: Low~High
[Custom]: Elysia seems to have a request. Go see what she needs.
Posted by: Elysia
Reward: Unknown
Risk: Unknown
With the exception of Argenti's, the rewards for the other commissions were not specified because the exact nature of the Curio to be created for them was still undecided.
The quality of a Curio would, to some extent, determine the scale and magnitude of the miracles the user could create.
After forging a Curio and giving it to the client, Chen Li would receive a corresponding number of Crystals based on the miracles they create with it in the future.
If, due to Chen Li's direct intervention, a miracle far exceeded expectations, it would condense into a Miracle Card, granting an additional Miracle Crystal bonus.
The "Risk" indicated the degree to which giving the Curio to that person might lead to world-destroying tendencies.
One glance at these commissions made one thing crystal clear—do not mess with Mobius!
And the opportunity to acquire more forging materials lay in...
[Would you like to spend one Crystal to capture an unknown Miracle Commission?]
Looking at his balance of 24 Crystals (16 + 8 from beginner's quest rewards), Chen Li clicked "Confirm."
[Crystal -1]
[Commission +1]
[Torture Device]: Forge a torture device that can inflict the most pain on a person according to their unique traits.
Posted by: Aria (Akame ga Kill!)
Reward: 1 Crystal
Risk: Low
"..." was Chen Li's only reaction.
The point of acquiring an unknown Miracle Commission wasn't just to get another task, but to give Chen Li a chance to travel to other worlds. That's why they were called "Miracle Commissions."
For a commission like this, if Chen Li could communicate with the client and reach an agreement, he could use Star Stones (Spacetime Crystals) to travel to their world and forge the Curio for them personally.
Of course, he could also just forge the Curio and send it over without having to go himself.
He could even invite the client to his current world.
Naturally, no matter which method of travel he chose, it would cost Star Stones.
It was worth noting that there was no penalty for accepting a commission, traveling to the client's world, and then abandoning it.
Sure, the client could have him sign a contract first, but Chen Li could use 1 Crystal to nullify any contract.
It would damage his reputation, but it wouldn't harm him personally.
The Guide to Forging Curios would only constrain his conscience, not his person.
And this was one commission he had no desire to fulfill.
However, that world was definitely one worth visiting.
"Well, worst case, I'll sign a contract with her, spend one Crystal to break it once I get to her world, and then just kill her," Chen Li mused, stroking his chin.
A bottom line? What bottom line?
A bottom line was something you had when dealing with actual people.
Chen Li had heard of the anime Akame ga Kill!, and the noble girl who appeared at the beginning—all smiles on the outside but pitch-black on the inside—was particularly memorable.
"Oh, Miracle! That world is worth saving!"
Ugh, that was a bit embarrassing...
Seeing this inauspicious start, Chen Li decided not to spend any more Crystals for now.
He had originally been hoping to find a commission that required a spacetime-type Curio.
That would have been incredibly easy for him.
Star Stones and his own blood could be used to extract not only space-related Entries but also time-related ones.
Forging that type of Curio would be a virtually no-cost business for him.
Argenti's and Mobius's commissions weren't difficult, but Chen Li didn't have the appropriate Entries on hand.
"Looks like I either have to try my luck with the commission gacha or wait until I return to my home world to find suitable items to extract Entries from. The rose needs [Eternity] and [Scatter]. Thankfully, since it's just a single rose, the priority of the Entries doesn't have to be too high."
"But returning to my home world just like this feels like a bit of a waste."
Although he could now place a Miracle Beacon and travel freely between the two worlds, there was still a "settlement" phase after returning from an Encounter world for the first time.
So, to not waste this opportunity, Chen Li wanted to craft at least one more Curio or do something else of significance.
He didn't need to worry about the time; upon returning, he would arrive at the exact moment he left.
"So... who should I forge a Curio for?" Chen Li wondered aloud, his gaze shifting to Elysia's commission.
PS: It feels quite strange to be back at it after nearly half a year.
I hope to present everyone with a story that is as perfect as possible.