Chapter 137: Turmoil in the Empire
The third template was none other than Zhou Ning, dressed in a black crown and a black dragon robe.
His expression was cold and indifferent as he sat on a golden throne, looking every bit the picture of majesty and authority.
His personality: proud, dignified, ambitious, and deeply inquisitive.
His talents: Charismatic Leadership (Gold), Mechanical Ascension (Purple), Future Technology (Red)
His skills: Master-Level Formalwear Crafting, Divine-Level Precision Machinery Manufacturing, Grandmaster-Level Scientific Research Ability, with the rest temporarily omitted.
His title was First Emperor Zhou Ning, and the purchase price was 25,000 Traversal Coins.
Zhou Ning: …
He counted twice to make sure he didn't misread the digits—this was likely the most expensive template he had ever seen, ten times pricier than One Punch Man. But honestly, it was just so-so. Fairly underwhelming.
Forget it, no point pretending otherwise.
After purchasing two new templates, a red dot appeared on the template gallery. Upon checking, he discovered that within the Villain BOSS Combo, two templates had been completed: [Ordinary Office Worker] and [Mad Clown].
After completing the set of two, a small "Claim" icon appeared beside the combination. Upon clicking it, he received a reward of 25 Traversal Coins—exactly 1/1000th the cost of the First Emperor template. Zhou Ning was completely numb to it at this point.
After giving it some thought, Zhou Ning opted for Option One to begin the traversal. As his first time, this was uncharted territory, so he figured he'd check the options first. If it turned out poorly, he could always try [Mad Clown] or [Ordinary Office Worker] next time.
[You've selected Traversal Mode One]
[Please choose 3 out of the following 10 talents as matching criteria]
[1. Benjamin Button (Purple): You were born at age 80 and grow younger as time passes, eventually reverting to infancy and dying.]
[2. Fortunate (Purple): Your luck will be significantly boosted.]
[3. Notorious (Blue): Your reputation in the simulation world is terrible, but to certain villainous individuals, you're irresistibly compelling.]
[4. Longevity (Blue): Your lifespan in this world will be extraordinarily long.]
[5. Celestial Dragon (Purple): You will start this world at a high social position, guaranteed to be part of a privileged class.]
[6. Gamma Radiation (Purple): Your body was irradiated by gamma rays. In moments of extreme rage, you will transform into the Hulk.]
[7. Provocateur (White): You love stirring up trouble, and trouble always seems to find you.]
[8. Severing Emotions to Prove the Dao (Green): You will never fall in love or marry in this world, but your physical attributes are increased by 10%.]
[9. Puppet Alchemy (Purple): Upon traversal, you'll possess top-tier puppet alchemy, capable of imbuing life into mechanical and alchemical constructs.]
[10. Soul Traversal (Blue): Your traversal will be soul-based, unlocking countless possibilities.]
[Please make your selection!]
Zhou Ning: …
This round of talents dazzled him. Out of the ten, five were purple—and all of them were ones he'd never seen before. Just how many talents did this simulator have, anyway?
Among them, 2, 5, and 9 were particularly tempting, especially 9—Zhou Ning himself had this skill, and he was curious what kind of stir it could cause in this world.
[You've selected talents 2, 5, and 9.]
[Your current talents are: Fortunate, Celestial Dragon, Puppet Alchemy. Your fixed talent is: Grandpa-in-a-Ring.]
[Matching successful. In the parallel world, you have extraordinary luck; everything goes your way no matter what you do. You are a destined noble—noble before traversal, and destined to be noble after. You are highly proficient in Puppet Alchemy and possess an ancient-looking ring you randomly picked up from a street vendor.]
[When you die in the simulation, the game ends.]
[Boarding the time machine… 1%... 33%... 65%... 95%... Whoosh… Traversal complete.]
[Unrecorded Era, Year 7, April 1 — You arrived in a forest, beside a corpse that looked exactly like you, dressed in medieval European-style clothing. There was no one else around. As a traverser, your first instinct was to assume the dead man's identity. You immediately changed into his clothes. Your luck held true—just as you finished burying the body and stepped out of the forest, you ran into a patrol unit of armored knights who were out looking for you.]
[Year 7, April 2 — You returned home: a towering castle, and a massive aristocratic family with dozens of members. When they tried to speak with you, you realized you couldn't understand a word they were saying. The language vaguely resembled something from the Indo-European family, but the grammar and pronunciation were completely alien. Faced with their questioning, all you could do was remain silent. To your shock, this world possessed supernatural powers—by that very afternoon, an old man in silver-white priest robes cast a beam of holy light on you, seemingly thinking you were under some kind of evil influence. Scared the hell out of you.]
[April 3 – May 4 — You remained silent during this time, quietly studying the local language. As they say, crisis inspires potential. In just over a month, you could already understand parts of the language. Through others' conversations, you learned that your family name was Rodane, and your full name was Angus—Angus Rodane, the second-in-line heir of the Rodane family. Internal strife within this family was worse than you'd imagined. Your so-called elder brother, Aaron Rodane, barely spoke to you. Cold war? Two could play at that game. You gained the skill: Common Language (Beginner).]
[May 5 — A day to remember. As you began to integrate into the family, you gained permission to leave the estate—though not too far. Upon visiting a nearby town, you discovered that the kingdom had recently gone through a war. Traces of battle were everywhere. You even saw orcs used as slave labor in several places.]
[May 6 — You tried probing the household servants, asking if the nation was called Arnor, Gondor, or Rohan. They looked at you like you were crazy. Rude. One servant finally revealed the country's name—it really was Rohan.]
[May 9 — You made another discovery: the belief system of this country was quite abstract. There were no specific deities; the faith was centered on "the Holy Light." Apparently, saying "Holy Light be upon you" was a surefire way to fit in. The first word you learned in this world was "Holy Light," and your pronunciation was spot on. Ridiculous.]
[May 15 — A milestone. Having gradually earned some trust, you were allowed to go out. While visiting a nearby town, you realized the country had just been through war—evidence of it was everywhere. You saw orcs being used as laborers.]
[May 17 — Something strange happened today. You discovered that your ring could actually talk. It spoke in a foreign language, but from what you could understand, it called itself Lothar—a warrior of some renown, apparently. Lothar? You were completely dumbfounded.]
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