159: Chapter 159: Drop Rate Maxed Out! Terrifying Blueprints for Mass-Produced Artifacts

The setting sun burned the clouds crimson, as if the entire sky were bleeding for the fall of an emperor.

Above the ruins of the Imperial City, a deathly silence lasted for less than three seconds.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty has passed away!!"

A shrill scream tore through the frozen air, and immediately after, the once orderly and solemn army of the Star Kingdom instantly descended into chaos. That panic was like a plague, spreading through the army of tens of thousands at a speed even faster than Abra's death. The elite legions, having lost their backbone, were now like a swarm of startled headless flies, discarding their armor and wishing their parents had given them two more legs to run with.

"Run! Run quickly! That demon even killed the Emperor!"

"The gods have abandoned us! The Star Kingdom is finished!"

Even the usually high-and-mighty Court Archmagi didn't care about maintaining their dignity now; they threw away their staves and fled in panic among the chaotic troops. When they looked back at the man in the sky, their eyes held only the most primitive fear—they weren't looking at a human, but at an ancient Vicious Beast wearing human skin.

Qin Ji hovered in mid-air, his purple-gold pupils scanning the army below as they scattered like a colony of ants, but he did not move to pursue them.

Killing these small fry would only waste his time.

His gaze locked onto the dazzling cluster of light left behind after Abra's body disintegrated. Its brilliance was so intense that it even eclipsed the fading sun; it was the sign of a "massive drop" that only appeared after the first kill of a world-class BOSS.

Qin Ji's figure flashed, appearing before the light cluster as if teleporting, and his right hand reached into it without hesitation.

[Greedy Grasp] activated!

"Ding! You picked up [God-Gifted: Abra's Sword of Imperial Power (Divine Artifact Component)] *1."

"Ding! You picked up [God-Gifted Skill Book: Grand Space Shift (Fragmented)] *1."

"Ding! You picked up free attribute points +5000."

"Ding! You picked up Gold Coins +1,000,000."

"Ding! You picked up [Soul Fragment of Devil King Tulian] *1."

"Ding! You picked up..."

The pleasant System notification sounds were like the most beautiful symphony, frantically scrolling past Qin Ji's ears.

Qin Ji looked at the pile of glittering golden items that had suddenly appeared in his backpack, and the curve of his lips that he couldn't suppress completely betrayed his current mood.

God-gifted equipment!

God-gifted skills!

And a full five thousand free attribute points!

One must know that ordinary players only get 5 attribute points per level; these five thousand points were equivalent to the total of someone else leveling up a thousand times! This was the value of a world-class BOSS, and this was the joy of being the server's number one "Plunderer."

"Hiding my name was the right choice."

Qin Ji tapped his chin with his finger, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

Although his current strength allowed him to walk tall anywhere, he hadn't fully exploited the Star Kingdom yet. Abra was dead, and the throne was vacant; according to the hidden rules of God's Domain, as long as he operated correctly, he had a complete chance to turn this massive Empire into his own backyard.

If those stubborn royalist NPCs knew he was the one who personally crushed Abra's skull, how could he legitimately take over the national treasury?

"Making a fortune in silence is the way to go."

Qin Ji casually closed the panel and turned his gaze toward a corner of the ruins below.

The Necromancer named Glasses was slumped in the rubble, his face as pale as paper; clearly, the earlier [Gravity Shackle] had exhausted all his mana. Seeing Qin Ji look over, Glasses shuddered and instinctively tried to back away.

"G... Great God..."

"You did well."

Qin Ji casually pulled out a legendary staff that had just dropped—it was a spare weapon Abra carried; though not as good as a Divine Artifact, it was definitely god-tier gear for a mage at this stage.

With a "clang," the staff was thrust into a crack in the stone in front of Glasses.

"A reward for you. Take it and get lost, and don't let anyone know I'm here."

Glasses' eyes widened as he looked at the staff flowing with purple light, his breath hitching. He even suspected he was dreaming and pinched his thigh hard; the sharp pain convinced him it was real.

"Th... Thank you, Great God! I didn't see anything! I'm leaving right now!"

Glasses clutched the staff and scrambled away, disappearing at the end of the ruins for fear that Qin Ji would change his mind.

Qin Ji withdrew his gaze, opened his friend list, and sent a message to Frenzied Blade. Although he had mainly relied on himself just now, the coordinate intelligence provided by that guild had indeed saved him a lot of trouble in finding his target.

"Thanks, I'll remember this favor."

Frenzied Blade replied almost instantly: "Hahaha, God Qin is too polite! We're friends, helping each other is only natural. In the future, if you have any good equipment, just remember to prioritize your brother here!"

Old fox.

Qin Ji sneered in his heart. Frenzied Blade's words were seamless; the phrase "helping each other" pulled their relationship to an equal level while also pre-ordering his future drops. However, Qin Ji didn't care; in the face of absolute strength, these interpersonal maneuvers were nothing more than seasoning.

Having handled the trivial matters, Qin Ji's figure faded as he directly activated [Void Walk] and vanished from the spot.

...

Black Wind City, the deepest part of the underground black market.

This was a stronghold of the Chaos Faction and also Qin Ji's current temporary resting place.

Dim candlelight flickered, and the air was thick with the smell of decay and mold. When the mysterious leader in a black cloak saw Qin Ji appear out of thin air, his face, hidden in the shadows, instantly wrinkled into a smile.

"Jie jie jie... Your Excellency Qin Ji, you truly surprise this old man. That was Abra! An emperor with God's Blessing! You actually..."

The Black Robe Leader was so excited he was incoherent, his hands trembling. With Abra dead, they, the "rats" wanted by the Empire, finally had a chance to rise.

Qin Ji sat boldly on the grease-stained wooden chair, his finger lightly tapping the table with a rhythmic "thud, thud."

"Less talk. I've killed the man, where are the goods?"

The Black Robe Leader snapped back to his senses and bowed repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes, the items promised to you have long been prepared."

With a wave of his hand, two clusters of strange light slowly landed on the table.

A crystal-clear flower that seemed to be condensed from starlight.

A lush green leaf with golden runes flowing through its veins.

[talent evolution flower (Special)]

[Fallen Leaf of the God Tree of Knowledge (Special)]

Qin Ji's gaze was instantly drawn to that flower.

In this digitized world, talent determines the ceiling, while equipment determines the floor. Although his talent [Greedy Grasp] was already a BUG-level existence, who would complain about their cheat being too strong?

"talent evolution flower..."

Qin Ji picked up the flower; it felt icy to the touch, as if he were holding a piece of ten-thousand-year-old profound ice.

[Effect: Upon use, there is a probability that the current talent will undergo a beneficial mutation or advancement. Note: One-time consumable.]

Without the slightest hesitation, Qin Ji thought: "Use."

The flower transformed into countless starlight points and entered his forehead.

"Buzz—!"

Qin Ji's brain shook violently as a massive stream of information surged through his nerves. However, the expected golden light of evolution did not appear; instead, a glaring red notification popped up on the System panel.

"Ding! Detected that the rank of your talent [Greedy Grasp (Unique · Taboo)] is too high. A single talent evolution flower has insufficient energy; evolution failed."

"Ding! Current evolution progress: 1/10. Please collect more talent evolution flowers."

Qin Ji's brow twitched slightly, but instead of disappointment, the smile in his eyes grew even stronger.

"Interesting."

If a single flower could upgrade his cheat, then this cheat would be too cheap. It's like trying to power an aircraft carrier with a single AA battery; it's only normal that there's no reaction.

This precisely proved that his talent's potential far exceeded the conventional understanding of this world.

"Ten flowers? A bit troublesome, but not impossible to get."

Qin Ji made a mental note of this and casually picked up the [Fallen Leaf of the God Tree of Knowledge].

The value of this thing was equally immeasurable. The tree of knowledge of gods was a supreme divine object in the lore of God's Domain, and each of its leaves carried the manifestation of a certain Law.

It could be some lost forbidden spell, some true intent of a Law, or perhaps...

"Use."

The emerald leaf burned at Qin Ji's fingertips, transforming into a golden stream of light that entered his eyes.

"Ding! You have obtained a special equipment blueprint: [life orb (Mass-Produced Type)]."

[life orb Blueprint (Special)]

[Forging Requirement: Tier 1 Blacksmith (Extremely low threshold)]

[Material Requirements: Iron Ore *1, Copper Ore *1, Bloodstone *10]

[Equipment Effect: Maximum HP +100,000 when equipped.]

[Trait: Unique Passive (Only one piece of the same type of equipment takes effect), but can be used as a consumable to improve quality through "Fusion."]

[Note: This blueprint has been automatically entered into your knowledge base. You may authorize any unit to perform mass production.]

Qin Ji looked at that "+100,000" figure and was stunned for a full two seconds.

"Holy shit?"

Even with his composure, he couldn't help but curse at this moment.

What kind of concept was 100,000 HP?

At this stage, even a top-tier Shield Warrior with all points in stamina would barely break 50,000 HP. Ordinary squishy mages only had a pitiful ten or twenty thousand HP.

This single orb could directly quintuple a squishy mage's HP! Turning them into a monster even tankier than a tank!

The most ridiculous part was its manufacturing requirements—Tier 1 Blacksmith? Iron and copper ore?

How is this any different from getting it for free!

"This isn't just a blueprint; this is clearly a nuclear weapon that destroys game balance."

Qin Ji's gaze became burning. Although he didn't need these 100,000 HP (after all, he had already stacked millions of HP by killing monsters), for other players, this was a second life, even a cornerstone to becoming a god.

If I were to sell it...

No, selling it for money is too tacky. This is a strategic resource, the core of building an invincible army.

"And, I don't need to do it myself."

With a thought from Qin Ji, the massive Data Stream within him instantly branched out.

In his conscious space, three "humanoid outlines" composed of pure data were slowly taking shape. These were "Background AFK Threads" he had developed using his [Data Stream] ability—commonly known as "Clones."

Although these Clones couldn't go out to kill monsters and plunder like him, they were perfect for AFK training sub-professions.

"Number One, Number Two, Number Three—all of you change classes to Blacksmith."

Qin Ji issued the command in his consciousness.

"Since the Materials are so cheap, let's start by making a hundred thousand to play with."

As long as the gold was in place, Materials were not a problem at all. And what Qin Ji lacked least right now was gold. His "bank" alone earned over fifty million in interest every day; such wealth, enough to rival a nation, was sufficient to support a terrifying production line.

Imagine a future where his guild members each had a life orb, and when they went out to fight, they were all HP tanks with hundreds of thousands of health. That scene...

It would be a dimensional strike.

Qin Ji calmed his emotions, his gaze finally landing on the [Summoning Codex] that dropped from killing Abra.

[Summoning Codex (God-Gifted)]

[Equip Requirement: Summoner]

[Effect: Allows "Devouring Fusion" of the same type of summoned beasts to evolve into higher-tier mutated summoned beasts. Limited to once per day.]

[Durability: Indestructible (After binding)]

"Another good item, but unfortunately, the class doesn't match."

Qin Ji was a pragmatist; a Divine Artifact he couldn't use was just an expensive brick in his eyes.

Summoner...

He quickly screened the candidates around him. Glasses was a Necromancer; although he also had minions, the System was different. Fatty was a Shield Warrior, and Monkey was an Assassin.

"Perhaps, I could give it to that girl?"

Qin Ji thought of the cheap younger sister who had been following him around calling him "Brother." In his memories of his past life, she seemed to have awakened the hidden class [Beast Spirit Walker]; if paired with this grimoire, she might just raise an army of Divine Beasts.

"Forget it, I'll keep it for now."

Qin Ji tossed the grimoire into a corner of his backpack, stood up, and stretched.

The Black Robe Leader had been standing respectfully by the side, not daring to even breathe loudly. Only when Qin Ji stood up did he carefully ask: "Your Excellency Qin Ji, regarding taking over the Imperial City's defense..."

"No rush."

Qin Ji waved his hand, interrupting him.

He walked to the window and looked through the dilapidated frame toward the direction of the Imperial City where fires were still soaring into the sky.

Although Abra was dead, those old geezer Grand Dukes of the Empire were still around, and those high-level player guilds from the Divine Court who prided themselves on justice would surely want a piece of the pie.

To truly swallow this cake, military deterrence alone wasn't enough; you also had to make them feel despair.

"Muddle the waters first."

Qin Ji's voice was very soft, yet it carried a heart-palpitating chill.

"Pass down my order to spread the news of Abra's death and the upcoming release of the 'life orb' through black market channels. Say that... only factions that submit to the new king will be eligible to obtain such a divine object."

The Black Robe Leader's whole body shook, and he suddenly looked up at Qin Ji's back, the awe in his eyes instantly turning into fanaticism.

This move was too vicious.

This was using profit to force all the factions in the world to pick a side!

"As you command! This subordinate will handle it immediately!"

After the Black Robe Leader withdrew, only Qin Ji remained in the room.

The night wind poured in through the window, blowing his pitch-black hair.

Qin Ji pulled a coin he had casually polished on the way from his pocket and gave it a light flick with his thumb.

"Clink—"

The coin tumbled in the air, reflecting the blood-colored moonlight from outside the window.

Qin Ji didn't look at the heads or tails of the coin; instead, the moment it fell, he reached out and caught it steadily. Those purple-gold pupils shone brightly in the darkness like two clusters of burning ghost fire, coldly watching the slightly deformed metal in his palm, just as he watched this world that was about to be toyed with in the palm of his hand.