70: Chapter 70 The Scroll of Fate? Sorry, I'm a cheater.

"God Shards?"

Upon hearing those two words, the professional fake smile that Wan Sanqian wore year-round finally froze. He subconsciously rubbed the emerald thumb ring on his thumb, the muscles at the corners of his eyes twitching slightly.

That was a forbidden object rumored to be able to touch the underlying logic of the "God Domain." Not to mention at this stage, even in his previous life after ten years of game operation, this thing was a myth that only existed in background stories.

"Brother Snow Emperor, your appetite... is a bit too large."

Wan Sanqian shook his head with a bitter smile, but a faint, imperceptible glint flashed in the depths of his eyes. "However, since you've spoken, there is no order my Wan Family Merchant Group cannot handle. It's just that this thing is a rare find; I need time."

"I have plenty of time."

Qin Ji's expression remained indifferent as he casually kicked the dragon turtle hard shell, which emitted an epic aura, toward Wan Sanqian's feet as if he were kicking a worthless stone on the side of the road. "Consider this a deposit. If you find it, the remaining equipment is yours; if you don't, treat this shell as a gift from me for your coffin board."

The surrounding players gasped in shock.

Qin Ji was definitely the only one who dared to speak to Wan Sanqian like this in Donghai City. Yet, not only was Wan Sanqian not angry, but he also looked as if he had found a treasure and immediately arranged for his subordinates to collect the hard shell.

"Brother Snow Emperor is truly straightforward!"

Wan Sanqian laughed loudly, then pulled a scroll with an ancient parchment texture from his robe and handed it to Qin Ji with both hands. "Since we've established a partnership, I, Wan, cannot be stingy. This item will serve as my personal meeting gift."

【Fate Parchment (Legendary)】

As Qin Ji's gaze swept over it, an attribute panel instantly popped up.

Description: After use, you will receive one chance to roll the Fate Dice.

Rules:

Rolling a 1: Misfortune Descends (randomly deducts one attribute or Rank).

Rolling a 2: Nothing happens.

Rolling a 3-6: Good Luck Favors; the higher the points, the richer the rewards.

Note: Gambler, are you sure you won't roll a 1?

"A Legendary-grade consumable item?"

Qin Ji raised an eyebrow, looking at Wan Sanqian with a half-smile. "A one-sixth chance of bad luck and a one-sixth chance of wasting time. Boss Wan, are you testing my luck?"

"I wouldn't dare."

Wan Sanqian bowed slightly, his tone sincere. "For an ordinary person, this is a massive gamble. But for a powerhouse capable of soloing the Blood-Eyed Dragon Turtle, I believe 'Fate' will also bow its head to you."

This old fox was testing him in every word.

This scroll was a hot potato in his hands, but in Qin Ji's hands, it might be a miracle. He wanted to see if this mysterious "Snow Emperor" before him was truly the Chosen One.

"Interesting."

Qin Ji took the parchment, the corners of his mouth curling into a playful arc.

Gamble?

That was something only the weak did.

For a cheater, this was just restocking.

"Then I'll give it a roll."

Qin Ji didn't hesitate for a second and directly crushed the sealing wax.

Hum—!

A mysterious wave instantly enveloped the entire Teleportation Plaza. The parchment dissipated into starlight, and a massive, illusory dice condensed in mid-air, beginning to spin frantically.

The surrounding players all held their breath.

"Holy crap, is that a Legendary item? He used it just like that?"

"If he rolls a 1, it'll be a masterpiece! He'll lose a Rank on the spot!"

On the outskirts of the crowd, two figures stood in the shadows watching the scene.

One was draped in a Night Cloak—the top-tier killer on the Assassin Rankings, Shadow Killer. Standing beside him was Divine Wolf, who had just returned from the Sighing Coast.

"What do you think?" Divine Wolf asked in a low voice, his eyes fixed on the spinning dice.

"I can't see through him."

Shadow Killer shook his head, his eyes filled with deep wariness. "Back at the coast, although I didn't dare get too close, that kind of pressure... it definitely wasn't built up by equipment alone. It was pure numerical suppression."

"And..." Shadow Killer paused, his voice dropping even lower, "I just tried to use 'Eagle Eye' to observe his attributes. As a result, I received a System backlash warning, and my Mental Energy dropped by 30%."

Hearing this, a layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on Divine Wolf's back.

Just as the two were talking, the dice in the air slowed down.

Clack, clack, clack.

Everyone's hearts rose to their throats.

The dice finally stopped.

The face pointing upward was a blood-red—"1"!

"Holy crap! A 1?!"

"Hahahaha! Misfortune Descends! This is what happens when you try to act cool!"

"I'm dying of laughter. To roll a penalty from a Legendary item, this luck is really something else!"

A burst of gloating laughter erupted from the crowd. Wan Sanqian's expression also changed, and he was about to step in to smooth things over, only to see that the expression on Qin Ji's face hadn't changed at all.

In fact, it even carried a hint of mockery.

"A 1?"

Qin Ji chuckled, a string of eerie data streams flashing through his purple-gold pupils. "If I say it's a 6, does it dare to be a 1?"

In the next second, a scene that shattered everyone's worldview occurred.

Qin Ji slowly raised his right hand and made a grasping motion toward the dice in the Void Realm.

【System Error... Unknown data interference detected... Logic restructuring in progress...】

The dice, which had already settled, was actually forced to turn by an invisible hand!

Crack!

That blood-red "1" was forcibly twisted to the side, while the original "6" on the bottom was crudely flipped to the top!

Because of the excessive force, a crack appeared on the surface of the dice, as if even "Fate" itself could not withstand this overbearing power.

"Ding! Congratulations to player 'Snow Emperor' for rolling a 6 (Critical Hit)! Hidden reward mechanism triggered!"

"Obtained Mythic-grade Passive Skill Book—【ragnarok (Incomplete Manual)】!"

The entire field fell into a dead silence.

The players who were laughing just now were all wide-eyed, their jaws nearly hitting the floor.

Physical Fate Alteration?!

That's also possible?!

The walnut in Wan Sanqian's hand was crushed into powder with a "crack." The way he looked at Qin Ji had shifted from initial recruitment to deep reverence.

If soloing a BOSS earlier was just a display of strength, then this act of "calling a stag a horse" just now was a desecration of the rules!

"You see, luck is something that also discriminates based on the person."

Qin Ji casually caught the archaic book emitting a dark gold glow as it floated down from the air. Without even looking at it, he slapped it onto his body.

【Learning successful! Obtained Passive: ragnarok (Incomplete Manual)】

【Effect: All your attacks will deal 'True Damage', ignoring 30% of the target's defense and shields. When Health is below 50%, all attributes are increased by 100%.】

Another insane snowballing skill.

Qin Ji nodded with satisfaction and turned to leave.

"Wait!"

At that moment, a black shadow suddenly darted out from the crowd.

It was an assassin wearing tight leather armor, holding two poisoned daggers. Using the surrounding players as cover, he rushed toward Qin Ji's back at extreme speed.

He was a member of some unknown small guild, clearly blinded by the Mythic-grade skill book just now, wanting to seek wealth amidst danger.

"Courting death!"

Shadow Killer's pupils shrank in the distance. As a top assassin, he saw the attacker's flaws at a glance.

But what he wanted to see more was how Qin Ji would respond.

Would he dodge? Or defend?

However, Qin Ji didn't even turn his head.

He simply continued walking forward as if he hadn't noticed the killing intent behind him at all.

The moment the daggers were about to pierce his trench coat, the air around Qin Ji suddenly distorted, and a visible heatwave erupted.

【Flame Demon Form (Special Effects Edition)】

Boom—!

Without any warning, a three-meter-tall flame phantom abruptly manifested behind Qin Ji. That wasn't a physical summon, but a manifestation of pressure condensed from massive Mental Energy and high-pressure fire elements!

Before the assassin could even touch the corner of Qin Ji's clothes, he was struck head-on by this terrifying heatwave.

"Aaaaaah!"

A scream instantly rang out.

The daggers in the assassin's hands instantly melted into molten iron, dripping onto his hands. Following that, his leather armor, hair, and skin were carbonized within 0.1 seconds.

-99,999! (Reflect Damage)

A despairing damage number floated up.

Not even ashes remained of that assassin; he directly turned into a white light and returned to the Respawn Point. At the spot where he had been standing, a bottomless footprint was burned into the hard stone floor, with dark red lava still flowing around the edges.

From beginning to end, Qin Ji didn't pause his footsteps for a single second.

"Is this what you call an assassination?"

Qin Ji's voice echoed across the plaza, calm enough to make one's heart palpitate. "Next time, remember to bring a heat-resistant blade."

The crowd pulled back like a tide to both sides, forcibly opening a wide path.

Standing in the shadows, Shadow Killer only felt his throat go dry, his hand holding the dagger trembling uncontrollably.

"Shadow Step? Vision Blocking?"

Shadow Killer let go with a bitter smile, the dagger falling to the ground with a clang. "Before him, these techniques are simply a joke... This isn't the difference between an assassin and a mage; this is the difference between a man and a god."

The setting sun was like blood, staining the Donghai City plaza a desolate dark red.

With his hands in his pockets, Qin Ji walked alone toward the Tower of Heaven that towered into the clouds in the center of the city. The flickering flame demon phantom behind him gradually dissipated, leaving only a stretch of scorched earth still emitting blue smoke, and countless pairs of eyes filled with fear and fanaticism watching the back of the man who was about to turn this world upside down.