Chapter 9: Plain and Simple Stats
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 9: Plain and Simple Stats
Plain and simple stats, plus damage multipliers.
Xie Bai felt like she had become a pure "stat monster."
Under normal circumstances, damage-boosting skills were based on attribute values. Even if multiple damage buffs were stacked together, they wouldn't reach an absurd level. Even independent damage multipliers based on final damage values usually only hovered around a few percentage points.
But Xie Bai was different.
Her skills were all independent multipliers based on final damage, and the values were "double, double, and double again."
Combine that with Xie Bai’s terrifying base attributes, and the result was...
Thinking of this, the corner of Xie Bai’s mouth twitched slightly.
"I’m invincible."
"Going back to give Roland a beating actually feels a bit boring now."
Xie Bai estimated her output with all her skills active.
With everything maxed out, only her lowest-tier magic damage failed to exceed the gold limit. The other three damage segments far surpassed the cap of sixty-some billion gold.
Relying on her high Intelligence, Xie Bai quickly calculated the final burst damage of a single attack.
197,425,669,660!
Nearly two hundred billion!
She could scatter the Royal Chief Alchemist’s ashes so thoroughly there’d be nothing left to scatter.
Furthermore, even without activating any skills—relying solely on the triple affixes of Funeral Rites and Wrath's Blessing—a single strike from Xie Bai could still deal a terrifying six billion damage.
Xie Bai estimated that if there were no gold limit, her maximum burst would be over seven hundred billion.
The difference was more than threefold.
"I didn't expect that after just gaining a massive fortune of sixty billion, it would immediately become insufficient."
Once again, Xie Bai felt the frustration of being throttled by the gold limit. To fully output those seven hundred billion points of damage, she would need a reserve of at least two hundred billion gold.
Next, Xie Bai looked toward the Void Insect Hive, which was currently replenishing its forces.
"To restore the population to thirty million, it’ll take at least three days."
"In that case, I’ll come to harvest once every three days. Each harvest will net me sixty billion gold and a massive boost to my attributes."
"Wait, no. If I do that, it seems the gold won't be able to keep up with the explosive growth of my attributes."
Xie Bai fell into a dilemma, and the source of her trouble was that her growth rate was simply too fast.
"Ugh, my damage ceiling is actually being held hostage by gold."
Aside from the gold issue, Xie Bai also faced a leveling problem.
Experience gained from kills was tied to the level gap. The lower the level of the monster killed, the less experience earned. If a monster was ten levels lower than her, she wouldn't gain any experience at all.
In other words, this Void Insect Hive, filled with endless monsters, could no longer provide Xie Bai with any experience.
Furthermore, the experience requirements after level ninety were measured in the tens of billions. Ideally, Xie Bai would need to find another sixty billion level-ninety monsters to reach level one hundred.
"That’s probably impossible—both in terms of quality and quantity."
Considering the current situation, Xie Bai shook her head helplessly.
The strongest Alchemist was only level eighty-nine, and even the rapidly breeding Void Insect Hive could only produce thirty million insects every three days. Finding sixty billion level-ninety monsters was likely impossible at this stage.
Xie Bai hadn't expected that she would be "level-gated" because her damage was so high it broke the scale. She had played too hard, and now there were no opponents left who could match her.
"So... am I really invincible?"
Xie Bai began to reflect.
In the face of overwhelming power, people often lost themselves in arrogance, ignoring the true dangers hidden behind the curtain.
Xie Bai suddenly remembered the existence within the Ring of Seven Curses with the lowest presence so far—and currently, the most insidious one.
[Lust's Curse: Debuff effects cannot disappear over time.]
Debuffs that never expired had effectively become Xie Bai’s greatest weakness.
To put it simply, if someone hit her with a "Root" or "Immobilize" effect, she would be stuck for the rest of her life. Even Sloth's Blessing might not be enough. What if the enemy reapplied it every hour?
Besides, the image of an extremely cute young girl standing motionless before an enemy...
Her rich experience from her previous life caused her to involuntarily think in that direction.
"Ugh, that kind of thing is absolutely, absolutely, ABSOLUTELY not okay!"
Xie Bai suddenly felt a wave of shame and fear, the tips of her ears turning a delicate red.
"No, I'm still too weak. If any accident happens, even a common mob could toy with me."
After careful consideration, Xie Bai decided to suppress her reckless thoughts and act as low-key as possible from now on.
Right now, she was still "too weak."
"Speaking of which, I only have Sloth's Blessing as a means of purification, and the efficiency is terrible."
"I have to find a high-efficiency purification skill for myself."
But how?
The strongest Alchemist, Roland?
Or his useless apprentice, Edward?
"Speaking of Edward, I wonder if he’s finished preparing the food."
"I'm starting to feel a bit hungry."
Nearly a full day had passed, and Xie Bai’s energy consumption had been massive. Whether it was leveling up or finding a purification skill, she pushed it all to the back of her mind. Right now, the thing Xie Bai wanted most was to go back and gorge herself on a feast.
*
That evening, Xie Bai safely returned to Edward’s residence.
"Mmm... Edward, you... nom... gulp... your cooking is actually quite versatile. You can make all sorts of cuisines. If you ask me, you should stop being an Alchemist and just change classes to a Chef."
After devouring a pile of food half as tall as a person, Xie Bai showered Edward with praise.
"Uh... I'm glad you like it."
Edward’s hands were trembling slightly, and he looked utterly exhausted.
He had originally planned to find his master, Roland, but he couldn't find him anywhere in the Astrology Tower. Realizing he likely wouldn't find Roland before Xie Bai returned, Edward had to resort to his backup plan.
Staking his conviction as an Alchemist, he had worked overtime to prepare enough food for Xie Bai.
Watching Xie Bai finish off a mountain of food in just a few minutes, Edward felt like he had burned his very soul to cinders.
Should I tell her that this wasn't a five-person portion, but a thirty-person portion?
Edward felt a bitter smile tugging at his lips. Preparing this food for Xie Bai had been a nightmare. Both his wallet and his body were pushed to their limits. More importantly, he still had to clean up this mess after the meal.
And he hadn't even eaten anything himself!
At that thought, Edward’s already weary face grew even more haggard.
As if noticing Edward’s state, Xie Bai suddenly tossed a wallet to him.
"Here. Since I ate so much of your food, I'll reward you with some money."
Edward reflexively caught the wallet, only to realize it was the same Alchemy Wallet she had snatched from him earlier.
Wait, isn't this Witch being a bit too insulting? She's giving me my own wallet as a 'reward'? She's just handing me back my own money!
Edward thought this, but he didn't let it show on his face. That is, until he opened the Alchemy Wallet.
[Gold: 500,062,030]
I must be seeing things.
Thinking this, Edward blinked and opened the wallet again.
[Gold: 500,062,030]
Edward: "!"
It really was five hundred million gold.
He wasn't seeing things!
Wait, didn't I only have sixty thousand gold before? Where did this extra five hundred million come from?!
Even his master Roland—the Royal Chief Alchemist and the City Lord—couldn't produce this much cash on short notice.
Could it be?
Edward looked at Xie Bai, who was currently enjoying her post-meal dessert, with utter disbelief.
Thump.
Almost instantly, Edward was moved by Xie Bai’s "sincerity."
He placed his hand over his heart and dropped to one knee. "Oh, beautiful lady, please forgive my previous arrogant and rude behavior. I failed to grasp the depth of your intentions. Oh, praise be to you, My Lady! Your beauty is peerless, like a moon lotus blooming in the night—pure and wonderful. Might I be honored with your name? It would be the greatest privilege of my life."
["Edward's" Loyalty has increased to 1]
[Lust's Blessing triggered: "Edward's" Loyalty has been locked at 1000]