Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Heavenly Demon Divine Art Isn't Trash
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Strictly speaking, the Heavenly Demon Divine Art wasn't necessarily trash.
There were about a hundred builds with the same name, and three of them were somewhat usable... or so the rumors went.
I'd long since given up on warrior builds, so I wasn't entirely sure, but that was the word on the street.
If this were a game, it might've been worth a shot.
A 3% gacha rate wasn't bad at all.
The problem was that life was a single-pull gacha.
"...Hmm."
So, no clue.
Whether this was good or bad.
If it pulled in unfinished builds from the forum database, even a pro builder would struggle to gauge its true performance...
Not that actually learning and testing it myself was an option.
"In the primordial era of antiquity, there existed a single Heavenly Demon. The master once sliced the sea like butter with his sword and rent the heavens asunder."
"...They could've at least used AI for the translation."
Flipping through the pages revealed awkward machine-translated Korean.
Made by a Chinese user, maybe.
Chinese builds weren't always bad. Just a total luck-of-the-draw gamble.
The good ones were genuinely solid, but the brain-dead disasters outnumbered them.
And those brain-dead ones didn't even mean "powerful."
Pavarintos wasn't a game where you could just pump stats to 99999 for a cheat build.
Character stats were mere output values from the design. You couldn't tweak them arbitrarily.
Twisting the scale on a weight machine didn't make you lighter. Pumping numbers did nothing.
'Skip the intro-'
The preamble up front could be ignored.
Users just wrote flowery nonsense for flair. Pure word salad.
The only reliable part was the diagram on the pages.
The meridian chart created with the creation tool. Nothing else.
You couldn't fake that.
Like magic, warrior skills were made of meridian charts—essentially code.
Whether created or learned, the skill applied exactly as written. No lies possible here.
...Just a pain to interpret.
'Early sections look normal...'
Surprisingly, the early parts of this Heavenly Demon Divine Art seemed legit.
Of course, a solid start didn't mean it was trustworthy.
If it fell apart right away, it was hopeless. Gradual decline mid-game? Average.
Late-game issues cropped up nine times out of ten.
User-made builds rarely perfected the whole arc.
High-level vets didn't play vanilla for nothing—they'd tasted it all.
'Might as well pocket it... just in case.'
A class book recorded the build: dozens of Scroll of Records bundled together.
Skills, passives, core elements—all optimally combined by level.
Theoretically, one book completed your character.
But activating it required heaps of mana stones.
Right now, it was just blueprints.
You ground mana stones into the pages to infuse structured mana. And it guzzled them.
Not just any stones—specific grades per level...
...Money pit.
'Better to sell it later.'
I didn't know wuxia novels well, but Heavenly Demon sounded strong.
That's why people scammed with these builds.
Casuals unfamiliar with Pavarintos would mistake it for the real deal. Could fetch a high price later?
...Or not.
.
.
.
.
Hyun Tae-jin still showed no sign of finishing.
[Urgh, hold on. Gotta solve this first-]
[Sniff, thanks... Waaah-]
[Uh... e-excuse me...?]
"...."
Seemed like they weren't done over there.
Overhearing snippets, they needed some key or whatever.
I had no idea where it was either.
Those item spawns were all random.
But it was in the hut somewhere. They'd find it eventually.
'They'll manage.'
Still time before the next scouting party arrived.
Not enough to slack off, but no need to rush.
'Was gonna open it together, but no dice.'
Anyway.
I'd planned to share the chests with Hyun Tae-jin, but that wasn't happening.
Comforting and all would eat up time.
No choice. I'd open the rest solo.
...Not because I was impatient or couldn't wait.
[Creak-]
The remaining two chests.
As expected, gear items inside.
Thankfully, a wearable robe caught my eye.
'...A bow?'
First chest.
I set aside the two bows on top.
Bow users were meta in-game, but reality was different.
Like how you only saw sword training in novels, archers were Olympic rarities.
Probably useless—
"...Huh?"
...Or not.
This changed things.
The second bow triggered a translucent status window.
A item catalog.
"...I see."
So that's how it worked here.
User-made creation tool items came with these.
Design summaries explaining attached settings, letting you interpret embedded magic and effects.
Not full specs, though.
Full user notes required the Labyrinth City library...
'Magic?'
Veterans familiar with magic could spot Lv. 1 spells at a glance.
Familiar elemental combos and rune codes.
A3-A7(3) + A1(4)-A2 runes? Basic mage incantation.
'Lv. 1 Mana Arrow, abbreviated chant, engraving form...'
Engraving type.
No memorize needed—infinite casts with mana.
Simpler structure than standard Mana Arrow—no ejection rune.
Mana Arrow propelled by bowstring tension instead of magic...
Infused mana auto-generates arrows. Super convenient, but not for long-term carry.
Clashed with archer skill [Mana Shot] arrow enhancement.
For proper warrior compatibility, it'd need [Phantom Arrow], but that's beyond Lv. 1 specs.
So this Lv. 1 Infinite Blessing was pure early-game patch.
Obviously unusable for me.
No bow experience, and vampire's weak strength couldn't draw the string.
'Infinite Blessing, huh.'
Cool name, though.
Sleek design, quite beautiful.
Builders scaled items by level, so higher-level versions might be worthwhile later.
Anyway,
worth taking.
'Plenty of porters now.'
Unlike the food warehouse.
Enough carriers—grab all the good stuff.
.
.
.
The three item chests in the Butcher's Hut.
After opening them all, I sorted: keepers, must-haves, junk.
First, the good stuff.
My gear specifically.
...P.S., I added those labels.
New dagger.
Blade infused with —handy, but useless for warriors.
Skills clashed unless intentionally designed otherwise.
Like [Mana Shot] and [Mana Arrow], or [Weapon Enhancement] and .
Better for me.
Short for Widow's Black Tears.
Weird name, but... it was a robe.
Black color appealed, embedded magic: [Black Poison Mist].
Oddly engraving instead of memorize stock, but Lv. 1 poison magic gave pause.
Low-level poison spells sucked.
Poison halved effect on same-level foes, and low tiers had short duration innately.
Mana Arrow lasted ~10 seconds—how strong could Lv. 1 poison be?
Unless a lifetime poison mage's secret art, no great power expected...
'This spell... something off about the details.'
Still.
A bit hesitant.
High detail. Not copy-paste poison mist.
Unimplemented data, probably...
...Test it once.
Lv. 1 poison would still work on Lv. 0 goblins.
'Only magic robe available anyway...'
Three robes from chests.
Other two: plain, no magic.
Maybe material-focused, but robes pierced easy—magic infusion better.
Plus—
"...Hmm."
Defense... this could cover it.
Dubbed the "Bikini Series."
Rare in-game.
Forums overflowed with user variants fulfilling fantasies, but creators never implemented—ultra-rare.
Not here, though.
Realized Pavarintos reading unimplemented data?
'How many bikinis did they crank out...'
Made sense, but absurd.
Performance: meh.
Engraving, no stock limit—but not always better.
Unlike raw-mana engraving,
memorize let you exceed mana pool post-recharge via meditation.
Daily spells? Engraving wins. Rare use? Memorize better.
Seemed warrior-oriented... but couldn't give to Hyun Tae-jin.
...I'd wear it.
[Rustle-]
Middle of the hut living room.
Shed torn Guardian Robe and undies, donned new bikini.
"...."
Glancing at my nude form mid-change... no deep reaction.
Just, wow.
Gender swap? Racial shift? More awe at beauty than arousal.
Eyes drawn to wounds instead.
Diagonal scar and crusted blood annoyed, but regenerating steadily.
Probably gone without trace by tonight.
Ignoring scars, carefully tied the flimsy fabric.
'Decent... ish?'
Awkward.
First time, naturally.
Wrapping swollen chest in scraps felt weird.
Summoned undies were pre-fitted—no realization then. Thin strings supporting heavy breasts...
...Unfamiliar.
'No helping it.'
Awkwardness faded quick.
If this was my body, adapt.
Fit fine.
Minimal scraps risky, but covered essentials.
Wandering in just this? Lunatic vibes... but no issue.
[Whirr-]
"...."
[Full Body Guardian] activated fine.
...How.
'This coverage... works?'
Three scraps and strings with full-body engraving.
What obsession.
...Why bother.
[Rustle.]
Anyway.
Bikini on, Widow's Black Tears robe over—Hyun Tae-jin's footsteps approached.
[Step, step-]
"...Do-hwa-ssi?"
"...."
Impeccable timing.
A bit faster, good view.
...Pity.
"...What is it?"
"Freed the women first. They're eating outside now. Thought you might need help."
"Ah..."
Figured as much from chatter.
People skills weren't my forte—just ignored.
No help needed, but...
"Perfect timing. Take this."
"Pardon?"
Handed Hyun Tae-jin a Scroll of Records.
Single sheet.
Not the Mysterious Skin from the small chest.
Warrior defense passives? Risky to learn casually.
Butcher goblin's [Rock Skin] proved that—could ugly you up.
This one: extra from the big chest.
"Paper...? What's this?"
"A skill."
"...Pardon?"
[Weapon Enhancement].
Essential starter for early warriors.