096. It still has to be the oil on the Piggies that yields the most.
The players naturally had no complaints about this. Having a mission to do was a good thing. Many accepted the mission, grabbed shovels and pickaxes, and set off to find the goblin lair.
"It's probably a long-term mission. Li Aozi often issues this type of mission." Yu Tianxiao analyzed: "Completion condition B, 'Unexpected Fortune,' asks us to uncover the truth of the cave, which means there must be some hidden information—could it be that we need to communicate with the locals?"
"Speaking of which," Night Sword unsheathed opened Li Aozi's shop interface, "You can learn 'Crystal Tower Official Language: Tanas' here from Li Aozi, and it's not very expensive."
"Anyway, there are only a few small villages nearby. Let's go ask around and interact a bit."
Seeing that the players were taking things seriously, Li Aozi no longer interfered and headed over to his biochemical pool to replenish production materials, adjust the original formula, and continue maintaining the automated production of Omega Energy Awakening Potions.
He only needed to make a slight change in the formula, and the players would have to spend money here.
Yavanna was in charge of sales and management at Faithkeep Village, and since she managed the money, Li Aozi could rest easy.
Then he brought out Jenia. By utilizing this divine sword's abilities, [Refinement] and [Self-Forging Furnace], he could use it as a temporary forge and anvil.
It wasn't just used to enhance the power of the artifact; it had broad applications in crafting professions, making it highly practical.
Li Aozi had previously bought some rare materials in the universe, and players had mined some simple local minerals, which was enough for Li Aozi to produce a batch of enchanted weapons.
The [Forge Master]lifestyle profession provided an extra success rate bonus when forging extraordinary weapons. After wasting a few pieces of iron, Li Aozi began crafting blades and swords suitable for players.
Jania was quite interested in the blacksmithing business. Each time Li Aozi forged, it would remind him of certain details to watch for, greatly reducing the failure rate.
Though Li Aozi was confident he could hold his own against Zeta-tier opponents, he also understood he couldn't outright defeat them.
Withstanding attacks without dying and fully defeating an opponent were two different things.
When the interstellar media exaggerated Li Aozi fighting against stronger foes, they were careful with the phrasing, using 'meeting the enemy' instead of 'defeating the enemy.'
Verachi had been expelled by Vanlenkov's new government, and Li Aozi wasn't at that level yet.
If a Gamma-tier could defeat an opponent two tiers higher, especially someone like Verachi, who was backed by a high-level narrative civilization, the cosmic order would be in chaos.
In reality, ascending to [Astral Echo] made Li Aozi even more vigilant. At his current pace, this stage would accompany him for at least five years. Even with players joining in, it would likely take a long time.
He was about to start his studies, yet he was in a weak period during the [Echoer] stage. Li Aozi had to find a way to protect himself.
"The tier promotion voucher can be saved for the Zeta to Iota (η, the seventh Greek letter) promotion. When I switch to [Bishop], I will definitely have to dive into the Abyss, and among the group descending with me, I can use the voucher to create a gap between us."
Diving into Star Abyss was dangerous. The narrative-level civilizations in the Abyss were far less civilized compared to those in the Layers. There were no national or political restrictions anywhere, making it imperative to exercise caution with fellow comrades.
Taking this opportunity, Li Aozi also updated his equipment, creating a set of fully enchanted jewelry for himself, including bracelets, rings, armlets, and pendants.
Unfortunately, his forging skills were mediocre at best, capable of crafting only one "Flawless" piece, while most of the items were still at the "Exquisite Craftsmanship" level.
Even so, this set of jewelry added a full 30 points of [Charisma] for Li Aozi. For a [Domination]type who doesn't wear armor, this was already the limit.
After checking, Li Aozi found that the "Law of Energy Conservation" he'd learned earlier could be used to increase the development level of a non-core Omega Energy by one rank.
Out of self-defense considerations, Li Aozi chose to apply this upgrade to Sequence Seventy-Seven • [Calamity].
Undoubtedly, this was one of the most unreasonable Omega Energies at his disposal. Being able to fight across tiers twice in a row owed a lot to the help from the [Gravity] and [Calamity] Omega Energies.
——————————
[Your Omega Energy [Sequence Seventy-Seven • Calamity] has been enhanced]
[New Effect • Curse]: You can place a long-term curse on someone's fate, causing them misfortune and reducing all positive gains.
[Current Development Level]: Contact-Level, at this level of development, Omega Energy consumption rate is 100%
——————————
The higher the development level of an Omega Energy, the lower the energy consumption. [Calamity] was a typical energy-guzzler. Li Aozi's three mana regeneration specialties were still insufficient to sustain it, but the new effect was pretty good, making him quite satisfied.
Reducing all positive gains had a very wide scope. From drop rates of equipment to health recovery to extended lifespan—all these were considered positive gains.
It essentially nullified all positive buffs. With the 'Curse' effect active, even the [Redemption]type piling on buffs until they bled wouldn't necessarily restore someone's health.
However, this required long-term cursing, and what it would be like exactly remained to be seen.
Again, sequence-level Omega Energies were never weak, except for [Bloodline].
For safety reasons, Li Aozi injected himself with another batch of Omega Energy Awakening Potions, but unfortunately, as his bloodline had already transformed into an Eylai Spirit, his genes no longer responded to outdated mutation inducers.
After ten injections, Li Aozi's body developed complete resistance, and only a batch of trash Omega Energies appeared, which he crushed into genetic fragments for future bodily adjustments.
"I shouldn't need to intervene anymore. The players will handle everything."
After spending a day at Faithkeep Village, Li Aozi collected 1.2 million experience points from the players. White Candle Star was resource-rich, and the players' production output was considerable.
Li Aozi calculated that it was enough to level up his [Mage]subclass to the max level of 30, providing 30 points of [Intelligence]. With that, the class had fulfilled its purpose.
Originally, his base Intelligence was 92.4 points, and it had now increased to 122.4 points. Adding his title, [Pioneer of the Future], which provided a 20% guaranteed Intelligence gain, brought his [Intelligence] to a solid 146.88 points.
Meanwhile, his [Charisma], as his primary attribute, along with the 30 points from jewelry, amounted to 157 points. After the [Perpetual • Love Hunting] 30% boost, it reached an impressive 204.1 points.
Exceeding 200 points of [Charisma] meant truly surpassing Delta-tier and reaching Epsilon-tier. At this point, Li Aozi could do nothing but rely on [Charisma] to attract the love of the natural world, and he would be well-fed and clothed for life.
He reached out to the flowerbed, and the shy roses smiled warmly in return. They even withdrew their thorns, letting Li Aozi caress them freely.
The air seemed to carry nutrients. High-energy particles rushed towards Li Aozi, not Calamitying him but rather as if the whole world held a spoonful of honey, cautiously and tenderly feeding it to his lips.
However, the increase in [Intelligence] led Li Aozi to another perspective—from a rational point of view, the natural world's love for him wasn't just based on emotional factors; rather, it was an opportunistic and worldly act.
Nature's love for those with high [Charisma] was to better accept Star Abyss nurturing and fight the Destructors to the death for Star Abyss. And such battles were meaningless, as there was no reincarnation mechanism in the Layers. Therefore, the [Charisma] attribute was actually part of a conspiracy...
Li Aozi patted his shoulder, dismissing the thought.
The higher the [Intelligence], the more selfish one becomes, so selfish that even the world itself would be questioned.
"Now, it seems my [Intelligence] is a bit too high. It's time to quickly pull out those infiltrated 'Society' citizens."
Li Aozi's head was buzzing a bit, but fortunately, he currently had no head, so the impact on his worldview was nonexistent.
He observed the state of the white obelisk. Currently, the number of people on the [Domination]path had expanded to 97 and was still increasing.
"At this rate, with the influence of the players, I should be able to enjoy attribute bonuses before the end of this version."
It all came down to raising pigs!
Fighting, doing missions, studying, and leveling up were all for fun. If you really wanted to earn experience, it had to be by raising pigs.
What Li Aozi received wasn't all good news.
For an entire day, Yavanna hadn't come out to see him, but Li Aozi no longer dwelled on it.
After preparing rewards for the players and updating a batch of jewelry as goods, Li Aozi didn't stay long. He used the biochemical pool to create a fake colonized head as a disguise, then left Faithkeep Village.
Next, he needed to reflect for a while and fulfill Qiu Ran's dying wish to him.
"Time to start school."