Chapter 51: The Unlucky One

Half an hour later, the now-silent Misty Valley welcomed new visitors. A carriage pulled up at the entrance. The driver, a knight clad in black armor, jumped down and respectfully lifted the curtain. A woman in a green dress stepped out, her skirt billowing, revealing long, fair, shapely legs.

As she descended from the carriage, her expression changed. Frowning, she said, “Another spirit master has come!”

The two hurried into the village. The guards at the entrance were nowhere to be seen, and the air within the village was thick with the stench of blood.

Every courtyard wall had been smashed open by something. Gray wolves feasted on corpses, while several women and children lay torn apart, their blood pooling across the ground.

“How could this happen!” The black-armored knight was furious. He drew his sword and charged forward, cleaving the head off a wolf in a single strike, wolf blood spraying everywhere.

The other wolves, terrified, scattered with low whimpers, not daring to confront him.

He scoured the village for any survivors, shouting as he searched, but found not a single living soul.

At last, he heard a faint, mosquito-like sound and hurried toward it.

In the shadow of a collapsed wall, a middle-aged woman lay pinned beneath a massive stone, her chest crushed in. All color had drained from her face; she was clearly on the verge of death.

“My lady, it was... it was a spirit master who ambushed us, killed the guards…”

She coughed blood relentlessly, blood streaming from her nose, mouth, and eyes. The black-armored knight crouched down, his voice sharp, “Who was it? What did they look like? What was their totem beast?”

“Red hair... enormous creature...”

Before she could finish, her head lolled to the side, and she breathed her last.

“Lady Yolanda, do you know who she meant?” the knight asked deferentially.

“Red hair, a massive totem, strength at the second level—there’s only one spirit master from Tyris who fits that description. I never imagined he’d come all this way; it seems he’s determined not to let me go.”

Yolanda’s beautiful face turned to ice, seething with a hatred so deep it sent a chill through the armored knight beside her, making him shudder and bow his head in fear.

“Very well. Since he’s come, let’s give him a surprise—let him witness the fruits of my efforts these past days.”

“Vasinger, our organization’s objective is about to be realized. Soon, the entire world will be within our grasp, and you will possess strength far beyond that of ordinary men!”

“My lady, the one true god will descend. His glory shall bathe the world, and all shall offer him their faith!” The black-armored knight dropped to one knee, his tone fervent.

Yolanda gazed up at the sky, as if seeking something invisible.

Her mind was filled with thoughts: “Soon, the Skynet will cover the world—no one will escape its gaze.”

“And when that time comes, it will truly be the beginning for me…”

………………………

Dozens of kilometers away.

Charles sat on a patch of grass. Firefly crouched before him, blinking its eyes as it watched, while two giant beasts rested quietly to the side.

A translucent interface appeared in his field of vision. This act of vengeance had increased his evolution points tenfold.

“Twenty-four point five. That’s enough for four enhancements.” Charles murmured, eyes fixed on Firefly’s three-dimensional image on the interface.

Whoosh!

Evolution points plummeted as four vanished in an instant.

Previously, each enhancement cost five points, but after he provided a purple gem, the cost dropped by twenty percent—a significant improvement.

“Meow!” The little white fox let out a call, its body enveloped in a white glow, as though it were suffused with light.

Moments later, the glow faded. There was no visible change.

“Ugh, another failure.” Charles checked the white fox’s attributes—no significant improvement, not even an increase in evolution success rate, and only one point was refunded.

“Damn it, are mutant totems really this difficult to upgrade?”

Rubbing his temples, he stared at the interface and, without hesitation, pressed the plus sign again with his mind. “I don’t believe it. Three points per attempt, seven tries left, and a thirty-five percent success rate—I refuse to believe it won’t work!”

Buzz!

White light appeared, then faded.

Buzz!

White light appeared, then faded.

Buzz!

This time the commotion was slightly greater. The little white fox abruptly stood on its hind legs, but after a cry flopped back to the ground.

No need to check—another failure.

…

On the seventh attempt, Firefly grew restless, fidgeting incessantly. Charles’s eyes widened as he watched.

Firefly’s evolutionary path was to become a Three-tailed White Fox, then, at its ultimate form, a Six-tailed Sun-and-Moon Fox, and with super evolution, a Nine-tailed Celestial Fox.

Could it be that the second and third tails were about to appear?

Under his gaze, the little white fox gave a soft cry, bolted into a nearby bush—and relieved itself.

So the restlessness was just the urge to pee, and out of shyness, it hadn’t wanted to go near him.

“Damn it, my luck is truly abysmal!”

Charles weakly slapped his forehead and fell back onto the grass, staring blankly at the azure sky.

The scene reminded him of a time in his previous life when, during a ten-pull event, he’d spent over a thousand bucks for a batch of rare pet eggs, only to receive a handful of common totem beasts—he’d been so angry he almost smashed his phone.

“Looks like I’ll never be favored by fortune...” A profound despair welled up inside him. He’d spent twenty-one evolution points, attempted it seven times, and hadn’t succeeded once.

“Mutant Moonlight Fox: Main Totem, Not Evolved, Upgradable. Evolution Success Rate: Forty-two percent, Cost: Four evolution points.

Abilities: Fox’s Charm, Swift.”

The success rate was nearing half, with one attempt left, but Charles no longer felt like trying.

Those points could have bred three or four evolved totem beasts by now.

In truth, he should have stopped after the first failure and waited until he found another gem to raise the success rate to eighty percent before making a single attempt, instead of wasting all these points.

“Damn it, why can’t I control this hand of mine!” He punched the ground, filled with regret—if only he hadn’t squandered so many points…

“Meow!” The little white fox ran over, sensing his emotional turmoil, and gently licked his cheek as if to comfort him.

“I’m fine.” Charles sat up, hugged it close, and stood. “The main totem’s evolution failed; it’ll be a long time before another attempt. Clearly, I need a new approach.”

Destroying this branch was only the beginning. Now, he would truly enter the heart of the story, stealing the organization’s resources and research results.

If they wouldn’t let him live in peace, he’d make sure they didn’t survive either!