Forbidden Nightmare

Chapter 132 The Cube and the Alchemist
Li Nanke came to the corner of the courtyard and took the metal block from the statue's hand.

The metal cube is dark grey in color overall. Instead of being smooth, its surface is engraved with numerous patterns resembling alchemical symbols. Some of the patterns are already mottled and blurred, as if they have gone through a long period of time.

It felt hard and cold like metal in the hand, but not as heavy as expected. This metal block should be hollow.

Alchemist's Cube

[Type: Props/Permanent]

[Quality: precious]

[Rating: 86/100]

[Details: You can inject specific things into the cube to gain wish value. When the wish value reaches a certain value, the following 'wishes' can be fulfilled...]

[1. To synthesize items, select two or more items to synthesize. The more similar the properties of the items are, the higher the success rate of the synthesis. Otherwise, the probability of synthesis failure will increase. After the synthesis fails, waste will be randomly produced.]

[2. To create items, consume a certain amount of willpower to randomly create items. The more willpower you consume, the greater the probability of creating high-value items. Otherwise, you will create low-value items or even waste.]

[3. Acquire knowledge and consume a certain amount of willpower to obtain methods for manufacturing alchemical items, such as design drawings of alchemical tools, recipes for developing alchemical potions, etc.]

[Note: This is an ancient treasure left by an alchemist. If you can truly become an alchemist, you will be able to use the cube better.]

The reward for this third key node is beyond imagination.

The reward cube is of 'precious' quality, which is higher than 'rare' quality, with an overall score of 86 points. It is not a one-time consumable but a permanent item that can be used repeatedly. You don't even need to read the detailed description to know that this item is extremely valuable.

"Wish power value, make a wish... Is this the alchemist version of the wishing machine?"

Li Nanke couldn't help but feel surprised and happy.

He carefully read the detailed instructions of the cube and began to study how to actually use the prop.

To use the three wish-granting abilities of the cube, you need to charge it, that is, obtain "wish power value".

Almost all the items on Li Nanke's body cannot be injected into the cube in exchange for willpower. Only the 'pure self-crystal stone' obtained before can be used as the starting fuel of the cube.

A small self-element crystal can be exchanged for 1 point of willpower. If he puts all the crystals into the cube, he can get 310 points of willpower.

The wishing mechanism for synthesized items consumes wish points based on the quality and total score of the two synthesized items.

The synthesis option can not only synthesize various props, but also synthesize equipment and weapons.

He tried to throw both the 'Shock Rifle' and the 'Linear Laser Cannon' into the cube, and relevant prompts popped up immediately.

[This synthesis requires 136 points of willpower, and the synthesis success rate is 22.37%. Do you want to confirm the synthesis? ]

“Why is the success rate so low?”

Li Nanke frowned and did not choose to synthesize. Instead, he changed two items and continued to try.

After repeated attempts, he found that the success rate of synthesis was shockingly low. He threw two similar melee weapons into the mixture, but the success rate of synthesis was less than 30%.
He looked at the second wish item, 'Create an Item'.

The creation of items is divided into different stages, requiring the consumption of one hundred willpower points, two hundred willpower points, five hundred, one thousand, and finally unlimited injection.

This thing feels like opening a blind box. The more wish points you consume, the greater the probability of getting good stuff.

Of course, not all investments will necessarily pay off. If you have bad luck, you may put all your three hundred wishes into one investment, but end up with nothing but useless junk.

“It feels a bit tricky…”

The last option is to make a wish to obtain knowledge, and use the wish value to exchange for alchemical drawings. This option is similar to creating items. Both have the nature of a blind box. You cannot know what alchemical drawings you will get before consuming the wish value.

The notes on the cube are no longer a spoof, but tell him that the cube is a treasure left by ancient alchemy. Only by becoming a true alchemist can the cube be fully utilized.

"Becoming an alchemist..."

Li Nanke frowned and thought.

“This cube has a high quality rating, but it doesn’t seem to work very well.”

"And there are certain restrictions on using props. Not only do you need to consume your own crystals, but you also need to be an alchemist."

Li Nanke pondered for a long time, and suddenly called out to the empty courtyard:
"Sophia, I know you've been following me, come out."

Soon, a deep blue butterfly appeared out of nowhere and flew to his shoulder with its scaly wings fluttering.

"Mr. Black Rabbit, it seems that my guess is correct. Although you denied and concealed it from me, you still had to admit your true identity when facing Romeo."

"You, like the stars, do not belong to this world."

Li Nanke did not argue with her about this topic, but pointed at the cube and said:

"Do you know the origin of this thing?"

"Of course." The butterfly flapped its wings and said, "But it is incredible that the long-lost alchemist's treasure would appear here and be obtained by you, Mr. Black Rabbit... Could this be the will of the stars?"

Li Nanke curled his lips and said, "Don't test me. Just answer whatever I ask you. If you keep whining, go beat Simon up yourself."

The blue butterfly was obviously startled, and its flapping wings stopped. After waiting for a long time, Sophia explained in a sullen tone:
"Ancient humans prayed to the 'stars', but they could not directly fulfill their wishes."

"Because the Star cannot understand people's wishes, it responds to them in ways that people cannot understand. People can hardly even tell whether their wishes have been fulfilled."

"Ancient alchemists understood that one needed to express one's wishes in a certain way in order to receive a direct and definite response."

"The cube was born. After refining wishes, inject them into the cube made of meteorites, and pray devoutly to the stars, all kinds of wishes can be fulfilled, thereby gaining special powers."

"It's just that the stars have disappeared, and the cube has lost most of its connection with the stars. Although the cube still has some ability to respond to wishes, it is far inferior to the ancient times."

"So that's how it is..." Li Nanke nodded thoughtfully.

Having lost its connection with the stars, the cube's wish-granting ability plummeted. Rather than being a wish-granting machine, it is more like an alchemical tool created by an alchemist using star meteorites.

"Mr. Black Rabbit, you are not an alchemist and you don't understand the true function of the cube."

"It is said that after the stars disappeared, alchemists gave the cube additional functions. They sealed many ancient alchemical drawings in the cube. By using the cube's creation prayers, they can produce countless alchemical materials that have long been extinct."

"By using the cube's synthetic prayer, there is no need to go through the alchemy array and you can directly create alchemical items... I have to say that the alchemists' imagination in this regard is simply unparalleled."

"Of course, only a true alchemist can use the cube stably."

Li Nanke suddenly realized what was going on when he heard this.

It turns out that the so-called synthesized items and created items all serve the last item, the alchemical blueprint.

After the alchemist prays for a certain blueprint, he can use the "creation prayer" to generate related alchemical materials in a targeted manner, which can be said to be creating something out of nothing. Finally, he uses the "synthesis prayer" to directly generate a finished alchemical item. However, he is not an alchemist, and the items synthesized with cubes are not alchemical items on the blueprint, so the probability of success is very low.

"Do you know how to become an alchemist?"

The blue butterfly said, "Mr. Black Rabbit, I'm not trying to discourage you. Although the cube is the most precious treasure for alchemists, it is very difficult to become an alchemist."

"Because alchemists, like trackers, need innate talent. Forgive my poor eyesight, but I can't tell that you have this talent."

"And talent alone is not enough. Alchemists need a large amount of knowledge reserves. They need to study hundreds of books such as "Element Theory", "Ether Analysis", "Alchemical Semiotics", "Metal Nobleness Guide", "Experimental Illustration Manual", etc."

"Only those who have been trained since childhood and received more than ten years of relevant education and training can become a junior alchemy apprentice..."

"The cube is the most precious treasure for alchemists. You need to be at least a master alchemist to fully control this treasure and obtain whatever you wish for."

Li Nanke nodded when he heard this:
"Ms. Sophia, I cannot become an alchemist for the time being, but I should be able to solve another limitation of the cube."

"What?" The butterfly flapped its wings, somewhat confused.

"From what I know, you should still have a lot of Ego Crystals. I risked my life for your revenge plan. Is it too much to ask for some of your Ego Crystals?"

All three types of wishes of the cube require the consumption of self-crystals, and regardless of whether you can become an alchemist or not, it is always a good idea to ask for more task rewards.

"Mr. Black Rabbit, we have already agreed on the remuneration in advance. You raising the price at the last minute is contrary to your promise."

"It is indeed a bit unfair to do so. How about this, I will lend it to you and I can write an IOU."

"..."

The butterfly stopped flapping its wings completely. I'm sure Sophia, who was controlling herself as a butterfly, must have looked very happy.

Could she say no? Sophia still depended on Li Nanke to work, so she had to borrow the money even if she didn't want to.

After dealing with Sophia, Li Nanke put away the cube.

It should be impossible to become an alchemist by cheating, so the only solution is to use the method of the other side.

According to the mechanism of the Great Beyond, the main quality is like a profession or a school, and the characteristics are similar to skills. If you want to become an alchemist, you must acquire the relevant main quality characteristics.

"Why do I feel like I'm making dumplings just for a dish of vinegar..."

The main qualities and characteristics of the rewards given by the Great Other Shore will not change at all because of Li Nanke’s subjective ideas.

However, since such an item appeared in this forbidden dream, it means that there must be a main substance or characteristic related to "alchemy" in a hidden node.

When he returned to the exhibition hall, he saw the giant puppet "War Machine" walking crookedly, just like a toddler.

"Relax, Carlo. Don't imagine that you are operating a machine. The sensors connected to your hands and feet will synchronize your movements. Just think of the war machine as an enlarged version of you."

"Oh, okay, but how do you control the two mechanical tentacles on the back?"

"Well, you need to imagine that you have two phantom limbs..."

The War Machine's mouth kept opening and closing, sometimes Pinocchio's voice came out, and sometimes Romeo was speaking.

Li Nanke could imagine the two of them squeezed in the cockpit as good friends.

"Romeo, I want to discuss something with you."

The cockpit door on War Machine's chest opened, Romeo came out from behind the puppet boy and jumped off the super giant puppet.

There are several mechanical arms in the cockpit connected to Pinocchio's hands and feet. Any movement made by Pinocchio will be fed back to the war machine, causing the super giant puppet to make the same movement.

This reminded Li Nanke of a movie called "Pacific Rim" in his previous life.

"You know that Pinocchio can absorb the egos of other puppets to strengthen himself, right?"

Romeo raised his eyebrows, then nodded expressionlessly, not knowing what Li Nanke was up to.

"As the puppet king, you should be able to issue orders to many puppets and control them, right?"

"Yes." Romeo crossed his arms, "I can command them and issue a series of orders, but the orders cannot violate the Great Contract or the highest order of Geppetto."

Li Nanke smiled gently: "I know you care about Pinocchio. Seeing that he is weak, you gave him the war machine. However, the war machine is an external object after all, and it is far less secure than having strong strength."

"Is this true?"

Romeo immediately figured out what he meant.

"You want me to control those puppets and send them to Carlo to improve his strength?"

Li Nanke gave a thumbs up: "Talking to smart people saves effort."

"You were once Pinocchio's good friend, and I am also his boss. I also want Pinocchio to become a strong man who can stand on his own, so I took him to fight all the way and helped him defeat countless puppets to improve his own strength."

Romeo looked at him suspiciously, with a complicated look in his eyes, obviously not believing what Li Nanke said.

"You sacrificed many puppets in the exhibition hall in order to build war machines. This proves that you have no feelings for the puppets. Deep down, you still think of yourself as a human being."

"Since you can sacrifice so many puppets to build war machines, why can't you sacrifice another batch to help Pinocchio improve his strength?"

Romeo turned his head and looked at his old friend who was operating the war machine. Pinocchio's operating proficiency was improving at a speed visible to the naked eye. He was indeed very talented in mechanical operation.

It seems that with another half day of practice, Pinocchio will be able to completely control the war machine.

The Puppet King shook his head and said, "I didn't say I didn't want to. I just doubt your purpose for doing this."

"I can sense that you don't have any feelings for Carlo. Carlo is just a tool in your eyes... You don't have to deny it. You can't fool me!"

Li Nanke sneered: "Don't be so self-righteous. If you don't trust me, you can call all the puppets over. I will fight with Pinocchio."

"If you're still worried, you can supervise the battle from the side."

Romeo could not find any reason to object. Doing so would indeed help Pinocchio improve his strength, which would be a good thing for both him and the puppet boy.

The Puppet King pondered for a long time and finally nodded.

Li Nanke came to the City Hall Expo, but he didn't earn even a drop of source energy. His main quality, Pain, was only level four, and his trait, Fanaticism, hadn't even been upgraded to level one.

Now that he has reached an offensive and defensive alliance with Romeo, if he doesn't make good use of the abilities of the Puppet King to earn a large amount of source energy for upgrades, wouldn't it be a waste of such a good opportunity?

(End of this chapter)