Chapter 218: Spirit Pool Gacha (5K Bonus 51 52)

Elda.

Although it was given a name full of hope, this place still isn't even a village—barely a base.

Don't meddle with the building stuff.

Don't care what it eventually becomes… will it go unfinished? Will it fail to deliver? Will it just vanish halfway?

Even before it was even a rough shell, the housing project already had its name set.

Those grand names, each laden with special meaning, have already drawn countless consumers to pour their money in… cough.

Fortunately, Herbert doesn't need to attract investment or rely on residents' funds to sustain operations.

Herbert thought for a moment and settled on his next strategy.

"The foundation is laid, the name is chosen—what's needed next is residents."

He doesn't need money, but he absolutely needs people.

Population holds profound, irreplaceable significance for a new territory.

Population is the vital source of growth for a new territory; different individuals bring their own skills, knowledge, and creativity.

Diverse human resources are like fresh blood injected into a newborn organism.

Herbert can't handle everything himself—he can't magically become an all-knowing master of all arts.

Architecture, agriculture, commerce… these basics are manageable when the population is small, but once development kicks in, specialized talent will be essential.

Talented builders can further plan and refine the new territory's design and public infrastructure.

Those with agricultural knowledge—like Druids—can clear land and develop suitable farming to ensure food self-sufficiency.

Those skilled in commerce can manage fair internal trade and oversee external shipping routes.

"So the question is—where can I find these talents?"

Besides personal ability, these talents must meet one crucial prerequisite—they must be able to keep this place's secrets, or be part of the secret themselves.

Best would be non-human monsters; second-best, half-breeds; worst-case… someone like Shi Diwen, utterly unconnected to the outside world.

Although Shi Diwen hasn't awakened yet and hasn't revealed whether he has ties to the outside… he's already been labeled by Herbert as someone with no outside connections.

If Shi Diwen is foolish and insists on linking himself to the outside, that's fine too.

He can be passively turned into someone unconnected—it makes no difference anyway.

In this remote wilderness, getting shot in the back and killing yourself? No one would care.

While Herbert was brooding, Nie Nasha spoke: 【"As for that, I have a suggestion."】

"Oh?"

Herbert laughed, teasing: "You finally decided to speak up."

The reason he insisted on involving Nie Nasha was precisely for this moment.

He needed more help.

Even if that help came at a cost, he'd gladly accept it.

If everything in the world requires a price to be paid, then—effectively, there is no price.

If every commodity of fate already secretly charges tax, then there's effectively no tax, isn't there?

【"I didn't want to get too involved before, but since you insisted on dragging me in, I won't stop you."】

Nie Nasha smiled and asked: 【"By the way, what do you think of Sophieya?"】

"Excellent. She's obedient and loyal."

Herbert nodded approvingly as he watched the half-elf spirit, faithfully chopping down more trees as ordered.

Excellent.

Sophieya is truly excellent!

No food needed, no rest needed, no salary needed… she's practically the perfect construction laborer!

Since I didn't pay her, and everything is voluntary, no labor contract exists between us.

In other words—I, Herbert, am not her exploiting capitalist!

She follows orders and completes tasks; I'm satisfied, and she fulfills her own value—it's a win-win.

It's karmic blessing!

As if sensing Herbert's shameless thoughts, Nie Nasha's laughter grew more sinister:

【"So, do you want more spirits like her?"】

"Oh!!?"

Herbert's eyes lit up, revealing his ugly grin: "Tell me everything!"

I'm not a capitalist… but then again.

Such workers? Don't let them go to waste!

Better they be exploited by me than by some worse capitalist.

Yes.

I'm saving them!

"Nie Nasha, tell me quickly—how do I save them?!"

【"Save them?"】

Even the Trickster God's twisted mind struggled to keep up with this ally's erratic thinking.

What even is this?

When did you suddenly start talking about saving them?

"Don't ask questions—just speak!"

【"…Fine, I'll tell you."】

Nie Nasha prodded Herbert's hand, which was submerged in the spring, with a tentacle, swatting away the anxious fellow.

【"This is the ruins of my divine realm. You're correct—there are still many spirits lost in this mist, just like Sophia."】

【"Over ninety-nine percent of the spirits within the divine realm have been destroyed, but the remaining ones are still numerous."】

【"Most of them lack sufficient power and have been forced into a state of slumber, their soul cores scattered across the Mist Mountains."】

【"A portion, however, like Sophia, possess self-awareness and can act independently—they now wield great power and are no longer under my control."】

Spirits with weak power cannot resist the passage of time and automatically shut down, entering a dormant state.

Spirits with great power can recharge themselves gradually, shedding the very concept of being a spirit.

Herbert had guessed some of this; he frowned: "So, are you saying we need to fight them?"

Are you telling me to go catch Pokémon now?

Win a battle, then drag them back?

What an ancient primitive tradition.

See an attractive opposite sex, knock them out, and drag them home…

【"Yes and no."】

Nie Nasha laughed softly and said:

【"You currently face two options."】

【"The first is to venture deep into the mist, enter the spirits' territories, fight them, and upon defeating them, take their soul cores and soak them in the Wine of Forgetting."】

【"Only when their will is entirely erased, reduced to Sophia's current state, can they be used by you."】

Herbert nodded.

Sure enough, Pokémon.

And not just any—those dark, corrupted underground Pokémon!

First crush them with violence, then brainwash them, reset their personality… It's incredibly dark!

Still, even with half a brain, he knew this method would be difficult.

Herbert didn't know the current strength of these spirits, but judging by Sophia, who controlled the outer territories, the others were at least Legendary rank.

Rushing into territories these spirits had cultivated for countless ages meant surrendering all terrain advantage to them.

Herbert wasn't in a hurry.

Since Nie Nasha had deliberately presented two options, there must be a better alternative.

"So, what's the other method?"

【"The other method is far more convenient."】

Nie Nasha's voice suddenly grew ethereal, whispering softly in his ear: 【"Herbert, have you heard of the Spirit Pool?"】

"Spirit Pool?"

Although Herbert knew the Spirit Pool she mentioned was likely not the same as the one in his memory, he still couldn't help asking:

"Is it a limited-time event? How many pulls for the guaranteed rare?"

Nie Nasha:?

【"What limited-time? What's a guaranteed rare? What are you talking about?"】

"Never mind, continue."

Herbert kept his expression calm and shook his head: "What is the Spirit Pool's function?"

【"You're such a strange person…"】

The Spirit God sighed again and continued: "The Spirit Pool is where spirits are born upon entering the divine realm, and where all spirits ultimately return."

After being guided by the deity's angels, the souls of believers enter the Divine Valley, and their original place of birth is the Spirit Pool.

There, they receive their soul cores, have their mortal memories washed away, and gain a new life, entering the divine realm as its members.

When they finally disperse, they return once more to the Spirit Pool, surrendering themselves into it.

Everything reverts to the Spirit Pool, merging again into the divine realm.

Like a cycle.

【"When the divine realm still existed, no one but the deity could alter the Spirit Pool's location—but now, things are different… heh."】

!!!

Herbert froze.

He had imagined many scenarios, but never this one.

"Wait—you mean…"

【"Heh, you guessed right—we can rebuild a new Spirit Pool."】

Nie Nasha laughed happily, triumphantly saying:

【"Since this is still part of the divine realm, and we're within the divine realm, why can't we rebuild a Spirit Pool here?"】

I'm the deity, after all!

What do I want to do? Who can stop me?

Herbert had risen to his feet, his mind racing with thoughts.

"So, after rebuilding the Spirit Pool, we can directly hatch new spirits from it?"

"No, no—that's wrong. No new spirits are being born now. We need to find those scattered soul cores and restore them to life."

【"Correct."】

"Hss…"

Herbert understood instantly—he now knew exactly what their next goal was.

Collect soul cores across the Mist Mountains, gather enough of them, fuse them into a new soul core, and awaken them within the Spirit Pool.

No, this is actually a gacha system!!?

【"But it doesn't stop there!"】

After Herbert was stunned for a moment, Nie Nasha added fuel to the fire: 【"Pay attention—I mean all Spirits, every single one, are under the control of the Spirit Pool."】

Herbert paused, then thought of an even more outrageous possibility: "So that includes Spirits who awakened on their own?"

【"Of course it includes them."】

【"If you can't fight them easily in their own territory… what if you transfer them to a place you've defined?"】

Gulp.

Herbert swallowed hard, thinking of an extremely unfair maneuver, and said slowly: "So we can forcibly transfer them here."

【"Exactly~"】

Fuck.

Directly select an opponent's Spirit, then forcibly pull them out of the Pool.

This is probability targeting enhancement!

Single UP gacha pool, right!

Though we still need to knock them out and brainwash them afterward, which is slightly imperfect, it's already insane.

"So just tell me straight—what price does this perfect method require?"

If such an easy method existed, Herbert knew Nie Nasha wouldn't have deliberately withheld it—she wouldn't have said nothing at all.

So surely there must be some cost.

"Is it some special material?"

【"That is indeed required—not just anyone has the qualification to build it, but for you, who possesses the qualification, it's not difficult."】

Such an operation certainly isn't something you can do just because you know the method—ordinary people wouldn't have the ability even if they knew it.

Herbert has this qualification solely because he is Nie Nasha's ally.

【"But qualification alone isn't enough. To build the Spirit Pool, you now need at least two more things."】

【"One is a fragment of the original Spirit Pool's remains."】

【"I can point you in its direction; you can take people to retrieve it, but it's likely now occupied by a powerful Spirit."】

This was unquestionable.

Such a creation, if it hasn't spawned its own will like the Holy Grail, must be seized by a strong one.

Herbert frowned slightly, sensing some difficulty.

Both items probably wouldn't be easy to obtain.

【"And the other is the water of the Spirit Pool."】

After saying this, Nie Nasha's voice took on a playful tone: 【"As for this one… have you seen it yet?"】

Huh?

"Seen it? You… you mean the Holy Grail of the Wine of Forgetting?"

【"Exactly! That's it! The Wine of Forgetting it currently holds is sufficient to replace the former Spirit Pool water!"】

After speaking, Nie Nasha laughed merrily, teasing her complex-faced ally: 【"What, aren't you happy now?"】

"... It's not that I'm not happy."

Herbert's lips twitched, saying helplessly: "I just beat someone up—getting it to cooperate willingly won't be easy."

【Indeed!】

Not long ago, he had let Fu Leimei give the Holy Grail kid a good beating—it's probably still in shock and won't calm down anytime soon.

Bad.

I should've told Fu Leimei not to go so hard—almost gave the kid psychological trauma…

"Well! Given its personality, it'll come to us on its own after a while."

【"That's true~"】

Although Herbert hadn't treated the Holy Grail kindly before, it wasn't a big issue.

The Holy Grail now is like a child just born, its mind still at a child's level.

Emotions come fast and go fast.

With its instinctive curiosity and fondness for Herbert, it won't take long before it shows up again like a clueless roe deer.

"As for it, we'll just have to wait."

"As for the other fragment… can you pinpoint roughly where it is now?"

【"If you use your own regional divisions, it's likely in the Mid-Ring, near the Inner Ring."】

Herbert fell silent, thinking. Ellda's current position is in the Outer Ring of the Mist Mountains.

All his previous travels within the mountains had been confined to the Outer Ring—he'd never ventured into the Mid-Ring.

Now suddenly going to the Mid-Ring, even near the Inner Ring, the risk would increase by orders of magnitude.

"Don't rush yet—we need another ally."

Even with Fu Leimei plus Sophie, it would be hard to handle safely.

If possible, Herbert didn't want any risk at all.

Whether it was himself or them, he refused to let any harm come to them.

"Once Valentina's bloodline inheritance ends, adding her will improve our odds."

"By the way, I still have one ring I can use… who should I find next?"

【"Aren't you planning to scout it out now?"】

"The risk is too high—better not rush yet."

Herbert suddenly felt something was strange. Usually it was always him wandering about everywhere while Nie Nasha urged him to rein it in—so why had it reversed this time?

"Did you buy me a high-value insurance policy, and you're the beneficiary of it?"

Sensing Herbert's "suspicious" mood, Miss Harmony God chuckled smugly and countered: 【"Did I ever say I wanted you to take risks?"】

"Hm? You have a way?"

Herbert blinked, guessed that She had some special method, and complained with a pout: "Why didn't you say so earlier!"

"Are you deliberately keeping me in suspense?"

【"Hehe, there wasn't one before, but now there is! Do you still remember that legendary ghost wolf Sophia killed?"】

When they found Sophia, her hand was tightly gripping a massive wolf head, and she didn't let go even when she passed out.

"Hm? Oh!"

That wolf head was tossed by Herbert into the shadow, letting Nie Nasha absorb it.

Because the material was most of a legendary creature's corpse, this digestion took considerably longer than before.

"You absorbed a special ability?"

【"Hmph hmph~ Of course!"】

Nie Nasha hummed smugly twice, then Her tone shifted, and She spoke in a ghostly, eerie voice:

【"A living person walking into the mist is as eye-catching as holding up a torch—they'll notice you easily…"】

【"But what if it's a spirit body?"】

【"Would they still care that much? Hehe…"】

Today I didn't forget to set the timer, I'm not the idiot who forgets for two days! (gazes away)

Today my waist hurts, I really couldn't finish writing, just a little bit short.

By the way I just bought a waist support, it's already a little better than before.

Bonus chapter progress (52/234), working hard-ing!



(End of this chapter)