Chapter 276: Talent Ascension: Purple Chamber·Dan Chi

【You unlocked: Chest (Exalted), obtained: Talent Book (Purple Chamber·Dan Chi), Group of Flowers Token, Dew-Fragrance Ring, Paradise Points ×9900】

——

【Group of Flowers Token】

【Type: Equipment·Waist Tablet】

【Quality: Exalted】

【Durability: 100/100】

【Group of Flowers in Bloom (Active): Consume 10% of maximum mana to summon seven Flower Maidens (Dancer/ Swordswoman/ Harpist/ Strategist/ Alchemist/ Painter/ Archer), with no more than one of each type active at once. Each hour, maintain them by consuming (number × 1% of maximum mana) mana; they vanish if mana is insufficient or they die. After death, consume 10% of maximum mana to re-summon.】

【Flower Maiden’s Poem (Passive): For each active Flower Maiden, your skill cooldown speed increases by 5%, and mana recovery speed increases by 10%.】

【Stunning Beauty (Passive): When a Flower Maiden attacks, apply the “Calamity” mark. After stacking to 3 layers, the target enters a 10-second confusion state.】

【Elegance Like Water (Passive): Each time a Flower Maiden deals damage, 10% of that damage is converted into a shield.】

【Osmunda Scent (Passive): Emit a (Spirit × 1) meter aura centered on yourself. Non-allied female units within the aura who fail a Spirit check are charmed for 1 second.】

【Equipment Requirement: Mastery of Command Lv5, Male, Charm 25, no male/male-type beings among your summons or your faction.】

——

【Dew-Fragrance Ring】

【Type: Equipment·Ring】

【Quality: Exalted】

【Durability: 150/150】

【Mana +10000】

【All Beauties Weep (Active): Consume 100 mana to detonate all Flower Maidens, dealing (sum of all five attributes of each Flower Maiden × 10 × number of Flower Maidens) soul damage. After explosion, Flower Maidens enter a ten-day dormancy and cannot be summoned.】

【Silken Affection (Passive): Each attack by a Flower Maiden applies Silken Threads, reducing charm resistance by 1 per stack, up to 100 stacks.】

【Flower Maiden’s Will (Passive): For each active Flower Maiden, your maximum HP increases by 5%, and maximum mana increases by 10%.】

【Fragrance’s Protection (Passive): When controlled, automatically release a 10-meter fragrant aura, purify one negative effect, and boost all attributes of Flower Maidens within by 20% for 10 minutes. Cooldown: 1 hour.】

【Equipment Requirement: Command Base Lv.MAX, Male, Charm 25, Spirit 25, have had more than seven Dew-Linked Affections.】

——

Chu Danqing glanced at the two items and winced.

Exalted gear was always a nightmare—requirements were absurd.

He’d assumed equipment demands would only involve basic skills, bloodlines, or stats. Now he saw he’d vastly underestimated their complexity.

The good news: both items were summoning-type, definitely True Spirit gear, and synergized perfectly—even if not a set, they felt like one.

The bad news: Chu Danqing couldn’t use either.

“You want these?” Chu Danqing showed Guo Ming the item stats.

Guo Ming, riding his sword through the air, glanced and winced too.

“No, Chu brother, sell them yourself. If I took these home, my father would break my legs.” Guo Ming saw exactly what these items were.

They weren’t just for daytime battles—they were for nighttime ones too.

Of course, his refusal was purely because the requirements were too extreme.

They could be reforged, but it wasn’t worth it—his trial world wasn’t suitable.

Higher quality didn’t always mean more useful. In the last trial world, the corpse was universally useful—bury it in a fengshui gem, and anything could grow from it. Even then, he didn’t take it.

“If you really want to give something, hand me the Golden Wing Piercing Spear. I’ll take it back for my ancestral elder to study—maybe he can extract something like a Sword Soul.” Guo Ming thought a moment, then opted for something sensible.

Chu Danqing, unhesitant, handed over the Golden Wing Piercing Spear and tossed the two dubious items into his storage space.

He disliked them, but the market was huge.

There was a Crystal Palace school in summoning—also called the Harem school. They’d buy them in droves.

“No wonder you’re the man who wants to evolve beasts into the Group of Flowers Canon. Truly unusual.” Chu Danqing murmured.

Yang Zhenhao’s chest yielding these items made sense.

“Thank heaven he didn’t evolve them—otherwise, the gear from this chest would’ve been even more impossible.” Guo Ming added.

Chu Danqing nodded, then turned his gaze to the Talent Book (Purple Chamber·Dan Chi).

It was a special Purple Chamber—the advanced, same-name, same-type talent the Paradise had mentioned earlier.

After checking its stats, Chu Danqing immediately chose to learn it, overwriting his current talent.

Though Yang Zhenhao’s beast and gear were dubious, his Dan Chi Purple Chamber suited Chu Danqing perfectly.

About ten minutes later, after the warm flow permeating his body was fully absorbed, the new talent upgraded completely.

【Purple Chamber·Dan Chi】

【Effect 1: Increase all attributes by (10% of the five attributes of your permanent summoned creatures).】

【Effect 2: Charm +10】

【Effect 3: Luck +1】

【Effect 4: Talent +1】

【Effect 5: Insight +1】

(Note: Special Purple Chamber effects grow via increased power of your permanent summoned creatures or other means.)

As a special Purple Chamber, Dan Chi could grow—so its current bonuses weren’t fixed, but could still rise.

It was essentially a growth talent, though its progress had been reset, hence the low base stats.

That’s why Yang Qianyuan, with only the Celestial Spider of Fate, could still possess around 15 points in all five attributes.

But because special Purple Chambers differed, their bonuses varied.

Yang Zhenhao’s Dan Chi boosting Charm was expected, but it also added Luck, Talent, and Insight.

Especially the last two—Chu Danqing had never found any way to raise them. He hadn’t expected Dan Chi to surprise him.

“Chu brother, you got stronger?” Guo Ming hadn’t noticed Chu Danqing’s Charm increase, but the boost from the Heavenly Sun Talisman had risen—so he sensed it.

That’s how he realized.

“Yes, swapped talents.” Chu Danqing didn’t hide it—he showed Guo Ming the Dan Chi Purple Chamber.

Guo Ming glanced and focused on Talent and Insight. The earlier effects meant nothing to him—he didn’t need them.

As for keeping a beast? He barely managed Su Nü Sword. Another? He’d be asking for death.

“Funny—I brought you a cultivation manual too, one that boosts Talent and Insight.” Guo Ming pulled out a skill book and a pile of pills.

“The Great Five Elements Auspicious Beasts Scripture was too high-grade to carry, so I had someone revise it, fused with body-cultivation techniques, and crafted a transitional Five Elements Spirit Forging manual for you.”

“Don’t worry—it sits between the Five Elements Beast Scripture and the Great Five Elements Auspicious Beasts Scripture. Though body-cultivation focused, it’s still summoning-type. No conflict.”

Chu Danqing looked at the name: Five Elements Spirit Forging Scripture. Plain as dirt—like it was named on a whim.

But its quality was Exalted.

“Body-cultivation manuals consume far more resources than most. If resources are lacking, you don’t just stall—you injure yourself.”

“But if resources are ample, there’s no danger—progress can skyrocket.”

“So this money can’t be saved.” Guo Ming continued.

Chu Danqing examined the pills—damn, all Exalted quality. A glance at their stats confirmed they were refined from even higher-grade materials.

They far surpassed standard Exalted level—and were all body-cultivation-specific.

“Fine, I’ll take them.” Chu Danqing had saved money to spend—not to hoard.

Then Guo Ming pulled out another pile of pills, sorted into two types of porcelain vials.

“The smaller red jade vials contain Fine-grade pills—Xiong’s cultivation allotment.”

“The white jade vials in this wooden chest are Common-grade pills—for Xiong’s troops.” Guo Ming went on.

Chu Danqing accepted them all. He knew why Guo Ming didn’t hand them directly to Xiong Zhigang—so he could further win over Xiong.

And maintain this network, not engage in private deals.

Chu Danqing might not care, but they had to follow the rules—these opportunities centered on him.

“Alright, I’ll tell Xiong.” Chu Danqing stored them. Thank heaven the Common-grade pills came in boxes—otherwise, all those vials would’ve been a nightmare to carry.

Transport would’ve been another problem.

After storing them, Chu Danqing took out the Ling Ming Pill Formula: “This Ling Ming Pill increases the spiritual essence of permanent summons. I got it from Xiong’s trial world.”

“Too bad it’s only Excellent quality now—it’s depreciated.”

“I’d like your Guo family’s alchemists to upgrade it—just to Fine for now. Don’t push it to Exalted.”

Chu Danqing knew higher quality meant greater difficulty.

He had no basic skills in alchemy or pill-making. Without expertise, higher quality meant higher failure rates.

“I’ll take it back and show the alchemists.” Guo Ming didn’t even look at the formula—he couldn’t make pills anyway.

Whatever Chu Danqing asked, Guo Ming would do if he could; if not, he’d relay it.

With that settled, the two continued chatting, exchanging news about the Paradise and the situation in Guo Ming’s trial world.

The Taiping Dao Master seemed restless—perhaps on the verge of rebellion—but still only speculation.

As they rode their swords forward, they finally caught up with the Eight Steeds Ascending Chariot—but something had gone wrong. The situation was grim.

(End of Chapter)