Bizarre Voyage: Summoning The Fourth Crisis

”Where’s the Demon-Harboring Cottage? Let me see, let me see!”

”Miss Noxia, Miss Noxia! Your dog is here, hurry up and give me my reward! Woof woof!”

”Dude, you’re fucking insane!”

”...”

Even Noxia couldn’t help but feel a little abashed by the overwhelmingly enthusiastic players before her.

Still, she gave a slight bow to the crowd of players, confirmed their IDs, and handed the items to those who had earned a contribution reward.

[Acquired: Pioneer Cloak (Cosmetic)]

[Pioneer Cloak (Cosmetic)]

[Type: Cosmetic]

[Effect: None, but can be worn over other equipment. Does not affect combat, obstruct vision, or take damage (Bound).]

[Explanation: A selfless pioneer who charged into the darkness deserves the praise of the Spirit Candle.]

”A cosmetic item?!”

Li Miao’s eyes widened as he stared at the cape in his hands, the corners of his mouth curling up uncontrollably.

WHOOSH!

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Li Miao equipped it directly. The azure cape immediately began to flutter as if in a wind, leaving faint, bright sparks in the air. A barely-visible flame pattern was woven into the fabric.

The cape was a surprisingly perfect match for his Law Knight Armor, making him look even more dashing.

”Holy shit!”

”Goddamn! How can it look so cool?”

”I’m begging you, open up a cash shop! Don’t you want our money?!”

”AHHHHHHH I want one too! I want one so bad!!!”

The crowd of onlookers was instantly so jealous their cell walls were separating. Some players even started rolling on the ground with mournful faces.

’Damn it, how is that fair? Just because he started the game a little earlier?’ a particularly jealous player thought, feeling deeply unbalanced.

”Yeah, isn’t this ruining the game’s balance?” another player chimed in.

When the normal players nearby heard this, they immediately turned to look at him, their eyes filled with contempt.

”You fucking followed guides just to catch up, how do you have the nerve to say something like that?”

”Didn’t you hear it’s a contribution reward with no effects? If you’re so good, why don’t you go make a contribution yourself?”

There were still plenty of rational players, so the few contrarians could only slink away in shame.

As for Faraway, he glanced at the Pioneer Cloak in his hand, didn’t even try it on, and put it straight into his inventory.

”Faraway Lord? Aren’t you going to wear it?” a player asked, confused.

”No stats,” Faraway answered succinctly.

”Then can I try it on? I’ll pay!”

”It’s bound.”

”...”

Obviously, the bound cosmetic item couldn’t be traded. This left the group of players who wanted to try it on the verge of tears, wailing and begging for a cash shop.

Noxia watched them curiously, feeling a little strange.

’Why are they so worked up? It’s just a piece of clothing, isn’t it?’

’Could it be because it represents Mr. Luo Ge’s approval of them?’

’...It seems Mr. Luo Ge holds an incredibly high place in their hearts...’

Noxia thought to herself.

”Haha, I got one too!” Niuniu and Mushroom came up to Noxia excitedly to claim their contribution rewards.

”Wait.” When Noxia saw Niuniu’s ID, she seemed to remember something and handed him an extra item. ”This is a personal gift from the Candlekeeper.”

Noxia smiled slightly. In her eyes, Mr. Luo Ge must have a high opinion of this player to send him a personal gift.

[Acquired: Little Chicken Hat (Cosmetic)]

The effects and everything were the same, but when Niuniu saw the explanation, his expression froze.

[Explanation: A very cute hat in the shape of a baby chick. Perhaps a fearsome enemy will see it and show you mercy.]

”Holy crap...”

Niuniu was stunned.

”What’s wrong? How’d you get an extra piece of gear? Let me see...” Mushroom craned his neck curiously. Even though the gear was bound, they could still view its information.

When Mushroom saw the Little Chicken Hat, he paused for a second, then burst out laughing.

”Little Chicken Hat... ’show you mercy’ HAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Seeing Mushroom laughing so hard, the others couldn’t help but cast curious glances. And when they saw it, they too roared with laughter.

”Hahahaha, ’little chicken’? Isn’t that just slang for ’weakling’? I’m dying!”

”Niuniu, this is what you get for slacking off all the time. Now you’re an officially certified weakling! Hahaha...”

”A taunt from the devs... I can’t keep a straight face with this hat!”

”I told you not to mess with the Candlekeeper! That NPC is so petty!”

”This is hilarious...”

Listening to the raucous laughter of the players around him, even Niuniu had trouble keeping a straight face.

He’d always been thick-skinned and found it a little funny himself. He couldn’t help but scratch his head and chuckle, ”You know, this thing’s actually pretty cute.”

Then he grew proud, placing the Little Chicken Hat—complete with a single silly hair sticking up—on his head and putting his hands on his hips.

”Heh heh, this cosmetic is a one-of-a-kind item in the whole game. I’m the only one who has it. Do you understand the value of being the only one?”

’Wait... does he have a point?’

The crowd’s laughter died abruptly. Their gazes toward Niuniu turned to a mix of contempt and jealousy.

’Damn it, the king of slacking has his own exclusive cosmetic!’

But jokes aside, apart from a small minority, most players still preferred the dashing Pioneer Cloak, so they weren’t that envious of Niuniu’s item.

Luo Ge, watching from the shadows, shook his head and smiled at the scene.

’The hat was, of course, the result of a little mischief. That kid Niuniu can take a joke, which is why I did it. In reality, it was also a way to encourage certain players to experiment more, to learn from Niuniu’s way of thinking and not be so rigid.’

Meanwhile, Storyteller had already started eagerly taking pictures on Candle Island.

[Photography and Recording Permissions Unlocked]

[Lock your gaze on the target to begin photographing or recording]

However, while he was a master at making low-effort videos, he was a total amateur when it came to photography. He wasn’t even satisfied with the pictures he took himself.

’I should find a professional content creator to ask for advice...’

Storyteller thought, stroking his chin.

...

”Bu Long, with this new Block Ability, this is an Epic Level buff for you! Add that to your Rebound Talent, tsk tsk... If you master this, the two of us will be unstoppable together!”

”Haha, I’ll do my best.”

”Alright, enough talk. Let’s test out this new Ability!”

”...”

”I’m ready, Brother Mangzi!”

Bu Long took a breath, raised the Shield in his hands, and focused intently on Battle Bliss across from him.

For some players, appearances were secondary; they preferred the unique experience that combat provided.

Speaking of which, for such a powerful function, the Spirit Candle had only charged ten points of Wax Oil.

’What a generous system!’

That’s why the first thing they noticed was the new ”Block” function.

”Okay, here I come!”

Soon, the two began a live-fire practice session.

CLANG! CLANG!

After a few dull thuds, Brother Mangzi’s arm was sore. He looked at Bu Long with a surprised and pleased expression, ”Holy crap, you’re learning that fast? How many times did you succeed just now?”

”Twice.” Bu Long shook his head, seemingly unsatisfied.

Brother Mangzi had just swung at him nearly ten times, but he had only managed to Block twice.

”Then let’s keep practicing!”

After consuming a Wax Block, the two resumed their sparring.

After some more attempts, Brother Mangzi discovered that Bu Long really did have a Talent for using a Shield. His success rate was steadily climbing.

It was still quite low, not even reaching thirty percent.

But after Brother Mangzi switched places with Bu Long, he realized... the timing for a Block was incredibly difficult to master. Even for a quick-reacting Strength and Agility Class Warrior like himself, his success rate was only around ten percent.

And Bu Long had invested in Constitution and a small amount of Power, which meant his reaction window was much smaller, yet he could still achieve such a high success rate.

”Let’s go again. I’ll go a little slower this time, you try.”

Brother Mangzi was getting more and more excited about being a sparring partner.

He really hadn’t been mistaken. Bu Long’s Talent was truly for the Shield, and now with the new Block Ability, he’d hit the jackpot!