Chapter 554: The First Valkyrie

After listening to the new system's introduction, Zu An felt a daze, as if he had returned to his gaming days before transmigration. This "Valkyrie System" wasn't just another gacha pool from those unscrupulous game developers, was it?

Those companies relied on it to trick players into spending money, and countless people spent fortunes just to get an SSR card.

But spending money wasn't enough; luck also played a role. Players would resort to all sorts of methods to pull their desired SSR cards; praying to gods and worshipping Buddha were mere child's play. He had even seen a player chant a long list of strange Cthulhu-world incantations before drawing, looking completely unhinged...

Thinking back to his life before transmigration, a warmth spread through Zu An's heart, and he now regarded the "Valkyrie System" with a strange sense of familiarity.

However, the irritating thing was that people in his previous life could use money to draw cards, but what currency did this system require?

Rage points?

And what was with that final "friendly reminder"? It reeked of malice, clearly indicating an extremely low probability of drawing a Valkyrie.

After all, he was the type who had never won the lottery in his life.

Still, there was no use thinking too much about it. He had to try this new system eventually.

He took out a tiger tally and examined it. It looked similar to those seen in historical dramas, but far more intricate. Its material was indescribable—neither gold nor jade—and it was covered in many subtle, profound runic engravings, presumably used to communicate with the spatial temporal currents.

"These runic engravings might be more significant than the tiger tally itself," Zu An mused. He didn't rush to use the tally, his attention drawn elsewhere instead.

Unfortunately, he knew nothing about runes and couldn't make sense of them. So, he decided to make rubbings of the runes first, intending to find an expert in the field to study them later.

He retrieved a brush and ink from his Glazed Pearl space. However, the tiger tally's material wouldn't hold ink, making rubbings impossible. Not giving up, he tried to copy them by hand, but despite clearly seeing the details of a rune's pattern one moment, his mind would turn blank the next, forgetting everything as soon as he tried to draw it on paper.

After several attempts, Zu An finally gave up. It was clear that the runic array contained some kind of key or mechanism designed to prevent it from being deciphered.

"Stingy!" Zu An grumbled. With no other choice, he held the tiger tally and began to pray sincerely as instructed.

A mysterious power emanated from the tiger tally in his hand, giving Zu An the illusion of ascension.

He seemed to feel his soul leave his body, ascending into the vast starry sky, where a cosmic storm suddenly erupted nearby.

He understood then that this must be the so-called spatial temporal currents.

He composed himself and cautiously ventured in. The spatial temporal currents were filled with destructive power. Fortunately, strange runes spun around him, protecting him; otherwise, he would have been instantly obliterated.

These were the runes from the tiger tally...

Zu An pondered this, but he soon noticed tiny specks of light flickering within the spatial temporal currents.

"Are those the so-called Valkyries?"

Zu An's heart brightened, and he tried to establish a connection with them using his soul. Unfortunately, all his attempts were like stones sinking into the ocean.

Only one bright spot responded, quickly flying towards him.

Zu An was overjoyed and couldn't help but burst into laughter, looking up at the sky. "Hahaha, I truly am the protagonist! To connect with a Valkyrie on my very first try—what incredible luck is this?"

He wondered if this Valkyrie would be beautiful... *cough* *cough*, he certainly wasn't one to judge by appearance, but on the premise that they could all fight, being prettier would simply be more pleasing to the eye.

Just don't let it be someone like Thunder Rogue...

Zu An thought of Thunder Rogue's tower-like physique and felt like dying if he drew a Valkyrie resembling that.

As his thoughts raced, the shimmering speck of light appeared before him, and he instinctively reached out to catch it.

Huh, why is it so light?

But his expression instantly changed the next moment, because what he held wasn't a Valkyrie, but a hat—a hat that glowed vibrant green.

Zu An: "???"

What was going on? He didn't know why drawing for a Valkyrie had yielded a "female hat," but since it came from a gacha system, it shouldn't be too bad. Didn't the 'Forgiveness Hat' he drew before have amazing functions?

He hastily examined the green hat in his hand, but after reading the item description, he fell silent:

"Although it's an ordinary green hat, nothing more, if you don't mind, wearing it out will guarantee you become the most dazzling guy on the street."

"Seriously?!" Zu An was so enraged that he immediately threw the hat away.

Bad luck!

To get something like this on his first draw was infuriating. Besides, if anyone was going to wear a green hat, he'd be the one putting it on someone else.

With a gloomy expression, he then took out a second tiger tally and began his second wish summons.

This time, he didn't dare be as careless as before. Instead, he focused intently, opening his mind to search for a light speck that truly resonated with his soul.

After a moment, there was another response. Feeling the eagerness within the light speck, his own soul also began to thrum with excitement.

Zu An couldn't help but smile. It was said that masters of alchemy or weapon forging often experienced such soul resonance when creating their most prized works. He never expected to have a similar experience himself.

Soon, the twinkling light speck landed in his hand. As its glow dissipated, he looked closely.

"A book?"

Could it be some peerless secret manual?

But he already had three top-tier supreme techniques, more than he could possibly practice.

Of course, if it were a secret text from one of the other unknown lands, he would be rich.

He looked on with anticipation. The first character that caught his eye was "少" (shǎo).

Shǎo what?

Shaolin Seventy-Two Arts?

His gaze shifted downwards, and his eyelid twitched. The second character was "妇" (fù).

Zu An told himself to calm down. Emperors practiced texts like the *Su Nu Jing*; perhaps this "shao fu" was a similar cultivation method.

However, when the third character appeared, he immediately had an extremely bad feeling. The third character was "白" (bái).

He dared not delay and quickly looked further down. The last character was indeed the one he dreaded, and his face instantly twisted into an odd expression.

He was still unwilling to give up, so he deliberately flipped open the book to see if it was just a cover with something else hidden inside.

But he was quickly disappointed. The content was the very book he was familiar with, one he had even transcribed for Ji Dengtu in Brightmoon City. He knew it inside out.

With a grim expression, Zu An directly took out a third tiger tally and began a new draw.

As the light dispersed, a packet appeared in his hand, bearing three characters: "蒙汗药" (Knockout Powder).

Zu An: "..."

He unwillingly tested it. Having spent so much time with Ji Xiaoxi, he knew a little about medicinal properties. This was simply the most common knockout powder, with no special functions whatsoever.

In Brightmoon City, he could buy this stuff by the pound, yet it had cost him such a precious tiger tally.

What kind of junk had he drawn the first three times? Weren't these supposed to be items that resonated with his soul from the spatial temporal currents?

Was he truly such a despicable, vulgar, and shameless existence?

Thinking this, Zu An burst into tears, feeling greatly wronged.

After much effort to compose himself, he immediately used the remaining tiger tallies.

He had made up his mind: if all ten draws yielded only garbage, he would never bother with this "Valkyrie System" again.

Wouldn't it be better to spend his rage points elsewhere, where they could consistently improve him?

Besides, if he wanted to live off women, there were plenty in the real world; why rely on these ethereal Valkyries?

Perhaps his inner thoughts were heard, as the subsequent draws weren't as outrageous. At least they were all weapons, such as a great ring saber, a spiked mace, an iron shovel, a meteor hammer...

They clearly looked like common items. Zu An examined them; although some were fairly sharp, their grade was merely "Mortal," at best considered excellent among Mortal-grade weapons.

There was also one that looked more like a musical instrument, resembling a jade pipa. It appeared very valuable and had an attractive form.

Zu An considered giving it to one of his close female confidantes, but it seemed none of them used a pipa.

While his mind wandered, he began his tenth tiger tally wish. A beam of light swiftly approached. Just as he was wondering what new oddity would appear this time, he suddenly froze. What materialized before him was no longer an inanimate object, but a woman—an incredibly beautiful woman.

He prided himself on having seen countless beauties, but the moment he beheld her face, his mind still went blank, and he stood transfixed.

What shocked him even more was the information that appeared in his mind: "A feudal lord's daughter blessed by grace, adorned in silks and golden threads. As delicate as a celestial maiden from the Ninth Heaven, truly a fox spirit who doomed the Shang Dynasty."

"Da... Daji?"

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For a quick review, weapon grades are: Mortal, Earth, Heaven, Immortal, Divine. Spirit Stone grades are the same. Also, the Valkyries in this Valkyrie System are not new female protagonists and will not divert the storyline. They have no memories, no souls, only fighting instincts. You can think of them as humanoid dolls. Of course, it's not impossible for them to gradually regain their souls in the future, but that would be much later.