Xia Lei provided an explanation regarding their question.
“Ability Resonance refers to the state an evolved is in at a given moment. The Brilliance ability of the Relic Robe selects a random state during its cooldown period and, when activated, grants the wearer a corresponding percentage of the original lifeform’s power. For example, if the robe randomly selects a moment when the wearer was fighting at full strength, it could grant 100% of the original lifeform’s power as a bonus. It might grant zero bonus if it selects a moment when the wearer was sleeping.”
The three leaders pondered this.
Essentially, the ability randomly chose a snapshot of the wearer’s state—whether they were exerting 10%, 50%, or 100% of their power—and then granted a proportional boost based on the original lifeform’s strength.
This was a god-tier skill!
Who was the original lifeform? Either the Nine-Winged Crow or the Armor King—both level-nine existences. Even a fraction of their power would be devastating.
Xia Lei added a caveat:
“While Brilliance scales with the original lifeform’s power, this is still only a Purple-grade item, not seven-colored grade. It can’t replicate the full might of a Level 9 being. There are diminishing returns—our tests show it caps at roughly one-third of the original lifeform’s strength.”
The leaders didn’t question how Cloud Peak tested this. If Ye Zhongming could craft such equipment, he’d naturally understand its limits.
After the shock, the three of them sighed. The randomness of the ability halved its practical value. With a 10-day cooldown, who knew which moment it would latch onto? They couldn’t stay in combat mode indefinitely.
Their verdict: If it picks peak performance, it’s broken. If it picks idle time, it’s useless.
The line between heaven and hell was indeed thin.
“Now, the Resonance Mace,” Xia Lei continued, cutting short their musings.
“Ability 1: Lash – On hit, the target is knocked back and inflicted with confusion/fear, scaling with the user’s mental strength advantage. The effect and time it lasts will be based on mental strength.”
“Ability 2: Phantom – Swings occasionally phase through space, shortening attack delays.”
“Ability 3: Airburst – Leaves invisible marks in the air that detonate on command, dealing damage proportional to their quantity.”
“Ability 4: Shadow Strike – Unleashes a 200% power attack with a guaranteed hit within 10 meters (50% chance at 20 meters). 20-hour cooldown.”
“Ability 5: Wave Assault – After 5 minutes of continuous use of the weapon, the user is able to use waves of attacks. The intensity of the hit will remain the same. The number of hits is based on the intensity of the weapon use. The more intense, the more hits there are. If the user doesn’t use this skill after five minutes, the Wave Assault will enter the next cycle and store the previous attack. When activating, two will stack. (max three charges).”
“Ability 6: Skybreaker – Once every 100 days, the mace enlarges (scaling with user’s level) and delivers a critical strike with multiplied attack power.”
The six abilities were a decent amount, but each was exceptional especially the latter ones. The former added negative status and increased attack speed and power. The latter used the number of strikes to increase strength. The final one would cause the weapon to grow by ten times, and he could attack with ten times more strength.
Three Purple-grade items and each a masterpiece.
Now, the million-dollar question: How much?
Xia Lei didn’t keep them waiting.
“Zhongming said since we’re all friends, we’ll skip auctions. Fixed prices, no bargaining. Each of you can buy one piece. If multiple want the same item, the highest bidder wins. If someone backs out, the remaining piece also goes to the highest bidder, starting from the base price.”
She then dropped the bombshell when the three bosses frowned.
“Thousand Beast Villa’s price for choosing equipment is one eight-star potion and one level-nine crystal. Daybreak Freedom Army’s price is one eight-star potion, two War Fortress Reactors, and two green Holy Army Coat sets. Deacon Water’s price is two eight-star potions.”
The three bosses cursed when they heard the price.
This was too expensive. They were bidding with eight-star potions?
Xia Lei smirked. “Even after reaching nine-star evolution, Purple-grade will remain your core gear. The rarer they get, the more they’ll cost. You’re free to walk away—Cloud Peak won’t give any discounts.”
Xia Lei looked at them calmly.
The trio exchanged glances.
Was it expensive?
For the current era, absurdly so.
For the future? A steal.
The three of them chose to avoid competition, and after discussing, they each picked an item and scrambled to gather payment—Cloud Peak’s 5-day deadline loomed.
Li Daqian had it easiest; he had an eight-star potion and a level-nine crystal on hand.
Commander Mu needed to raid his armories for reactors and armor sets.
Deacon Water was the most aggrieved—she had to return the eight-star potion she’d just earned and scrounge up another.
In their frenzy over the gear, all three overlooked one critical detail:
Where was Ye Zhongming?