Chapter 034: Creation of No. 2 Game Console (Part 2)

[Hint: This generated "character" includes a "rare character."]

Ji Minghuan raised his eyebrow, surprised at today's luck.

"A rare character... and it's an Exorcist, the category I know the least about. How did I manage to step into such a stroke of luck?"

He muttered while looking sideways at the third file floating in the darkness.

[Character File No. 3]

[Name: Xia Pingzhou (Rare Character)]

[Gender: Male]

[Age: 19 years old]

[Race: Asian]

[Category: Exorcist (one of the three extraordinary races, capable of using "Celestial Driver" which is formed from soul crystals to fight. With each level up, a contract with a demon can be signed to evolve the "Celestial Driver")]

[Rank: First Tier Exorcist (Exorcists are divided into three tiers)]

[Celestial Driver: International Chess (Rare-level SS in Celestial Driver) (This Celestial Driver has signed a contract with a demon: Shadow Demon)]

[Base Attributes: Strength: D-level; Speed: C++ level; Spirit: C++ level]

[Initial Evaluation: C++ level]

[Background Introduction:

You are an Exorcist who retired two years ago.

Two years ago, when you were a novice, you joined an Exorcist team, but one day your teammate—codenamed "Traffic Lights"—suddenly went into a frenzy, slaughtering all other team members except you, and then vanished without a trace. Whenever you later heard news of "Traffic Lights" reappearing, it was always accompanied by brutal murders of Exorcists.

After your team was wiped out, exhausted mentally and physically, you had no strength left to seek the truth and chose to leave the world of Exorcists to lead a normal life.

However, during this period, your family was hunted and killed by an Evil Exorcist codenamed "Jack the Ripper," their bodily organs hung on a rooftop clothesline, swaying in the wind under a blood-red twilight.

Your ordinary life shattered, and the scene before you plunged you into an uncontrollable rage.

To avenge "Jack the Ripper," you spent a whole year using every possible means to investigate the organization behind him—the "White Crow Travel Brigade."

The "White Crow Travel Brigade" is a 12-person gang comprised of Superpower Users, Anecdote Envoys, and Exorcists. They roam the world, committing all sorts of evil acts...

And your nemesis, "Jack the Ripper," is currently within this brigand.

Coincidentally, a member of the White Crow Travel Brigade recently fell into the hands of a "Rainbow Wing Member," and they are looking for a potential replacement to fill the last vacancy of the brigade.

On this day, you contacted the leader of the White Crow Travel Brigade via the dark web and expressed your desire to join the brigade.

The leader, intrigued by your unique "Celestial Driver," saw your potential and decided to give you a temporary stay for observation. If you perform well during this period, you will truly become a member of this Evil Gang and travel the world with them, enjoying the most wicked of journeys.

Thus, as the twelfth person of the White Crow Travel Brigade, you lurked within, taking the first step on the path of revenge.]

[There are two "growth paths" available for this game character to choose from:

Mainline 1: Wild Hunt;

Mainline 2: Righteous Exorcist.]

The moment Ji Minghuan saw the rare file, he discarded the first two characters entirely.

Not choosing this file is as ridiculous as playing that card-drawing game and ignoring a UR card to pick an ordinary R card. A UR card is undoubtedly of UR level for a reason, so trust in the system's rating is essential.

The main points of concern for him right now are these three:

First is the character's background: "This 'White Crow Travel Brigade,' I think I've seen it on the Mutant's official website before. Their wanted level is SS, a notch higher than even my old man's S-level... Staying among these monsters, my character might not even survive a day. Even so, it's better than choosing the two previous templates with no upper limit. It's high risk, high reward; just take a gamble."

Next comes the growth path: "Hmm... no matter how it should be the first mainline to choose; the name of the other path doesn't even sway me."

Lastly, a glance at the Celestial Driver type: "Although I haven't played International Chess, after loading the character's memory, I'll acquire all his skills without needing to waste time learning purposely."

At this thought, he no longer hesitated.

Ji Minghuan slid his index finger across the mouse in the darkness and held it over the file for a long time, brilliance wrapping every inch of skin on his fingertip.

It was as if his thumb had been stained with blood, pressing a contract with a demon, forging a vow. Subsequently, the text on the file changed from dark to bright, radiating an alternating black and white glow, reminiscent of a Tai Chi Diagram.

[Selected the third character file—"Xia Pingzhou," who will debut as your second game character in the real world.]

[Please choose between "Wild Hunt" and "Righteous Exorcist" for a "growth path."]

He slid his index finger across the mouse, clicking "Wild Hunt" without a second thought—having such a cool name is already half the battle; as for how it actually performs, it'll be understood only after entering the game.

[Selected the character's growth route No. 1—"Wild Hunt," and generated a unique Character Cultivation System.]

[Please wait a moment, generating your second game character, "Xia Pingzhou," in the real world and making his existence appear "reasonable"... ]

[About to land in Japan "Tokyo"... entering the final countdown. ]

[3...]

[2...]

[1...]

At the moment the pupil number hit zero, Ji Minghuan's view was swallowed up by a sudden burst of light.

The sound of cicadas filled his ears, and as he opened his eyes, a clear blue sky greeted him, the warm air rushing at his face, and a dark green JR train clattered along the street's tracks.

Lowering his gaze slightly, he could see the city's landmark—"Tokyo Tower."

Recollections from the Welfare Institute's library which housed many travel magazines came back to him.

Ji Minghuan had idly flipped through many. He still remembered one travel magazine's text about this radio tower along with several pictures.

According to the book, Tokyo Tower emits a white glow only in summer, while its light is orange in spring, autumn, and winter seasons.

The sight in reality was even grander than the book portrayed: Tokyo Tower stood silently under the sky, like a giant holding up a torch, radiating white light amidst the dim world.

He shifted his gaze, scanning the surroundings, which seemed to be a street near the Shiba Park District.

Morning street sweepers had cleaned the path thoroughly, and rows of cherry blossom trees stood on either side, but after blooming in spring, their petals were long gone, leaving bare branches.

It seemed he had just stepped out of an izakaya, with unfamiliar Japanese characters inscribed on anything from the street's vending machines to the road signs.

Salaried men in suits and ties, engrossed in their phones, walked past, brushing against him as a briefcase accidentally hit Ji Minghuan's pant leg, prompting a nod of apology and a hurried "sumimasen (I'm sorry)" as they moved on.

A black crow perched atop the neon sign of "Shiba Park Station," quietly eyeing him.

In the early morning sky, a light drizzle began to fall suddenly.

Raindrops, large as beans, traced elegant parabolas before landing on his nose.

Ji Minghuan sniffed the metallic scent carried by the raindrops and then silently turned his head, glancing at the izakaya's glass wall.

The glass reflected his image, clad in a hoodie, about 178 in height, with neat black short hair, eyes sharp as blades, and features that could be described as handsome.

Seeing the reflection, he tugged at the corner of his lips, thinking, "Tokyo, huh, seems like it's my first real trip abroad."

Just as he was thinking this, a series of mission panels popped up within his pupils, the backdrops a "black and white chequered" pattern.

[Main Mission 1: Reach the meeting point and successfully pass the "White Crow Travel Brigade" entrance test.]

[Main Mission 2: Find the Evil Exorcist "Jack the Ripper" who killed "your family."]

[Main Mission 3: Seek out clues of "your former teammate," the frenzied Exorcist "Traffic Lights."]

"It's time to set off." Ji Minghuan shrugged, "Hopefully, this character's potential isn't lower than Black Cocoon's; otherwise, it wouldn't live up to the 'rare character' title."