Lu Luo clutched his chest and walked until he reached a restaurant in Siping District before stopping.
"Boss, give me ten servings of grain bars, vegetables, and meat, plus five bottles of purified water."
"’To go? Or should I wrap them into several portions?’" the owner asked.
"Huh?" The owner was stunned.
"Make it quick." Lu Luo slapped a 100-dollar bill on the table, and the restaurant owner immediately went to prepare the food.
The owner thought to himself that since Lu Luo had paid, a little waste wouldn’t matter.
But when the owner actually served the food, he realized just how ridiculously wrong he had been.
Lu Luo’s eating speed was simply inhuman. The coarse grain bars were almost swallowed in two bites.
Food entering Lu Luo’s mouth was instantly crushed by the Devourer’s tendrils, so he skipped the chewing process altogether.
However, to outsiders, this looked somewhat terrifying, like a ravenous feeding machine.
"This guy’s an absolute beast at eating!" an onlooker exclaimed.
"’I can’t help it,’ Lu Luo said, ’I’m just too hungry. I don’t know why I’m this hungry. Does everyone get this hungry after a breakthrough?’"
[No. Normally, as the Essence of Life increases, the need for higher-energy sustenance grows, and dietary needs tend to decrease. Your situation is somewhat special. Your appetite will increase, and it will not decrease in the future.]
Lu Luo nodded. He didn’t ask why because it didn’t matter. Not make a breakthrough just because he had a large appetite? That was out of the question.
After eating and drinking his fill, Lu Luo rested for a short while before opening his attribute panel to check it.
Occupation: Second Path (First Tier)
Qi Vessel: Seven Coalesces
Sequence S-02 Devourer LV1
Sequence S-04 Fusioner LV1
Sequence S-11 Observer LV1
Sequence D-00 Ultimate
Sequence D-03 Strong (Inactive)
Sequence D-06 Affinity of Light (Inactive)
[Comprehensive Evaluation: You have finally broken through the limits of mortals. You are no longer a normal person but a Transcendent who wields both Qi and strength. This profession is referred to by a certain someone as: Second Path.]
Lu Luo didn’t quite understand why the Cultivation Technique he practiced was called Second Path, and why his occupation after ascension also had to be called Second Path.
But it didn’t matter. He didn’t care about the name. Being powerful was all that mattered.
Lu Luo had gone through great pains to become a Transcendent, and not just to acquire a Qi Vessel. The enhancement of his Essence of Life had also removed his attribute barriers.
"It’s not over yet! Time to allocate points!"
He already possessed physical attributes comparable to a strength-focused Transcendent—even more balanced and powerful—let alone a Qi Path Transcendent.
His already formidable physical attributes, combined with the amplification effects of his Qi Path abilities, meant his attack power was now more than sufficient to overwhelm average Transcendents.
Therefore, Lu Luo was unlikely to prioritize adding points to Strength first, as the cost-effectiveness was too low. That left Agility and Constitution.
If he had followed his previous plan, Lu Luo would have definitely invested all his available energy into Agility.
But now, he had a different idea.
The battle with Li Manting, the Holy Light Spider, had allowed Lu Luo to experience the various benefits of a high Constitution.
A high Constitution provided formidable defense, recovery capabilities, and stamina.
He was no longer fragile. My Constitution is fast approaching a critical point, Lu Luo estimated.
If I continue to enhance it, I should be able to withstand a stab from an ordinary person’s blade even in my normal state. That’s really not to be underestimated; it’s a qualitative change in defensive strength.
With survival as his top priority, Lu Luo first used 370 energy points to increase his Constitution attribute to 10.
Then, he used 270 energy points to raise his Agility to 9, and 30 points to boost his Strength to 6, leaving the remaining 34 energy points in reserve for the Fusioner.
With this, Lu Luo had brought his attributes to the exceptionally high levels of Constitution 10, Agility 9, and Strength 6. His abilities had undergone a comprehensive qualitative change.
[Sigh, I originally planned to cultivate you into a master of the Qi Path, all ethereal and immortal-like. But you insisted on going down the path of a muscle-bound brute, never to return. What a pity, truly a pity!]
Lu Luo lifted his shirt to check. The improvement in attributes hadn’t changed his physique.
He had defined muscles, yes, but he was still far from being a "muscle-bound brute" or anything of the sort.
Good. I’m quite satisfied with how I look now.
Leaving the restaurant, Lu Luo didn’t rush back. Instead, he went to a public phone booth to call Gu Fangyi and the others to let them know he was safe.
"I’ll be back tonight, don’t worry."
"Where did you run off to? Was it really like Qi Ge said? Did you go to New Hope and get so lost in the pleasure district that you were unreachable?"
"’Get lost!’ Lu Luo retorted. ’Just wait for me. I’ll give you all a surprise when I get back.’"
Hearing that Lu Luo was unharmed, the members of Circle Studio finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Alright, hurry back! We’ll deal with you when you return!"
After hanging up, Lu Luo continued to stroll around the commercial center in Siping District.
His intention was to spend all his money to fully enhance his combat strength, ensuring Circle Studio had a true ace up its sleeve.
So, saving money was out of the question. He wouldn’t return until he had spent every last bit. Buy, keep buying!
Now that he no longer needed to worry about Dark Spirit Stones, there was no reason for Lu Luo to wander around the vendor area anymore.
Although the items in the vendor area were cheap, their quality wasn’t great, and there were too few standardized items.
Truly noteworthy items could only be found in proper shops.
As Lu Luo wandered, he actually found himself back at "Circular Buyer," the store that had previously refused him service.
[Let me tell you something on behalf of your sixth sense. Listen up! Your sixth sense says you have a connection with this store. Go take a look.]
"’Nicely put,’ Lu Luo chuckled. ’Very persuasive.’"
Lu Luo was amused by the Observer’s hint but entered the store anyway. Perhaps, as the Observer had said, it was his sixth sense guiding him.
The shop owner was still watching TV—the same singing program by Gu Wanyun.
Chasing celebrities in the Wasteland Era is such a terrible idea, Lu Luo thought.
The owner ignored him, and Lu Luo, happy for the peace, wandered leisurely around the store. He strolled aimlessly until he stopped in front of a peculiar arm strength amplifier.
[Little White Flower A-1 Mechanical Arm]
Effect-1 Strong Arm: Increases arm strength by 1-4 points.
Effect-2 Arm Guard: This Mechanical Arm can barely be used as a shield.
Introduction 1: Price: 5,000. The designer felt this was already very cheap, thinking, ’Surely even the poorest person wouldn’t be unable to afford something worth 5,000, right?’
Introduction 2: Crafted by an exceptionally skilled mechanic. Its materials are very ordinary, but its ingenuity and design are unparalleled.
Introduction 3: A very conspicuous, strange formula is visible on the outer casing of this Mechanical Arm, seemingly left intentionally by the designer. — Answer correctly, and this item is free.
"’A Common-grade item with three introductions,’ Lu Luo mused. ’This thing really is something special!’"
Looking at the Mechanical Arm and the three introductions provided by the Observer, Lu Luo’s interest was piqued.
[A cleverly designed little game. While the design is indeed ingenious, before the Observer, all puzzles are trivial.]
"’What are you blathering about now?’ Lu Luo demanded. ’What is it? Spit it out!’"
[This is a mathematical formula commonly used by mechanics. It’s a method to test a mechanic’s design and calculation abilities—a kind of backdoor. It’s of moderate difficulty. Based on fundamental mathematical theory—the Wasteland Chain Principle—it can be calculated that the answer to this formula is a phrase, or rather, a question.]
"’The answer is a question?’ Lu Luo asked. ’What question?’"