Summoning the Holy Sword

Rhode and Gillian would discuss again whether Anne would be willing to take up this suggestion. After everything, Rhode returned to his room and laid down on the bed. He closed his eyes and the system panel appeared before him.

[Mercenary group construction system mission ‘Honorable Peak’ completed. Completion Status: 75% of all missions. Accept rewards?]

Only 75% completed…

Rhode frowned when he noticed his completion status. Well, at least he hit the passing mark of the mission. But this meant that Rhode wouldn’t be eligible for the hidden reward, and he very well knew the reason behind this. To ensure his victory in the individual matchup, he gave up the group matches which caused a drop in his overall completion status. However, Rhode deemed that no matter what, it was better to complete one than to attempt both and fail miserably at them.

Frankly, the idea of not fully completing the mission left much to be desired. However, it wasn’t easy to complete the mission fully knowing that his strength was limited.

“Accept.”

Rhode restrained the ‘player completionist’ side of him and nodded in response. The entire mission interface immediately transformed into golden rays of light and lines of information quickly appeared before him like a waterfall.

[Mission “Honorable Peak” Status: Completed (75%)]

Difficulty: S

EXP received: 233900

[Mission Reward: Mercenary Stronghold can control and expand its range. Stronghold level +3, Sphere of Mystery “Mirage” level +1, Additional Skill Points +3, Random Enhancement Reward +1, Hidden Reward +1]

“…!”

Rhode involuntarily whistled at this astonishing achievement. Although Rhode knew from the start that this mission would be difficult, he didn’t expect it to turn out as an S grade mission. This category was considered impossible within the game but he actually succeeded?

Furthermore, the generosity of the mission rewards was staggering. Range expansion, Stronghold leveled up, Sphere of Mystery leveled up, additional three skill points awarded, one Random Enhancement Reward and a Hidden Reward. These bonuses would make any players drool — especially the leveling up of the Sphere of Mystery which was an extremely challenging task.

As ancient relics, each individual Sphere of Mystery had its own unique way of leveling up. Typically, leveling it up would consume a considerable amount of gold coins, many precious crystal ores, and various magic gems as part of enhancement materials. However, Rhode’s mission reward actually bypassed all of those requirements, saving him a ton of resources which was exactly what he was looking for!

As for the Random Enhancement Reward, frankly it can’t be considered as a reward. While it could multiply the contents of a random reward Rhode had received, the multiplier would also be randomized. The higher the completion status of the mission, the higher the average of the multiplier. But since this was just an extra benefit, Rhode wouldn’t complain about receiving free stuff.

On the other hand, the 233k EXP was within Rhode’s calculations because ever since he arrived at Golden City and engaged in series of battles, he had never received a single point of EXP. It was at that moment when Rhode suspected that it could be due to the mission’s restriction, and now his conjecture proved to be true. As Rhode tapped onto the EXP details, it clearly indicated the distributions of EXP gained from defeating his opponents and completing this mission. The EXP gained from battling Barter was the most — amounting to a whopping 55k. His battle with Waltz wasn’t too bad either as it placed second with 39k EXP. In addition to the other various fishes and Mobis from Sky Sword, the EXP added up to roughly 140k. Naturally, the remainder was from the mission completion EXP.

Finally, there was the hidden reward. Usually, missions would typically require a 100% completion status for the participants to be eligible for a hidden reward. Rhode didn’t expect that he would receive it at just 75%.

Wow. I barely passed the mission and I still received so many rewards? What would happen if I had actually fully cleared it?

The thought of this left Rhode lamenting to himself, but he knew that there was no medicine for regret, so he calmed himself down and focused on allocating his rewards.

Firstly, Rhode chose the ‘Random Enhancement Reward +1.’ This would only be effective after applying it on other rewards, which was why it was Rhode’s first choice.

Rhode extended his finger and tapped onto the ‘Random Enhancement Reward +1.’ Soon enough, a single line of text emerged before him.

[Are you sure you want to activate Random Enhancement Reward +1?]

Yes.

Rays of light flashed across his eyes.

The text suddenly transformed into a roulette and began spinning right before his eyes. Rhode couldn’t help but stare somewhat nervously.

Deep in his heart, he wished that the ball would land on the EXP pocket. Currently, he had a massive chunk of EXP stored, even if his total EXP multiplied once, it would bring him immeasurable benefits. If lady luck decided to favor him and multiply his EXP by three to five times, then even reaching Master wouldn’t be an issue.

The roulette gradually slowed as the ball came to a stop. Rhode held his breath and stared at it until it finally entered a pocket.

[Sphere of Mystery Mirage level +1]

“…”

Rhode shook his head and let out a long sigh. Things didn’t always go as expected.

In all honesty, it wasn’t such a bad result. It could even be considered as excellent. As explained earlier, the Sphere of Mystery was exceptionally troublesome to enhance because it was an ancient relic. The result of the Random Enhancement Reward would prevent Rhode from emptying his coffers to upgrade Mirage which probably could be a blessing in disguise.

However, as Rhode saw it, it was quite a waste for the Random Enhancement Reward to apply on Mirage. If his Sphere of Mystery carried a powerful defensive measure like ‘Holy Wall,’ or strong offensive capability such as ‘Legion of Punishment,’ then perhaps this result wouldn’t be wasted. But the problem was that Rhode’s Sphere of Mystery was Mirage — a training center — and even if it were enhanced by five levels to its MAX points, what other purposes would there be other than for training?

Anyway no matter what, at least it’s useful for training.

Rhode consoled himself and extended his arm to retrieve the reward.

[Received Random Enhancement Reward +2, Sphere of Mystery leveled up to 3. Activated functions — <<Hidden Space>> <<Harvest Field>> <<Phantom Guardian>>]

<<Hidden Space>> — Create a semi-plane of existence that can project the training grounds into the world.

<<Harvest Field>> — Individuals training within the training field would benefit from an increase in training efficiency by three times.

“Not too shabby.”

Rhode nodded in satisfaction, especially taking note of <<Harvest Field>> where individuals could benefit from three times increased training efficiency. With such a function, Rhode began to imagine himself reproducing a strong team that could rival player guilds.

Rhode smiled to himself while thinking of the prospects of <<Harvest Field>>. When he finally shifted his gaze towards the third function, he was slightly taken aback.

<<Phantom Guardian>> — Within the Stronghold’s range of control, the owner can utilize his or her memory to summon a doppelgänger of a person from the past to guard the Stronghold. The doppelgänger’s level would remain the same as the owner’s recollection of the original.

Rhode held his breath. The sentence ‘summon a doppelgänger of a person from the past’ took him by surprise.

Would this function grant him the ability to summon all the doppelgängers within the Mirage into this world? And those doppelgängers would retain their original levels?!

Rhode began to feel dizzy as an overwhelming tide of emotions filled his senses. He couldn’t help but read the description of the function once more in detail.

Rhode’s initial guesses of <<Phantom Guardian>> were mostly on point. While <<Phantom Guardian>> allowed the owner to summon a doppelgänger from the Mirage, there were certain limitations. At any point in time, he can only summon up to three doppelgängers, and if they leave the Stronghold’s range of control, they would immediately disappear. Furthermore, although the Sphere of Mystery could retain the doppelgänger’s level, it could not recreate their original equipment.

On the bright side, the doppelgängers could continue to exist as long as the Sphere of Mystery remained spinning. And lastly, the doppelgängers would also preserve their personal characteristics and share the memories of the owner.

This function…! This function is really…!!

After receiving the detailed breakdown of the function, Rhode’s finger began to tremble with excitement. However, he immediately shut his eyes and took in a deep, long breath to calm himself down. Rhode had never thought that the Sphere of Mystery was capable of such feats — this was very much to his delightful surprise!

Alas, it was a pity that the doppelgängers could only stay within the Stronghold’s range of control which instantly dashed Rhode’s hopes of reforming a player team to clear dungeons together again.

Even so, Rhode was looking forward to activating <<Phantom Guardian>>. If it weren’t because that he needed to stay here longer, he would immediately return to the Paphield Region right now. Thus, Rhode could only restrain his emotions and continue checking his other rewards.