"Hey, number 81 is you, right? Do you still want to smoke?"
A(ē)long recovered from his inexplicable sluggishness and showed a puzzled expression.
what's the situation?
What you see is a white hall, with people inside bustling, going in and out of several rooms lined up on one side. Among the people who came out of the room, some had some strange utensils in their hands, while others brought out
Things like cats and dogs.
Some of them were cursing, some were laughing, and some even cried bitterly on the spot and were carried out of the room.
I should be... what were you doing before? I can't remember, but it was definitely not in the place in front of me.
Aaron soon realized that he had probably traveled through time, and his ability to accept this kind of thing was not bad.
However, there was no sign of this time travel, leaving him a little confused.
Suddenly, the scene in front of me was in a trance, and the structure of the world seemed to be in chaos, order was broken, and chaos invaded.
A stinging pain came from everywhere in his body, making him frown.
Looking at the fingertips of his right hand, a color like the endless starry sky slowly overflowed, reaching out to the surroundings with claws and teeth. The air made a slight hiss under its influence.
"It really doesn't stop." Aaron clenched his fist hard, crushed the power back into his body, and then shook his hand.
The world returns to its original state.
"Hello?" The man in a suit in front of him shouted again with a strange expression.
What's going on with this guy? He hasn't responded even after calling him for a long time. He went crazy during meditation and his mind went stagnant. This is really troublesome. If something goes wrong while he's in charge, he'll be in trouble even if it's none of his business.
Fortunately, Aaron also recovered from the shock of suddenly being in a foreign place and the discomfort of almost losing control of his strength: "I'm sorry, I was in a daze just now, what did you just say?"
As he opened his mouth to speak, his body's instinct spoke a language that seemed very unfamiliar to him.
It's a bit obscure and the pronunciation is a bit difficult to pronounce.
What emerged in his mind along with this unfamiliar text and language was a belated memory recall.
The instinct derived from his soul allowed him to quickly select keywords from the chaotic and huddled memories, and then summarize and sort them out one by one, synthesize them into a regular flow of information, and finally understand.
"I gradually understand everything." He whispered.
"What?" The staff member was puzzled.
"Nothing, it's my turn to draw a card, uh, get the doll, right?" Aaron once again narrowed his pupils that were dilated as his thoughts drifted away, and looked at a paper document in his hand.
"Yes, it's Aaron No. 81, right? Because you were in a daze just now, your ranking has already dropped one place. I originally planned to withdraw your number directly, but someone told me that No. 81 is here, so I
Come and have a look. If you have no problem now, you can go in when Room 9 comes out this time." Seeing that he had no problem, the staff did not look for trouble and nodded while explaining.
"Is that so? Things have been so confusing lately, I'm sorry." Aaron smiled gently, and his handsome face and smile made the staff's slight complaints dissipate a lot.
"It's okay. Also remember to thank that person. If he hadn't told me, you would have had to wait for a new appointment." The staff member waved his hand and pointed behind him.
Aaron turned around and saw a young man wearing a white shirt with blue lines waving to him.
There is an impression in my memory that I was a classmate in my original class named Mugou. However, the relationship between the two was not that good. It was just an ordinary classmate relationship. They would say hello when they met, and occasionally they would talk to each other when there were topics in the class.
The person who made the previous sentence or two.
It was the original person Alon's own plan to come here to "draw cards". It was a bit unexpected to meet Mu Gou here, and he also got help from him.
Mugou seemed to be preparing to "draw cards", so he did not come over. After waving, he walked into a room.
After the staff reminded me, they continued to return to their seats. There were still many people to queue up, and after finishing the work in the morning, they still had to deal with the afternoon appointments. It was really hard to be a worker.
Aaron found an empty seat and sat down, looking at Room 9 not far away.
This world is a puppeteer's world.
Although there is magic in the human body, the magic circuit is only suitable for puppet operation. It does not mean that other magic cannot be used, but the effects and benefits are very touching. The fireball technique that can be used as a rocket launcher under normal circumstances can be compared here.
Even small caliber firearms are successful.
Puppet manipulation has become the mainstream in this world.
In ancient times, puppet masters were a very noble profession. Because the cost of raw materials required to make puppets was an astronomical figure that ordinary people could not imagine. Later, the owners of traditional puppet making skills were also very noble. Even if they are
The entry fee for a fledgling puppet maker is not low, and the work of a puppet master is even more expensive.
The puppet masters are all masters, and ordinary people would have to kneel down to watch the masters.
However, this situation has changed in modern times.
With the emergence of the Demon Realm and the Chaos Vision, a large number of doll nuclei and production materials have flooded into the market, and prices have continued to fall. At the same time, with the development of some technologies and the improvement of production levels, the income of the public has also continued to grow, and the cost of doll production materials has continued to increase.
Money is no longer as desperate as it used to be.
And a cross-generational invention that marked the end of the old puppet era shattered the pride of most traditional puppet makers.
That is the Doll Summoning Ceremony.
Traditional doll making requires a certain quality of original nuclei and sufficient quality materials, and it also requires doll makers with doll making skills.
But the doll summoning ritual is a powerful ritual technique that can omit the last condition, reduce the need for the first two conditions, and even summon multiple dolls in an instant.
You only need to provide the original core as the main material to directly summon. The higher the quality of the original core, the higher the possibility of summoning a powerful doll. The summoner can further increase the shipment rate by adding auxiliary materials and adjust the
Summoning ritual tendencies.
From low-level dolls to high-level and even legendary dolls, anything can happen in this legendary ritual. Because of this invention, countless people have had the opportunity to turn over, and even soar into the sky.
It's just that the randomness of this ritual is too strong, and there have even been tragedies where someone put in a high-level proto-nucleus and only a low-level puppet came out.
In short, don’t enter unless you are a chieftain.
Because of this magical ritual feature, its popularity continues to grow. In today's era of rapid development and popularization of the Internet, there are also some mobile communication games that have learned from this model and created mobile card-drawing games that take advantage of people's gambler psychology.
.
This argument soon extended to the doll summoning ceremony, and gradually some people began to call summoning dolls "drawing cards." However, for some people, this drawing of cards may be the draw of cards that changes their destiny.
Aron himself obviously came to this official Puppet Masters Association with the purpose of obtaining dolls, and prepared to make a bet. In fact, it doesn't matter if he loses the bet, because if the low-level dolls are not used to do strange things
, it does not consume much magic power. Even if it is kept as a doll or pet, it does not even need to be fed.
After all, dolls are everywhere in this world, and most people in this world have magic circuits, so there is no problem in giving them a try.
In order to promote the birth of puppet masters, the state also provides citizen benefits.
The threshold for using a doll is very low. If it is a semi-autonomous or autonomous doll, children can also use it, and the autonomous doll can even be used to take care of children.
Therefore, even underage children can obtain dolls with the guarantee of their parents.
However, in order to prevent loopholes, a child can only perform the ritual once before the age of eighteen. After the age of eighteen, there is an opportunity every three years, and this benefit will not expire until the age of thirty.
Aaron came here this time to use up his minor quota as his eighteenth birthday was approaching, otherwise the quota would not have been reserved.
He had attached his ID card and relevant documents online, obtained the right to make an appointment, made an appointment immediately, and came over early this morning to wait.
"Woohoo!" Suddenly, the door of Ceremony Room No. 9 was forcefully pushed open, and a young man about the same age as Alon jumped out, cheering loudly despite the gaze of the entire hall.
Just when everyone was still wondering why this person was crazy, someone with sharp eyes had already shouted: "Fuck!"
"groove?"
"How can it be?!"
"It's an eye-opener."
"Ogou! You have my trust!"
As the young man came out and made way, a majestic white-haired dog-shaped doll that was as tall as a man slowly walked out from behind him.
In fact, non-humanoid magic-driven machines should not be called "dolls". The official name is "machine puppets". However, considering the unification of names, the public still likes to call them this way.
There is still a little light golden light shining on the white-haired giant dog. This is the brilliance left on the doll after the summoning ceremony, symbolizing the quality of this doll.
Light gold, that is, high-end.
Excluding the red-gold legendary level that may not appear once in a lifetime, the high-end dolls that are sacrificed for half a person's life are basically the highest level that ordinary people can draw with their overwhelming European energy.
This young man obviously had great luck.
As long as a high-level doll makes steady progress, regardless of how far it can develop its own magic circuit, depending on the combat power of the doll, it will grow up to be at least a first-class puppet master.
Soon, scattered applause broke out in the hall, and the applause gradually grew louder. Most people in the hall applauded and sent their own congratulations.
Listening to the applause, the young man gradually recovered from the initial excitement. Although his face was still flushed and he was having trouble breathing, he also began to smile and thank the people around him.
Aaron didn't applaud, he just looked at the other party silently.
If he wanted to ask why he didn't go in even though the person in front of him had already come out of the room... He actually thought that the boy in front of him pulled out the Miracle Pestle at the door and attracted people to squeeze in. After all, although the Internet is now developed, legendary dolls
There are a lot of news on the Internet, but if you really want to see the real thing with your own eyes, most people will probably be satisfied with the mid-level doll. Now I have a high-level doll on my face, and the boy is easy to talk to and can touch it. Everyone
They all went up and blocked the door.
It was too difficult for him to enter Room 9 at this time.
"Hey, little brother, you are number 81, right? I just heard you talking to the staff. You seemed to be delayed by one because you were in a daze..." At this time, a voice sounded next to Aaron.
Aaron turned his head, and a young man in his twenties looked at him with sympathy.
He was stunned for a moment, but soon realized why.
"Even if I wasn't in a daze and it was me who just went in, I might not be able to pull out that kind of thing." Aron shook his head, his mood was very dull.
A person shipped the goods in the last second, but if you think that the person who just drew the card is you, you can definitely sell it. This kind of thinking is too natural.
It is said that even the power of fate cannot peek into the inner workings of the Doll Summoning Ceremony. Who can say for sure?
Aaron is very open-minded.
But the young man obviously didn't think so, and he was lamenting for Aaron. Aaron just felt baffled. After all, even if he did lose the opportunity, it was his own business. What did it have to do with him?
There are always some people who like to meddle in other people's business, and Aaron turned his head and ignored them.
"Okay, okay, everyone, be quiet and keep the order. Otherwise, the morning's reservation will not be ended. If the reservation status is reset, your reservation will only be postponed for a few days." The staff member didn't have it at all.
I was just watching the excitement, but instead of being envious of that young man, I was actually complaining about him.
Don't increase the workload of migrant workers!
Senior level is nothing, I have never seen anything like a mixed system.
With the guidance of several staff members, the brief storm was over soon.
"No. 81, please enter the ceremony room No. 9." The broadcast announcement started again, and almost no one paid attention to it when it was just announced.
The crowd dispersed, and Aaron finally had a chance to go in. It was almost noon, and he was already hungry.
The boy passed Aron with his white dog.
Aaron's eyes met with his, and the young man showed a shy smile and whispered: "I'm sorry, it should have been you originally."
Aaron shrugged and said nothing.
The young man did not continue to make trouble for himself, and left easily with the white dog whose pale golden light gradually dissipated.
Aaron walked straight into the ceremony room No. 9.
"Did he just show off to me?" Aaron looked strange. Although the boy's words sounded like a normal greeting, the little thought was evident in his tone, and his shy look was even more impressive.
It means it’s cheap and good.
But he didn't want to vent his anger with such a young child, so he glanced at the ceremony room instead.
In order to protect citizens' privacy, the ceremony room is a relatively closed space. There is only one surveillance camera quietly squatting in the corner to monitor everything in the ceremony room.
And unless something goes wrong and needs to be investigated, the Puppet Masters Association will not call this monitoring at will.
There were no furnishings in the bright and bright room, which was plain and simple, except for a strange-looking machine lying quietly in the middle.
This machine is generally divided into two parts. One part is the main part of the summoning ceremony, which is shrouded in a huge glass tank.
This is to protect the puppet master. Some puppets may not be so obedient when they are first summoned. Fortunately, the puppet master can directly operate the fully operational and semi-autonomous types, but the autonomous puppets are not as obedient as the puppets when they first appear.
The puppeteers are two completely independent individuals. Before the puppeteer can establish a reliable operating circuit, the autonomous puppet has the ability to fight against the murderous puppeteer.
The black box where the nuclei and materials are put is at the other end opposite to the glass jar, with a thick white pipe in the middle.
"Please come to the screen to operate." Next to the black box, a display screen lit up.
Aaron approached with interest and followed the instructions.
After swiping your ID card, you will get the summoning quota.
"Underage summoning quota has been detected. The remaining time is 102 days. Do you want to use it?" The permissions were quickly displayed on the screen.
"Use." Aaron nodded. He didn't bring anything with him, so he couldn't use the self-paid summoning mode.
"Permission confirmation, please pay attention to collect the original core at the bottom of the screen." The electronic sound sounded, and the sound of something falling sounded from under the screen, like a vending machine.
Aaron reached into the retrieval port below and took out a transparent sphere. It felt smooth to the touch. Upon closer inspection, there was gray mist gathering and dissipating in the center of the sphere.
This is a very ordinary low-level proto-core. It is already very interesting to get a single draw for free. There is no need to be greedy and ask for mid-level proto-core to increase the shipment rate.
The single summoning opportunity provided does not provide auxiliary materials. It is a completely naked summoning. Aaron has nothing to hesitate and directly throws the original core into the black box through the material slot.
There was no sound, and the surface of the black box slowly lit up with intertwined patterns of white, blue, purple, and gold.
"Start the ceremony." The electronic voice prompted.
Aaron's eyes fell on the ceremony stage in the glass jar, and the light from the ceremony was reflected in his dark eyes.
A large number of free particles were captured and condensed on the ceremonial stage. The light gathered more and more, as if something was gestating in it, but the strong light made it difficult to see clearly.
finally……
Boom——
Reaching a certain critical point, the light instantly compressed and then bloomed.
The first doll that Alon came into this world appeared.