To understand, one-star Soul Arts are different from high-star Soul Arts; they can be all sorts of bizarre and unpredictable.

After all, the threshold for creating one-star Soul Arts is low, unlike high-star Soul Arts, where the creator must at least be a Saint.

The quality varies greatly, so there are all kinds of creators and all kinds of uses.

With the royal family collection being so vast and varied, it made Winnie’s head spin, and by the end, he was feeling a bit heated.

His fists clenched.

Wait, what does this mean?!

Why is it that the seemingly decent one-star Soul Arts only have a compatibility rate of 50% with him, while those weird and strange ones have an absurdly high compatibility rate??

The highest compatibility rate, and also the most bizarre one-star Soul Art, is called “Lone Fishing Through the Ages,” with a compatibility rate of 85%, the highest he’s ever seen among all Soul Arts.

But when he shifted his eager gaze to its effects, he truly felt the world’s malice towards him.

After reading through the long, ambiguous description in the panel, thanks to his strong information-gathering skills, Winnie concluded that this Soul Art had one and only one effect: fishing.

Literally fishing!

It’s said that if mastered to an immortal level, one could even fish out ancient, long-extinct fish species of the Terraria continent with just a wooden rod and a plain line.

But “it’s said” is always just “it’s said.”

Maybe the person who wrote this didn’t even know if it was true or not, just scribbling it down for some fool to take the bait.

Even the Soul Art description is fishing, huh??

And it’s also said, he’s said to be the future Radiance Saintess.

Ah, no, if anything, he’d be a Saint, not a Saintess, right?

The more he looked, the more Winnie felt like he was going crazy.

Damn it!

Can’t he just get a relatively normal Soul Art??

His demands aren’t high, above 70%, oh no, not even 70%, he’d settle for 60%!

As hope dwindled bit by bit, Winnie’s smile faded bit by bit.

According to the law of conservation of smiles, who knows whose face it transferred to.

But he still held a sliver of hope, wishing to find a suitable Soul Art.

To survive well in this world, this was one of his few hopes.

Without a good Soul Art to rely on, he might die from some unknown AoE attack without even needing Aesphyra to make a move.

This search lasted the entire afternoon, so long that even Eric at the door wondered if the kid had fallen asleep.

Finally, dragging his exhausted body, Winnie arrived at the last row of jade cabinets at the end of the hall, where the one-star Soul Arts were placed.

After scanning the edges and the middle, he looked blankly towards the other edge.

Sure enough, for a loser like him, finding a good path is impossible, especially in this otherworldly continent where talent is everything.

A quick glance.

What’s this?

There’s even one with only a 10% compatibility rate?

How amusing, they’re really going all out to disgust him, not even caring about decency anymore.

Out of curiosity, Winnie took a closer look at the crystal vial in the corner of the jade cabinet and rolled his eyes.

…Wait??

Winnie suddenly realized, his expression freezing.

After searching all afternoon, his brain had become a bit sluggish.

It took him a moment to realize that he hadn’t seen any decimal points all afternoon.

Could it be that the number he just saw flash by didn’t have a decimal point??

Winnie’s breath hitched, his head turning back bit by bit like a wound-up spring, his eyes widening in shock as he looked at the corner.

Soul Art Name: [Fortress Armor]

Compatibility Rate: 100%

“???”

“Huh??”

“Ahhh?!”

“H-h-h-hundred?!” Winnie stammered, his voice trembling as he rubbed his eyes repeatedly, making sure he wasn’t seeing things.

It was real, it was real, truer than a pearl!

A genuine 100% compatibility rate!

From heaven to hell in an instant, and from hell back to heaven in another instant.

Winnie rushed over, clutching the crystal vial to his chest, afraid someone might snatch it away, even though no one in this place would ever compete with him for it, let alone for a one-star Soul Art.

“Heh, heh-heh, heh-heh-heh…” Winnie hugged the crystal vial, giggling like a fool.

But after a moment, he calmed down.

What if this Soul Art wasn’t normal either??

With that in mind, Winnie carefully read the description on the panel.

‘[Fortress Armor]: This Soul Art was created by a powerful court mage of the ancient Terraria Empire. It was once equipped by the empire’s army, making them invincible and unstoppable.’

‘Full metal coverage, a true armor-type Soul Art that leaves no part unguarded.’

Praise the Goddess of Graceful Radiance!

After reading the description, Winnie felt a wave of relief wash over him, followed by overwhelming joy.

This was a stroke of incredible luck!

Holding the crystal vial containing the grayish-white Soul Art, Winnie felt all his exhaustion melt away.

He felt that every second of his afternoon struggle had been worth it!

At this moment, nothing else in his world mattered except the grayish-white Soul Art inside the crystal vial.

Beaming with joy, he hugged the vial tightly and walked out of the jade cabinet, heading toward the grand hall’s entrance.

“What’s going on with you, kid? What happened earlier? You sounded like you stepped on a mousetrap,” Eric, standing at the door with his arms crossed, teased.

“Nothing, nothing,” Winnie waved his hand, trying to hide his joy, though the corners of his mouth kept twitching upward.

“Made your choice? Are you sure?” Eric, of course, noticed the crystal vial Winnie was clutching.

“Yes, I’ve chosen.”

“Are you sure? This is your only chance. Once you pick, there’s no going back, you know?”

“No regrets, no regrets,” Winnie hugged the vial even tighter, not planning to let go anytime soon.

“Alright, it’s your choice,” Eric reached out toward Winnie.

“Hand it over.”

“……”

Winnie, upon hearing this, stood still like a block of wood, as if he hadn’t heard a word.

“Didn’t realize you were such a miser?? You think I care about your lousy one-star Soul Art??” Eric rolled his eyes at Winnie.

“I’m just checking the category of the Soul Art for registration.”

True, Eric himself used a four-star Soul Art, [Dragon’s Eye], so naturally, he wouldn’t care about these one-star Soul Arts.

Reluctantly, Winnie handed over the crystal vial, like a mother handing over her swaddled baby.

This kid.

Eric snorted, shifting his gaze to the Soul Art inside the crystal vial, a strange look flashing in his eyes.

How odd.

This Soul Art… it looked familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it.

He glanced at the label on the crystal vial.

“Fortress Armor?” Eric murmured, feeling like the name rang a bell.

“Old man, are you done?” Winnie, standing beside him, couldn’t help but urge, his eyes pleading.

“Done, done. Look at you, such a miser. I told you I wouldn’t take it,” Eric handed the crystal vial back to Winnie, then added, “You know how to absorb a Soul Art, right? I’ve got a guide here, want it?”

“Yes, yes.”

“You wouldn’t even ask for it yourself, huh? If I didn’t offer, you wouldn’t take it??” Eric shot Winnie another look, then handed him a small booklet.

“Thank you, old man. May you live a long and prosperous life!” Winnie beamed, smiling more brightly than he ever had, even more than when he’d seen Mirexia.

This time, though, his smile was actually quite pleasant.

Watching Winnie’s retreating figure, Eric stroked his beard, then suddenly his expression changed.

He remembered!

Oh dear, he really was getting old and forgetful. He finally remembered what that Soul Art was!

He was about to call out to Winnie, but the boy was already gone.

“Ah!” Eric slapped his thigh.

It wasn’t that the Soul Art was particularly precious or forbidden to give out.

The kingdom had no shortage of one-star Soul Arts, and even four-star ones were freely available.

The reason Eric wanted to stop Winnie was that the Soul Art had a serious problem……