Chapter 172 Screeching Cage
There were all kinds of Doomsday Wheels. Most were pretty standard, but some were super rare, like the Colorful Roulette and the Treasure Roulette. Just like in life, the rarer something was, the more valuable it became.
The Colorful Roulette offered rare professions, the Treasure Roulette had treasures, and the golden roulette, which William called the Devil's Gamble, was all about risk. It had a nearly 90% death rate.
If it weren't for Cecil, William wouldn't have even considered coming here. It would be like signing his own death warrant. But with Cecil around, William decided to take the risk.
Jack asked, bewildered, "What... what is this?"
Jack ran around the huge, unique roulette, baffled by its presence in the wilderness. It looked nothing like the other roulettes he'd seen.
Instead of a circular surface, it had a rectangular shape with something like a spotlight on it, divided into four equal white squares.
The control panel didn't have a slot for a Magic Crystal. Instead, there was a small recessed semicircular hole with an open white lid, resembling a mini Sydney Opera House.
Below the four squares were four coin slots lined up vertically, and their purpose was unclear. The reward box was similar to other roulettes, square and on the other side of the control panel.
David inquired, "Why is it different from the other roulettes?"
David, with his technical background, was intrigued by this immovable, indestructible lottery machine.
Seeing something so different, his eyes lit up, but he knew he couldn't study it now. He turned to William, who seemed to know everything and had brought them here.
"This is the Devil's Gamble," William said, looking a bit conflicted.
No matter how rare a roulette was, people still named them. This one was originally called the Golden Roulette. As people learned more about it, they started calling it the Devil's Gamble.
It was a high-risk, high-reward roulette. If you won, the rewards were beyond imagination. If you lost, you'd end up as a pile of rotting limbs in the apocalypse.
After figuring out how this roulette worked, people in the past usually approached it with warbands, companies, or other groups, treating it like a tough enemy. This way, they could lower the death rate and get the most out of each spin.
Honestly, William was being a bit reckless today.
But even though this roulette was dangerous, William's current evolution level was pretty low, and the energy needed to activate the Devil's Gamble were low-leveled Magic Crystals. So, the risks taken wouldn't be too high. With Cecil and the team around, they could take a chance.
Besides, William knew that as the apocalypse went on, he'd probably stay ahead of most Evolving people. But there would always be some lucky ones, those with lots of support, or those backed by major forces who could catch up to him.
His advantage over others was him being reborn, but he didn't have the solid foundation that many others had from the start.
So, deep down, he felt a bit anxious. He had to keep his lead in the evolution race to fully use the advantages of his rebirth. Only then could he grab as many good things early on.
So, he decided to take a gamble.
William started giving out tasks, "Lucy, stay by my side, but don't protect me. Focus on Cecil and shield him when things get dangerous."
He continued, "David, you and your team wait 500 meters to the east. No matter what happens, don't come any closer."
David was valuable, and it was already generous of William to let him see the Devil's Gamble. During the fight, he definitely wanted David far away.
William went on, "Cecil will be at the front, the red-haired Iron Corpse by his side, and the others will guard between me and Cecil. If any enemies break through, it's your job to handle them."
Everyone was puzzled but listened carefully.
He warned, "You'll face creatures today that you've never seen before, so be ready. Also, I might not be able to fight for a while, so you'll need to rely on yourselves. Today's events will be very dangerous, stay alert."
Once everyone was in position, William turned around, took out a big bag of Magic Crystals from the space crystal, and placed it on the edge of the roulette.
He pulled out a Level 1 Magic Crystal and inserted it into the coin slot under the first square.
The entire golden roulette lit up, with lights flashing across its surface, brightening the dim forest a bit.
The first of the four squares started spinning like a die. After a few seconds, a graphic item appeared.
William's heart skipped a beat.
Screeching Cage!
This black fence-like image represented an item called the Screeching Cage.
Despite its name, it wasn't a cage but a carrier for a Battle Pet! Once you got it, opening the cage would give you a Battle Pet with various functions.
Because of Pill, William had somewhat overlooked this type of equipment. But now, seeing the Screeching Cage reminded him that Battle Pets were a major asset for survivors in the apocalypse.
Battle Pets were different from pets like Pill. Pets like Pill usually had a deep emotional bond with their owners before the apocalypse, and this bond continued even after mutation.
These mutated animals had the abilities of Battle Pets but didn't follow the same rules. If the bond with the owner changed, they could leave or even turn against their owners.
However, Battle Pets from the Screeching Cage had to follow strict rules. To put it simply, a Battle Pet was like a slave. It could die to protect its owner, but if the owner died, the Battle Pet would also die. They were completely dependent on their owners.
Moreover, pets like Pill generally had a single function, born for combat with their own independent evolution system. But Battle Pets were different; they came in all shapes and sizes, capable of fighting and providing various auxiliary functions. Some might even have abilities unrelated to combat.
For example, in his previous life, William knew a strong individual whose Battle Pet was a mermaid. This mermaid couldn't fight and had almost zero combat power, but it had powerful healing abilities.
This allowed its owner to adopt a fierce fighting style, taking on injuries after injuries, making even stronger opponents reluctant to provoke him.
This was one of the roles of Battle Pets.
Today, it appeared here, and even the lowest level Screeching Cage was something that at least a four-star roulette would produce. To obtain it, even William might need to wait a few months.
This was the allure of the Devil's Gamble, getting things that others couldn't!
There was no immediate danger, so everyone kept their eyes on the roulette. As the surface moved and an image appeared, they all marveled, except for Cecil. He was still confused, wondering how this kid named William, who had saved him, seemed to know everything in advance.
Compared to most men in this country, William did look like a boy next to Cecil's height.
William steadied himself and started grabbing handfuls of Level 1 Magic Crystals from the bag, filling the recessed small hole.
"Get ready, it's coming!" William warned in a low voice.
When the small hole was filled with over a hundred Level 1 Magic Crystals, the white lid on top automatically closed. Then the other three squares on the surface began to flip while the first square with the Screeching Cage image stayed put.
The rhythmic, mechanical flipping sound echoed, making everyone tense. The way this roulette spun was similar to some gambling machines, and everyone quickly got the gist of it. But William's warning about impending danger made them realize it wouldn't be that simple.
The second white square slowed down, showing several images cycling through: a cage image like the first square, a cyan human female, a red beast, and a black skull surrounded by thick smoke. There were nine different images in total.
The square slowed down further, stopping at the red beast image.
Before anyone could ask what it was, a beam of light shot out from the spotlight-like thing on top of the Devil's Gamble, landing a dozen feet in front of the roulette.
Then, after a fierce roar, a beast with fiery red fur, identical to the image on the square, appeared.
"Flame Lion!" William cursed and shouted, "Block it!"
Everyone saw the majestic beast resembling a lion, with a black Magic Crystal on its forehead indicating it was a formidable Level 3 enemy.
"What level is this?" Cecil, who had only seen Level 1 and Level 2 mutated creatures in Redwood County, instinctively asked.
William replied quickly, "Level 3!"
Cecil's eyes lit up in surprise, and he planted his giant shield in front of him, shouting, "Motherfucker, bring it on!"
William, waiting for the third square to stop, almost collapsed on the roulette.
Some things never change. In his previous life and in this life, this guy had the same catchphrase.
The Flame Lion's terrifying face showed a cruel, human-like smile. It suddenly opened its mouth and spewed a stream of flames with a sulfuric smell.
At that moment, the third square also stopped, but it wasn't the Screeching Cage. Instead, it was a black humanoid lizard!
