Chapter 371: The Savior of Villains
After clicking confirm, a burst of dazzling purple light flared across the game interface. A prompt immediately popped up:
[Congratulations: You have obtained an Epic Template Card!]
Within the brilliant glow, an image appeared on the screen—a girl with cute twin tails, crimson eyes, and a luxurious long dress. Her expression was cold and distant as she gazed ahead.
Spirit of Time · Zhou Ning
Personality: Aloof, Kind.
Talents: Elven Physique (Purple), Acting Prodigy (Blue), High IQ (Blue), Zafkiel (Orange).
Skills: Acting (Advanced), First Bullet (Advanced), Second Bullet (Advanced)… Twelfth Bullet (Advanced).
Suggested Price: 625 Traversal Coins.
Zhou Ning: ?
Was this serious? What on earth had his superstar self gone through in the Date A Live world? I sent you there to build your own harem, not to become part of someone else's!
Unfortunately, this mode didn't show simulation footage—otherwise, he'd definitely want to see what exactly happened.
This was the first time he'd ever gotten a female version of himself as a template. Though he preferred more mature women, he didn't mind cute girls—but when that cute girl was himself, it felt a bit weird.
Her skills looked quite powerful. In his eyes, this wasn't really a loss. If he remembered correctly, her "Zafkiel" talent was the Time Angel from the original story—its true form a massive clock twice her height. Its long and short hands were an antique rifle and a pistol, capable of firing bullets imbued with Zafkiel's time powers. That ability matched his own rather well.
Sure, playing as a female character might seem a little perverted, but since no one would ever know, Zhou Ning figured he should let her take the stage at least once.
The second template he trained was Gang Lord Zhou Ning, who traversed into the Gotham universe.
That card cost him 550 Traversal Coins, and he'd placed high hopes on it.
The interface shimmered with blue light, and Zhou Ning's face fell. The higher the hope, the greater the disappointment—it was only a Fine-grade template!
The image showed him wearing a black suit and hat, pulling on gloves with a cold expression.
Roman · Zhou Ning
Personality: Ruthless, Merciless, Arrogant.
Talents: Master Orator (Blue), Crime Genius (Blue), Torturer (Purple).
Skills: Firearms Mastery (Advanced), Combat Mastery (Advanced).
Suggested Price: 25 Traversal Coins.
If he remembered right, "The Roman" was a minor villain from the Batman series—Carmine Falcone, the traditional mob boss of Gotham's Falcone family.
The setup had potential, but due to a middling simulation route, Gang Lord Zhou Ning failed to make any progress after traversing to Gotham. In the end, he remained a mere mob leader—a total failure. Worse yet, he didn't even qualify for the Villain Bond lineup. A complete waste.
When all was said and done, the two training sessions cost him a total loss of 150 Traversal Coins. Truly, when the wind blows, the eggshell cracks, and peace returns only after the money's gone.
Still, the mode itself was fun—like a luck-based gacha game. Addictive, but something that required restraint. A taste was fine; excess would ruin you.
Zhou Ning opened the Template Training Mode again and clicked "Find New Character." This time, he decided to train only one template at a time, checking progress every so often—slow and steady.
He spent another 500 Traversal Coins to select the "Excellent" attribute and confirmed his choice.
[You have confirmed "Excellent" as your template attribute.]
[Generating template…]
[Initial template rarity: Purple.]
[Matching in progress…]
[Match successful.]
[You are the emperor of the gambling table, the god of gamblers without an equal. Time and again you exploit your opponents' weakness to win the stakes, yet occasionally you feel empty inside. Just then, you receive the chance to traverse worlds. What kind of waves will you make across dimensions? Stay tuned.]
When the process ended, a new 3D card appeared in one of the four slots below. On it, Zhou Ning wore a sleek black suit, sitting casually in a chair, holding a piece of chocolate, a roguish smile on his lips.
After clicking "Traverse," the system prompted:
[Randomly selecting traversal destination.]
[Randomizing…]
[Selection complete. You have traversed to the world of Fullmetal Alchemist!]
[Please choose your simulation tendency.]
[1. Cautious – 0 Traversal Coins]
[2. Moderate – 50 Traversal Coins]
[3. Aggressive – 50 Traversal Coins]
Fullmetal Alchemist?
Zhou Ning's interest instantly spiked. As a fairly capable alchemist himself, he was naturally curious about the alchemy of another world.
As for the simulation style… having learned from experience, he immediately paid 50 Traversal Coins and chose the Aggressive strategy. Hopefully, this template wouldn't disappoint.
After finishing his template training, Zhou Ning thought for a bit. Considering how badly he needed a power boost, he opened the game interface again to start a new round of traversal.
The new map was titled "Chaos Battle", a self-selected-talent Random Soul Traversal map—the first of its kind he'd seen. Out of ten random talents, one was fixed as Soul Traversal; the player could only pick two others to accompany it. It was also a long-awaited Plus Map, promising extremely generous rewards.
Although he couldn't choose a template this time, Zhou Ning still selected the second option out of habit, just to see if there might be a lucky pick.
Light flared before him, and three cards appeared, unfolding one by one, glowing in shades of purple and blue.
The first card was a Purple one—a young man with golden hair, wearing a yellow coat, standing in a twisted pose. Behind him floated a golden Stand spirit.
Personality: Evil, Insidious, Cold, Disdainful of Life, Proud.
Talents: Vampire Physique (Purple), Sunlight Aversion (Gray – Negative), Evil Charisma (Purple), Born Villain (Purple), Learning Ability (Blue).
Skills: The World (Master Level), Vaporization Freezing Technique (Advanced), Space Ripper Stingy Eyes (Advanced), Flesh Bud Implantation (Advanced), Hypnosis (Advanced).
Price: 520 Traversal Coins.
Title: Savior of Villains · Zhou Ning.
Zhou Ning: …
Is that you, DIO?!
Lately, it seemed he had a strange affinity for time-related templates—first the Oceanographer, then the Spirit of Time, and now even the Villain Savior, DIO himself.
Though he was a villain—twisted and destructive—there was no denying DIO's power. Just like the Oceanographer, he had the potential to clear worlds. If you couldn't draw Star Platinum, drawing The World worked just as well. Buy it!
Sure enough, after purchasing the Savior of Villains, Zhou Ning completed the seventh entry in his Villain Sequence.
The Joker – The Penguin – The Ordinary Office Worker – Kyōka Suigetsu – Ultimate Magneto – The Dark Warrior – The Savior of Villains
The seven villain templates connected once more, unlocking a new bond in the Template Hall.
"Formidable Villains" (7):
HP +1100
Spirit +10
Agility +5
Strength +3
Bond Effect: When using a Villain Template for traversal, the completion rate of the instance increases more rapidly. Additionally, your rate of faction alignment conversion is 25% faster.
Not only did his stats increase further, but he'd also gained another special effect. Zhou Ning couldn't help but feel deeply satisfied.