Chapter 5

In *The Ninth Continent*, although the innate attributes at level 1 are relatively low compared to the player's growth, they are undoubtedly the most important starting point, as they at least determine the major direction of development you should take.

Li Dalong's current attributes are as follows:

Health: 13 points; Strength: 20 points; Constitution: 22 points; Spirit: 9 points; Movement Speed: 18 points;

Just looking at this row of data, there doesn't seem to be any problem, but when compared to Baldy's level 1 data, the difference is like heaven and earth:

Health: 15 points; Strength: 9 points; Constitution: 5 points; Spirit: 6 points; Movement Speed: 5 points;

Let's not even talk about the gap. Baldy's innate attributes are already above average among players. A health of 15 points is quite strong, even stronger than Li Dalong's.

In terms of strength, the average player has around 5 points, which can barely swing a wooden stick to kill a lizard, leaving them panting. With 9 points of strength, killing a lizard is like killing a chicken, and 20 points of strength? In the monster area near Rough Village, Li Dalong can walk around bare-handed.

Baldy's constitution is the same as that of an average player. Constitution represents the player's ability to withstand pressure and attacks. The higher the constitution, the slower the health decreases when attacked. If combined with high defense, a high constitution is like a tank; you can't even bite through it.

But Li Dalong's constitution is more than four times that of an average person. It's important to note that innate attributes are evaluated based on the player's physical fitness in the real world. Baldy's surprise is understandable. What does this guy do in real life? What has he done?

This is not even the most impressive part. Li Dalong's most outstanding attribute is his movement speed.

In *The Ninth Continent*, movement speed is the hardest to improve. It differs from other attributes. For example, the difference between 5 points of strength and 6 points of strength is not significant. If you use a beginner's wooden stick to kill chickens, you might kill 5 while I kill 6, with only a few seconds' difference.

However, the difference in movement speed is significant. When combined with spirit, the gap between 5 points of speed and 6 points of speed is very large.

Spirit represents the player's focus and fatigue. Specifically, when a player continuously casts skills, attacks, or runs, their spirit value decreases instantly. The higher the spirit value, the longer the player can sustain these actions.

Thus, the difference in speed becomes apparent. If both players with 5 points of speed and 6 points of speed start running, after a few seconds, one might run 50 meters, while the other could run 70 to 80 meters, or even 100 meters, and still have the energy to run a bit more.

Therefore, most players rely on equipment to increase their speed. Li Dalong, however, has a natural speed of 18 points and 9 points of spirit. Describing him as swift is an understatement. With a bit of training and good equipment, he will be a master of leaping and climbing.

What kind of monster is this? Baldy was truly amazed.

In that moment, he made a reasonable judgment. What path is most suitable for Li Dalong?

That's right—assassin!

Long-term stealth, a calm mind, precise strikes, and quick retreats—what could be more suitable than these innate attributes?

Absolutely nothing!

However, very unfortunately, Contra spoke first: "Brother, I think your current situation is not suitable for leveling up. Your level is too low. I suggest you get some money first. With money, you can get supplies, and that will help you train faster!"

This is a very reasonable and practical suggestion!

Contra is now level 12, and Baldy is level 15. If the level 1 new recruit Li Dalong follows them to dungeons, it would be a burden, and they might even face a total wipe.

The most important point is that he has no money. In this era, whether in real life or in games, having no money is a big problem.

Moreover, Rough Village is a remote area in the Exile Zone, and Li Dalong's current identity is that of a criminal, with many game rights stripped away. The system won't let him take any quests.

But this desolate land is barren. Where can Li Dalong get money? He can't magically pull money out of the sand, can he?

Fortunately, Contra continued: "Here's what I suggest, brother. Go southeast for about 3 kilometers, and you'll find a cave. There are some low-grade ores inside, mainly sulfur, nitrate, and charcoal. Go and mine them, and I'll buy them from you at a good price."

Li Dalong hesitated and said, "You're planning to make gunpowder, right?"

Contra was surprised that Li Dalong guessed his intention but still promised earnestly: "Brother, don't worry. I've known Daidi for a long time, and I won't cheat you."

He wouldn't cheat him, indeed!

Of course, he won't shortchange Li Dalong in terms of price, but he does have his own plans. A few days ago, he was beaten by a group of "Lanxin Home" in Shangqing River. Their female archers had long range and high attack power, shooting him to near-death. So, Contra has been thinking about how to get revenge. After much consideration, he came up with this idea: if he attaches fuel to the arrows, even if he can't kill the enemy, he can burn them. This will teach them a lesson.

Surprisingly, this idea is feasible in *The Ninth Continent*, where all sorts of strange things exist. If the theory holds, and someone dares to try, it can become a reality with persistence.

However, collecting materials is troublesome and tiring, so this task is given to the new recruit, Li Dalong.

Contra immediately opened the trade window and placed a few items: "Here, take these as a token of my appreciation. Daidi's friend shouldn't be shortchanged."

Li Dalong took a look, and these items were indeed impressive:

A bag of dried buns, about twenty in total, which would suffice for the journey;

A small toolbox with various shovels, hoes, iron drills, and lighting sticks, all of which were complete, indicating that he would have to be prepared to work as a miner;

In addition, Contra gave Li Dalong 20 copper coins as a token of appreciation for his help.

For players like Baldy and Contra, these items are trivial, but for a penniless newbie, they are excellent equipment.

"Brother, let him go and make some money first. What do you think?" Contra asked, turning to Baldy.

What could Baldy say? You've done so much, what can I say?

"Let him practice the basics of assassination first!" This sentence got stuck in Baldy's throat, and he couldn't say it.

"Alright!" Baldy thought that there was plenty of time, and Li Dalong had plenty of time to become an assassin. "Add each other as friends, and you can communicate anytime."

Voice chat can only be used between friends. The sound box, attached to the waist, is a primitive piece of equipment given by the system, which doesn't drop but has a limited range. If you want to increase the range, you need to upgrade the sound box. How to upgrade?

You know, one word—money!

When adding friends, Contra casually glanced at Li Dalong's nickname. At first glance, it seemed ordinary, but upon closer inspection, Contra found it to be an excellent name. It was concise, profound, and vivid, leaving a lasting impression.

Li Dalong's name is—“A Hard Cucumber!”

"Great name, a really great name!" Contra exclaimed. "Brother, your name is really... I don't know how to say it, but I think you are a very talented person!"

"Thank you, Contra, you're too kind!" Li Dalong modestly replied, thinking to himself that he had no choice. His previous name, which was rejected by the system, was much more creative—“Two Rotten Apples and a Rotten Banana!”

Baldy, however, didn't want to listen to their nonsense and waved his hand: "Go quickly, make the most of your time!"

Li Dalong nodded, knowing what "make the most of your time" meant, and turned to leave without a word.

This shows that Li Dalong is not one to boast; he is indeed quite proactive.

However, there is one thing he doesn't know: Baldy's hope for him to become an assassin was disrupted from the beginning by Contra's idea.