Chapter 9 of 100
Chapter 9
10 min read2,485 words
At this moment, Fang Yi felt the water current change direction, and in the heavy darkness, a faint light point suddenly appeared in the distance. Fang Yi shivered, raised his hand to wipe his face with the river water, and forced his eyes open to look. Indeed, there was a light!
Fang Yi quickly moved his cold hands and feet, and with a not-so-standard doggy paddle, he swam hard toward the shore.
A human-shaped skeleton leaned against a large rock by the shore. From the incomplete equipment, it could be vaguely seen that it was a druid. The light was coming from the necklace around the remains' neck.
Fang Yi stood at a sufficient distance, hesitated for a moment, then activated the trap detection skill on the skill panel. After a careful inspection, he confirmed there were no traps and then approached, slowly removing the necklace from the skeleton's neck.
The necklace's pure white gem was enveloped in a soft white light, emitting a warm glow. Through the semi-transparent outer shell of the gem, faintly visible were the magical runes flowing inside. Fang Yi knew this was the illusion created by the surging magical power within the gem.
Loyal Lament (Rare Necklace) (Damaged)
Neck
Level Requirement: 27, Intelligence: 23
Weight: 1
+1 Intelligence
+1 Strength
Durability: 77
Blazing Barrier (Passive): The wearer is enveloped in holy power, causing undead creatures within a 6-foot radius to take 4 points of holy damage every 5 seconds. When the accumulated damage reaches 21 points, the enemy will be silenced for 3 seconds.
"Etched on the back of the silver metal encasing the gem, in Elvish and Common, are a few strong and forceful small words: 'Your destruction, my faith.'"
The moment Fang Yi removed the necklace, he received a system prompt: "Do you accept the quest Heart of the Holy Light?"
Without hesitation, Fang Yi accepted it: Even after being damaged, the necklace was still a rare item. Even if it wasn't a hidden quest, the reward for such a difficult-to-trigger plot would likely not be bad.
Adventure Log Update:
"The adventurer in front of you has likely been dead for a long time. The clothes and equipment, after long-term corrosion, are already in tatters, barely recognizable as a druid. In the dark and lonely underground world, only the Luminous Stone (Note 1) still shines with its former glory.
This piece of magical equipment is of such high quality that many high-ranking paladins would never see it in their lifetimes. The original owner must have been a noble and pure knight or priest. Perhaps you should inquire at the Temple of Justice in Tashir?"
Fang Yi, with his rich treasure-hunting experience, knew that the purpose of such hidden locations was to provide quests to players, usually with some small clues.
Sure enough, Fang Yi didn't have to search much to find a small piece of bark and a charm under the skeleton.
The bark was clearly treated with some secret method, and apart from some dust, it hadn't changed much due to the cave's humidity.
"The bark in your hand faintly bears a few words: 'Silent Knight.'"
The charm was a one-time use quest item, "Sid's Charm," which could transform Fang Yi into an otter for twenty minutes.
This necklace, before it was damaged, was at least an epic-level item, tailored for defensive paladins. Fang Yi couldn't even imagine the effect of the "Blazing Barrier" skill on a guardian knight before it was damaged.
However, how did such a clearly "specialized" piece of equipment end up in the hands of a druid? Moreover, aquatic and terrestrial transformations are low-level druid spells. A druid capable of equipping this necklace would have no reason not to know them. Could it be that "he" was severely injured before dying? Based on the current clues, Fang Yi could only say this didn't make sense.
Transformed into an otter, Fang Yi swam freely in the underground river, his mind still pondering the quest. The quest description didn't provide more clues, but this was what professional players loved. The more troublesome the quest, the greater the potential reward.
After swimming for about ten minutes, Fang Yi felt a bright light above him. He poked his sharp otter head out of the water, and a wave of heat hit him, confirming that he had finally swum out of the dark river's range.
He cautiously looked around and found that the river's exit was in a mountain stream not far from the mine. Some players were already entering and exiting the mine entrance, but it was unknown if anyone had discovered the ogre lair inside. However, at the current player levels, going there would be suicide. Even at higher levels, no one would stay near the newbie village. Could this ogre lair have some secret?
Finding a secluded spot, Fang Yi restored his original appearance. As he watched his stamina bar slowly increase, he started to daydream. Suddenly, he remembered the items he had taken from the ogre in a hurry. He quickly checked his bag and found two bottles of "Substandard Healing Potion (Instantly restores 10 HP)," a dagger, and a rune.
Sharp Dagger (Excellent Dagger)
Light Weapon
Level Requirement: 3
Weight: 5
Durability: 12
Damage 6-10 (+20% sharpened) (Note 1)
"Ogre's Craftsmanship"
Iron Rune (Inlay)
+3 Armor Durability
"Damn, the ogre who chased me for a thousand miles was a blacksmith? I can't do anything about the game company's twisted sense of humor..."
Despite his words, Fang Yi was secretly delighted. This item for level 3 equipment was quite impressive, tripling the damage.
The rune was also a rare item, allowing blacksmiths or tailors to inlay it into armor to enhance certain attributes. However, increasing durability was a bit useless, and no one would waste a hole in their equipment to inlay such a lousy rune. If it increased armor, it would be valuable... Fang Yi thought greedily.
It was noon in-game, the hottest time in Dragon Coast. The NPCs in Farview Town had retreated into the cool stone houses. Fang Yi circled the town and found a dwarf cooling off under a large, lush banyan tree.
Harold Ironshoulder was sitting in his old wicker chair, enjoying the afternoon. In his dream, he had discovered an endless vein of mithril, the silver-brown ore beneath him shimmering with the most beautiful light in the world. Just as Harold was about to pick up a piece to admire, he felt the ground shake and someone shouting his name. Then he realized the mithril ore had disappeared, and a repulsive (Note 3) young man stood in front of him, holding a pile of black objects.
Fang Yi stared in disbelief at the dwarf under the tree... He had been unable to wake the snoring, sleepyhead no matter how much he called, and had to shake the recliner a few times. Unexpectedly, the moment the dwarf woke up, he swiftly grabbed the two stacks (20 pieces) of iron ore from Fang Yi's hands and started yelling about how Fang Yi had disturbed his dream.
After a moment of shock, Fang Yi, familiar with the dwarves' temper, chuckled and said, "Mr. Harold, you've completed the task I gave you. No matter how loudly you shout, can you take away my reward?" He then made a universal "money" gesture to the bluffing dwarf.
Harold Ironshoulder was momentarily speechless, glared at Fang Yi, and grumbled as he got up from the chair. Fang Yi followed him into the small house next to the banyan tree.
The change in light made Fang Yi momentarily dazed, as if he had returned to the dark underground caves. Shaking his head, he dispelled the unreal feeling and squinted to examine the slightly low house.
Dust and various iron items filled the entire house. Most were farming tools like iron picks, with a few crudely made weapons mixed in. Fang Yi even thought they looked worse than the cheap short sword at his waist. Considering the bustling blacksmith shop in the center of Farview Town, Fang Yi understood why.
Less than a minute later, the dwarf Harold emerged from the inner room, handed Fang Yi a package (Note 1), and gruffly said, "Although you're not a pleasant sight, your skills aren't bad. Are you interested in doing another favor for me?"
Fang Yi's eyes lit up, and he casually threw the copper coins into the package. During the beta test, he had played a paladin with a charisma of 16, and few NPCs would offer him quests. Could this be a chain quest?
Seeing Fang Yi nod vigorously, Harold nodded in satisfaction, "In the cave you entered, there's a passage leading to an ogre lair. It was originally a fortress of ours, many years ago..."
When Harold mentioned the ogre lair, Fang Yi immediately put on a bitter and resentful expression, looking at the dwarf in front of him with anger: Knowing there were ogres, you didn't warn me, almost getting me chased to the Falling Star Sea! Ogres are level 9 monsters, and you need at least level 10 to challenge them.
Harold looked at Fang Yi and muttered, "Who knew you'd go so deep..." However, knowing he was in the wrong, he quickly looked at the clouds in the sky and said nonchalantly, "Did you notice the architectural style in the ogre lair? It was a relic of our dwarves long ago. I'll be a bearded gnome if I'm lying!" Harold's expression suddenly became inexplicably excited, and Fang Yi quickly accepted the quest, his eyes shining as he stared at the bearded dwarf.
Note 1: A blacksmith's sharpening skill can increase a weapon's damage by a percentage. The higher the weapon's quality, the higher the blacksmith's level required, and the more difficult it is to increase the damage.
Note 2: Luminous Stone: A rare gem, usually found in small quantities in the Standing Stones Plain of the Enorok Desert, though some claim to have seen it in the Kharin Desert.
A high-quality Luminous Stone has a faint, milky white mist inside, often round or oval, with a very high affinity for holy magic. It is the most beloved mana enhancement gem for church knights or priests.
Effect: Depending on the caster and blacksmith skill levels, a Luminous Stone can attach up to a 6th-level spell barrier and can be inlaid into the caster's weapon to provide up to a 7% boost to holy spells and up to a 5% boost to other spells. (Effects of multiple identical gems do not stack.)
Note 3: Players with charisma below 9 are considered "repulsive" by ordinary NPCs.
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