Chapter Five: Xian’er, Forbidden by the Sun, Moon, and Stars!

The tea stall in the novice village, constructed from bamboo, was humble yet clean and refreshing. Sitting down to savor a few steamed buns alongside a light, cool herbal tea was a pleasure in its own right.

I had two pieces of reward equipment waiting to be appraised. A sword with a cold, pale-green blade showing no stats—likely of Silver grade—and a silver ring with a sophisticated polish, also requiring appraisal. In "Fantasy," any equipment above Silver grade must be identified before it can be used.

The appraisal shop was located to the left of the plaza’s ancestral hall. The storefront was simple and neat, though the business was quiet. The NPC who greeted me appeared to be a rather shrewd appraiser; his black-rimmed glasses added an air of authority to his expertise, and his clean, scholarly robe looked quite respectable for such a primitive novice village. A name tag hovered above his head: "Lin Santong." Seeing me enter, he immediately put on the professional smile characteristic of a merchant and said courteously, "Welcome to my shop, traveler! Do you need to have equipment appraised, or are you looking to purchase appraisal scrolls?" Appraisal scrolls were slightly more expensive than using an appraiser directly, intended primarily for those leveling far from towns and villages.

I was likely the first customer to visit this appraiser in the novice village. For a first-time transaction, I felt entitled to a discount—though, of course, I would have to fight for it. Merchants are inherently cunning; if you don't stay sharp, they won't hesitate to fleece you.

I handed over the two items and asked, "How much to appraise these?"

Lin Santong carefully rubbed the surfaces of the gear, his smile widening. "You are quite lucky, traveler; these items have decent attributes. The sword will cost 30 silver coins to appraise, and the ring 55. If you do both together, I can give you a discount: 80 silver coins."

Eighty silver coins just for appraisal? I had only earned 70-something coins after a full day of hard work. I grumbled, "Boss Lin, you aren't trying to rip me off because I'm a new face, are you? 80 silver for two items—that's more profitable than robbery. Maybe I should change professions."

Lin Santong laughed awkwardly. "You’re a joker, traveler. My shop has a fine reputation; I never cheat my customers. How about this: 70 silver for both. Let’s call it a good omen for a first transaction."

"60 silver, take it or leave it! If I give you everything, I won't even have enough for lunch!" I complained.

Lin Santong looked troubled, muttering for a long time before finally agreeing.

The stats of the gear were excellent. The Azure Blade, a Silver-grade weapon, required level 12, 25 Strength, and 15 Agility. It had 13-19 damage (one-handed) or 25-38 (two-handed), +3 Strength, and a "Paralysis Strike" (a 50% chance to stun the target for 3 seconds when hitting a vital spot). It weighed 25 and had 250/250 durability. It was a four-foot blade with a delicate hilt—perfect for when I finished my class advancement.

The ring was even more delightful: "Love’s Blessing," a Silver-grade item, required level 5, provided +2 Luck (increasing Luck by 2%) and +5% Defense, with a weight of 4. Luck-based gear was rare; even Gold rings didn't always have it. While a +4 Luck accessory was legendary, +2 was already quite impressive. Best of all, I could equip it right now.

After repairing my gear, I remembered I still had materials in my bag to deal with. Just as I arrived at the general store, I saw the man who had kindly invited me to join his party earlier, surrounded by players asking him questions. I didn't want to join the crowd, but out of goodwill, I moved closer.

I heard his rugged voice say, "Friends, has anyone found a White Wolf Tooth? I’m buying at a high price, please!" A White Wolf Tooth? I remembered getting one when I killed the White Wolf. I checked my bag, and sure enough, it was there. I squeezed through the crowd, tapped his shoulder, and whispered, "Brother, can we talk for a moment?"

He turned around, looking slightly excited. "Oh, it's you! We’ve met! What is it?"

Other players checked their bags, found no White Wolf Teeth, and dispersed in disappointment. I asked, "I have one. What is it used for?"

He was pleasantly surprised. "You really have one?" Seeing the players nearby glancing over, he realized he had been too loud and lowered his voice to explain. He had triggered a hidden quest requiring several materials; he had gathered everything except the White Wolf Tooth. Hidden quests were unique—once triggered, they wouldn't reappear for others. Since the tooth was useless to me, I decided to do him a favor. "Since you need it, take it. I was just about to sell it to an NPC."

He was overjoyed but firm. "Brother, this wasn't easy to get. I can't take it for free. Here is 50 silver coins as a fee for your trouble. It’s not much, but it's all I have." The rewards for hidden quests were generous, so 50 silver wasn't actually much, but if I took his money, it would turn into a transaction, which went against my intention. After I insisted, he finally accepted.

After introducing ourselves, I saw his name: "Not Calling Hu Ma to Cross the Yin Mountains." He looked righteous and imposing; if he had been born in ancient times, wearing armor and holding a halberd, he surely would have been a fierce general.

"Brother, I'll call you Dashan from now on. I've added you as a friend; just let me know if you need anything."

When he saw my name, he realized, "Oh, so you're Blue Bat! The first player to complete a hidden quest really is no ordinary person. Let's talk later; I need to go turn in my quest."

I hadn't been to the top of Guniu Mountain yet, and the level 8-9 Gray Wolves were perfect for me. I fought my way to the mountainside and returned to the area where I had killed the White Wolf. Pausing there, I leveled up to 6 by killing Gray Wolves. With the Luck ring equipped, my drops improved significantly; in just over half an hour, I had found three pieces of White-grade gear. I finally had a level 6 leather chest piece to replace my novice tunic.

Reaching the summit, I found that the monsters were only level 11 Gray Wolves. I searched everywhere but found no boss; perhaps the White Wolf had been the leader of this range, and it would take time to respawn. The summit was covered in herbs, but I hadn't learned gathering yet, so I could only sigh. After an hour and a half, I reached level 7 and had a great haul, including a Bronze-grade item: a Brass Sword (level 7, 20 Strength/10 Agility requirement, 7-10/9-13 damage, +3 Strength, weight 14, 30/30 durability). It was much better than the dull iron sword. I also had five pieces of White-grade gear and over 50 silver coins.

...

After washing up and logging back in, a system notification appeared: "The Wind and Cloud Rankings have been released. Please take a look."

I opened the panel to see the three major rankings for the China region: Character, Equipment, and Wealth. I checked the Character rankings and found myself in 3rd place; the leader, "Xichu Mad Blade," was already level 8. My leveling speed wasn't slow, but he must have utilized every single minute of his 15 hours. The person in 2nd place had a feminine name, "Morning Dew Autumn Frost"—she must be a lonely shut-in, otherwise, she wouldn't have the time to focus on grinding.

On the Equipment rankings, my Silver ring was at the top. All other items were Silver-grade and below level 10. The 2nd place item was a piece of chest armor called "Righteous Armor," held by Xichu Mad Blade. Since he was on both rankings, he was either incredibly lucky or backed by a powerful organization. A tree that stands out in the forest is the first to be felled by the wind. I preferred to keep a low profile; being too flashy invites jealousy and unnecessary trouble. The system allowed players to hide their names on the rankings, and I chose to keep mine "Unknown."

The Wealth ranking shocked me. The leader, "Thirteenth Young Master," had 25 gold coins, and the person in last place had 16. It was unbelievable! By normal means, my 70 silver coins were a decent haul. They must have had massive backing. Once the official trading platform opened, the wealth gap would only widen.

Well, there is no comparing people! Time to focus on leveling.

Wielding the Brass Sword with ease, I cut down Gray Wolves near my level, and my experience soared. Within two hours, I reached level 8. If I pushed hard, level 11 was in sight! There was no more bonus experience for killing these wolves, so it was time to move on.

The Fertile Plains were east of Guniu Mountain. The open, lush green expanse was filled with grazing cattle. The morning sun lay across the grass like a golden carpet, making me want to lie down and sleep under the open sky. The plains were scattered with Wild Oxen, level 12-15. They had high attack and defense, but they couldn't match my speed. I dodged and weaved, using my agility to wear them down. By the time I hit level 9, I was 2nd on the rankings. I was closing in on 1st. I didn't care much for the title, but it served as motivation to excel. I wanted to be the best in the game to live up to Xiao Lan’s expectations.

Driven by this momentum, I fought for nearly six hours and finally reached level 11. Looking at the carcasses of the oxen, I realized that if I ever ran out of options, my experience butchering these beasts meant I could probably make a living as a butcher! A pleasant chime sounded: "Congratulations on leveling up. You have reached level 11. You may now head to the main city to choose your class!"

Back at the village entrance, I ran into Dashan, who was in a hurry. He smiled brightly. "Bat, what a coincidence! Why don't we level together?"

"Heh, I'm already level 11. You need to keep up!"

Dashan was surprised. "I didn't check the rankings for a moment, and you're already 11! Congratulations! I need to get back to grinding. Talk later!"

I called out to him, "Wait, I have some gear you can use. Take these!"

Dashan hesitated. "Bat, I already felt bad taking your wolf tooth last time. I can't take your gear."

"Between friends, there's no need to be so formal. Helping each other is what friends are for."

Seeing my sincerity, he stopped refusing, thanked me, and went on his way.

I messaged "Nothing Special," who was also leveling, and let him pick out some gear. He was a friend, after all. Before he could finish his embarrassing words of admiration, I kicked him away—better to kill more monsters than stand around chatting! The remaining dozen pieces of gear were a waste to discard, and in the equipment-starved world of Fantasy, they could fetch a decent price.

I put the rest on consignment at the shop. White-grade gear went for 25-45 silver, the level 9 Bronze spear for 90, and level 8 cloth armor for 75—fair prices given the drop rates. The 10% consignment fee was annoying, but it saved me the trouble of shouting in the streets. The shop owner, seeing me dump 18 items at once, beamed, "You're a VIP customer! To show my appreciation, I'll give you a 20% discount on the fee." That made me feel a bit better.