"Old man, I'm here to turn in the quest!"
Jiang Bai, as usual, appeared at the blacksmith's shop. At that moment, the old blacksmith was bent over, pounding a piece of iron ingot with a loud clang. His bronze-colored skin glistened with sweat, making him look like a roast duck being grilled.
Upon hearing Jiang Bai's voice, the blacksmith's movements halted. After a brief pause, he slowly raised his head.
When the old blacksmith saw Jiang Bai, a look of astonishment crossed his face.
"Did you complete it again?"
"I did!"
"That's impossible!"
"If you don't believe me, check the quest progress yourself."
Jiang Bai was too lazy to explain further and simply displayed the quest panel.
Immediately, the old blacksmith's face was filled with disbelief. "This... this is too fast."
"I said, old man, stop wasting time and give me my reward," Jiang Bai urged impatiently.
"Alright."
The old blacksmith fell silent for a moment, then nodded. His gaze towards Jiang Bai now held a different kind of sparkle.
"You have completed the hidden chained quest [The Blacksmith's Trial (I)]. You have gained 6000 experience points, 100 reputation, and 2 gold coins. You have unlocked the chained quest [The Blacksmith's Trial (II)]."
"Huh?"
Jiang Bai was taken aback. "Unlocking a quest counts as a reward now?"
Although the quest didn't reward any additional items, overall, the rewards were quite substantial.
The 6000 experience points allowed Jiang Bai to level up twice, reaching level 6. With this, the levels that had been suppressed by the quest were now caught up. The top-tier players in the game were currently around this level range.
The 2 gold coins were self-explanatory—equivalent to twenty thousand copper coins, which was already quite impressive.
"As for this chained quest..."
Jiang Bai scratched his head. "Judging by this, this series of hidden chained quests seems to form a coherent system. It's likely an entire storyline, and the final link must have a big surprise. Players who are familiar with MMORPGs should recognize this pattern."
"In terms of difficulty, aside from me, this set of quests is definitely of an outrageous level. Just triggering the over-level quest is something few people can manage, and the prerequisite of solo grinding wild boars at a higher level is enough to stop 99.9% of players."
"So here's the question," Jiang Bai stared straight at the old blacksmith. "What could the final surprise be for such a complicated set of hidden quests?"
The old blacksmith's gaze became more serious than ever as he responded to Jiang Bai's look. "Young man, at this point, you must realize that things are not as simple as they seem, right?"
"It seems they are not..."
Jiang Bai nodded. "How many more quests are there in this chain?"
Ignoring Jiang Bai's question, the old blacksmith's eyes fell on the longbow on Jiang Bai's back. He spoke to himself, "You should let me take a look at your weapon."
This time, Jiang Bai did not resist. He vaguely felt that if he wanted to continue with the quest, he should let the blacksmith take a look.
With that thought, Jiang Bai took off the longbow and carefully handed it to the old blacksmith.
The moment the longbow was in his hands, the old blacksmith's expression changed dramatically. He stared at the ancient longbow with an air of obsession, as if his entire world had narrowed down to just that weapon.
"I sense the aura of the Creator God."
"But unfortunately..."
The old blacksmith shook his head with a hint of regret, handing the longbow back to Jiang Bai. "This artifact is too low in level. It will eventually become a burden to you. What a pity..."
Watching the old blacksmith sigh, Jiang Bai was far from lamenting. Instead, he looked at him with delight.
Clearly, the old blacksmith's final sigh indicated that he could enhance the level of this weapon; he just needed something more...
"Old man, stop looking so gloomy. Be honest, can you help me advance this weapon?"
"There is a way..." The old blacksmith's brows furrowed into a "川" shape. "But it's not possible now. The Ancestor's Hammer is beyond repair."
"Don't say that. Tell me what's needed to fix it. I'll go and get it. Let's give it a try!"
Jiang Bai immediately became excited.
"Are you really willing to try? Young man, it could be deadly," the old blacksmith said with a worried look.
"Haha... Just tell me. I'll take care of it. Whether it succeeds or not is up to fate. Don't hesitate any longer..."
"Alright!"
As the old blacksmith finished speaking, the familiar voice of the system sounded again.
"You have triggered the chained hidden quest [The Blacksmith's Trial (Repairing the Ancestor's Hammer)]. Do you accept?"
"Huh? No more forced acceptance this time?"
Jiang Bai was taken aback for a moment, then he looked at the quest description.
The Blacksmith's Trial (Repairing the Ancestor's Hammer)
Quest Description: The mighty Ancestor's Hammer was forged by the ancient race of Hill Giants. It could hammer and shape all things, creating the strongest artifacts in the world. Unfortunately, during the War of the Gods eighteen thousand years ago, the Ancestor's Hammer was damaged and has remained irreparable to this day. Young man, do you have the courage to seek out enough Soul Crystals to repair the Ancestor's Hammer?
Quest Content: Collect 200 pieces of Magic Crystal Ore, 100 vials of Magic Wolf Blood, and 3 Boss Soul Crystals. Quest Reward: ???
"These are all rare items," Jiang Bai thought.
Although he didn't fully understand the quest content at first glance, he accepted the quest without hesitation. After all, it was related to upgrading his weapon, and it was part of a chained quest. If he wanted to continue, he had to accept it.
"I really want to see what the final outcome of this series of quests will be," Jiang Bai mused.
"Wait..."
Jiang Bai suddenly thought of something. "Judging by the description, if the Ancestor's Hammer is a product of the ancient Hill Giants, then this old blacksmith..."
Jiang Bai's gaze once again fell on the old blacksmith, who had already bent over and started hammering again, no longer answering any of Jiang Bai's questions.
...
"Magic Crystal Ore."
On his way out, Jiang Bai opened his item catalog and found it on the third page. "Magic Crystal Ore is produced in the Magic Crystal Mine in the Misty Valley. The mine is inhabited by level 8-9 Enraged Dwarven Miners."
"So that's how it is."
"As for Magic Wolf Blood, it comes from the Enraged Wild Wolves in the Misty Forest, which are level 8 monsters."
"It shouldn't be too difficult to farm."
However, before rushing to grind monsters, Jiang Bai once again opened the trading market and immediately purchased 8 ordinary level 5 necklaces, spending a total of 11 gold coins.
There was no other choice; among all equipment slots, necklaces were the most expensive.
Jiang Bai still had 22.1 gold coins left in his bag.
Although it was a bit painful to spend so much, these upgrades were essential. There was no need to spend a fortune to combine them into ancient or epic gear; epic was more than enough.
After some effort, a brand-new epic piece of equipment appeared before Jiang Bai.
Deadly Abyssal Necklace (Epic)
Physical Attack: 20
Agility: 4
Strength: 2
Deadly: Increases critical strike chance by 2%
"Not bad, not bad. With this, I now have a 7% critical strike chance," Jiang Bai thought.
Seeing these attributes, he felt that the nearly ten gold coins he spent were well worth it.
Taking advantage of the early game phase, he needed to maximize the gap between himself and other players. After all, epic, ancient, and even legendary gear would not be scarce in the late game. At that point, his advantage would be completely nullified. So Jiang Bai was now leveraging this advantage to build an even greater one.
The better the attributes, the faster he could grind monsters in groups. The faster he could grind, the more times the Plunder skill would trigger. And Plunder was the advantage that other players could not nullify!
After putting on the necklace, Jiang Bai's attributes at level 6 underwent another dramatic change.
Deserted City Dream
Level: 6
Class: Archer
Race: Human
Health: 900
Energy: 200
Physical Attack: 277-283
Magic Attack: 11
Attack Power: 40
Defense: 74
Attributes: None
Constitution: 20
Spirit: 10
Strength: 20
Intelligence: 11
Agility: 46
Skills: Vibration Shot, Precision Shot, Multi-Shot
Titles: I'm Strong, Ancient Will, First Blood
"Considering the attack power and the true damage from the weapon, I can deal around 350 damage against zero defense."
"Absolutely outrageous!"