"The Long Sword actually sold for eleven thousand. That's even better than I expected." Yu Zhun nodded in satisfaction as he checked the funds deposited into his account from the transaction.
He had already equipped He Guangtao's Leather Armor. Although it was only the most common white-tier quality, it still provided him with an additional twenty health points, along with five points of Physical Resistance and Magic Resistance. With everything sorted out, Yu Zhun arrived at the border of the Gray Ruins.
Unlike the Demon Sheep Wilderness, the area where Newbie City bordered the Gray Ruins was bustling with players. These players were either forming parties or setting up stalls to sell items, organically creating a lively little bazaar.
The reason for this crowded gathering had to do with the pack mechanism of the Gray Demon Dogs. Aside from the previously mentioned single-target aggro mechanism, Gray Demon Dogs were categorized as pack-hunting Demon Beasts by design, meaning they possessed an additional corresponding pack mechanism.
This meant that for every Gray Demon Dog a player killed, their pack aggro would increase slightly. As this aggro accumulated, it became easier to attract the attention of other Gray Demon Dogs. Once it reached a certain threshold, the player would even be swarmed and besieged by the pack.
To efficiently hunt Gray Demon Dogs for experience, forming a multiplayer party was the best approach. Team members could take turns landing the killing blows to distribute the pack aggro, and they would have a better chance of surviving if they were actually swarmed. Therefore, many players sought out parties before entering the Gray Ruins. However, Yu Zhun still had no intention of teaming up this time.
In her guide, Yu Zhu had mentioned a little-known bug that would allow him to completely ignore the pack aggro and chain-kill the Gray Demon Dogs. Yu Zhun planned to take full advantage of it on this trip.
Having looted He Guangtao's gear, Yu Zhun had made a small fortune. Before entering the Gray Ruins, he could afford to make a few extra preparations. Glancing around, he walked straight up to a stall selling Skill Books. "Give me a [Sword Dance] Skill Book."
[Sword Dance] was a Universal Skill that enhanced a player's close-quarters combat capabilities. If an average player could fight one-on-one, a player equipped with [Sword Dance] could handle one-on-three or even more. Because of this, the Skill Book was incredibly expensive.
"I've got exactly one left. Eight thousand," the stall owner said calmly, glancing at Yu Zhun. "Do you want it or not?"
"Eight thousand?" Yu Zhun scrutinized the vendor and suddenly smiled. "I'll take it right now for four thousand."
The stall owner sneered. "Even when haggling, you don't slash the price in half. Get lost if you don't have the money. If you don't want it, plenty of others do."
"You're right, but can you afford to wait?" Yu Zhun chuckled. "Skill Books aren't like other items. Putting them up on the auction house usually takes twenty-four hours to get the funds cleared.
"People who choose to set up a stall to get their money faster usually have some sort of urgent problem."
The stall owner's expression shifted slightly, a flash of vigilance appearing in his eyes. "Seven thousand. That's my lowest price."
"I can only do five thousand."
"You... six thousand! I'd rather let it rot here than go any lower."
"Deal." Yu Zhun happily transferred the six thousand. After stowing away the [Sword Dance] Skill Book, he picked up another Skill Book sitting nearby. "Consider it buy one, get one free. Throw this one in as a bonus."
"Hey! You..." The stall owner glanced at the Skill Book Yu Zhun had grabbed, swallowing whatever he was about to say.
It was just [Self-Healing]... whatever.
Yu Zhun turned and walked away, the smile on his face deepening.
The Universal Skill [Self-Healing] restored a player's health while out of combat. Because it only activated in an out-of-combat state, it was far inferior to a Priest's Healing, yet it still occupied a precious skill slot, making it very low in cost-effectiveness. However, for a lone wolf like Yu Zhun, this skill offered a boost to his sustain, making it exceptionally useful. The market price for [Sword Dance] was seven thousand, and [Self-Healing] was one thousand. He had made a killing, saving two thousand bucks in total.
[Skills: 4/4]
[Skill 1: Lurking (Lv1)]
[Skill 2: Swift Step (Lv1)]
[Skill 3: Sword Dance (Lv1): Enhances close-quarters combat capabilities, allowing the player to execute masterful weapon techniques on instinct.]
[Skill 4: Self-Healing (Lv1): Restores 5% of maximum health per minute while out of combat.]
Yu Zhun nodded in satisfaction.
With [Swift Step] combined with [Sword Dance], his melee combat ability was already quite formidable. With [Self-Healing] in his arsenal, his sustain was also guaranteed. It was time to test out Yu Zhu's guide.
Yu Zhun strolled over to a weapon stall. "Give me one hundred Initial Profession daggers for Assassins."
At the Gray Ruins.
Yu Zhun stepped inside and quickly spotted a lone Gray Demon Dog. This type of Demon Beast was nearly two meters long, its entire body covered in short gray fur marked with blood-red Demon Patterns. The coverage of these Demon Patterns varied depending on the beast's level. Judging by the patterns, this was a Lv4 Gray Demon Dog.
The moment Yu Zhun stepped into its aggro range, the Gray Demon Dog raised its head and unleashed a vicious roar. Like a bolt of gray lightning, it instantly lunged straight for Yu Zhun's face.
It truly couldn't be compared to the little Demon Sheep.
Yu Zhun raised the dagger in his hand. "My name is Yu Zhun."
[Swift Step], activate!
[Sword Dance], activate!
His figure flashed to the side like a phantom, narrowly dodging the Gray Demon Dog's leaping strike. Twisting his waist, he thrust his dagger directly into the beast.
"And I'm here to kill you."
SQUELCH!
[Health -420]
Blood-red text popped up above the Gray Demon Dog's head. The beast, which had been incomparably ferocious just a second ago, instantly collapsed to the ground.
[Congratulations on your valiant display of power. You have defeated the ferocious Demon Beast, Gray Demon Dog (Lv4). Level Experience +15. No special drops this time.]
The moment the text popped up, Yu Zhun immediately hurled the dagger in his hand as far away as possible. A faint wisp of gray airflow swirled briefly over the spot where the dagger landed before quietly dissipating.
Seeing this, a surge of joy filled Yu Zhun's heart as he realized it actually worked.
According to Yu Zhu's explanation, there was a brief window of time between the system confirming the Gray Demon Dog's death and it applying the pack aggro to the player. If a player discarded the weapon used to deal the killing blow within this time frame, the Divine Revelation World's mechanisms would rule that the two parties had mutually perished in combat. However, the discarded weapon could never be used again; otherwise, the pack aggro would reattach to the player.
Because of this, Yu Zhun had purchased one hundred identical daggers. These Initial Profession weapons, devoid of any equipment attributes or special effects, were of very low value. After some haggling, Yu Zhun had managed to buy them for fifteen bucks apiece.
Calmly pulling out a fresh dagger, Yu Zhun walked toward the second Gray Demon Dog.
The hunt had begun!
[Congratulations on your valiant display of power. You have defeated the ferocious Demon Beast, Gray Demon Dog (Lv3). Level Experience +10. No special drops this time.]
[Congratulations on your valiant display of power. You have defeated the ferocious Demon Beast, Gray Demon Dog (Lv5). Level Experience +20. Drop item: Gray Demon Fang.]
[Congratulations...]
[Congratulations, your level has increased to Lv4!]
[Congratulations, your level has increased to Lv5!]
Practicedly swapping out for a new dagger, Yu Zhun flashed a satisfied smile. Now that he had reached Lv5, he could finally equip the [Black Demon Sheep's Cursed Necklace].