Chapter 227: Spending Money Like Water
Since the innocent souls saved by Soul Salvation are directly reset to zero after leaving a dungeon, some things can't be tested immediately.
During the last dungeon, I wanted to do something with the Mummy Antidote, but it ended up in drill-press-roadroller mode, and I eventually tossed it aside.
So, the specific situation still needs specific testing, and Makaimura is clearly a very good testing ground.
The current Cheng Tian is full of vigor and doesn't want to rest at all; he feels like he could just eat something and then head to Makaimura.
But before that... Cheng Tian pulled out the straight Crimson Chaos Scepter.
As an enhanced version of the Emerald Scepter, the Crimson Chaos Scepter's enhancement slot limit has also increased to 3 people. As the primary user, he can also spread a portion of the enhancement attributes to his subordinates and combat mounts.
Just the enhancement attributes of this single scepter already exceed the B-rank evaluation rewards of a normal main quest. It even has dual-equipment specific enhancements and an additional 150 HP to the health cap. For many players who don't primarily spec into strength, the significance of this item might even be higher than simple attribute points or skill points.
Aileen is definitely indispensable, but how should the remaining slot be handled?
Selling it for money is an option. As long as there's enough money and sufficiently special equipment or skill scrolls, this third slot could be sold to others.
Don't let Cheng Tian's current stash of small change, which has already reached over 100,000, fool you; he earns a lot, but he also spends a lot.
The feeding costs for biological vehicles and combat mounts, the newly acquired twin swords and greatsword, and even the original equipment all need to aim for +7. He could even consider focusing on pushing a key piece of equipment towards +10, plus replenishing mount ammunition, and so on. All of these require money to maintain.
As long as Cheng Tian wants to spend, he will definitely spend it, no matter how much money he has.
However, Aileen hasn't returned yet, so the enhancement slot will most likely go to auction. And there's still a lot of equipment to enhance. So, Cheng Tian slapped his thigh, crammed a pizza with three layers of cheese into his mouth, then casually snatched a bunch of bananas from Urtan to fill his stomach, and headed out.
Soon, he arrived near the enhancement machine.
As usual, there weren't many people here during the main quest period, and Kelly was still using a decoy to pretend to be an NPC.
However, this decoy might have some kind of monitoring system, as Cheng Tian saw Kelly's originally vacant gaze instantly become lively, and she then greeted him.
"Yo ~ little brother ~ your clearance efficiency is still as lightning-fast as ever ~"
"...Is my expression that obvious?"
"Heh! I've seen plenty of players who failed the main quest; they're usually either frantic or looking glum. They mostly come here to empty their pockets to repair and enhance equipment. Unlike you, hunched over, taking small steps, hands behind your back, and carrying a bunch of bananas, like an old grandpa out for a stroll."
"I see... Want a banana?"
"Give me one, not too ripe."
Kelly, who took a banana from Cheng Tian's hand, also conjured two plastic stools out of thin air and gave one to Cheng Tian.
They were the kind often seen at barbecue stalls, the ones that, once stacked with too much force, become as hard to pull apart as the prince's sword from the stone. The two sat facing each other and simultaneously peeled their bananas.
Interestingly, Cheng Mouren peeled his from the stem, while Kelly tore hers open directly from the black tip at the other end. Their banana-peeling directions were completely opposite.
"Got any new good equipment? Let your big sister have a look."
Kelly, who should be two or three years younger than Cheng Tian, said this.
Not bothering with the formalities of address, Cheng Tian displayed the attributes of both the twin swords and the greatsword.
"Pretty good crit and attack speed swords, but they probably won't be of much use in your hands."
Kelly affirmed the attributes of Balford's twin swords but denied Cheng Tian's physical capabilities.
Cheng Tian wasn't annoyed, because she was speaking the truth. Although he could indirectly gain higher HP than many main-strength players through the Primal Shell, his overall stat distribution trended towards mental power specialization. As dungeon difficulty increased, the attribute growth directions of players he would encounter in the future would surely have already been decided, and resources invested accordingly.
Therefore, his physical attributes would inevitably differ more and more from those who primarily spec into physical attributes. Under the same conditions, an excellent weapon in his hands, of course, couldn't compare to a melee player who primarily specs into physical attributes.
However, Cheng Tian still quite liked these twin swords. When playing Vermintide, he preferred using the Elf Twin Swords and the Knight's Staff Sword. He might not use them, but he couldn't be without them.
But for the prince's sword, which had very stringent equipment requirements and whose attributes didn't seem particularly outstanding, Kelly had a noticeably stronger reaction.
Cheng Tian pulled out the physical item and let her handle it. She caressed it for a moment before finally sighing and returning it to Cheng Tian's hand.
"This item originally should have had the potential to become a Golden Legend, but it looks like it was cut into two objects. Although the overall value should have increased... Hmm, it's a bit of a shame."
Regarding Kelly's assessment, Cheng Tian could only say that she was indeed the one in charge of the enhancement machine; even when slacking off, it didn't dull her discerning eye.
This prince's sword was indeed the product of a cut from the 'Random Step Slicing Technique,' and what was separated out was actually the Titan's Grip, which is now in Cheng Tian's third skill slot.
However, Cheng Tian didn't regret it. If not for that cut, the final prince's sword might truly have taken the form of a Golden Legend, but it would also mean it was completely incompatible with him, only suitable for gathering dust or being sold for money.
What good is an unusable item, no matter how good its attributes?
"In short, weapons like this that can provide group aura bonuses in legion battles are rare items."
Kelly paused here, then scanned Cheng Tian from top to bottom.
"Since you've already advanced to Black Iron, it's within the rules. In the future, if large-scale team battles are involved, this item's team amplification might determine the outcome of the battle... And I think it should still have the possibility of returning to a Golden Legend, but it requires some rather special opportunities."
"Opportunities, huh..."
Taking it back, Cheng Tian muttered as he casually shoved the prince's sword into the enhancement machine, but in his heart, he was thinking of the Prince's brother, the Golden Grand Duke Garibaldi.
Presumably, this should be the so-called opportunity.
One can only say that enhancing high-level equipment is truly painful. The consumption of Chosen Coins for each enhancement level jumps by thousands, thousands. Besides the prince's sword, there are also the twin swords +2, which require double payment, the Dragon Scale Cuirass +5, and the Fire Moth Wings +4. All of these need to be pushed towards +7. This rate of spending, like a fish tank being smashed open, directly shattered Cheng Tian's +10 dream.
And this is even assuming no failure or downgrade during the +5 to +7 enhancements.
For ordinary players, equipment that isn't used or doesn't provide much improvement is usually swapped out, transferring the enhancement cost to the buyer. Half of the equipment with enhancement levels are usually items the user themselves acquired.
As the enhancement levels increased, Cheng Mouren, whose wealth was bottoming out in the blink of an eye, did not become anxious but immediately set about doing two things.
One was to directly list the third enhancement slot of the Crimson Chaos Scepter on the auction house, to the highest bidder.
The second was to directly pull out the Demon King's Castle map, which had been gathering dust for two months, and immediately activate the single-player training mode.