Another Trade

As more people obtained Jade Poison Beads, the secret would no longer be a secret. Night Rain Misty understood this, and she also knew that Yan Hua Yi Leng was a smart person who knew how to use a secret that would soon be exposed to gain some benefits.

Although they would learn this secret soon enough, the earlier they learned it, the more advantageous it would be, allowing them to build up an even greater lead. Thus, they were willing to pay a high price in exchange.

Thinking of this, Night Rain Misty connected to Yan Hua Yi Leng's communication channel. Knowing the latter's personality, she got straight to the point. "Sister Yan Hua, you should know some secrets about the Jade Poison Bead. I'd like to trade something for them. What do you think?"

After several seconds of silence, Yan Hua Yi Leng replied flatly, "Fine, but you'll need to offer something that interests us. Although the secret of the Jade Poison Bead will be exposed soon, knowing it in advance will still bring you considerable benefits."

Night Rain Misty was slightly surprised that Yan Hua Yi Leng had thought of this so quickly, but her tone remained unchanged. "All right. I'll first check what we've gained in this Novice Village, and we'll use some things to trade with you. How about this, Sister Yan Hua? Let's meet in twenty minutes. Name a place."

"The West Gate of the Novice Village." Yan Hua Yi Leng gave her an address before ending the communication.

Leaving Night Rain Misty to look into what she could use to trade for the secret, Yan Hua Yi Leng immediately contacted Ye Luo after ending the call. She said flatly, "Night Rain Misty wants to trade for the secret of the Jade Poison Bead. I agreed. We'll meet at the West Gate of the Novice Village in ten minutes and discuss it."

Knowing this was an important matter, Ye Luo temporarily gave up on refining pills and sprinted toward the West Gate of the Novice Village. When he passed Aunt Li's house, he turned in a quest, accepted another quest to hunt snake gallbladders, and continued running.

"According to Yan Hua's analysis, the secret of the Jade Poison Bead will soon become public knowledge. We might as well use it to trade for some benefits now." Ye Luo spoke as he hurried along, then checked his quest details.

Collect Snake Gallbladders (Normal Quest * Quest Difficulty: E)

Quest Details: Kill Bamboo Vipers in the Poisonous Swamp outside the West Gate of the Novice Village, collect 20 snake gallbladders, and bring them back to Aunt Li.

Quest Requirement: Within 1 day.

Quest Method: No restrictions.

Quest Rewards: Generous experience and some money upon completion.

Quest Tip: Bamboo Vipers are monsters above Level 20. They are quite vicious and excel at poison attacks. The Poisonous Swamp is filled with miasma, so Detoxification Pills are needed to enter. Players are advised to proceed with caution.

"Heh, I have plenty of Detoxification Pills, and Yan Hua and I are already Level 16. Working together, killing Level 20 Bamboo Vipers shouldn't be a problem." Ye Luo thought to himself. Remembering the formula in his Life Skill list, he became faintly excited. I'll finally have a chance to refine Rotten Skin Powder. Hehe, losing 30 HP every second for 10 seconds—it's a very powerful poison.

As he considered this, Ye Luo arrived at the West Gate of the Novice Village. Yan Hua Yi Leng was already there. Without any pleasantries, she said, "Ye Luo, we discovered the secret of the Jade Poison Bead together, so you have the right to voice your opinion. Tell me, what do you think?"

"I have no objections. Like you said, the secret of the Jade Poison Bead will soon cease to be a secret, so we might as well trade it for some benefits while it's still valuable." Ye Luo paused as he remembered something, then continued, "Besides, the Night Rain Family may have some fame, but it still can't compare to your Misty Pavilion. Telling them this secret won't pose any threat to you. It's better than telling those major guilds."

"It's good that you agree. I was thinking the same thing. Even if the Night Rain Family learns this secret, they can't compete with Misty Pavilion, so there's nothing to fear." Yan Hua Yi Leng looked at Ye Luo. "Tell me, what do you want? Equipment or something else?"

"We don't lack equipment. With our strength, we'll be able to get it soon enough, unless it's a spirit artifact, so we can rule that out." Ye Luo changed his tone. "We don't care about money either, so that leaves Skill Books or some pill formulas I need."

"Mm, then those will be the two types of items." Yan Hua Yi Leng nodded. "The Skill Books must be ones the two of us can learn, otherwise there's no point in taking them. Skill Books that can drop in the Novice Village probably aren't too precious. We'll get them sooner or later."

Ye Luo nodded. "Let's see what Night Rain Misty can bring for the trade. Yan Hua, it'll take them some time to get here, so I'll refine some Gale Pills first."

With that, Ye Luo began refining pills.

A few minutes later, Ye Luo had used up all the Gale Grass in his inventory. He now had nearly two hundred ordinary Gale Pills and over a dozen mutated Gale Pills in his bag.

Gale Pill * Mutated (Tier 2-3 Pill)

Pill Effect: After consumption, temporarily increases the player's Agility by 15 points, puts the user into a Lightfooted state, increases Critical Hit Rate by 10%, and increases speed by 0.5 meters per second.

Duration: Half an hour.

Usage Restriction: Cannot be stacked.

The mutated Gale Pill had quite decent attributes. Fifteen points of Agility could also increase attack speed, but most importantly, it raised Critical Hit Rate by 10%. Combined with the 10% Critical Hit Rate from Critical Strike, Ye Luo's Critical Hit Rate had already exceeded 20%. He would land a critical hit almost once every four or five attacks. Yan Hua Yi Leng, who had put all her points into Agility, would have an even higher Critical Hit Rate.

Yan Hua Yi Leng accepted the pill Ye Luo handed her and commented, "Not bad. It's an excellent medicine for killing monsters."

As she spoke, Night Rain Misty arrived with Night Rain Madman and Night Rain Mad Song. Without exchanging pleasantries, she said directly, "Sister Yan Hua, what kinds of items do you need? We can focus on finding them for you."

"Skill Books or pill formulas. The Skill Books must be usable by the two of us." Yan Hua Yi Leng stated the result of their discussion.

As though she had expected Yan Hua Yi Leng to say this, Night Rain Misty's lips curved slightly. "We don't have any pill formulas for now, but I do have an Archer Skill Book. I'm sure Sister Yan Hua will like it."

As she spoke, she sent a Skill Book illustration to Ye Luo and Yan Hua Yi Leng.

Volley of Arrows (Skill Book)

Skill Description: After learning it, an Archer can instantly fire thousands upon thousands of arrows, covering all hostile targets within a ten-meter radius no farther than fifteen meters away and dealing area damage. The damage increases as the skill level rises.

Learning Requirement: Limited to Archer-type classes.

Not long ago, Ye Luo had been complaining that he lacked an area-of-effect skill. He had not expected that he might now obtain one. It covered all hostile targets within a ten-meter radius, an extremely large range—even twice the effective range of a Mage's Energy Bullet Impact.

Seeing this skill, Ye Luo became slightly excited, but Yan Hua Yi Leng's exposed eyes showed no change at all. She said flatly, "Just this one Skill Book? If I'm not mistaken, this is an Archer skill for First Advancement or Second Advancement. That means I could learn it at Level 40 or 80. Learning it now merely lets me use it earlier."

"Besides, using area attacks in the early stages as an Archer is practically seeking death. I'm sure you know that." Yan Hua Yi Leng looked at Night Rain Misty. "So this Skill Book isn't very practical. Do you have anything else?"

As though she knew Yan Hua Yi Leng was right, Night Rain Misty showed no displeasure. She glanced at Ye Luo and said, "I also have a Swordsman Class Skill Book that Brother Ye Luo can learn. I wonder whether you'll like it."

As she spoke, she sent another Skill Book illustration to the two of them.

Soul Shocking Slash (Rare Skill Book)

Skill Description: After learning it, a Swordsman infuses soul power into a sword shadow, dealing considerable damage to a single target and stunning it for a period of time. Both the damage and stun duration increase as the skill level rises.

Learning Requirement: Limited to Swordsman-type classes.

When Ye Luo had fought the players from the Heavenly Alliance not long ago, he had complained that he lacked a control skill. He had not expected such a Skill Book to be placed before him now, and it was even a rare one. This made him somewhat excited.

"Two Skill Books in exchange for this secret, and I'll also give you an entry-level Jade Poison Bead. How about it?" Yan Hua Yi Leng said. Seeing Night Rain Misty pondering, she did not hide anything. "That's right, an initial Jade Poison Bead is very important. With one, you'll save a lot of trouble, and the advantage you accumulate will be even greater."

After pondering briefly, Night Rain Misty's expression became much more resolute. She nodded. "Deal."

After saying that, Night Rain Misty took the two Skill Books from Night Rain Mad Song and traded them to Yan Hua Yi Leng. She was quite straightforward and did not worry that Yan Hua Yi Leng would go back on her word after receiving the Skill Books.

Yan Hua Yi Leng was naturally not that kind of petty person. After briefly examining the two Skill Books, she said, "The Toad King on Toad Slope outside the South Gate of the Novice Village is guaranteed to drop a Jade Poison Bead. After obtaining one, kill Demonized Scorpions. The first strike and the final strike..."

Yan Hua Yi Leng explained everything in detail, telling them all that she and Ye Luo knew.

After hearing Yan Hua Yi Leng's detailed explanation, Night Rain Misty's beautiful eyes lit up. "So we need to kill the Toad King. Although it's a boss-level monster, it's also the lowest-level monster in the Novice Village. Who would have thought it held such a secret? And Demonized Scorpions, the Ant Queen, and the male ants in the instance can all drop these things too."

"Hehe, this will be much easier. It won't be long before we have Tier 3 Jade Poison Beads too." Night Rain Madman let out a sinister laugh, utterly excited. "We may have lost two Skill Books, but this will give everyone in the Night Rain Family an early-game advantage. It was all worth it."

Although Night Rain Misty said nothing, the broad smile at the corners of her lips made it clear that she was quite satisfied with this trade.

"Ye Luo, send them the attributes of the Tier 3 Jade Poison Bead. Let them be even happier." Yan Hua Yi Leng suddenly said, and Ye Luo did not hesitate to send over an illustration.

"Uh, this... this is so powerful. It's far stronger than Bronze Grade equipment. This is equipment that can keep advancing in rank, and it's a special item too." Night Rain Mad Song muttered, growing even more excited. Night Rain Misty and Night Rain Madman were the same.