The Team Kept Growing Stronger!

"Depend on..."

Seeing the reward text pop up, my heart skipped a beat, but when I saw the orange "Armor of the Grey Knight," I immediately relaxed. I'm all set; this alone is worth the price of admission. This four-star dungeon was totally worth it!

"Pat-pat~~Pat-pat~~"

Two rustling sounds echoed as items fell into the Dimensional Storage Space. The next moment, upon opening the storage space, one's gaze was drawn to a suit of armor with an orange sheen and an extremely imposing design.

[Armor of the Grey Knight] (Quality: Orange)

Rank: Fourth Tier

Defense: 240

Strength: +40

Physical strength: +38

Specialty: Attack damage +10%

Blessing: Damage Reduction +4%

Blessing: Rock-II, increases defense by 300 points.

Blessing: Resilience, increases your Max Health by 3000 points.

Strength required: 600

Goodness, this armor has some serious stats. Its base defense is a terrifying 240 points, and it even has the "Rock Solid-II" trait, which boosts its defense by another 300 points!

That's not all, there's also a 4% Damage Reduction and a 10% damage increase effect!

On a defensive piece of equipment, having even two of the four attributes of Rock, Damage Reduction, Damage Increase, and Power is already considered top-tier. This piece of armor actually has all three, making it the best of the best!

As for equipment that possesses all four attributes simultaneously... it's practically nonexistent; such items are extremely rare, one in ten thousand.

"Call..."

I took a deep breath and immediately replaced my previous purple Armor of Vengeance with the Armor of the Grey Knight. Instantly, my Overall Combat Level increased by over 1000 points, and my armor also increased significantly to 1580 points, which is similar to the armor of a typical Orange BOSS. Unfortunately, players don't have the Hidden Bonus that bosses do.

As for the Armor of Vengeance that was taken off, it's also top-tier, possessing the same Rock-II trait. It's considered first-class equipment at this stage. I'll give it to Fatty later to improve his survivability.

Afterwards, I glanced at the purple hammer. Its attack power and attributes were average. According to the current market, the price wouldn't be too high, but it certainly wouldn't be too low either. Currently, purple equipment in the Player Black Market starts at around 200,000 gold, and the supply can't meet the demand.

"How is it? How is it?"

"Ding Han, Bingzi," Fa Fey Courtier asked excitedly, "What were the rewards from the dungeon?"

Bingzi grinned. "Not bad, a purple ring, critical hit + life steal, nice... And you, grinning so smugly, you must have gotten something good too, right?"

"That's right, as expected of the first four-star drop from a dungeon..."

Fey Courtier directly shared the Treasure Codex in the Team Channel. It turned out to be an orange staff with good stats, Psionic Attack, and an 8% Damage Increase. It looked very small, even small enough to fit in a pocket, which certainly fits the design of spiritual weapons in <Star Abyss>!

This damage increase effect is great; it has an extremely high Judgment Priority. The so-called damage increase means that all damage dealt by the player is increased!

For example, my current damage increase has reached 20%. This isn't just for Melee Damage Increase; even Shooting Damage will increase by 20%. Combined with special effects like Exceptional Strike on firearms, the overall damage will be terrifying.

"Holy crap, that's awesome..."

Huo Bingzhi Ri frowned. "This staff is something else, it's devastating! Combined with your Star Speaker's mental attack advantage, the damage will definitely be explosive."

The Star Speaker is Hidden Profession, and its Spirit-based Growth is second to none in <Star Abyss>. Once a player changes to the Star Speaker, their Mental Power growth will reach a terrifying "1.3", meaning that every 1 point of Mental Power can be converted into 1.3 points of Psionic Attack. In comparison, the Super Weapon Master's Mental Power growth is only 0.8, which is quite mediocre. The Firepower Specialist and Shadow Assassin are even more pitiful, with only 0.7, so they are the most vulnerable to the effects of Spirit Control Skills.

"Ding Han, what about you?"

Fey Courtier said happily, "I was the one who opened the Instance Crystal, so the system gave me an extra orange staff. But you had the highest damage output throughout the entire run, so your reward should be pretty good too, right?"

"Good!"

I smiled slightly, "You've been rewarded with an orange-tier armor!"

"Holy crap!"

Fey Courtier's eyes widened, and he laughed, "So you've won a great victory today? We should celebrate! How about we call your four team members out for hot pot? My treat!"

"Okay, I'll ask!"

So I asked in the team if anyone wanted to grab a late-night snack, since it was Fey Courtier's treat. Immediately, four voices responded at the same time, all saying they were free and would definitely come.

Step out of the Teleportation Gate.

Three people appeared in the cold evening wind. Light snow began to fall. Not far away, a fisherman was fishing and live-streaming his fishing session on his phone.

"Family members, it's so cold, I have no appetite... It's so cold, could you give me a little heart to encourage me, family members?"

For a moment, the three of us rolled our eyes, walked straight to the roadside, hailed a taxi, and headed straight for the city center.

At 10:40 PM, at a Hot Pot Restaurant in the city.

When Fey Courtier, Huo Bingzhi Ri, and I arrived, Ruolin and Kou Mei also appeared. Then, Cai Cai and Fatty arrived by taxi one after another, and the group of us met at the Hot Pot Restaurant in the cold snowy night.

"Fal'yes got some legendary gear today, so don't be shy, order whatever you like!" Huo Bingzhi Ri grinned, revealing his mischievous friend's face.

"You idiot..."

Fey Courtier laughed and said, "Alright, let's have hot pot. At most, we'll eat a thousand, no big deal!"

So, Fatty and Cai Cai ordered a lot of food, including three servings of tripe, honeycomb tripe, and marbled beef, since they both have big appetites.

"What would you like to drink?" Cai Cai asked.

"Casual."

"Would you like something white?" asked the Fey Courtier.

The fat man smiled and nodded, "I think it's a good idea!"

I raised my hand. "Give me three bottles of Snowflake Beer '!"

"Okay!"

Soon the drinks were served, and everyone ate and drank, watching the snow falling outside the window. It was a very enjoyable gathering.

As they drank, they both got a little tipsy, and Cai Cai's face turned red. After downing her glass of Wuliangye in one gulp, she looked out the window at the snow and laughed, "Hey, it's not easy for us to be stranded here. To be able to gather with a few close friends on a snowy night like this, eat hot pot, and drink some wine, how wonderful is that..."

"Indeed, indeed..."

Fey Courtier said, "When we can finally go back someday, let's all stay in touch! We must keep in touch and get together often!"

"Yes, let's get together often!"

The fat guy and I nodded emphatically.

After drinking for a while longer, the alcohol gradually took effect, and that feeling of being unable to hold one's liquor returned!

And you know what? It was actually accurate; it was exactly the amount for three bottles of beer.

But this time it wasn't like usual when I completely blacked out and collapsed. I just felt dizzy and unsteady, but everything else was fine.

"Ding Han, are you even capable? Why did you go soft?"

Ruolin hoisted me onto her shoulders and said, "Fatty, I'll go with you to take Ding Han home. You go get a taxi."

The fat man nodded and hailed a taxi.

Cai Cai hugged and said goodbye to Fey Courtier and Huo Bingzhi Ri. This guy was naturally outgoing, and during the meal, he almost wanted to Oath of the Peach Garden with the two of them.

"Faye, Bingzi..."

I glanced at the two of them and said, "Be careful, always remember safety first!"

"Um!"

Faye got into the car and gave me a thumbs up. "Boss, we know, don't worry!"

"Boss, we're leaving now~~" Huo Bingzhi Ri stretched his neck to greet them.

Unbeknownst to me, they had changed their way of addressing me, just like Cai Cai and Kou Mei. They no longer called me by my name but called me "Boss." It seems that I, as the "Team Leader," have gained the approval of Fey Courtier and Huo Bingzhi Ri.

"It's so cold, let's go..."

Ruolin first helped Kou Mei into a taxi, then shoved me into the car behind. The fat man sat in the passenger seat and said, "Driver, Guangming Residential Area, slow down, my friend might throw up."

"Ouch~~"

The driver glanced back at me. "If he throws up, it'll cost an extra two hundred for the car wash, you know. How much did your friend drink to get this drunk?"

"Three bottles of beer."

"Ouch~~"

The driver's expression turned strange.

Shortly after, I returned to my residential compound.

I was in a daze as Fatty and Ruolin helped me upstairs. Then I heard Ruolin say, "Ying'er, this guy has drunk too much again. You're in charge of him now."

I also heard the fat man say in my ear, "Ding Han, I'm going back first. Don't throw up, or Manager Lin have a hard time dealing with it. You keep an eye on him."

Then the sound of a door closing was heard, and the fat man and Ruolin left.

A few minutes later, Lin Qingying's voice came from beside him. "Ding Han, are you alright? Drink some honey water, it'll help you sober up."

A glass of warm water was brought to my lips, and since my mouth was parched, I drank it all in one gulp.

"Want more?"

Beside her, Lin Qingying asked softly.

"I'm not drinking anymore." I shook my head.

"Are you feeling nauseous?" she asked, sounding concerned.

"I won't vomit."

I shook my head again. "We ate quite a lot this meal, it would be a waste to throw up..."

Lin Qingying was probably speechless. After I rested for a while, she said, "Shall I help you back to your room?"

"Um..."

In a daze, I felt Lin Qingying lift me onto her shoulders and then somewhat laboriously carry me into the room. I finally felt a little better when I lay down on the bed.

"Ding Han."

Her voice came through my ear again. "I'll charge your phone. Call me if you need anything."

"Good."

I tilted my head and smiled, "Thank you for your help, Xiaoying..."

She smiled, closed the door, and left.

I slept very soundly, but woke up very early.

When I opened my eyes, the effects of the alcohol had completely worn off, and I was instantly sober. I glanced at my phone and saw that it was only 6:30 a. m., not yet time to get up. So I propped myself up with my pillow and checked my phone again.

I glanced at Lin Qingying's Moments; it was still completely blank.

Then I glanced at Lu Xiaobei's Moments, and it was quite a lively place. From the details of the filming in the Northwest to our group photo in front of the coffee shop in Donghu District, and the message "Ding Han is sorry to Lu Xiaobei" on the Message Wall of Wutong Inn, she had recorded almost every detail, probably because she felt it was very meaningful.

Looking at Milo's Moments, it's clear he's a big shot; there's only news about album releases, no mention of his personal life.

At that moment, I remembered the "liquidation" Old Ma had mentioned, and my unease grew. So I sent Milo a Friend Message directly through the game system: "Are you awake yet?"

"You're awake. What's wrong?"

"Let's talk about helping you level up."