Copper Coins! Oh, Copper Coins!

The battle with Orochimaru concluded after a few minutes.

Orochimaru's assessment of Chen Yi, who had used all his techniques, was that he possessed the strength of an elite Jonin, but his methods were lacking.

However, what he didn't know was that Chen Yi had only taken a little over half a year to reach this point from being a normal person.

"Does Fire Dragon need a break?"

Fire Dragon shook its head and continued to practice striking wooden stakes.

Its originally orange-red skin had begun to slowly turn black under the influence of the medicinal bath, becoming tougher and more resilient.

Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's evaluation of Fire Dragon was that it was currently just a flower stand, and it needed to repeatedly practice its moves before it could use them in battle.

Chen Yi wasn't in a hurry about this. Both he and Fire Dragon had plenty of time to develop.

The only problem was, where to earn copper coins!

After less than half a month of training with Strong Projection, the two of them had already spent over 80,000 copper coins.

If this continued, they would have to start the game early again.

In Xiao Liu's restaurant that evening.

Xiao Liu proudly presented her masterpiece.

[Xiao Liu's Roast Meat]

Quality: Blue

Quickly restores a certain amount of stamina and restores 300 HP within 15 seconds.

Evaluation: Both the ingredients and the intent are a reasonable combination.

Xiao Liu was very interested in Fire Dragon turning black. She... liked it even more!

In her opinion, this was a trend towards developing a Shiny Pokémon, and such Pokémon were extremely rare.

After listening to Chen Yi's suggestion, Xiao Liu spent a hefty 100 copper coins to buy blue-quality ingredients from other players that no one else wanted.

She continuously adjusted the ingredients and finally created the roast meat that bore Xiao Liu's name in the Game World.

Xiao Liu propped her head on the table, watching Fire Dragon eat with a perverted look. She nudged Chen Yi unhappily.

"Why haven't you finished eating yet, you guy? Don't you know this is the best angle to admire Fire Dragon from!"

Chen Yi was speechless and moved his position.

He was always very tolerant of people who could help him save copper coins.

Suddenly, Xiao Liu remembered something: "Hey Chen Yi, has anything big happened in the Game World recently?"

Chen Yi thought for a moment and then shook his head.

"That's strange. So many of my diners are complaining that the quests in the Game World are getting harder, and many recorded worlds have changed."

"For example, original bosses have suddenly become stronger, or characters who should have been eliminated long ago have inexplicably become the final boss."

Chen Yi suddenly recalled that in Plants vs. Zombies, someone had indeed said something like this.

But what did this have to do with Xiao Liu, the cook?

Seeing that Chen Yi didn't speak.

Xiao Liu muttered to herself: "Do you think it was a mistake for me to give up on becoming a Player back then? I escaped from the game, but I don't want to give up on this place, so I opened a restaurant with hardly any customers."

"If I hadn't found you, a big customer, I might have been kicked out next month for not being able to pay the Game World's rent."

Chen Yi wasn't good at comforting people, and not everyone could adapt to the Game World.

He had simply gotten tired of the ordinary and wanted to live a different life.

He handed Xiao Liu 1000 Copper Coins as meal fee.

Xiao Liu stared intently at the pile of Copper Coins on the table: "Hey! What do you mean by this, you guy! Are you trying to keep me? I'm telling you, I'm not that kind of person, don't think that just a mere..."

"1000 Copper Coins."

"Oh right, a mere 1000 Copper Coins... 1000 Copper Coins!!!"

Xiao Liu pounced directly: "Mine, all mine."

After a long while, she came back to her senses and put on a gentle attitude she had never shown before.

She spoke in a delicate voice and made a welcoming gesture: "Mr. Chen Yi, is there anything else you'd like to eat? This humble woman will surely satisfy you."

Chen Yi felt a chill.

1000 Copper Coins was a lot for Xiao Liu, who couldn't enter the game, but for Chen Yi, it was less than an hour's consumption in the Arena.

It was a lot as a meal fee, but far from enough to buy Blue Quality potions.

If it weren't for the fact that this woman could only achieve such results when cooking for a Fire Dragon, she could have gotten rich just by cooking.

"The Fire Dragon and I will probably reach level 20 after the next game. I hope to see you in the next town."

There was one more thing Chen Yi didn't say: there weren't many cooks who could save him so many Copper Coins.

Xiao Liu, who had been excited, suddenly fell silent. Advancing to the next town wasn't easy. In the past, Xiao Liu wouldn't have dared to dream of such a thing.

Looking at Xiao Liu's dejected state, the Fire Dragon gently patted her head. "Roar."

Chen Yi translated, "It says it will find a way to come see you."

Xiao Liu looked at the Fire Dragon. She saw no hint of forcing itself in its eyes, but the more it was like this, the more unwilling she felt.

Back in Chen Yi's own space, the Fire Dragon, which could have gently comforted Xiao Liu, suddenly had teary eyes. It seemed the Fire Dragon truly liked Xiao Liu.

"Sigh! Sigh! Don't cry..."

The Fire Dragon's mature behavior made Chen Yi forget that his own Fire Dragon wasn't actually very old.

"Everyone has their own path. Some can walk with you, while others will slowly become scenery along the way."

"Remember to respect others' choices!"

After the recent events came to a close, Chen Yi turned his attention to the uncertified Staff of Healing in his backpack.

He was contemplating how to deal with this weapon.

Initially, he had planned to keep it because the weapon came with a group healing skill, meaning it had the potential to turn the tide.

However, Chen Yi couldn't stay at this stage forever.

"I'll certify it first."

[Ding! Staff of Healing certification requires 10000 Copper Coins. Proceed with payment?]

"Pay."

The staff disappeared from Chen Yi's sight and reappeared about half a minute later.

[Staff of Healing]

Quality: Deep Purple

Physical Attack: 5-6

Magic Attack: 10-12

Intelligence +2

Effect: Increases healing effects by 10% (this effect increases with level)

Level: 1 (0%)

(Gains growth by absorbing Experience Points. Unlocks Strong Heart effect at LV20, unlocks Same Heart effect at LV30. Removes player binding restriction, can be bound to a guild, only guild players can use.)

Rating: A weapon that can make you stronger, you see it now.

After the rules of the Game World were changed, the application range of this staff became wider.

"I should still sell this staff. My own strength is true strength. I can't delay my progress in becoming stronger for a single healing effect."

The previous world was a matter of necessity. The highest level of those Demonic Beasts was only level 18.

Even if Chen Yi didn't feed the staff, it would at most reach level 18, after which it would be unable to gain Experience Points due to its high level.

Reaching level 18 wouldn't bring any substantial breakthrough to Chen Yi's strength, but feeding the Healing Staff was different.

At that time, the Empire's side was not friendly. The Faction Quest Chen Yi chose was the Church. Upgrading the Healing Staff could be understood as the correct choice, and Strong Heart was an unexpected bonus.