Gifting the Saber

"I see. Many thanks for the clarification, Brother Wang. If you hadn't warned me, I might have truly found myself in danger."

Xiao Jie's words were not mere pleasantries. These were experiences paid for with the lives of those who came before, and in this game, experience was often piled up through the trial and error of players' deaths.

Clearing a dungeon might require a party to wipe dozens or even hundreds of times, but in those games, death was merely a waste of time—hardly a heavy price to pay.

However, in this game of Old Earth, every bit of experience was built upon real lives. It was no exaggeration to call them lessons written in blood.

That was why Xiao Jie's tone was exceptionally sincere.

"Haha, think nothing of it. We're all players from the same village; we should help one another."

As the two finished their conversation, I Want to Become Immortal, who had been listening from the side, interjected, "Brother Following Wind, thank you for what happened yesterday."

"Don't thank me. Thank your Brother Wang; it was his money, after all."

"No, I must thank Brother Wang, of course, but it's also a fact that you saved me. Regardless of your reasons, a life-saving grace is a life-saving grace. It's like how police officers are paid a salary, but if I were in real danger and received their help, I would still express my gratitude, wouldn't I?"

Xiao Jie thought to himself that this kid was actually quite sensible, and he couldn't help but change his opinion of the reckless fellow.

"Heh, no need to be so formal. Just try to be less reckless in the future, and that will be worth more than anything. This game only gives you one life, after all. There aren't many chances to start over, and not every time will someone be there to save you."

"I understand, Brother Following Wind. I was too confident before. Yesterday's incident served as a lesson. Oh, right, Brother Following Wind, please take this as a token of my appreciation."

As he spoke, he opened the trade window, and a blade appeared inside—a Wild Goose Feather Saber!

Xiao Jie was somewhat surprised. That item was worth thirty thousand credits.

He hadn't expected the kid to be so thoughtful, buying it specifically for him. Seeing how he had been chatting with Wang Kai earlier, he must have been purchasing the blade then.

Of course, compared to a life-saving grace, thirty thousand credits wasn't much, but in this society, there were too many instances of repaying kindness with ingratitude. News of people being extorted after helping the elderly was endless, and those who bravely saved drowning children often ended up in the hospital only to have the rescued parties disappear without a trace. Then there were the hikers trapped in the mountains who, after being rescued, claimed it was the search and rescue team's duty and that no thanks were needed...

Having seen too many such infuriating stories, Xiao Jie had grown quite pessimistic about human nature.

Facing the sincere gratitude of I Want to Become Immortal, he felt genuinely taken aback.

However, he wasn't the type to be overly coy. Since the other party had the heart to give, there was no need for him to be polite.

"Alright, I won't stand on ceremony with you then. I'll accept it." He clicked to trade.

Xiao Jie looked at the Wild Goose Feather Saber in his inventory and immediately chose to equip it. Looking at the fine blade in his hand, he was very satisfied.

Although he had lost his leather armor, having this blade felt different. If a fight were to break out, he would have some confidence.

"Brother Following Wind, I have one more presumptuous request. I wonder if I could take you as my master? I think you're incredibly skilled at this game, and if I could learn a trick or two, I'd be able to go much further."

"Forget about the apprenticeship. It's just a game; we can exchange experiences, but that's all. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I won't hold back on what I can share."

Information had to be shared to grow, just as Wang Kai hadn't kept the information about the Night Ghouls to himself. Xiao Jie didn't value his own gaming experience so highly that he felt the need to hoard it.

Of course, the main point was that in an online game, having more friends meant more paths. Especially in this Death Game, the importance of teammates was beyond doubt. If he wanted to clear dungeons and fight bosses later, he couldn't rely on himself alone; he had to organize a reliable team.

Xiao Jie was used to being a guild leader, so naturally, he was already considering building a guild and expanding his influence in this game.

However, the number of players in this game was too small. Since these were the only two he knew, he naturally wanted to foster a good relationship.

Hearing Xiao Jie say this, I Want to Become Immortal was straightforward and asked, "Brother Following Wind, can I ask how you learned that combat skill?"

Xiao Jie chuckled inwardly; so that was what he was waiting for. He didn't feel annoyed, though, as the other party had asked quite politely.

Xiao Jie remembered that one could pay the Militia Captain to learn combat skills, provided one had the prerequisite weapon skills. It was incredibly expensive, and he hadn't had the money to learn them, but this kid looked like someone who wasn't short on cash; he could certainly give it a try.

"You can't learn my combat skill. If you want to learn combat skills, go find the Militia Captain. He has a few entry-level skills you can pay to learn."

This wasn't just to brush him off; there was a difference between the [Enlightenment] skill and [Sudden Enlightenment].

Skills like [Blade Weapon Proficiency] could likely be learned by any player who chopped wood for long enough, but a skill like One Cut Two Pieces probably couldn't be learned even if one worked themselves to death without the Enlightenment buff.

Moreover, Xiao Jie highly suspected that even with the Enlightenment buff, the skills gained through Sudden Enlightenment might not be the same.

I Want to Become Immortal said, "I went to see the Militia Captain, but he said my aptitude wasn't enough and refused to teach me."

Xiao Jie replied, "To learn combat skills, you first need the corresponding weapon skill. That 'insufficient aptitude' likely refers to that. NPCs in this game usually don't spell things out clearly, so you have to learn to interpret the real information behind their words.

Usually, when they say your aptitude is lacking, your talent is too poor, or your strength is insufficient, they are actually referring to prerequisite skills, character stats, or job levels."

"Then how do I learn weapon skills?"

"Do chores. Different chores correspond to different weapon skills. For example, I gained Blade Weapon Proficiency through firewood chopping. Following that logic, if you want to learn the blade, go chop wood; if you want the axe, go log timber; if you want the hammer, go blacksmithing. I can't say for sure what exactly you'll learn, as I've only been playing for a day, but this is what I've deduced from the information I have. I wouldn't say it's one hundred percent accurate, but it should be close enough."

Hearing Xiao Jie's explanation, I Want to Become Immortal grew excited. "Many thanks, Brother Following Wind! I'm going to go find work then. Can I come back and ask you if I run into anything I don't understand?"

"Think nothing of it."

Watching I Want to Become Immortal head off toward the Firewood Workshop with a spring in his step, Xiao Jie thought he shouldn't waste any more time either. He needed to get to work.

After saying goodbye to Wang Kai, he began his own work for the day.

His Enlightenment buff only lasted seven days, so he had to make the most of it. If he played his cards right, it would be enough to give him a significant advantage in the early stages.

The basic combat skills taught by the Militia Captain were clearly inferior to the One Cut Two Pieces he had gained through Sudden Enlightenment.

If he played well, he could surely gain even more powerful skills through Sudden Enlightenment.

However, he had to carefully consider what kind of work to do and what development path to take.

There were too many chores in this village, and each one likely had a corresponding skill to be learned. But with only six days left, he had to make some choices.

To ensure he chose the optimal path, Xiao Jie decided not to rush into work. Instead, he wandered around the village, asking everyone he met if they had work for him, and recording every triggered task in his notebook.

After spending the entire morning wandering, Xiao Jie had triggered over a dozen chores. He compiled them all, ready to give them some serious thought.