Trading Ghost Slaying

I Want to Become Immortal: "What is it, Following Wind?"

Hidden Moon Follows Wind: "Do you want to become a Hunter?"

I Want to Become Immortal: "How do I do that? That Hunter Yang doesn't take apprentices. I asked Brother Wang, and he said I needed a hundred-year-old ginseng to become his apprentice. I checked the Medicine Shop, but that thing doesn't spawn either."

Hidden Moon Follows Wind: "I have a way for you to become a Hunter, but I'll need to borrow your Ebony Sword. If you want to become a Hunter, then team up with us for this quest."

I Want to Become Immortal: "I'll be right there."

Ye Luo: "Did you need something?"

Hidden Moon Follows Wind: "I'm doing the ghost-expelling quest. Can you help pinpoint the Ghost Servant?"

Ye Luo: "I can, but how are you going to deal with it? I shouldn't have to remind you that physical attacks are useless against ghosts."

Hidden Moon Follows Wind: "I have my own method. Come to the Hunter's cabin, and we'll discuss it properly."

The village was small to begin with, and before long, both of them had arrived.

I Want to Become Immortal was startled when he saw Ye Luo, then immediately brightened and greeted her enthusiastically.

Ye Luo, however, was rather aloof, as though she had no interest in making friends.

Xiao Jie wasn't surprised. She had acted the same way around him yesterday.

He didn't pay much attention to it. Everyone had their own habits when playing games. Some players had social anxiety; even in online games, they played alone and disliked teaming up with others. It was nothing unusual.

Xiao Jie introduced the two of them, then explained the quest he had accepted.

"This quest should be very difficult under normal circumstances, but I calculated it. With the abilities and resources the three of us possess, we can solve it.

My Divine Wood Talisman can drive the Ghost Servant out of the Hunter's Wife.

Ye Luo can see ghosts.

I Want to Become Immortal's Ebony Sword can kill ghost-type creatures. Judging by its health bar, that Ghost Servant shouldn't be very strong in combat. If the three of us work together, we can definitely handle it.

As long as the Ghost Servant dies, Yang Baichuan should be able to accept apprentices normally again. The two of us can both learn Archery and Dog Training."

I Want to Become Immortal immediately grew excited. He had nearly been killed by three Wild Dogs before, so he understood perfectly how valuable it was to have dogs accompanying him.

Ye Luo remained calm. "What's in it for me? I'm already Yang Baichuan's apprentice."

"Do a good deed? Yang Baichuan is your master. Shouldn't you help your master's wife? Besides, if he's happy, maybe he'll teach you some hidden skill."

"I've already handed in three Wild Ginseng roots. I've learned every skill there is to learn. Besides, this is only a game." Ye Luo was exceptionally calm.

Xiao Jie was truly a little helpless. Weren't girls generally supposed to be more emotional? Was Ye Luo really this cold?

I Want to Become Immortal said, "How about we pay you? Two hundred coins."

He clearly wasn't short of money. Whenever he encountered trouble, his first thought was to solve it with money.

"I don't need money."

"Five hundred coins?"

"Even a thousand coins won't work. I said I don't need money."

Ye Luo was resolute, leaving no room for negotiation.

"Then what do you want?"

"If I help you kill the Ghost Servant, this sword is mine."

Before I Want to Become Immortal could speak, Xiao Jie objected first.

"Are you kidding? This is a magical weapon. You're asking way too much."

"Exactly! It took me forever to get this sword." I Want to Become Immortal hurriedly agreed.

Ye Luo said calmly, "The sword is useless in your hands. You can't even see ghosts. Unless you're planning to dump a bunch of attribute points into Perception and follow a Perception build, it's completely wasted on you.

How about this? I'll also give you a skill book to make up the difference. You use an axe, right?"

"I..." I Want to Become Immortal wanted to say that he used a sword, but he apparently hadn't learned any sword skills at all. He had, however, learned Axe Weapon Proficiency after chopping wood for two days.

"Sort of."

"Then that's fine. This copy of Stone Cracking Slash only requires 15 Strength to learn. Add a few more attribute points and you can use it. It'll definitely be more valuable to you than the Ebony Sword."

"But I want to become a swordsman..." I Want to Become Immortal said weakly.

"There are no sword techniques to learn in Ginkgo Village. You need to go to the Sword Hall in the provincial capital and learn sword specialization before you can learn advanced sword techniques.

You haven't even left the Newbie Village yet. You can't learn sword techniques. Once you leave the Newbie Village, there will be plenty of weapons better than the Ebony Sword."

Seeing that I Want to Become Immortal was still hesitating, Ye Luo added, "How about this? Whatever the Ghost Servant drops will all belong to you."

I Want to Become Immortal was finally tempted. He sent Xiao Jie a private message. "Brother Following Wind, what do you think?"

Xiao Jie gave a noncommittal snort, but fell into deep thought.

Originally, he hadn't thought much of the Ebony Sword. It was equipment given out early in the game. How good could it possibly be?

But seeing how badly Ye Luo wanted the sword, he vaguely felt that its value might be far greater than it appeared. It might not be just an ordinary, slightly useful item.

Its attributes were mediocre. Its only unique feature was the Spirit Slaying weapon effect.

Wang Kai had previously said that Magic Classes were extremely rare in this game. That meant most players had physical classes, and physical classes had a hard time dealing with ghost-type monsters.

That made the Ebony Sword's Spirit Slaying effect especially valuable.

Especially for Perception-build players, who could farm ghosts with this sword.

Still, Ye Luo wasn't wrong. Unless someone intended to take the Perception route, this thing really wasn't very useful.

"Are you planning to take the Perception route?" Xiao Jie asked I Want to Become Immortal.

"Uh... let me think about it."

I Want to Become Immortal couldn't help opening the Strategy Guide his brother had left behind.

Besides information about the Newbie Village's monsters, it focused especially on the key points of allocating attributes.

In this game, everyone needed to invest in some basic attributes, especially early on. Without basic attributes, the game was simply unplayable.

If one wanted to switch to a Magic Class later on, then advanced attributes came into play.

Advanced attributes, however, were quite particular. Not every one of them was useful.

There were many different schools of magic in this game: Taoist arts, immortal arts, demonic arts, divine abilities, ghost curses...

Each one corresponded to different attributes.

Spirit: Increases maximum mana, increases mana regeneration speed, and increases resistance to mental skills such as charm, fear, and hypnosis.

This attribute could be said to be necessary for all Magic Classes. There was no downside to raising it, and it was generally a secondary attribute for Magic Classes.

Spirituality: Increases your efficiency in absorbing the Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth and the essence of the sun and moon, as well as your ability to learn and use immortal arts and demonic arts.

This attribute mainly applied to immortal arts and demonic arts. To learn these two types of magic, Spirituality had to be raised very high.

Perception: Increases your alert range, your detection distance for monsters, and your ability to sense invisible things. Higher Perception may draw the attention of ghosts and gods.

This attribute was important for classes such as assassins and Hunters. It was also required to learn ghost curse magic.

Faith: Increases your ability to absorb the Power of Faith and increases your ability to learn and use divine abilities.

This attribute was required for learning divine ability-type magic.

I Want to Become Immortal naturally wanted to cultivate immortality, so that he could revive his brother. Perception was of no use to immortal cultivation.

"I'm not planning to take the Perception route."

Xiao Jie nodded. Then there was no problem.

"Since she wants this sword so badly, it must have some unique value. Based on my experience, the sword's most valuable feature is its Spirit Slaying attribute.

Magic Classes are so rare in this game, which means weapons that can harm ghosts are extremely valuable.

Of course, to kill ghosts, you first need to be able to see them. If you were taking the Perception route, this sword would absolutely be a top-tier weapon worth a fortune.

If you aren't taking the Perception route, then the sword isn't nearly as meaningful. You can consider trading it for something more suitable.

But the sword is yours. You should make the decision yourself. I suggest thinking it over carefully and not agreeing so easily because of me."

Xiao Jie's analysis was extremely clear.

I Want to Become Immortal also had a better idea of the situation. He said to Ye Luo, "Fine, but you need to offer more. Otherwise, forget it."

"This thing is useless to you."

I Want to Become Immortal said confidently, "But it's very useful to you."

Ye Luo admitted frankly, "That's true. Tell me, what do you want?"

Xiao Jie had assumed I Want to Become Immortal would ask for equipment or something, but I Want to Become Immortal said solemnly, "Information."

Ye Luo was slightly taken aback. "Hm?"

I Want to Become Immortal explained, "I don't know much about this game, but you seem very familiar with it. You must know a lot of things I don't.

I can give you the sword, but in exchange, if I ask you any questions about the game in the future, and you know the answer, you have to help me answer them."

Ye Luo fell silent for a moment. "No problem. Deal."

I Want to Become Immortal laughed. "Alright, it's settled then. But let's be clear first: all the Ghost Servant's drops belong to me. You can't steal my loot."

Ye Luo gave a soft snort. "Don't worry. I'm not that bored."

Xiao Jie nodded inwardly. I Want to Become Immortal's choice was quite smart. Compared to one or two pieces of equipment with limited value, information was undoubtedly more useful.

Especially in a Death Game like this, where there was no margin for error. One wrong step could lead to eternal doom. With more information, they could undoubtedly go farther.

This kid had grown up.

The three of them had each gotten what they wanted. Xiao Jie needed to complete his advancement quest and obtain the advancement reward.

I Want to Become Immortal would get a class change, the Ghost Servant's drops, a skill book, and game information.

Ye Luo would get the Ebony Sword.

With their plan settled, the three returned to the cabin.

"Brother Yang, this is the helper I recruited. He also wants to become your apprentice. Would that be alright?"

"As long as you can save my wife, what's the harm in taking one more apprentice?"

A prompt immediately appeared on I Want to Become Immortal's screen.

System Prompt: Player Hidden Moon Follows Wind has shared the quest [Expel Evil Spirits] with you. Accept?

I Want to Become Immortal naturally accepted.

He turned around and traded the Ebony Sword to Ye Luo, receiving the skill book Stone Cracking Slash.

The three took up their positions, and Xiao Jie took out the Divine Wood Talisman.

"Get ready. I'm starting the countdown. Three—two—one!"

Evil Purging Art!

Ebony Blood Oath!

The instant Xiao Jie used Evil Purging Art on the Hunter's Wife, Ye Luo slowly drew the edge of the Ebony Sword across her palm.

A layer of crimson blood aura immediately appeared over the blade, flickering with an ominous red light in the dim room.

A chilling wind sprang up, and the Hunter's Wife's entire body convulsed. The moment she stopped twitching, Ye Luo suddenly slashed at the air.

Awoo! A strange cry rang out from nowhere. Her sword had clearly struck the target.

But Ye Luo's expression abruptly changed. "Damn, it's trying to run!"

She strode forward fiercely. Combat technique—Triple Wave!

Swish, swish, swish! Three consecutive sword strikes slashed through the air.

A ghostly shriek rang out from the air, followed by a shockwave of chilling wind that spread in all directions.

Boom! Xiao Jie, I Want to Become Immortal, and the Hunter were all knocked two steps back. It was actually an area-of-effect attack.

Fortunately, the attack didn't deal much damage. They only lost a few points of health.

Ye Luo's figure flashed. Movement technique—Assassin's Gait!

She directly dodged the shockwave.

Then came another fluid sequence of sword moves.

Sword Dance: Flowing Cloud Thirteen Forms!

Swish, swish, swish, swish!

Ye Luo spun as she swung her sword, her movements resembling a dance. As the blade cut through the air, strange ghostly cries rang out continuously.

The two watched in excitement, but they couldn't help at all and could only stare helplessly from the side.

Until a miserable scream came from the air and something clattered onto the floor, they realized the ghost had probably been killed.

As a hired mercenary, Ye Luo was quite conscientious and simply stepped aside.

A prompt appeared on Xiao Jie's screen.

[System Prompt: Participated in killing the Ghost Servant. Gained 76 experience points.]

Because he had initiated the fight with Evil Purging Art, he had actually received some experience.

I Want to Become Immortal, meanwhile, hadn't gained even a single experience point. He had been a spectator the entire time.

But he wasn't paying attention to that right now. His gaze was completely fixed on the item on the floor.

It was a yellow talisman paper, bearing a strange humanoid symbol drawn in cinnabar. There was also a sword mark on it.

This was—

Xiao Jie picked up the Talisman, took a look, and casually handed it to I Want to Become Immortal.

[Broken Ghost Controlling Talisman (Quest Item)

Use: Give it to Hunter Yang Baichuan to trigger a quest.

Item Description: Legend has it that Ghost Curse Masters can use talismans to control ghosts, making them serve at their command and carry out sinister, unlawful deeds. This is an evil art that crosses between yin and yang, and has always been despised by righteous people.]