Weapons

"Rock Hammer," one of River Valley Town's most famous blacksmith shops.

The armor and weapons produced here were renowned for their toughness and durability, earning considerable fame among the town's lower-ranking adventurers.

There were even rumors that Professional Adventurers from the Association Second Floor often commissioned equipment from Rock Hammer.

This only made the blacksmith shop's business even more booming.

Today, Xia Nan, who had been preparing for his upcoming mission with reference to the [Adventurer's Manual], finally met the owner of this blacksmith shop.

Barn Steel Beard,

a name with very distinct Dwarf characteristics.

His massive, knotted muscles, as hard as steel, and the reddish-brown braided hair that nearly reached his chest also matched the traditional image of a Dwarf.

But at two meters thirty, half a head taller than even a Bear Goblin, he hardly looked like someone with "Dwarf" blood flowing through his veins, as he claimed.

"More like one of those Barbarians from the ice plains."

Xia Nan watched the burly figure in the shop and could not help muttering inwardly.

Yet his feet did not stop as he walked straight inside.

To his surprise, although he claimed to possess the bloodline of the Steel Beard Clan, Barn, the owner of Rock Hammer Blacksmith, did not have the rough, brash personality Xia Nan had imagined a Dwarf would.

Instead, he was like an ordinary, warmhearted shopkeeper. Once Xia Nan showed an interest in buying, he took the initiative to introduce his wares.

"This kind of ring mail is the lightest among heavy armor. The iron rings can effectively block slashing damage from swords and axes."

"This suit of chainmail is also pretty good. Its defensive power is even higher than ring mail's, but naturally, it costs more than a dozen gold coins extra."

As Barn explained in detail beside him, Xia Nan's gaze swept across the display racks.

Then it stopped.

"This set..."

Before his eyes stood a full suit of armor that completely covered the body, made of hard iron plates and metal buckles.

Iron gloves, heavy leather boots, an openwork helmet with an attached faceplate, and thick, tough cowhide padding beneath it, paired with metal plates threaded together by belts and buckles, gleaming with an icy sheen.

At a glance, it gave the illusion of a moving fortress.

If he could wear this suit of Super Heavy Armor, then even if he stood amid a horde of Goblins and let their little Wooden Sticks pound on him for two hours, he probably would not lose a single hair.

Yet while the thick metal plates gave the armor formidable defensive power, they also brought with them an outrageous weight that ordinary people could hardly bear.

With his current physical condition... even walking normally would probably be a problem.

"Full Plate Armor, made from the finest quality steel. Every metal plate was personally forged and tempered by me." Barn introduced it at once, pride filling his voice. "Its defensive power needs no explanation. One look tells you everything."

"If you buy the full set, Rock Hammer will also give you three free maintenance services."

"Fifteen hundred gold. No credit."

The moment Xia Nan heard the price, he gave up on the idea.

Clearly, equipment like this was not something he could consider. He needed to be practical for now.

Fortunately, Rock Hammer carried a complete range of equipment. After making a round of the shop with Barn and listening to his brief introductions, Xia Nan had a rough idea of what he wanted.

There were many styles of armor, but they could generally be divided into three categories:

Light armor, Medium Armor, and heavy armor.

Heavy armor was far too cumbersome and would greatly affect Xia Nan's agility, which did not suit his current fighting style.

So he would not consider it for now.

Medium Armor was not bad. Its weight fell between heavy armor and light armor, making it highly versatile with quite respectable defensive capabilities.

But perhaps precisely because of that, it also had the highest average price among the three types of armor.

Even the cheapest Chainmail Shirt cost a full fifty gold coins.

That was far beyond Xia Nan's budget.

In the end, after much deliberation, he spent ten gold on a set of specially made leather armor from Barn's shop.

This type of armor possessed exceptional flexibility and was extremely light. Its primary material was leather hardened through soaking in boiling oil.

And since it came from the famous Rock Hammer Blacksmith, its quality was excellent.

Its overall performance was several times better than the secondhand set his predecessor had scavenged from who knew where.

With the armor issue settled, next came...

"A shield?" Xia Nan paused, then waved his hand at Barn. "No, thanks. I'm not very good at using one."

The real world was not like a game, where one could casually raise a shield to easily block an enemy's attacks, or even press a button at the right moment to perform some so-called "block counter."

Especially in the complex environment of the Thin Mist Forest, if you had not mastered the relevant shield techniques, then no matter how sturdy the shield was, in your hands it would be no different from holding up a door plank.

What Xia Nan needed most right now was a weapon that suited him.

Fortunately, as the owner of Rock Hammer Blacksmith, weapons happened to be the type of equipment Barn was best at forging.

"Flails, light hammers, halberds..."

All kinds of cold weapons, some light and nimble, others heavy and imposing, covered nearly an entire wall.

"Pole Blade, sharpened on one side. Suitable for fighting in open terrain."

"Iron Prism Hammer, an excellent armor-piercing weapon. The armor might be fine after one hit, but the person inside it won't be."

"..."

As Barn introduced them, Xia Nan's gaze passed over the weapons one by one.

The thought in his heart gradually became clear.

First, the weapon itself could not be too light.

He did not have Elki's nimble, assassin-like combat style. The two Short Daggers on his body were only for emergencies.

The highly flexible, lightweight leather armor, along with the extra freedom of not needing to hold a shield, made him more inclined toward a weapon he could wield with both hands.

Like his predecessor's One-handed Sword—it was sharp enough, but the free hand left hanging during combat felt somewhat awkward. Ga Gu's Hand Axe was powerful and heavy, but in actual use, it could sometimes feel too clumsy.

Second, the weapon type had to be compatible with [Whirlwind Slash].

Thanks to his predecessor's efforts and the Attribute Panel's boost, this trump card had already been raised to the maximum Level 5. It had nearly become one with him, as natural as an everyday movement.

Not only short daggers—even a hoe swung in a field could easily unleash [Whirlwind Slash] in Xia Nan's hands.

But since he had a choice, he naturally had to find the most suitable one.

So, then...

Just as Xia Nan sank into thought over his choice of weapon, Barn, who had been explaining while observing him all along, seemed to have misunderstood something.

He immediately laughed heartily and pulled the bewildered Xia Nan aside.

"There's nothing embarrassing about it. Who wasn't a beginner once?"

"It doesn't matter if you don't have enough gold. We don't offer credit here, but that doesn't mean we don't have cheaper goods."

"Take a look. See if there's anything you like?"