A Marvelous Encounter

Wang Qianduo didn't care what Sword of Miracles and the others were thinking. As he said, the only one on the scene who hadn't seen through Lin Qimeng's routine was probably Yun Zhongge.

Although her acting skills were good, she lacked the necessary backstory.

Wang Qianduo had just opened a rare equipment treasure chest and obtained his last piece of gear: an energy shield.

The item was called the [Aura II Energy Shield Blueprint], a Level 5 rare equipment blueprint.

The finished product's stats were as follows:

[Aura II Energy Shield] (Rare)
Energy Shield
Usable by Mechs LV5 and above

HP +200
MP +50
Strength +5
Agility +5
Intelligence +5
Defense +10

Energy Shield (Rare): Consumes 50 MP to activate the shield, creating an energy barrier around the mech. The shield's durability is 12% of maximum HP, lasts for 10 seconds, with a 15-second cooldown.

Note: The second-generation product from Aura Corporation, it perfectly solved the issue of energy consumption when activating a shield, making it a groundbreaking product with significant collectible value.

In the game's lore, Aura Corporation was a massive, galaxy-spanning company renowned for manufacturing various mech accessories.

This rare shield was one of their products.

The materials required for the shield were not rare, and Wang Qianduo easily purchased them all from the market. He then crafted and equipped it.

He had finally gathered all his equipment!

After equipping the energy shield, Old Wang decided to use up the remaining fatigue time before logging off.

Meanwhile, online, the name "Qian Wang" was becoming incredibly popular.

The boss Markbei was the first boss accessible to all players after the game's large-scale launch.

It was inevitable that Wang Qianduo would become famous for defeating him, but he shouldn't have become this popular.

However, Old Wang's final explosive bomb was too conspicuous. The 10,000 damage and the flattened hill were witnessed by countless people.

Unbeknownst to Old Wang, he was also the first person in the game's history to deal over 10,000 damage to a world boss.

And so, he became famous, and the name "Qian Wang" quietly spread.

Talent scouts from professional clubs quickly noticed him.

But before they could make a move, the Shanhai Guild released an announcement: "Congratulations to our guild member Qian Wang for defeating the World Boss."

In reality, defeating a world boss alone wasn't enough for Shanhai Company to issue such an announcement. But who could blame them, given how eye-catching Wang Qianduo's final blow was!

The true meaning behind Shanhai's announcement was simple: to tell the various clubs, "This is our player, so don't even think about it."

Wang Qianduo was unaware of all this. He had just reached Level 6 after exhausting his fatigue points. Upon returning to the city, he encountered a serendipitous quest.

Now, he was faced with a choice!

The story began after he returned to the city. On his way to the warehouse, Wang Qianduo saw an old man with a large red exclamation mark floating above his head.

It seemed only he could see this exclamation mark; other passing players completely ignored the ordinary old man.

"Red..."

Knowing what a red mark signified in the game, Wang Qianduo immediately stepped forward and said to the old man:

"Grandpa, is there anything I can help you with?"

The old man glanced at Wang Qianduo but didn't respond. Clearly, their affinity wasn't high enough, and Wang Qianduo's classic quest-start greeting failed.

"Sigh, Grandpa, look, so many people are here, and only I noticed you needed help. Give me some face!"

Although the initial attempt failed, Wang Qianduo was no ordinary person. Had his years of developing shameless persistence been for nothing?

"Give you face?"

The old man, perhaps annoyed by his persistence, finally addressed Wang Qianduo.

"Yes, yes! Give me some face!"

"Fine! I'll give you some face then!"

As soon as the old man finished speaking, a dialogue box popped up in front of Wang Qianduo, presenting him with a choice.

"System Prompt: Old Luo has issued you quest [Help 1]. Do you accept?"

[Help 1]: Old Luo needs Golden Crystals. Are you willing to spend Golden Crystals to help him?

A: Spend 1 Golden Crystal to help him.

B: Spend 10 Gold Crystals to help him. C: Spend 100 Gold Crystals to help him. D: Forget it!

(－_－)

Wang Qian looked at the options before him, then at the old man. Could this old guy be a scammer, fishing for something?

Still, Wang Qian wasn't short on 100 Gold Crystals. He'd help. He directly chose C without hesitation.

"Congratulations on completing the quest [Help 1]. You have gained 100 experience points."

Wang Qian: "..."

100 Gold Crystals for 100 experience. What a rip-off! But it didn't matter. He'd check the subsequent quests. This should be a starting quest!

After losing 100 Gold Crystals, Wang Qian accepted the new quest [Help 2].

[Help 2]: Old Luo needs Gold Crystals for help. Are you willing to spend Gold Crystals to help him?

A: Spend 1 Gold Crystal to help him. B: Spend 10 Gold Crystals to help him. C: Spend 100 Gold Crystals to help him. D: Forget it!

Wang Qian: "..."

Grass! (A plant)

Are you kidding me? Does this quest change at all, besides the number changing from 1 to 2?

But Wang Qian wouldn't be deterred. He gave the old man another 100 Gold Crystals. He wasn't short on money anyway!

Yes! Not... short... on money!

Then, something even more speechless happened. After [Help 2] gave him another 100 experience points, the quest changed to [Help 3].

Apart from the 2 changing to 3, nothing else was different.

"Old man, are you messing with me?" Wang Qian said frantically.

He had money, but he couldn't be played like this!

"Didn't you ask me to give you a chance? You couldn't even seize it when I gave you one!"

The old man glanced at Wang Qian dismissively and stopped paying attention to him. The quest, however, remained there.

"Fine! I'll see this through today!"

Wang Qian said, and with another 100 Gold Crystals, he completed the quest. Then 3 became 4, then 5, 6, 7... 99, 100.

He spent a total of 10,000 Gold Crystals, pushing the quest directly to 100. Finally, the quest reward changed.

"System notification: You have completed [Help 100]. You have gained 10,000 experience points and a Mysterious Crown *1."

Wang Qian: "Huh!!! It finally changed?!"

After this quest was completed, the old man's quests also stopped refreshing. The old man looked at Wang Qian and said with a half-smile, "Alright, young man. You're stubborn and rich enough. Become my disciple, and I'll protect you from now on!"

"Become your disciple? What are the benefits?" Wang Qian asked, looking at the old man with a hint of disdain in his brows.

"Benefits? There are many. First, I can teach you how to use the crown you obtained!" the old man said calmly.

"Crown?" Wang Qian said, looking at the crown he had exchanged for 10,000 Gold Crystals.

[Mysterious Crown] (Epic): ??

"..."

Isn't this a rip-off? 10,000 Gold Crystals could buy a house in Modu! Is this thing worth a house?

"What have you decided? Miss this chance, and you won't get another!"

"Okay, I agree. Master!"

Wang Qian bowed to Old Luo.

Old Luo: "... You're really that straightforward!"

Wang Qian actually had his own considerations. The old man before him, who could issue such quests, must be extraordinary.

Red in this game corresponded to Epic-grade items. An NPC who could issue Epic-level quests could never be ordinary.

At the same time, becoming a disciple probably didn't have that many restrictions.

"It's the information age. Everything needs to be sped up. Master, what's the use of this thing?" Wang Qian asked, looking at La Rot.

"You... Fine. Since I'm taking you in anyway, keep this safe. From now on, you are the disciple of me, La Rot Xinasvant. My Chinese name is Old Luo. I prefer this name."

Old Luo handed Wang Qianduo an item resembling a token and said.

The way these two took on and accepted disciples was truly hasty.

Awesome!

After Wang Qianduo received the item, the system prompt arrived as expected.

"System Prompt: You have become a disciple of Larotxinasvant!"

Look, look! With a name that long, this master must be extraordinary!

"Master, what exactly is this thing?" Wang Qianduo put away the token, then propped up the crown, which was taller than his waist, and asked Old Luo again.

"This is the Elemental Crown, a mecha advancement material born alongside the first batch of mechas. It's a key item for breaking through mecha limits."

"Elemental Crown? Shouldn't it be called the Mysterious Crown?"

"See the seven holes on the crown? Only when these seven holes are filled will it reveal its true name."

"Is that so!"

"Yes, and this item can only be used when a mecha reaches level 10 and undergoes its first evolution. It will be useless if used later!" Old Luo said with a complex expression. He had missed his chance.