Novice Weapon Fee

"I won't go to the hospital to get it checked out yet. I've made it this many years; it won't be an issue."

"Xiao An'an and Lele are about to start high school. Give the three children more good food. Their physical condition in reality affects their initial attributes when they enter Cloud Sea, so don't be too frugal."

The room fell silent for a moment, followed immediately by Aunt's voice, thick with worry.

"But your body can't drag on like this anymore. You were in so much pain last night that you didn't sleep at all."

"Rest assured, my body has been strengthened in Cloud Sea after all; it won't collapse that easily. Let's prioritize the children first."

Uncle's voice paused, followed by a heavy sigh.

"Xiao Fan is about to enter Cloud Sea soon. He'll need to buy a beginner weapon then. How much money is left at home?"

"A little over twenty thousand."

Silence.

"I'll go borrow some more tomorrow; that should be enough. A beginner weapon is vital to the child's safety, so we can't skimp on it."

"I know."

The conversation in the room ceased. After a long while, Xiao Fan took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and walked in.

"Uncle, Aunt, I'm home."

In the cramped kitchen, Aunt was cooking, and Uncle was helping on the side.

Seeing Xiao Fan walk in, a smile appeared on both of their faces.

"Xiao Fan is back." Uncle wiped his hands and walked out of the kitchen.

"Right, Xiao Fan, have you decided which Skill Chain you'll choose after entering Cloud Sea?"

Xiao Fan shook his head: "Not yet."

Hearing this, Uncle frowned: "The choice of a Skill Chain is of vital importance. You are about to enter Cloud Sea, so you need to decide quickly."

"I know, I'll have the Skill Chain chosen within these two days." Xiao Fan could only nod.

"Let's eat first." Aunt walked out carrying a plate.

After the family finished dinner, Xiao Fan returned to his room.

This house had three bedrooms: one for Uncle and Aunt, one for his cousin Xiao An'an, and one for Xiao Fan and his cousin Xiao Le.

His cousins had physical training and wouldn't be home until very late.

Xiao Fan returned to his room and immediately picked up his phone to search. He had to understand everything about Cloud Sea and the Skill Chains as soon as possible.

He didn't know how much time had passed when Xiao Fan put down his phone, his face full of confusion.

According to the information he found, Cloud Sea was similar to the online games of his past life, except that all the items, equipment, and skills inside had to be created by the players themselves.

If this were on Earth in his past life, that would be absolutely insane.

However...

Xiao Fan looked at those Skill Chains.

Basic Blade Technique...

Basic Sword Technique...

Basic Spear Technique...

Basic Healing...

He looked at the skill descriptions again.

Basic Blade Technique: A strike with a blade that deals damage to monsters.

Basic Sword Technique: A strike with a sword that deals damage to monsters.

Basic Healing: Increases the speed of applying bandages.

Xiao Fan: ?????

Wait, if they can create their own skills, are the players here really this restrained?

Could it be because of the limitations of attributes and traits?

He wasn't sure; he kept looking.

Xiao Fan could hardly believe his eyes as he picked up his phone and continued to search.

A long time later.

Xiao Fan put down his phone, his eyes filled with shock.

He had finally discovered what was wrong!

Although the technological level of Blue Star was similar to Earth, there was a vast gap in terms of culture.

There were no myths, no fantasy or cultivation novels here, and before Cloud Sea, this world didn't even know what a game was.

Consequently, the imagination of everyone on Blue Star was severely lacking, and their creation of skills was limited to things they could see in real society.

"So, it's not that Cloud Sea cannot create the flashy skills from the games of my past life, but that the people here cannot imagine skills that transcend reality."

Realizing this, Xiao Fan stood up excitedly, feeling his heart rate accelerate.

Possessing the memories of Earth, the number of skills he could imagine and create was in the millions.

After a long while, Xiao Fan finally forced himself to calm down.

"Everything will have to wait until I enter the game to know for sure."

Thinking of this, Xiao Fan couldn't wait to enter Cloud Sea.

Time passed quickly.

"Tomorrow is the day to enter Cloud Sea. Those who want a starter weapon, hand in the thirty thousand for the weapon tomorrow..." the teacher dropped this sentence and left.

Xiao Fan walked out of the school campus in silence.

Having overheard Uncle and Aunt chatting last time, he knew what thirty thousand meant for this family.

This calmed his previously excited heart, replacing it with a touch of sorrow.

In Cloud Sea, having a starter weapon in the early stages is a huge help for killing monsters and leveling up.

A starter weapon requires 20 Core Power to be manufactured, and thirty thousand is the price after government subsidies.

Even so, he couldn't afford it.

He recalled last night, when he went to the bathroom, hearing the sounds of suppressed pain from Uncle's room, along with Aunt's stifled sobbing.

He truly didn't know how to bring up the subject of the thirty thousand.

He had thought about finding a part-time job over the past two days, but on Blue Star nowadays, most places only hire Players who have already been strengthened in Cloud Sea. It was hard for a student like him who had never entered the game to find work.

"If I want to make money quickly, I still have to enter Cloud Sea."

Xiao Fan pondered for a moment and made up his mind: "Once I enter the game, I will find a way to make money for Uncle's medical treatment."

But plans couldn't keep up with changes; just as Xiao Fan was nearing home, a sound of shattering glass suddenly came from inside. Immediately following it was Aunt's exclamation: "Old Xiao!"

Realizing something was wrong, Xiao Fan ran home quickly. He opened the door to see Uncle collapsed on the floor in agony, with Aunt supporting his head, her eyes red with anxiety.

Xiao Fan hurriedly called for an ambulance and helped lift Uncle up.

At the hospital, the Doctor looked grave: "His condition is already very serious. He must be treated immediately, otherwise, he might never be able to stand up again for the rest of his life."

Uncle struggled to sit up on the hospital bed: "It's fine. At worst, I'll just rest at home for a few days. Let's not get the treatment for now."

"Old Xiao, I'm begging you. An'an and Lele are still young. If something happens to you, what will they do in the future?" Aunt said, wiping away her tears.

Uncle opened his mouth, then finally looked at Xiao Fan with an apologetic expression: "Xiao Fan, it's Uncle's incompetence. Your starter weapon..."

With his medical bills to pay, they could no longer afford the thirty thousand for the starter weapon.

"Uncle, to me, your health is the most important thing. Please focus on your treatment. Even without a starter weapon, I can still go the Healer Class route," Xiao Fan said with a serious face.

Hearing this, Xiao Yi turned his head away, his eyes turning red.

Because he had to enter Cloud Sea tomorrow, Xiao Fan didn't stay at the hospital for long before Aunt urged him to go back and rest.

On the way, passing by a pharmacy, he used the pocket money the original owner had saved up to buy some hemostatic medicine, alcohol, and bandages. These items could be brought into the game, whereas metal weapons and ores could not.

Back home, Xiao Fan packed the hemostatic medicine, bandages, alcohol, the dry rations and water Aunt had prepared earlier, and two sets of clothes into his backpack.

Then, he went to sleep to recharge his energy.