The Abyssal Walker

After hanging up on Heizi, Shi Feng scanned his surroundings. Seeing that no players had noticed his sudden appearance, he ducked into a deserted alleyway.

Opening an Adamantine-grade treasure chest would inevitably cause a stir.

In a densely populated plaza, "boldly" opening an Adamantine chest to show off to other players was something only a game novice would do.

Unlike the real world, the game world had no constraints. The major factions' desire for super-tier treasures went without saying. For players without strength, the best outcome was often being killed back to level zero. If the items inside the chest didn't drop...

Congratulations, you were destined to live in the city for the rest of your life. While others went out into the wild to kill monsters and level up, you could only wander around the city, and in a few months, you would be honorably promoted to a "city guide."

Shi Feng was not an Assassin who could use stealth to evade pursuit, and he currently lacked the strength to defend himself, so he naturally had to keep a low profile.

In the empty alley, Shi Feng observed his surroundings quietly for a while. Once he was certain no one had followed him, he took out the black longsword.

Looking at the black longsword, Shi Feng's brows furrowed tightly.

Abyssal Walker, Magic Weapon. Requires class: Swordsman. Bind this equipment?

"Should I equip it or not?" Shi Feng looked at the Abyssal Walker in his hand, feeling somewhat troubled.

He was very familiar with Magic Weapons. Unlike ordinary equipment, they had no quality tiers. They were even rarer than Epic-grade gear, and their power was unparalleled. Correspondingly, they came with side effects: backlash. A moment of carelessness could turn a character into a waste of space; they were truly double-edged swords.

In his previous life, several experts in the Star-Moon Kingdom had leaped to the ranks of top-tier players because of Magic Weapons. Even at his peak, he could only look up to them. However, after some time, two of those experts had their accounts ruined because they failed to manage the backlash effects, ultimately forcing them to reroll.

"Forget it, let's put it aside for now. I can't take the risk yet." Shi Feng shook his head and put away the Abyssal Walker. He had to earn 16,000 credits in the first ten days of the game; the pressure was immense. If something went wrong, all his previous efforts would be for nothing.

Afterward, Shi Feng took out the Adamantine-grade treasure chest.

Gazing at the gilded chest, Shi Feng couldn't suppress his inner excitement. "In my previous life, the Mithril-grade chests they obtained contained potion recipes and forging diagrams. I wonder what good things an Adamantine-grade chest will yield?"

He had played God's Domain for ten years and had seen fewer than twenty Adamantine-grade chests in total.

The battle for every single Adamantine chest was a massive campaign. To possess one alone was almost unimaginable.

He slowly opened the chest. Suddenly, golden radiance erupted from within, illuminating the entire alley. In the middle of the night, it was absolutely a dazzling beacon that would draw everyone's attention.

Shi Feng didn't dare to be careless and immediately took out all the items, causing the light to gradually fade.

Fortunately, it was a deserted alley, and no one had discovered the brief flash of light.

"Ugh, the chest settings in God's Domain are truly infuriating. Good thing it's daytime." Shi Feng glanced at the chest beside him and shifted his gaze to the three treasures in his hand.

They were two ancient books and a piece of armor.

The armor was a Mithril-grade piece, much worse than he had imagined.

Sky Battle Armor, Mithril-grade, Plate Armor. Equipment requirements: 20 Strength, Level 5. Defense +25, Strength +6, Stamina +3, Agility +3. Durability 30/30. Attached attribute: Weakening Force. After equipping, reduces physical damage taken by 15%.

Seeing the armor's attributes, Shi Feng was taken aback. Although the level was much lower than the gear he had seen opened in his previous life, the attributes were top-tier. If a Warrior-class character wore this, not only would their defense be incredibly high, but with Weakening Force, tanking a physical boss would no longer be a problem. Selling it now would definitely fetch an astronomical price.

"Great, I have my level 5 chest piece." Shi Feng happily put away the Sky Battle Armor. Swordsmen also wore plate armor; once he reached level 5, he could fully function as a Shield Warrior with this gear.

When Shi Feng saw the titles of the two books, he was instantly shocked.

Book of Forging and Secret Manual of Potions—these were priceless treasures.

It was common knowledge that Forging and Alchemy were extremely difficult to learn. Every Master Forger and Master Alchemist was a symbol of a guild's strength. Even the Shadow Guild, which possessed ten major city-states, only had two Master Forgers and five Master Alchemists, and every one of them was treated like royalty.

But with these two books, one could cultivate a Master Forger and a Master Alchemist.

"I remember there's a hidden quest in Dark Moon Valley that not only teaches Forging for free but also rewards a Forging Talent. If I have the Forging Talent plus the Book of Forging, I could definitely become a high-level Forging Apprentice quickly and craft Bronze-grade gear to make a fortune." Shi Feng recalled a player in the Shadow Guild named 'One Hammer Trade', who had become a Master Forger precisely because he completed that hidden quest.

Dark Moon Valley was a level 4 monster zone, and that quest was difficult and time-consuming.

"Looks like I need to buy some supplies and prepare properly." Shi Feng put away the two books, sent a message to Heizi to meet at the trade district, and then headed toward the trade area.

At this time, there were quite a few players in the trade district. Many who were tired of killing monsters came here to rest, sit down for a drink, and chat. Others brought materials gathered from killing wild monsters to sell.

Shi Feng found an empty spot, spread a white cloth on the ground, placed the herbs he had gathered and the equipment on it, and began to set up his stall.

A level 4 common cloth garment sold for 1 silver 20 copper, and a Bronze shield sold for 21 silver. At this stage, this was a fair price—very cheap, in fact.

"Rare herbs, high-level equipment! Come take a look if you're interested!" Shi Feng called out casually.

There were many players setting up stalls in the trade district, but they were all selling materials like herbs and ores. Currently, no other player was selling equipment. With Shi Feng's shout, he instantly became the center of attention.

"No way, there's actually equipment? And it's a Bronze shield!"

"This luck is heaven-defying. I don't even have a single piece of common gear, and this guy already has Bronze equipment."

"This is level 5 gear. Are you kidding me? Am I seeing things?"

"What's so surprising about that? Don't forget, some expert killed the town mayor—that was a level 15 Elite. Now, players in the whole town can't accept the mayor's quests. Some players who had already accepted the quests are spitting blood with rage; they'd love to eat that expert alive."

"21 silver? That price is way too high. I don't even have 1% of that."

The surrounding players were all amazed. God's Domain had been open for less than ten hours, yet someone had already managed to obtain such high-level gear. Most incredibly, he was actually selling it.

One had to know that major guilds and studios used the gear they found on their own members to maximize their advantages; it was impossible for them to sell it. Most players were currently level 1, so level 5 gear was unthinkable, let alone a level 5 Bronze shield. However, 21 silver was too expensive. An average player's daily income was less than 20 copper; 21 silver was 2,100 copper, which they simply couldn't afford.

Shi Feng watched as more and more players gathered, smiling slightly without saying a word.

He didn't expect ordinary players to buy it; what he wanted was the promotional effect.

Before long, a team of players rushed over, led by a Shield Warrior.

"Move aside, move aside! Since we from Shadow are here, we're taking everything on this stall. Everyone else can leave."

The members of the Shadow squad pushed through to clear a path, allowing the Shield Warrior to walk in.

Shi Feng swept his gaze over the man and realized he recognized this Shield Warrior. His name was Flame Tiger, the team leader in Red Leaf Town. In his previous life, Shi Feng had struggled to rise quickly and was used as cannon fodder time and again, with thirty percent of that "effort" credited to Flame Tiger. He hadn't expected to run into him so soon.

"You're the stall owner?" Flame Tiger looked at the blue cross-shield, slightly excited, before glancing at Shi Feng. Without the Eye of Observation, he couldn't see his level. Shi Feng was wearing basic starter gear and lacked a guild emblem, appearing to be just an ordinary player. He must have just gotten lucky to have loot to sell.

Shi Feng nodded and said, "That's right."

"Fine then, I'll take all of these. One silver, flat price," Flame Tiger said arrogantly.

It was as if the items on the stall were trash, worthless, and offering one silver was a favor to him.

"I don't haggle here. Please don't act like a big shot and get in the way of my business." Shi Feng wasn't angry and simply ignored Flame Tiger.

Flame Tiger's face turned livid. He glared at Shi Feng and sneered, "Are you sure you want to go against us in Shadow? I'll give you one more chance. Think carefully before you speak."

Immediately, the other five Shadow members surrounded them.

Shi Feng rolled his eyes at Flame Tiger and said bluntly, "Idiot."

To dare threaten him inside Red Leaf Town—did they not know that combat was prohibited within the town?

"You're courting death!" Flame Tiger roared in fury, his eyes bloodshot; he wished he could kill Shi Feng right then and there.

"Hahaha, how interesting. How could we, the Assassin Alliance, miss out on a Level 5 Bronze shield?"

At that moment, over a dozen more people arrived, each wearing the Assassin Alliance emblem. The one who spoke was Cixin. Upon seeing the stall owner, Cixin was momentarily stunned.

The expert Shi Feng, who had cleared the Bronze-rank challenge on his first attempt, was actually here, and he had even obtained Level 5 Bronze equipment. He must have killed a high-level elite monster. His admiration for Shi Feng grew even deeper.

"This is 24 silver. I'll take it all. Let's be friends; if you have any good equipment in the future, please consider the Assassin Alliance." Cixin traded the 24 silver without a second thought. Although 24 silver was a sum the guild had painstakingly saved up, it was worth it to befriend an expert like Shi Feng.

"Fine. Since you're so straightforward, I'll waive the 50 copper. Let's keep in touch." Shi Feng understood that Cixin was trying to curry favor with him, and cooperating with such a large guild wouldn't be a bad thing.

The surrounding players were stunned by the Assassin Alliance's generosity. They spent 24 silver without even blinking—this was what a real large guild looked like. Many players were now eager to sign up, while in contrast, they cast looks of disdain toward a guild like Shadow, which was clearly destined for no future.

Having been looked down upon by Shi Feng and slapped in the face by the Assassin Alliance, Flame Tiger's face turned bright red, his eyes nearly splitting with rage. He called over an assassin and said coldly, "Shadow Wolf, go keep an eye on that brat. I want him to know the consequences of going against Shadow."

On the other side, Shi Feng, who had long since left, was busy purchasing items in the trade district.

With over 24 silver in his pocket—more than the entire assets of an average guild in Red Leaf Town—he was practically a tycoon, and he began to spend lavishly.

Twenty bottles of Black Iron Beer at 25 copper each.

Thirty smoke bombs at 20 copper each.

One hundred apple pies at 5 copper each, which restored 30 HP per second for 10 seconds.

One hundred bottles of magic water at 5 copper each, which restored 30 MP per second for 10 seconds.

In an instant, he had spent more than half of his wealth, leaving him with only about 3 silver.

"Brother Feng, you're finally here. What are we doing now?" Heizi, who had been waiting in the trade district, looked sullen with a resentful expression. God's Domain had been open for over nine hours, and other than unlocking the Explorer title, he hadn't gained a thing. He was nearly depressed to death.

"Let's go. We're going to grind some monsters." Shi Feng smiled and sent a party invitation.