Space Teams

Lin Maoxian only realized how vast the Adventurer Zone was when he arrived. People came and went along both sides of the road, which stretched so far he couldn't see the end.

Watching the crowds haggling over goods at their stalls, Lin Maoxian casually picked one and walked over.

"What are you looking to buy? Everything I'm selling is laid out here. Take a look and see what you want." The stallholder's body was obscured, so Lin Maoxian couldn't see what he looked like, but his voice made him sound like a middle-aged man.

Lin Maoxian crouched down to look over the goods. There were only three items, and all of them were common-grade. They wouldn't make much difference to him now, so they weren't worth buying.

"Uh, I'm looking to buy a piece of attack equipment, preferably fine-grade. Do you have anything like that?" Seeing nothing he wanted on the stall, Lin Maoxian explained what he was looking for.

"You messing with me? If I had fine-grade equipment, I wouldn't be selling it. Everyone setting up stalls here only has common-grade items. Who'd sell fine-grade gear instead of keeping it for themselves?" The stallholder sounded impatient. He'd been here a long time, and most people walked away because they couldn't agree on a price. This one, though, wanted fine-grade equipment. If he had any, he'd obviously keep it for himself.

Lin Maoxian was taken aback. "Wait, is this your first time entering the Space too?"

"Obviously. Who hasn't just entered the Space? People have already asked around, and everyone they've found is a first-timer. No idea if anyone entered earlier, but it seems unlikely. Everything circulating in the market right now is common-grade. I haven't even heard of any fine-grade items turning up. If you want fine-grade equipment, your only option is to buy it from the Space Shop." The stallholder was quite talkative and shared everything he knew.

Lin Maoxian gave a wry smile. "The Space Shop has all kinds of things, but they're too expensive. Everything costs at least several thousand. And if you sell equipment back to the Space, it only pays a tenth of the price. That's why I wanted to see if anyone here was selling fine-grade equipment."

The stallholder sighed too. "Yeah! Everyone says the Space is a real rip-off, buying low and selling high. That's why so many people, me included, set up stalls even for common-grade items. If you find a buyer who wants what you've got, you make a profit."

That was exactly what Lin Maoxian had thought. The only problem was that he had nothing to sell. Thinking about it now, he'd barely gained anything in the last world. Other people had things left over to sell, while he had nothing to offer and still needed to buy equipment. After bidding farewell to the stallholder, Lin Maoxian checked out some other stalls. Just as the man had said, everyone was selling common-grade items. After looking through several stalls, he realized that not one of them had any skills for sale. Either skills couldn't be obtained in the worlds, or people who found them had learned them right away.

Seeing that he couldn't buy the equipment he wanted, Lin Maoxian checked a few more stalls, then gave up on the pointless search rather than waste any more time. Just as he was about to return to his Private Space, someone came rushing toward him, shouting, "The Celestial Team is recruiting at the Adventurer Arena! Anyone with an attribute above 10 or a skill can try out. The Celestial Team is the first team in the Space, so don't miss out, all you experts!"

"The Celestial Team is... Don't miss out!"

Watching the man run farther and farther away, Lin Maoxian felt a stir of interest. The Space Shop currently sold only one item that could be used to form a team: the Black Iron Token, which cost 5,000 Source Points. It allowed five Adventurers to enter the same world and take on an adventure together. Without changing the world's difficulty, a team could not only complete its mission more safely but also spend more time exploring the world's story and side quests. On top of that, a team gained a valuable team skill that every member could use.

"The Celestial Team? Someone actually formed a team? That's unbelievable."

"Yeah. The Black Iron Token costs 5,000 Source Points at the Space Shop. I didn't even earn that much in an entire world."

"Who did? Even if someone earned more than 5,000 points, I doubt they'd spend them on a Black Iron Token. And now someone's gone and bought one instead of upgrading themselves. I wonder who it was."

"Why don't we go take a look? There's nothing else worth seeing here anyway."

"Let's go. We can find out who it is—and who'll become the first member of the team."

Seeing that some of the people who'd been shopping were heading toward the arena, Lin Maoxian noticed that even some vendors were packing up their goods. He headed over too, curious to find out who'd spent 5,000 Source Points on a Black Iron Token. Whoever it was must have kept plenty of Source Points to upgrade their attributes and buy skills, which meant they'd earned at least 10,000. Without using his talent, Lin Maoxian had only just managed to earn a little over 10,000 in the last world. He was curious to see what kind of powerhouse this person was.

By the time Lin Maoxian reached the arena, the area was already packed. He couldn't see anyone, and the noise was so overwhelming he couldn't make out a thing.

"Everyone, quiet down! Quiet, please! I'm the one who formed the Celestial Team. I won't give out my real name or number, but you can call me Celestial. We're going to screen applicants now. Anyone with an attribute above 10 or a powerful skill is welcome to apply. I'd be glad to have any experts join us." The Space made it impossible to see what he looked like, but his voice made it clear he was a man.

After the crowd quieted for a moment, a man called out, "What do we get for joining the Celestial Team? And what do we have to give up?"

Celestial answered at once. "Good question. I won't go over the benefits of joining a team. I'm sure everyone's read the description of the Black Iron Token. What I want to say is that since I formed this team, you'll need to repay the 5,000 Source Points I spent with the rewards from our next world. After that, rewards will be divided according to each person's contribution. If my contribution is low, I won't get more than those who contributed more."

When nobody else spoke, Celestial continued, "As for what you have to give up: because of the team, your attacks won't affect one another. And whenever a team member dies, everyone else is penalized 3,000 Source Points. That's the first thing. Second, rewards depend on your contribution. If you join but don't work hard to raise your contribution, you won't get much. If you can't keep up with the others in combat, you'll be kicked out of the team."

With that, Celestial looked toward the crowd. "Does anyone have any other questions? If not, come over here to apply for a place as an official team member."

The crowd fell silent for a moment. Those who didn't meet the requirements were just there to watch, while those who did were wondering whether to join and how it might affect them. The atmosphere suddenly grew awkward.

At that critical moment, the man who had asked the first question spoke up again. "Team Leader Celestial, I'd like to join the Celestial Team. Here are my attributes." Before his voice had even faded, a figure emerged from the crowd and walked up to Celestial, sending him his attributes.

Celestial looked over the man's attributes. "Not bad. Your Agility and Strength are both above 10, and you've learned a basic skill. That's quite good. If fewer than four people after you have better attributes, you'll become a member of the Celestial Team. Also, what should I call you? You don't need to give your real name. Just tell me the title you use in the Space."

"Team Leader, you can call me Walker," the man replied.

Celestial raised his voice to address the crowd. "Everyone, we now have a candidate named Walker whose attributes meet the requirements. If no one who comes after him has better attributes, he'll become a member of the Celestial Team. Anyone else want to join?"

"Well, look at that! What a convincing performance. I can barely resist applauding," a sarcastic voice came from the crowd.

"Who's that? Who said that? If you've got the guts, step out and say it to my face. Don't hide in the crowd." Celestial's pupils narrowed, but he kept his temper in check. He knew this wasn't the time to lose it; dealing with this person came first.

"You already know I don't have the guts, so why say that? But I'm not afraid of you. What can you do about it if I come out?" A figure emerged from the crowd. From the voice and build, it was clearly a woman—no wonder she'd said she didn't have the guts.

Looking at the figure who'd stepped out, Celestial swallowed his anger and asked, "What did you mean when you said this was all an act? Did you come here just to undermine me?"

The figure covered her mouth and giggled at Celestial. "Anyone with eyes can see whether it's an act. I merely said it out loud, so why are you so angry? And as for undermining you, of course not. I'm here to borrow your stage."

Then she turned to the crowd. "Everyone, you can call me Phantom. I've also formed a team, and I hope you'll consider joining my Heavenly Demon Team. As for the terms, I think Team Leader Celestial explained them very well, so I'm going to use the same ones. Is that all right with you, Team Leader Celestial?" she asked, teasing him.

Lin Maoxian watched the spectacle grow more and more entertaining. If nothing else, the commotion alone had made the trip worthwhile.