"Reward? What reward?" Jiang Jie had excellent hearing and hurriedly asked.
He had always been sensitive to the word "reward"!
Roand explained, "When Master Onias became a master, she once said that if anyone in the Lordaeron Royal Assassins learned Stealth faster than she had, she would give him the Assassin's Blade she once used. If someone learned Stealth within three days, the reward would be upgraded to Widowmaker. If they learned it within a day, the reward would be upgraded again, and she would give him Gut Ripper as well."
Assassin's Blade!
Widowmaker!
Gut Ripper!
Those three resounding names made Jiang Jie's heart burn.
Assassin's Blade was a mass-produced one-handed sword, while Widowmaker was an extremely rare uncommon-quality dagger, and Gut Ripper was a unique epic-quality dagger.
If he could really get those three weapons...
How much could he sell them for?!
Roand shook his head and sighed. "Unfortunately, it's been five years now, hasn't it? No one has ever learned faster than Master Onias, let alone in three days or even one. I think even legendary assassins like Garona and Farad couldn't have learned Stealth in just one day, right? How could that be possible! Ah, those three weapons have remained sealed in a secret chamber, never seeing the light of day."
Jiang Jie glanced at Roand, and at that moment, his thought was:
If I could get those weapons and sell them to Roand...
How much would he offer?
Surely several tenths above market price? Or even double?
After all, he was one of Onias's suitors!
"Maybe I could give it a try?" Jiang Jie chuckled, and amid Roand's and Ivan's surprise, he instantly entered the gaming pod.
Naturally, he did not have that ability himself.
In fact, he knew very well that he was no rogue at all. Even the rogue skills he currently used were not powered by the "energy" unique to rogues, but simulated using internal energy.
Just as Jiumozhi's Flower-Picking Finger was never the authentic Flower-Picking Finger, but ultimately the Lesser Formless Art.
Jiang Jie was, in the end, still a Chinese martial artist.
To surpass Master Onias, he could only seek the gaming pod's help.
"Xiao Feng, can it be done?" Jiang Jie looked at the incomparably beautiful AI Xiao Feng before him and hurriedly asked.
He was not very confident either.
After all, ordinary skills were different from Stealth. The latter involved the Plane of Shadows and shadow energy, making the difficulty of analysis and simulation entirely different.
"Please wait, host. The gaming pod is performing an analysis."
Xiao Feng paused, then explained, "The gaming pod has been scanning and analyzing all this time. It discovered that when Roand used Stealth, a strange energy passed into his body from another special world. That should be the so-called shadow energy. Shadow energy spread throughout his body and concealed his existence. That is the basic principle of Stealth. The gaming pod is now analyzing how Roand communicates with the Plane of Shadows. There will be results soon."
Waiting was always the most agitating part.
Preoccupied with Onias's weapons, Jiang Jie felt somewhat restless and anxious. He could only settle into a stance and practice the Taiji Art before his mood finally began to calm.
A few minutes later, Xiao Feng nodded. "Analysis complete. Simulation is possible."
She waved a hand, and a peculiar internal energy circulation pattern appeared within Jiang Jie's body.
Delighted, Jiang Jie hurriedly tried it.
The first attempt: incorrect internal energy circulation. Failure!
The second attempt: reaction too slow. Failure!
Jiang Jie did not lose heart. He tried dozens more times and finally succeeded.
Immediately afterward, he tried dozens more times, finally grasping the internal energy circulation pattern and ensuring that he could successfully simulate it. A smile appeared on his face.
"Assassin's Blade,
Widowmaker, Gut Ripper! Here I come!" The next moment, Jiang Jie left the gaming pod.
Time stood still inside the gaming pod. No matter how long Jiang Jie stayed inside, only an instant had passed outside when he emerged.
So the moment he returned, Jiang Jie saw Roand's surprised expression and heard his voice. "Jiang Jie, you want to try to surpass Master Onias? Fair enough. With your talent, you do have a chance of learning Stealth within ten days."
Ivan stood beside them looking despondent, silently encouraging himself:
Hmph! Nicholas, this time I'll definitely get ahead of you! I'll definitely get my hands on the Assassin's Blade Master Onias used!
Ten days? I can definitely do it!
Yet the next moment, he saw Jiang Jie wave a hand, a faint smile appearing on his face. "No, I mean now."
Now!
Roand's and Ivan's expressions instantly matched. At that moment, the same voice arose in both their minds:
Impossible!
Absolutely impossible!
They had entertained the possibility that perhaps people as powerful as Garona and Farad really had learned Stealth in an extremely short time back then. Perhaps they had managed it in three days.
But one day?
They really did not quite believe it.
Perhaps among the High Elves or the legendary Night Elves, there really were people who could do it?
Fine, even if someone really could learn Stealth within a day, it had only been two hours now. How could that be possible?
Absolutely impossible!
"Nicholas, I know you really want to uphold your status as a genius, and you really want the weapons Master Onias used. But I still have to say that it's truly difficult. Your trial result was a hundred meters, which is indeed remarkable, but let me tell you, any slightly outstanding rogue apprentice among the High Elves or even Half-Elves can do that! Yet not even one in ten of them can learn Stealth in under ten days!" Roand hurriedly said.
"Let's give it a try." Jiang Jie chuckled.
He nodded lightly to Roand, then ignored Ivan's complicated expression and gaze and took a few steps back.
Then the internal energy in his body followed that complex route and began the simulation.
It really was difficult.
Inside the gaming pod, the pod had directly opened the internal energy circulation route for him. But now he was outside, and the gaming pod could not help him. He could only rely on himself.
The first attempt: failure!
The second attempt: failure!
The third attempt: still a failure!
He kept trying, but time ticked by. Soon, ten minutes had passed, and he still could not do it.
Ivan's complicated expression had already turned into undisguised mockery and sneering, and Roand had also begun trying to persuade him several times.
"Nicholas, you're already remarkable, but you should still be a little more humble, because this really is difficult. You can go back and practice more. Maybe you'll successfully use Stealth within three days... Holy shit! You, you... you really did it?"
Roand was earnestly trying to persuade him when he suddenly discovered that Jiang Jie had vanished before his eyes!
He had completely disappeared from view!
He really was gone!