Only What You Bring Back Counts as Income

After the special assessment was completed, Eina did not prepare any further tests for Lin Yuan.

She handed him only a shallow map, and placed a short knife and a sturdy backpack on the counter.

"The dagger is used to extract magic stones, and the backpack is used to store magic stones and dropped items. The guild will not collect loot from Dungeon for adventurers; only items that can be brought back to the surface count as income."

Lin Yuan picked up the short sword and glanced at it. The blade was very thin, unsuitable for combat, but convenient for slicing open monsters' bodies.

"The two magic stones from yesterday were too small to see the difference," Eina pointed to the map. "The first three levels are mainly goblins and earth spirits, but stronger monsters will appear starting from the fourth level. You can familiarize yourself with the complete recycling process today."

She paused for a moment, then looked at the training ground wall that had been pierced by the force-measuring column yesterday.

"This isn't about your combat abilities. The most problematic thing in Dungeon is never just combat."

"I see."

Lin Yuan packed the dagger and backpack, then turned and walked towards the Tower of Babel.

The path on the first level was no different from yesterday. The light blue walls emitted a steady light, and as soon as the goblin rushed out from around the corner, its neck was broken by the Nameless sword sheath.

The monster's corpse lay on the ground, but did not disappear immediately.

Lin Yuan crouched down, his spatial perception penetrating through his flesh to quickly locate the energy core in his chest cavity. He used a short knife to cut open the flesh and retrieved a purple magic stone the size of a finger joint.

After losing the magic stone, the goblin's corpse began to disintegrate from its wounds, turning into a pile of black ash in the blink of an eye.

Lin Yuan put the magic stone into his backpack and continued downwards.

The monsters on the first three levels couldn't slow him down. What really took up time was the looting after each battle. The more monsters appeared, the more corpses were left on the ground. He could end a battle in an instant, but he had to find the magic stones one by one and extract them from the corpses.

Upon reaching the fourth floor, the sound of weapons clashing echoed from the passage ahead.

Three adventurers were besieging two earth spirits. The one with the shield blocked the front, while the other two attacked from the sides. After the battle ended, they did not leave immediately. A dwarf carrying a huge bag ran forward, skillfully took out a magic stone, and picked up a piece of hard horn that had not disappeared from the ashes.

"Dropped item!"

The little man happily raised his hard horn, and the other three looked much more relaxed.

Lin Yuan did not approach, but continued forward along the fork in the road.

Soon after, four earth spirits emerged from the wall one after another. He did not use large-scale True Magic, but simply killed them one by one with his Nameless. When he took out the third magic stone, a piece of grayish-brown hard skin remained in the black ash that the corpses had turned into.

A faint energy still remained within the hardened skin, and it did not dissipate even after the magic stone was removed.

This is the loot that the team mentioned earlier.

Lin Yuan carefully wrapped the hard leather separately. While magic stones are controlled by the guild, dropped items can be sold to craftsmen as materials; their value cannot be judged solely by their size.

As he continued his journey, he began to change his hunting methods.

The sword no longer aimed directly at the monster's chest, and the Zero-Distance Crushing Fist avoided the location of the magic stone. He wouldn't use the Boundary-Severing Blade on monsters that could be dealt with using the scabbard. It wasn't because these monsters were worth his serious attention, but because only a complete magic stone could be exchanged for Valis.

By the afternoon, the backpack was starting to feel heavy.

Lin Yuan did not continue towards the fifth level. He had already confirmed the shallow path and the method of loot collection, and there was no need to prolong the time just to kill a few more monsters.

He returned to the ground and placed his backpack on the counter of the guild's gold exchange.

The clerk in charge of the inventory opened the bag, but quickly stopped.

The backpack was filled with purple magic stones of similar size, and the several dropped items were wrapped up separately, with not a single magic stone damaged.

"Is this all you've achieved today?"

"And the parts lost during yesterday's True Magic test."

The employee turned to look at Eina.

After checking the gold exchange records, Eina inquired about the floor and time Lin Yuan had stayed on. She already knew Lin Yuan's strength, but she was still speechless for a moment by his hunting efficiency.

"The value of shallow magic stones is limited." She pushed the sack containing Valis's money towards Lin Yuan, "But for a newly established Familia, this is already a very stable source of income."

Lin Yuan put away the money pouch and left the guild.

Hestia was standing at the edge of the square waiting for him. When she saw Lin Yuan return before dinner as agreed, she breathed a sigh of relief, and then noticed the money bag in his hand.

"First official income?"

"I also exchanged two magic stones yesterday."

"Two coins don't count as official income." Hestia took the money pouch, and upon hearing the clear clinking sound inside, her eyes lit up. "This is the real money the Hestia Familia has earned!"

She clutched her purse tightly, already calculating her lodging and meal expenses for the night.

Seeing her happy expression, Lin Yuan suddenly remembered the short sword on the guild counter.

After arriving in this city, he finally figured out the most basic rule for adventurers.