Chapter 33: The Skeleton Armor and the Necklace of the Dead

As Huaijian muttered to himself, the [Boots of Shadows] were the first to burst forth with dark golden light. Gradually, the entire pair of boots seemed to be veiled in a layer of shadow, appearing somewhat hazy.

"In ordinary times, I would have charged a kid like you 100 gold coins for this piece of equipment alone!" Huaijian waved his hand, and the [Boots of Shadows] floated over into Su Mubai's hands.

[Boots of Shadows]
Footwear, Plate Armor
Level 10
Dark Gold Grade Item
Durability: 200/200
Equip Requirements: Strength 80, Constitution 50
Physical Defense +75
Magic Defense +5
Health +800
Strength +20
Constitution +20
Agility +10
Movement Speed +10%
Attached Skill:
[Shadow Step]: Dash into the shadows, increasing movement speed by 60% and reducing incoming damage by 10% for 30 seconds. Cooldown: 10 minutes.
(Put them on, and you’ll automatically master the moonwalk.)

As expected of a Level 10 Dark Gold item, the stats were impeccable. It was only a pity that it was plate armor, which Su Mubai could not wear.

"These two pieces have decent stats; they even form a small set." Huaijian’s voice rang out. Just as Su Mubai was checking the stats of the [Boots of Shadows], he had already identified two more items.

[Bone Heavy Armor]
Chest, Plate Armor
Level 10
Upgradable (3/3)
Dark Gold Grade Item
Durability: 200/200
Equip Requirements: Strength 100, Constitution 80
Physical Defense +180
Magic Defense +120
Health +1200
Strength +25
Constitution +25
Physical Damage Reduction: 100 points.
Melee Damage Reflection: 100 points.
Attached Skill:
[Bone Armor]: Summon bones to arm yourself. Increases the Bone Heavy Armor's reduction and reflection effects by 300% for 30 seconds. Cooldown: 10 minutes.
Bone Set: 1/2
Set Bonus: Attack Power +10%, Physical Defense +10% (Inactive)
(Exposed bone spurs leave enemies with no way to strike.)

The [Bone Heavy Armor] possessed an "Upgradable" tag, meaning that once a player collected enough materials, they could seek out a blacksmith to upgrade it. Each upgrade would increase the equipment’s level by 5.

This meant this top-tier Dark Gold piece could eventually be upgraded to Level 25. Furthermore, equipping both the [Bone Heavy Armor] and the [Bone Greatsword] would activate the set bonus.

[Bone Greatsword]
Two-Handed Sword
Level 10
Upgradable (3/3)
Dark Gold Grade Item
Durability: 200/200
Equip Requirements: Strength 120
Attack Power +288
Strength +50
Attacks deal 30% splash damage.
Attached Skill:
[Powerful Strike]: Attacks have a chance to trigger triple damage.
Bone Set: 1/2
(Violence is the ultimate aesthetic.)

The stats on this greatsword were singular, but undeniably powerful. An attack power of 288 combined with 50 points of Strength was a massive boost for a Level 10 player. Moreover, the 30% splash effect and the passive "Powerful Strike" made it an incredibly rare and top-tier item.

Su Mubai could already imagine the sensation these three pieces would cause at the auction house once he left the novice village. And this was without even considering an upgrade; once he used [Cataclysm] to "freeload" an upgrade, these would become three Epic-grade items!

However, Su Mubai was in no rush to upgrade them; he decided to wait until he had left the novice village to assess the situation. Whether or not to upgrade would depend on the financial resources of other players. In this regard, Su Mubai pinned his hopes on "Fu Jia Tian Xia" and "Hong Tu Ba Ye." The former was obviously wealthy, and the latter’s talent allowed for the rapid assembly of a massive guild, which should also allow them to pool together a significant amount of money.

"Take it, this piece is quite suitable for a kid like you." Huaijian stretched, then tossed the final item to Su Mubai. It was a necklace made of thin, white bones, with a pendant shaped like a miniature skull.

[Necklace of the Dead]
Necklace, Accessory
Level 10
Dark Gold Grade Item
Durability: 200/200
Equip Requirements: Spirit 100
Spell Power +80
Health +500
Mana +1000
Spirit +30
Constitution +10
Agility +10
Attacks inflict a curse effect, reducing the target's dual defenses by 100 points (can be triggered by summons).
Attached Skill:
[The Dead]: Reduces the impact of fear-based negative status effects on you by 50%.
(The dead have no fear!)

Finally, a top-tier piece of gear he could actually use. Although it wasn't upgradable, the stats on the [Necklace of the Dead] were excellent. Su Mubai’s eyes brightened, and he calmly stored the necklace in his inventory. He would definitely "freeload" an upgrade for it, but only after Huaijian had left. The "NPCs" in the World Game were real people, and Su Mubai did not want to expose his ability to upgrade equipment in front of them.

"Alright, being able to get four Dark Gold items here, consider yourself lucky, kid." Huaijian turned to leave. "Tell that pile of old bones to be careful and stop disturbing my sketching."

Su Mubai quickly spoke up, "Senior, wait a moment."

"What? Does a kid like you have more Dark Gold gear that needs identifying?" Huaijian glanced at Su Mubai, a look of regret flashing across his face. Dammit, he shouldn't have agreed to identify items for this kid for free; he was losing a fortune. "Bring it here. I keep my word—I'll identify everything for you for free today!"

"There is no more Dark Gold gear."

"I knew it. How could there be so many Dark Gold items in a dump like this?" Huaijian laughed. "If there’s no gear, what else do you want? Speak quickly, don't keep me from my sketching."

"Uh..." Su Mubai rubbed the back of his head honestly and pulled a robe from his inventory. "There’s no more Dark Gold gear, but there is still one piece of equipment that needs identifying."

"Not Dark Gold? Then what are you identifying? Even though I'm only a part-time appraiser, I know that anything below Dark Gold—" Huaijian suddenly fell silent. He grabbed the robe, examined it closely, then looked up at Su Mubai as if he were looking at a monster, his tone filled with shock. "How could there be an Epic-grade item in this dump?!"

What Su Mubai had taken out was the reward for being the first to clear the Disaster-grade dungeon solo: the [Robe of Whispers from the Dead]. If it weren't for the fact that it had triggered a Blue Star Region announcement, such an item would never have appeared in a novice village.

"Just lucky, just lucky." Su Mubai smiled, looking at Huaijian with anticipation. "Senior, this is also a free identification, right?"

From Huaijian’s earlier mutterings, it was clear that the cost of identifying equipment was not low. If Dark Gold items cost 100 gold coins, wouldn't an Epic item cost thousands? Su Mubai naturally had to seize the opportunity to save a large sum of money.

"I said it was free, so I certainly won't take your money."

Su Mubai was overjoyed to hear this. But the next moment, his smile froze. Huaijian tossed the robe back and laughed, "Too bad my appraisal skill level is too low to identify this thing."

???

Su Mubai was completely stunned. So you can only identify Dark Gold gear?

"I’m just here in the novice village for a part-time job; isn't it reasonable that I can't identify Epic-grade gear?" Huaijian gestured with his hands at Su Mubai’s expression.

Su Mubai suddenly felt that "your logic is so sound that I have nothing to say."

Seeing Su Mubai's disappointed expression, Huaijian thought for a moment and said, "Kid, do you want to learn the Appraisal skill?"