[Old Hunter · Red]
Daniel stepped forward and struck up a conversation.
"Sir, I heard youâve got some good stuff here?"
The old hunter raised his eyes to look at him, and a sharp glint flashed through those cloudy pupils.
"Oh? A little guy at Level 50?"
"Not bad. What do you want to buy?"
A shop list popped up: all kinds of ordinary arrows, low-tier traps, and several dusty beginner skill books for Archers and Hunters.
Danielâs gaze immediately locked onto one particular skill book.
[Scattershot (D-rank)]
Effect: Fires 3 arrows at once in a fan-shaped area ahead. Each arrow deals 60% damage.
Cooldown: 10 seconds.
Price: 400 Silver Coins.
Danielâs eyes lit up.
A D-rank AoE skill!
Even if it only fired three arrows, paired with the explosive effect of his arrows, it would massively improve his mob-clearing efficiency.
Of course, that wasnât the real reason he had come here to buy a skill book.
The true key wasâ
This skill book was tradable.
There was an Archer instructor in the center of the village, sure, but the skills you learned there were not only the lowest-tier onesâthey were also untradable.
[Silver Coins -400]
After getting what he wanted, Daniel turned and walked toward the general store at the village entrance, where old merchant Grey was still dozing off.
"Boss, do you buy skill books?"
Grey opened his eyes. A trace of surprise appeared in his expression when he saw Daniel, clearly recognizing this particularly bizarre newbie.
"Of course."
Daniel slapped [Scattershot] onto the counter.
"Sold."
Grey took the book and handed him 40 Silver Coins.
"Tsk tsk, this is a truly rare skill book. Iâm taking a loss hereâgiving you a little extra money for it!"
Seeing the old manâs expression of youâve made a huge profit, Daniel couldnât help rolling his eyes.
[Ding! Sold item: Scattershot (D-rank), sale price: 40 Silver Coins. Millionfold Boost activated!]
[Obtained Gold Coins: 400,000!]
[Sold item is a skill book. Player selected Quality Boost!]
[Congratulations! Obtained skill book: Arrowstorm (SSS-rank)]
A golden, radiant skill book appeared in his inventory.
[Arrowstorm (SSS-rank)]
Effect: Fires a massive rain of arrows over a designated area, covering a range of 50 Ă 50 meters. Each arrow deals 300% damage and carries a piercing effect. The number of arrows depends on Agility: every 100 Agility grants 100 additional arrows, up to a maximum of 10,000 arrows.
Cooldown: 30 seconds.
MP Cost: 500.
Daniel sucked in a breath.
A fifty-meter area.
A thousand arrows.
Each arrow dealing 300% damage.
And with piercing?
This was basically carpet bombing!
He learned it immediately, and soon another golden icon appeared in his skill bar.
Now he had:
a single-target burst skill enhanced by clones,
an AoE battlefield-clearing skill,
and a movement skill for survival.
At this point, he was practically all-rounded.
But he still wasnât done.
Daniel slapped the [Single-Attribute Replication Badge] onto the counter next.
"This one. Name a price."
Grey took it and looked it over, one eyebrow rising.
"Oh? Something that replicates an attribute?"
"It can only be used ten times, but the effectâs not bad. Iâll give you 1 Silver Coin."
Danielâs mouth twitched.
This was the item Adrian had been saving as a trump card for survival. Its value didnât even need explaining.
Which just went to show how viciously this old man loved to lowball.
But then again, there was only one merchant in all of Starter Village.
Besides, with Millionfold Boost, Daniel wasnât exactly short on money anymore.
"Sold."
Old Grey shot him a surprised glance, then handed him a single Silver Coin.
[Ding! Detected sold item: Single-Attribute Replication Badge (10/10), sale price: 1 Silver Coin. Millionfold Boost activated!]
[Obtained Gold Coins: 10,000!]
[Sold item is a special consumable. Host selected Quality Boost!]
[Generating returned item...]
[Congratulations, player has obtained: Heart of Balance (Permanent)]
A pale golden badge appeared in his inventory, completely different from the previous one.
Its entire body was crystalline, like a perfectly cut gemstone, with seven-colored radiance slowly flowing inside it.
Daniel took a deep breath and opened its details.
[Heart of Balance (Accessory)]
Type: Special Item (Consumed upon use, cannot be dropped)
Effect: After use, permanently raises all four core attributes to match the playerâs current highest attribute.
Description: The pinnacle masterpiece of alchemy, breaking the taboo that attributes can never truly be balanced. Only those who dare to let go can obtain true balance.
Current Highest Attribute: Agility â 775
Danielâs hand trembled slightly.
All attributes raised to the highest one!?
That meant his current Strength 45, Intelligence 65, and Constitution 45 would all...
He didnât hesitate.
He clicked Use immediately.
[Ding! You have used "Heart of Balance"! ]
[Recalculating attributes...]
[Strength: 65 â 775]
[Intelligence: 85 â 775]
[Agility: 775 â 775 (unchanged)]
[Constitution: 65 â 775]
[Attribute adjustment complete!]
A pale golden glow burst out from Danielâs body, then instantly withdrew back into him.
He opened his panel and checked the detailed status.
[Player: Faustus]
[Level: 50 (EXP Pool Overflow)]
[Strength: 775]
[Intelligence: 775]
[Agility: 775]
[Constitution: 775]
[Attribute Points: 0]
[Title: Trailblazer (Unique)]
[Equipment: Moon Reaper (Legendary-grade), Fatherâs Cross (Silver-grade), Apprentice Merit Medal]
Daniel stared blankly at the panel in front of him and fell silent for a full five seconds.
775 points in all four attributes?
What did that mean?
It meant his HP was now 775 Ă 50 = 38,750 HPâmore than ten times what it had been before!
It meant his MP was enough to cast dozens of rounds of clones!
It meant his Attack Power...
With Strength 775, and Moon Reaper granting 10 extra Attack Power per point of Strength, that alone meant 7,750 Attack Power just from Strength, before even counting the base attack...
He could casually one-shot a normal Level 50 monster with a random arrow now!
And the most terrifying part wasâ
All of his attributes were now balanced.
He had no weakness.
He was no longer a fragile Archer.
He was now a monster with huge HP, blazing speed, and massive MP reservesâ
A true hexagon warrior.
And on top of that, this still wasnât even his limit.
He hadnât forgotten that some of his attribute points had originally been spread among the other stats.
Once he reached his second class advancement and reset all his points back into Agility...
He clicked his tongue.
At Level 50, he would have the four-dimensional stat panel of a player over Level 100.
Daniel clenched his fist, feeling the surge of power flowing through his body.
Before, when fighting bosses, he had needed to rely on movement, kiting, and God Speed just to survive.
Now?
He felt like he could stand there and trade blows with a boss head-on.
Not that there was any need for thatâ
But the confidence was there.
"Alright."
He closed the panel, forcing down the excitement in his chest.
Then Daniel opened his inventory and looked at the complete Anti-Holy Grail, anticipation welling up inside him.
It was time...
To make something big happen.