The Dragon Slayer Blade
The moment Ethan's finger touched the Open button, the treasure chest exploded with brilliant golden light.
His eyes narrowed.
In Divine Realm, golden light meant only one thing.
Top tier loot.
The glow slowly faded. A long sword rose from the chest and floated in the air.
A system message appeared.
Congratulations, Supreme Player.
You have obtained a weapon with no level restriction.
Dragon Slayer Blade.
Ethan showed a hint of surprise. Then his expression turned thoughtful.
Growth weapons were extremely rare.
In his previous life, fewer than ten players in the entire world possessed one. No one had ever obtained a growth weapon from a beginner chest.
These weapons came with a major drawback.
They were extremely expensive to maintain.
A growth weapon increased its attributes as the player leveled up. Its rank did not upgrade automatically. To promote its rank, it had to devour other weapons of the same grade.
Ten weapons were required for every promotion.
Ten Black Iron weapons to unlock Black Iron rank.
Ten Silver weapons to reach Silver rank.
Ten Gold weapons to reach Gold rank.
The higher the grade, the more impossible the cost became.
In the late game, even a single Epic or Mythical weapon could trigger wars between guilds.
Ten of them was almost unthinkable.
Ethan considered this for a moment, then relaxed.
He had one advantage that no other player possessed.
Memory.
He knew where valuable resources appeared. He knew hidden locations. He knew which monsters dropped rare materials.
Other players would spend years discovering these things.
He already knew them all.
That knowledge alone was priceless.
Ethan activated his Exploration Eye and examined the weapon.
Dragon Slayer Blade
Growth Weapon
Level. Unlimited
Rank. None
Promotion to Black Iron requires devouring ten Black Iron weapons.
Status. Locked
Description
An extremely sharp blade. With enough whetstones, it can cut through anything in the world.
Ethan rubbed his chin.
Black Iron weapons were easy to buy.
The village blacksmith sold them.
The problem was the price.
Even the cheapest Black Iron weapon cost two hundred copper coins.
Ten weapons meant two thousand coins.
That was everything he had.
Ethan sighed quietly and closed the panel.
Painful, but necessary.
He walked toward the blacksmith shop on the west side of Beginner Village.
Ten seconds later he walked back out.
His wallet was empty.
His bag contained ten Black Iron weapons.
He found a quiet corner, took out the Dragon Slayer Blade, and activated its devour ability.
A system notification appeared.
Devour ability activated.
Ten Black Iron weapons consumed.
Dragon Slayer Blade unlocked.
Promotion in progress.
The blade erupted with golden light.
The glow condensed as the weapon transformed.
Ethan opened the panel immediately.
Dragon Slayer Blade
Growth Weapon
Rank. Black Iron
Level. Unlimited
Attack Power
20 to 25
Additional Effects
Strength plus 20
Attacks deal an additional 10 percent damage
10 percent chance to inflict Slow for five seconds
Durability
10000
Bound Item
Exclusive to player God's Will
Description
A weapon that grows endlessly with its owner.
Ethan swung the sword a few times.
He nodded with satisfaction.
Then he opened his status panel.
After equipping the blade, his attack power increased dramatically.
Base attack rose from 10 to 30.
The sword's bonus strength added another 20 attack power.
Total attack power.
On paper, the number looked small.
But Tenfold Critical guaranteed that every strike dealt ten times damage.
One attack could deal nearly 500 damage.
Sword Mastery added another ten percent.
The final damage became even higher.
Ethan smiled faintly.
Now he needed experience.
He closed the panel and searched his memory.
Within seconds he remembered the fastest leveling path available at the start of the game.
He walked toward the entrance of the village.
A few minutes later he stopped in front of an old abandoned house.
The building leaned slightly to one side. The wood looked rotten and broken.
Most players ignored it.
Ethan pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The air instantly changed.
A sharp killing intent filled the room.
A thin old man sat cross legged on the floor with his eyes closed.
When they opened, they shone like steel.
"Who are you," the old man said coldly. "Why do you disturb my training?"
Ethan activated Exploration Eye.
Master Aldric Vayne.
Great Swordsman.
Ethan smiled.
He had come to the right place.
Master Aldric Vayne was a legendary swordsman who had traveled the empire for thirty years without meeting an equal.
Eventually he locked himself inside this house, waiting for someone worthy of learning his blade.
Players who possessed Sword Mastery could trigger a hidden quest from him.
The reward was a powerful skill.
Flying Immortal.
That was Ethan's true goal.
He raised the Dragon Slayer Blade slightly.
"I heard your swordsmanship has no equal in the world."
"I came to seek guidance."
A spark of interest appeared in Aldric's eyes.
"Good. Your voice is steady. You truly walk the path of the sword."
He nodded slowly.
"I enjoy teaching talented people. But my swordsmanship is not for the weak."
"You must prove yourself."
He studied Ethan briefly.
"You are young. I will not give you a difficult task."
"There is a cave east of the village. Starfall Cave."
"Bring me one hundred whetstones from there."
"Do that, and I will teach you the way of the sword."
A system notification appeared.
Hidden Quest Available
Aldric's Whetstones
Accept.
Ethan smiled.
"Wait for me, Master Aldric."
The old swordsman nodded.
Ethan turned and left the house.
Outside, he opened the quest panel.
Quest
Aldric's Whetstones
Rank
S
Objective
Defeat Black Boarfolk in Starfall Cave and collect 100 Whetstones.
Reward
Skill Book
Flying Immortal
Equipment
Aldric's Scabbard
200 silver coins
Ethan nodded in satisfaction.
Flying Immortal was a powerful skill.
The scabbard was equally valuable. It automatically repaired weapon durability and greatly reduced repair costs.
Without wasting time, Ethan headed toward Starfall Cave.
Along the road he passed several level 1 monsters.
New players farmed them for experience.
Ethan ignored them completely.
They were not worth his time.
He ran straight through the beginner zone until he reached the dangerous area.
Starfall Cave.
A system message appeared.
Location discovered
Starfall Cave
Reputation with Beginner Village increased by 100.
Ethan followed the path he remembered and soon reached a field filled with bones.
Many had been gnawed clean.
This was the gathering ground of the monsters he needed.
Crack.
His foot stepped on a rib bone and snapped it.
The sound echoed through the field.
Several monsters turned toward him immediately.
Black Boarfolk.
Naturally aggressive creatures.
The moment they saw Ethan, they roared and charged.
Ethan remained calm.
He activated Exploration Eye.
Black Boarfolk
Level 5
Rank
Black Iron
HP
500
Attack Power
41 to 55
Skills
Boar Charge
Bloodthirsty Strike
Ethan nodded slightly.
Five hundred health.
One strike was enough.
He rushed forward with the Dragon Slayer Blade.
A boarfolk swung its bone club toward his throat.
Ethan sidestepped smoothly and countered with a single slash.
The damage number appeared.
The monster collapsed instantly.
System notification.
Black Boarfolk killed.
Experience gained. 50.
Ethan did not even glance at the corpse.
He moved toward the next enemy.
Slash.
Slash.
Slash.
The Dragon Slayer Blade flashed again and again.
Boarfolk fell one after another.
His experience bar climbed rapidly.
Soon a golden light descended.
Level Up.
You have reached Level 2.
Ethan immediately added all attribute points to Strength.
Then he tested his damage again.
One strike landed.
605 damage.
He nodded with satisfaction.
When he looked around, every monster in the area was already dead.
He sighed softly.
"Too fast."
With nothing left to kill, he began collecting the loot.
System messages appeared.
You obtained 10 copper coins.
You obtained 1 copper coin.
You obtained Whetstone ×1.