Inside the window sat an elderly man with graying hair and a monocle. He was carefully examining a piece of ore under the light of a desk lamp.
Hearing the footsteps and the sound of the sack being set down, the old man slowly looked up.
His gaze behind the lens swept over Bai Xuan before landing on the bulging sack. He asked, “Submitting a commission? Or selling materials?”
“Both,” Bai Xuan replied, lifting the sack and placing it on the counter in front of the window.
The old man behind the appraisal window took the first shell Bai Xuan handed over and held it directly under the lamp.
He tapped the surface of the shell with his knuckle, producing a dull thud.
Next, he flipped the shell over, carefully inspecting the inner wall and the peeling marks along the edges. The monocle on the bridge of his nose reflected the dim yellow light of the lamp.
“Grade 2 shell. Integrity is decent, color is average. Four silver and twenty copper.”
His voice was flat. After finishing his assessment, he set the shell aside and picked up the next one.
The old man’s movements weren't fast, but every step was steady. He checked the appearance first, then tapped it, and finally held it against the light to inspect the thickness and texture.
When he encountered shells with small nicks on the edges or those corroded by acid, he would make a simple mark on a piece of magic paper glowing with a faint blue light to distinguish them.
“Grade 3 shell. Thick. Pry damage on the left edge. Five silver and forty copper.”
“Grade 3 shell. Good condition. Six silver.”
One after another, the old man barely spoke, only uttering brief words when announcing the price.
Once the last shell had been inspected, the old man counted the total, quickly wrote a few lines on the magic paper, and pushed it toward Bai Xuan.
“Black-Armored Crawler shells, twenty-one pieces. Total: one gold, four silver, and eighty copper.”
The amount was roughly what Bai Xuan had expected.
He took the paper, which had a peculiar texture. The faintly floating handwriting displayed the price for each piece and the final total the old man had just announced.
Bai Xuan didn't leave immediately. Instead, he reached into his robes—actually into his Space Ring—and pulled out a heavy small cloth bag, placing it on the counter.
“Please look at these Magic Cores as well. I’m selling these personally, not as part of a commission.”
The old man untied the bag and peeked inside. Dozens of Magic Cores of various sizes and dull colors were piled together.
He reached in, grabbed a handful, and spread them across his palm, bringing them close to the light to distinguish them.
Most of these Magic Cores belonged to Shadow Rats and Multi-Headed Snakes. The energy within them was very weak, nothing special.
However, when his fingers brushed aside the low-level cores on the surface to reveal more than a dozen significantly larger ones underneath, his movements paused.
He picked up a dark gray Magic Core, looked at it for a long time, then switched to a pale white one, repeatedly rubbing the surface with his thumb.
“Undead-attribute residue. Energy activity is very low, and they haven't been preserved well.”
He put the two cores back into the bag and continued, “These types of cores are too niche. They don't circulate well on the market.”
The old man quickly finished counting all the Magic Cores and added a few more lines to the magic paper. “Total: one gold and seventy silver.”
Bai Xuan did some quick math in his head. Selling them here meant he would earn a bit less than if he sold them back in town himself, but it saved a lot of trouble.
He didn't have to worry about the energy leaking or the condition deteriorating if he kept the cores for too long.
He nodded and uttered two words: “That’s fine.”
The old man took the bag of Magic Cores and handed two pieces of magic paper to Bai Xuan.
“One is the commission settlement receipt; take it to the front counter to exchange for money. The other is the Magic Core buyback slip. Hand them both to the clerk at the front.”
Bai Xuan took the two papers and returned to the reception counter. Two other adventurers were already there, arguing with the clerk quite loudly—it seemed to be over the distribution of loot.
He didn't push forward, instead standing to the side and waiting quietly for a moment.
When it was his turn, the young clerk from the morning took the two papers, looking at the Magic Core buyback slip first.
He then skillfully counted out the coins—one gold and seventy silver, not a copper less—and pushed them toward Bai Xuan.
Bai Xuan pocketed them casually.
Next, the clerk looked at the commission settlement receipt. He scanned down the amount, but when his eyes reached the record of the submitter at the bottom, his eyebrows shot up significantly.
He looked up at Bai Xuan, then looked back down to double-check the receipt, then looked at Bai Xuan again. His tone carried obvious confusion and caution.
“Solo?” he asked. “These shells, and those Magic Cores... you collected them all by yourself and submitted the commission as an individual?”
“Yes,” Bai Xuan answered concisely.
The clerk stared at him for another two seconds, as if re-evaluating this caster who had held a Paper Rank badge this morning but had now returned with so many materials.
But he didn't ask further. He simply nodded and leaned down to search through the registry under the counter, his movements slightly slower than before.
“Bronze Rank commission. Base reward: three points.”
He spoke while registering the entry, his voice returning to its previous professional tone. “The value of the submitted materials exceeds one gold coin, so you get an extra point.”
“You’ve earned a total of four personal points this time. They will be recorded directly into your adventurer profile.”
After finishing the registration, he looked up and added, “Once your personal points reach thirty, and you’ve completed at least one Bronze Rank commission independently—which you’ve just done—you can submit an application for promotion to Bronze Rank adventurer.”
“However, applications require a review. It’s not a guaranteed pass just because you submitted it.”
“Understood,” Bai Xuan replied, indicating he heard him.
“The commission for collecting materials... do you want to continue accepting it?” the clerk asked.
“I do.”
“Alright. The task is always posted on the board. Whenever you want to stop, just come and let me know.”
After the clerk finished speaking, he lowered his head to continue organizing his things, signaling the end of the process.
Bai Xuan collected his money and did a rough calculation in his head.
He seemed to be one small step closer to the thirty-gold-coin debt.
But considering daily expenses and unknown emergencies, even if he could have a harvest like this every day, it would still take quite some time to pay it off.
The rewards for Iron Rank commissions were indeed more enticing, but the risks doubled as well.
Given the current situation, it was better to rely on this Bronze Rank task to steadily accumulate experience and levels. Once he reached Bronze Rank, he could accept Iron Rank commissions above his rank.
By the time he left the Adventurer’s Guild, the sky outside was completely dark.
Many stalls in the market had closed, leaving only a few taverns with their lights still on. The rowdy noise from inside drifted out through the doors and windows.
Bai Xuan didn't go straight back to the inn. He first went to the blacksmith shop where he had bought the short spear that morning.
The forge fire inside still glowed red. The blacksmith was packing up his tools. Seeing Bai Xuan enter, he casually wiped the iron filings and dust from his hands.
“How’s the short spear working out?” the owner asked, his gaze inadvertently sweeping over the slightly damaged outer robe Bai Xuan was wearing.
“It’s fine,” Bai Xuan replied briefly, his gaze shifting to one side of the shop.
Several wooden racks stood against the wall, hanging with pieces of leather armor and a breastplate plate nearby.
Without much hesitation, Bai Xuan walked straight over there.
“Looking for armor?” Seeing this, the owner quickly followed, slinging the cloth he used to wipe his hands over his shoulder.
Bai Xuan didn't respond. He first walked to the breastplate plate and lifted it. It felt cold to the touch and quite heavy.
He immediately shook his head and put the breastplate back.
Setting aside how it would hinder his movement, the shape alone was too bulky. It wasn't suitable for him at all.
His gaze then moved to a piece of brown leather armor on the wooden rack.
The leather was thick, and the critical areas were reinforced with rivets. The shoulders and chest were even inlaid with polished hard leather reinforcement plates. it looked very durable.
Bai Xuan reached out to feel the thickness of the leather and pressed the reinforcement plates with his fingers, getting a rough idea of its quality.
“How much for this one?” He looked up at the owner and asked in a flat tone.
“This is life-saving armor. Two gold coins isn't expensive at all,” the owner replied with a smile.
After hearing this, Bai Xuan’s face remained expressionless. He simply pulled his hand back from the leather armor.
He turned to the owner. “Do you have anything lighter? It doesn't have to be this good. Something I can wear under my clothes that provides decent protection for critical areas is enough.”
The owner glanced at him, scratched his head, and turned to walk to the back of the shop. After rummaging for a while, he brought out a piece of leather armor that looked like it had been sitting there for years.
“Here, this one. It’s from a few years back.”
The owner shook out the armor. The style was simple. Darker hard leather was sewn onto the chest and back, and one could faintly see thin metal plates lined inside, though they didn't cover a large area.
The shoulders and armpit areas were made of ordinary tanned leather, which was much softer and wouldn't restrict movement.
The owner spoke honestly. “To be fair, no one has bought this because they think the defense isn't high enough.”
Bai Xuan took the leather armor and weighed it. It was very light.
He held it up against himself. The size was just right. It shouldn't look bulky when worn under his robes.
“How much?” he asked.
“Ninety silver. It’s just sitting here anyway, so I’ll give it to you cheap,” the owner said.
Bai Xuan paid ninety silver directly.
The price-to-performance ratio of this armor was just right. There was no need to waste time haggling.
After buying the armor, he went to a corner of the market where cloth and ready-made clothes were sold, finding a decent-looking shop.
After browsing, he chose a few of the most ordinary white cotton robes and bought several sets of sturdy, dark-colored coarse linen undergarments. Since they would be worn inside, no one would see them anyway.
Altogether, these items cost him forty silver coins.
Carrying the leather armor, white robes, and undergarments, Bai Xuan returned to the inn where he was staying.
Pushing open the thin wooden door, the room was shrouded in darkness. He took out his Simple Lighting Orb and injected mana into it.
The orb’s ring of light illuminated the small bed and the mottled walls.
He tossed the newly bought armor and clothes onto the foot of the bed. The short spear, its butt slightly cracked, was leaned against the wall.
Bai Xuan sat on the hard bed, his gaze fixed on an empty point in the air.
The translucent panel that only he could see emerged silently in his field of vision:
【Class: Redeemer Lv. 3 (61%)】
【HP: 400/400】
【Mana: 174/200】
【Trait: Digitalization】
Support Skills:
【Holy Light Catalyst Lv. 1 (12%): Tap the wound to quickly stop bleeding and stimulate muscle healing through vibration.】
【Purifying Severance Lv. 1 (9%): Purify persistent damage energy such as toxins, corrosion, and curses, and temporarily increase the target's status resistance.】
【Pain Empowerment Lv. 0 (0%): Grants a minor increase to all attributes of the recipient while amplifying their emotional reactions. Converts pain felt by the recipient into additional augmentation, further enhancing the skill's buffs and duration.】
Combat Skills:
【Redemption Strike Lv. 1 (13%): A heavy, powerful blow.】
【Concussive Field Lv. 1 (12%): Using the weapon’s point of impact as the center, release a circular shockwave that forces back enemies within range, causing intimidation, stunning, and light damage.】
Passive Skills:
【Strength Enhancement Lv. 0 (15%)】
【Healing Ascent Lv. 1 (40%)】
【Elemental Resistance Lv. 1 (40%)】
Class Features:
【Sacred Martial Radiance: Passive effect. Attack power and healing power are linked. 20% of your attack power is added as extra healing power, and 20% of your healing power is added as extra attack power.】
【Current Pleasure: 201, Available Draws: 10】
【Assets: 8 gold coins, 1 silver coin, 55 copper coins】
【Items: (Omitted)】
His current panel was much more impressive than when he first arrived in this world.
Bai Xuan swept his eyes over the other data before locking onto the very bottom of the panel.
【Current Pleasure: 201, Available Draws: 10】.
He stared at the number 10 for a moment.
There wasn't really a need to save them up, as most of what he drew was experience, but it always felt like something was missing if he didn't.
Without further hesitation, Bai Xuan chose to perform a ten-pull.
Flowing light effects instantly swirled in his vision as the phantoms of ten cards quickly lined up.
The first white light burst open: Class EXP (Small);
The second followed immediately: the common Skill EXP (Small). This continued for the third, fourth, fifth... a succession of identical white lights.
Watching one unremarkable white light after another flash by, Bai Xuan thought to himself as the tenth one arrived: “The last one should be at least a little different, right?”
Before the thought could finish, the light effect paused slightly, and a prompt popped up on the panel: 【Obtained: Skill EXP (Large)】.
After finishing the draw, Bai Xuan’s finger paused over the panel.
This was the first time he had seen a Skill EXP (Large). He didn't know how much experience it would provide.
After a moment of thought, he used this large experience card on 【Pain Empowerment】.
The moment he confirmed the operation, the card representing the experience turned into fine points of light and slowly merged into his body.
A familiar flow of information followed, accompanied by a slight sensation of expansion in his body.
【Skill Level Up! Pain Empowerment Lv. 0 → Lv. 1! Current Proficiency: 50%】
【Skill Effect Enhanced! Mana cost increased: 20 points → 25 points】
【Awakened base attributes have received a minor enhancement!】
Bai Xuan immediately looked at his attribute bar:
【HP: 400/400 → 420/420】
【Mana: 174/200 → 203/203】.
He moved his fingers and clenched his fists, clearly feeling the change in his body.
Next, he poured all the remaining miscellaneous experience from the draw into 【Strength Enhancement】.
The skill level instantly climbed to Lv. 1 (25%), and his strength was enhanced once more, though his HP and Mana remained unchanged.
Bai Xuan had a rough idea now. It seemed the essence of this passive skill was to strengthen physical power. Leveling it only increased the magnitude of the strength boost and did not provide extra base attributes.
He didn't think much further and closed the panel.
By now, the noise from the market outside had faded into a distant, blurry hum. The night had completely settled in.
Rate on N.U.
