Chapter 35: Equipment Upgrading

Xiao Yang accepted the advancement quest for the Shovel of Freedom. After a string of garbled characters, the following task appeared before him:

【Excavate Everything: Use the Shovel of Freedom thirty times.】

This task was simple, yet not so simple; it all depended on how the Shovel of Freedom defined a "new environment." The shovel’s usage condition required a new environment, and if that meant a completely new patch of land or an entirely new world, then successfully landing thirty digs would be no easy feat. After all, Xiao Yang was no interdimensional madman. If a new "block" only counted when he reached a brand-new plane, he couldn't just spend his days drifting between dimensions without doing anything else—not to mention he had no idea how to perform interdimensional travel! Furthermore, the things this shovel dug up were truly ominous.

On the other hand, it could be seen as simple if every dungeon floor counted as a new environment. If that were the case, the advancement quest wouldn't be too complicated. But the things the Shovel of Freedom unearthed were, quite frankly, unsettling.

Griping the shovel in his hand, Xiao Yang’s mouth twitched. If he really let it dig thirty times, he was genuinely afraid he might conjure up an Evil God. He felt this Shovel of Freedom was far too abstract and overpowered. It was just a blue-quality tool, yet it could dig up elite bosses and alter dungeon ecosystems—why was it working so hard?

With such thoughts, time passed. Midnight struck, and a new day began. Opening the game panel, the "Interdimensional Trading Zone" module lit up. Without hesitation, Xiao Yang chose to teleport; he couldn't stop his procurement.

Amidst a hazy white light, Xiao Yang arrived once again in the bustling trade zone. Gazing at the scene before him, a dangerous thought inexplicably took root. He paused, pondered, and fell silent for a moment. Then, Xiao Yang suddenly pulled out the Shovel of Freedom.

How to put it? Even if this advancement quest hadn't appeared, Xiao Yang would have eventually completed those thirty digs sooner or later; it wasn't anything else, simply an itch in his hands.

The Shovel of Freedom descended, but at that moment, nothing happened—or rather, it wasn't that nothing happened; the Divine Game issued a warning to Xiao Yang right then and there.

【Detected potential dangerous behavior by the player in the trading zone. Action blocked. A penalty has been issued: 10,000 Spirit Coins have been deducted. Consider this a warning; should such an incident occur again, the player’s eligibility to enter the trading zone will be revoked!】

As the red text popped up, Xiao Yang finally paid the price for his itchy hands, his mouth hanging open in shock.

Later, having learned his lesson, Xiao Yang found a corner to sit down and skillfully began pulling items from his personal inventory. He had wanted to create a clickbait sign to attract attention, but after glancing at the items in front of him, he decided against it. They were truly lackluster—the kind of goods that would lack any real appeal even if he shouted about them.

A rusted broken sword, a large skull bone, some scattered debris—oh, and a single bat tooth.

His "Ultimate General Store" sat there for quite a while without many customers. But he couldn't afford to be short on Spirit Coins; Xiao Yang was waiting to push his attributes to the limit so he could fiercely charge through several more dungeon floors.

After some thought, he decided to take out the most precious item he could currently part with—a purple-grade item that was of no use to him. It was the large bone he had obtained from a Dungeon Guardian.

【Large Bone
Quality: Epic
Type: Material
Description: An excellent large bone from a powerful skeletal undead.】

As he displayed the bone, Xiao Yang didn't forget to build up some hype. He stood up and shouted loudly, "Look here, look here! Epic items for sale!"

It must be said, the effect was excellent. It was absurd, really. Ever since Xiao Yang had used those sensationalist headlines to sell goods to Redbeard in the Interdimensional Trading Zone, his tactics had been shamelessly copied by other players. As soon as he entered the zone, Xiao Yang saw numerous colorful banners, heard the intermittent shouting, and noticed crowds of players gathered around bustling stalls.

For a moment, he was taken aback, feeling a strange sense of being at a village fair.

Of course, these guys were nowhere near his level, because Xiao Yang was genuinely offering a purple-grade item. Sell! There was nothing he wouldn't sell! Although it was just a large bone, an Epic-tier item was an Epic-tier item; usually, you wouldn't even price such things in Spirit Coins.

In reality, Xiao Yang was being a bit wasteful, but that wasn't how he calculated things—after all, he was a cheater who possessed the Pot of Greed.

Before long, lured by Xiao Yang’s calls, numerous players gravitated toward him. His stall, located on the edge of the zone, was suddenly surrounded by a group of players, most of whom were higher in level than him—none below level fifteen. This was expected, as Xiao Yang hadn't entered the trading zone through conventional means.

Among the crowd, there were many who were famous in their own planes, some even renowned across entire clusters of worlds. Yet, at this moment, they all stared with wide eyes, looking at Xiao Yang with intense anticipation, wondering if he would really pull out a purple-grade treasure.

Logically, high-level players shouldn't be this excited, but it could only be said that players had long suffered from a lack of Epic-tier equipment.

Epic-tier items were far too rare. Take the Shovel of Freedom, the only item Xiao Yang had that triggered an advancement quest: to upgrade it from blue (Superior) to Epic quality, he would have to clear thirty dungeon floors in a best-case scenario, or travel to thirty planes and incite thirty major crises in the worst-case. Only then could the quest be completed. From this, one could understand how incredibly rare Epic-tier weapons were.

Not everyone had the qualifications or the courage to participate in a "Super-Large Scale Campaign." To mention just one, the campaign currently recognized by the Divine Game as having the highest drop rate for Epic equipment—and even the potential for Legendary gear—was known as the "Cataclysm of the Primordial Era."

Given this, it was no wonder the players were so excited. Of course, Xiao Yang didn't disappoint them; he was truly prepared to sell his goods. Whether his wares suited the tastes of most players, however, remained to be seen.

In front of the interdimensional players, under their eager, longing gazes, Xiao Yang pulled something out with a flourish.

It was purple! It was a large, purple-grade bone!