Silent Silver Wristguards (Gold-grade)

Defense: 105

Strength: +27

Stamina: +25

Passive: Increases user's physical attack power by 3%

Level Requirement: 65

……

It was a pretty good pair of wristguards despite it being of the Gold grade. It increased two useful stats, and it came with a passive that boosted physical attack power by 3%.

Lin Yixin stared at the beautiful silver wristguards with clear fondness, but she cocked her head at me and asked with a smile, “Are you sure you don’t want to roll for the ownership of these wristguards, Lu Chen?”

I immediately raised my arm to show off the fiery, bloody gauntlet I was wearing, the Dark Gold–grade Flame Dragon Gauntlet.

“See this? My wristguards are way better than these Silent Silver Wristguards. It’ll just be a waste of slot in my bag, so take it, Yiyi.”

Lin Yixin shot me a grateful look and equipped the wristguards, causing them to appear and wrap around her white arms. The elegantly designed metal extended from the elbow all the way to the fingers, making them look both majestic and beautiful.

……

“Alright, not bad for a boss!”

Lin Yixin looked around a bit more before saying, “I’m pretty sure the boss dropped a skill book earlier. Where is it?”

I looked doubtful. “Are you sure you weren’t seeing things?”

“You’re doubting my eyesight? How rude!”

Lin Yixin complained right before she spotted something on the grass in front of her. Pleasantly surprised, she rushed toward it and picked up a sky blue-colored skill book. “Hehe, I knew it dropped a skill book!”

Curious, I said, “What is it? Tell us!”

“Okay.”

Everyone gasped when the contents of the skill book appeared before us—

Wild Roar: Let out an animalistic roar and buff the physical attack power of all allied units within 5 yards by 15%. Duration: 30 minutes. Does not stack with Bard’s buffs such as Valor, Divine Valor and so on. Class Requirement: Warrior, Magic Knight, Wanderer. Gender Requirement: Male. Race Requirement: Barbarian, Undead, Beastman. Level Requirement: 70

……

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the skill screen for a time. Lin Yixin was the first person to break the silence and said, “Wild Roar… 15% increase to attack power… male… barbarian… fuck…”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her.

Lin Yixin rolled her eyes at me. “What are you laughing at, bastard? Are you that happy I’m not qualified to learn this skill?”

I nodded seriously. “Oh, definitely. I’m happy every time you’re unhappy, Yiyi…”

“I’m gonna kick your ass!”

Lin Yixin was about to swing a fist at me when she suddenly stopped herself and looked behind her. When she saw the stunned faces of her guildmates, she realized that it probably wasn’t the best idea for the guild leader, namely her, to act like a girl who was being teased. It was better to be a bit more aloof.

So she rubbed her hands against her combat skirt before giving me the skill book. “Er… do you want this skill book, Lu Chen?”

Who wouldn’t want a skill that increases their attack power by 15%? It was as good as having a super powerful weapon!

I nodded repeatedly and said, “Of course I want it!”

“I can give you this on several conditions…”

Lin Yixin smiled. Right this moment, Lin Yixin looked like a beautiful fairy who was tempting the hero with her treasure, saying, “What are you waiting for, dear warrior? I am yours if you’ll eat this magical apple.” Then, the fairy shamelessly claimed the hero for herself.

Staring at Lin Yixin, I asked cautiously, “What conditions?”

She stretched out two fingers and said sweetly, “It’s very simple. One, you must buff me with the skill whenever I ask you to. Two, you can’t buff anyone else while the skill is active. Three, you must come over and help me immediately when I’m losing a PvP fight. Four, you will buy me breakfast regularly. Five…”

“Wait a fucking minute!” I hurriedly interrupted her. “Your list of conditions doesn’t match your hand gesture! Also, this sounds less like a gift and more like a slave contract!”

At this point, I was one hundred percent certain that the cute girl in front of me was the wicked fairy of legends, and all she needed was a skill book to charm her target to submission, magical apples be damned.

That being said, the skill book was simply too good to pass on!

“Does that mean you’re unhappy with my conditions?” Lin Yixin put her hands to her waist and stared at me with dissatisfaction.

I immediately shook my head and replied, “I’ll do anything if you give me the skill book, party leader!”

“Hoho, very good~~” Lin Yixin finally tossed me the skill book before walking up to me. Then, she smiled and whispered into my ears, “Five, you are mine from now on. You’re not allowed to like anyone else besides me!”

I shivered. “I…”

Lin Yixin watched my expression for a moment before a trace of disappointment flashed across her eyes. Then, she curled her lips and said, “Well, what are you waiting for? Learn the skill now and gimme a roar!”

“Got it.”

I used the skill and added a new skill to my skill list. Although Wild Roar didn’t stack with Bard’s Divine Valor, it provided the same boost, so it was like having a third-promotion Bard with me at all times! Even better, the skill could be applied to a number of allies as long as they were within 5 yards of me when I used skill! In that sense, it was way better than Divine Valor!

“Come over, everyone!” Lin Yixin stood next to me before calling out to her guild members.

Clear Perfume and Scattered Rain didn’t hesitate to follow her instructions. Shadow Chanel hesitated for a moment until she noticed that the male archer behind her had been staring at her for a while now. Shivering, she immediately rushed over and stood next to Lin Yixin.

After everyone was ready, I activated the skill and felt a tremendous surge of power welling inside of me. My body turned red in color, and I felt like I had to let the energy out somehow. The next moment, I raised my head and let out a tremendous shout. A light spread out from my body and enveloped the seven players standing next to me, buffing their attack power by 15% for 30 minutes. Just like that, the party’s strength had soared to a whole new level!

After I activated the skill, I looked back and saw Lin Yixin staring at me in confusion. “What the hell are you doing? I asked you to use the skill, not shout like a pig to slaughter…”

I felt so embarrassed I could die. I glared at her and retorted, “That’s just how the skill works! What does it have to do with me!?”

“Hmph hmph, you just wanted to vent, didn’t you? It must be because you’ve been suppressing your desires for too long!” She pressed me further.

I steeled my resolve and smiled back. “Oh yes, you’re totally right. From now on, I promise I’ll roar at you every time I see you…”

Caught off-guard, Lin Yixin hurriedly stepped away from me before pulling out her sword, declaring, “Come on! Let’s go take out the fifth beastman encampment!”

……

We heard beastial roars around the hills from time to time. While Clear Perfume was passing through a thicket, she suddenly turned around to face me before asking a question. “Say Lu Chen, Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls established a club-style base at the New District after you returned, right? If you don’t mind me asking, what’s the salary of a Heavenly King–level star like you? It’s got to be a lot, right?”

I stopped in my tracks after hearing the question. It might sound funny, but I actually didn’t know the answer to that question.

Lin Yixin shot me a glance before replying expressionlessly, “Let me guess, you never spoke about this with your boss before…”

I could only nod in agreement. “That’s right, I never spoke to my boss about my salary. In fact, the four of us Bloody Mercenaries are the only ones who don’t have our pay stated in black and white.”

If I remembered correctly, both Murong Mingyue and Xu Yang were paid a monthly salary for their services. Murong Mingyue’s salary was 50k RMB a month, and Xu Yang’s salary was 30k RMB a month. In fact, The three heads of the Ego workshop had been paid a higher salary than our two elders before they left Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls. Spring Mud’s monthly salary was 70k, Moon Shadow was 60k and Night Sorrow was 50k. Unfortunately for them, their greed was insatiable, and they ultimately left Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls for Flower Garden. Who knew how much Li Le was paying them now.

As for the Bloody Mercenaries, it didn’t look like He Yi had any plans to pay us a monthly salary. All she gave us was a place to live and the power to rule over the entire guild besides her.

I had asked Murong Mingyue about this before, and she said, “Eve doesn’t pay you because she doesn’t want to interfere with your operations. You’re still the leader of Bloody Mercenaries, and you aren’t forced to take Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls into consideration when you make your profits, form parties and so on. Basically, you have full autonomy!”

It was exactly what I wanted. Gui Guzi and Beiming Xue might not mind helping out Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls in an event or two, but it was only a matter of time before they got tired of the forced participation. Expert-level players often preferred individual freedom over organization, and they got annoyed easily something was actively interfering with their schedule.

……

Back to the present. Clear Perfume was still staring at me with a smile and asking, “Come on, tell us already. How much is From Water paying you per month?”

I shot back a question. “Why do you want to know? What are you planning, Qingqing?”

She replied in a surprisingly serious tone, “If From Water isn’t paying you more than 80k per month, then I’ll override Yiyi’s authority this one time and buy you out of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls! What do you say?”

“Ah?” I was stunned.

Lin Yixin scolded her friend. “Be serious, Qingqing. I have no plans to buy this guy. Even if we managed to kidnap him to our guild, his heart still belongs to Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls. It’ll be crazy to keep someone like that, not to mention that Snowy Cathaya has no need for lone wolves. He’s only really useful during tournaments like ‘Who Will Fight Me’…”

I was used to Lin Yixin’s “scathing” remarks by this point, so I just pretended not to hear them. That being said, I was a bit disappointed that I, the king of the undead, meant so little to her. The failure was mine to bear.

A short while later, we finally arrived at the last beastman encampment. However, everyone including the girls was stunned by the sight in front of them. “What… what’s this?”

……

The giant valley in front of us was filled with taurens. Every one of them was two Yao Ming tall, and they were covered in black hair from head to toe. They had terribly ugly heads, and their eyes were blood-red in color. Their muscles were thick enough to shame Schwarzenegger to death, and they wielded totem poles that looked like giant hammers at a distance. The beastial runes floating above the totems made it clear that the weapons were magically enhanced.

Shit! Our final enemy is a horde of hairy bulls!