CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 51: OVERWEIGHT GEMSTONE

Chun was overwhelmed with surprise, it’s done! Sacred Artifact materials exploded! And even rewarded with a super awesome civilian skill!!

The shocking thing is, does this have to be announced? But surely no players in this area can see the announcement, right?

In the next moment, the dead Slime Monster’s body quickly expanded into foam, and the entire muddy pool erupted like a massive swamp gas explosion, blasting Chun out from the bottom of the water all the way to the surface, and not stopping there, even sprayed him toward the mining path!

Holy shit! Chun finally understood why the Slime Monster was so fast when it first appeared!

Aileen was even more delighted beyond measure, "So much resentment! My Necromancer Ring is absorbing the resentment!"

Chun also confirmed he wouldn’t die or explode his equipment with Sea Soul’s protection, so he started to assess the spoils of the battle, which immediately shocked him!

Weight 100? A small gemstone weighing a hundred times more than gold! Holy shit, if he hadn’t been sprayed out, just with this weight alone, he might not have been able to float up and might have suffocated at the bottom of the water, exploding his equipment instead!

But Aileen seemed lost in the absorption of resentment, "Oh my, the resentment is about to spray out of the cave, such a waste!"

This might be more than just wasteful, so much resentment spraying on the island could make those guys worse, maybe even the blacksmith would become corrupted again.

Chun tried to activate the so-called Gravity Field of the core to see if he could absorb and block it a bit.

— System Prompt: Warning! Your current Physical Strength is exhausted, activation of the core will preferentially consume Illusion Skill Value...

In the next moment, Chun noticeably felt the surrounding water vapor slow down a bit!

Then the inner layer was gas, the outer layer was water, and the outermost layer was mud forming three rings around him. Chun felt like he was Saturn!

So, is this the core the Slime Monster formed around?

But gravity! Such a high-end attribute, this core, a hundred times heavier than Magic Gold, formed with the cultivation of a century to create a super Slime Monster, is it really just Sacred Artifact material? It’s clearly more advanced than the three-in-one Sacred Artifact materials of the Volcanic Giant Lizard. Or is it the legendary Divine Format often mentioned in fantasy novels?

Divine Format!

At the thought of this, Chun was so excited he couldn’t contain himself, "Aileen, you know—"

No! Better not ask her yet! She’s already quite greedy, if she knows it’s a Divine Format, might she have other thoughts? Besides, she might not know about such high-end stuff, better not alarm her for now!

Anyway, for now, while the Illusion Skill Value is still intact, let’s figure out a way to use the outer layer of mud to block the mine pit’s exit, preventing resentment and toxic gas from spraying out...

Just as Chun was furiously plastering mud, he heard the blacksmith shouting from the pit exit, "City Lord! We have come to celebrate your victory!"

Us? Came at the right time!

Chun immediately shouted, "Are there many of you? Hurry and collapse the mine pit entrance or block it with rocks, don’t let the Slime Monster’s toxic gas escape."

The blacksmith shouted, "Got it! Everyone hurry! Slow pokes will get beaten!"

"Leave me a way out!"

"Understood!"

Finally, Chun’s Illusion Skill Value exhausted, and then his Physical Strength limit and Life limit started to decrease! Holy shit! Isn’t this like being struck with the plague? So oppressive, definitely the Divine Format!

Chun got anxious, "Brother Tie, how’s it going?"

The blacksmith didn’t disappoint Chun, "Left an opening for you, climb out quickly!"

Only then did Chun cancel the core, the circle of mud around him instantly lost control and flung Chun towards the cave entrance, then the blacksmith’s arm reached out from the entrance and dragged Chun in, "Still heavy?"

Holy shit, it’s been noticed?

"Once I’m out, block the entrance too! Don’t let any gas leak out!"

"Understood!"

Aileen was extremely excited, "Yes yes, once the ring finishes digesting and absorbing, dig open a crack to continue absorbing resentment."

At this moment, Chun saw flashing lights in the distance at sea, clearly the ship captain is prepared.

Chun immediately changed the subject, "In a moment, I’ll take a sea journey to find my ship there, you all continue your own fun."

The blacksmith glanced at the lights, "Looks a bit like pirates, are you okay going there?"

From someone of your era’s perspective, that probably seems like pirates huh! I was initially only worried about the two Sacred Artifact rings, now adding a Divine Format gemstone, must not take any risk.

Chun felt reassured, "So when we return to the street later, I’ll come to your blacksmith shop to discuss important matters with you."

"Got it."

Talking with Brother Tie is never tiring!

Finally, under the bustling efforts of the Evil Spirit citizens, the mine pit entrance was completely blocked, and Chun also relied on the blessings of Silver City and the boost after drinking to recover some Physical Strength, enough to walk again.

A crowd of Evil Spirits surrounded him, laughing wildly.

Is this what it means to assert dominance successfully? Chun felt so reassured, "Have you all yielded?"

The Evil Spirits laughed, "Yielded, yielded! City Lord is awesome!"

Chun felt something was off, "Just you lot yielded? What about the others?"

The Evil Spirits laughed wildly again, "They all lost bets, extremely, extremely unconvinced!!"

Holy shit! Apparently, more people bet on me losing, am I offending more people by coming here? But never mind, having this small group of supporters is a significant advancement.

Sure enough, back on the street, it was a cacophony of curses.

Chun helplessly asked, "What the heck did you all bet on?"

Please don’t say property gambling!

The Evil Spirits laughed heartily, "The loser must cover a shift for one day!"

Holy shit, how ridiculous! There were never any shifts, how’s there even a win or loss?

Arriving at the blacksmith’s shop, Chun first asked Aileen to activate the radar, confirming that the magical pet wasn’t nearby.

Then Chun solemnly took out the Forging Ring and the Absorption Core—gotta admit, at the moment of taking out the core, Chun was so strained he nearly lost his balance!

"I’m worried about my property’s safety on the ship, could you help me keep it safe!"

The blacksmith flatly refused: "I don’t offer storage services!"

Holy Shit! As expected, NPCs don’t have this safekeeping feature!

But stay calm, it’s just like Sherry working at the flower shop didn’t have a gift-receiving setting, but you could still trigger hidden events to get around it.

Chun hastily asked, "Do you know any trustworthy storage people?"

The blacksmith said solemnly, "I know a few bank custodians, but they’re evil spirits now, not reliable."

Chun sighed, "Do I have to fulfill their wishes from when they were alive to turn them into good spirits?"

The blacksmith also sighed, "They weren’t reliable when they were alive either."

Alright then, the whole island’s full of evil spirits, wasn’t expecting much else.

Chun continued to look for a breakthrough: "How about I commission you to set this gemstone in the ring and upgrade it to a Divine Artifact?"

As long as he accepts the commission, the materials are naturally in his hands, which is essentially safekeeping them.

The blacksmith still shook his head, "Setting gemstones is a jeweler’s job, I can’t do it!"

Chun asked again, "Is there a jeweler on the island?"

"Cui is one, but she’s an evil spirit, only an expert level."

Another talent uncovered!

Chun was intrigued, "Why only expert level?"

The blacksmith sighed, "Jewelers need to practice with lots of precious jewels, it’s the hardest to advance and has always been a profession for the nobility, and she comes from a fallen aristocracy just as an assistant."

No worries, experts back then are equivalent to today’s watered-down masters!

Chun showcased the gemstone again, "Brother Tie, try to see how heavy this gemstone is!"

The blacksmith tried to hold Chun’s palm and was instantly stunned, "Is this a drop from a Slime Monster?"

Chun was curious to hear his insight, "It’s very precious, right?"

The blacksmith was absolutely amazed, "I don’t know much about gemstones, but I know this one is unheard of. If Cui could set it, it might even help her become a master!"

Chun said, "But I also know gem setting is a very precise job, such a heavy gemstone can’t even be handled properly—so, Brother Tie, you need to craft the appropriate lifting equipment for her! So this matter still involves you, you have to take my commission!"

The blacksmith jolted all over, then laughed, "The City Lord is quite interesting. Come on, I’ll take you to see Cui!"

Successful detour!

So the two found Cui, pretending to be at work behind the dilapidated counter in a rundown building, a short, round evil spirit exuding black smoke from all over!

Chun was incredulous, "Are you Cui?"

The evil spirit was extremely impatient, "Call me Miss Tissina!"

Holy Shit, that name and that build really have a bit of aristocratic aura?

The blacksmith said solemnly, "Knock it off!"

Cui immediately wimped out, "Brother Tie, speak up!"

"Set this gemstone for the City Lord! It’s heavy, try lifting it!"

Cui’s whole aura shook, "This gemstone—"

And with a grab, she almost tumbled over!

Cui was shocked, "Setting is precise art, how could it be possible with something so heavy?"

The blacksmith said, "Whatever tools or equipment you need, I’ll craft it!"

Cui was dumbfounded, "I only know how to set gems, what do I know about making equipment?"

Holy Shit? Chun just decided to do it big: "Then gather all the carpenters, tailors, repairmen, movers, designers, even those who wipe glasses at the tavern on the island to figure it out! How about that?"

Cui nodded repeatedly, "Great! I’ll just manage the setting, if the precision isn’t enough, I’ll just say it’s not doable!"

The blacksmith laughed, "You really seem like a City Lord? Interesting, let’s go find them!"

Chun was in a hurry to practice sailing: "I’ll leave it to you, I commission you to manage it all!"

No more refusals from the blacksmith, "Leave it to me!"

Success!

Chun boarded a small boat at the pier, listening to the hustle and bustle of recruiting in the town, heading contentedly toward the lights in the distant sea.

Aileen marveled, "Can they really find materials and design equipment from those ruins?"

Chun hinted at her, "Actually, whether they succeed or not doesn’t matter. What’s important is as long as it’s in his hands! But if they do succeed, then with one gemstone, they could unearth all the talents on the island, boosting the entire island’s industry chain! And crucially, I’ll get another Divine Artifact—perfect!"

Aileen snorted, "Did you think about it, this gemstone weighs 100, it might be fine set in armor or weapons, but set in a ring, will your finger even move or lift it?"

Holy Shit! There goes the flaw!

Chun’s pleasant mood suddenly felt indescribable. Probably, hoping they don’t succeed seems rude. Could only... practice one-finger meditation? The game’s got high freedom! And I’ve got Excavation Mastery, my hand skills are top-notch?