Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Passing through the corridor, a world filled with birdsong and floral fragrance suddenly came into view.

On the ground, countless sharp blades were embedded in the lush, flower-adorned earth.

The Blade Tomb, renowned for gathering the finest blades across the realms, allowed any player who reached this place to freely pull out a blade and take it with them.

Once chosen, there was no turning back.

The attributes of the treasure depended entirely on luck!

Gazing at the dense forest of blades—no fewer than ten thousand—Qin Han shook his head with a sigh.

This stage was truly a trap.

Unlike the archery trial, where first place guaranteed a Treasure, places like the Blade Hall and Sword Dojo offered no such rewards, even for the first to clear them—

unless one reached a Hidden Stage like this.

Take the Fireproof Suit from the previous three stages, for example.

Even with the most outrageous luck, stumbling upon one was already a miracle.

To put it bluntly, in the entire Myriad Realms, there were probably no more than ten people who could reach this Hidden Stage.

That kind of luck was practically heaven-defying!

In his past life, some joked that those who made it here must have exhausted a lifetime’s worth of fortune—

and yet, even then, they were subjected to this final cruel twist.

Though the number of blades here was vast, Qin Han guessed that the overwhelming majority were merely Dark Gold Equipment, with only a handful being genuine Treasures.

After all, in his past life, most who came here ended up with Dark Gold blades, and only one lucky individual obtained a Treasure.

That person had shared their experience, but glossed over the exact location, leaving no clues to follow.

Here, all the blades had returned to their unadorned state, appearing utterly ordinary to the eye.

Even the finest Blade Appraiser would struggle to identify a Treasure among them.

"If I recall correctly, that person mentioned the Treasure was in the northeast corner."

Qin Han oriented himself and headed northeast, where a small hill sloped upward, densely packed with nearly a thousand blades.

"How am I supposed to choose?"

A one-in-a-thousand chance—this was pure guesswork!

His mind raced, and in a flash of inspiration, he vaguely remembered hearing that Treasures possessed sentience.

When two Treasures were placed near each other, they could resonate.

Perhaps this method was worth a try.

No sooner thought than done.

He summoned the Godslayer Bow, drawing the string taut as he scanned his surroundings.

Yet the blades on the ground showed no reaction whatsoever.

"Could it be because the Godslayer Bow hasn’t reached its complete form?"

Pondering this, he then took out the Witch Poison Pearl.

Channeling his will, red and green light radiated outward, gently sweeping over the blades on the ground.

Several seconds passed, but the blades remained utterly unresponsive.

"Are you kidding me? Was that legend just a lie?"

Suddenly, Qin Han chuckled, pressing a hand to his forehead.

He’d been fooled.

He already possessed both the Godslayer Bow and the Witch Poison Pearl, yet he’d never witnessed any resonance between them.

That so-called "Treasure resonance" was nothing more than a joke spread by idle gossips.

Here he was, a proud owner of two Treasures, falling for such a clumsy rumor—

how utterly embarrassing!

Calming himself, Qin Han was truly at a loss.

Did it really all come down to luck?

Standing bewildered in the forest of ten thousand blades, he finally resorted to a last-ditch effort—

summoning Nightmare.

On the hillside, Nightmare materialized, its crimson-glowing eyes curiously surveying the surroundings.

Qin Han tested, "Good brother, quickly help me see if there's a treasure among the nearby blades."

Nightmare, being spiritually attuned, actually understood. Its eyes blazed with red light as it turned its head and locked onto a blade. With a swift dash, it ran over and bit the hilt with its mouth, pulling the blade out.

As the blade emerged from the earth, a white light pulsed from its surface, shaking off all the dirt. Nightmare's mouth seemed to tremble from the shock, instinctively spitting the blade out.

It was a blade resembling a Miao Dao, its entire body silver-white like moonlight.

Qin Han dashed forward and grabbed the blade in his hand.

Moonlight Shadow: Dark Gold Grade (Locked, Unique Treasure)

Attack: 100

All-Element Resistance Reduction

All-Armor Penetration

And then… nothing else!

Staring at the underwhelming attributes, Qin Han was both shocked and doubtful.

This isn’t the blade!

He remembered that in his past life, someone else had obtained a Flame Blade, a weapon capable of dragging an entire realm into purgatory with a single strike. Yet, this Moonlight Shadow had never been heard of before.

The stats seemed mediocre at best.

Ordinary Dark Gold Equipment usually had attack values around 100 points, so this was nothing special.

The +10 All-Armor Penetration was decent, but compared to the Godslayer Bow’s complete defense ignore, it was incomparable.

The 100-point All-Element Resistance Reduction was a jack-of-all-trades effect—most equipment specialized in weakening or enhancing a specific element. While universal reduction was versatile, it also meant being mediocre in all aspects.

A 100-point reduction might be somewhat useful early on, but by the late game, it would be utterly insignificant.

Wouldn’t a fixed 500-600 reduction in one element be better?

How could a Unique Treasure, even if locked, have such lackluster stats?

After some thought, Qin Han stopped dwelling on it. Since it was a Unique Treasure, it must have its own uniqueness—he’d find out once it was unlocked.

At that moment, Nightmare trotted over with a proud, expectant expression, rubbing affectionately against Qin Han as if saying, See how amazing I am? Picked the best one in one go!

Qin Han couldn’t help but laugh wryly. He patted Nightmare and rummaged through his bag, handing it a carrot.

Nightmare happily bit into the carrot, chewing slowly with a look of pure bliss.

Shaking his head with a bitter smile, Qin Han mused, If Nightmare chose Moonlight Shadow, maybe it sees something I don’t.

At the same time, another announcement appeared in the World Chat.

"Congratulations to Player Qin Han for obtaining a Unique Treasure! Reward: 1 Heavenly Dao Point."

Outside the Blade Hall, before the Mirror, the Blade Hall Disciple witnessed the entire scene. Upon seeing the World Announcement, his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.

Not only did he clear the trial… he even found the Hidden Stage!

The equipment he obtained in the first three stages was all preparation for the final Hidden Stage!

"Qin Han! A Unique Treasure!!!" the Blade Hall Disciple muttered to himself.

"It must be him… he must be the one who got it!"

"And the previous three Unique Treasure holders—nine out of ten, it was him too!"

Though he was an NPC in the game, he was still a living, thinking being. He could see the game announcements and understood what it meant to obtain multiple Unique Treasures in succession.

To put it simply—if this man didn’t die, he was destined to rise to the heavens, unstoppable!

"Such a peerless figure actually appeared in what is practically the weakest civilization in the Myriad Heavens—Beginner's Village 688! It's simply unbelievable!"

The ranking of beginner villages follows the rule that the smaller the number, the weaker the faction's strength.

"Compared to a Treasure, even a Top-tier Profession Token is nothing."

If one could befriend him, perhaps after the game ended and they returned to their home world, they might gain this person's assistance.

The Blade Hall Disciple whispered, his voice as faint as a mosquito's hum, "My attitude earlier was a bit poor—I might have offended him. Should I apologize later?"

"No, absolutely not. If I apologize, I’d just be lowering my own status. He’d look down on me. I need to think of another way!"

Inside the Blade Hall, Qin Han crushed the token and teleported back.

The moment he stepped out of the light gate, the Blade Hall Disciple who had previously received him stood nearby, his demeanor still haughty.

Upon seeing Qin Han, the disciple said, "Not bad. To have cleared all thirty-six trials in succession—you can be considered a minor expert now. You’ve earned the right to be my friend."

Qin Han was stunned.

What?

Be friends? And I have to qualify for it?

Others might not know, but he was fully aware of the origins of these low-level NPCs.

The achievements of a Top-tier Profession were far beyond what this Blade Hall Disciple could ever hope to reach.

What gave him the audacity to say something so arrogant?

After all, friendship—real friendship—required mutual benefit.

This person offered him no help whatsoever, nor would he ever be of any use in the future.

And yet, here he was, acting all high and mighty, as if Qin Han should be grateful for the privilege of his friendship.

Shaking his head slightly, Qin Han replied indifferently, "If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving."

"What?!" The Blade Hall Disciple was taken aback.

Why was this player reacting like this?

From his understanding of players, at least 99% of them treated NPCs with respect.

With the way he had spoken, most players would have assumed he had some hidden quest to offer.

But this guy’s reaction was completely unexpected.

Just as he was at a loss for how to respond, another disciple suddenly approached from within the Blade Hall.

This newcomer also wore an arrogant expression.

He glanced at Qin Han and spoke condescendingly, "Your feat of clearing all thirty-six trials has reached our Hall Master’s ears. The great man is somewhat interested in you. Come with me—prepare to receive an audience with him."

An audience?

Qin Han paused, then recalled something.

Upon obtaining the Top-tier Swordsman Token, one would indeed be granted an audience with the Blade Hall Master.

From there, they could receive a mission to infiltrate the Sword Dojo for an assessment.

The task itself was simple:

Without undergoing a Job Change, sneak into the nearby Sword Dojo and obtain the Top-tier Swordsman Token.

If successful, the Blade Hall Master would reward them with a full set of Dark Gold Equipment.

The Swordsman Trials also consisted of thirty-six stages, with blade-wielding opponents guarding each one.

The difficulty was on par with the Blade Trials, but the Swordsman Trials had no shortcuts—and Qin Han had never studied any guides for them.

A nobleman does not sit under a dangerous eave.

Taking unnecessary risks for an extra profession token simply wasn’t worth it.

After a moment’s thought, Qin Han replied, "No need. I have other matters to attend to."

The new Blade Hall Disciple was stunned.

Suddenly, he sneered coldly, "You dare refuse our Hall Master's summons? I guarantee you'll face serious trouble."

"Trouble?" Qin Han scoffed disdainfully. His ambitions soared to the heavens—how could he fear mere trouble?

"If your Hall Master wants to cause trouble for me, then let him come. I'll be waiting."

With that, he strode away without a second glance, utterly uninterested in these self-important fools.