Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Xiao Ling once thought of buying a mechanical puppet, but the price tag of 8,000 gold coins for a level-two mechanical imp made him give up the idea. He might as well craft one himself with the money. For some unknown reason, he had never seen anyone selling level-1 mechanical imps.
‘I wonder what will be the strength of a mechanical imp made of amethyst?’ The quality of materials used had a certain influence on the mechanical puppet, and it was known that good materials could greatly enhance the puppet’s attribute.
Anyhow, Xiao Ling could only satisfy his desire to grind and level up in his mind. His hope of making this desire a reality was still very slim.
“Brother Xiao! Brother Xiao! Uncle Bald at the watch shop asked you to help him repair his clocks!” A boy about thirteen or fourteen years in age came running up from the town. He was quite handsome, with curly blond hair, and was clad in an ill-fitting leather mail which was too large and made him look bloated.
Xiao Ling sighed. ‘Why am I, the future epic hero of Endace Continent, reduced to repairing clocks for a watch shop?’
He reluctantly followed the boy toward the center of the town. It was a job he had fought for, repairing clocks and watches for a watch shop free of charge, while he could get the opportunity to train his expertise rating in engineering at the same time for free.
At the thought of the stingy bald guy, Xiao Ling could not help but curse under his voice. When he applied for the job, the guy had been giving him a hard time and even refused to pay him in the end.
The boy chattered along the way. Everything that happened in the town excited him. “Uncle Locke killed a Spotted Leopard in Skeleton Forest, so we have meat to eat again tonight! He also defeated a limping Skeleton Soldier…Brother Xiao, can you defeat a Skeleton Soldier?” He turned to look at Xiao Ling with innocent eyes.
Xiao Ling blushed and said hastily, “Of course!”
“Then why haven’t I seen you kill Skeleton Soldiers in Skeleton Forest?” The boy asked curiously.
Xiao Ling felt his scalp begin to go numb. “That’s because I’m too lazy to go. We are very close to Uncle Bald’s shop, so we’d better hurry over.” He quickly changed the topic.
“Alright!” The boy nodded and ran to the watch shop. “Uncle Bald, Brother Xiao is here! You said you’d give me a silver coin…What? You’re not paying me again?”
The so-called watch shop was actually just a low and shabby shack that smelled of damp mold. It was so worn-out that Xiao Ling worried it might collapse if there was a strong wind or heavy rain.
“Greetings, what can I do for you?” The stingy, balding old guy in the watch shop was stooping obsequiously to introduce the watches to a player. His clothes, which had not been washed for days and were a little black, smelled of copper, and there was a trace of saliva hanging from the corner of his mouth. Pointing a finger at a gold pocket watch on the wall, he said, “This pocket watch is the proud work of Vieri, the greatest Mechanical Alchemist in history. Watches are the greatest creation of Mechanical Alchemists, for they mark the time of each day and divide it to 24 hours. Such a magnificent masterpiece will surely be remembered by history. I must admit that Mechanical Alchemist is the greatest class in the world.” Despite his stinginess, the old man was generous with his compliments. However, Xiao Ling remembered the last time when a Fire Mage came to the shop to buy something, the bald fellow said that Mage was the greatest class in the world.
Xiao Ling briefly studied the player. He was a handsome young man with short black hair, deep eyes, and a handsome appearance that made the former a little jealous. It was just the proud look on his face that made people uncomfortable. He was wearing a gorgeous white robe inscribed with various ancient glyphs, just like the glyphs on the walls of the Chapel of Mechanical Alchemists.
‘This guy is also a Mechanical Alchemist,’ Xiao Ling was slightly surprised. Mechanical Alchemists were rare; out of a few thousand players, there might be only one.
With his superior judgment trained in the watch shop, Xiao Ling could see that at least two of the player’s equipment were Epic, and the rest were Rare. And their levels were quite high.
The quality of equipment was divided into Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary, Artifact, and Heirloom. Common, Uncommon, and Rare were relatively easy to find, and the attributes of the equipment were also closely related to the required level. The required level for a level-50 Common item might be higher than that of a level-10 Epic item, and the higher the level, the rarer the equipment would be.
A level-40 or above Rare equipment with good attributes could sell for thousands of gold coins.
The bald guy kept on introducing and, from time to time, looked at the player’s side.
Xiao Ling followed the guy’s eyes and saw a short fellow hopping restlessly beside the handsome young man. It was less than one meter tall, and its body was entirely made of silvery-white metal, exquisitely structured and fully inscribed with Mechanical Alchemy Glyphs. Its imp-face did not look horrible at all, but rather cute, and it mumbled incomprehensible words.
Mechanical puppets were the greatest masterpieces of Mechanical Alchemists! In contrast, the watches were just rubbish.
Xiao Ling did not know what kind of metal the imp was made of, but just by looking at its appearance, he knew that it was at least level-3.
The price of a level-3 mechanical imp was about 50,000 to 60,000 gold coins! And the spell damage of a level-3 mechanical imp’s Flame Burst was more than 1,500. If the young man’s spell damage was around 1,500 as well, the combination of two was not weaker than that of a Fire Mage.
‘Why is there such a big gap between him and me when we are both Mechanical Alchemists?’ thought Xiao Ling in exasperation.
‘I hate rich people!’ he thought bitterly as his eyes wandered uncontrollably up and down the imp. He was fascinated by all the Strengthen Glyphs, Link Glyphs, and Fire Glyphs.
The greatest gist of engineering lay in these glyphs. Legend had it that glyphs were created by ancient goblins and taught to human beings. However, to embezzle these great technologies, human beings drove the goblins out of their homes and into the Western Plague Swamps of Eli. From then on, only human beings could master glyphs.
These glyphs contained a powerful energy. Legend had it that ancient goblins, with some rare metals, had once crafted the world’s most powerful alchemy creation—the Titans, who were no less powerful than Black Dragons. Although it was only a legend, the power of glyphs was evident. The energy contained in the high-level glyphs was extremely potent.