Unlike Ironfelt who was initially confused about his job, only to have a sudden epiphany in the end, the Players were very passionate about the 'benefit' that the God of Games provided to strengthen their equipment.
That was not hard to understand. After all, there were no 'pay-to-win players' in the truest sense of the word. After the believers became Players, they were basically pulled to a state of relative equality, and there were only three ways to satisfy their sense of superiority: equipment, level, and progress in clearing dungeons such as the Outskirts of the Valley of the Tragic Dead or the Grey Fjord Inner Seas.
Since everyone had nothing else to do at the moment, it was difficult to widen the gap that would give them an advantage in the short term.
Moreover, with the increasing EXP needed to level up and the difficulty of dungeons increasing in the later stages, the newer Players were slowly catching up to the veterans.
That was why a set of excellent and rare equipment became the goal that most Players would strive for in the short term — which was also why Black Hand was despised so much.
And now that Xi Wei had conveniently introduced the equipment strengthening function, the Players' pursuit of high-grade equipment reached new heights!
Moreover, unlike online games back on Earth, NPCs like Ironfelt could not accommodate every Player at once. That was why there were long queues in front of the Unnamed Town, the Lancaster Hideout, and the strengthening house in the Frogmen Village, waiting for their turn to be strengthened.
Of course, it was not as if there were no Players who cut the queue. After all, most of them were normal refugees, and their average quality would never catch up to the Chong Nation. However, after Xi Wei's' Guaranteed Equipment Strengthening Failure Debuff (24 Hours) 'and' Banned Accounts (24 Hours) ', those fellows immediately understood the importance of quality, and obediently obeyed their instincts.
"Isn't this Brother Marni?" A Player who was queuing up in front of Ironfelt's strengthening house couldn't help striking up a conversation when he realized that the person in front of him was Marni Wilf, a legend amongst Players.
"Oh, you know me?" Marni, who had been poking his head forward to see when it was his turn turned in surprise.
Could it be that his handsome face had become so popular among the believers of the God of Games that even the newbies recognized him? Marni couldn't help thinking smugly, stroking his chin.
The Player pointed above Marni's head.
Marni's smile stiffened. 'Right, there's also the setting where Players can see each other's names.'
"You've been amazing lately!" The Player didn't notice that Marni's smile had stiffened, and kept talking to himself.
"Ahaha, just so-so."
Marni's expression softened, and he did his best to hold back his smug expression.
All he did was open up a trade route between the Unnamed Town and Wickidor, opened up a lot of business in Lancaster, and traded for many resources that the Unnamed Town lacked (such as meat, since the Players couldn't get meat from hunting). Four days ago, he and the other Players fought against the tsunami and protected the Frogmen Village!
Marni puffed his chest at that very thought, feeling that the red title of 'Martyr Who Fought the Seas' over his head had brightened considerably.
"It's really amazing! There hasn't been a notification of your death in the system for three days. " The player sighed sincerely. "Many players who bet on you dying in three days lost a lot of money."
"Ahem …" Marni choked on his own saliva after being praised in an unexpected way. "Is that your impression of me? Wait, what bet? Why didn't I know about that? "
It was only then that the Player realized that he had accidentally let the cat out of the bag, and so changed the topic. "Ah, Mister Marni, you only have a little HP left. Are you sure you're okay?"
"It was a tough fight just now … I'll get clerics to replenish my HP after I strengthen my equipment. Moreover, this place is far from the battlefield, so I don't have to worry about stray bullets. I still have a bottle of Coke if push comes to shove. "Marni said confidently." Compared to that, the bet you mentioned … "
But before Marni could finish, the Players at the back of the party started to stir.
"Some Murloc Javelin Throwers have bypassed our brothers in front and sneaked over here!" "Everyone, be careful! "I see it!" "It's throwing its spear!"
Then, a conch spear drew an arc in the air and shot towards Marni!
A sharp glint flashed in Marni's eyes, and he laughed coldly. "Hmph. I knew this would happen."
With those words, Marni rolled forward, perfectly evading the conch spear in the space of an inch!
The others who had cut down the fishman that escaped couldn't help looking disappointed when they saw Marni's performance.
"Is that a skill like jumping backwards?" The Player from before asked in surprise.
"Something like that. It's an evasive skill I learned from someone called Summer Princess back in Lancaster, and it's called Summer Princess Eight Rolls." Marni answered smugly. "It'll appear in your skill page after you learn it, and it can be leveled up to Level 8!"
The Player was about to say something else, but that was when Ironfelt, who had been watching coldly and focused on forging suddenly spoke up. "Next."
"My turn. Talk to you next time."
Seeing that it was his turn, Marni didn't want to waste time, and promptly handed his breastplate to Ironfelt.
"Oh, this weapon has been strengthened?" The gray dwarf noticed something was off at once when he took the breastplate.
"I had it strengthened to + 5 by a dwarven grandmaster called Iron Rooster back in the Lancaster hideout. Please help me strengthen it to + 6. These are intermediate Strengthening Stones." Marni put the gemstones he had redeemed on the table.
According to his settings, strengthening items from + 1 to + 5 would only require beginner Strengthening Stones, while strengthening items from + 6 to + 10 would require intermediate Strengthening Stones, and anything above + 10 would require advanced Strengthening Stones.
Failing basic strengthening would only result in a drop in level and not a broken item, and + 1 to + 3 was almost guaranteed success. On the other hand, failing intermediate strengthening could result in broken equipment or just a drop in level, which was a fifty-fifty chance. On the other hand, failing advanced strengthening would have a hundred percent chance of breaking equipment.
"I can't guarantee success …" Ironfelt muttered quietly after tapping his breastplate and listening to the sound.
"It's fine. I've prepared a few Strengthening Stones."
"Please," Marni said calmly. "Just do what you want."
The worst that could happen was that he would lose his equipment. He had redeemed a few spare sets of Avenger's Armor during the Rotten Bones event, and he would only feel sorry for the wasted Strengthening Stones even if it was broken.
The dwarf sighed and infused energy from the Strengthening Stones into his equipment, before raising his hammer high and slamming it down hard on the breastplate.
Sparks flew at once, and the breastplate hummed sharply.
In the next split second, the entire breastplate shattered with a bang, scattering into countless shards.
Caught off guard, Marni stared blankly at the shards sticking out of his chest. "So, there's splash damage from failed forging …" But before he could finish, he dropped to the ground and slowly breathed his last.
All at once, the Players around them cheered deafeningly, all of them saying things like 'Marni's dead again!', 'How inhumane!', 'Hurry up and get Miss Eleena', and so on.
That left Ironfelt, who was still thinking that he had made a mistake, puzzled — could the dead human be their creditor? Or were the believers of the God of Games so into this?
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