Chapter 153: Barracks
Apprentice's Warrior's Cloak: 12 Defense; Durability 9-; +1 to Heavy Blow (Barbarian); +1 to Find Potion (Barbarian); +1 Strength; +7 Life; Required Level: 5.
Azure Agile Helmet: 17 Defense; Durability 16-24; +10% Cold Resistance; +2 Dexterity, Required Level: 11.
Red-Orange Skill Chain Boots: 9 Defense; Durability 8-16; +10% Lightning Resistance; +3 Dexterity, Required Level: 12.
Enhanced Agile Chain Mail: 57 Defense; Durability 18-26; +1 Dexterity; +% Enhanced Defense; Required Level: 10.
Sky-Blue Strength Belt: 5 Defense; Durability 10-16; +12% Cold Resistance; +3 Strength; Required Level: 5.
Agile Ring: +2 Dexterity.
Azure Ring: +9% Cold Resistance.
Lizard's Agile Necklace: +5 Mana; +1 Dexterity.
And finally, the last golden item – Demon's Knuckle Heavy Gloves.
Defense: 8
Durability: 6-14
Required Level: 4
+15 Attack Rating
+25% Enhanced Defense
+12% Cold Resistance
+14% Fire Resistance
+3 Dexterity
+3 Strength
5% Increased Drop Rate
Replenish Durability 1 in 1 day
This was the complete set of Equipment Qiuludun left for me. I have to say, although there was only one golden item, the entire set consisted of Small Excellent Grade items with Dual Stats (excluding the Cloak, Necklace, and Rings, as these are hard to come by). Moreover, they almost all added Dexterity and Cold Resistance Stats, which is quite good for an Assassin. No wonder his Speed was so astonishing.
Even more worth mentioning are those golden Heavy Gloves, which actually have the Increased Drop Rate Stat. Although it's only 5%, which doesn't seem to show much effect, just having this Stat alone is enough to give it a perfect score. You should know that besides the Bugged Small Charm, I haven't dropped any Equipment that increases Drop Rate.
However, I am not a Druid who relies on Dexterity for a living. Qiuludun's Excellent Grade Set is only valuable to me for the high-Defense Excellent Grade Dual Stats Helmet and the golden Heavy Gloves. The others can only be relegated to the second line, to be used in special circumstances or as Backup Equipment. Of course, besides the Gloves and Helmet, the relatively junk +11 Accuracy Bronze Ring I originally had on my hand was also replaced by the +9% Cold Resistance Azure Ring.
As for that Freedom Alliance, Kashya told me not to dwell on it. The priority now should be to improve my Strength/Power. Qiuludun was just an accident. Generally speaking, they wouldn't cause trouble in the Rogue Encampment. Regarding this, I could only repeatedly ask Kashya to help keep an eye on things. Then, I temporarily put this matter out of my mind. After all, if even Kashya and the others couldn't solve the problem, worrying about it now would be useless.
It has been the third day since I parted ways with Kashya. To track Qiuludun, Light Snow and I had been marching rapidly for almost two full days. It would naturally take some Effort to go back. It wasn't until the morning of the third day that the massive form of the Monastery, hidden in the mist, appeared before my eyes. Killing along the way, my Experience finally reached level 18 and a half. Don't misunderstand, I wasn't satisfied; on the contrary, I felt it was slow. Ultimately, the Experience from Monsters in Tamoe Highland and the Monastery was gradually decreasing for me.
"Ah~~~~"
Even I, who am always praised (?) by the world for being polite (?), couldn't help but scream and curse.
In a Corner of the Monastery's Garden. After passing through a Small Grove, the view suddenly opened up. And right opposite, an ancient Door covered in rust appeared before my eyes. It was the Entrance to the Barracks. What made me angry was that I had actually passed by that small Garden outside several times, but I never thought the Barracks Door would be in such an inconspicuous place, so I just glanced at it and left immediately. How could I not be angry now?
"Damn it, I'll burn you down."
Looking at this Small Grove before me, it was because of its Existence that I overlooked this place several times. Thinking of this, a surge of anger rose in my heart, and evil thoughts grew bold. A raging Fire Ball was already burning in my hand.
Wait, since I've already found it, why bother nitpicking? Getting angry at a Small Grove is so childish. I coughed a few times, stating beforehand, I am absolutely not feeling unbalanced right now, absolutely not!!
I just want to test those who come after, to let them know how difficult the path ahead is. Yes, that's it! I put away the Fire Ball in my hand and stepped forward righteously and awe-inspiringly.
Speaking of which, is it because every Adventurer has the same Idea as me that this Small Grove has managed to survive all this time? *Sigh*...
Opening that heavy Door, a dark and rotten Aura rushed towards me. I vaguely remember that in the Game, when entering the first Room of the Barracks, there were always quite a few Monsters. So, when that Door reluctantly opened with a grating groan, Light Snow and I immediately entered combat stance. What kind of Monsters would greet us first? Hundreds of Shamans? Hundreds of Bloody Tribe? Or perhaps Yetis? Of course, if hundreds of Andariel rushed out, I would die in peace.
The Result was beyond my expectation; there was nothing inside. I cautiously looked inside and only saw over a dozen flickering Magic Lamps emitting a cold, dim Light in the gloomy Great Hall. Several piles of tall Chests were scattered around, and there seemed to be no Figure.
I did not lower my guard and cautiously advanced with Light Snow and the others. When the last Ghost Wolf stepped inside, that heavy Iron Gate suddenly closed slowly with a groan. The moment the gap in the Door disappeared, the entire Great Hall suddenly darkened. Perhaps because I hadn't been in a Cave environment for a long time, my eyes couldn't capture the flickering dim Light emitted by the Magic Lamps at all, and my vision was extremely blurry.
Wait, flickering Light? There was clearly no Wind in the Great Hall!
I widened my eyes, trying hard to examine the Surroundings. In a moment, huge Shadows appeared on the Walls. Like horned Demons, those Shadows constantly danced on the Walls around me. Their Weapons, their gaping maws, exuded an incredibly ferocious Aura.
This...
I clenched my fists, veins bulging on my forehead, then waved a Large Hand. The Summons behind me immediately scattered and pounced. In less than a moment, countless Screams came from some hidden places and blind spots in my vision.
"Hmph, before trying to scare people, you should at least change your appearance. What kind of Quality is this?"
After the Great Hall calmed down, I slowly walked over. As expected, brown-yellow Corpses were lying scattered on the damp stone ground. They were the "familiar monsters" Shamans and Mages. These poor little guys, for their intelligence to come up with this Method to create psychological Pressure for Adventurers is already quite impressive. But any Adventurer with a little Experience could determine their identity from the Shadows on the Wall, so the Result was obvious. Although they were so engrossed in the great "Tactics" they created, they almost never succeeded.
Right.
Looking at the Corpses on the ground, I suddenly had an inspiration. I quickly changed into the Warrior's Cloak I got from Qiuludun. It had a Barbarian Skill, Find Potion. Isn't now the time to Experience it?
Seeing the methods for using Heavy Blow and Find Potion appear in my mind, I cleared my Throat and impatiently used Find Potion on a Corpse.
"Hoo..."
A thunderous sound echoed in the Great Hall. I never thought I could make such a loud Voice. Caught off guard, even my own ears were ringing.
Plugging my ears, I continued to use Find Potion on other Corpses, stopping only after consuming more than half of my Mana. I couldn't use it anymore. Given the Mana recovery Speed, never using up all your Mana unless in special circumstances is a basic common sense for an Adventurer.
Examining the Corpses I had used Find Potion on, my eyes lit up. A bottle of pink Potion appeared before my eyes. My luck exploded! I actually shouted out a Rejuvenation Potion, especially from ordinary Monsters like Shamans, where the Chance might be less than one in a thousand.
Besides this precious Rejuvenation Potion, there were also 2 Light Mana Potions, 1 Light Health Potion, and 1 Minor Health Potion. The gains were enough to make those Prestigious Lineage Barbarians die of anger. Perhaps the Increased Drop Rate Stat also had a certain bonus effect on Find Potion.
However, there was a Price/Cost to pay. Besides consuming Mana, when I snapped out of my joy, I immediately felt my Throat become hoarse and burning. Shout Skill is indeed not something everyone can use. I finally understood why Barbarians' voices are so "loud".
After my persistent pestering, Kashya finally told me the Route through the Barracks. Even the few locations where the Blacksmith might appear were included as a freebie. According to my estimate, tomorrow, or at most the day after tomorrow, I would be able to find the Blacksmith and kill it (of course, if it still exists). Calculating this way, if nothing unexpected happens, I will take at most about three days to pass through the Barracks. However, the Jail Terrain that follows will be miserable, and there are as many as three levels. Heaven help me...
Following the Route Kashya pointed out, I slowly advanced. Along the way, I finally experienced her strange expression when she smiled and told me to be careful of the Monsters in the Barracks before she left. How to put it, the Monsters in the Barracks gave me a completely different Feeling. Of course, it's not that they had Mutated; Shamans were still Shamans. Whether they were inside the Barracks or outside, their Strength/Power was equally fragile and weak. It wasn't because of the Quantity either. On the contrary, the simple layout of the Barracks resembling army dorms meant that large spaces were impossible. Therefore, the Quantity of Monsters, the most I encountered since coming in, was only a little over a hundred Shamans. Compared to the Fallen Camps on the Plain with hundreds at every turn, it could almost be ignored.
What I want to say is their Tactics. From the moment I first entered the Barracks Great Hall and encountered that group of Shamans pretending to be ghosts, I noticed that in this narrow Space, the Monsters' Tactics seemed to have changed. Yes, they became even more insidious.
For example, I carefully opened a Room, clearly saw no Monster shadows inside, and just as I was walking in feeling relieved, suddenly a few blades extended from who knows which Corner. A few, or dozens of sneaky figures, would slowly approach you taking advantage of the dim light. Some even jumped directly from above your head.
Especially the two new types of Monsters added in the Barracks: the Black Rogue - the Third Progression (Fourth Tier) of the Dark Hunter, which, like the Shaman, is a high-tier Monster almost reaching peak Tier 5; and the Death Clan - also the Third Progression of the Moon Clan. These two types of Monsters, with their dark and stealthy appearance, were particularly stealthy when moving in the dim Barracks. If you didn't look carefully with wide eyes, you simply couldn't discover their Existence. Even with the sensitive Light Snow reminding me, I was still left mentally and physically exhausted by these insidious sneak attack Tactics.