Chapter 58: Strategy for the New Dungeon

"A treasure chest?" Tunneling Expert recalled for a moment before shaking his head. "Within the range I explored, I didn't see any treasure chest."

"No treasure chest? Is this dungeon really that stingy?" Fang Zhen was quite surprised, then fell into deep contemplation. "However, the maze tunnels are vast. The chest is likely placed deep within. It seems the game developers don't intend for us to get our hands on a treasure chest until we take down a few boss monsters."

"Very likely." Floating Cloud nodded in agreement from the side. "Last time we exploited a bug and directly flooded the entire dungeon. The developers probably anticipated that issue and fixed the bug. Until we take out those Horned Gold-Devouring Rats, they probably won't let us catch a glimpse of a treasure chest."

"Looks like we need to figure out a way to deal with those Horned Gold-Devouring Rats." Fang Zhen pondered. After a brief silence, his eyes lit up as he looked directly at Floating Cloud. "Old Ye, do you think this new dungeon was deliberately created by the developers?"

"What do you mean?" Floating Cloud wore a puzzled expression.

He had no idea why Fang Zhen was suddenly so excited about him. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be anything on his end that Fang Zhen would covet.

In terms of physical fitness, Fang Zhen had been grinding for over 20 hours almost every day lately, making him second only to that female lunatic Luo Wushang. His strength had reached a full 275 kilograms, and even Zhang Qingwei had to yield when it came to strength gains.

Fang Zhen was even the first person to bring the Crushing Stone Fist to the proficient level. Right now, his proficiency had reached 37%, and he was not far from learning the second tier of the lower volume, the Crushing Stone Realm.

Once Fang Zhen learned the second tier of the Crushing Stone Fist, he would be formidable.

His explosive strength would be boosted to 1.5 times. If he were to also learn a skill-based strength martial art like Zhang Qingwei's...

By then, Fang Zhen's explosive power probably wouldn't be inferior to the fifth-grade Spiral Demon Spear Kill, and it wouldn't have much backlash either, much like Zhang Qingwei right now.

Among the thirty players, Zhang Qingwei was already the second-ranked powerhouse in terms of explosive output. By integrating the muscular explosive force of the Crushing Stone Fist into the Rolling Waves Saber technique, he achieved twice the strength intensity—second only to the 2.5-fold Spiral Demon Spear Kill—while retaining very few side effects, allowing him to use it consecutively several times without any issues.

"Look, didn't you become an inner sect disciple?" Fang Zhen looked at the puzzled Floating Cloud and patiently explained, "After becoming an inner sect disciple, aren't you allowed to learn a new martial art technique?"

"You mean the martial artist-grade Lightning Palm?" Floating Cloud remained baffled. "What does that have to do with the new maze tunnel dungeon?"

"Are you an idiot?" Fang Zhen rolled his eyes at Floating Cloud, feeling that this guy wasn't very bright. "What is the most formidable aspect of the martial artist-grade Lightning Palm?"

"Who doesn't know that?" Floating Cloud felt his intelligence was being insulted and said with some dissatisfaction, "Of course, it's the undefendable penetrating force."

"That settles it then," Fang Zhen said speechlessly. "Those Horned Gold-Devouring Rats have pelts harder than steel, making them difficult to injure with external forces, but the internal organs of these monsters are nowhere near as tough as their pelts."

"This new dungeon is obviously tailored for inner sect disciples. As long as we learn the Lightning Palm, we can rely on the penetrating force to slaughter those Horned Gold-Devouring Rats. Do you understand the key to clearing it now?"

"Genius! You're an absolute genius! How did you think of this? The developers hid it so deeply, yet you managed to see right through it." Floating Cloud was suddenly enlightened, looking at Fang Zhen with absolute admiration.

Previously, he had assumed the馆主 (Pavilion Master) had opened up the second promotion path for inner sect disciples purely due to the triggering of the main storyline.

He never expected the game developers to be so devious, quietly crafting a brand-new dungeon specifically for inner sect disciples. To clear it, one had to learn the Lightning Palm as an armor-piercing attack method.

"So why don't you hurry up and exchange for that upper volume of the Lightning Palm? Didn't the Pavilion Master reward you with ten thousand contribution points?" Fang Zhen said with a hint of eager anticipation. "That ten thousand points was probably meant for you to exchange for the Lightning Palm. Once you get it, we can all learn it together, and clearing the maze tunnels will become a whole lot easier."

"Brother Zhen, count me in too. I don't need two-tenths of the dungeon's profits; one-tenth is enough, but I want to learn that Lightning Palm." Tunneling Expert watched the two of them figure out the developers' intentions in mere minutes and was deeply shaken, feeling that only by following these two could he reach the pinnacle in High Martial Descent.

Meanwhile, Lin Qi, who had been watching all of this from the side, was momentarily at a loss for words.

***

Was that really his intention back then?

When he rewarded Floating Cloud with ten thousand points, his primary hope was that Floating Cloud would exchange it for a smart wristband so that the players could realize the benefits of having one.

They needed to understand the importance of mutual communication when working out in the wild.

Once the other players saw it, they would naturally go exchange for them as well.

After all, the number of smart wristbands he currently had in storage was already fifty.

These smart wristbands had also undergone modification in Luo Qi's hands, internally running a new system created by Luo Qi and adopting the basic, commonly used text of Blue Star that he provided.

Aside from checking one's own martial arts pavilion points and the missions he posted, users could also talk freely with anyone within a thousand-meter radius in the wild.

However, his true intention in promoting the smart wristbands was to save himself the trouble.

He hadn't had much idle time in the lounge every day; almost constantly, he had to record every player's points and contributions, a tedious routine that nearly drove him crazy.

But if the players had smart wristbands, it would be a completely different story.

He only needed to use his primary smart system to directly grant points or contributions to the players.

Moreover, point transactions between players wouldn't require running over to him anymore; they could handle it directly on their smart wristbands.

With the smart wristbands, he could save a massive amount of time every day to do other things. Otherwise, as the player base grew, he would literally be worked to death.

Yet, judging by the current situation, that kind of future felt remote and out of reach.

Especially when watching these three directly join forces and then redeem a copy of the Lightning Palm right at his place—not even planning to share the news with Luo Wushang and the others, intending instead to secretly conquer this so-called new maze tunnel dungeon first.

Seeing this, Lin Qi understood that the matter was beyond recall and could only watch as these people went off to raid the so-called new dungeon and hunt for the so-called new treasure chests; otherwise, these players would never let it go.

"Whatever, let them do as they please."

Lin Qi felt that he could no longer meticulously control the actions of these players; all he could do was guide them in the general direction.

Right now, whether it was repairing the martial arts pavilion or mining ancient bronze, both tasks were critically important.

It once again made Lin Qi feel that the manpower at the martial arts pavilion was far from sufficient, or rather, the player growth could no longer keep pace with the pavilion's development. He had to increase the player count as soon as possible.

Early the next morning.

Lin Qi drove a medium-sized transport vehicle to the Azure Crystal Weapon Shop. As for why he wasn't using the large three-wheeler, it was because all the large three-wheelers were in the hands of the players, leaving him with only the medium transport vehicle.

"Unload the cargo." Lin Qi parked the vehicle and instructed the players on board to begin unloading the ores.

The new players excitedly examined their surroundings while enthusiastically unloading the ores. To boost their favorability with Pavilion Master Lin Qi, their unloading speed was so rapid that other vagrants who had come to deliver ores stood there in utter astonishment.

That speed was lightning-fast; they even employed the Leopard Shadow Step, leaving afterimages behind, terrified that they wouldn't work hard enough.

Inside the Azure Crystal Weapon Shop.

The entire building stood seven stories tall, with each floor roughly the size of four basketball courts. The first and second floors were dedicated to displaying weapons and equipment. The first floor showcased armaments and protective gear below the quasi-martial artist level—namely, Grade A series weapons and armor.

The second floor displayed Grade B series weapons and armor meant for those above the quasi-martial artist level, with the price of a single piece being enough to drive ordinary people wild.

Floors three through five served as manufacturing workshops, providing every employee in the weapon shop with their own workspace. Whenever an employee successfully crafted a weapon or piece of equipment, they were required to hand over a 50% profit share to the shop owner.

As for employees attempting to commit fraud, it was simply impossible. Since every series of weapons had a corresponding market price and the shop's manufacturing costs were fixed, there was a guaranteed baseline profit to be turned over. If a private sale fetched a higher price, that was the employee's own skill; the shop would still sell its weapons and equipment at the designated price.

Inside a workshop on the fourth floor.

"Lin, how come you came personally?"

Luo Qi, who was busy crafting a Grade A6 weapon, looked up with some surprise at Lin Qi as he walked in.

In the past, although Lin Qi visited the Azure Crystal Weapon Shop quite often, he usually lingered on the first and second floors, drooling over the weapons upstairs, and rarely bothered to visit the workshops to see how weapons and equipment were manufactured.

"There's something that forces me to come personally."

"Have you already finished crafting two weapons?"

Lin Qi looked at the two completed Grade A6 weapons resting on the alloy workbench—a Grade A6 standard saber and a Grade A6 standard sword—and couldn't help but marvel at how fast and proficient Luo Qi's craftsmanship truly was.

A normal mechanic would take four or five days to forge a decent weapon. Of course, the Azure Crystal Weapon Shop possessed exceptional professional cutting molds, making the production of standard weapons and equipment vastly faster.

Even so, polishing a Grade A6 weapon was no easy task. After all, Grade A6 alloy was difficult for even quasi-martial artists to damage, and even with a mechanic's professional tools, polishing it was quite a chore.

"Mhm. If you need more, you'll probably have to wait another three or four days before I can churn out five more." Luo Qi nodded. Though weariness lingered on her face, she continued tirelessly polishing another Grade A6 standard sword in her hands.

"Stop polishing for a moment. I've got something good to show you." Lin Qi watched Luo Qi, who showed no intention of stopping, a corner of his mouth curving upward into a smile.

"Something good? What is it?" Luo Qi paused her movements and looked curiously at the expensive-looking briefcase Lin Qi was holding. A sudden thought crossed her mind, and she shivered slightly, saying half-jokingly, "Lin, you didn't actually castrate yourself, did you?"

"What on earth are you thinking?" Lin Qi said speechlessly as he pulled six chunks of ore from the briefcase. "Take a look at what these are."

"Ancient bronze ore!"

Gazing at the cyan-green ore, Luo Qi's eyes widened in disbelief.