Chapter Twenty-Eight: Two Magical Artifacts

Xiao Jie looked at the desiccated corpse and felt a wave of relief. He was fortunate to have hired those four militiamen; otherwise, one of the two of them might have been the one to take that devastating blow.

They would have been drained dry in an instant.

The two thousand wen was money well spent.

"Everyone, do not be disheartened. Lao Liu died for Ginkgo Village. His death carries a weight greater than Mount Tai. We must carry on his legacy and live better lives to protect this village. Gentlemen, please take Lao Liu’s body back for a proper burial. I will certainly report his heroic sacrifice to the village chief."

As they watched the militiamen carry away Lao Liu’s body, the two players couldn't wait to loot the monster's remains.

The Tree Demon Derivative had indeed dropped two materials.

[Demonic Blood Ebony (Material/Rare)
Item Description: Black wood soaked in demonic blood. It is incredibly hard and seems to possess a trace of magical power, making it an excellent material for crafting magic artifacts.]

[Spirit-Rhyme Tree Core (Material/Rare)
Item Description: The heart of a ginkgo tree. For reasons unknown, it contains a faint trace of divine power. Even though the tree is dead, this power has not dissipated, making it an excellent material for crafting magic artifacts.]

These must be exactly what the old village chief was looking for.

Each of them took one item and headed straight to the village chief’s house to report their success.

Upon arriving, Xiao Jie embellished the story of the battle, naturally highlighting their own contributions while portraying the militiamen as mere background support that helped set the stage.

"I Want to Become an Immortal" stood by, blushing at the exaggeration, but Xiao Jie told the story with remarkable naturalism.

The game boasted extreme freedom and highly intelligent NPCs, making such "silver-tongued" persuasion quite important. For the same quest, the content of the report could very well influence the rewards.

After hearing Xiao Jie’s account, the old village chief nodded in satisfaction. "Well done, you two. Now that the tree demon is gone, Ginkgo Village can finally rest easy. Your heroism will never be forgotten by this village."

System Prompt: You have completed the side quest [The Village Chief’s Plea]. Your reputation in Ginkgo Village has increased by 20 points, reaching 70/100 (Respected).

"By the way, did you find anything on that tree demon derivative?"

"We did find two treasures, Chief. Please, take a look." Xiao Jie and "I Want to Become an Immortal" traded the two materials to the old man.

"Ah, excellent items! Please wait a moment, I shall begin the crafting immediately."

The village chief brought out his tools and began to work; soon, two magic artifacts were finished.

"The materials left behind by this demon are truly extraordinary. I have fashioned them into a sword and a talisman. You may each take one; they may prove helpful in your future endeavors to banish demons and evil spirits. Take a look—"

Two loot prompts appeared before them, allowing them to choose freely.

[Ebony Sword (One-Handed Sword/Excellent)
Attack: 19 Slash, 17 Pierce. Spell Power +1.
Weapon Effect: Ebony Blood Pact. Consumes 10 HP to grant the weapon the 'Spirit-Severing' attribute, allowing it to inflict damage on ghost-type monsters for 60 seconds.
Item Description: A longsword crafted from Demonic Blood Ebony. Not only is it exceptionally sharp, but it also carries a trace of magical power, slightly enhancing the potency of spells. The sword body, soaked in demonic blood, can be nourished by blood to manifest the power of spirit-severing.]

[Spiritwood Talisman (Amulet/Excellent)
Attribute: Spirit +5.
Talisman Effect: Exorcism. Dispels one demon or ghost-type spell effect from a target. Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Item Description: An amulet made from the Spirit-Rhyme Tree Core. The divine power remaining in the core can repel demonic and evil forces, protecting you from the intrusion of demons, ghosts, and wicked spirits.]

Both were great items, Xiao Jie thought to himself in admiration.

However, he did not choose immediately. He looked toward "I Want to Become an Immortal."

"You triggered this side quest, so you choose first," he said.

Although both were good, rules had to be followed. Since "I Want to Become an Immortal" had triggered the quest, Xiao Jie was essentially sharing the rewards as a helper. It was only right that his companion picked first.

"Oh, I couldn't possibly..."

"Damn it, just pick. Don't waste time."

"Alright then, I won't be polite." After a moment of hesitation, "I Want to Become an Immortal" decisively chose the Ebony Sword.

This item had the Spirit-Severing effect, meaning he could finally damage ghosts. He had been terrified by the stories of night ghosts that Wang Kai mentioned earlier. Those creatures were immune to physical attacks, making them impossible for ordinary players to fight. Now, with this sword, he at least had a chance.

This choice was well within Xiao Jie's expectations; in any game, weapons were usually the priority.

However, the Spiritwood Talisman wasn't bad either—it came with a dispel spell and added 5 points to the Spirit attribute. Since he mainly used a blade, he was quite satisfied with it. Even without a gold reward, this magic artifact was enough to make him happy.

The two left the village chief’s house, both delighted with their gains from the side quest.

"Look me up if you run into anything like this again," Xiao Jie said. He had realized that "I Want to Become an Immortal" had good luck; he might encounter more side quests in the future, so it was worth securing a spot early.

"Definitely, definitely," "I Want to Become an Immortal" promised quickly. He felt lucky to have had such a skilled player to help him with the quest; otherwise, he likely would have died trying to cut down the tree alone.

With that, they said their goodbyes, and he went off to handle his own business.

Right, he still had five attribute points to allocate, Xiao Jie remembered.

He checked his current stats:
Constitution: 9
Stamina: 8
Strength: 8
Agility: 12

Advanced Attributes:
Spirit: 12+5
Intellect: 10
Perception: 9
Faith: 7

It was unclear if the game had items to reset stats, so he had to be very careful. Making a mistake would be a disaster. Xiao Jie had already given his build path a lot of thought.

In the early stages, he definitely needed to prioritize basic attributes. Without spells, he had to rely entirely on physical output, which meant boosting his foundation. Strictly speaking, all four attributes were crucial for a player.

Constitution was directly tied to his health bar and survival, so it was a must. Strength affected physical damage and couldn't be too low. Stamina affected his energy pool and carry capacity—equally important, as running out of energy meant he couldn't run or jump away. Then there was Agility; speed was vital. High agility meant he could run if he couldn't win, while low agility meant he wouldn't even be able to escape.

Of course, he would need to specialize later. Based on his understanding of the game, he believed there were two main paths: Strength-based and Agility-based.

The Strength path focused on heavy armor and heavy swords, relying on high defense and damage to go toe-to-toe with monsters. The advantage was a higher margin for error; taking a hit or two wouldn't matter much. The downside was a lack of mobility and a high demand for top-tier gear. To wear heavy armor, he would also need high Stamina, making attribute points very scarce.

The Agility path was a "dodge-tank" route—trying to avoid being hit at all. Agility builds didn't need heavy armor, saving points in Stamina. It was easier to transition and required fewer attribute points in the late game. If he wanted to transition into a magic-user later, he would need those advanced attributes, making this path more efficient.

Xiao Jie decided to go with the Agility build, but he didn't want his other stats to be too low. Strength needed to hit at least 20 to wield most weapons easily. Stamina also needed to hit 20 to have enough energy for combat skills. Since he would eventually need them, he decided to fix his current shortcomings first.

He added 1 point to Constitution and 2 points each to Stamina and Strength. This brought all three attributes to 10, the level of an average adult.

Constitution: 10
Stamina: 10
Strength: 10
Agility: 12

Checking the time, he saw it was nearly dark, so Xiao Jie logged out of the game.

He stretched his body and could clearly feel that he had become a bit stronger. He took off his shirt and looked in the mirror; his previously pale and thin frame looked much more balanced now, and he could even see faint muscle definition.

Not bad. After leveling up a few more times and pushing all four basic attributes to 20, his physical condition would absolutely crush that of an ordinary person—at the very least, reaching the level of a professional athlete.