Chapter 19: The Bronze Artifact, the Slayer’s Belt!
Returning to Moonfall Town, Lu Ming immediately sought out Mayor Alofs to submit the completed task.
Upon hearing that Lu Ming had slaughtered a thousand dark skeletons and slain the Skeleton King Nock, the elderly mayor was moved to tears. "Thank you, young warrior. If the members of the Killing Squad who sacrificed themselves at the Burial Grounds eight years ago knew of your deeds, they would surely find peace underground."
"Brave warrior, please accept the reward you deserve!"
As the mayor's words fell, a pleasant system chime sounded in Lu Ming’s ear.
[Ding~ Congratulations on completing the task: Slayer Tier 10. Rewards: Experience +20,000, Silver Coins +10, Bronze Equipment - Slayer’s Belt +1, F-rank Skill Scroll - Life Barrier +1!]
Bronze equipment!?
Lu Ming was pleasantly surprised. Opening his inventory on the spot, he found a finely crafted belt with a bronze frame, adorned with silver engravings, radiating an aura of sophistication.
The reason the fare for the “Slayer” task was so exorbitant was precisely because at Tier 10, besides a guaranteed level 10 Black Iron item and an F-rank skill scroll, there was a very slim chance of obtaining bronze equipment or even an E-rank skill scroll!
It’s worth noting that within the same level bracket, a bronze piece of equipment could be worth ten times as much as a Black Iron one.
Moreover, an E-rank skill scroll could fetch 20,000 to 30,000 silver coins on the market, though demand was scarce.
Thus, most players willing to pay a premium for a team to complete the task were gambling on luck as much as the massive experience and silver rewards.
If they hit the jackpot with a bronze item or an E-rank scroll, their profit would be enormous!
“According to some experts, the probability of this happening in the Abyssal world is about 10%. Looks like my luck is quite decent!” Lu Ming couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.
He eagerly checked the attributes of the belt.
[Slayer’s Belt] (Level 10 Bronze Equipment)
[Health: 420]
[Additional Attributes: Constitution +20, Endurance +20]
[Additional Skill: Slaughter (Passive. The Formation Conjurer’s formations grant allied units within the formation an additional damage boost equal to 2% of the wearer’s maximum health; effects do not stack)]
[Durability: 55/55]
[Class Requirement: Formation Conjurer]
[Description: The belt once worn by the captain of Moonfall Town’s Killing Squad. Wearing it symbolizes a warrior who defends the peace of Moonfall Town...]
Compared to Lu Ming’s current level 8 Black Iron Moon Demon Cloak, which only granted 120 health and 8 endurance, this bronze belt’s attribute bonuses were spectacular—truly sky-high.
Especially the passive skill Slaughter. For Lu Ming, who possessed comprehensive amplification talents, this translated to a damage boost equal to 20% of his maximum health!
Without hesitation, he equipped the Slayer’s Belt and checked his status panel. His health surged instantly from 450 to 1,070!
Having over a thousand health at level 10 first tier was comparable to a level 15 second-tier Knight!
This meant the damage increase from the Slaughter skill alone was roughly 214 points!
Combined with the level 10 War Stomp skill, which provided a 100% + 500 attack boost to the Formation Conjurer, totaling 589 attack power, the Necromancer’s damage was about to explode!
Next, Lu Ming examined the skill scroll reward.
[Life Barrier] (Formation Conjurer · F-rank)
[Skill Description: Releases a circular formation with a 50-yard radius. All friendly units within the formation gain a shield every second equal to (Formation Conjurer’s 1% max health + 5) for 15 seconds. The shield cannot exceed 30% of the Formation Conjurer’s max health.]
[Skill Cost: Activates at 3 mana; maintenance costs 1 mana per second]
[Cooldown: 50 seconds]
“The Necromancer’s output is sufficient, but the early game was lacking in defense and vitality, causing significant casualties in battle,” Lu Ming thought.
“This skill perfectly addresses this issue!”
With that, he immediately shattered the scroll and learned the skill.
Its level rose from 1 to 10, scaling with Lu Ming’s level.
The shield bonus per second increased to Formation Conjurer’s 1% max health + 38!
Afterward, Lu Ming visited the appraisal shop, spending 50 copper coins to identify the level 10 Black Iron Skeleton King Boots dropped by the Skeleton King.
Skeleton King Boots: Speed +30, Agility +9.
With the new equipment complete, Lu Ming’s speed reached 49 points.
He then listed the five white-grade items collected during his dungeon run on the trading post before logging off.
Leaving the internet café, he headed to a newly opened frog delicacy restaurant beneath his apartment complex.
He ordered a large pot of spicy fragrant frog and a bottle of beer—eating meat heartily and drinking deeply.
“Delicious!”
Reflecting on his past life, when he scrimped and saved to marry Ye Ling’er and provide her a better life, never once spending a penny on himself, Lu Ming realized how harsh life had been.
Now, at this moment, he understood that life could actually be this wonderful!
Just then, Lin Youwei suddenly sent a WeChat message.
“Ye Chen is already level 7.”
Only a few hours, and he had leveled from 1 to 7?
This leveling speed rivaled that of Lu Ming’s ten-star account!
It seemed the saying “The Abyssal world is a playground for the wealthy” was indeed true.
Lu Ming mused, “At this pace, it should take another hour or two to reach level 8. Before then, I can complete the job transfer quest.”
He promptly replied to Lin Youwei: “Tell me when he’s almost level 8.”
Lin Youwei responded: “Okay!”
Full and content, Lu Ming was about to leave and return to the internet café to log in and transfer his class.
Suddenly, he overheard a young couple speaking at a nearby table.
“Wow, baby, check out this Douyin video I forwarded you. A level 10 Formation Conjurer soloed a Black Iron boss in ten seconds! And the guy’s from Linhai!”
“Really? Let me see!”
“No way! That’s incredible! Where did this ancient expert come from?!”
Hearing this, Lu Ming furrowed his brows.
He didn’t rush to leave but took out his phone to search Douyin for “Formation Conjurer solo boss.”
Sure enough, he found a video of himself just now, soloing the Skeleton King in the Burial Grounds.
The video was only a few seconds long but captured the entire scene of Lu Ming commanding his Necromancer to swarm the Skeleton King at full health and topple the boss instantly!
From the camera angle, it was recorded by a passerby.
The video had been posted 35 minutes ago.
At this moment, it had amassed 1,598,000 likes, 327,000 comments, and 1,245,000 shares!
Opening the comment section revealed widespread astonishment:
“Ten seconds soloing a Black Iron boss?! Who is this deity of a player? Terrifying!”
“This video must be fake! Who can solo a boss in ten seconds?”
“The uploader said no edits or filters. I can vouch for him—I was the Skeleton King getting pummeled!”
“Too bad he wore a mask, so we can’t see his face, but judging by his figure, he’s definitely a handsome guy!”
“Does anyone know this Formation Conjurer’s Douyin ID? Help me share this—I have a friend who wants to meet him!”
Fame always invites controversy.
Lu Ming was grateful he wore a mask.
Rising from the frog restaurant, he headed straight to the internet café.
Unbeknownst to him, Ye Chen had just noticed the video as well...
In the southern wild zone of Moonfall Town, in the 7-8 level area of Tianhuang City, Ye Chen was quickly leveling up under the guidance of game boosters.
While organizing some materials to post on Douyin, he stumbled across the video titled “Anonymous Formation Conjurer Soloes Black Iron Boss.”
At first, Ye Chen was amazed by the Necromancer’s boss rush, but then he noticed the Formation Conjurer commanding the undead.
Though the player wore a mask and hid their ID, Ye Chen’s keen eye caught a familiar figure...
“This guy... why does he look so familiar?”
As he spoke, Ye Chen seemed to recall something.
He suddenly turned to look meaningfully at Lin Youwei beside him...