Chapter 333 – Dark Portal
Nie Yan’s auction houses and shops generated a lot of gold. Combined with the numerous contributions of the guilds members, Asskickers United could persevere for a long time. Thanks to recent events, the profit of the Union of Assassins took a sharp decline since the professional players would rather be participating in the bounty notice than carrying out regular missions. Calculating everything, he earned roughly 50,000 gold a day.
「Guo Huai, I want you to note down all their names. When this war is over, we’re going to reward them properly. They’re the lifeblood of Asskickers United!」Nie Yan said. The loyalty these players displayed far exceeded that of ordinary guild members. Of course, their effort didn’t go unnoticed. He planned to grant them benefits befitting of their merits.
At this moment, Bird walked over to Nie Yan with a girl in tow. She was quite cute.
Nie Yan glanced at the young lady, and she stared back at him with an inquisitive gaze. Her eyes were bright and full of spirit.
Violet Mist gazed at Nie Yan. He looked just like the figure she saw in the videos online. This was Mad Rogue Nirvana Flame!
“This is Violet Mist. She’s willing to become your personal Tinkerer. She’s one of our Advanced Tinkerers,” Bird said as he introduced Violet Mist to Nie Yan.
Nie Yan nodded in acknowledgement. Violet Mist looked no older than 18 years old. It was hard to believe someone so young would become a reknowned Tinkerer worth over ￥100,000,000 in the future. Even though he was a little surprised, he had seen many young talents by now, so he didn’t show too much of a reaction.
“Have you shown her the contract?” Nie Yan asked. Most players wouldn’t be willing to be bound by such a stringent contract, but the benefits he offered in return were ample. Just his name alone was a big attraction, to say nothing of the fact that he planned to invest an immense amount of resources to foster his personal Tinkerer.
“Yes, she’s already signed the contract,” Bird replied. Even Bird didn’t know what Nie Yan’s goal was.
Nie Yan turned to Violet Mist. “Since you’ve decided to become my personal Tinkerer, I’m sure you’ve read through the contents of the contract, including the confidentiality clause.”
Seeing Nie Yan’s solemn expression, Violet Mist became flustered. The person before her was the legendary guild leader of Asskickers United, Mad Rogue Nirvana Flame! She felt immense pressure.
Who hadn’t watched videos of Nie Yan’s feats online? He was a heaven-defying figure who commanded her respect. Add this to the fact that she just found out this person was her boss, and it was no wonder she felt nervous.
“I understand.” Violet Mist vigorously nodded.
Seeing Violet Mist’s flustered appearance, Nie Yan chuckled. “I’m not some scary monster. No need to be so nervous. Just abide by the terms of the contract and you’ll be fine.”
A young lady like Violet Mist was still pure. She was much more trustworthy than those sly foxes who bounced from guild to guild.
“Here, take this.” Nie Yan handed over Dela’s Magical Device Book. “I’ll provide you with all the necessary materials. You’ll be crafting the items described inside this book, specifically the Magic Bombs. I need a lot of Intermediate Magic Bombs, the more the better!” With a large supply of Magic Bombs, a lot of problems could be easily resolved, such as raising the levels of the players in the guild.
The materials required to manufacture Magic Bombs were fairly cheap, at least compared to the price of buying Magic Bombs from NPCs. Nie Yan still felt deeply pained when he recalled how much gold he spent on them.
Violet Mist curiously flipped open the book Nie Yan handed her, whereupon her eyes widened in shock.
This was a Legendary-grade Tinkerer Manual!
Just where did he get this!? Violet Mist was blown away. But on second thought, she felt this wasn’t all too strange. After all, Nie Yan was the guild leader of Asskickers United.
“Work hard. I hope you’ll meet my expectations. If your performance is good, I’ll give you a raise,” Nie Yan said. Most production class players didn’t come from wealthy backgrounds. Since crafting professions were generally monotonous and boring, the vast majority of players who selected them did so to earn money. Those who could earn salaries like Violet Mist ranked among the top of their respective professions.
Violet Mist hastily nodded. “I won’t let you down!” As a high schooler, it was amazing she could earn such a salary by playing Conviction. Even her parents would be shocked. She naturally wouldn’t pass up on such a lucrative job.
“I’ll leave you guys to it.” Nie Yan bid farewell after explaining the relevant affairs.
Bird called for someone to prepare the necessary crafting materials for Violet Mist.
Nie Yan wondered about Violet Mist’s production output. As an Advanced Tinkerer, she should have no problem manufacturing several dozen Magic Bombs a day. He could let them accumulate for a few days, then use them all at once to level up.
Bird led Violet Mist away.
Nie Yan had a headache trying to think of a method to earn gold quickly. Doing quests was out of the question. Even the most difficult ones within the scope of his abilities would only reward him around 50 gold. Such a pitiful amount was like trying to douse a house fire with a cup of water.
Nie Yan reshuffled a few things in his auction houses and shops. The Level 50 dungeon, Roth City, was going to be released in a few days. He had his subordinates stock up on items he knew would be in high demand. With six auction houses, his hoarding ability was unmatched. After the release of every new dungeon, he made a profit of thousands to tens of thousands of gold.
The war with Bloodlust Blades didn’t show any signs of ending soon. It might even drag on for over a week. Nie Yan felt confident Asskickers United could last for 10 days. He didn’t know if the other side could do the same.
Nie Yan went off and explored some secret areas in high-level maps, obtaining rare items which he listed up for sale in the auction house. He also spent a lot of time running around in the wilderness hunting for treasure chests. This was his way of earning a bit of extra gold while also conveniently training his Lockpicking Specialist skill.
While Nie Yan was in the middle of treasure hunting, the Dark Portal from Bennett’s Journal was about to open.
The Dark Portal opened once every five days and only lasted 20 minutes. Nie Yan would have to wait another five days for it to open again if he missed it. He pondered for a long time. Should he go and visit the Underworld? He might even make some unexpected harvest. It was also a good opportunity to earn a lot of gold!
Nie Yan finally came to a decision. He would have Sun retrieve the next fragment of Sulgata’s Shadow while he took a trip to the Underworld. The territories of the two factions were in the same dimension, so he could still remotely direct things back in Calore.
「You want to go to the Underworld!?」Guo Huai blurred out in shock after Nie Yan informed him of his plans.
「Yes, I’m going to the Underworld,」Nie Yan said decisively.
「When will you be back?」Guo Huai asked. He was worried something might happen during Nie Yan’s absence.
「Five days.」
「That long?」Guo Huai frowned.
「Keep the bounty notice up. We can hold out for at least a week and a half. Don’t fret, nothing will happen. Even if Bloodlust Blades keeps making taunts, tell our brothers to stay calm. With the way things are developing, we’ll definitely be the ones to come out on top!」
「Alright.」Guo Huai nodded. He should be able to manage the situation by himself for the next five days.
「Help me get a few bags, the bigger the better. Ask the brothers in the guild chat. I want the largest bags!」Nie Yan said. Since he was going to be staying in the Underworld for the next five days, he would need to stock up on plenty of consumables. Besides this, the more bagspace he had, the more items he could bring back.
「I’ll get right to it!」Guo Huai said. He began asking in the guild chat for large bags. As a guild full of elites, the players from Asskickers United regularly obtained bags from levelling and dungeon runs.
The players in the chat replied in droves when they heard Nie Yan needed bags with a lot of slots.
「How large of a bag does the boss need?」
「I have a 30-slot bag.」
「How could a 30-slot bag be good enough for the boss!?」
「I have a 36-slot bag!」
「I also have one!」
「I have a 40-slot bag!」
…
Guo Huai compensated the players who donated their bags with an equivalent value of merit points. After tallying everything up, he collected two 40-slot bags and two 36-slot bags. They were the best bags available at the current stage of the game!
After finding how many bags Guo Huai collected, Nie Yan quickly whispered him,「That’s enough, I already have a 40-slot bag on me as well. Deliver everything to my personal storage.」
Before long, Nie Yan received the bags Guo Huai sent over and switched out his old bags.
Nie Yan stocked up on a ton of consumables, including some necessary scrolls. His Combat Medic skill had also ranked up.
Combat Medic (Advanced)
Requirements: 10 Runic Cloths
Description: Craft Advanced Combat Bandages which can be used in the middle of combat. Each bandage replenishes 200 health every second for 10 seconds and cannot be interrupted for the first 3 seconds. (Cooldown: 5 minutes)
Nie Yan bought enough Runic Cloths to craft three full stacks of Advanced Combat Bandages, which should be enough to last him five days.
Aside from the Combat Bandages, Nie Yan filled all five of his bags with full stacks of consumables. Out of the 172 slots in his inventory, only 5 were left empty. He definitely had to leave some empty space; otherwise, he would be forced to throw stuff away to make space when he found valuable items in the Underworld.
After settling his affairs in Calore, Nie Yan found a secluded corner and opened the Dark Portal.
A portal emerged in front of Nie Yan. It emitted a dark energy that appeared to pierce through space.
This Dark Portal led to the remote Underworld!
As Nie Yan gazed at the portal, a mysterious force guided him. He lifted his foot and stepped inside. The surrounding space trembled as his figure disappeared into the Dark Portal.