Chapter 1 Tranquility Broken

The City of Eternal Rest was as calm as usual. Dozens of mechanical puppets were bunched together, wandering aimlessly through the streets. A group of people entered through the main gate, breaking the silence.

"Sun and I will attract the monsters, the rest of you just wait here to soak up the experience," Nie Yan said. Following their usual arrangement, he and Sun had higher movement speeds, making them more suitable for monster-pulling. The Warriors could do it too, but not the Mages.

"Boss, we don't have to do anything?"

"Yeah?"

"You guys will be responsible for picking up the loot later," Nie Yan said, rushing towards the large group of mechanical puppets in the distance.

Sun followed behind Nie Yan, only slightly slower.

"Boss, Broken Heaven has hidden himself on the level rankings," Xia Chongyu Bing said in the team chat, noticing the change in the rankings.

Nie Yan glanced at the level rankings. Broken Heaven had disappeared.

"What level was he before?"

"Level 28," Xia Chongyu Bing said, having caught a glimpse at the last moment.

"Level 28?" Nie Yan frowned. He hadn't expected Broken Heaven to level up so quickly. Guild leaders like him could always get their subordinates to find faster leveling methods. Hiding from the level rankings meant he was definitely trying even harder in secret. "Forget it, it's no big deal."

After a while, Nie Yan and Sun attracted a large group of mechanical puppets, numbering about three or four hundred, which swarmed towards them.

As they ran, Nie Yan and Sun tossed area-of-effect magic bombs.

Boom, boom, boom! The area-of-effect magic bombs landed, and bursts of flames engulfed the surrounding mechanical puppets. The power was astonishing.

"Boss, where did you get those? They're so awesome!"

"Bought them at the Thasos NPC shop," Nie Yan said.

"These things are so cool. I'll buy some next time."

"How much are they each?" Wu Feng, who had been silent until now, suddenly asked. He had spotted the crux of the problem. Leveling with area-of-effect magic bombs like this could easily get them to Level 35 or 36 in two or three days. There must be a reason why Nie Yan and Tang Yao hadn't organized a large number of guild members to level up here.

"One gold coin for two," Nie Yan said, tossing another area-of-effect magic bomb. With a boom, it landed and exploded, sending tongues of fire licking outwards.

"..." The whole team gasped.

What did one gold coin represent? Even Level 20 Gold-grade equipment, except for a few pieces used by Shield Warriors and Priests, usually didn't sell for that much. Throwing out two area-of-effect magic bombs was equivalent to throwing away a piece of Level 20 Gold-grade equipment?

No one could afford to spend money like that!

Although this leveling method was fast, it was too expensive to promote.

Watching Nie Yan throw out area-of-effect magic bombs one after another, the team members felt their hearts ache, as if chunks of their own flesh were being cut away. How much money was this costing!

Their boss was actually spending so much money to help them level up. They were extremely touched. Many guild leaders were stingy with money and reluctant to give out guild honors, making them very unpopular. Nie Yan, on the other hand, was quite generous.

Nie Yan understood that money was secondary. These team members would be influential figures in the future, so the money he invested now was an investment in their loyalty. As for other promising members of the guild, as long as they were willing to work for the guild, Nie Yan would find ways to help them level up.

The area-of-effect magic bombs were quite effective. Before long, all three or four hundred mechanical puppets had fallen to the ground, and several team members were enveloped in white light.

Six out of the twelve people, including Nie Yan, had leveled up. Nie Yan checked his level and saw that he had reached Level 30. He didn't need to equip any new gear right now, so he would save the seven stat points for later, when he encountered equipment that required specific stats. As for skill points, after leveling up to Level 30, Nie Yan learned two new specializations: Magic Device Usage and Footwork.

Nie Yan added Magic Device Usage to the beginner level. This specialization could only be raised to the beginner level for now, granting a 20% bonus to the effectiveness of magic devices. For example, area-of-effect magic bombs would have their damage increased by 120 points on top of the base 600 damage, greatly enhancing their effectiveness and saving quite a few bombs. He added Footwork directly to the intermediate level. This skill was excellent for disrupting Mages who were chanting spells. By rushing up and kicking them, he could interrupt their spellcasting and even directly break the spell.

After Nie Yan spent his skill points, the team members had already gathered all the items dropped on the ground and were sorting them.

"Boss, let's put all these items into the guild warehouse. We didn't do anything, and the guild spent so much money on us, so we shouldn't take these things," Undying Scoundrel said. Although he usually acted carelessly, he knew that they shouldn't take these items. Selling them or putting them into the guild warehouse would at least help Nie Yan reduce some losses.

"We don't need these items. Let's put them in the guild warehouse to enrich it," Brilliant Swordsman said. His prestige among the team members was second only to Nie Yan, so his words carried considerable weight.

Nie Yan nodded and said, "Put the dropped equipment and items in the guild warehouse. You can ask Guo Huai if you need anything. As for the charged crystal shards, collect them all for now and save them for Harrier."

Nie Yan and his group proceeded to a plaza within the City of Eternal Rest, where various streets converged.

"Warriors, go pull some monsters too. Lure them all to the center of the plaza," Nie Yan said. This was the best place to grind.

Brilliant Swordsman and the others went to pull monsters as well, and mechanical puppets from all directions gathered in the central plaza.

Nie Yan continuously used area-of-effect magic bombs, which exploded in large patches, sending mechanical puppets crashing to the ground. The entire plaza was covered in fragments of mechanical puppets and various pieces of equipment.

The team members' levels were soaring, and they howled like wolves.

"Boss, this is so awesome!"

"The leveling speed is so fast!"

Nie Yan checked the levels of the team members and saw that they were all rapidly increasing to Level 26 or 27, with two people already at Level 28.

Wu Feng, Hei Bai, and the others were pulling monsters with all their might, while the team members collected the items that dropped on the ground.

Nie Yan checked the loot and saw that they had already collected thirty-two charged crystal shards. Tang Yao should be able to revive the Arcane Sprite soon.

"Boss, what is this equipment?" Xia Chongyu Bing asked, holding up a piece of dark-colored metal armor. The armor had an ancient design, covered in runes, and emanated a chilling aura. It was clearly an antique that had been around for many years.

"There's one here too, it's a gauntlet," Dancing Miracle said from a distance, picking up a gauntlet.

These team members had good eyes. They could tell at a glance that these items were extraordinary.

Nie Yan saw the armor in Xia Chongyu Bing's hand, covered in anti-magic runes. It must be that item. He couldn't help but exclaim, "It's the Eternal Set. Bring it here."

The metal armor and metal gauntlet were handed to Nie Yan, and he identified them.

Eternal Armor (Silver): Requires Level 30, Strength 270, Agility 160. Set Component: Armor, Gauntlets, Leg Guards, Shoulder Pads, Cloak, Horned Helmet, Metal Boots, Heavy Shield.

Item Properties: Heavy Armor, Metal Defense, Defense 330-339, Absorbs 5% of damage received, Magic Resistance 10%, Health +10%. While wearing the Eternal Armor, the level requirement of other set components is reduced by 10.

Item Restriction: Can only be used by Shield Warriors.

Eternal Gauntlets (Silver): Requires Level 40. Set Component: Armor, Gauntlets, Leg Guards, Shoulder Pads, Cloak, Horned Helmet, Metal Boots, Heavy Shield.

Item Properties: Heavy Armor, Metal Defense, Defense 220-238, Absorbs 2% of damage received, Magic Resistance 3%, Health +5%.

Item Restriction: Can only be used by Shield Warriors.

The Eternal Set was produced in the City of Eternal Rest and was divided into three grades: Silver, Gold, and Dark Gold. The Gold and Dark Gold sets were dropped by Elites, while the Silver grade sets were dropped by these ordinary monsters. Since there were so many set components, it was difficult to collect them all. This set had extremely good stats, even better than the Level 35 Metal Storm Gold Set. It was a top-grade defensive set for Shield Warriors. Collecting a complete set would grant additional stat bonuses and a Level 6 Life Shield, making it an excellent defensive set in the early stages of the game.

Defensive equipment for Shield Warriors was extremely rare, so good items were highly sought after. Guild leaders of large guilds would not hesitate to spend money on good items for Shield Warriors.

"It's your equipment. Let's see if we can collect a complete set. With the armor, we can use other components even if they're higher level," Nie Yan said, handing the two pieces of equipment to Brilliant Swordsman. If they could collect a complete defensive set for Shield Warriors, he would be able to withstand high-level Lords. Then, in the future, Nirvana Guild's guild activities could include challenging Lord-level creatures.

Brilliant Swordsman looked at the stats of the equipment and was slightly surprised. "The stats are good. What are the set bonuses?"

"The official website has a description. This Eternal Set comes with a Level 6 Life Shield," Nie Yan said. It was this Level 6 Life Shield skill that greatly increased the value of the set. When facing a Lord-level creature in a rage, casting a Level 6 Life Shield on himself might allow him to survive. This was of great significance to the team.

"That's not bad," Brilliant Swordsman was also moved. Level 40 high-defense equipment could be equipped at around Level 30, which was extremely tempting.

"How far off are you from meeting the stat requirements?"

"My Agility is a little short, but not by much," Brilliant Swordsman said.

He could use gems to make up for the lack of Agility. If they could put together an Eternal Set, then an invincible Level 30 Shield Warrior would be born!

Fa Biao De Wo Niu