Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 429 Sold Out
Séleigne and Barn had different focuses in terms of technique.

This can be seen from the names of their two shops.

【Pearl Spinning】and 【Rock Hammer】.

The former is a tailor shop, whose main customers are wealthy merchants and aristocrats and seasoned adventurers in Baiya District of Suoyu Bay. Customization services are its main business.

The latter is a blacksmith shop, where equipment ranges from entry-level leather armor costing around ten gold to full-body heavy plate armor costing thousands of gold. Anyone in the entire River Valley who has requirements for equipment and is willing to spend money can find suitable items in the shop. It also undertakes a small number of high-quality equipment customization services.

Half-elves are more inclined towards weaving and sewing, while half-dwarves are more inclined towards iron smelting and forging.

Of course, even if there are some differences in their professional development, both are still excellent craftsmen who are proficient in making enchanted equipment, and there is some overlap in their areas of expertise.

Their extensive manufacturing experience and keen eye enable them to clearly and accurately distinguish the strengths and weaknesses of a piece of equipment.

That is why, even though [Purgatory Pulse] has been completely destroyed and has no value for restoration.

Through its remains, Selene still captured with unparalleled precision the proud creation of this "Rock Hammer" Barn, a testament to the excellent forging techniques left by another outstanding craftsman from the inland region.

His gaze lingered, and he couldn't help but ask where it came from.

When the half-elf learned from Xia Nan that the equipment came from "Rock Hammer", a look of understanding appeared on his face.

The two were far apart and had naturally never met.

However, to some extent, they have known each other for a long time and have heard of each other. Presumably, Barn is also familiar with [Pearl Spinning].

After all, adventurers are mobile.

Especially for experienced individuals with strong teams, long-distance travel for missions is a perfectly normal thing.

Only newcomers who haven't even obtained a job level will stay in town, wandering around those goblin lairs.

More challenging quests require venturing deep into the Misty Forest or traveling to other areas.

River Valley and Barracuda Bay are both important adventure towns with guild branches, and high-level professionals frequently travel between the two.

In this situation, if equipment is occasionally damaged and needs to be repaired or repurchased, both parties can often receive equipment from each other.

Over time, their individual skill characteristics gradually become clear.

only……

Selene's deep green eyes were fixed on the [Pulse of Purgatory] on the counter, her expression extremely complicated.

The damaged armor in front of us was forged using an extremely complex process, with multiple hammering techniques being used in combination in some areas.

This is not common.

Enchanted equipment of this level is like a cake that is almost finished. With the cream and base already determined, adding a few fruits on the outermost layer is enough to put it on the shelf.

The texture of the ingredients has its limits; once you cut them open, the taste will always be the same.

But this armor, which could have been made simply by adding some fruit, was instead piled on by its creator as if showing off, with a layer of nuts, strawberries, watermelons, mangoes, and cream all mixed together.

They spare no effort or time.

Selene even saw some advanced forging techniques on certain corners of the armor that were only found on high-level enchanted equipment.

Limited by the materials, even with so much effort, the overall defense strength may only be improved by one percent in the end, making it a thankless task.

To put it bluntly, some blacksmiths might not even put this much effort into forging equipment for their own children.

"What is your relationship with Barn?"

With a hint of suspicion on his pale blue face, the half-elf's eyes couldn't help but scrutinize the black-haired youth before him, trying to find any trace of dwarven blood in his appearance.

"A regular customer, practically a friend, what's up?"

Noticing the other party's strange behavior, Xia Nan replied.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you.” Realizing that his question might have been abrupt, the half-elf looked apologetic. “It’s just that many of the forging techniques on your equipment… well, they are excellent.”

Hearing what the other party said, Xia Nan roughly understood what they meant.

That's normal.

After all, Barn had mentioned to him before that his armor had a high failure rate, which had somewhat damaged his confidence.

This piece, "Pulse of Purgatory," was his masterpiece, and he barely made any money from it. In fact, he even lost some money on materials, all for the sake of his pride as a craftsman.

As it turns out, the equipment quality was indeed excellent, having withstood two formidable enemies, the Crystal Priest and the Shark Beast, making it a "T0" level piece of armor among all the armors Xia Nan had ever worn.

At least I'm very satisfied.

As for Barn...

Anyway, he wouldn't be able to return to River Valley Town until the "Moon Tide Feast" ended in at least three months, and the journey would take about fifty days.

As long as he didn't say anything, no matter how many sets of armor he changed along the way, for that "half-dwarf" whose physique was even more robust than a goblin, his meticulously crafted [Purgatory Pulse] was enough to sustain him for such a long time.

This should help maintain their self-esteem.

"Alright, let's not get sidetracked any further."

Seeing that the topic was getting further and further off track, Selene cleared his throat and said.

"Under normal circumstances, I don't actually handle this kind of scrapped equipment recycling business."

"But the forging technique of this armor you have is indeed rare. I'm thinking of keeping it to study it carefully, which may also help improve my forging skills."

"Hmm... how about 175 gold?"

The half-elf's offer was actually quite good.

After all, the current [Purgatory Pulse] is completely unusable and can't even be considered second-hand equipment.

Xia Nan originally just wanted to see if he could earn some money for food and lodging by using the main material of Armor Hell Steel.

175 gold, that's the price of a normal white-grade item with several stats, so how could he not be satisfied?

As for whether such a sale will have any adverse effects on Barn in Riverdale, there is really no need to worry.

If one could truly learn the forging techniques of equipment simply by looking at the naked eye and the finished product, there would be no need for so many blacksmith apprentices in the world, and those master blacksmiths would probably not dare to pour their skills into equipment.

Often, especially for more advanced forging techniques, it requires a combination of precise control of heat and special forging skills. Without decades of diligent study and practice, even if one knows the secrets, it is impossible to replicate.

Selene was merely trying to apply what he learned to other situations; there was no possibility of him actually learning from someone else.

Since the offer met his expectations, Xia Nan didn't haggle further and decisively closed the deal.

[Purgatory Pulse] is finished. Next up are [Azure Blade], [Practice Staff], [Fishbone Snail] Staff, and the twin swords and wooden bow from Nick and Leda.

Séleigne has excellent eyesight.

Unlike Xia Nan, who has an attribute panel that allows him to fully grasp the specific attributes of equipment and even the notes of famous people associated with it at a glance.

But after only a quick glance, he quickly realized that the [Azure Wave Blade] was the highest quality among these pieces of equipment.

Even before Xia Nan had informed them, they had already made a preliminary judgment about the special effects of the scimitar.

The fleshy gills on both sides of its neck twitched slightly, and the half-elf gripped the curved knife, bringing it close to the fish bladder on the counter.

The dense moisture in the surrounding air caused the surface of the scimitar to faintly emit a light green glow—"When the user is in a wet state, the stamina recovery speed is increased by an additional 20%."

It was clear that Seleianne had an expression of interest on his face.

But unexpectedly, after playing with it for a while, he reluctantly put the scimitar back on the table and pushed it towards Xia Nan.

His tone was calm yet sincere:
"This scimitar is of very good quality. Although I haven't tested its effects in detail yet, it is likely to be well-suited to the environment of the Southern Islands."

"If you want to sell to me, I'd be happy to buy it and resell it to make a good extra income for me."

"But considering that we have already reached a preliminary deal on that batch of shark beast materials, we are very likely to become long-term partners in the future."

"I must say, if you want to make more money, you'd better put this scimitar up with the association and bid on it locally."

"Don't worry, it won't lack buyers."

Seriane is a businessman, that's true, but to be able to run a business to this extent in a place like Barracuda Bay and still enjoy such a good reputation among adventurers is truly remarkable.

One must possess both skill and sincerity in dealing with others.

The black-haired adventurer in front of me may look young, but his actual strength is definitely not weak.

The shark beast materials with a challenge level of at least 3 on the table in front of you, and the equipment and loot that you can see from other adventurers, are enough to prove it.

Even from a purely profit-driven perspective, the two pieces of equipment customized using shark beast materials, along with the potential orders that might arise after establishing a good relationship with the other party, make it entirely worthwhile for him to proactively extend goodwill and make an investment.

Looking into the eyes of the half-elf, I sensed the sincerity in his gaze, not just empty words of polite refusal.

Xia Nan nodded slightly, making a mental note of it, and put the scimitar back into his backpack.

"As for these two staves, there are two other pieces of equipment..."

Seleianne appeared somewhat hesitant.

After thinking about it, I decided to be more direct.

"As you can tell from the surroundings, my family's [Pearl Spinning] mainly deals in high-end clothing and enchanted equipment forging, as well as item recycling. Unless it's something like the scimitar we just saw, we rarely accept it."

What he said was actually quite clear.

To put it simply... we don't accept anything below green-tier.

Or rather, they don't usually take on equipment recycling business at all.

"but……"

Halfway through his speech, Séleigne suddenly changed his tone.

His long, slender fingers reached across the materials on the counter, toward the [Fishbone Snail] staff, and grasped it by the shaft.

He squinted at the sunlight streaming in from outside, carefully examining the staff.

The appearance of the [Fishbone Snail] is completely different from that of the [Practice Staff] next to it.

The latter has a simple and efficient design, similar to items produced on an assembly line. It is mediocre but has no obvious flaws. Just like its name, it is suitable for novice spellcasters to practice spells.

However, although the former is also a basic item, it appears much more rugged in appearance. The staff is made from the bones of an unknown fish from the deep sea, and the surface is engraved with wave-like patterns to enhance the feel. The end of the staff is even inlaid with a whole light purple conch shell.

Overall, it gives people an exotic beauty from the ocean.

Seeing the half-elf in front of him looking at him with great interest.

Xia Nan thought about it. After all, the other party was so sincere to him, and he would feel bad if he hid it from them.

Therefore, even though he knew that Seliane had a great dislike for the Shahua fishmen, he still took the initiative to explain the origin of the [fishbone snail].

"This staff is a trophy I took from a saka merman priest."

“I know.” When the Sea Elf race’s mortal enemy was mentioned, Seliane’s face still showed the same undisguised disgust.

"Only such a lowly and barbaric race would combine these precious materials so crudely in such a wasteful way."

"This is a desecration of the magic of the ocean and nature. No spellcaster who aspires to the path of arcane magic should use such garbage, otherwise they will only tarnish their originally bright future."

The half-elf's voice was filled with disdain.

Considering that Xia Nan's attribute panel does not have any side effects for the [Fishbone Snail], the other party's evaluation is most likely due to their hatred and contempt for the Shahua Fishman race.

"But just as those exceptional hunters would preserve the heads of their most powerful prey as specimens and hang them on the wall."

"The thought that this staff from the Shahua fish people will continue to circulate among spellcasters in the Barracuda Bay makes me feel disgusted."

“I’m willing to buy this staff for 295 gold as a ‘collectible’.”

"make a deal."

Xia Nan didn't care how the other party disposed of the staff afterward.

It's just loot obtained from monsters after a battle; the best outcome would be to sell it for a decent income.

As a blank second-hand item, even though the nature of the staff makes the [Fishbone Snail] slightly more expensive than other types of equipment, its price of nearly 300 gold is definitely above the market average.

Clearly, the half-elf merchant's hatred for the Shahua fishmen far outweighed the value of money in his eyes.

Thus, Xia Nanlai's goal for [Pearl Spinning] can be considered to have been largely achieved.

A preliminary processing plan has been developed for the materials from the Shark Beast monster. Although the process will slowly progress, including measuring body data and testing the initial equipment prototype, it is at least a good start.

Most of the other equipment loot has also found a place to go. Xia Nan plans to take the half-elf's advice and put the [Azure Blade] up for sale at the guild along with the [Practice Staff]. Nick and Leda's twin swords and wooden bow will be sold at a general store.

【Purgatory Pulse】 and 【Fishbone Snail】 have already been traded with Seliane, selling for a total of 470 gold, instantly boosting Xia Nan's net worth to four figures.

However, considering the forging costs of the two enchanted equipment pieces later, it seems that it might not be enough.

(End of this chapter)