That despicable, scheming woman, she actually disguised herself as an elf lady!

Ophelia glanced at Liu Huan indifferently before walking past him to stand in front of Hephaestus.

"Uncle Hephaestus, is the magic sword I wanted finished forging yet?"

Hephaestus chuckled and pulled a magic sword wrapped in white cloth from an inconspicuous black box beside the stove.

"What?! A demon sword?!"

Liu Huan was somewhat surprised, knowing that the Demon Sword was very valuable, worth between five and six hundred gold coins.

If the townspeople in the lower city obtain it, they can instantly leapfrog social classes and reach the top of the commoners' district.

If you manage your finances properly, you probably won't have to worry about food, drink, or shelter for the rest of your life.

I never expected Ophelia to be such a rich girl, and that old bastard Hephaestus to be so carefree. If the magic sword is stolen, even he will feel the pinch.

Ophelia took the magic sword, and in the blink of an eye, the white cloth was removed, revealing a simple, deep dark purple scabbard in Liu Huan's sight.

Swah——

When the sword was drawn from its sheath, its sharp edge was fully revealed, stinging Liu Huan's eyes.

Looking at the other person holding the sword, a scene came to mind.

A blond knight king with a tuft of hair sticking up on his head, wielding the sword Excalibur, roared, "Excalibur!!"

This sense of déjà vu left Liu Huan stunned on the spot.

Ophelia accepted the magic sword and thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Hephaestus, I'm very satisfied!"

Ophelia casually twirled her sword, a satisfied look on her face, before swiftly preparing to leave the Heart of the Furnace.

But as he passed by Liu Huan, he casually remarked, "You haven't been back to Golden Dreamland in a long time. Come visit the Rusty Shield Tavern sometime; everyone misses you!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Huan looked up again, only to find that she had already left.

Only a floral fragrance lingered in the air, hovering around the tip of the nose for a long time.

He touched his nose, his emotions inexplicable: "Heh, I really was too cold and heartless. It's no wonder Ophelia hates me so much."

When Liu Huan first traveled to this world, he was not able to control his travels back and forth freely.

His time travel was an incredibly bizarre thing in itself, so it's not hard to understand.

More than a month after traversing this world, Liu Huan was able to freely travel between the two realms.

During this period, Liu Huan encountered some unpleasant things and experienced painful events that he would rather forget.

These experiences ultimately led him to develop a morbid craving for power.

Liu Huan murmured, "I wonder how they're doing. Maybe they're planning to go back and check on them sometime!"

Just as Liu Huan was lost in thought, Hephaestus took out a leather armor and a longsword from the forge and handed them to him.

"Hey kid! This is a new batch of weapons I made using the rebar you mentioned. The quality is top-notch!"

Liu Huan banished all the jumbled thoughts from his mind, and when he saw that the longsword could easily cut through the standard longswords sold by the Adventurer's House, a glint of light flashed in his eyes.

"Impressive, this longsword is indeed quite impressive!"

Liu Huan raised the longsword and examined it from left to right, becoming more and more fond of it with each look.

After saying that, he took off his worn-out leather armor, hung his longsword at his waist, and became energetic again.

"Thanks, Hephaestus! The payment and materials for this trip are already on the wooden counter in the lobby. I have to go now!"

After acquiring the new weapon, Liu Huan stopped chatting with the cunning old man Hephaestus and went straight to the Adventurers' Guild.

Hephaestus simply stroked his beard and chuckled, "What heartless brats! One after another, they're all like this, grabbing the stuff and running off without even exchanging a few words with an old man like me."

…………

The Adventurers' Guild of Maple Leaf Town established seven camps along the north, east, and west sides of the swamp forest.

These camps are used to help adventurers and mercenaries complete their assigned tasks.

The swamp forest is characterized by its varied environment, the presence of dangerous monsters, and its humid climate, which often results in dense fog.

Therefore, the existence of camps as shelters is very necessary!

Liu Huan's trip to the guild was also to find a temporarily formed team to travel together to the farthest camp, Camp Seven.

As for the Grayfeather tribe and the druids, they live in a more remote area, and once they leave the camp, Liu Huan will have to traverse the dangerous swamp forest alone.

Although the other adventurers are all desperate people who live on the edge, they wouldn't be so brainless as to plunge headlong into the depths of the swamp forest to their deaths.

Only people with special abilities like Liu Huan don't need to worry about being trapped in the swamp forest.

His time travel is subject to certain restrictions, such as a limit on the number of times he can travel within a certain time period, and the choice of the places he can travel to.

The crossing usually takes place in the same spot, or in a small wooden cabin built beside a rushing river.

Adventurers' Guild, first floor lobby entrance.

Liu Huan and his teammates, who had temporarily formed a squad, waited for their captain to go and accept the mission commissioned by the guild.

Although there was a lot of noise around him, he recalled Natasha's advice in his mind.

"You're being watched by Andrei and his men. Are you sure you still want to go to the swamp forest? Why don't you wait until they're on their next mission before you come out?"

"Natasha, I'm not the same person I used to be. If Andrei and the others dare to cause me trouble, I won't hesitate to teach them a lesson!"

Recalling Natasha's astonishment when she heard his boastful words, Liu Huan felt a secret sense of satisfaction.

Since he discovered a trade route leading deep into the forest and obtained a large amount of cultivation resources, his cultivation progress has been like a rocket, advancing by leaps and bounds.

The Liu Huan of today is completely different from the Liu Huan of a month ago!

When Natasha couldn't persuade Liu Huan, she had no choice but to find him some reliable teammates.

The captain of this temporary squad is a well-known expert among the lower-level adventurers in Maple Leaf Town.

Gareth walked over with a yellowed piece of paper in his hand and led his squad toward the east of the swamp forest.

As the sun rose, the surging fog in the swamp forest vanished without a trace, like rats crossing the street.

Sunlight filters through the gaps in the branches and leaves, forming beams of light that are projected onto the ground, creating light spots of various shapes.

The makeshift squad consisted of five people, led by Gareth, a berserker who primarily wielded an axe and secondarily a small warhammer.

Secondly, there's Seth, who, like Liu Huan, uses a one-handed sword. The other two are the sexy and fiery female archer Nisa and the taciturn masked mage Felix.

Because this team was formed temporarily, it had a fatal flaw in its composition: it lacked a vanguard and a priest.

However, the team's goal was not to explore unexplored areas of the swamp forest, but to travel in sub-safe areas, and this simple team composition was sufficient.

"Ahem, let me introduce myself first. My name is Gareth, and as you can see, I am a berserker."

"I believe everyone has seen the mission the guild assigned to us. Between Camp 1 and Camp 4, new adventurers often mysteriously disappear, but the adventurers sent by the guild cannot find any signs of fighting, so it is classified as Mystery Incident VI."

Seth, a rugged-looking man, habitually reached for his waist, took out his flask, and took a sip: "Captain, although you are powerful, having reached the Bone Forging realm, isn't it a bit inappropriate to rashly accept a commission that even the guild finds troublesome?"

Liu Huan found this statement to be perfectly reasonable. Adventurers live a life of constant danger, their lives threatened by monsters or enemies at all times.

Only caution can keep an adventurer alive!

Although Nisha didn't speak, her long eyelashes fluttered and her beautiful blue pupils blinked as she looked at Gareth, the team leader.

Felix, however, paid no attention to these things and continued walking silently down the road.

In addition, Liu Huan was slightly surprised to hear that Gareth was actually a berserker at the Bone Forging Realm.

He is no longer the naive young man who knew nothing about the world.

Even if you don't know what the scenery will be like after reaching the professional level, you still clearly understand the level you have reached before!

For an ordinary person to become a professional, they need to pass through three realms: Blood Awakening, Bone Forging, and Dirty Refining!

Ordinary adventurers will learn Star Core Breathing or Star Core Meditation through training from the guild.

Adventurers practice planetary core breathing techniques, guiding the world's primal force that permeates the air, and directing this energy to circulate within their bodies, making their blood as thick as lead and mercury.

Therefore, this realm is also known as Blood Awakening!

Experienced adventurers can usually reach this level, but the next step, bone forging, is much more difficult. It requires adventurers to persevere and guide the energy hammer to forge their limbs and bones.

The human body is likened to a forging furnace, and the Force of the world to the furnace fire; each forging process makes the body stronger.

Based on the number of times it is hammered, it is divided into beginner, intermediate and advanced levels.

Gareth is now at the middle level. He has completely tempered his body once, greatly increasing his bone density and making his bones as hard as steel, so that he can easily shatter boulders.

"Don't worry, I would never do anything reckless!"

Gareth patted his chest, the sound like a wooden hammer striking a giant bell, a dull thud.

"I've already inquired. Although Mysterious Event VI is strange, it's not dangerous at all. Several teams that accepted the mission didn't encounter any danger and even received guild points as a reward!"

Upon hearing this, the expressions of those present softened, and Seth even praised, "We didn't expect the captain to be so well-prepared. Since these points are given away for free, we'll gladly accept them!"

Nisha covered her mouth, stretched out her alluring figure, and laughed, "That's right!"

Only Liu Huan felt something was wrong the more he listened. Damn, why does this disappearing rookie adventurer sound so familiar?

Could this be one of my own alternate accounts?!