Death Train: SSS-level talent right from the start!

Qin Zhaoyang jogged up to catch up: "Do you guys believe what he said? More than 20 survival trials, train G4735, I feel like he's just bragging?"

Zhou Yating continued, "The information he gave should be true, after all, he's level 25, and besides, he has no reason to lie to us."

"Whether it's real or fake is just a matter of one energy potion. We'll know once we encounter the three-star trial."

As Chen Ye walked, he organized the information he had just obtained.

The key to the Silver Treasure Chest can only be obtained by defeating elite monsters in the two-star trial.

Train G5002 is ranked first at level 9 and second at level 8. With just one more trial, these two will definitely reach level 10, at which point they can unlock the two-star survival trial.

After leaving Luo Zheng's stall, Chen Ye continued walking deeper into the trading area.

Qin Zhaoyang and Zhou Yating followed behind him, their eyes scanning the stalls on both sides.

The three walked for about five minutes, and the stalls ahead became more numerous and densely packed, with people getting increasingly crowded. Some were haggling over prices, while others were arguing about whether a piece of equipment was worth its price.

Chen Ye's gaze swept over one stall after another.

Those stalls were still selling weapons.

White-quality weapons were piled up together, laid out on the ground like cheap goods at a street stall.

Green-quality weapons were placed in more prominent positions, some even propped up slightly, as if to show that they were a level higher than white-quality weapons.

I didn't see a single skill book.

Just when he thought he might not find a skill book today, a voice boomed from not far away.

"The ranged C-rank archer skill 'Explosive Arrow'! Anyone interested?"

The voice was full of energy, as if afraid that the people around him wouldn't hear it.

Chen Ye paused for a moment.

Then he saw the changes happening around that stall.

The crowd, who were still busy with their own things, turned towards the direction from which the sound came almost at the same moment.

Some people put away the items they were bargaining over, some changed from a squatting position to a standing position, and some simply stopped talking to the people next to them.

In less than ten seconds, the stall was packed with people.

Some people craned their necks to look inside, some tiptoed to try to get over the shoulders of the person in front, and some simply squeezed into the crowd, using their elbows to clear a path.

"Explosive Arrow? A ranged skill!"

"Show us your skill information."

"I'll take this skill! What's the price?"

A cacophony of sounds erupted from the center of the crowd.

Chen Ye stood on the outskirts of the crowd and could see the general outline of the stall. The stall owner was a young man in his late twenties, wearing a black windbreaker, with a buzz cut and a muscular build.

"Ranged skills..."

Qin Zhaoyang's eyes lit up immediately; he was now the only burden in the team.

"Go check it out, squad leader, send Hai-ge a message and ask him to come over."

Chen Ye walked toward the young man with a buzz cut who was selling skill books.

Qin Zhaoyang immediately followed.

Zhou Yating quickly brought up the system chat and sent a message to Zhao Hai, then jogged to catch up with Chen Ye and Qin Zhaoyang ahead.

Chen Ye walked to the outer edge of the crowd and stood still. He wasn't short, but from this angle, he could only see the back of the head and shoulders of the people in front of him.

A cacophony of bids erupted from the crowded center.

"How much are you selling it for? Just tell me!"

"Can you stop dawdling?"

"I'll offer you a potion worth 800 points. Sell it to me!"

Chen Ye frowned, reached out and pushed aside the shoulder of the person in front of him. His 30 points of basic strength attribute allowed him to easily push through the crowd and squeeze in with Qin Zhaoyang and Zhou Yating.

Qin Zhaoyang followed behind him, weaving through the gaps between people like an eel.

When the three of them squeezed to the front, they finally saw the stall clearly.

The man with the buzz cut sat cross-legged on the ground, a dark blue waterproof sheet spread out in front of him. Several items were scattered on the sheet, including a white-quality longsword, but these were not the main focus.

The focus was on the open skill book he was holding.

The book's cover is dark red, with no text on it, only a silver pattern in the shape of a bow and arrow. Above the book floats a semi-transparent blue light screen, displaying skill information.

Chen Ye's gaze swept over the skill descriptions.

[Rank C Skill: Explosive Arrow]

[Skill Description: Ranged skill. Consumes 10 stamina points to cause arrows fired from a bow or crossbow to explode, dealing double base strength damage. This effect can stack with talents.]

Qin Zhaoyang's head peeked out from behind Chen Ye's shoulder, and his eyes widened the moment they met the blue light screen.

His talent doesn't provide any damage bonus. He's only level 3, with a base strength of only 5 points. Even if he puts all his free attribute points into strength, he'll only have 7 points.

Arrows fired from the Swift Crossbow are difficult to use against ordinary monsters, let alone elite monsters.

But with this skill book, things would be different. The 14 points of Strength damage would be more than enough to kill those monsters in the Ghost City.

Qin Zhaoyang's hands clenched unconsciously. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he swallowed it back and just turned to look at Chen Ye.

"Give me a price!"

A man in a gray jacket squatted opposite the man with a buzz cut, clutching three or four vials of red liquid energy potions in his hand, speaking urgently.

The man with the buzz cut raised his eyelids and glanced at him, then swept his gaze over the crowd that had gathered around him, and a slow smile crept onto his lips: "This skill book sells for 1500 points in potions."

1500 point

The moment the number was announced, the area around the stall was silent for at least two seconds.

Then some people gasped, some muttered a curse, some shook their heads and turned away, while others remained standing there, their expressions shifting between hesitation and calculation.

"1500? That's way too expensive!"

The man in the gray jacket was the first to shout.

"This is a C-grade skill book. Green-quality equipment sells for 500 points. Is it expensive for me to sell it for 1500 points? If you can't afford it, then get out of the way and don't block the other bosses."

The man with the buzz cut spoke in a neutral tone.

The man in the gray jacket opened his mouth, but no words came out.

The man with the buzz cut was telling the truth; skill books are already scarce, and ranged skills are even harder to find.

In this death game where survival is the top priority, ranged abilities that can be used from a safe distance are far more valuable than melee abilities of the same rating.

It's not that no one among the onlookers could produce a potion worth 1500 points; it's just that they used all their potions to exchange for skill books, and without potions, they would definitely fail in the next survival trial.

The man with the buzz cut seemed to have anticipated this situation. He wasn't in a hurry. He placed the skill book on his lap, closed his eyes, and leaned against the pillar, as if waiting for a real big fish to take the bait.

"Brother Ye, it's so expensive, let's forget about it."

Qin Zhaoyang's tone was very calm, so calm that it seemed somewhat deliberate.

But Chen Ye sensed what was pressing beneath that calm: it wasn't that he didn't want it, but that he didn't want to empty his savings.

Qin Zhaoyang knew exactly how many potions he had: 24 stamina potions, one of which he used to ask a question, leaving him with 23. He also had 2 recovery potions, which combined gave him only 1450 points of purchasing power.

"Even if it's expensive, you have to buy it. Only with this skill can you deal damage. You can earn points again if you lose them."

Chen Ye still didn't want anything to happen to Qin Zhaoyang. Even without using the Thousand-Jun Heavy Cannon, his own attributes were already very high, so his dependence on the potion wasn't that high.

Qin Zhaoyang was also his lucky star. Without Qin Zhaoyang, he wouldn't have been able to obtain the powerful skill "Thousand-Jun Heavy Cannon" and wouldn't have developed so quickly.

Furthermore, Qin Zhaoyang's talent is still god-tier for stealing kills from low-health elite monsters, but this also requires damage boosts; otherwise, in high-star trials, Qin Zhaoyang would struggle to even break through their defenses.

He had to help Qin Zhaoyang get the skill book, both morally and logically.