Free Web NovelChapter 138: Chapter 114: Black Sword
"It’s so crowded."
The bustling crowds reminded Lin Mo of the morning and evening rush hour from his past life. Most were Adventurers out shopping, but there were also deliverymen making their rounds. Vendors on both sides of the street hawked their wares, creating a lively atmosphere.
Lin Mo bought two meat pies from a roadside stall, supposedly a specialty of Silver Stream City.
He took a bite. The crust was pleasantly chewy, but the meat filling was rather plain. All in all, it was just average.
"Not as good as the burgers Lin Mo makes."
Ali remarked.
After passing through the clamorous streets, they arrived at their destination. A hammer was painted on the sign of shop number 27, beside which were three words scrawled crookedly: "Dwarf Forge Shop."
A rather generic name.
Not many customers were lingering outside, but upon entering, they saw a few people browsing the equipment.
The owner was a middle-aged Dwarf who looked to be about 150 years old. He had a very long beard—much longer than Edgar’s, at least.
Lin Mo suddenly found himself missing the Dwarf Blacksmith who had invested in him, and he wondered when the man might open a shop here.
"Hey, old geezer, how much is this sword?"
A customer shook the weapon in his hand. The Dwarf Boss glanced up. "5 Gold Coins."
"That expensive? Can’t you go a little cheaper? After all, I’m a regular here, right?"
"Pay up if you’re buying. If not, get lost!"
The boss’s reply was completely tactless, hardly what you’d expect from a merchant.
"Tsk, when are you going to do something about that rotten temper of yours, you old geezer..."
The customer didn’t seem angry, however. He slapped the sword onto the counter and pulled out 5 Gold Coins. "Here. And do some maintenance on this piece of armor for me while you’re at it."
The boss took the armor, casually set it aside, and said, "Come back for it tomorrow."
Lin Mo glanced at the sword, which was valued at 5 Gold Coins.
[Flawless Iron Sword]
Weapon Type: One-Handed Sword
Level: Ordinary (White)
Attributes: Durability +50%, Sturdiness +30%, Sharpness +30%
Hidden Attributes: Sharpness I: Piercing Damage +5%
It was actually quite good. 5 Gold Coins wasn’t expensive at all; you could even say it was a bargain.
The Dwarf Boss noticed the two new customers as well but couldn’t be bothered to greet them. He just grunted, "Look around on your own," and turned back to his work.
Lin Mo took a look around the shop. As expected of a forge in a major city, the overall quality of the items was a notch above Edgar’s products. Surprisingly, however, swords of similar quality were priced about the same.
He had expected swords in the city to be more expensive than those in town.
"Boss, how much is this sword?"
Lin Mo asked, holding up another sword.
"3 gold coins... Are you buying or not? If you’re not going to buy anything, then stop asking so many questions!"
Lin Mo had asked about the prices of several swords in a row, and the boss was finally losing his patience, lashing out at him.
Since the boss’s tone was so rude, Lin Mo saw no reason to be polite either. Recalling the previous customer’s term of address, he retorted, "Don’t be in such a hurry, old geezer. I’ll buy something when I find what I’m looking for."
"Hmph."
The boss gave a cold snort but didn’t say anything else.
It wasn’t so much that he had a bad temper, but rather that the shop owner and his customers had their own unique way of getting along.
Lin Mo put down the sword. He now had a rough idea of the owner’s smithing abilities.
Just as the strategy guide had said, his skill level was inconsistent, but his prices were surprisingly reasonable...
He sold lower-quality items for less and higher-quality ones for more. That might seem obvious, but very few merchants actually operated that way.
Most people didn’t understand the nuances of equipment quality. Even experienced Adventurers would have a hard time judging how good a weapon was without using it for a while.
Even professional Blacksmiths could only make a rough assessment if they hadn’t forged the weapon themselves. Determining its precise quality would require extended observation and testing.
That’s why in most forges, equipment of roughly similar quality sold for the same price. A dishonest merchant would even sell low-quality items for a premium.
But the owner of this forge was exceptionally honest. You got what you paid for, plain and simple. It was no wonder he still had plenty of customers, despite his abrasive personality.
"Hey, Old Deng, don’t you have any better equipment? The stuff you have out here doesn’t look like anything special."
The Dwarf Boss looked up and glared at Lin Mo. "Kid, you’d better actually be planning to buy something."
Lin Mo didn’t waste any words. He simply took a Crystal Coin from his pocket, tossed it lightly in the air, and caught it.
The boss was instantly rendered speechless. He turned and walked toward the back room, muttering under his breath, "The little brat’s actually loaded..."
He followed the boss into the back room. It seemed all Dwarf bosses had the same habits. Inside his workshop were several racks displaying an array of weapons, every one of them a fine piece of work.
"The rack over here is for items from 10 to 50 Gold Coins. This one is for 50 Gold Coins and up. Look for yourself."
After saying his piece, the Dwarf Boss turned and went back to his own work.
The Dwarf had expected Lin Mo to keep pestering him about prices like before. But to his surprise, Lin Mo went to the wooden racks, examined the weapons one by one, and remained silent for a long time.
Lin Mo was selecting his weapon with great care.
His Wolf Bone Sword was an Excellent Level piece of equipment. If he was going to replace it, he certainly couldn’t downgrade. However, there didn’t seem to be any Excellence Level equipment for sale here, and besides, gear of that tier was far too expensive.
Lin Mo didn’t want to pour all his money into this equipment upgrade. He wanted to find a suitable weapon for a reasonable price, saving the rest of his funds for a Skill Scroll and the Secret Silver Gloves he wanted later.
Therefore, his goal was to find an Excellent Level weapon that was better than his Wolf Bone Sword.
Although the Wolf Bone Sword was an Excellent Level weapon, it was at the bottom of its tier.
That wasn’t a knock on Edgar’s craftsmanship; it was mainly a matter of the materials used.
The Bloodthirsty Wolf was an Elite Level Demon, to be sure, but it was on the same level as a Minotaur or a Mutated Goblin. It was undoubtedly much weaker than other Elite Level Demons like the Earth Bear or the Crimson Flame Tiger.
The equipment in the 10-50 Gold Coin section was unlikely to be much better than his Wolf Bone Sword. So, after a quick scan to make sure there were no hidden gems, Lin Mo moved on to the area for items priced at 50 Gold Coins and above.
The weapons here were in another league entirely.
Each of the five shelves held only a single weapon. Lin Mo examined them one by one.
The first weapon was a large, heavy blade with a thick spine. It was a solid weapon that would generally require two hands to wield.
That wasn’t Lin Mo’s style, so he moved on.
The second shelf held a long spear. Its shaft was clearly made from the bones of some Demon, and its tip had been forged from an alloy of precious metals.
Polearms like this had a significant advantage in mid-range combat, but they weren’t well-suited for adventuring. For one, they were inconvenient to carry. For another, they couldn’t be brought to bear as quickly as a sword in an emergency. Certain forest environments also limited a spear’s effectiveness.
The true stage for such a weapon was the battlefield.
The third shelf held a Heavy Axe, which was also unsuitable. At last, the final two shelves held the weapon type Lin Mo preferred: the One-Handed Sword.
One was rather long, about four feet, while the other was around three feet long and grayish-black in color from pommel to tip.
Lin Mo’s eyes were immediately drawn to the second sword.
"Old Deng, why is this sword black?"
Without looking up, the Dwarf Boss explained, "Gray Steel was added during its forging. Don’t go touching it if you’re not buying—that stuff’s expensive..."
Lin Mo focused his gaze, and the weapon’s attributes appeared before him.
[Black Sword]
Weapon Type: One-Handed Sword
Level: Excellent (Green)
Attributes: Durability +30%, Sturdiness +30%, Sharpness +40%
Hidden Attributes: Sharpness II: Slashing-type damage +10%
Equipment Amplification: Black Sword: +2 Strength when using Attack Skills, +10% activation speed when using slashing-type skills.
’What a sword!’
Lin Mo was stunned. The sword was practically tailor-made for him.
First off, the craftsmanship was excellent; its Durability, Sturdiness, and Sharpness were all top-notch.
And both its Hidden Attributes and Equipment Amplification were incredible.
Lin Mo’s strongest skill at the moment was [Sword Storing and Continuous Slash]. This skill, along with his previous ones like [Cross Slash] and [Slashing], were all slashing-type abilities. This sword could amplify slashing damage, boost his Strength, and even increase the activation speed of his slashes.
Compared to a Stabbing motion, a slash is slightly slower, and the Black Sword’s Equipment Amplification could compensate for that weakness to some extent.
In real combat, especially against an evenly matched opponent, being even a fraction of a second faster could decide the entire battle.
Without a doubt, this was the perfect weapon for him!
Lin Mo suppressed his excitement, keeping his expression neutral as he turned to examine the other four-foot-long One-Handed Sword.
This sword’s attributes were also quite good, better than any of the weapons on the lower shelves. But compared to the Black Sword, it paled in comparison.
"How much are these weapons?"
Lin Mo finally asked for the prices.
"The heavy blade and the Heavy Axe are 55 gold coins, the spear is 65 gold coins. As for the swords, one is 70 gold coins, the other is 110 gold coins."
"Is the black one 70 gold coins?"
In the dim light, the Dwarf Boss’s face turned as dark as the Black Sword itself. "What do you think?" he rumbled.
"I think it is."
Seeing the Dwarf Boss roll up his sleeves as if preparing to fight him to the death, Lin Mo quickly waved his hands. "Just kidding, just kidding! No need to get excited. How about a discount?"
gold coins was no small sum. While Lin Mo could afford it, it still pained him to spend so much at once.
The Dwarf Boss looked like he was about to start cursing, but the words died on his lips. "My shop never haggles. But... you have a Crystal Coin. Fine. One Crystal Coin, and the sword is yours."
"That’s fine, but why?"
Lin Mo was confused. A Crystal Coin was worth exactly 100 Gold Coins; he had specifically confirmed that.
"No special reason. You can just consider it a personal preference of mine."
The Dwarf Boss seemed to sense his confusion. "Or you could call it a preference of the Dwarf Race. We have a... keen interest in such valuable currencies."
