Chapter 111: Synthesis

The current downtown area of Carol City is located near the Mercenary Guild in the south. This area is packed with numerous NPC shops and a large auction house, making it the most bustling location in the city.

Since the goods sold by NPC shops only satisfy the needs of players at lower levels, as players’ life skills improved over time, they gradually replaced the NPCs. The high-level items produced and sold by these life-skilled players became the main consumer goods, inevitably leading to a shift in the commercial landscape. Additionally, when the Brain later established the credit point trading center in the eastern part of the city, the downtown area of Carol City gradually shifted eastward, while the southern area became increasingly desolate, with only the Mercenary Guild still drawing in a fair amount of foot traffic.

Currently, shops in the southern part of Carol City sell for as much as ten or more gold coins, with some even reaching thirty or forty gold coins. However, shops in the eastern part of the city are valued at merely one or two gold coins, with some even less than a single gold coin. Within the next two months, these shop prices will at least surge dozens of times, and some prime locations will even skyrocket hundreds of times. The price increases over the next decade will be even more staggering.

Yet, at present, these areas remain neglected slums, without a single high-end building.

Nie Yan walked toward the administrative hall in the center of Carol City. After a while, a tall white building appeared before him. It was a typical Granian architectural style, intricately carved and entirely made of stone, magically reinforced and glowing with a faint blue light. From the top of the building, several hanging lilies swayed gently, releasing a fragrant aroma.

Nie Yan entered the administrative hall. The floor was so polished it could reflect his shadow. The ceiling soared more than ten yards high, giving an overwhelming sense of openness. The ceiling was adorned with various colorful paintings.

An elderly man approached Nie Yan. Dressed in a dark uniform with golden epaulettes, he exuded an air of authority. His posture was upright and dignified, making him appear very sharp for his age.

“Honorable Officer Truss, I am here to purchase a shop lot.”

“Welcome to settle in Carol City. Carol City welcomes every merchant to open shops here. We offer the greatest benefits to law-abiding merchants. Please follow me,” said Officer Truss as he led Nie Yan further inside.

Nie Yan had visited this place in his previous life, but by then it was already too late. Even the most remote shop lot in Carol City cost thousands or even tens of thousands of gold coins. At that time, Carol City was known as the Golden City, where gold flowed on the streets. Even an ordinary shop could generate massive profits. In Faith, the wealth of merchants was no less than that of top-tier players, even surpassing them. Back then, Nie Yan could only sigh in regret and leave the administrative hall.

Now, however, Nie Yan could seize numerous shop lots at extremely low prices before most players even noticed the potential of real estate.

“Which location are you interested in?” Officer Truss gestured toward a city model. All available shop lots were clearly marked, along with their prices.

Nie Yan looked at the eastern area on the model. Currently, more than twenty shop lots were for sale there, with the most expensive priced at two gold coins and the cheapest at fifty silver coins.

Several of these were prime locations Nie Yan had seen in his previous life. One, located near the credit point trading center, had sold for tens of thousands of gold coins in his previous life—priceless in the real world. Yet now, it was right in front of him, priced at just two gold coins.

Nothing could be more thrilling and exhilarating than this.

“I’ll take this one,” Nie Yan said, pointing at the lot. As he spoke, his heart raced, overwhelmed by an uncontrollable excitement that nearly made him shout aloud.

These two gold coins would create infinite possibilities in the future!

Nie Yan paid the coins to Officer Truss and successfully obtained the deed to the lot.

This thin, somewhat ancient scroll was a legally binding document in the virtual world, its clauses protected by law just like real-world contracts.

Nie Yan eventually purchased twelve prime shop lots destined to become golden assets in the future. Two of these lots were particularly large, even suitable for upgrading into auction houses. In the future, the most prosperous area in the eastern part of the city would be home to Nie Yan’s own auction house.

Nie Yan checked his backpack. After purchasing so many lots, he was left with only two gold coins.

The most profitable thing in the world isn’t running a business, but investing with foresight and making money generate more money, achieving capital expansion. Rebirth had given Nie Yan many opportunities he had missed in his previous life.

Carol City would become the most prosperous capital of the Granian Empire in the future. These twelve prime shop lots would be the most profitable in the city. Even if he simply built shops and collected rent, it would generate a massive income.

System: Because you have purchased more than five shop lots in Carol City, your Respect in Carol City has increased by +5.

An increase in Carol City Respect would benefit Nie Yan in various activities within the city. When his Respect reaches 30, even if he is marked as a criminal, he could still walk openly on the streets and still receive protection from guards. NPCs would not arbitrarily raise prices when selling items like potions to him. A player’s Respect level represented their status in Carol City.

Walking openly on the streets as a criminal—how impressive that would be! However, given Nie Yan’s low-key personality, he would never do such a thing.

“In the future, we will collect 1% tax from your profits when you upgrade your shop. Each month, you must upgrade your shop within two months and pay 0.05% of the shop’s appraised value as a holding tax. The maximum delinquency period is three months. If you fail to settle the overdue taxes within three months, we will legally seize your shop per Granian law. Do you have any other questions?” Officer Truss asked.

“No questions,” Nie Yan replied. These taxes were negligible compared to the immense profits the shops would bring.

After paying and receiving the deeds to all the shops, Nie Yan seemed to see countless golden shops rising in the eastern part of Carol City.

Because the prosperity there was foreseeable!

After leaving the administrative hall, Nie Yan realized that even if he did nothing now and simply waited for the land to appreciate, the profits from these shops in the future would be more than enough for his expenses. Of course, Nie Yan would never be satisfied with just that. The sea is vast for fish to leap, and the sky is high for birds to fly. He had much more to accomplish.

Besides selling Blackfen Potions and other items, Nie Yan continued to sell some Web Spell Scrolls, Sheep Transformation Scrolls, and Flash Dust. However, most of the money he earned was reinvested into items that would appreciate in value in the future, such as Petrification Resistance Potions needed for the Medusa Nest, gear that boosted mental attributes, and so on.

In addition, Nie Yan also purchased several Luck Gems. He already had fifteen of them. To Nie Yan, simply waiting for these Luck Gems to appreciate or selling them would be unprofitable. It would be best to use them to enhance his own gear to maximize their value.

Nie Yan thought of the Dark Gold dagger he had—Blood Oath Dagger. It seemed to be his best piece of equipment at the moment. Although it was a level 0 weapon, it was Dark Gold quality, with decent attack power. More importantly, it had a relatively rare attribute—3% Life Steal. If its attack power could be increased, it would be perfect.

Upgrading a level 0 weapon with a Luck Gem was considered a waste by many. Each Luck Gem was worth five silver coins, an expensive item that should be reserved for higher levels when leveling up became slower. However, Nie Yan had no such concerns. There would be plenty of opportunities to earn money in the future, allowing him to purchase more Luck Gems. Elite monsters of level five or higher and Lord-class creatures had a certain probability of dropping Luck Gems. Ordinary players usually found them too valuable to use and instead sold them at auction houses, so the market would never run out of Luck Gems.

A single Luck Gem could add 10 attack points to a weapon, 15 defense points to gear, and increase the required level by +1. These stats—10 attack and 15 defense—were enough to make many players go wild. However, using Luck Gems to enhance gear had success rates to consider. For gear from Tier 1 to Tier 5, the success rate was 60%. On success, the gear would advance one tier; on failure, it would drop one tier. From Tier 6 to Tier 10, the success rate was 50%. On success, the gear would advance one tier; on failure, it would drop back to Tier 5. From Tier 11 to Tier 15, the success rate remained at 50%. If the enhancement failed, the gear would be completely destroyed. For gear from Tier 16 to Tier 20, each tier-up could grant powerful skill attributes. At Tier 20, the gear would be nearly equivalent to a Legendary item.

When enhancing gear with Luck Gems, the results were often brutal. Those with good luck could use just a few Luck Gems to create priceless gear. Others might suffer a single failure that destroys gear above Tier 10.

Regardless, enhancing gear with Luck Gems was a game only the wealthy could afford. Ordinary players could never dare to play it—they simply couldn’t afford the losses.

With fifteen Luck Gems and the fact that Pandora’s Box offered success rate bonuses during even-numbered rounds, Nie Yan felt it was worth a try. After all, gear below Tier 10 wouldn’t be destroyed upon failure.

After making his decision, Nie Yan placed the Blood Oath Dagger and a Luck Gem into Pandora’s Box. A red glow shimmered over the dagger, with the dazzling Luck Gem beside it.

System: Are you sure you want to advance this gear?

Nie Yan closely watched the time in Faith, calculating whether it was an even or odd round. Watching the rapidly ticking second hand, his pupils reflected a string of numbers.

Yes!

Nie Yan clicked to synthesize.

System: Enhancement successful. Gear Tier +1. Current Gear Tier: 1.

His luck seemed good. Nie Yan checked the current attributes of Blood Oath Dagger.

Blood Oath Dagger (+1 Dark Gold): Required Level 1.

Attributes: Attack 33-36, Agility +11, Critical +12, Life Steal 3%.

Attack Speed: 2.3.

Weight: 3 pounds.

Restriction: Usable by all factions.

The synthesis was successful. Blood Oath Dagger gained an additional 10 attack points, and its required level increased by one. As a result, this Blood Oath Dagger now had higher attack power than some level 5 Golden-tier weapons.