Chapter 12: The Importance of Equipment

For example, Naruto, as well as the Konoha Squad, and the majority of players.

None of them realized the importance of equipment.

At level 5, they were still wearing level 1 white equipment, or even going into battle completely unequipped, pursuing only levels.

The Reward Points earned from hunting Pollution Sources were hoarded in their backpacks, reluctant to be spent, and only when absolutely necessary would they stingily buy two Recovery Potions.

Reward Points must circulate.

Placed on a player, they were useless source energy; only he, who possessed the World Consciousness, could use them.

A full set of white equipment could increase one's strength by nearly two or three times.

The boost from Tsunade's Green Set was even more exaggerated.

Once the Konoha Squad saw the powerful effects brought by equipment, they would definitely covet it and spend all the Reward Points in their pockets.

Boom.

Ghost Shockwave.

A grey energy beam as thick as a bowl's mouth shot precisely into the Ghost Guard's chest, blowing the monster's body apart.

The drop was a human-face-shaped spirit essence wrapped in a white ball of light.

Asuma explained: "The Ghost Guard's spirit essence is a mandatory material drop; if you're lucky, a single piece of the Ghost Set might also drop."

However, the probability is extremely low.

They had hunted nearly a hundred Ghost Guards, and only Yakushi Kabuto had a pair of Ghost Leather Boots.

A "pay-to-win" player like Tsunade with a full Ghost Set probably couldn't be found a second time in the entire Samsara Game.

"What a powerful skill!"

Uzumaki Naruto could not resist the temptation and used his accumulated Reward Points to purchase a three-piece set in the Game Mall.

He couldn't afford the whole set, but the Ghost three-piece set also had set attributes, just slightly weaker.

One thousand five hundred Reward Points.

This was his entire fortune; he had originally intended to buy two B-rank Ninjutsu, but changed his mind after seeing Tsunade-hime's terrifying combat power.

After all, this was no ordinary game.

Naruto had tested it; the skills he possessed could be brought back to the real world, and equipment certainly could too.

Compared to the boost brought by the Ghost Set, B-rank Ninjutsu suddenly didn't seem so appealing.

When purchasing,

players have the autonomy to choose whether to bring the redeemed item into reality or leave it in the game.

Once selected, if one wants to achieve seamless conversion between the game and reality, one must pay Certification Points for the redeemed item.

Only certified items can be brought into reality and the game at will.

Through this rule, Fang Yi had already earned thousands of Reward Points.

Earning Reward Points from players requires careful management in every aspect, like a thin stream flowing for a long time.

"Haven't you noticed? At the same level, one Ghost Guard can solo all of you."

Tsunade keenly perceived the key point and said: "The further we go, the stronger the Pollution Monsters will become. If you don't buy equipment, you won't be able to survive in the game at all."

Asuma also vaguely sensed this,

but the cost of buying equipment was too high, requiring him to empty out all the Reward Points he had worked so hard to accumulate.

If he wanted to buy a high-quality set like Tsunade's, he would even have to apply for a hefty budget from the Hokage.

The most critical thing is,

equipment has level restrictions and is not a one-time investment; it will be phased out and replaced after leveling up.

Asuma sighed and said: "After I log out, I will discuss this matter with the Hokage."

【Server Channel: Deep in the Death Soul Mountain Range, traces of a Ghost General have appeared in the Castle Ruins.】

Description: Before his death, the Ghost General was a Knight guarding the castle, possessing a powerful physique and Battle Qi. After death, he was transformed into a Ghost General by the Ghost Mage Sarina and is a powerful combat force under her command.

Uzumaki Naruto exclaimed: "A powerful Pollution Monster has spawned!"

After becoming a professional, one can open the communication channel.

Every two hours, players can say one sentence in the channel; most of it is boring nonsense, with players asking for help or hoping someone can carry them to level up.

Or they are asking the mysterious game developer questions, or complaining that the equipment drop rate is too low.

On rare occasions, text resembling an announcement will appear.

Last time it was the Blood Wasteland, where Vampire Baron Krar appeared.

Players excitedly rushed over, only to be instantly killed by the terrifying vampire with bat wings on his back with a wave of his hand.

The two hundred players who frequently operated in the Blood Wasteland had all their blood drained in an instant.

Sure enough, a monster judged by the game as the strongest Lord Monster of the Blood Wasteland was simply not something current players could challenge.

However... this Ghost General is not considered a Lord Monster.

Asuma thought for a moment and said decisively: "The Castle Ruins are very close to us. Let's go observe first. If necessary, we can use death to test the Ghost General's strength, and if it's too strong, we'll retreat."

Back then, when the Vampire Baron appeared, some players didn't believe it and resurrected fifty times without even being able to break his defense.

Asuma absolutely could not accept this kind of meaningless consumption.

"Let's go!"

The Konoha Squad, along with Tsunade, who had just reached level 3 and was wearing a full Ghost Set, marched imposingly toward the depths of the Death Soul Mountain Range.

After a half-hour of rapid marching, they arrived at the exterior of the Castle Ruins.

The mottled, collapsed stone walls and the dilapidated city gate, with even the rivets and iron plating rusted, allowed one to vaguely see the overgrown area inside.

The entire castle was large; besides the main building, there were spacious courtyards and farmhouses.

Pfft.

Yakushi Kabuto's figure flickered, as if his entire body were hidden in the Shadow, and he swung a swift and fierce blade.

The back of the neck was sliced open.

A fully armored Ghost soldier dissipated after suffering a fatal attack, leaving only fragments of Armor to fall to the ground.

Yakushi Kabuto picked up the materials, put them into his backpack, and wondered aloud: "These materials dropped by ghosts, besides selling them to the Mall, should have other uses."

After all,

if it only had a selling function, the Samsara Game would have no need to distinguish between materials; it would be better to just convert everything into Reward Points.

Behind the screen, Fang Yi nodded slightly upon hearing Yakushi Kabuto's words.

The new feature has not been opened yet.

Once the players have accumulated enough Reward Points to support mutual trade and circulation, Life Professions will be unlocked.

By then, these materials like Armor fragments, Ghost Essence, and Gargoyle Fragments can be processed and modified through Life Professions to become various potions, consumables, and equipment.

The White-haired Loli asked at the right moment: "If players can craft their own equipment, what happens if the equipment in the Mall doesn't sell?"

Fang Yi waved his hand and said: "The prices of the equipment in the Mall are inherently unreasonable; they are set too high."

"They are only suitable for early-stage exploration or emergencies at critical moments."

"If I want to popularize equipment, I will increase the equipment drop rate later on; besides that, Life Professions capable of crafting various items and equipment are also a very important link."

He sneered: "Do you really think Life Professions are easy to cultivate?"

"To cultivate a Life Profession, one must consume a large amount of materials. The higher the level of the item one wants to craft, the higher the level of the Life Profession required. It's all piled up with materials. Not to mention anything else, just the failure rate of crafting items alone will be enough to give the players a hard time."

"Solo players shouldn't even think about it; even a major faction like Konohagakure probably won't be able to support more than a few high-level Life Players."

(End of this chapter)