Chapter 60: Accept the Mission! Depart!

Xu Jingming gazed through the transparent glass at the display case, where a long spear rested on a delicate cushion.

The spear shaft was a mysterious dark gold, adorned with delicate golden patterns resembling white clouds.

The spearhead was white-gold, with two fierce blood grooves embedded on each side.

One could imagine that once the spear pierced into a body, these four blood grooves would deliver lethal damage.

"Dark Cloud Wind Spear, total length 2.19 meters, shaft forged from high-toughness D-grade alloy, spearhead made of harder C-grade alloy."

Total weight reaches 260 Kilograms of weight; the spear shaft has been enchanted with wind energy by a special-type adept.

When swinging the spear, this wind energy can somewhat increase the speed of thrusts."

Zou Hai introduced it verbally, but inside he held little hope that Xu Jingming would buy this spear.

After all, most spear users chase lightning-fast thrust speeds.

For first- and second-grade adepts, 70 Kilograms of weight or 100 Kilograms of weight is already sufficient.

260 Kilograms of weight is almost exclusively used by third-grade adepts.

And third-grade adepts' full equipment is at least C-grade or higher.

This D-grade spear is, to them, like a bone with no meat.

Too low-grade to use, too low-tier for the high-grade to care.

Precisely because of this awkward situation, this spear had been displayed here for over a year since its forging.

"I wonder what that weapons master was thinking—crafting such a spear is pure loss, isn't it?"

Zou Hai sighed inwardly.

Energy enchantment is a highly advanced technique that fixes an adept's energy onto an item.

For example, space rings use energy enchantment to permanently bind a space-type adept's energy onto the ring.

Every application of this technique is extremely expensive.

Precisely because of this, the cost of this spear is astonishingly high, far exceeding that of an ordinary D-grade spear.

Thinking of this, Zou Hai glanced at Xu Jingming beside him.

Just a first-grade upper-level adept.

He'd probably be terrified just hearing the spear's weight, and he certainly couldn't afford that many credits.

Forget it.

I'll show him some lighter spears later.

Zou Hai shook his head silently.

"Can I try this spear?"

"Sure, let me get you a lighter one..."

Zou Hai instinctively reached for another spear to introduce, then suddenly froze, blinking in surprise:

"You're sure you want to try? This spear weighs 260 Kilograms of weight."

"No problem—I need a heavy spear."

Xu Jingming's eyes held anticipation.

I hope this spear brings me some surprise...

On the 13th floor, there is a dedicated room for customers to test spears.

At this moment, through the transparent glass, one could see inside one of the rooms.

A young man, surrounded by blue-purple Lei Ting, swung a spear in his hands.

The black spear wrapped in Lei Ting became a flurry of purple-black afterimages, howling through the room like a dragon.

"Incredible spear technique! This must be Advanced level!"

"I wonder which senior this is—this Lei Ting spear technique is truly terrifying in power."

"So fast! He's definitely a third-grade senior."

"..."

On the 13th floor, besides Xu Jingming, many other students had come to view spears.

All of them used spears, and now, seeing Xu Jingming's technique, they couldn't help but be silently awed.

Some who knew Zou Hai well even laughed and asked: "Which spear is that senior holding? Looks powerful."

"Dark Cloud Wind Spear."

Upon hearing Zou Hai's answer, the man who asked paused, stunned:

"That spear? Even third-grade adepts wouldn't look at it?"

"No third-grade adept would, but a first-grade one would."

"That guy inside is just a first-grade adept?" The man was bewildered.

Are you kidding?

Can a first-grade adept swing a spear this heavy?

Can a first-grade adept wield Advanced-level spear technique?

"Correct—he's first-grade."

Zou Hai dropped the remark and ignored the stunned customer, smiling as he stepped forward to greet Xu Jingming exiting the room:

"Student Xu, how was the spear?"

He had already learned Xu Jingming's name earlier.

"Not bad."

Xu Jingming nodded, "A bit too light, but acceptable."

After breaking through to Body Second Layer, his blood qi surged again.

According to his estimate, even a 300-kilogram spear would be more than sufficient.

But this 260-kilogram Dark Cloud Wind Spear is also acceptable, thanks to its wind-elemental enhancement.

Whether in thrusting or retracting speed, it far surpasses the Black Radiance Spear he currently holds.

Moreover, it may be due to its D-grade alloy composition.

My S-grade ability, Doushen Shenlei, conducts through this spear far more smoothly.

"That's good, that's good."

Zou Hai's face lit up with joy as he excitedly rubbed his hands together.

Although the equipment belongs to the Metropolis Magical University, apart from the annual basic research funding, the Equipment Division must cover its own profits and losses.

The funding required for equipment development is enormous.

Sometimes, a single idea from a weapons master can burn through tens of millions.

Although this spear's value doesn't reach tens of millions, it's still a substantial expense.

Leaving it here unsold has been a headache for him, but now at last someone has taken an interest.

"The Dark Cloud Wind Spear isn't too expensive—our official price is 600. I'll give you a 20% discount, so 480 credits!"

As if fearing Xu Jingming couldn't afford it, Zou Hai immediately offered a 20% discount.

In reality, this price is already close to the spear's production cost.

After all, it's forged from hundreds of kilograms of D-grade alloy.

"Um… could it be any cheaper?"

Xu Jingming blinked his eyes.

Ten minutes later, Xu Jingming left the Equipment Division with the Dark Cloud Wind Spear.

His student account, at most, held only 412 credits.

Upstairs, he also tested several other spears.

Either they weren't heavy enough, or their speed wasn't fast enough.

Those that met both criteria cost far more than the Dark Cloud Wind Spear.

With no choice, he handed over his Black Radiance Spear to the Equipment Division for recycling, receiving 100 credits in return.

But after spending these 480 credits, he was left with only 32 credits.

"32 credits won't be enough to buy a D-grade battle suit from the school."

"But I still have over seven million Daya currency in my bank account—I'll buy it outside later."

One credit has significantly higher purchasing power than ten thousand Daya currency, and the equipment produced by the Metropolis Magical University is of better quality.

Unfortunately, Xu Jingming had exhausted his credits and could only purchase the remaining gear off-campus.

Having made his decision, he did not leave the campus immediately, but returned to the second floor of the student villa.

"Eva, open the school's mission system."

"Understood."

A holographic projection appeared in midair:

Mission 1: Collect 30 tendons from Second-Rank Arm-Knife Tiger. Reward: 60 credits. (C-class mission)

Mission 2: Collect 30 Qingling Grass plants over twenty years old. Reward: 43 credits. (D-class mission)

Mission 3: Travel to the southwest to participate in a campaign. Requirement: Second-Rank Mid-Level or higher. Reward: 600 credits. (S-class mission)

Mission 4: Assist the Metropolis Public Security Bureau in capturing Third-Rank Low-Level fugitive Qian Hang. Reward: 200 credits. (A-class mission)

Mission 5:...

This was the school's mission system, where anyone could post or accept missions to earn credits.

These missions came in all varieties: gathering beast materials, collecting rare herbs and flowers.

There were even large-scale campaigns and fugitive-capture missions.

Of course, compared to the earlier missions, the latter two were far more dangerous.

The entire mission system continuously saw missions being claimed and new ones being posted.

"This is the Metropolis Magical University's training model..."

Xu Jingming sighed with reflection.

Different people received entirely different experiences at the Metropolis Magical University.

Some simply attended classes and training on schedule, living comfortably and leisurely.

Others constantly accepted missions, enduring life-or-death trials while earning vast amounts of credits.

The former were leisurely, but their power grew slowly.

The latter were dangerous, but their credits rapidly converted into resources, accelerating their power growth immensely.

"No wonder some say the Metropolis Magical University's best students aren't on campus—they're off-campus."

Xu Jingming shook his head and began selecting missions on the panel.

He would be staying in the wilderness for over a month; this was a perfect chance to take on missions and replenish his credits.

In the end, Xu Jingming selected three B-class missions and one A-class mission.

Then he went to an off-campus equipment store and spent 2.1 million Daya currency to purchase a D-grade battle suit and battle boots.

After all preparations were complete, he boarded the high-speed train at 2 p. m. that afternoon, heading to Yuan Shui City, next to Metropolis.