Chapter 148: Proof of the Sword Demon

Although the effect of each divine blessing was not overwhelmingly powerful, the accumulation of numerous blessings significantly enhanced Ye Chen's overall capabilities. In particular, the Courage of the God of Knights and the Elemental Affinity of the God of Elements were both extremely practical skills. Additionally, the 5% health boost from the God of Asceticism greatly delighted Ye Chen. While the impact of this health enhancement was not yet dramatic, it would undoubtedly become formidable once his level grew higher.

Once all the mentors finished bestowing their blessings, Ye Chen immediately retrieved the Undead Notes from his inventory and handed them to Karina, the Dark Priest mentor. Karina accepted the Undead Notes with delight, waved her hand casually, and marked the quest as completed for Ye Chen.

"Ding! Congratulations on completing the quest [Find the Undead Notes] and advancing to a Tier 2 Dark Arbiter."

"Respected Mentor Karina, according to our prior agreement, completing this quest grants me two rare-tier skills. Could you please show them to me?" Although Ye Chen's voice was calm, his eyes burned with deep anticipation. Rare skills were the main highlight of this quest; otherwise, a simple class advancement quest could never be this difficult.

"No problem. Follow me, I will take you to the archives. This is a rare privilege indeed." Karina smiled faintly and gestured for Ye Chen to follow her.

Naturally, Ye Chen had no objections. Furthermore, he had no desire to be surrounded and watched by gossiping players here. Thus, he followed Karina all the way toward the back door of the NPC rest area. Those players who had been guarding the entrance of the NPC rest area, waiting for Ye Chen to emerge so they could strike up a conversation, showed expressions of disappointment at the sight. They had no choice but to return to their original spots and continue waiting in line for class advancement and skill learning, though they incessantly chattered among themselves about what they had just witnessed, speculating on Ye Chen's quest and identity.

Passing through the back door of the NPC rest area, they climbed the stairs to the second floor of the Professionals Guild. Turning a corner, they arrived in front of a crystal door. The crystal door was engraved with intricate magic runes and even shielded by a faint layer of magical barrier. An elderly-looking senior mage stood guard outside the door. Seeing Karina approach with Ye Chen, he raised his head slightly and said, "Karina, are you unaware of the guild's regulations? The archives are a restricted area. How can you casually bring people here?"

Ye Chen was slightly startled. Karina was a regular mentor of the guild and a dignified Level 60 Gold-tier NPC, yet this old man didn't look like much. How could he speak in such a dismissive tone, as if he completely disregarded Karina? Could he be a legendary hidden master?

Ye Chen sent a whisper to 2058 to inquire. 2058 immediately scoffed and said, "What master? This is just the most ordinary NPC, a mere Iron-tier one. However, he has the highest authority over the archives. Also, let me remind you, this NPC's temper settings are extremely bizarre. If he gives you a hard time, don't stand on ceremony—just beat him up directly. I guarantee you'll pass."

Watching Karina step forward to negotiate with the old mage, Ye Chen asked uncertainly, "Attack him directly? Won't starting a fight inside the Professionals Guild get us swarmed by those Gold-tier NPCs?"

"I guarantee no other NPCs will get involved. Rest assured," 2058 promised with absolute confidence.

While Ye Chen was conversing with 2058, the old mage had already turned his gaze toward Ye Chen. Looking him up and down, he said, "So you are the warrior Karina mentioned who killed the Lich Telis? I heard you even unsealed the magic sword. Come on, show me that magic sword so I can take a look. This old man has never laid eyes on a magic sword before."

Would this count as giving him a hard time? Ye Chen felt somewhat uncertain.

"Hmm? Did you not hear me? Quickly summon that magic sword for me to see, or don't even think about going inside," the old mage said impatiently.

Seeing the old mage put on such an arrogant and overbearing expression, Ye Chen felt extremely displeased. Furthermore, he could confirm that this old fellow was indeed making things difficult for him. Therefore, amidst the old mage's astonishment and Karina's shock, Ye Chen abruptly raised the Abyss Staff and cast a Dark Magic Thunderbolt directly at the old mage.

-705

A blood-red damage number floated above the old mage's head, causing Ye Chen's expression to change drastically. This was no mere Iron-tier NPC; he was easily on par with the Blazing Sword Spirit!

No wonder 2058's tone had been a bit peculiar earlier—she had genuinely set him up.

"You—you actually dare to attack Grand Archmage Solans?!" Karina's eyes nearly popped out of her sockets.

Gr—Grand Archmage?!

Ye Chen's face instantly turned pale. Damn it, this old fellow was actually a Grand Archmage, which put him on par with Spirit-tier entities.

"Dark Magic Thunder, hahaha. The Lich Telis's signature spell—you must have obtained this magic skill from his corpse, didn't you?" Grand Archmage Solans didn't seem angry at all. He smoothed down his hair, which had been blasted into a bird's nest, and instead laughed heartily.

"How is that? I told you this NPC's personality settings are very bizarre, right? Don't worry, you've definitely passed," 2058 suddenly said in Ye Chen's ear. Although she tried to sound nonchalant, Ye Chen still caught the trace of schadenfreude from a little girl after pulling off a prank.

"A young man with a lot of character. I like it. Well then, show me your magic sword so this old man can have a look. Since I'm in a good mood, I'll certify this Sword Demon token for you," the old mage said, suddenly pulling out a palm-sized circular token.

[Sword Demon Certificate] (Unique Item): Upon activation, unlocks the hidden class 'Sword Demon' advancement quest.

Ye Chen felt as though he had been struck by lightning. He couldn't believe everything before his eyes was real. He had thought—he had thought it would take a great deal of trouble, yet happiness had arrived so suddenly.

"Surprised? It's only a surprise if it's unexpected," 2058 chimed in cheerfully in his ear.

Ye Chen was in no mood to deal with her at the moment. Without a second word, he stepped in front of the old mage and summoned the magic sword with a low shout: "Take a look, look all you want. But you can't go back on your word; once you're done looking, you must give me the item."

"Good stuff, truly good stuff. So this is the legendary magic sword of the Sword Demon. Kid, your luck is truly incredible. This old man has searched for a magic sword for decades and couldn't even find the most ordinary one, otherwise I wouldn't have kept this Sword Demon Certificate until now." The old mage sighed in admiration as he looked at the magic sword wreathed in black flames, then said with a hint of desolation: "I am too old. Even if I could transition into a Sword Demon, I would never be able to touch the peak of the Sword Demon path. That would simply be an insult to the most magical profession among mages. Very well, take this Sword Demon Certificate. But if your achievements in the future fail to satisfy me, I will definitely make you regret taking this certificate today!"

Looking at the Sword Demon Certificate resting in the old mage's palm, Ye Chen took it without hesitation and laughed loudly, "As long as my achievements surpass yours, what can you do to me?"

"Good, ambition! I hope you won't disappoint this old man. Also, you aren't getting this Sword Demon Certificate for free. After some time, you must represent our LieShan City Guild in the Five-City Grand Tournament. If you fail to place in the top three by then, while I may not be able to strip away your Sword Demon class, I am confident I can turn you back into a mere apprentice." With a wave of the old mage's hand, a gray beam of light shot into Ye Chen's body.

"Ding! You have accepted the quest [Solans's Entrustment]. You must place in the top three during the Five-City Grand Tournament. Quest failure results in character level reset to zero."

Ye Chen's expression shifted slightly. Indeed, there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. While the Sword Demon Certificate was wonderful, taking it came with substantial risks. Judging merely from the fragments of information Cold Moon Frost had revealed, finishing in the top three of the five regions was no easy task. It seemed that if he didn't want to revert to Level Zero in the future, he would have to work hard. However, the Five-City Grand Tournament would only take place after the five cities were interconnected. A conservative estimate meant it would happen when players universally reached Level 60, which was after the third class advancement. He still had plenty of time to improve his strength.

"Alright, Karina, take this little fellow to choose his skills." With a wave of Solans's hand, the magical barrier in front of the gate vanished, and the crystal doors automatically swung open to both sides.

Karina nodded and led Ye Chen into the archives.

Thud. The moment the two stepped into the archives, the crystal doors automatically clicked shut.

"Heh, heh, hehehe..." Karina suddenly covered her stomach in a fit of giggles, then gave Ye Chen a thumbs-up and said, "You are the first person to pass Master Solans's test so effortlessly. Oh, and you actually dared to attack a Grand Archmage and blow his hair into a bird's nest—you are definitely the only person in all of LieShan City who would dare do such a thing. This mentor really admires you."

Ye Chen twitched the corner of his mouth, thinking to himself, *I was set up too! If I had known he was a Grand Archmage, who would have dared to strike him with lightning?*

Karina finally restrained her laughter and said with a serious expression, "Alright, you may freely choose any two rare-tier skills learnable by the Dark Priest class. However, you are strictly limited to two books. If you accidentally learn more, I guarantee you won't walk out of these doors."

Ye Chen had indeed felt his heart skip a beat upon seeing a room full of rare skill books, and a notion of seizing the opportunity to learn a few extra ones and ask for forgiveness later had crossed his mind. But hearing those words made his expression tighten. He quietly asked 2058, and the answer he received was the same: if he learned more, every NPC in the entire guild would mobilize and blast him into ash.

"However, speaking of which, even if you were allowed to learn freely, you wouldn't have the opportunity. Five minutes—you only have a five-minute selection window. If you haven't made your choice by then, then I am very sorry, you will be considered to have automatically forfeited. You'd better hurry up." Karina reminded him with a smile.

Five minutes? Ye Chen stared wide-eyed. This was a downright malicious setting! There were at least a thousand skill books in the entire archives; trying to pick the two most powerful faction-specific rare skill books out of those thousands within five minutes was an impossible task. Finding even two proper faction-specific skill books would be considered a success.

Seemingly sensing Ye Chen's doubt, Karina smiled matter-of-factly and said, "Otherwise, did you think rare skill books were so easy to acquire? The guild paid an immeasurable price to gather these skill books in the archives. Having this opportunity is already a rare fortune. In five minutes, you can at least find one learnable faction-specific skill. I advise you not to be too picky, or you might end up empty-handed."

Yet at this moment, Ye Chen smiled. He smiled brightly and happily.

Wasn't this setting designed precisely to prevent players from finding excessively overpowered skills in the archives? Ordinary players would indeed have to rely purely on blind luck. But who was Ye Chen? Did he need to flip through them one by one? 2058 had already begun automated searching; in less than a minute, she would locate the most formidable faction-specific skills...