Chapter 232: Section 20: The Poor Me
Part two covers navigational equipment.
Ships are included within this category.
The warship requested by the knight youth is one of the three Silver Level ship models available.
The three ships differ in performance: one is balanced, one is more defensive, and one is faster.
The ship requested by the knight youth belongs to the first type—balanced.
In addition to the ships, there are other navigational devices from the Age of Great Voyages.
These include a Black Iron Level alchemy sextant, a nautical chart with movable patterns, a huge water bucket that can hold a hundred kilograms of water at a time, sails woven from bird feathers using alchemical grades, and a rudder that can self-repair minor damages…
Although the ship the knight youth reserved also has sea charts, sextants, rudders, etc., they are mere giveaways and are of quite ordinary quality. Moreover, some items are incomplete.
As the receptionist mentioned, these equipment pieces come in ordinary quality, bronze quality, black iron quality, and a few in silver quality.
This encompasses nearly all aspects encountered in navigation.
Choosing what to buy requires skill.
The hull of the ship reserved by the knight youth reached Black Iron Level. Some of these devices need to be mounted on the ship, which considers the foundation of the hull.
Normally, a Black Iron Level demon energy ship can carry Silver Level and even Gold Level equipment.
Holy Domain Level and Legendary Level are not possible.
This is because it involves aspects of demon energy supply and power support. Demon energy ships have mana pools and demon energy furnaces. If the equipment is too advanced for the ship’s grade, its power is difficult to utilize, and such equipment places a huge burden on the hull.
What the knight youth most wanted were canons.
There are many types of canons, including curved fire guns, cannons, and mortars. There are also special canons such as the Revenge Burning Cannon, which can shoot flames, the Three-barreled Revolver Cannons, which can fire continuously, and the Brilliance Healing Cannon that can heal our members.
After all, there is not a single canon on the new ship; all the gunports and gun mounts are as good as non-existent.
The youth’s attention lingered on various introductions to the different canons.
“I have a total of 24 gun positions. Let me calculate…”
The final total cost made the youth’s heart sink slightly.
Inclusive of all the money he had on hand, he could not afford enough canons.
Ordinary canons were ruled out by the youth, Black Iron Quality alchemy canons were too expensive, but even if the youth wanted to buy bronze-level canons, the price multiplied by 24 made it unaffordable for him.
As for Silver Level canons, the youth didn’t even consider them, as they would consume Empire Contribution.
Currently, the knight youth had very little Empire Contribution. After all, he only battled with Rou Cang and had been defeated.
The knight youth continued to read.
The third part of the scroll content was about Fighting Energy techniques.
The youth immediately noticed the Bai He Fighting Energy.
There was a brief introduction behind the Fighting Energy—it was a Fighting Energy technique created by Bai He, a fighter who was of common origin. It is the most universally suitable Fighting Energy technique, at a Silver Level. It is more effective when practiced in water currents.
After the youth escaped Mysterious Monster Island, without the Magic Prohibition Ring, he quickly sensed the Fighting Energy contained within his body.
Upon identification, he realized it was Bai He Fighting Energy.
Bai He Fighting Energy is widely spread because its creator, Bai He, came from a humble background. After he became a Silver Knight in his later years, moved by the hardships of cultivation, he uniquely created this Fighting Energy technique.
Although it is a Silver Level, he did not pass it down only to his offspring but spread it widely.
This left the knight youth somewhat disappointed—he had hoped to find some clues from the Fighting Energy, which he could use to clarify his true identity.
Many Fighting Energy types themselves indicate the user’s identity.
For instance, Hund Needle Fighting Energy—if someone possesses this type of Fighting Energy, they are almost certainly a member of the Hundred Needle Family.
It must be acknowledged that Bai He Fighting Energy is not outstanding among all the Silver Level Fighting Energy techniques. More accurately, it is quite mediocre. It has no outstanding strengths, of course, no evident weaknesses either.
The reason it is rated as Silver Level is that indeed someone has used it to reach the Silver Level.
“I certainly need a new Fighting Energy technique,” the knight youth knew that this was his weak point and needed improvement.
Because Bai He Fighting Energy does not match well with the Flame Dragon Bloodline.
When he mutated into a dragon-man, activating Bai He Fighting Energy would cause internal loss—not only the loss of Fighting Energy but also interference when he used Combat Skills. The demon energy maintaining the dragon-man form from the Blood Core would also see increased consumption.
There is a deep connection between bloodlines and Fighting Energy techniques.
Fighting Energy techniques are tailored to the user.
For example, Hundred Needle Fighting Energy can only really exert its effect when members of the Hundred Needle Family practice it because they all possess the bloodline of the Golden Bee Queen.
The knight youth looked closely, finding the scroll recorded quite a few Fighting Energy techniques that matched with dragon veins.
For instance, Dragon Movement Fighting Energy matches well with the Wind Giant Dragon Bloodline.
The youth’s gaze quickly focused on one of the Fighting Energy techniques.
This Fighting Energy was called Blast, also at the Silver Level, complementing the Flame Dragon Bloodline. Its advantage is that when using Fighting Energy, it can exceed the normal burst of energy. However, the disadvantage is that it is not durable and easily depletes.
Purchasing this Fighting Energy technique would also come with a Combat Skill—Flame Burst. This Combat Skill is quite famous and immensely powerful.
This Fighting Energy technique is almost the most expensive among them.
The youth found that purchasing this Fighting Energy technique would consume most of his funds and Empire Contribution. It would be difficult to buy other materials.
The youth continued to browse.
After the Fighting Energy techniques, the fourth part of the content was about meditation methods.
Mages acquire mana and enhance their spiritual power through meditation. An effective meditation technique can significantly improve a mage’s cultivation efficiency.
Following meditation techniques, there are sections about the experiences of divine service, the creed of devotion, ritual guidelines, and the interpretations of certain divine doctrines tailored for druids, such as the book “Natural Origin.”
The sixth section deals with Combat Skills.
There is a myriad of Combat Skills available.
Although the Fighting Energy section also includes Combat Skills, they are part of the Fighting Energy itself; now, these Combat Skills are popularized and quite versatile.
Essentially, regardless of the type of Fighting Energy, these Combat Skills can be applied; to see their specific effects, one must look closely.
In terms of Combat Skills, the knight youth is also lacking.
He has mastered only two—Hundred Needle Burst and Needle Explosion Roar.
In terms of quantity, not only does he fall short of Zong Ge, but most Black Iron Fighters also have at least three Combat Skills.
The knight youth soon took a liking to one particular Combat Skill—Silver Wings.
Using this Combat Skill, he could fly!
What troubled him was that, although Silver Wings was not expensive, it required a considerable amount of Empire contribution. According to the youth’s current contributions, he did not qualify to purchase it.
“According to the introduction of the Combat Skill, Silver Wings consumes a large amount of Fighting Energy. If I use it in combination with Blast Fighting Energy, the duration of combat might be very short. The two do not complement each other well.”
Setting aside this worry, the knight youth continued to browse.
After Combat Skills, came Spells.
And following Spells, there were no Divine Arts.
Divine Arts are bestowed by deities and do not need to be learned.
The eighth section of the scroll covers equipment.
This section includes a vast array of offensive and defensive equipment in both type and quantity.
“Currently, I have the thin sword Silver Lightning, but I may eventually have to return it to the Hundred Needle Family.”
“As for Protective Equipment, I could use the Dragon Scales for now.”
What captivated the young knight was the sets of armor.
Shoulder guards, chest plates, masks, greatswords—if worn together, the Magic Arrays or alchemy techniques could form a synergy, enhancing defensive and offensive effects, or even provide special functionalities like reducing armor weight, invisibility, or flight.
Following the sets of armor are the potions.
There are various specific treatments for contagious diseases, which well-equipped ships usually carry during voyages.
The youth also saw a Bloodline Stabilizer. To the common eye, he needed this potion.
He had also planned to buy one.
But instead of using it, it would serve to deceive others.
“However, this price…” the youth felt a bit distressed.
After potions, came Magic Pets.
Various Magic Beasts and Magic Plants attracted the youth’s interest.
The Blood Core could absorb these bloodlines for his use. It was this ability that had enabled him to survive on Mysterious Monster Island up until now.
“Perhaps I should set it aside for now.”
It is worth mentioning that in this section, the youth also discovered humans, elves, dwarfs, and goblins.
These intelligent beings could be turned into pets, or rather, slaves.
Slave trading is one of the most flourishing and largest scales of trade in the Holy Bright Empire.
The penultimate section concerns Magic Scrolls.
For instance, the Enslavement Scroll, which is used for Magic Pets.
Previously, the knight youth had used this type of Contract Scroll during encounters with Gray, Golden Chin, and the Sea Snake Lady.
The final content includes various materials.
Materials for spells, wood for ship repairs, alchemy raw materials, food and water for Transcendents, various grades of Beast Meat and honey.
As he closed the scroll, the knight youth felt deeply moved.
The Empire’s strength was impressively formidable.
“I need to consider this carefully,” the youth said to the attendant.
The attendant smiled, “That is a wise decision. This scroll is now yours, and since I am always stationed at New Moon Port, you can come and find me anytime, Captain.”
The youth nodded and left the dock.
After dispersing the crowd, he wandered around New Moon Town and secretly met with Cang Xu and Lan Zao.
Cang Xu was aware of the youth’s situation and understood his predicaments.
He suggested, “The secret chamber on the ocean floor might contain treasures of substantial value. But to unlock it, we need a high-quality Unsealing Scroll.”
“An Unsealing Scroll?” the youth reopened the Empire’s inventory and indeed found the Unsealing Scroll, but its high price made his heart sink.
If he bought the scroll, he feared he would not even be able to gather ten cannons.
Cang Xu had explored before, and the defenses of the underwater chamber were rigorous. Moreover, with no Thief among them, using an Unsealing Scroll might not bypass the defenses.
Would it be too risky to gamble on?