030 Selling Assets!

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【Blood Magic Ring】
Scattered artifact, right-hand ring, guaranteed drop on death
Equipment Requirements: None
+15% Lifesteal
+40% Health
Granted Skills: [Temporal Rift], [Enhanced Stealth]
Additional Effects: 20% chance to completely evade all attacks
Additional Effects: 32% chance on critical hit to deal 3.5 times critical damage
Additional Effects: Attacking from stealth guarantees a 2.5x critical hit and grants an extra 25 rage points
Devour: Consumes other magic rings to overall enhance the ring's attributes (maximum 5 consumed)
Description: Every spatial connection to the continent of Oglas contains a magic ring.

The lifesteal effect reaches 15%. If Dawnwind equips both the Blood Dragon Ring and the Blood Fury Lion Pendant, the lifesteal effect reaches a maximum of 35%. Upon transforming into a Blood Dragon, due to additional bonuses, the lifesteal increases further. Such a high lifesteal is likely unparalleled in the entire game world, achievable only by Dawnwind.

Lifesteal gear is inherently rare; stacking even 10% lifesteal is difficult, let alone 35%. The 35% lifesteal means each attack has a 35% chance to absorb 35% of the enemy’s lost HP and convert it to health recovery. Due to an internal cooldown, this lifesteal can activate at most once every 2 seconds.

With +40% health, at level 31, Dawnwind already has 7,700 HP, even with subpar defensive gear. With better equipment, his HP could surpass 9,000. Most surprising is the 20% chance to evade all attacks—a 5% increase that’s incredibly powerful. This means Dawnwind has a 20% chance to completely ignore any incoming damage, effectively reducing damage taken by 20%. Combined with lifesteal and Blood Strike, Dawnwind becomes an unconventional tank.

The enhanced critical effect is strong but has reached its limit; further increases won't significantly boost Dawnwind’s damage output. However, the stealth attack causing a guaranteed 2.5x critical hit plus 25 extra rage points is very beneficial, allowing Dawnwind to accumulate more rage.

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“For now, my magic ring should be the strongest.” The previous Blood Magic Ring was already formidable, but the current Blood Magic Ring is godlike—anyone who obtains it can unquestionably join the ranks of top-tier players.

Among all of Dawnwind’s equipment, the magic ring is the strongest, even surpassing the Orichalcum Axe and the Brotherhood Sword. The ring’s attributes will become even more formidable as more rings are acquired.

With no pressing matters, Dawnwind continued the artifact quest. First, he completed the Steelgray Dwarves' material collection task. Throughout the night, he collected materials, rapidly depleting his gold reserves. His warrior and shapeshifter accounts shared quests and, aided by spatial teleportation flags, traveling was easy. After completing 25 tasks, Dawnwind achieved 500 favor points and earned the Steelgray Dwarf Badge, a token of recognition that grants friendship from any Steelgray Dwarf.

From the badge, Dawnwind inferred that Kao Sai, a poison researcher among the Steelgray Dwarves, holds a high status within the clan—otherwise, such a badge would be unattainable.

Completing the 25 material collection tasks for Kao Sai cost Dawnwind over 40,000 gold. This task is costly and not many would spend so much for merely favor points. Fortunately, when Dawnwind obtained the badge, his previously frozen 870,000 gold became liquid again.

This material collection revealed that all major teams and guilds are gathering materials. If Dawnwind’s materials were more specialized, prices could be even higher. The price of rare materials hasn’t dropped with the influx into the open world. Instead, prices keep rising, clearly manipulated behind the scenes.

Dawnwind knows the prices from two years ago, and though they were high then, current prices for rare materials have tripled and continue climbing. Many teams are now researching equipment synthesis, so material prices are expected to rise further. Obtaining silver-flash level or above equipment through quests or dungeons is challenging; synthesis is the best approach.

Players in developed regions have no shortage of money, especially wealthy teams. Dawnwind sold his stockpile of rare materials to a wealthy French guild through the Outlets, exchanging materials directly for euros. Over 50,000 rare materials sold, and his card account gained 1 million euros.

Dawnwind preferred not to exploit domestic players, as prices would inevitably drop. China, India, and African regions are gold exporters; as rare materials become scarce, many will farm them, causing prices to fall. However, with Dawnwind’s material stock, the “Solar Alliance” guild holds a significant advantage.

With 950,000 gold in hand, Dawnwind did not convert to cash. He checked the price of planar essence, now requiring one white gold coin plus 200,000 gold to purchase. Holding five white gold coins, he bought four planar essences outright, anticipating their rising value.

Dawnwind sent planar essence attributes to Outlets and Stan, selling them at 2 white gold coins and 250,000 gold each, earning one white gold coin and 50,000 gold profit. Their gold payments were in cash, and no one had as much gold as Dawnwind.

Two planar essences remained, and Dawnwind continued dealing with Europeans. Outlets and Stan helped find buyers, saving him much trouble. Each planar essence sold for 3 million euros—an absolute windfall. These essences won’t depreciate; they will only become more valuable as they grow harder to obtain.

Dawnwind sold exquisite carvings and some gems abroad, instantly earning 150,000 gold and bringing his total gold to 300,000, which he found sufficient. He planned to convert rare materials and gold into cash while prices remained high, preparing for future needs.

Working with Outlets and other top players often involved large expenses; gold is not everything. Gold prices will inevitably decline, but cash remains stable. Dawnwind didn’t expect his early advantages to turn him into a minor tycoon—if he sold everything in his warehouse, he could make even more profit.

He would soon assault the Ironsteel King City, a venture requiring vast funds. For now, asset liquidation was complete, and his next focus was on his supernatural abilities.

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The battles over the magic ring were fierce, and Dawnwind’s mental state was intensely focused. He felt his supernatural powers easier to control; the stronger the mental strength, the easier it is to master such abilities. While metal control powers are detectable, soul-splitting powers cannot be revealed—no one had yet forced Dawnwind to expose his powers.

Regarding supernatural powers, Dawnwind suspected some magic ring bearers might possess such abilities, especially Baru. Having fought Baru once, Dawnwind noted his swift reactions, particularly when transformed into a skeletal sand scorpion, gaining rapid mobility—likely his power is “Soul Mutation.”

Soul Mutation allows balanced development of the brain’s left and right hemispheres, enabling simultaneous divergent responses, sometimes with physical reactions faster than thought—a formidable power. Baru’s swift surprise attacks against Dawnwind, executed without hesitation, attest to this.

In skeletal sand scorpion form, Baru’s movements were lightning-fast, even faster than in warrior form. Initially, Dawnwind thought the scorpion’s lack of armor increased agility, but considering the time-flowing sand’s slower operation, he suspected Baru truly had Soul Mutation. Mastery of this power grants exceptional adaptability—Baru’s control over the skeletal scorpion strongly suggests this power.

Mentally, Soul Mutation is not the strongest power but excels in adaptability and reaction speed. By comparison, in-game “Splitting Madness” powers are more potent, though Dawnwind’s acquaintance with such powers has long suffered mental torment. Only recently has the game begun to alleviate the toxic effects of these powers.

If Dawnwind fully aided the Split, he could become the game’s most powerful elemental shaman. But Dawnwind is no saint; he won’t help without cause—and who knows if the beneficiary might turn on him later? For now, he offers only modest assistance.

Bored at night, Dawnwind checked forums about temporal rifts. Zones 2, 9, 17, and 28 all had temporal rifts, with players fiercely competing for treasures. Horde patrols occasionally appeared but had little impact; some players even baited patrols into rifts to remove them. Player-versus-player conflicts were the fiercest, rivaling battles between magic ring bearers.

For an ancient talent stone, hordes of players clashed mercilessly. Even thieves who managed to steal the gem were driven off. Luckily, few players had reached level 30, or these treasure disputes would spark massive wars. Several national guilds were already clashing: China’s notoriously aggressive Divine War guild faced off against America’s Flame guild; their players fought on the open world map upon meeting.

Divine War allied with Windstorm, Windriders, and Dark Night guilds on the world map, using their numerical superiority to suppress the Flame guild backed by teams—a surprising development. Dawnwind knew many foreign players underestimated China’s competitive level, unaware that, given equal conditions, Chinese players are no weaker and their numerical and temporal advantages are staggering.

If Dawnwind’s guess was correct, Divine War would erupt fully on the world map. This alliance harbors a grudge against Dawnwind; once he conquers Ironsteel King City, their downfall will follow.

With nothing pressing, Dawnwind planned an all-night session to level up and train troops. His small bats had multiplied greatly and needed development. When the time came, an army of bats launching surprise attacks would be terrifying indeed.