Infinite Realm

Xue Yan could guess Sato's intentions so she wasn't bothered about it. While they had known each other for just one week and a few days, those days were spent closely with one another. As such, she and Sato were quite close to each other. And could be regarded as friends.

"It was quite difficult, especially the second challenge. If I had not made some improvements on myself with the first challenge, then I wouldn't have gone so far." 

Xue Yan then went on to describe her experience in the Trials as well as how she had advanced and improved along the way. Finally, she began describing her last experience within the trial grounds.

"When the time was up for the final challenge, I thought I had failed the Main Trials and got disappointed, after all, Saimon had said that failing a single challenge was the same as failing everything. While I was a bit pleased with my progress, it was still saddening that I had lost everything when I was so close to it all." Xue Yan immersed herself in her memories. One could only imagine how she felt at that time. Having strived her best and placed all her hopes and efforts in this, just to fail at the last step, it was impressive of her not to break down at the spot or throw a tantrum and curse the game developers.

"It was then that Lord Vulgia appeared and told me that I would still be rewarded. He said that both he and the others were pleased with my growth and potential so they decided to make an exception for me. At the same time, they told me that you had completed your challenges and was now deemed the inheritor so there was no meaning to the Trials anymore, as there can only be one inheritor. However, since I didn't complete mine, my rewards would only be based on my progress and not the original reward."

'So there's a mechanism like this in the game.' Sato thought.

'This information could prove to be useful in the future.'

"Apart from some average ranked 2-star materials and a few high tier ones, I also got a new skill and this new staff." Xue Yan held her staff in front of her.

It was at this point that Sato realised that what she held in her hand wasn't the [Black Alder Staff] that Fudo previously owned but a crimson staff with black lines all over it. A closer look at the lines made Sato discern that these weren't lines but complex runes that he had never seen before.

"May I?" Sato opened a hand towards the staff.

Xue Yan nodded before passing the staff on to Sato.

Just like the [Inspect] skill, the [Appraise] skill had certain conditions that need to be fulfilled before it could be used. One of them was that the weapon had to be not more than 20 levels above the player or else they wouldn't be able to discover anything apart from its name. The most important of the conditions was that the weapon had to be held in one's hand before one can view its stats. Also, the weapon had to be unequipped to be able to view it. If it were equipped by a player, NPC, or monster, then one can either request the individual to unequip[2] it and then pass it over or the individual could just pass it over while permitting the other to view it. 

Such strict measures made it possible for a player to own a Legendary equipment in town with no one being made aware of it. But as all things had an opposite, there was one exception to these conditions. That is when a player is killed and an equipment drops upon their death, it automatically becomes ownerless so there's no need for one to request permission to view the stats. They can just simply pick it up and do as they wish with it.

"[Inspect]"

As Sato used the skill on the staff, a small transparent panel appeared just beside it. This panel was invisible to Xue Yan but Sato could easily identify what was written beside it.

[[ System interface :

[[ Monarch of the Inferno, Aoefir[1] : Low Tier Rare-Steel Rank : Level 10 : Durability 40

A work of art by the great [Scribes] of the Caventry, [Aoefir] has the ability to grow alongside its user. With [Aoefir] in hand, one can command the flames and control lava. Only one with great potential and infinite strength would be capable of using it to its greatest

As the staff was made with some precious materials and high-level abilities, it is unmatched by any other. But because of this, the full power of the staff can't be brought out by simply any user, and so, additional seals have been applied to match its user's strength.

There are currently 25 true seals and 10 false seals.

0 have been unlocked.

Requirement : The user has to be recognized by the weapon's spirit to wield the staff. The user also has to be an [Elementalist] of the fire branch.

[Intelligence] +20

[Dexterity] +7

[Willpower] +5

Casting time reduced by 5%

Casting time for fire-type spells reduced by 15%

Attack Power of fire-type elements 

Skills :

Monarch of Flames : Passive Skill : +20% affinity to the fire element. +10% affinity to the children of fire. Resistance to fire-based attacks increased by 40%.

Blazing Fury : Active Skill : A Monarch is one whose anger can topple cities.

Swathes of flames with 170% of user's Magical Attack power will burst out to cover a radius of 5 metres. 

MP Cost : 500 MP.

Cool-down : 20 seconds.

Fire Manipulation : Active Skill : Change the shape or form of a fire-based attack or change its direction in a short moment.

MP Cost : 100 MP.

Cool-down : 15 seconds.

NB : The full potential of this magic staff hasn't been awakened yet. As the wielder gets stronger, the magic staff too can be improved alongside them.

The magic staff is bound to the user and can't be dropped, sold, exchanged, or used to its fullest by another.

System description : By accepting this staff, you have decided to follow the legacy of the Monarch of Flames, Lord Vulgia. As long as your brain still has a few screws intact, your future in this world would be limitless and great.]]

Sato had just two letters to describe this staff.

"OP!"

Even though his new sword [Drakken] was pretty impressive and absurdly powerful, it could barely compare to Xue Yan's [Aoefir]. Not only did [Aoefir] provide more attribute points than [Drakken], but it also had more additional bonuses. 

Though it had one less skill than [Drakken], each skill was very impressive and the passive skill, [Monarch of Flames] was a 2-in-1, boosting her defence against fire-based skills while increasing her offensive abilities. The skill, [Blazing Fury], though it had a high MP cost, was currently the skill with the highest base attack power Sato had ever seen. If the +20% affinity to fire element effect was added, the skill's power would be so absurd that it might be able to take down a level 9 or even level 10 monster in one shot.

The reason for [Aoefir] surpassing [Drakken], despite the latter having a fragmented soul of an asura, had to do with the seals. [Drakken] held the soul of an asura and even though it was just a fragment, the power shouldn't be underestimated. Because of this, Sato guessed that [Drakken] had more seals or maybe even better ones than [Aoefir], which only reduced the strength of the staff for the user to wield. With that in mind, Sato assumed that in the long run, [Drakken] would eventually surpass [Aoefir].

However, for now, it was undeniable that [Aoefir] was way better than [Drakken].

"That reminds me, what level are you?" Sato suddenly asked. 

In IR, unless a player allowed their level to be revealed to the public, no one would be able to know what it is. Generally, only show-off and most casual gamers did this; the rest of them all kept their level hidden.

"Level 11.." Xue Yan said with a light smug on her face.