Chapter 273: The Power of Fireball

"I was too hasty earlier—this attribute boost is really something else..."

Yang Ling felt the surging power coursing through his body.

The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward.

Each piece of the Fire Crocodile Set boosted Strength by a small amount, but there were so many pieces!

The helmet gave 10 Strength, the bracers gave 10 Strength, the inner armor and pants each gave 10 Strength.

That was 40 points right there!

The boots added 20 Strength and 20 Agility too!

"This is like getting a free 60-point Strength boost!"

"And it doesn't have that restriction like weapons, where you have to hold them for the effect to activate..."

The more Yang Ling thought about it, the more excited he got—after all, the third layer of the Vajra Bright King Technique only gave him a 60-point dual attribute boost!

Just from the Status Panel numbers alone, this Fire Crocodile Set provided a total attribute boost of 80 points, only 40 points less than the Vajra Bright King Technique!

"Right, can I wear the Seventh-Rank Ironclad over it?"

With a flicker of thought, Yang Ling put the Seventh-Rank Ironclad on over the set.

But the 300 HP boost effect didn't activate.

"It seems that when wearing identical equipment slots, only one piece's boost takes effect. Obviously, the Seventh-Rank Ironclad has lower priority than the Fire Crocodile Set..."

Although he lost the 300 HP boost, Yang Ling didn't care.

What was a measly 300 HP anyway?

The attribute boost from the Fire Crocodile Set was what really mattered.

Fortunately, the Fire Crocodile Set was a form-fitting undersuit category—wearing this underneath and the Seventh-Rank Ironclad over it didn't feel uncomfortable at all.

In fact, he found it even more comfortable than before; the set was very close-fitting and felt like his own skin.

"Let's check the elasticity."

He gave it a random tug, pulling it out about a foot. When he gently released it, the fabric snapped back, staying tight against his body.

"That means even if my body gets bigger, I can still wear this—it's elastic enough."

"Also, it has 30% physical damage reduction..."

"Although the Status Panel doesn't specify the level of physical damage, ordinary crossbow bolts are probably 100% negated outright."

"Only physical damage powerful enough to actually hurt me would undergo the 30% reduction calculation."

To test this, Yang Ling took out the hand crossbow and asked Zhou Zheng to shoot him.

Zhou Zheng chuckled, "Director Yang, is this really necessary? With that armor, a Seventh-Rank hand crossbow can't hurt you anymore."

With that, he fired a bolt straight at Yang Ling.

Yang Ling deliberately lifted the Seventh-Rank Ironclad, testing only the Fire Crocodile Set's defensive capability.

The bolt struck him, feeling like a gentle tap.

Then the bolt bounced off to the side.

There wasn't a single mark on the inner armor.

"Just as I thought—Seventh-Rank crossbow bolts can't break through the defense, they don't even damage the durability."

"The 30% damage reduction should apply when I'm fighting against an expert like Mingxin.

If he swings his staff at me, I figure I can try to tank a few hits."

Yang Ling put away the hand crossbow, extremely satisfied with this Fire Crocodile Set.

"Director Yang, with this outfit, you could probably withstand the Earthfire for a short while, but to be safe, I'd advise against testing it rashly," Zhou Zheng warned.

After saying this, he sighed with emotion:

"The scales of the Fire Vein Poison Crocodile, combined with its horns and Blazing Gold—this armor set is one of the most satisfying pieces I've ever made in my blacksmithing career."

Then he pointed to a long saber on the workbench, also dark red in color, clearly made from the same materials as the Fire Crocodile Set.

"Director Yang, do you want to try this saber too?"

"There's enough material left to make more. If you like it, I can make another dozen or so."

「Fire Crocodile Saber, boosts Strength by 20, Agility by 20, Attack Power 200.」

"I'll skip testing the saber for now. First, I want to try out the Fire Crocodile Set's other abilities."

"Master Zhou, there's some more Blazing Gold here. Please melt it down and upgrade these Centenary Refined Vermilion Gold Throwing Daggers."

"Make sure to melt plenty—I plan to upgrade Little White too."

Yang Ling patted Little White's head with a smile, then set down ten pounds of Blazing Gold and turned to leave.

The Fire Crocodile Saber's stats were decent, better than the Seventh-Rank Official Saber, but it wasn't counted as part of the set, and it didn't have a skill.

The Seventh-Rank Official Saber came with the Gather Momentum skill. He had experienced the power of Gather Momentum, and for that alone, the Fire Crocodile Saber fell short overall.

But!

It had no usage threshold. If a newbie player got their hands on this saber, they could immediately become an expert.

He planned to distribute one to Qin Mo and the others later.

"Is this about ten pounds of Blazing Gold?"

Zhou Zheng weighed the Blazing Gold in his hand, froze for a moment, and stared oddly at Yang Ling's retreating figure disappearing through the doorway.

How long had this guy been in the mine? He'd already dug up around twenty pounds of Blazing Gold in total!?

"I only dig up thirty or forty pounds a year..."

Zhou Zheng couldn't help but sigh, then buried his head in work.

...

Arriving at the mining shaft filled with Earthfire.

Yang Ling walked straight in.

The raging Earthfire surged toward him but stopped a few inches away from his body.

It was as if the Fire Crocodile Set had an invisible force preventing the Earthfire from getting close.

After confirming this, Yang Ling focused his mind on the last line of the Fire Crocodile Set's attributes.

Attached Skill: Fireball

He chose a relatively flat stone wall and slowly raised his arm.

Fireball!

A thousand points of Vital Qi were consumed instantly!

Yang Ling felt a warmth in his palm, and then a massive fireball shot forward.

This fireball wasn't as big as the one the Fire Vein Poison Crocodile released—it was several times smaller—but it still had a diameter of about one meter!

Boom—

The fireball slammed into the stone wall, and flames exploded outward in all directions.

At the same time, a pit one meter in diameter and about a foot deep appeared in the stone wall!

"What terrifying power—way stronger than the Fire Blade..." Yang Ling muttered to himself, his heart pounding a few times before calming down.

"Fireball counts as a ranged attack. Unlike the flying daggers, it doesn't require an external object—it only consumes Vital Qi."

"If I'm fighting someone and can't beat them, landing one of these at a critical moment..."

Yang Ling slowly clenched his fist.

This could absolutely turn the tables!

This move didn't need to be used for active offense; it would work wonders as a passive counter!

"Mingxin is an Upper Sixth-Rank expert, and he doesn't have a similar trick. I wonder if Fifth-Rank experts do. I should probe Eunuch Xu about it when I get the chance."

Thinking this, Yang Ling suddenly noticed that the Divine Realm's Public Channel was buzzing again.

The commotion was because someone had posted a message selling equipment.

【Fang Yun: Selling an equipment piece that boosts Strength by 8 points, bracers type. Fine Silver, Spirit Nurturing Pills, or trade acceptable. Interested parties, private chat.】

Many players saw this message and were practically drooling.

Eight points of Strength for them was like leveling up eight times!

Countless players immediately chose to privately message Fang Yun.

Unfortunately, most players couldn't afford the price at all; they were just talking for fun.

Some players even tried to scam the item, asking to take it first with zero down payment installments.

"The Divine Realm is starting to feel more like a game. Compared to the beginning, there's a lot more liveliness."

Yang Ling sighed thoughtfully. He didn't plan to deal with his surplus equipment. Rather than sell it to strangers, it was better to let his own people benefit first.

With that in mind, Yang Ling casually opened his Status Panel:

Character: Yang Ling

Class: Constable (Beast Tamer)

Level: 64

Strength: 143 (60)

Agility: 73 (20)

Spirit: 200

Exclusive Skill: Insight x4

Exclusive Skill: Flame Immunity (One Minute)

Martial Arts: Vajra Bright King Technique (Flawless Proficiency)

Experience Points: 20530/100000

Divine Ape Contemplation Diagram (Flawless Proficiency)

Experience Points: 10770/100000

Heavenly Will True Scripture (Flawless Proficiency)

Experience Points: 5100/100000

Boulder Crushing Fist (Flawless Proficiency)

Proficiency: 6502/100000

Dragon-Capturing Saber Technique (Flawless Proficiency)

Proficiency: 7231/100000

Ethereal Steps (Skilled)

Proficiency: 7087/1000000

Wind God Vajra Legs (Skilled)

Proficiency: 1899/1000000

Heaven's Will Divine Blade (Flawless Proficiency)

Proficiency: 0/100000

HP: 3160

Vital Qi: 3000

Faction: Ironclad Department

"Unknowingly, my base Strength attribute is already at 83 points. Once my base Strength breaks a hundred, I need to focus on Agility—can't let the gap get too big."