Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 323 Attribute Analysis and Material Commissioning
I couldn't be more satisfied.

It is made primarily of gray steel from the decapitation sword, supplemented by the [Molten Ash Silver Ingot] and the handle of the [Ember Instructor's Staff] that he brought back from the secret realm, plus [Yangli Iron Plating Powder] and "Petrifying Lizard Slime".

The forging cost of a total of three thousand gold coins resulted in a finished product that far exceeded Xia Nan's expectations.

Before this, the [Decapitation Sword] was just an ordinary, basic weapon. Perhaps due to the special nature of its materials and an unexpected situation during forging, it acquired two decent attributes, but its equipment level was just that, and it wasn't particularly outstanding.

The reforged [Emberfall] straight sword can be described as a complete transformation.

The sheer number of special effects—up to seven—that almost filled the entire field of vision clearly demonstrated the weapon's high quality.

First, regarding the two bonus attributes that the [Decapitation Sword] originally possesses, "+50% durability" and "+5% decapitation damage".

The former doubled, jumping from "+50%" to "+100%".

Without a doubt, this improvement has reached the level of a "qualitative change".

The original [Decapitation Sword] accompanied Xia Nan from a clueless novice adventurer who had just transmigrated to this world, to gradually mastering combat skills, obtaining a professional level, and becoming a veteran adventurer, experiencing so many fierce battles and fighting against all kinds of enemies.

It wasn't until they finally encountered an enemy from beyond the realm in the secret realm that they suffered their first injury.

It far exceeded what should have been expected of someone with a blank slate status.

The reason for this might be partly due to Xia Nan's patient and meticulous daily maintenance of his weapons.

On the other hand, its resilience is also due to the 50% durability bonus from the [Decapitation Sword].

This number has now doubled, and the durability of the blade is likely to reach an astonishing level.

If you were to stuff the current [Emberfall] into the throat of the basilisk that caused the [Decapitation Sword] to decay, and then take it out, it probably wouldn't leave even a trace of corrosion.

If ordinary weapons used by common adventurers were to clash with [Emberfall], they would most likely be broken in two if both sides were strong enough, while straight swords would remain unscathed.

The latter's "+5% decapitation damage" has tripled, reaching "15%".

Prior to this, Xia Nan had preferred to kill by "decapitation" in battle, mainly because the neck was the vital point of most enemies, making it easy to finish them off, and he gradually developed this habit.

Now that the decapitation damage bonus has reached 15%, he naturally cannot ignore this improvement.

The established habit of decapitation will become even more ingrained, becoming an indispensable part of his fighting style.

The two entries above are just the beginning.

The next five points are even more significant than the last.

— +5% slash damage.

This is all the skill Xia Nan gained after transmigrating to this world, namely [Master of Chopping].

The effect is naturally different, and unlike the "decapitation damage" mentioned above, "slashing damage" is not limited to a fixed part. Theoretically, even if he takes any tree branch and sharpens the edge slightly, he can trigger its damage-increasing attribute, and they can even be stacked to achieve the effect of "1+1 is greater than 2".

The only thing that needs further investigation is the triggering order of the two 5% slashing damage bonuses from straight swords and feats.

是干脆粗暴的把两个5%加起来变成10%，提升到实际伤害上；还是先加一个5%，然后在105%的基础上再提升5%；亦或者其他某种更加复杂的计算方式。

After all, this is the real world. When Xia Nan strikes with his sword, there won't be any damage numbers displayed, and he doesn't have the means to accurately measure the actual power of each of his strikes.

It can only be roughly perceived and compared through one's own physical body.

But in any case, it's definitely an improvement.

Then there's the 10% "mental damage" bonus.

To be honest, Xia Nan didn't really understand the effect of this special damage in combat, or even the definition of "mental damage" itself.

But there is no doubt that this special damage that affects the mind and spirit is not weak. It may not be as good as the damage from the noble force field, but it is definitely a T1 level damage type that is difficult to deal with on the continent of Aifara. It is much more difficult to deal with than common damage effects such as "fire", "corrosion" and "ice".

To some extent, this greatly increased the comprehensiveness of Xia Nan's attack.

In the most extreme case, when he strikes with his sword, in addition to the physical damage from the blade itself, he can simultaneously add three special types of damage, including "force field," "ember fire," and "mind," achieving the effect of "multiple mixed damage."

— +33% damage against ghost-type creatures;

Its range is very limited, targeting only "wandering spirits," but under strict usage conditions, it provides an almost exaggerated damage boost.

It's worth noting that even with the powerful effects the [Green Pine] wooden sword demonstrated when fighting against "undead" and "scorpion" type enemies, the bonuses were only "15%" and "20%" respectively.

With the straight sword's 33% damage increase, if Xia Nan ever encounters Soul-type enemies in the future, [Emberfall] could potentially allow them to face their natural enemy with devastating, targeted attacks.

As for the last two points, there's even less to say.

Xia Nan even suspected that the reason why the weapon level displayed on the attribute panel of [Emberfall] is "Rare (Blue) / Epic (Purple)" is based on whether or not it can trigger these two combat skills that can only be used by entering the [Ember Echo] state.

In daily use, it falls under the category of blue-grade equipment; upon entering the Ember state, both effects are activated, and [Emberfall] becomes purple-grade equipment.

【Molten Remodeling】This allows the explosive afterburner, which should have melted the equipment, to repair the weapon instead. Combined with the 100% durability bonus above, it makes the straight sword more durable and sturdy, and also increases the afterburner damage to a certain extent.

The last item makes it possible to reduce the original 30-day cooldown of [Echoes of the Past], and the speed of proficiency improvement will also be greatly increased.

Of course, various factors, such as how much cooldown time can be reduced, whether the number and strength of enemies killed have an impact on the reduced cooldown time, and whether there is an upper limit to the reduced cooldown time, still need to be tested and determined through practice over a considerable period of time.

In the most ideal scenario, Xia Nan could significantly reduce the cooldown time of [Echoes] simply by hunting goblins, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of gaining proficiency.

However, if the quantity and quality of goblins are insufficient to trigger the desired effect, then we need to take a longer approach and slowly find a suitable target.

All seven entries are useful, and the cumulative effect of multiple numbers such as "100%", "15%", and "33%" makes the stats of the [Emberfall] straight sword almost overflow.

Suddenly feeling the heavy weight in his hands, Xia Nan had a subtle feeling in his heart.

With his already impressive physical attributes and combat skills, he could already be considered a "supermodel," and now, with this "stat monster" weapon, it's a perfect match. He has a bright future ahead of him.

Behind him, Barn, who was standing at the door, had been looking smug from the beginning because of his confidence in his skills, but when he saw the satisfied expression on Xia Nan's face, he visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

After waiting a little while longer, he stepped forward and began to explain the weapon's details to Xia Nan in a low voice.

"The Yangli Iron plating greatly enhances the straight sword's durability and sharpness, and also increases damage to the neck; the silver ingot you provided gives it additional Mind Injury and significantly increases damage against wandering creatures."

As he spoke, Barn frowned slightly, a hint of hesitation on his face:
"But after all, the materials used in the forging of the straight sword are special, which I am not entirely familiar with, and the completion time was short, so there was no time to conduct further testing."

"I suspect that this straight sword has other hidden effects, or effects that require special conditions to be triggered and activated."

"If you're not in a hurry, you can leave the straight sword with me for a few more days and take it back after the inspection is complete."

It can only be said that he is indeed worthy of being the forger of the [Emberfall] straight sword. Even without the attribute panel like Xia Nan, the dwarf blacksmith still judged the hidden effect of the straight sword based on his own experience and intuition.

Knowing that the other party was referring to the two special abilities that required the Ember state to activate, Xia Nan mentally organized his thoughts, and after a moment's consideration, politely declined:

"It's alright. I'll gradually experience these effects as I use them later. After all, my longsword, which I was using as a temporary measure, is now destroyed, leaving me without my main weapon. If I accidentally encounter any unexpected situation, it will be difficult to handle."

Out of a sense of responsibility, Barn opened his mouth, hesitating as if he wanted to offer some advice.

Seeing Xia Nan's calm and firm tone, he nodded and said no more, only adding a final reminder.

"Okay, that works too."

"But if you really can't come up with any ideas, you can try your luck at the place where you found the silver ingot. The hidden effect of the straight sword should come from the silver ingot itself, so you might find something there."

Having access to the attribute panel and knowing all the attributes of the [Emberfall] straight sword, Xia Nan knew that Barn was speaking out of a sense of responsibility as the blacksmith, so he couldn't possibly find the other party too verbose.

He nodded sincerely and replied:

"Okay, I remember."

At the same time, his gaze returned to the straight sword in his hand, carefully examining its more "condensed" shape than the decapitation sword.

In fact, given Xia Nan's current fighting style, which revolves around [Fang Hunt] and emphasizes agility and mobility, a two-handed longsword of the [Decapitation Sword] type is not a good fit.

From a practical standpoint, the most suitable weapon would be a light, curved dagger that is longer than a regular dagger but significantly shorter than a one-handed sword, similar to the way it is used by professions like rangers and thieves.

In this way, not only can the explosive power and mobility brought by [Fang Hunt] be maximized, and the weapon characteristics of the scimitar itself be brought into play, but the characteristics of [Spinning Slash] can also be fully demonstrated in the battle, with the left and right hands continuously spinning and unleashing attacks as fierce as rain.

But humans are, after all, humans. They don't always choose and develop machines from the most efficient or "correct" angle. They have their own preferences and habits.

Xia Nan's first weapon after transmigrating was a simple one-handed sword that had been owned by countless people; after earning money, the first weapon he bought was also a decapitation sword that required two hands to wield.

Subtly, this laid the foundation for his weapon preferences and usage.

If he were forced to choose a scimitar he had never used before in order to improve efficiency at this point, the resulting growing pains and discomfort from changing weapon types would greatly weaken his actual combat effectiveness.

Even if one eventually completes the adaptation, ignoring the time cost involved, compared to the current straight sword... will it truly possess the enhanced combat power it would ideally have?

I'm afraid not.

Besides, I'm only level 2 now, and I have a long road ahead of me. What if I learn and master a more powerful combat skill that is more suitable as a core skill? Would I need to change my main weapon again?

This is an important issue that requires weighing many factors and will affect the direction of one's future development.

Xia Nan is currently in the early stages of her career and is making a relatively safe choice based on her personal preferences and to be on the safe side.

【Emberfall】The straight sword is neither as severely disconnected from one's fighting style as a two-handed longsword, nor as extreme as dual-wielding curved swords; it exists in a middle ground that leans towards conservatism.

This way, whether or not one chooses to transform in the future, or to maintain the status quo, there will be a relatively gradual process.

This can be considered as a minor but significant consideration for Xia Nan during the reforging process.

Now was not the time to test the power of the new sword. Standing in front of the wooden table, he swung the sword a few times in the air as if trying something new, then suppressed the surging emotions in his heart and forcibly restrained his movements.

I inserted the straight sword into its simple, dark brown scabbard, also custom-made by Barn and included as a bonus, and gently placed it on the table.

He turned and nodded to the dwarf blacksmith.

"I am very satisfied with this reforged straight sword. The remaining two thousand gold coins will be paid to you within three days."

It's a bit embarrassing, really. With Xia Nan's current savings, he's still a little short of paying off his debts. He'll only have some money left when the rewards from the association's missions come through.

Barn didn't seem to care, simply waving his hand to indicate that Xia Nan didn't need to say anything more.

After all, he had even offered to pay in installments, and since we were old customers, we didn't care about a day or two.

His gaze, however, unconsciously drifted toward the bundle that Xia Nan had placed in the corner after he entered the room.

It wasn't completely tied up. After landing on the ground, the opening of the bundle loosened, revealing a unique metallic sheen inside, and a strange sulfurous smell filled the air.

Noticing the other person's gaze, Xia Nan walked over, picked up the bundle, opened it in front of Barn, and explained:

"I encountered several demons from hell on this mission, and these are the spoils I collected."

"Four steel forks and a long knife, do you think they're worth anything?"

"Or we could just melt them down and forge them into some kind of equipment."

"what do you think?"

(End of this chapter)