Chapter 372: Equipment Swap
Xu Huo agreed to Ran Ying's dinner invitation but declined her offer to pick him up.
After turning off the communicator, he said, "Captain Ran is really too enthusiastic."
"Nothing good comes from sudden kindness," Shi Youzhi commented before letting him leave.
Xu Huo didn't head straight back to the hotel after leaving the Game Government Base. Instead, he went to several exchanges and finally chose one to sell some of his unused items.
E-grade items were the lowest tier, with low selling prices. When sold by individual players, the price also depended on the item's effect. Thus, the ten items in Xu Huo's inventory that he had never used—like "Beauty Injection" and "Muscle Relaxer"—were bundled and sold for only ninety thousand White Notes. Meanwhile, a single D-grade item cost at least sixty thousand, with stronger effects commanding higher prices, not to mention C-grade and special items.
Xu Huo's total money, including the ninety thousand White Notes, was only five hundred thousand. That was enough for a decent D-grade item but fell short for a C-grade one.
Both "Ox Shield" and "Fish Skin Protective Suit" were ruined, so he needed to buy at least one defensive item. As his level increased, simple anti-slash or anti-stab items were no longer practical. In the Rose Castle, You Qiwen's ability to conduct electricity through contact had genuinely surprised him, and he expected to encounter more players using natural elements as attack methods in the future.
Additionally, he wanted to buy an offensive item, though he hadn't decided on a specific direction yet—he would see what was suitable.
He first looked at the defensive item catalog. Items similar to "Ox Shield" were common, as were protective barriers that expanded several times the user's body area, but these weren't what he wanted.
"Sir, if you're not satisfied with these defensive items, you can check out the latest combat armor," the exchange manager said. "Combat armor isn't as flexible as items, but wearing it provides fire and water resistance. With a sufficient budget, you can also customize anti-toxin and underwater breathing versions. This kind of armor is safe even in A-grade chemical contamination zones. Additionally, there are models equipped with micro-weapons, though the prices are higher."
The holographic projection displayed the armor from all angles and even simulated its texture. It looked like a fully enclosed suit of armor, but the prices were steep. Xu Huo stopped after looking at just two models.
These armors had good functionality, but they were cumbersome to put on and take off. Moreover, some items could affect metal—if he encountered such an ability, he might end up harming himself without an opponent's help. This type of armor was suitable for large-scale military use, not solo combat.
Furthermore, the prices for models with lightning resistance or underwater capabilities were exorbitant. For him, it was better to buy a lightweight item.
"Let me see the C-grade defensive items," Xu Huo said after a brief hesitation.
The manager opened the catalog. Most C-grade items under five hundred thousand White Notes had inconvenient limitations, such as time limits, usage limits, or area restrictions. Items without these limitations often restricted the type or method of attack they could defend against. For example, an item called "Refuse Contact" would deploy a protective barrier in advance when attacked, but it only reacted to attacks from living beings. In other words, it wouldn't respond to weapon-based attacks.
The way items functioned was their unique charm, especially certain targeted items that were impossible to evade. This was one reason low-level players could counter high-level players. Apart from personal combat ability and strategy, a good item could have unexpected effects—like the "Fair Wallet" he had just obtained, which could disarm an opponent regardless of their identity.
Another example was the Chen brothers' "Substitute Mirror."
The same applied to traits. Liu Jia's "If I Call Your Name, Dare You Answer?", Fry's "Face-to-Face Negotiation," and Chen Tu's "Imprisonment by Drawing" were all peculiar attacks that were hard to avoid.
Xu Huo naturally wanted to find a defensive item that could evade certain item or trait abilities, but nothing suitable was available.
After understanding his intent, the manager said, "Items like that are usually B-grade or A-grade. Below B-grade, there are no items that explicitly evade abilities or traits, but there are some items that delay attacks."
He opened another interface. "For example, this one, 'Stuttering Malice.' After equipping it, any attack is delayed by 0.5 seconds, effectively postponing the attack's effect by half a second. However, if a player can dodge an attack within 0.5 seconds, they probably wouldn't need this item."
"And this one, 'Seeing Is Believing.' It's a special defensive item that can resist certain trait attacks, but only if you know who the attacker is and can see them. Sir should also know that some traits may not have clear indicators when activated."
The manager introduced several similar items, most of which seemed somewhat useless.
But Xu Huo was quite interested in "Stuttering Malice" and "Seeing Is Believing."
After his perfect evolution and subsequent mental super evolution, his perception and senses had become much sharper, far exceeding his body's reaction speed. 0.5 seconds was roughly the time it took to blink twice. Although short, the added 0.5 seconds could provide a certain chance of early warning.
Additionally, activating traits often required specific conditions, such as special trigger phrases or particular activation methods and attack patterns. Among the people he had encountered so far, most silent and undetectable trait attacks lacked lethal power. Thus, "Seeing Is Believing" was a fairly good item for him at this stage, at least until his evolution rate increased further.
Under the manager's puzzled gaze, he chose these two items. Although they were considered useless, they were still C-grade and cost a total of three hundred thousand White Notes. After buying them, he couldn't afford anything else.
Seeing no point in continuing, Xu Huo paid and left the exchange to head to the food district and buy snacks.
He picked up various candies, especially limited editions, along with some specialty snacks from District 011. After that, he went to a mall to buy several sets of children's clothes and toys that kids liked, returning to the hotel with large and small bags.
Once in his room, he took out the Awakening Puppet and tapped its head to call out the little girl.
The girl, who appeared to be a few years old but was actually the boss of the amusement park, still wore her little pink hat, dirty old clothes, and clutched a tattered doll.
"Wow!" The girl's eyes lit up the moment she appeared, and she pounced directly on the pile of candy, tearing open packages and stuffing them into her mouth.
Xu Huo looked at her and said, "Planning to trick people again?"
"Oh, out of a hundred people, there's always one or two smart ones," the girl mumbled indistinctly, her gaze drifting to the toys and clothes nearby. "Actually, I knew you were a good person the first time I saw you."
(Chapter End)