"Left and Right Combat: Both hands can wield different weapons, performing unobstructed attack maneuvers."
With this talent, Guan Ren could seamlessly slash with a blade in one hand while casting spells with the other, unleashing crossed firepower without the slightest discrepancy.
Simply put, he could dual-wield weapons and enjoy tenfold attack speed bonuses provided by the system!
This meant, with this talent, his attack speed was effectively doubled – an enormous boon for Guan Ren!
Of course, the advantages of the Left and Right Combat talent were much more profound than it seemed on the surface. Otherwise, it wouldn't have stood out amongst the myriad of top-tier talents from his past life.
Aside from the talent, Guan Ren's greatest gain was a significant increase in attributes.
After the attribute enhancement from refining the Heavenly Mystery Essence and the allocation of system-rewarded free attribute points, his attribute panel became even more formidable.
【Name: Officer Guan】
Level: 10
Class: Non-Combat
Health: 3100/3100
Stamina: 2300/2300
Attack: 310 (+70)
Defense: 290 (+70)
Attack Speed Bonus: 25%
Movement Speed Bonus: 15%
——Base Attributes——
Strength: 310
Constitution: 290
Agility: 270
Intelligence: 220
Spirit: 220
——Fixed Attributes——
Charm: 25
Luck: 60
——Talents——
Left and Right Combat, Penetration, Block, Combo
——Skills——
Expertise, Swift Wolf, Thorns Puncture, Shadow Assault, Summon Poison Wolves
Such attributes could rival some bosses.
"Finally all set."
Guan Ren exhaled, ready to leave this space.
At this juncture, the previously stationary colossal drive mechanism suddenly lit up with a faint blue light. Ultimately, its gears began to turn, emitting a squeaky mechanical sound.
"Adventurer, thank you for releasing me from the Army of Catastrophe's seal!"
A mechanical voice echoed slowly through the space: "My name is Sunward. I am the core drive of this town, but it's been so long, my energy has nearly depleted, and I am unable to maintain the device. I hope you can assist me!"
[Ding, you've triggered the hidden main quest 'Revival of the Seven Ancient Towns'! Would you like to accept?]
A system notification bell unexpectedly rang, catching Guan Ren off guard.
Revival of the Seven Ancient Towns?
And a hidden main quest, at that?
Accept!
Without hesitation, Guan Ren chose to accept the quest.
A hidden main quest, while extremely challenging, offers substantial rewards; a quest every player aspires to encounter.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"Don't worry, tell me what you need help with, and I'll do my utmost to assist you!"
"Thank you for your kindness. I am currently semi-awake and need a substantial amount of energy to fully recover, so I hope you can help me collect enough driving energy!"
[Ding, the first part of the quest 'Revival of the Seven Ancient Towns' has been unlocked!]
[Revival of the Seven Ancient Towns (Main Quest, Unique Hidden)]
[Quest Description: As the Catastrophe Corps re-emerges, the seven ancient towns that have slumbered for millennia need to be awakened to confront the approaching army of the Army of Catastrophe. As the chosen one by the spirits of the ancient towns, it is your duty to shoulder the responsibility of reviving the Seven Ancient Towns. The quest has seven parts, currently at part one.]
[First Part Quest Requirements: Replenish Sunward's spirit with sufficient energy to restart the drive device of Sunward Town, Quest Deadline: One month, Reward: Unknown, Failure Penalty: Base Attributes reduced by 50%]
A month is neither long nor short.
"What do you need to regain energy?"
"Any items that can provide energy will do."
"That's a broad range, isn't it?"
Guan Ren frowned upon hearing this.
"Worry not. Once I've accumulated a certain amount of energy, I'll be able to draw from the sun's energy through the drive device and become self-sufficient."
Sunward's spirit continued, "So, you just need to collect enough energy to start the drive device."
"And how much energy in total do you need?"
"One million energy units."
"And what does that equate to?"
"Taking the tinder you've used before, for example, such a tinder provides about 100 energy units."
"…"
Guan Ren's mouth twitched at that statement.
In other words, does it not mean he would need ten thousand Bronze Tinders to complete the quest?
Considering his rate of refining one Bronze Tinder every ten minutes, a total of ten thousand would require a full hundred thousand minutes of concentrated effort!
What does that equate to?
Without eating, drinking, sleeping, and always maintaining peak condition, it would take 70 days to complete this volume of work!
That's more than twice the mission's one-month deadline!
"Of course, that's just a comparison. If you have other equipment or items, you can refine them to restore my energy units."
Sunward's spirit added casually, "Theoretically, starting from Black Iron quality, the energy units I receive will increase with each tier of equipment quality. Typically, Black Iron can replenish about 10 energy units, Bronze 100 units, Silver 500 units, Gold 5000 units, Amethyst 50,000 units, Obsidian 500,000 units, and Faeries quality can replenish my energy fully. So you see, you have plenty of options."
"…"
Guan Ren's twitched again. Considering the finest quality Gold gear he had, it would require 200 pieces to accumulate enough energy for Sunward Town's drive device to operate autonomously!
What does this entail?
Currently, Gold quality equipment commands an astronomical price in the market; even a single piece could fetch ten million Sea-Blue Coins.
And 200 pieces of Gold quality gear would sum up to a staggering two billion Sea-Blue Coins!
Who could withstand such a cost?
"The energy generated by the tinder explosion was only temporary, allowing me to awaken. Now as my energy is drained, I must fall into slumber again. Take this transmission token; it'll let you teleport here anytime…"
Sunward's spirit's voice faded away, ultimately dissipating within the space as the soft blue light on the giant drive device vanished.
Clank.
A vintage token fell to the ground in front of Guan Ren.
[Sunward Token: The core token of Sunward Town, use to teleport to the secret underground space of Sunward Town.]
"Sigh, nothing to do but to take it step by step."
Guan Ren chuckled wryly and pocketed the token.
After all, it's a hidden main quest; it should be inherently challenging, or it wouldn't quite make sense.
On the other hand, the higher the difficulty in the game, the richer the rewards.
Given that, the rewards of this Revival of the Seven Ancient Towns quest must be extraordinarily generous!
However, as Guan Ren steeled his resolve and began to refine the Bronze Tinders, an incredible discovery sent him into an ecstatic frenzy.
"This... it can actually work this way!?"