"I know, that's why I said I've been waiting for you." Lena nodded with a smile, "You have three missions to choose from. The first is a normal difficulty mission. After completing it, only five attribute points of 'Thief's Heritage' will be upgraded, while the rest remain unchanged! The second is an S-class mission, upon completion your medal will be fully upgraded. The mission is as simple as ever, just give money. This time, it won't cost you your entire fortune, just six million gold coins will do! The third is also an S-class mission, which you have a 99% chance of failing, but if you complete it, it will also fully upgrade your medal."
As simple as ever! Six million gold coins! You might as well rob me!
After hearing Lena's three mission options, Xiao Hua's expression darkened! The first option didn't need to be mentioned, it was the worst choice. As long as there were other options, he wouldn't consider it. The 'Thief's Heritage' had excellent attributes, upgrading only the common ones would be a waste. The second mission required six million gold coins, which he could afford now, but following this trend, how much would it cost to advance at level 40, or at level 50? As for the third mission, when Lena said he had a 99% chance of failure, she was probably being polite, 100% might be more accurate!
"Please choose carefully. The difference between a full upgrade and a normal upgrade of your medal is significant!" Lena looked at Xiao Hua's expression, blinked her big eyes, and spoke in a seductive voice.
"Hmm, how about this? Considering the great contribution you've made to Snowdrift City, I'll give you a special opportunity. You can attempt the third mission first. If you determine that it's impossible to complete, you can then choose another one," Lena suggested when she saw Xiao Hua hesitating, her eyes flashing with a glint as she offered a very lenient condition.
After Lena said this, Xiao Hua was even more convinced that the third mission was not something an ordinary person could accomplish. But without trying, he couldn't just hand over six million gold coins. Besides, he wanted to see what this S-class mission was about. Even if he couldn't complete it, being extorted for six million would at least broaden his horizons.
"What is the third mission? Please tell me, Miss Lena," Xiao Hua nodded and said after thinking it through.
"Alright. In fact, this mission has existed for a long time. Many years ago, an adventurer discovered a lava cave atop the Riven Ridge outside Snowdrift City. Inside was a Flame Giant. The adventurer delved deep into the cave and discovered the Flame Giant, but was unfortunately spotted by it. To save his life, the adventurer had to throw away a very precious necklace of Poseidon. This necklace had a strong fire suppression effect, and when it hit the Flame Giant, it temporarily restricted its movement, giving the adventurer a chance to escape.
"The adventurer managed to escape, but the Poseidon Necklace he lost held great significance—it was a gift from his first love. Therefore, he offered a huge reward in gold, hoping someone could retrieve the necklace for him.
"What you need to do is very simple, yet also very difficult. You only need to retrieve the Poseidon Necklace from the lava cave to complete the mission. However, according to my knowledge, the necklace hangs around the Flame Giant, so you need to kill it to obtain it. Countless people have attempted this mission for the large reward, but none have succeeded!"
Lena was clearly familiar with this mission, explaining it fluently.
System Prompt: You accepted the mission "Lost Poseidon Necklace"!
Lost Poseidon Necklace: Retrieve the lost Poseidon Necklace from the depths of the lava cave. Upon completion, receive a huge reward!
Mission Difficulty: S!
A Flame Giant? Sounds like a BOSS, doesn't it? Xiao Hua's eyes lit up after hearing the mission details, excitement surging in his heart!
"Miss Lena, if I remember correctly, the Riven Ridge cannot normally be climbed, right?" Xiao Hua then frowned and asked. He had been to the Riven Ridge only once, but the impression of that place was profound—the cliffs were sheer like a knife-cut, unless one could fly or had special equipment, it was absolutely impossible to climb!
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"You're right, for this, I've prepared a pair of special shoes!" Lena smiled and took out a pair of black leather shoes, placing them on the wooden table.
Climber's Shoes (Fashion): Shoes prepared for adventurers who enjoy climbing high places. Equipping them grants the ability to climb cliffs!
Special ability fashion shoes?
Good stuff!
Xiao Hua's eyes shone even brighter, immediately thinking of obtaining a pair for himself.
"Don't think about it. This is the only pair I have!" Lena seemed to see through Xiao Hua's thoughts and quickly dispelled his hopes before he could even ask.
"Thank you, Miss Lena. I'll return them after use." Well, seems like this is just a mission item. Thinking too much about it is pointless. Better focus on the BOSS.
Xiao Hua reached out to take the shoes, but Lena was quicker, putting them away.
"Money! Ten thousand gold coins per day!" Lena stretched out her palm with a smile.
Hmm, looks like I underestimated Miss Lena's obsession with gold!
Xiao Hua resignedly gave Lena ten thousand gold coins. Ten thousand gold coins for a chance to meet a BOSS was worth it.
"Miss Lena, it seems you really love gold coins, everything must involve gold!" Xiao Hua felt it necessary to understand this young thief mentor who only saw gold coins.
"Oh, you noticed? How clever! Gold coins are so shiny and bright, I couldn't help but love them since childhood. Since then, whatever I did, I always thought about how to get more gold coins! According to my father, when I was little, I once swallowed a gold coin whole after seeing someone else with one! Of course, I think that must be a joke; a child couldn't possibly swallow a gold coin!" Hearing Xiao Hua talk about gold coins, Lena excitedly shared her story, her eyes filled with intense enthusiasm!
"Look, this is a gold coin. See how shiny it is!" Lena picked up a gold coin with her index finger and thumb, holding it in front of her eyes, full of admiration.
In the dimly lit Thief's Guild due to lack of funds, Xiao Hua looked at the gold coin in Lena's hand. Perhaps influenced by her enthusiastic gaze, it did seem exceptionally shiny!
"Indeed, it's very shiny. So, Miss Lena, what do you plan to do with all those gold coins you collect?" Given Lena's character, she must have collected quite a lot!
"Do? How could I use them! My precious gold coins, how could I spend them? I can't even collect them fast enough!" Lena exclaimed in surprise.
"Miss Lena, you must spend money to buy things, right?"
"Aren't there silver and copper coins?"
...
Xiao Hua, who always had only gold coins in mind, left the Thief's Guild with a white flag after being harshly ridiculed by Lena. While Lena was a gold fanatic, she wasn't a miser. She spent freely on anything except gold. Looking at Lena's fanatical gaze when looking at gold coins, Xiao Hua wondered if he could bribe this thief mentor with tens of millions of gold coins.
Riven Ridge wasn't far. After a brief daydream, Xiao Hua arrived at the valley enclosed by the Riven Ridge. When he first saw the black-red rocky ground with little snow, he was puzzled. After accepting the mission, he finally understood why the ground here was this color—it must be related to the lava cave.
Equipping the Climber's Shoes, Xiao Hua found that they weren't as useful as he imagined. On steep cliffs, the shoes were useless. No matter how hard he tried, he would fall off after two steps. After trying for about half an hour along the cliffs surrounding the Riven Ridge, he finally found a relatively gentle slope and managed to climb up with great effort.
On top of the ridge was a rugged terrain of protruding rocks. Although there were no obstructions, it was rare to see snow. In many places, the rocks were split into various cracks, living up to the name of Riven Ridge.
Xiao Hua carefully moved around searching for the lava cave. According to Lena, the cave wasn't far or hidden. The entrance should be about four to five hundred meters ahead, near a pile of higher rocks. The key was that on this rugged terrain, he could only walk and his movement speed would be greatly reduced.
Damn, it would be great if I had a flying mount!
A flying mount would obviously not be restricted by this terrain. After sighing, Xiao Hua decided that after completing this second advancement mission, he would try his luck in the Green Light Forest. Even if he couldn't get a flying mount, a top-notch mount with an initial speed of 90% or above was a must!
Ten minutes later, Xiao Hua cautiously reached the pile of rocks he could see from afar.
This was a pile of fire-red rocks, clearly different from the gray or dark red-black rocks below. After circling the pile for nearly five minutes, Xiao Hua found a large cave entrance on the other side!
Peering into the entrance, the cave was pitch black. Xiao Hua had prepared a torch in his backpack, but using it would attract monsters' attention and prevent him from sneaking. In this unknown cave, it was impossible to use it recklessly. Xiao Hua entered the cave, stopped a few steps from the entrance, waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, then activated stealth and slowly crept inside.