Everything went smoothly as the old appraiser helped me identify the remaining equipment. It was clear that Master Carter truly embodied the spirit of a dedicated appraiser, someone who believed it was their duty to restore the original glory of treasures covered in dust, unlike those greedy fellows who stayed in the appraisal guilds all day.

"Young man, since you’ve got what you wanted, could you do an old man a small favor?" The old appraiser wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked kindly as he watched me put a pile of equipment glowing with red, gold, and rainbow hues into my backpack.

"What do you need? Sir, just let me know! As long as it doesn't involve money or food, I'm ready to go through fire and water for you." I patted my chest, making a joke with the old man in a righteous tone.

"Ah! I'm not some kind of villain. I wouldn't ask for such things." The old man’s expression turned serious as he hurriedly clarified.

The two guys beside me looked at us with curiosity. How could I talk to an NPC like this?

"Could you let me see that sword in your backpack?" The old man pointed to my backpack and gestured, "Not the one I just appraised, but the other two-handed sword."

Hmm? How did this old man know I had the Dragon Slayer in my backpack? Could he have the legendary Divine Eye? The thought made me feel a surge of fear as I took a few steps back and tightly gripped my backpack, staring at the old man in disbelief. "How... how do you know?"

"Well, I just got promoted to Grandmaster and my ultimate reward was the Divine Eye." The old man seemed a bit embarrassed, as it was improper to secretly view a player's equipment even with the Divine Eye.

The appraisal skill not only identified equipment but also assessed the level and health of monsters and players. At the Grandmaster level, you could see the attributes of a player's equipment. However, having the Divine Eye allowed you to see all the attributes of a character, with nothing hidden from its sharp gaze. But reaching Grandmaster was no easy task. One had to constantly appraise equipment to increase proficiency, progressing from Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Master, and finally, with some serendipitous opportunity, to Grandmaster. Becoming a Grandmaster was almost a myth; it required not only proficiency but also the right time, place, and opportunity.

Frankly, the greedy appraisers in the guilds were at most Master level. Even a few Grandmasters should be rare, and their ability to identify divine and gold artifacts was merely a special system skill.

"I know this request is a bit unreasonable. How about this, I'll take you as my apprentice, and you can start learning appraising skills at the advanced level." Carter cautiously proposed. It seemed this quest item was extremely important to him. Could this be a hidden quest?

"Alright!" I gritted my teeth and agreed to the old appraiser's request. After accepting Carter's apprenticeship request and confirming, I saw that my appraising skill had indeed reached the advanced level.

The two self-proclaimed experts beside me were thoroughly stunned today. Their eyes were filled with confusion and... admiration! To them, I seemed incredibly amazing and charming! Even the tattered white mage robe I wore now exuded an air of mystery.

Ignoring the two petrified bystanders, I drew out the Dragon Slayer—Punishment of the Dragon.

If seeing the divine artifact earlier made Carter excited, his current expression could only be described as shock or disbelief.

The two-handed sword, which I could barely lift, was now held effortlessly in the old appraiser's hand. The azure light flowed quietly over the white blade, and the four of us in the room held our breath, staring at the large inscription on the blade—Punishment of the Dragon (Quest Item).

After a long while, the old appraiser looked up with a confused and indescribable emotion in his eyes, then sighed softly, "Ah, after all this time, I can finally see it again. Young man, take care of it." He then gently swung the sword in the air, creating an afterimage. The extremely heavy two-handed sword seemed incredibly light in his hands.

The two petrified guys beside me followed the movement of the sword with their eyes, completely forgetting where they were.

Without unnecessary words, the old appraiser played with the sword for a while before returning it to me, his expression returning to normal. As the last bit of light from the blade entered the backpack, the fatty finally woke up.

"Punishment of the Dragon, the legendary Dragon Slayer?" The fatty stammered. No wonder he was in the information business; he knew the game’s background very well.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

I nodded lightly, feeling a bit melancholy. I had hoped the old man would provide some extra clues, but he just said a few words and fell silent. Was he not the quest trigger point?

"Ah! I'm getting old and can't stay up late. You youngsters should leave now." Master Carter yawned, his eyes returning to the cloudy look they had when I first came in.

Since he had given the order to leave, there was no need to stay any longer. Besides, all the equipment had been appraised for free, and I had learned the advanced appraisal skill. It was more than I had aimed for. What regret could I have?

I pulled the two dazed guys, and we turned to leave the old appraiser.

As I stepped out the door, the old man called out, "Young man, oh no, my good disciple, thank you so much for coming today. As a final gift, I hope your achievements will surpass mine." He said, taking out a ring emitting a soft blue glow from his pocket. "As for this great sword, I can’t give you any more information. Everything depends on fate."

Wasn't that just stating the obvious? But this ring… Carter's Concentration, increasing appraisal skill level by one. As I put it on my finger, my appraisal skill instantly rose to Master level. A great item!

After bidding farewell to the old man, the three of us walked silently to the fatty's private room.

Once back in the room, the two grabbed their teacups and took a deep gulp, followed by a heavy sigh. After a while, they finally calmed down.

"Brother! If you ever need help in the future, just let us know!" The fatty sent a friend request. To him, I was simply… a legendary upstart. He was almost certain I had mysteriously obtained the Dragon Slayer and had really slain a dragon. How else could I have such a high level and so many treasures?

I smiled slightly and accepted their friend requests, signaling them to sit down before laying all my equipment on the table. Instantly, the room was filled with dazzling light.

"Aren't you afraid we'll steal it?" The skinny guy hesitated for a long time before asking an extremely pointless question, earning a big eye-roll from the fatty.

"Haha, if you can take it, feel free to try." In the game, you could rob items from a player's hands or those not dropped on the ground, though successful or not, you would get a forced PK value. Unlike stealing, which only put you in a PK state. In Fate, a ten-level gap was a significant barrier. For instance, you couldn't rob items from a player ten levels higher (duh, what would it mean for a newbie to rob a high-level player?), binding skills couldn’t hold players or monsters ten levels higher, and appraisal skills couldn’t view players or monsters more than ten levels higher... and so on.

Clearly, this guy had lost his mind and didn't consider what level I was.

"Now you can take pictures, get a family photo." Prompting Global Access to get a multi-angle DEMO, it would also be good for promotion—Global Access’s camera was thrown on the ground by me!

After they had enough of viewing, I began equipping the items one by one.

Ring: Dawn Goddess's Protection (Gold), increases MP limit by 18%, increases spirit by 8 points, adds 1000 storage space, requires level 45. Though the level requirement wasn't high, its attributes were quite impressive, especially the percentage increase in MP, which was perfect for spellcasters. Plus, the extra 1000 storage spaces were comparable to a dedicated storage ring—backpack 200 slots, belt 400, storage ring 800. Storage rings and belts were sold by the system, and they were extremely expensive!

Ring: Sonya's Heart Blood (Red), increases constitution by 11 points, increases HP limit by 11%, requires level 48—no need to explain, just put it on.

Shield: Dragon Shield (Gold), defense increases by 48, magic defense 16%, adds skill: Savage Charge, certain chance of complete physical defense, has 2 slots; requires strength 53, constitution 27, requires profession: Warrior.

Two-handed Sword: Barbarian’s Judgement (X-Grade), attack 77~89, certain chance to stun the enemy, certain chance to knock back the enemy, certain chance to ignore enemy defense, has 3 slots; requires strength 64, constitution 32, requires profession: Warrior.

It seems that accessory equipment requirements are much simpler and more straightforward than others, at least for these two rings. As I put them on, I reported the attributes to the two guys, watching their drooling faces. It felt incredibly satisfying!

After reporting the attributes of the remaining two pieces of equipment, I smiled at the fatty, "You two, besides knowing my attributes, you can now see me without anything hidden. I absolutely do not want a fourth person to know my situation."

Flipping the brilliantly glowing two-handed sword, I couldn't help but marvel at it. Sonya was truly a BOSS;，look at these three additional attributes... truly worthy of the name "Barbarian’s Judgement!"

"Brother, even at a time like this, you're saying these things? The two of us have played many games, though this is the first time we've entered as part of our job. But we understand the word 'trustworthiness'." The fatty recovered and smiled wryly. "If we betrayed you, I, the fatty, would have no face to continue in this game."

"Yes, of course. Actually, I see you two as sincere people, and I am also willing to make friends with you; otherwise, I wouldn't have been so honest." Putting away the equipment, I sat upright facing them. At this moment, every move I made was accompanied by a rainbow of light. Except... this outfit was really a bit ragged.

"Alright then, let's talk about future cooperation." The fatty returned to his businessman's persona, his face suddenly filled with shrewdness.

"To be honest, we are planning to buy a large piece of land in Tysee and open the first and largest auction house in the game."

"Oh? How am I supposed to cooperate?" I already had a vague idea of the fatty's thoughts.

"Hehe, well, don't you have some warrior equipment? You can use it as a showpiece to cause a sensation." The skinny guy said with a fawning smile.

"Hmm, that can be considered, after all, I can't use it. So, what's your plan?"

"Reputation! Damn it, buying land requires at least 1000 reputation points!" The fatty said angrily. "We have someone specifically doing reputation quests and hunting bosses, but since the game started, his reputation is only 500, still half short!"

Haha! This is the legendary business opportunity! How did I not think of speculating in real estate?