Lu Tiechen didn't return to the beginner village immediately.
The Glimmer Iron Ore lay in his inventory. Its description was simple.
[Glimmer Iron Ore]
[Material]
[Description: Low-grade iron ore with a faint luster and relatively few impurities. Suitable for Basic Forging.]
Those few lines made his fingers itch.
This was the first real forging material he had obtained since entering Age of the Ancient Gods.
Not a free Low-Grade Iron Blank from the smithy, nor some basic supply barely suitable for practice. Ore dropped by a minor field boss.
Even if the system still rated it as a low-grade material, it was far better than the free stuff piled in the corner of the beginner village smithy.
Of course Lu Tiechen wanted to go back and try it immediately.
He wanted to know what kind of equipment he could make with this Glimmer Iron Ore.
If he added other materials, could he give the equipment extra attributes?
The questions flickered through his mind like sparks in a furnace.
But in the end, he suppressed the urge.
It was too soon to go back.
He looked at the Toughhide Tunic in his inventory.
[Toughhide Tunic]
[Quality: Common (White)]
[Required Level: 4]
[Defense +5]
[Health +30]
[Durability: 45/45]
He couldn't wear it yet.
But he was already partway through Level 3, with Level 4 not far away.
The safer choice was to reach Level 4, equip the Toughhide Tunic for better survivability, then return to the smithy and forge without worry.
Forging was the same.
Until the heat was right, you couldn't rush the hammer blow.
Lu Tiechen closed his inventory, tightened his grip on the Sharp Iron Sword, and headed back toward the Grayhide Boar and Fanged Hound spawns.
After fighting the Grayhide Boar King, he had become much more familiar with the monsters in this area.
Grayhide Boars were powerful but had simple attack patterns.
Fanged Hounds were fast but had low Defense.
Both were troublesome for ordinary players.
They couldn't withstand the first and couldn't dodge the second.
For Lu Tiechen, though, the situation remained manageable as long as he didn't pull two or more at once.
He didn't venture into the deeper areas.
There might be higher-level monsters and better rewards there, but the risk was unnecessary.
What he wanted now wasn't adventure. It was steady leveling.
The first Grayhide Boar fell.
[You have slain a Grayhide Boar.]
[You have gained 32 Experience Points.]
His second target, a Fanged Hound, fell next.
[You have slain a Fanged Hound.]
[Higher-level enemy defeated. Experience reward increased.]
[You have gained 42 Experience Points.]
At Level 3, the bonus for higher-level kills was a little smaller.
But his efficiency here was still far better than at the village gate.
More importantly, there were fewer people.
The area outside the village was already packed. Level 1 rabbits and Level 2 wolves barely lasted a few seconds after spawning before crowds descended on them.
Many players hacked away for ages only to receive a pitiful participation reward.
Lu Tiechen's hunting grounds were much quieter.
Occasionally, players passing nearby saw him chasing down Level 4 and 5 monsters alone and stopped to stare.
"Him again?"
"Wasn't he the one fighting the Grayhide Boar King earlier?"
"No idea, but that sword hits hard."
"What level is he? How's he grinding so fast?"
Lu Tiechen heard them and ignored them.
He kept drawing monsters, watching, and striking.
After every kill, he checked the drops.
Copper Coins.
Boar Hides.
Fanged Hound Teeth.
Occasionally, a piece of Low-Grade Iron Ore.
Still no equipment.
The equipment drop rate in Age of the Ancient Gods was absurdly low. Even after spending so long fighting higher-level monsters, he had yet to see another equipment drop.
That made him increasingly certain that forging might be worth far more in this game than most players imagined.
If equipment was hard to loot, players would eventually need a reliable source.
Quest rewards were limited.
Monster drop rates were too low.
Shop equipment had mediocre stats and high prices.
In the end, only Life Professions could truly sustain players' demand for replacement gear.
And forging happened to be the primary source of weapons and some kinds of armor.
Another Fanged Hound leaped at him.
Lu Tiechen sidestepped and drove his sword into its throat.
-34!
The hound fell with a howl.
[You have slain a Fanged Hound.]
[You have gained 42 Experience Points.]
At last, white light rose around him.
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 4.]
[Health +20]
[Attack +1]
[Defense +1]
[You have gained 2 Unallocated Attribute Points.]
Lu Tiechen exhaled, stepped back beneath a tree, and opened his character panel.
[Character: Lu Tiechen]
[Level: 4]
[Health: 160/160]
[Attack: 11–15]
[Defense: 4]
[Unallocated Attribute Points: 6]
From Level 1 to Level 4, he had earned 6 attribute points.
He hadn't spent any of them.
He still hadn't been sure how they affected forging.
Strength, Agility, Constitution, Spirit.
For ordinary players, the simplest approach was probably Strength for Warriors, Agility for Assassins, Constitution for Shield Warriors, and Spirit for Mages.
Lu Tiechen was different.
He wasn't just here to fight monsters.
The path he truly wanted to follow was forging.
His attribute allocation had to account for that.
Agility might let him strike faster.
Spirit might improve his perception.
Constitution could help him endure high temperatures longer.
After considering it for a long time, however, Lu Tiechen put all 6 points into Strength.
[Strength +6]
His panel changed slightly.
[Attack: 14–18]
Lu Tiechen clenched his fist.
A heavier, steadier power seemed to fill his body.
Looking down at his hand, he remembered something his grandfather Lu Shanhai had said.
"A smith needs a keen eye and a steady heart. But his hands have to be strong, too."
"You can see everything perfectly, but if you can't bring the hammer down, it's all for nothing."
Lu Tiechen agreed wholeheartedly.
To forge strong iron, the smith had to be strong himself.
He was using a Common Forging Hammer now, so a lack of Strength hadn't been an obvious problem.
What about later?
What if he found a better hammer, heavier ore, or a material that was harder to shape, only to discover he couldn't even swing the hammer steadily?
Forging wasn't a matter of standing nearby and talking.
No matter how accurate his perception was, the hammer in his hand still had to do the work.
After allocating his points, Lu Tiechen took the Toughhide Tunic from his inventory.
The moment he equipped it, gray-black leather armor covered his Beginner's Cloth Tunic. The design wasn't attractive—it was rather crude—but the chest and shoulders were reinforced, and the leather felt resilient.
[You have equipped Toughhide Tunic.]
[Health +30]
[Defense +5]
Lu Tiechen opened his panel again.
[Character: Lu Tiechen]
[Level: 4]
[Health: 190/190]
[Attack: 14–18]
[Defense: 9]
[Unallocated Attribute Points: 0]
He nodded in satisfaction.
At least a charge like the Grayhide Boar King's wouldn't leave him nearly dead in one hit now.
Of course, that only meant he was a little harder to kill.
If he wanted to hold his own in higher-level areas, this white Toughhide Tunic was nowhere near enough.
He needed better gear.
And he would make that gear himself.
Lu Tiechen put away his sword and turned toward the beginner village.
This time, he stopped grinding.
The Glimmer Iron Ore had waited in his inventory long enough.
He couldn't wait any longer, either.
There were noticeably more players on the way back.
As time passed since launch, the first wave of players had begun reaching Levels 2 and 3 and spreading out from the village gate.
Most still didn't dare enter the Level 4 and 5 areas, staying near the stray dogs instead.
Lu Tiechen quickly attracted attention as he approached.
The reason was simple.
He was wearing actual equipment.
At this stage, most players still wore the Beginner's Cloth Tunic provided by the system and carried dull wooden swords or staves.
Even an occasional piece of Gray Gear would immediately draw a crowd.
Lu Tiechen's Toughhide Tunic was only White Gear, but it looked far more impressive than a starter tunic.
The gray-black leather armor fitted his body, with reinforced patterns across the chest and shoulders. One look told anyone it wasn't starter equipment.
And he carried an iron sword as well.
"Look at that guy."
"He's got armor already?"
"White Gear, right? The color's brighter than Gray Gear."
"Lucky guy. The servers have barely opened, and he's got a weapon and armor."
"Probably killed some minor boss with a party."
"Could've been a hidden quest."
Comments came from all sides.
Lu Tiechen remained calm and kept walking.
They saw his equipment and assumed he was lucky.
None of them knew that the most important thing he carried was neither the Toughhide Tunic nor the Sharp Iron Sword.
It was the Glimmer Iron Ore in his inventory.
The closer he got to the village, the more players he encountered.
At the gate, people still argued red-faced over monster spawns. Buying requests streamed through the area chat.
"Paying well for white weapons! PM me!"
"Buying Gray Gear, any stats. Price negotiable."
"Any Blacksmith players around? I need my weapon's Durability repaired."
"Forget it. Life Professions are a trap right now. Anyone who trains one loses out."
Lu Tiechen slowed for a moment at that last line.
Anyone who trained one lost out?
He said nothing and continued toward the eastern side of the village.
The smithy looked much as before.
It was a little busier, with several players attempting to forge.
System-guided target spots flashed repeatedly.
One player frantically swung at the glowing marks.
Clang!
The iron blank bent out of shape.
[Forging failed.]
Another player swore.
"What kind of damned Life Profession is this? It's way too hard!"
"I hit exactly where it told me to. How did I fail?"
"Forget it. I'd be better off grinding."
A few players shook their heads and left, passing Lu Tiechen on their way out.
One noticed his Toughhide Tunic, then his iron sword, and his eyes lit up.
"Hey, where'd you get that gear?"
Lu Tiechen didn't answer. He walked straight into the smithy.
The owner, the bearded middle-aged NPC, was inspecting a short blade a player had ruined beside the furnace.
Hearing footsteps, he looked up.
His expression immediately changed.
"You?"
He set down the blade and actually came forward to greet him.
Several players in the shop stared.
The NPC had barely acknowledged them since they'd arrived. Beyond basic instruction, he hardly reacted at all.
Yet he was this welcoming toward Lu Tiechen?
The blacksmith looked him up and down, pausing at the Toughhide Tunic and the sword in his hand.
"Leveled up?"
Lu Tiechen nodded.
"Level 4."
Surprise flickered in the blacksmith's eyes.
"That fast?"
Lu Tiechen didn't explain. He simply took out the Glimmer Iron Ore.
A faint sheen covered the ore as it appeared in his palm.
The glow was subtle, but much clearer than ordinary Low-Grade Iron Ore, as though flecks of starlight were hidden inside.
The blacksmith's gaze fixed on it.
"Glimmer Iron Ore?"
Lu Tiechen looked at him.
"May I borrow your furnace, sir?"
The blacksmith studied the ore, then Lu Tiechen.
After a moment, he grinned.
"Just call me Tie Shan. Anyone else would have to pay."
"You don't."
He stepped aside, clearing the space beside the anvil.
"Let's see it."
"What can you make this time?"