Online Game: Lord Of The Wheel Of Destiny

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Jiang Kai still felt somewhat uncertain.

Strength was directly linked to attack power, but without a better weapon, even doubling his strength wouldn't help if he couldn't pierce through defenses.

He was also short on mental energy—his Scorched Chasing Nine Tribulations consumed a significant amount of it.

Stamina, too, was critical. If it ran out during battle, he'd be dead for sure.

Nevertheless, Jiang Kai decided to allocate all points to agility. As a ranged attacker, agility not only increased his speed but also improved mobility, indirectly boosting both offensive and defensive capabilities.

As for evenly distributing the points, there simply wasn't enough time for such calculations.

"Whatever, it's free anyway," Jiang Kai muttered, shaking his head before continuing to sift through his loot.

Among the many gemstone-grade ores, Jiang Kai found a sapphire that stood out. This gem was purer than the others, as if it contained liquid blue light within.

[Frost Jade Stone: A Tier-3 Treasure, imbued with icy powers.]

"A treasure artifact!" Jiang Kai's eyes widened—it was his first-ever treasure artifact, and it was Tier-3.

Barely containing his excitement, Jiang Kai quickly stored the Frost Jade Stone in his card pouch and moved on.

Next, he grabbed the heaviest item he had salvaged—a shield.

Only now did he notice that the lower half of the shield had a jagged edge, indicating it was damaged.

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[Cracked Frost Tower Shield: Crafted from rare Froststeel, originally a Tier-4 item, now Tier-2. Defense: 38. Strength +72 (-53). Constitution +68 (-42). Agility -14 (+10). Requirements: Strength 428 (-299), Tier-2 class.

Special Effect 1: Attacking with the Frost Tower Shield causes "freeze" status on targets.

Special Effect 2: Despite damage, retains partial attributes for continued use.

Special Effects 3 and 4: Invalid.]

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Though the Frost Tower Shield had suffered significant downgrades, its Defense stat remained untouched. This meant its remaining parts still offered top-tier protection.

Initially disappointed to have salvaged a broken item, Jiang Kai's eyes lit up upon reading its attributes.

The second special effect, which allowed the shield to remain functional despite damage, alone made it worth keeping.

Its other attributes, though diminished, were still respectable for a Tier-2 item. But the 38 Defense Points were unparalleled.

"Thirty-eight defense points? The best Tier-2 armor I've seen barely reached 20. And it even has a freeze effect... an absolute gem!" Jiang Kai exclaimed, carefully stashing the shield away.

Besides the shield, Jiang Kai also acquired numerous high-quality ores and gemstones, many of which he didn't recognize. These would have to wait until later when he could consult Ruan Yu to save on appraisal costs.

Among the ores, there were some pieces of Nuclear Soil, Blood Essence Crystals, and Heavenly Bones, all common but valuable treasures.

While sorting through the loot, Jiang Kai spotted a piece of paper under a larger stone.

"What's this?" Jiang Kai wondered, picking it up.

The paper had writing on it and didn't require an appraisal card.

The first side seemed to list materials, though it wasn't clear what for. When Jiang Kai flipped it over, he froze in shock.

[Tier-2 Destiny Material Formula]

Jiang Kai's mind buzzed, and he stood motionless for a long moment.

Destiny Materials... This was what people now referred to as "incomplete materials."

The original term, however, was Destiny Materials.

The formula on this paper detailed how to create Tier-2 Destiny Materials.

This was a concept never before seen among global players.

As realization dawned, Jiang Kai muttered, "Tier-2 Destiny Materials… does this mean…"

He could theoretically craft the materials needed for his gambler's Tier-2 progression or use Destiny Materials as a substitute.

Quickly, he reviewed the formula:

[1 unit of Rootless Water, 1 unit of Soulless Fire, 1 unit of Baseless Earth, 1 unit of Unmoving Wind, 1 unit of Formless Gold.]

Jiang Kai's expression froze as he read the ingredients. Without a word, he folded the paper and stashed it away.

"Forget it! I'll stick to finding gambler progression materials."

The ingredients listed were absurd: Rootless Water might be rainwater, but what in the world was Soulless Fire or Baseless Earth? This wasn't alchemy—it was nonsense.

Compared to this, searching for the gambler's materials seemed far more realistic.

Still, the loot Jiang Kai had managed to salvage exceeded all his expectations.

The total value of his haul, easily worth billions of alliance coins, likely rivaled the combined yield of the entire Xuanwu Guild operation.

And this was after salvaging only a fraction of the treasure chest's contents.

"Secret treasures truly live up to their reputation… shame they're so rare," Jiang Kai muttered, making one last sweep to ensure nothing was overlooked.

Finally, he turned his attention to his current predicament.

Two options lay before him: die here and log out forcefully, or find a way to escape.

As someone burdened with the Bloodthirsty Killer status, Jiang Kai immediately dismissed the first option.

Looking up, he saw the ceiling, several hundred meters high, sealed with ice. There was, however, a narrow crack—his only potential escape route.

Climbing up would be an immense challenge, given the sheer verticality of the icy walls.

"This is gonna be tough... Better rest first and figure out a plan later."

———

The Next Day

Ruan Yu groggily opened his eyes, clutching his head as he sat up.

"Ugh… it hurts!" he groaned, grimacing in pain.

Though he had no memory of being pummeled by his "spicy little pepper," the injuries covering his bandaged body were proof enough.

Looking around, he realized they were still on Eternal Frozen Island.

"Where's everyone else? Old Hu?" Ruan Yu called out.

Sitting by a nearby crack in the ice, Hu Yan turned at the sound and reluctantly walked over.

"You're awake? Everyone else has left. I didn't have the strength to carry you, so I patched you up and let you rest here."

"And… the boss? What happened to the Fishman Lord? Where's the captain?"

Hu Yan's expression darkened. "The Fishman Lord was slain by Jiang Fang. But before it died, it unleashed its death revenge… and swallowed the captain."

"S-swallowed?" Ruan Yu's eyes widened. "What were you doing? You said no matter what, we wouldn't let the captain get hurt!"

"You think I didn't try? You think I'm faster than the Fishman Lord?" Hu Yan retorted angrily.

Ruan Yu's expression fell, but guilt and sorrow consumed him.

Hu Yan sighed, placing a comforting hand on Ruan Yu's shoulder. "I get it. I feel the same way. But we need to move on. Let's head back to the camp and wait for the captain to respawn."

As they prepared to leave, a faint sound emerged from the crack in the ice.

Both men froze.

"Don't tell me… it's a Fishman!" Ruan Yu whispered, trembling.

The two grabbed nearby ice chunks and hurled them into the crack with all their strength, ensuring whatever was down there wouldn't crawl out.

Suddenly, a voice echoed from below:

"Damn it, who's throwing ice? I finally climbed all the way up! Ow!"

The voice reverberated through the crevice, filled with indignation and pain.

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