Ethan moved stealthily, avoiding wave after wave of players descending the mountain. It seemed most of them had already used their Teleportation Stones to return to the city. Only a few thousand remained, scattered across the slopes.
From his vantage point, he could see the northern and eastern gates of Lakeview Town in the distance. Crowds of players were pouring out, spreading across the landscape in a systematic search pattern. There was no doubt—they were hunting for him. But they’d never guess that he hadn’t even left the mountain.
Ethan kept an eye on his Combat Cooldown Timer. In just a few minutes, he’d be able to use his Divine Ability: Teleportation.
While he waited, he opened his inventory to inspect the item he’d risked his life for. He’d even burned through a High-Grade Instant Recovery Potion, costing him seventy-five gold, and nearly depleted his Grappling Launcher, another fifty gold. All in all, this little escapade had cost him the equivalent of $125,000 in real-world cash.
But when he saw the name of the item, his eyes lit up with excitement.
It was worth it… absolutely worth it.
[Blessed Seal of Crafting (Unique)]
- All Crafting Skills: +2 Levels (Can raise skills up to Grandmaster Tier.)
- All Crafting Skills: Increased proficiency gain rate.
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- All Crafting Skills: +20% Success Rate.
- All Crafting Skills: +50% Efficiency.
- Effect: Activates immediately when carried in the inventory.
Ethan’s heart raced as he read the description. He’d only ever heard rumors of an item like this. In his past life, someone had obtained the [Blessed Seal of Combat (Unique)], and there had been speculation about whether a crafting version existed. But no one had ever confirmed it—until now. And it was in his hands.
Every single attribute on this item was overpowered on its own. Leveling up crafting skills was notoriously difficult. It wasn’t just about accumulating enough proficiency points; you also had to pass rigorous exams to advance to the next tier. And the higher your skill level, the harder it was to gain proficiency. Crafting low-tier items often gave no proficiency at all.
Even four years into the game, by the time Ethan had died and been reborn, only a handful of players worldwide had reached the Artisan Tier. As for Grandmaster Tier, there were only three in the entire world.
With this item, he could hand it over to Mad Engineer, and his Engineering Skill would jump from Intermediate to Master Tier instantly. Not only would he gain the ability to craft Master-tier items, but his success rate for lower-tier crafts would skyrocket. If they could get their hands on a high-tier or Master-tier blueprint, they could monopolize the market, pushing system shop items out entirely.
Blueprints, recipes… Ethan’s mind raced. He’d need to rally Skyblade and the others for some serious battles.
During his last meeting with Celia, she’d mentioned the source of the blueprints and recipes she’d provided to NoPaperOnTheBigOne. One of their guild members had stumbled upon a hidden NPC in a remote location. This NPC refreshed one Intermediate-tier Engineering and Alchemy blueprint every day. Celia had already stationed thirty rogues around the area to guard it, killing any players who got too close.
The guild member who discovered the NPC had been paid a hefty sum to keep quiet and sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Ethan had praised Celia for her foresight. It was a brilliant move. He knew of several locations where high-tier blueprints could be obtained, but the monsters guarding them were far above their current level. Those areas were out of reach—for now.
Now that Ethan had obtained the [Blessed Seal of Crafting], he needed to make the most of it. The system shop sold a High-Grade Instant Recovery Potion for seventy-five gold, but Ethan knew that if an alchemist crafted it, the cost would be no more than five gold.
The system shop was a notorious money sink, and the same went for bullets and arrows. For example, the system shop sold arrows for one copper each, but a beginner engineer could craft ten bundles for the same amount of copper. And as material prices dropped later in the game, that number would only increase.
Ethan looked at the [Blessed Seal of Crafting]. Though it had no official tier, in his mind, it was even more valuable than the Wishbound Relic. While the Wishbound Relic was powerful, it was something he couldn’t reveal to others. If anyone found out about its properties, he’d be hunted down by guild leaders from across the region, the nation, and even the world.
He wouldn’t even be safe in the game’s safe zones.
But the [Blessed Seal of Crafting] was different. The wealth it could generate for him was immeasurable. Crafters who used it wouldn’t need to leave the city, so they’d be safe from PvP. Even if they were killed, the item wouldn’t drop.
In Ethereal, only equipped items could be looted upon death—items in your inventory were safe. Of course, the system didn’t allow players to exploit this by unequipping gear during combat. Otherwise, everyone would just strip naked the moment they were about to lose a fight.
By now, Ethan’s Combat Cooldown Timer had reached five minutes. He activated his Divine Ability: Teleportation. No casting time, no channeling—just select the coordinates and instantly teleport. It was as smooth as it got.
When he arrived back in Lakeview Town, the place was far busier than when he’d left. It was packed with members of various guilds. But Ethan didn’t care. No one could touch him in the city. He strode confidently to the teleportation circle and left for Blackridge.
His first stop was to find Mad Engineer, who was still stationed there. Using Ethereal’s Contract System, Ethan granted him access to the [Blessed Seal of Crafting]. The contract ensured that no matter who Mad Engineer lent the item to, Ethan could reclaim it at any time.
The contract system didn’t allow for equipment permissions, but it worked perfectly for unique, non-consumable items like this.
It wasn’t that Ethan didn’t trust NoPaperOnTheBigOne, but he didn’t want to risk the item being stolen if it was lent out. When Mad Engineer received the item, his expression froze. The next second, he nearly jumped on Ethan, trying to lick him in excitement. Ethan, thoroughly disgusted, kicked him away, sending him flying several meters.
It was hard to blame Mad Engineer for his reaction. His hidden class came with a 20% penalty to crafting success rates. With the Blessed Seal of Crafting, he could finally craft items like a normal engineer. And he could already smell the mountains of gold this item would bring.
After leaving the engineering shop, Ethan headed to the SK Tavern. It wasn’t quite time for his meeting with Xandria, so he decided to wait inside. He was curious about a guild composed entirely of rogues and saw potential for collaboration. Plus, the SK Tavern… this place held memories for him.
In his past life, his first encounter with Lyla’s in-game character, [Moonbeam], had been in one of the tavern’s private booths. What happened there… well, let’s just say it’s best left to the imagination.
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Ethan entered the tavern and, as usual, headed to Booth 189. He informed the NPC at the door that if someone named Xandria arrived, they should direct her to his booth. NPCs in Ethereal knew your character name unless you hid it, so the receptionist would relay the message without issue.
With a mix of emotions, Ethan pushed open the door to Booth 189. The familiar surroundings greeted him, and for a moment, his thoughts drifted to Lyla.
’Lyla… are you doing okay now?’