Chapter 9: The Mysterious Fragment

No matter how you looked at it, this didn’t seem like a skill scroll.

“Mysterious Fragment (Unidentified)”

The item’s description consisted of only this simple line, without even a color to indicate its quality. Lu Kuan was certain he hadn’t misremembered, so why had the skill scroll turned into something like this?

He pondered for a moment but found no clues, so he simply put the mysterious fragment into his backpack. With billions of items in Echoes of the Gods, it was perfectly normal to encounter something unfamiliar. He’d just return to the city and have it appraised.

“Whew~ so that’s all the treasure!”

As Lu Kuan stowed away the items, the remains lying in the grass seemed to lose some supporting force, rapidly decaying and turning black. In the blink of an eye, they were completely decomposed and merged with the roots and stones.

At that moment, a line of white text appeared simultaneously in the players’ view near the cliff:

“The wish of the warrior of old has been fulfilled. The radiance of courage will continue to be passed on.
The treasure of the warrior of old has now vanished.”

The gnome mage was the quickest to react; while the others were still stunned, he hurried over. Glancing at the longbow in Lu Kuan’s hand, shimmering with magical light, the gnome mage spoke urgently, “Friend, would you sell your equipment? Name your price! Our guild is buying blue gear, and we’ll pay more than the auction house. We guarantee you won’t lose out!”

The others followed suit, crowding around him; some, anxious not to be outdone, immediately sent trade requests to Lu Kuan.

Their gazes brimmed with envy. They wondered, what’s going on? We’ve been camping here for days, yet none of us thought to try removing our gear. This guy comes along, and the treasure is triggered! Is he what they call a ‘lucky warrior’?

But none of them considered that, without the right equipment and skills, who else could have climbed up bare-handed like Lu Kuan?

Lu Kuan had anticipated this. He instantly rejected the trade requests and, without a word, activated the return scroll from his backpack.

“Oh no!”

Seeing Lu Kuan decisively teleport back to the city at lightning speed, the gnome mage clutched his head in frustration, stamping his feet. “Someone triggered the treasure! Ahhh!”

Blue gear! Even in the highest-level dungeon, the level 8 “Lava Fortress Prison,” only the final boss drops a blue item, and what the ranger got was a weapon!

Because the dungeon was so difficult, ordinary teams rarely reached the final boss. Currently, only elite teams from guilds and studios could clear the Lava Fortress Prison.

For this reason, blue gear was scarce on the market. Any blue-quality equipment appearing at the auction house, regardless of its attributes, would be snapped up instantly.

The gnome mage pursed his lips, thinking he’d better contact the guild leader and expand the treasure exploration team’s size. The others, each with their own thoughts, also returned to the city, leaving the scenic cliff-top empty in moments.

Within ten miles of the main city, returning was free. A flash of light danced before Lu Kuan’s eyes; when he opened them again, he was standing on the street in front of the auction house.

This treasure hunt had yielded a bountiful harvest. With the Warrior’s Hunt Bow, many plans could now be implemented ahead of schedule.

Lu Kuan first withdrew some money from the bank, then went to the auction house and swept up all the materials needed for advancement, also buying a set of five basic identification scrolls.

“Use basic identification scroll on mysterious fragment—identification failed.”

“…Use basic identification scroll—identification failed.”

“…Failed.”

…

“What’s going on?” Lu Kuan raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Basic scrolls corresponded to green gear, with a theoretical success rate of eighty percent. Five consecutive failures… Could it be that the treasure yielded two blue items?

“Right, the system prompt earlier said this was the first treasure discovered in the Lava Fortress. Maybe there’s an extra reward for the first time?”

Thinking of this, Lu Kuan felt a surge of joy, sensing that this harvest might exceed his expectations.

Intermediate scrolls were only sold by the appraisal NPC, at five silver coins each, an exorbitant price. Gritting his teeth, Lu Kuan bought a set.

After using two scrolls, a system prompt confirmed successful identification, and the fragment in his hand flashed with a subtle light, its appearance changing.

The glow within the fragment began to flow, as if enveloping a mass of still-molten lava—magnificent and dazzling!

There were only two or three players at the appraisal center; seeing this, they glanced at Lu Kuan in surprise. Secretly delighted, Lu Kuan kept a calm face, quickly stowed the fragment in his backpack, left the appraisal center, wandered through the streets several times to ensure no one was following him, and finally opened his backpack.

“Fragment of the Scorching Soul (Awakening Quest Item)
Use: Triggers the quest ‘Lost Limb’

Level Requirement: 20 or above
Class Restriction: Basic Warrior”

Seeing these lines of blue text in the item description, Lu Kuan’s heart thudded violently.

It was this!

He had heard of this item in his previous life, but never had the chance to see it. Who would have thought it would be found in a low-level treasure!

It was a quest starting item, capable of triggering a class-exclusive “Awakening Quest.” Each class received a different final reward, but all were exceptionally powerful!

There were nine such items in the game, each corresponding to one of the nine basic classes.

For example, the mage’s quest reward permanently increased spell penetration, greatly boosting damage against bosses and elite monsters, while the ranger’s awakening quest ultimately rewarded a permanent 20% increase in attack range!

For ranger players, range was a double-edged sword; the farther you were, the more accuracy dropped. But for Lu Kuan, that wasn’t an issue at all—in decades of battles, his marksmanship could no longer be described as merely precise.

Lu Kuan’s emotions surged; it took him a while to calm down and exhale deeply.

If he’d obtained this item before, he would have sold it without hesitation. But now, his horizons were far broader than in his previous life. In the long run, trading it for the ranger’s class quest item was undoubtedly the better choice.

With that in mind, Lu Kuan immediately logged out of the game, connected to the official Echoes of the Gods forum, skillfully navigated to the marketplace section, searched, and found no related posts.

It made sense; those who obtained the first treasure were likely backed by powerful guilds and studios, and such rare items would naturally be consumed internally first.

Frowning thoughtfully, Lu Kuan left the marketplace section and entered the official Echoes of the Gods community. In the search interface, he entered a line of code.

Moments later, a search result called “Supreme Celestial Court” popped up in his view.

This was a private community comprised entirely of professional players, legendary within the Echoes of the Gods circle—a mystery in the hearts of countless players.