Chapter 188: I know my friend’s heart

Lu Yao focused his attention on the dwarf fortress.

This small castle, crafted by dwarves, was adorned with furnaces of various sizes on the outside, and within the circular bastion’s courtyard were forges made of iron and stone.

Many dwarves bustled about, coming and going.

Among them, a male dwarf named Endless Hammer caught Lu Yao’s eye.

Endless Hammer, level LV20, was the highest-ranked member of the Furnace Clan within the fortress.

His beard was trimmed into a striking trident shape, and his dead-fish eyes gave him a somewhat dull appearance. Endless Hammer wasn’t much of a talker, spending most of his time swinging his hammer, forging metal tools piece by piece.

In his personal panel, there was an ability called [Craftsman].

[Craftsman]: Possesses exquisite craftsmanship, with a certain chance to forge excellent items.

After consulting with Isabella and Sarina, Lu Yao belatedly realized the difference in the types of items.

Items imbued with certain Transcendent abilities were referred to as [Excellent].

For instance, the [Count’s Handkerchief], [Mocking Scissors], and even the [Withering Crown] that Lu Yao had obtained before all belonged to this category.

Transcendents themselves had the ability to create excellent items, which could become incredibly powerful through continuous enhancement.

Above that was what the Transcendent community called [Kindling].

Kindling is the fire of faith, and only treasures that carry the fire of faith can be called Kindling items.

Unlike excellent items, Kindling items are almost always created by the power of rules or deities, and the power they carry belongs to a realm only gods can touch.

Above that are [Epic] and [Mythical].

Epic items have gone through countless eras and civilizations, no longer representing a simple treasure, but rather an immortal masterpiece perfected by many groups.

Mythical items are even more significant, appearing across numerous eras and worlds, witnessing the rise and fall of gods, sung and told in countless tales, almost a symbol of divinity.

In the Simulator, entries for Epic and Mythical items are displayed.

The [Wishing Star] that Lu Yao had just obtained was an Epic item.

Strictly speaking, the creator of the [Wishing Star] was not the Star Sea God, but rather the once-thriving civilizations of the past; it was merely the final entity to collect and transform this star.

These four types of items are actually two sequences.

The pinnacle of excellence is Epic, belonging to the realm of humans.

The ultimate form of Kindling is Mythical, the domain of gods.

***

Lu Yao decided to lend a hand to the dwarves.

Since the Furnace Clan had produced a Craftsman and forged excellent items, he would fulfill their wish as a small encouragement.

The dwarves’ wish was to brew mead.

Lu Yao pondered.

Order a bottle of mead online and bestow it upon them?

No, brewing requires a lot of trial and error, and even Lu Yao, a layman, knew that missing by a little could mean missing by a lot. Even if he threw a bottle of mead their way, the pixelated people wouldn’t be able to replicate it… The advanced math experiments had already proven that.

Suddenly, Lu Yao thought of a solution.

He clicked on Rain Hunter.

Moving the mouse next to Rain Hunter LV4’s level, he clicked.

An option popped up in the Simulator.

Above Rain Hunter’s head appeared a value bar (322/400).

Lu Yao was delighted; it was feasible!

When he first awakened Isabella, Lu Yao had tried using the burning of faith to rapidly increase the level of an Apostle. The only problem was the high cost.

In the past, faith was scarce, and he didn’t even have enough to perform miracles, let alone use it to upgrade Apostles.

Now it seemed that followers could also be forcibly upgraded.

The more faith reserves, the better.

Lu Yao thought, watch closely, today the deity will give you a boost!

He clicked on the experience bar behind Rain Hunter.

Faith -78.

Above Rain Hunter’s head appeared the icon LVup↑, and she instantly became level 5, with the number behind her changing to (0/500).

An exclamation mark popped up above her head.

“This is… I feel stronger in every way, my mind clearer, my body less constrained… Ah! It’s a blessing from the deity!”

Rain Hunter quickly knelt down: “Thank you, great God Yao!”

Lu Yao gave her another round of points.

Faith -500.

Rain Hunter instantly became LV6.

The exclamation mark above her head grew larger.

“Deity, such blessings make me feel truly apprehensive…”

Rain Hunter was puzzled and uneasy.

Lu Yao watched with amusement.

The only regret was that specific abilities couldn’t be directly enhanced and boosted by burning the fire of faith. It was only possible to raise the individual’s level.

A large question mark appeared above Rain Hunter’s head.

“The deity has bestowed such generous grace and rewards… Ah, this is divine inspiration, divine inspiration…”

“I understand! Mead, it’s mead!”

“God Yao has blessed and inspired me to brew mead!”

Her question mark instantly turned into a glowing light bulb.

“I understand, deity! I’ll get to brewing right away.”

Lu Yao thought, that’s more like it.

Rain Hunter busied herself with transporting honey jars and brewing mead.

The deity’s blessing gave her tremendous encouragement and motivation, filling Rain Hunter with energy. She tirelessly experimented, running back and forth between barrels, pots, and cellars.

Lu Yao took a trip to the bathroom, and upon returning, a prompt popped up on the Simulator.

【Rain Hunter has invented Blast Furnace Mead】

【Rain Hunter has become a legend】

【With the emergence of Blast Furnace Mead, the morale of the Furnace Clan has soared, gaining more prestige】

【Yao Clan has acquired a new specialty: Blast Furnace Mead】

***

Lu Yao exclaimed, Goodness.

This mead had such a significant impact.

Let’s see what’s so special about it.

He clicked on the barrel next to Rain Hunter.

【Blast Furnace Mead】: A special type of alcohol, drinking it brings joy, increases morale by +1, and temporarily enters the 【Intimate】 state, eliminating language barriers and creating a mind link.

Lu Yao was stunned.

This mead comes with a translation feature?

He immediately realized that in the early stages of the pixel people’s contact with the Transcendent world, this Blast Furnace Mead would be incredibly valuable and popular.

The game interface displayed.

【Great deity, a follower has performed a feat far beyond her peers, would you like to transform her into a hero?】

【Yes】【No】

A soft glow emanated from Rain Hunter.

Lu Yao clicked Yes.

In an instant, Rain Hunter had her own portrait.

In the large image, a farm girl stood in a wheat field. She held up a large wooden mug towards the sky, her wheat-colored face beaming with a broad smile.

Below it read:

——No matter what happens tomorrow, let’s drink to today!

【Legendary Hero Lv6】Rain Hunter

Attack 6 Defense 1 Knowledge 2 Mana 0 Luck 1 Morale 1

【Abilities】

Wisdom Lv1: Wisdom is key for an Apostle to heed the will of the deity. The higher the level of wisdom, the easier it is to improve and comprehend various abilities.

Master Brewer: A master of brewing, with a certain chance to brew incredible wines.

Legendary: Having a legendary experience, possesses high prestige and charisma.

【History】

At 15, obtained a treasure chest from the Elf Lake.

At 21, followed Salt Long in training.

At 39, brewed Blast Furnace Mead.

Lu Yao clicked on the Blast Furnace Mead entry in Rain Hunter’s 【History】. He kept clicking, the screen switching between various containers and areas for storing mead.

In a secluded seaside area, Lu Yao stopped switching.

Two Cannibal Crabs and a Wildfire Bird were discussing cooperation.

Each had a jar of mead in front of them, and after a couple of sips, they both showed the 【Intimate】 state above their heads, with clear dialogue boxes popping up.

“We brothers always stick to the rules. You want us to keep your egg, but it would probably be better in the city treasury. If you can’t reveal some insider information, we brothers dare not take this job.”

The Wildfire Bird was silent for a moment: “This egg is one I conceived behind my partner’s back with a Fire Rooster. It must be kept secret, and I’m not sure what will hatch from it. But it can’t stay in the volcanic area or the city treasury, it’s too conspicuous.”

“Understood.”

The larger Cannibal Crab waved its pincer: “Raising a chick. But this won’t come cheap, and we brothers are also under pressure. Although reputation doesn’t matter to us… carrying around a fire elemental creature is really inconvenient and will cause talk within our clan.”

“I’ll give you a good price.” The Wildfire Bird pecked at the mead jar, maintaining the 【Intimate】 state with the mead.

“One last question.”

The Cannibal Crab asked: “If it hatches, do you want us to tell it that you are its father?”

“No, just say you found it.”

“Alright. Once it can fly, we’ll let it fend for itself.”

The Wildfire Bird said: “Two Darkspawn Earthworms, come here to get them tomorrow. Before it can fly on its own, I will visit the child regularly… You must take good care of it.”

“Don’t worry, why would we cross our employer?” The Cannibal Crab’s face showed a smile: “As long as you pay enough, we’ll raise it for a lifetime!”

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from “.

“…”

The Wildfire Bird flapped its wings and left.

The two Cannibal Crabs whispered to each other.

“Big brother, this Blast Furnace Mead is really useful. We used to fight to the death with Wildfire Birds, and now we can do business.”

“Little brother, we have to seize the opportunity.”

The larger Cannibal Crab instructed: “Wildfire Birds often mess around with other species but are also very jealous and care about face. Our business of substituting for hatching and caring is now to be done as much as possible, otherwise, others will definitely snatch it away.”

“Big brother is right.”

“Let’s go, we have to visit the next client.”

“There’s another one?”

“Just ahead in the forest. This time it’s a Fire Rooster.”

“Are they also asking us to take care of chicks?”

The two crabs carried the mead jars and marched forward, heading to the next customer.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep