Chương 14: 14. Live Attacker of the Ice Flower Adventure Team
"So what you're saying is, the adventure team you were with before, which is just a common rock-level adventure team? Isn't that just bottom-tier riffraff?"
Kafni said disdainfully, her lips curling into a sneer after hearing Lin Da's story.
Lin Da snapped back to reality and said helplessly, "In White Dove City, rock-level adventure teams are already strong, totaling maybe just over a dozen."
"Hmph, aside from mythical-level adventure teams, I look down on all the others."
"With your attitude, mythical-level adventure teams wouldn't want you as a Star Fury, not even if you begged. There's only one mythical-level adventure team in the entire Southern Fire Empire, you know!"
"Star Fury? What do you think I am?"
Enraged, Kafni stood up, only to realize she was down to her underwear and quickly squatted back into the bushes with embarrassment.
Lin Da coughed and waved the Ice Silk Dress in his hand, "Now that we've got a lowdown on the types of secret realms, uh... you stay hidden. I'll be right back."
"Hurry back!"
Kafni looked around frantically, terrified of being seen by passersby.
...
"Sigh, only got 9 silver coins after all. It really must be because you stink so bad, even the pawnshop owner was reluctant to take it," Lin Da complained as they headed to the cheapest rental in Sparrow District.
Kafni, now wearing a different set of clothes—the cheapest brown linen dress bought with 50 copper coins—walked beside him.
It was full of loose threads and rough in texture. Kafni felt like her skin was about to be rubbed raw.
"You sell my stuff for 9 silver coins but only spend 50 copper coins on clothes for me?" Kafni frowned and said with dissatisfaction, "Keep this up and I might just find myself another hero!"
"Suit yourself," Lin Da snorted. If he could, he would have traded her long ago.
Kafni was speechless, teeth itching with hatred, yet she had no way to get back at Lin Da.
She couldn't beat him, and complaining might just make things worse.
She would just have to endure the humiliation.
"If the clothes are not up to par, then the place we live should at least be luxurious, right?"
Smiling, Kafni extended a delicate, snow-white finger, "A standalone luxury villa shouldn't be a problem, should it?"
"What are you thinking, we only have 9 silver coins!" Lin Da massaged his temples in distress.
As a silver-level magical city, White Dove City was expensive. Renting a place typically required a deposit for three months plus the first month's rent upfront.
Even in a poor place like Sparrow District, the monthly rent was at least 3 silver coins, with a three-month deposit.
That's a total of 12 silver coins.
The currency system of the Southern Fire Empire: 1 Gold Coin = 10 Silver Coins = 1000 Copper Coins.
The purchasing power of 1 Gold Coin was roughly equivalent to 1000 yuan in Hua country.
In that sense, a monthly rent of 3 silver coins didn't seem too expensive.
But the problem was, Lin Da, who had slaved away for three years at the Snow Goose Adventure Team, had only 9 silver coins to his name, all obtained from selling Kafni's possessions.
They were far from meeting the deposit and upfront payment!
"Or you could go to Paradise Foam to work as a lady… er, forget I said that."
Seeing Kafni's murder-ready expression, Lin Da quickly stopped himself.
"But Paradise Foam…"
"Are you asking to be murdered by me while you sleep?"
"Cough, cough, well, I was just saying. The truth is, I have another plan," Lin Da muttered, "We'll have to go 'to that place'. They're all familiar faces; it should be fine to pay a little less for the deposit."
...
The two walked on the streets of Sparrow District.
The roads here were narrow and dirty, flanked by low makeshift shacks with laundry lines strung with cheap hemp clothes.
At night on these streets, one could often see drunken adventurers, leading to countless brawls, making for quite poor public safety.
Thankfully, the darkness obscured vision, preventing those drunks from noticing that Kafni was a beautiful bear girl.
Passing by an Adventurer's Guild, the entrance was filled with people, bustling and noisy.
Just like watching a soccer match in my previous life, the Adventurer's Guild always gathered a group of vibrant, adventure-enthusiastic youths.
Lin Da glanced in that direction.
In the crystal screen embedded in the exterior wall of the Adventurer's Guild, the Ice Flower Adventure Team appeared.
"Live strategy broadcast?"
Lin Da stopped in his tracks, slightly surprised.
The so-called live strategy broadcast involves using magical creatures called sensor ladybugs to transmit the live situation of conquering the Secret Realm to pre-set crystal screens, achieving an effect similar to live streaming.
Lin Da frowned, recalling how Lia from the Snow Goose Adventure Team had also thought of initiating a live strategy broadcast, but he had adamantly refused.
The advantages and disadvantages of this approach were quite clear.
The advantage was that the live strategy broadcast could bring a lot of popularity to the cooperating Adventurer's Guild, the empire's officials would also give subsidies to the team, and besides, it could showcase the team's strengths and increase fame.
However, it also exposed the team's tactics and weaknesses.
On this continent, competition among adventure teams was fierce, often erupting in conflicts in the Public Grand Secret Realm.
Fighting over equipment, world BOSSes, and various magical resources.
Once the weaknesses were mastered by rivals, it was equivalent to fighting naked.
Generally speaking, unless a team was seriously short of money, it wouldn't choose to initiate a live strategy broadcast, as it was a last resort.
Captain Isa was too impulsive.
She seemed mature on the surface, but was she, like Lia, a hot-headed person?
Lin Da withdrew his thoughts and looked at the image on the crystal screen.
The Ice Flower Adventure Team was strategizing the twelfth floor and had randomly entered the "Silent Cavern," a large, gloomy underground cave.
The World Tree Secret Realm contained several maps on each floor, and adventurers were randomly placed into one.
Because each map's boss had different weaknesses and resistances, it put a significant test on a team's comprehensive ability.
Teams that were single-minded often couldn't last long.
"Level 25, Armored Turtle Snake, earth system, skilled in defense, with a health pool among the highest in its level."
"The Ice Flower Adventure Team doesn't have any greatsword users, which is going to be a thorny issue."
Lin Da glanced and guessed the answer immediately.
Even if Ice Flower managed to pass, the cost would be incredibly high.
But the scene on the screen was even worse than Lin Da had anticipated.
The six members of Ice Flower were exhausted from the prolonged battle, and the front-line Heavy Armored Warriors were severely injured. Isa, as the main attacker, was also sweating profusely, her hand holding the Ice Crystal One-Handed Sword trembling non-stop, obviously lacking strength, barely able to hold onto her sword.
The watching adventurers couldn't help but feel nervous for the Ice Flower Adventure Team.
Captain Isa, being an extremely beautiful silver-haired Swordsman, was very popular among the adventurers, and no one wanted to see such a young girl perish in the World Tree.
"Come on, Ice Flower Adventure Team, don't give up! You can do it!"
"That Armored Turtle Snake is so hard to beat; the Fierce Tiger Adventure Team from the city next door were wiped out on this level just last month!"
"The Ice Flower Adventure Team's reckless move to the twelfth floor was a bit rash."
The adventurers stepped up to the crystal screen, one by one, placing the energy crystals, the Demon Cores that burst out of the Magical Creatures, into a recess on a stone platform.
Then, with a flash of light, the Demon Cores vanished as if sacrificed, and the words they spoke appeared as floating text on the crystal screen.
Each time Lin Da saw this scene, he felt a bit tongue-tied. Yes, it's 'live streaming,' and through donating Demon Cores, they could send 'suggestions' known as barrages to the Ice Flower Adventure Team!
The vanishing Demon Cores were sacrificed to the World Tree Goddess, or the "World Will" of this world.
The goddess required a minimum of a level 5 Demon Core for the sacrifice. Upon receiving the Demon Core, she would translate the adventurer's words into text and convey it to the sensor ladybug's belly, which was square like a small screen.
As long as the members of Ice Flower looked at it, they could find those suggestions on it.
However, the Ice Flower Adventure Team was currently in a crisis, clearly having no time to look at the sensor ladybug.
In the image on the crystal screen, the huge Armored Turtle Snake rampaged wildly, rocks tumbled in the cavern, and two Heavy Armored Warriors were sent flying while coughing up blood.
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