Chapter 143: Opening Ancient Treasure Chests, A Huge Haul!

"Huh? You can get Silver Ancient Coins from the Captain's bags? And Intermediate Magic Energy Crystals too!"

Cao Xing was startled.

He suppressed the excitement in his heart and continued to open the remaining three Lieutenant's bags.

[Opening successful]

[Obtained: Gold Ancient Coins * 8]

[Obtained: Advanced Magic Energy Crystals * 11]

[Obtained: Blackened Objects * 7]

[Obtained: Topaz Shards (Blue) * 3]

[Obtained: Sunstone Shards (Blue) * 1]

[Obtained: Carnelian Shards (Blue) * 3]

[Obtained Book: History of War]

[Obtained Book: Treatise on Life]

After opening all the funerary bags, Cao Xing took a deep breath.

"That's insane!"

"This haul is just too much!"

There were so many items that it would take him a long time to sort through them all.

First, Cao Xing stuffed all the Magic Energy Crystals and dozens of books into his storage box!

Then, he tossed all the rotten seeds and various useless miscellaneous items to the side.

Next, he placed all the gold nuggets and gold, silver, and copper jewelry into a single chest.

After that, he put the green-quality Amber Pebbles and blue-quality stone shards into his own pockets.

After finishing this, Cao Xing nodded. "Now, I can check the attributes of these new items."

First, naturally, were the newly acquired Silver Ancient Coins and Gold Ancient Coins.

He took a look at their attributes.

[Silver Ancient Coin: An extremely ancient and rare currency that is no longer in circulation on the continent; it bears an inscription of spatial magic.]

(After collecting 100 Silver Ancient Coins, they can be exchanged for 1 Intermediate Ancient Treasure Chest, which can yield intermediate ancient weapons, crafting blueprints, secret potion recipes, or other items that have gone extinct.)

[Gold Ancient Coin: An extremely ancient and rare currency that is no longer in circulation on the continent; it bears a strong inscription of spatial magic.]

(After collecting 100 Gold Ancient Coins, they can be exchanged for 1 Advanced Ancient Treasure Chest, which can yield advanced ancient weapons, crafting blueprints, secret potion recipes, or other items that have gone extinct.)

"As expected, just as I guessed, Silver Ancient Coins and Gold Ancient Coins can be exchanged for even higher-tier treasure chests."

"And the exchange rate is the same—100 ancient coins for one treasure chest."

Then, Cao Xing checked those newly acquired, dozens of green-quality gemstones.

[Amber Pebble (Green): Can be embedded in weapons to increase Attack by 5 points.]

[Garnet Pebble (Green): Can be embedded in weapons to increase Spirit by 3 points.]

[Malachite Pebble (Green): Can be embedded in weapons to increase Strength by 3 points.]

[Turquoise Pebble (Green): Can be embedded in weapons to increase Agility by 3 points.]

(Note: Due to a system update, green-quality gemstones require Primary Forging Technology to be embedded at a blacksmith shop.)

All four types of green pebbles could be embedded into weapons to increase attributes.

Although it didn't seem like much, this was an additional attribute bonus, which was still quite good.

Cao Xing nodded to himself. "These pebbles are actually quite expensive. Each one costs several thousand crowns. Selling them all would be a huge sum of money."

Then, he began to check the blue gemstone shards.

[Topaz Shard (Blue): Can be embedded in weapons or equipment to increase Spirit by 5 points and Magic Attack by 10 points.]

(A precious Topaz Shard containing clear magic fluctuations; requires Intermediate Forging Technology to embed.)

[Sunstone Shard (Blue): Can be embedded in weapons or equipment to increase Strength by 5 points and Physical Attack by 10 points.]

(A gorgeous gemstone with a dazzling luster, containing clear strength fluctuations; requires Intermediate Forging Technology to embed.)

[Carnelian Shard (Blue): Can be embedded in weapons or equipment to increase Agility by 5 points and Physical Attack by 10 points.]

(A stone as vibrant as flesh; requires Intermediate Forging Technology to embed.)

Cao Xing exclaimed, "Not bad, not bad! The blue gemstones provide significantly more attribute bonuses."

"What's more important is that besides weapons, they can also be embedded into equipment. If I embed them on my whole set of gear, the improvement will be incredible!"

He thought happily.

However, the only regret was that it required Intermediate Forging Technology to embed them.

Thinking of this, Cao Xing thought to himself, "It seems that finding a blacksmith is an urgent matter."

"I wonder if tonight's recruitment will be effective."

The other materials weren't really worth looking at.

Most of the miscellaneous items obtained from inside had lost their function due to the erosion of time.

For example, those magical plant seeds and various spools of thread could only be treated as trash now.

Then, Cao Xing checked the quantity of Brass Ancient Coins and Silver Ancient Coins in his backpack.

[Brass Ancient Coins * 1226]

[Silver Ancient Coins * 104]

[Gold Ancient Coins * 8]

"Very good. With this many ancient coins, I can directly exchange them for 12 Ancient Brass Treasure Chests and 1 Ancient Silver Treasure Chest!"

"This time, I'm going to open chests until I've had enough!"

Cao Xing was extremely excited, and then he clicked to exchange them directly.

At the same time, a system prompt appeared.

[Consume Brass Ancient Coins * 1200 to exchange for Ancient Brass Treasure Chests * 12?]

[Consume Silver Ancient Coins * 100 to exchange for Ancient Silver Treasure Chests * 1?]

"Yes!"

As the prompt ended.

The next moment, over a dozen spatial magic circles appeared on the ground in front of Cao Xing.

As energy fluctuations kept appearing.

Cao Xing faintly saw the silhouettes of several treasure chests emerging.

"Clang! Clang!"

After a series of sounds of chests colliding with the ground.

The treasure chests, which had been sealed in an alternate dimension for who knows how many years, reappeared in the world on this day.

Looking at the dozen or so treasure chests in front of him, Cao Xing's face wore a look of joy.

[Discovered Sealed Ancient Bronze Treasure Chests * 12. Open them?]

"Yes!"

As Cao Xing clicked confirm, in an instant, a pair of system prompts appeared.

[Opening successful.]

[Obtained: Ancient Weapon · Triple Sniper Rifle (Blue)]

[Obtained: Ancient Cane (Blue)]

[Obtained: Ancient Longbow (Green) * 1]

[Obtained: Ancient Compound Battle Axe (Green) * 1]

[Obtained: Ancient Weapon · Auxiliary Pistol (Green)]

[Obtained: Ancient Weapon · Hunting Compound Bow (Green)]

[Obtained: Small Detection Robot Crafting Blueprint]

[Obtained: Small Drone Crafting Blueprint]

[Obtained: Light Combat Drone Crafting Blueprint]

[Obtained: Arc Star Bomb Crafting Blueprint]

[Obtained: Small Resource Pack * 15]

[Obtained: Spoiled Food * 172]

[Obtained: Spoiled Drinking Water * 74]

…A whole bunch of prompts!

A total of three ancient weapons, plus four technological blueprints!

Cao Xing exclaimed in surprise, "Damn! If I had these firearms during the beginner protection period, wouldn't I have been able to instantly kill anyone I saw?"

He quickly checked the attributes of the three newly acquired ancient weapons.

[Ancient Weapon · Triple Sniper Rifle (Blue)]

[Quality: Excellent]

[Attack Power: 219 ~ 231]

[Attack Method: Aim at the enemy and fire three bullets simultaneously, dealing Attack Power * 3 damage.]

[Attack Interval: 2.5 seconds/time]

[Attached Effect: Energy Penetration (When attacking an enemy, there is a 30% chance to penetrate 40% of the enemy's armor)]

[Charging Method: 1 Primary Magic Energy Crystal can provide energy for 300 shots]

(A sniper rifle that uses energy ammunition and has decent accuracy.)

[Ancient Weapon · Auxiliary Pistol (Green)]

[Quality: Fine]

[Attack Power: 124 ~ 156]

[Attack Interval: 1 second/time]

[Attached Effect: Headshot (When attacking the head, deals an additional 30% damage)]

[Ancient Weapon: Hunting Compound Bow]

[Quality: Fine]

[Attack Power: 157 ~ 174]

[Attack Interval: 2 seconds/time]

[Attached Effect: Body Piercing (Powerful explosive power and penetration; has a 20% chance to directly pierce the enemy's body, dealing 150% damage and applying 3 stacks of Bleed effect)]

Cao Xing nodded. "As expected, what comes out of the bronze treasure chests are just relatively ordinary technological weapons; they are fine for dealing with monsters below Tier 2."

"For creatures above Tier 2, their HP is too thick. Before you can even fire a few shots, the enemy is already upon you."

"However, that Triple Sniper Rifle is still pretty good. The damage is very high, and it just so happens that I have plenty of Magic Energy Crystals on hand, so at least I don't have to worry about the ammunition issue."

Cao Xing nodded in satisfaction.

Then there were the three cold weapons. Cao Xing glanced at them; their attributes were about the same as Level 10 equipment of the same quality.

He put them directly into his backpack.

Next were the four blueprints.

He checked the attributes of two of the blueprints.

[Light Combat Drone Crafting Blueprint]

[Blueprint Description: Can be used in a Mechanical Factory to craft a combat drone with low-altitude flight capabilities.]

[Armor Value: 35]

[Durability: 500]

[Attack Power: 75 ~ 81]

[Attack Speed: Can fire 2 ~ 4 energy bullets per second]

[Maximum Flight Speed: 75 km/h]

[Maximum Flight Altitude: 4000 meters]

[ Energy Consumption: Combat mode 2 hours / 1 Primary Magic Energy Crystal, Low-power mode 30 days / 1 Magic Energy Crystal ]

[ Crafting Requirements: Intermediate Mechanical Factory, Electronic Components * 1, Iron * 50, Copper * 30, Magic Energy Crystal * 1 ]

…

[ Arc Star Bomb Blueprint ]

[ Blueprint Description: Crafts an Arc Star Bomb with explosive and paralyzing effects. Deals massive damage to enemies upon throwing. ]

[ Attack Power: 785 ~ 812 ]

[ Special Effect: Paralysis (Causes 1 ~ 3 seconds of paralysis to enemies within range) ]

[ Crafting Requirements: Intermediate Mechanical Factory, Mithril * 5, Primary Elemental Crystal * 3, Thunderstone * 1 ]

…

"Huh? These two blueprints aren't bad."

"If I have enough materials, I could even mass-produce them and start a modern war right away!"

Cao Xing was overjoyed.

Especially that Arc Star Bomb!

It actually has nearly 800 attack power, and it also comes with explosive and paralyzing effects!

If Cao Xing had enough [Arc Star Bombs] in his hands, whenever he encountered an enemy, he could just throw them all out and drown them in explosions!

Cao Xing thought happily.

However, both of these blueprints require an [Intermediate Mechanical Factory].

And Cao Xing hasn't even built a [Primary Mechanical Factory] yet.

As for the other blueprints, the Scout Robot and the standard drone, Cao Xing glanced at them and found they were just ordinary blueprints with no significant use.

He simply put them into his backpack.

With this, Cao Xing had basically finished checking all the items from the 12 treasure chests.

Then, only the last [Ancient Silver Treasure Chest] remained unopened.

Cao Xing thought expectantly: "The ancient weapons from the bronze treasure chests were already very strong."

"This Silver Treasure Chest should be able to yield even stronger weapons, right?"

"I'm not asking for much; I'd be satisfied if I could just get a weapon similar to the Barrett!"

[ Open the Ancient Silver Treasure Chest? ]

"Yes."

[ Successfully opened ]

[ Obtained: Intermediate Ancient Weapon · Mastiff Shotgun (Purple) ]

[ Obtained: Shotgun Ammo * 30 ]

[ Obtained: Lost Intermediate Life Potion Recipe (Improved Version) ]

[ Obtained: Medium Resource Pack * 2 ]

[ Obtained: Spoiled Drinking Water * 7 ]

…

"Holy crap! Holy crap! A purple ancient weapon, and an intermediate life potion recipe!"

Cao Xing had originally only wanted a weapon similar to the Barrett.

He didn't expect such an unexpected pleasant surprise!

You have to know, what he needed most right now was precisely this kind of life potion recipe!

However, the words "Lost" and "Improved Version" were added to the front of the recipe's name.

With a nervous heart, Cao Xing checked the attributes of these two items.

[ Intermediate Ancient Weapon · Mastiff Shotgun (Purple) ]

[ Quality: Rare ]

[ Attack Power: 145 ~ 176 ]

[ Attack Method: Instantly fires 8 bullets ]

[ Attack Interval: 1 second / shot ]

[ Special Effect 1: Impact (When attacking at close range, there is an 80% chance to knock the enemy back 2 ~ 10 meters) ]

[ Special Effect 2: Body Breaker (When attacking, there is a 30% chance to cause effects like penetration or crippling on the enemy) ]

…

"What a powerful shotgun!"

Don't look at it as having much lower attack power compared to the Barrett.

But you have to realize that a shotgun can instantly fire 8 bullets!

If all of them hit one target, the damage dealt would be much stronger than the Barrett.

Cao Xing nodded in satisfaction, "This thing is best for close combat."

"In the future, if I encounter other killers who see I'm a mage and want to come close to kill me, I'll just pull out the shotgun and blast them!"

"That scene will definitely be very satisfying!"

Cao Xing laughed out loud.

Then, he checked the attributes of the life potion recipe.

[ Lost Intermediate Life Potion Recipe ]

[ Blueprint Description: Can be used to craft an Improved Life Potion (Medium) ]

[ Effect: Restores 2000 HP after consumption, cooldown time 30 seconds ]

[ Crafting Materials: Alchemy Workshop, Glass Bottle * 1, Ice Phoenix Petal * 1, Spirit Breath Herb * 5, Cold Spirit Water * 200ml. ]

(A recipe improved by a certain grandmaster of potions, now extinct on this continent.)

…

Seeing the potion's effect on this blueprint, Cao Xing's pupils instantly shrank!

"Restoring 2000 HP at once, and it only has a 30-second cooldown!"

"This is much stronger than ordinary Life Potion (Small)!"

"As expected of a recipe improved by a potion grandmaster, hahaha!"

Cao Xing was extremely excited.

And the key is, he already has two of the materials: Spirit Breath Herb and Cold Spirit Water.

He just needs to find the Ice Phoenix Petal and build an Alchemy Workshop.

Then Cao Xing can mass-produce this kind of life potion!

However, this type of potion is clearly an item used by Tier 2 creatures.

After all, the recovery value is too high; 2000 points can directly restore a Tier 1 Survivor's health to full.

At this moment, he let out a heavy breath.

"Finally, several hundred Relic bags and over a dozen treasure chests are all opened!"

"Now, I just need to find a way to find the Ice Phoenix Flower, and find a blueprint for a Primary Alchemy Workshop, plus a blueprint for an Intermediate Alchemy Workshop."

Although Cao Xing doesn't have these things.

But as a Survivor from Blue Star, he has a unique advantage compared to these natives.

That is the [Market].

There are tens of thousands of people in District 174, and there will always be some Survivors who have had some lucky encounters.

Thinking of this, Cao Xing walked straight to the side of the market, opened the trading interface, and entered the keyword [Alchemy].

After a pile of filtering.

Many items related to alchemy appeared in front of Cao Xing.

For example: Book · Introduction to Alchemy, Black Powder Recipe, Alchemy Manual, etc…

After a thorough search, he actually found a blueprint for a [Primary Alchemy Workshop].

Cao Xing looked at the seller: Zou Qi.

Hmm, a name I haven't heard of.

He looked at what this Zou Qi needed.

[ Required Items: Large amounts of food, large amounts of warm clothing * 10, Hunter skill book, equipment of Green quality or higher. ]

"A Hunter skill book?"

Cao Xing looked at his backpack and actually had one.

[ Multi-Shot Skill Book (Green): Continuously fires 3 to 5 arrows, each arrow deals 80% damage to the enemy, cooldown 120 seconds. ]

This was something he opened in the Ascalon tomb last time, and it just so happened that no one around him could use it.

Thus, Cao Xing directly sent a private message.

"Multi-Shot skill book for the blueprint in your hand."

Not long after, Cao Xing received a reply from the other party.

Zou Qi: "Holy crap! It's Great Lord Cao Xing!"

"I didn't expect such a legendary Great Lord to actually come to trade with me!"

The person on the other side seemed very excited.

A moment later, Zou Qi replied: "Sorry, Great Lord Cao Xing, I'm just too excited."

"By the way, you need the Primary Alchemy Workshop blueprint, right?"

"Yes," Cao Xing replied directly.

Zou Qi continued: "I haven't actually learned the Multi-Shot skill book yet, I don't know what its attributes are, can you let me see it first?"

"Sure."

Cao Xing was still very direct, and he pasted the attributes of the skill book.

After reading it, Zou Qi exclaimed: "What a powerful skill! Great Lord Cao Xing, are you sure you want to trade such a powerful skill book for my blueprint?"

He asked somewhat uncertainly.

Cao Xing nodded, "Yes, this skill book is of no use to me."

By comparison, Multi-Shot, as a Green quality skill book, is very valuable for a Hunter.

But for Cao Xing, it was of no use.

This kind of trade can be considered a mutual need.

Upon hearing this, Zou Qi replied: "Okay, then thank you, Great Lord Cao Xing."

After saying that, both parties conducted a trade.

[ Trade successful: You obtained [Primary Alchemy Workshop Construction Blueprint], you lost [Multi-Shot Skill Book (Green)]. ]

Looking at the blueprint in his backpack, a look of joy appeared on Cao Xing's face.

He quickly checked the attributes of this blueprint.

[ Primary Alchemy Workshop Construction Blueprint: Can build a workshop in the territory to craft various secret potions. ]

[ Armor Value: 20 points ]

[ Durability: 1800 / 1800 ]

[ Footprint: 120 square meters ]

[ Construction Materials: Wood * 80, Stone * 60, Iron * 30, Copper * 20, Primary Elemental Crystal * 10. ]

[ Construction Time: 6 hours 32 minutes ]

[ Required Personnel: Alchemist 0 / 1 ]

(Note: Personnel with high-level alchemy skills can significantly increase alchemy efficiency and success rates.)

…

Cao Xing nodded, then clapped his hands together and clicked to learn the blueprint.

At this moment, the Survivor named Zou Qi sent a message: "Great Lord Cao Xing, thank you for the skill book."

"However, I would like to presumptuously ask a question."