Chapter Four: Another Function of the Eyes

The transaction was a great success.

Staring at the fiery red stone in his hand, the Eye popped out again.

[Although Lord Eye feels contempt for your deceitful behavior toward the girl, I must say—well done! Ten slices of toast for a Fire Elemental Stone, that’s a tiny price to pay. I advise you to carry out more such exchanges early on, because once the value of the elemental stones is discovered, you’ll pay a much higher price for them.]

Once again, the Eye highlighted the significance of the elemental stones.

This forced Fang Tang to take it seriously.

At the start of the game, he gained a slight advantage thanks to the Eye. But that couldn’t last forever. He had to leverage the Eye’s convenience to start rolling this snowball.

After a brief consideration, Fang Tang put up more items for trade.

All he listed were mineral water and bread, only exchangeable for elemental stones. He kept just enough for one meal for himself. After all, hunger could be endured, but a head start must not be missed.

His actions drew everyone’s attention to these peculiar stones.

“Though I don’t know what the special stones are for, if the top player wants them, does that mean he’s discovered their use?”

“No wonder he’s called Fang the Skinner! If only I had resources, I’d trade like him too. Damn it!”

“Ah, I’m starving, I need to find stones to trade with the big boss!”

...

Half an hour passed.

Fang Tang didn’t get what he wanted.

He wasn’t discouraged—after all, the game had just begun. Most people were cautious, not as bold as Fang Tang.

One thing was certain...

Cheating made him strong!

He punched a hole in the wall, tossed the Fire Elemental Stone through first to use as illumination.

It was worth mentioning that the Fire Elemental Stone’s light was much softer than the Lightning Stone—gentle, like a campfire, perfect for lighting up the underground.

He ate a banana, mashed the peel with his hunting knife, letting the scent disperse fully.

He took out a slice of toast, tore it into pieces, and gradually threw them into the black mist.

Finally, he threw the mashed banana peel into the fog and hurried after it.

With the gentle firelight illuminating the way, Fang Tang immediately spotted a mutt crawling atop the banana mush, snuffling eagerly.

It was a corpse-hound, its skull above the eyes completely peeled back, revealing a rotting green brain.

Its gums had been eaten away, leaving sharp teeth bared to the air in a grotesque snarl.

Seemingly alerted by other scents, the mutt snuffled toward Fang Tang, then snarled and charged at him.

Charged—though in truth, it stumbled and staggered toward him.

Its four legs, one after another, were bent as though broken, slowing its movements.

Fang Tang reacted instantly, pulling out his hunting knife and sprinting toward the mutt.

[Oh, useless slave with hardly any motor skills, the noble Eye advises you: step to the right, pull out your little knife, and stab it hard into the mutt’s throat.]

Seeing the subtitles appear, Fang Tang hesitated, uncertain why the Eye popped up at this moment.

The mutt was already upon him, and he’d processed the Eye's instructions.

Trusting the Eye, Fang Tang stepped right, dodging the mutt’s sharp teeth, and plunged the hunting knife deep into its throat.

“Oo—”

The mutt let out a mournful whine, collapsing heavily to the ground, limbs twitching.

Fang Tang knew he couldn’t let it catch its breath.

He stomped on its head, gripped the hunting knife, and twisted it hard.

The sharp blade nearly severed the mutt’s neck.

It jerked once, then lay still.

“Is it over already?”

Fang Tang was astonished.

He’d been prepared for an epic battle with the mutt.

He hadn’t expected, under the Eye’s guidance, to end it so swiftly.

So swift he felt as if he was dreaming.

But this also unlocked another function of the Eye.

Combat awareness!

Fang Tang was an exemplary youth: he didn’t fight, didn’t gamble, never touched drugs, and only occasionally smoked or drank...

Simply put, he had no combat experience.

With the Eye’s guidance, wasn’t he now equipped with a tactical instructor?

What a marvelous cheat!

[Heh, I see now—you’re not only low in intelligence, you’re physically weak too. How did you survive so long, relying on others to feed you?]

Here it was!

The Yin-Yang Master, Eye, officially online!

Fang Tang’s lips twitched, and he ignored the subtitles entirely.

He cleaned his hunting knife, then took up his pickaxe and walked toward the ninth underground chamber’s wall.

This was the end-point of his detour strategy.

The storage spot for the blueprint even the Eye deemed excellent.

Having battled the mutt, he no longer felt like he was facing a deadly threat.

A hole appeared.

Fang Tang, following his usual method, tossed the Fire Elemental Stone in first.

This time, the bait was the mutt’s corpse.

The underground mutt sniffed all over the corpse, paying no attention to Fang Tang.

He stabbed the mutt’s throat, twisted, and severed its neck.

His movements were fluid, seamlessly executed.

[Heh, your baiting tactics never fail. I’m sure your adversaries loathe your cunning methods. As the noble Eye, I disdain your company.]

“If you think you can do better, step up yourself!”

Fang Tang muttered, then glanced at the table in the center.

A blueprint lay atop it.

He picked it up and saw a hammer drawn on it.

“What’s this hammer for?” Fang Tang raised an eyebrow, suspicious.

[You won’t admit you’re stupid. Put the blueprint away and take a closer look. In the early stages, this is a divine artifact. Do you know what that means?]

“Divine artifact?”

Fang Tang didn’t think much of it.

He filed the blueprint into his newspaper, and the hammer gained a name.

Deconstruction Hammer: Iron Ingot ×3, Silver Ingot ×2, Wood ×1, Fire Elemental Stone ×1.

Seeing this name, Fang Tang drew a sharp breath.

“Whoa? Deconstruction?”

This was real life, not a game—he couldn’t get materials from just any object.

For instance, even if he dismantled a wooden crate with his hunting knife, it didn’t count as materials.

Only items broken down with the Deconstruction Hammer could be stored in the newspaper as materials.

And the two mutt corpses on the ground—at first glance, rotten through, nothing useful.

But with the Deconstruction Hammer, rare materials could be harvested.

So, with the hammer, he’d unlocked new ways to acquire materials.

For the early stage, it truly was a divine artifact.

Even later, it would prove invaluable.

[Hmph! Foolish human, let me remind you again—never doubt my choices!]

“Tsk, not bad at all!”

Fang Tang’s eyes lit up again and again.

When he saw the synthesis tree, he grew even more excited.

Most of the ingredients were already present, missing only two iron ingots and one piece of wood.

Neither were rare materials—he could obtain them through trade.

In other words...

Within just over an hour of starting, he’d secured a divine artifact?

Whoosh—takeoff!

Fang Tang was slightly thrilled and walked to the wooden box in the corner.

Inside was a bottle of mineral water and a bag of toast.

The resources weren’t as plentiful as before, but that made sense.

After all, there was a divine artifact blueprint here.

“Put it up for trade, make the Deconstruction Hammer!”