The Shen Yan System update would take three days, meaning all Dungeon functions would be closed during that time.
In the Fated Ones Group Chat, most people still refused to believe that a student from the Fourth Star Ring, a B+ level freshman without even a formed divine image, could rank eighth among the Fated Ones.
But no matter what, the new semester was about to start, and most freshmen had already begun preparing to head to Tianqiong Path Academy.
Morning, Second Star Ring, Chronos City.
Inside a workshop in the city, a freckled young man with blond hair gloomily stared at the Shen Yan Special Shop interface, his finger scrolling nonstop, searching for various dragon-related items.
“Dragon Scale… three million contribution points? I’ll never earn that much in my life.”
“Dragon Blood… five million? Even more ridiculous.”
“Dragon Bone…” George was stunned.
“Ten million contribution points? Might as well turn to robbery.” Â
Without a doubt, the prices of various dragon-related items on the Shen Yan interface made his scalp tingle.
Each one glowed with the golden shine of rare items, marked with “Limited Sale” tags and astronomical prices.
He suddenly leaned back, and the chair creaked under him.
“This is really troublesome… The one I had my eye on suddenly got taken off the shelf,” he muttered, “Where am I supposed to find dragon-related Divine Artifacts again, and still be able to afford them?”
He turned to look at the side of his workbench—
There lay a half-finished Divine Artifact, a masterpiece he had painstakingly crafted over three years through scrimping and saving: the Storm Wandering Dragon.
It was a lifelike azure-blue metal dragon, its head raised high, dragon horns extending backward like sharp swords, the entire body curved in perfect proportion, tapering into a sharp tip at the tail.
His perfect creation.
Once infused with Divine Power, this metal dragon would come alive, capable of both offense and defense, with speed and agility at least on par with an A-Class Divine Artifact.
He had already completed 99%, only missing the final step: fusing any dragon-related material to give it the true essence of a dragon and achieve a qualitative leap.
But the problem was, where could he find dragon-related Divine Artifacts he could afford?
“Ding” Â
The mechanical clock on the workshop wall struck nine; the morning light had already arrived.
George stood and walked to the window, closed his eyes, and clasped his hands together.
“Great Hephaestus, God of Fire and Forging. Wise Prometheus, bestower of fire’s spark to mankind… Please listen to your devout follower’s prayer. Grant me inspiration and strength, and also the insight and opportunity to complete the Storm Wandering Dragon.”Â
After the prayer, George let out a long sigh, “If only I were as wealthy as those from the divine families…” he muttered, then shook his head, “I shouldn’t think like that. I’m already very lucky. To be blessed by the gods, become a Divine Artisan, have a skill to support myself, and still get admitted to Tianqiong Path Academy…” Â
At this thought, George brightened, opening the shop door.
The morning sun poured in, illuminating the drifting dust inside the workshop.
“George! Good morning!” The Floral Shop Lady across the street waved, “I heard you got into Tianqiong Path Academy? Congratulations!”
George scratched his head awkwardly and replied, “Just lucky.” Â
“Hey! George, kid,” Tom, who had just bought breakfast, walked over, “I got news about that thing you wanted. Marcus in the West District recently got a batch of goods from the Third Star Ring…”
George’s eyes lit up.
“Really? Thanks so much! I’ll go check it out.” Â
“No problem,” Tom patted his shoulder.
“I’ve seen your skills, you’ll definitely make it big one day. But Marcus’s prices will definitely be…” Â
After Tom left, George returned to the workshop.
He looked at the Storm Wandering Dragon on the workbench.
Actually, finishing it didn’t require any rare dragon materials—any dragon-related medium would do. Â
This was the trait of his divine skill, [Divine Artisan’s True Word], which could directly embed abstract concepts into materials, granting Divine Artifacts properties beyond physical limits.
It was just that his craftsman profession wasn’t yet perfect, so he couldn’t conjure abstract concepts out of thin air, which meant he needed a medium.
Dragon, as one of the most powerful mythological creatures, naturally made related items expensive. Â
Marcus was a notorious sly merchant in the West District; even if he had dragon materials, they probably wouldn’t be affordable.
George sighed, “I’d better keep searching. Maybe widen the price range?” Â
He intended to input one million but accidentally missed a “1,” making it zero.
George: “…”
“There’s no way there are free dragon-related items…” he laughed at himself.
Just as he was about to input again, he froze, “Wait… I’m not seeing things, am I?” Â
There was actually one result on the page.
Zero contribution points…
It really might be a giveaway!
George sprang up from his chair, heart pounding.
“What kind of purchase comes with dragon-related freebies?” Â
He quickly clicked for details; two items popped up: Dragon Palace: Luminous Pearl and Dragon Palace: Coral Treasure Tree.
The price was quite cheap, only five thousand contribution points, but the freebie section said “Dragon Breath Stone”?
“A special stone containing the power of dragon breath…” George read the description, gasping, “Is this… real?”
Although the Dragon Breath Stone only contained a faint dragon aura, it was enough for his Storm Wandering Dragon.
Moreover, while the Luminous Pearl and Coral Treasure Tree were only D-level items, they were extremely practical materials for Divine Artisans—the basic water and wood elements were almost essential for any craftsman.
In other words, no loss at all.
George didn’t hesitate and clicked “Buy,” then worried: “Is this really for real? It should be… it should be.”
He quickly sent a polite private message to the seller: [Hello, I just purchased your ‘Luminous Pearl and Coral Treasure Tree Set.’ Could you please confirm whether the freebie ‘Dragon Breath Stone’ is truly included? Thank you.]
After sending the message, George sat anxiously, staring at the interface.
“Please reply soon…”
***
Meanwhile, at Kunlun Academy.
Su Fu was watering the Medicine Herb Garden with Jingping Ganlu, the sweet dew flowing evenly from the vase’s mouth, sprinkling on the various spiritual herbs and making their green even more vibrant.
“Not bad, not bad.” Su Fu nodded with satisfaction, “At this rate, we should harvest a batch before school starts.” Â
After finishing watering, she walked back to the main pavilion and saw Tao Tao lazily lying on a miniature recliner, swaying gently, looking utterly comfortable.
Su Fu lay back down on the recliner, poked Tao Tao, and opened the Shen Yan Mall.
Su Fu pondered that she needed to buy a means of transportation; after all, she’d be running back and forth between Tianqiong Path Academy and Kunlun, and no transport wouldn’t do.
Shen Yan quickly displayed results:
[“Feiyun Series—Star Ring Edition”] Â
[“Divine Eagle X9 – Ultralight”]Â Â
[“Night Falcon: Limited Edition”]Â Â
[“Shuttle Max” ]Â
[“Thunder Flash 3000”]Â Â
Su Fu’s spirits lifted, “Sounds impressive.”Â
Moreover, as soon as she glanced, Shen Yan would proactively show a hologram, detailing the exquisite exterior, luxurious interior, and various cool functions.
Super satisfying, but then she saw the prices.
Su Fu:Â Â “……”
Starting at a million contribution points—poor girl retreats.
She was furious, “No way, is everyone really this rich?” Â
Back when she was in the Third Star Ring, thirty thousand contribution points felt like a small fortune, but now in the Second Ring, she couldn’t even afford a car.
This life was impossible!
“What am I going to do?”
Su Fu gazed at the sky in despair, then suddenly had a bright idea and sat up straight.
“Buying finished products is too expensive, so I can find a professional.”
There were all kinds of professionals, including craftsmen, so she would just need to buy raw materials herself and pay the craftsman a production fee.
That would save a lot of money, and the key was practicality—she could customize to her liking.
But then she lay back down with a worried look, “Craftsmen are hard to find, especially those with excellent skills.” Â
If she got an unreliable one, it wouldn’t just be hard to get a finished product—she’d probably lose all her raw materials without compensation.
There was no way around it; artisans were like this, universally across the stars.
At that moment, Shen Yan suddenly sent a notification—
[“All your listed items have sold out, please arrange shipment promptly.”]
[“The buyer has sent you a private message, please check in time.”]
“Sold?” Su Fu jumped up from the recliner.
“That fast?” Â
She opened the interface; indeed, the Luminous Pearl and Coral Treasure Tree had been bought.
The buyer had sent multiple messages: first confirming the freebie, then hoping for quick shipment, even willing to pay extra for expedited handling.
“Not bad, not bad.” Su Fu rubbed her hands with delight.
“Hehe, my first bucket of gold!” Â
She immediately replied:Â Â [Dear customer, thank you for your purchase! The freebie is definitely included~ I will arrange shipment immediately, no extra fees! ^_^]Â Â
As for shipping, of course, she would use Shen Yan’s express system—once the sold items were confirmed, she’d select the instant delivery option.
“Done!” Su Fu didn’t expect the first sale to go so smoothly; from now on, she could steadily make money this way.
Tao Tao leaned in curiously, “Sis… you’re so happy! Who’s the buyer? So straightforward.” Â
“Someone named George,” Su Fu answered casually, her thoughts drifting elsewhere.
‘Wait… George? Ahem, doesn’t he have a sister?’
She glanced at the address but suddenly froze: [“George Hermann, Chronos City, George’s Artisan Workshop”]
“George’s Artisan Workshop… wait, he’s an artisan?!”
***
George was anxiously waiting, glancing at the Shen Yan interface every now and then.
“Will the Dragon Breath Stone run out? Or did I miss out?”
“Sigh, why hasn’t anyone replied yet?” Â
He buried his face in his hands in pain, ‘Heaven, waiting was so agonizing.’Â
But at that moment, Shen Yan’s pleasant voice sounded:Â Â [“ER…”]Â
Before it finished, George immediately looked at the interface and indeed saw the seller’s message.
There is, there is a Dragon Breath Stone.
And it’s shipped directly by Shen Yan Express.
“Great!” George punched his palm, jumping up from his chair in excitement.
Sure enough, less than half an hour later, Shen Yan notified:Â Â [“Your express has arrived, please enter Shen Yan Space to receive it.”]Â Â
George happily entered Shen Yan Space and immediately saw a small package glowing with faint blue light floating there.
Opening the package, the first thing that caught his eye was a translucent jade-like Luminous Pearl, emitting a soft halo.
Feeling the Divine Power contained within, George nodded with satisfaction, “Water attribute is abundant—excellent material.” Â
Next to the pearl was a small, exquisite Coral Treasure Tree.
“This is quite good too. Huh? It even feels better quality than what I bought before?”
Divine Artifacts naturally had grades, but he hadn’t expected such a noticeable difference between two D-level items.
Finally…
“…”
George carefully lifted the stone.
It looked ordinary, but with dragon breath infused, it was different. Â
He carefully sensed the aura contained and his eyes suddenly widened, “The dragon breath is so strong! Is this a newly acquired Dragon Breath Stone?!” Â
George was shocked, “This seller is amazing, how did they get this?” Â
You have to know that the hardest part of the Dragon Breath Stone is storage; the dragon breath gradually dissipates over time, turning the stone into a regular rock.
He originally thought this Dragon Breath Stone probably had only a faint trace of dragon breath left, so it was given as a freebie, but this was quite a surprise.
“Too bad…”  He sighed regretfully, “Only these two things are listed—obviously a private seller. If it were a professional exploration team, maybe there would be more material supplies later. Then I’d have a stable supplier.” Â
He instinctively glanced at the seller’s address, and to his shock, it read: [“Kunlun Academy”]
“Wait—Kunlun?”
“Is it the Kunlun I’m thinking of?”
One of the three major academies in the Outer Ring, the legendary and mysterious Chinese divine system Kunlun Academy?
For ordinary people, that might just be a lost divine system.
But for an artisan, the Chinese divine system would likely have many unique materials, and no craftsman could refuse.
“Wait a minute,” he suddenly realized, “Doesn’t Kunlun only have one dean and one teacher? They’re both top-tier powers. How could they be selling these D-level Divine Artifacts?” Â
“Wait!”
“Maybe the teacher wouldn’t, but this year they seem to have recruited new students?”