Spring City, South Hill Base!
South Hill Base is a base built by Spring City to train new professionals.
Each year, a large number of new professionals who have successfully undergone the free Promotion Ceremony, stages once a year for high school students, are sent to South HIll Base for training.
Yes, the Promotion Ceremony that Dean McKenzie wanted to go through, trading seven or eight years for one free attempt, is indeed free.
In fact, you could do it for free once every year for your three high school years.
Moreover, the free Promotion Ceremony they enjoyed wasn't the lowest grade one that Dean envisioned, the one that cost 1 gold coin.
It was the intermediate-grade Promotion Ceremony priced at 5 gold coins on the market.
Of course, 5 gold coins is the market price, the real annual cost that Spring City invests into the Promotion ceremony would not exceed 50 silver coins per person.
Also, although the Promotion ceremonies are claimed to be free, is there really anything free in this world?
Professionals who have changed their professions through Promotion ceremony join the Professional Alliance for a certain period of time, or need to repay the cost of the Promotion to the Spring City Professional Alliance at the market price within three years after the completion of their Promotion.
Therefore, after all, this so-called "free" is actually a business.
Furthermore, it's a profitable business for the Professional Alliance.
Of course, Dean McKenzie thinks that they should make that money, in fact, regardless of the market price, Dean is willing to let them profit, even if the profit was several times more.
Unfortunately, as a semi-illegal, he doesn't qualify to allow them to earn, otherwise he wouldn't have stayed in the sewers for half a year.
However, although no money was earned.
Dean McKenzie still arrived at South Hill Base as usual.
The only difference is that others came for training, while he came for missions.
South Hill Base, inside the library.
The new librarian, Dean McKenzie, was holding and reading a copy of "18 Cultivation Postures of Meditation", all the while his mind was wandering off.
"According to Anthony's information, the Book of Dark Promotion first appeared at South Hill Base, they suspect that there may be an Evil Cultist lurking in South Hill Base.
So he arranged for me to come to South Hill Base, trying to use me to draw out that Evil Cultist.
I originally thought that this would be a difficult task with a certain degree of danger, but it has been a week since I arrived at the base.
Anthony has not yet made a detailed plan for my task, nor has he arranged a contact for me at South Hill Base. No one knows my identity at South Hill Base, nor has anyone limited my activities.
What does Anthony mean by this?"
Dean McKenzie even began to suspect, was he just left to his own devices by Anthony?
"There's no way, Anthony should have his own plan.
Maybe he's afraid that setting up too much would alert the enemy, so he wants me to develop freely. Since that's the case, then I'm really going to act on my own next.
In the week since I came here, I haven't leveled up at all. Tonight, I'm going to make a move!
Just in time, my new skill finally reached the entry-level stage!"
Dean McKenzie said this, and couldn't help opening his attribute panel.
...
Name: Dean McKenzie
Profession: Necromancer Apprentice
Talent: Extraction (5.7/1000)
Level: Level 3 (175/200)
Attributes:
Strength: 0.7, Agility: 0.8, Physique: 0.8, Spirit: 3.1
Mana: 31
Skills: Bone Fang (level 1) (95/100), Summon Skeleton (level 1) +1 (47/100)
Appraisal Skill (level 1) 3/100)
Meditation (level 1) (1/300)
...
These were Dean McKenzie's current attributes.
When Dean McKenzie opened his attribute panel right now, the thing he paid the most attention to was the last skill: Meditation.
...
Skill: Meditation.
Level: Level 1.
Effect: Rapidly restores Mana in the Meditation State.
Current mana recovery speed: 1 point per minute.
...
This Meditation skill was one of the rewards Dean McKenzie received for his B-Grade Evaluation on the Rotting Corpse Plain.
In addition to Meditation, Dean McKenzie also received 50 silver coins. Adding to the ones he had saved up, he now has a total of 55 silver coins.
This was a hefty sum!
If all was used for attribute enhancement, if attribute enhancement could even be unrestricted, this money could increase Doggy Two and team's attributes by 55 points.
"If I could directly increase Doggy Two's attributes by 55 points, gaining 0.5 attribute points per level, wouldn't that mean that Doggy Two would raise up by 110 levels?"
Just thinking about this makes Dean McKenzie very excited.
After finally getting off work, Dean McKenzie asked for a few days off at the library. He ate a quick meal at the cafeteria, packed a few days' worth of water and dry rations, and headed straight for Base 4.
South Hill Base, District 1 is the education district, which also houses the library.
District 2 is the accommodation area, District 3 is the training area, used for skill and tactical training.
District 4, on the other hand, is the trading area.
Professionals can continue resource trading here.
Dean is heading towards District 4 to purchase materials and equipment for his upcoming leveling experience.
With a hefty amount of 55 silver coins in his pocket, Dean strode into District 4 with a lot of swagger, ready to go on a shopping spree.
Then, very quickly, Dean was astounded by the prices in District 4.
A Mana Potion (tiny) costs 1 silver coin, a Life Potion (tiny) costs 2 silver coins.
A piece of leather armor with +4 defense dared to be sold for 10 silver coins, and equipment that increased skill levels like the Skeleton Wand sold for an outrageous 40 to 100 silver coins.
Even though Dean already knew before he came that the prices for trades in District 4 might be higher than outside, he really didn't expect it to be this ridiculously high.
Dean originally planned to see if he could buy equipment that increased mana cap, or recovered mana.
But then he saw that a necklace with only Level 1 Mana Recovery also cost 10 silver coins.
Although Dean could afford it, he felt the cost-performance ratio was low.
In the end, Dean only bought five Mana Potions (tiny), and one Life Potion (tiny).
He bought a piece of leather armor with +3 defense and two long swords with +2 attack.
Just like that, Dean spent a whopping 20 silver coins.
He had to work two years in the sewers for this money, and the moment he paid the money, Dean felt as if his heart was bleeding.
After shopping, Dean made his way directly to the fifth district of South Hill Base, also known as the leveling area of South Hill Base.
To reach District 5 as quickly as possible, Dean took a relatively secluded alley.
However, as soon as he entered the alley, Dean unexpectedly found a mysterious booth in this alley.
The booth was located in the shadow of this rarely traveled alley, and the person manning the booth was shrouded in a black cloak, looking both mysterious and powerful.
As Dean was noticing him, the vendor's gaze fell on Dean.
The moment their eyes met, Dean immediately lowered his gaze, not daring to look directly at this mysterious, powerful character.
He didn't even consider taking a look at what the booth was selling, and hurriedly left as if he was afraid of being forced into buying or selling something in this lonely alley.
After passing through that little alley, and after not going much further, Dean arrived at the main gate of District 5.
Dean swiped his card at the heavily mechanized main gate.
"Beep, employee card!"