The Only Player in ‘Child of Stardust’
Chapter 262 - 179: Let’s Call It the Eastern Town Rod

Chapter 262: Chapter 179: Let’s Call It the Eastern Town Rod

[Random Forging Furnace] was one of the Forge Association’s treasures, kept at the association’s headquarters.

Getting to the Forge Association’s headquarters was actually quite simple. You just had to enter any branch and use the artisans’ special transport portal to get there directly.

The headquarters’ lobby was clean, bright, spacious, and grand, full of modernity. It was nothing like Zhou Yuan imagined: stuffy and noisy with shirtless musclemen everywhere hammering iron.

"I see your reservation here, but there are still two customers ahead using the Random Forging Furnace. You’ll need to wait a bit, or you could go and watch," the receptionist said with a smile.

"Let’s go watch," Chen Guangxi suggested, curious to see what those two would forge.

A girl in a flowing white cheongsam came over to lead them to the room where the Random Forging Furnace was located.

After walking for a while, they arrived at a crowded hall. There were at least three hundred people, all seats taken. Those without seats had brought their own portable stools, and some were even sitting on the floor.

Most of them were staring up at a huge LCD screen, keeping an eye on the constantly updating messages.

"What are they doing?" Zhou Yuan asked, puzzled.

The girl in the white cheongsam explained with a smile: "That big screen is where Forging Masters post bounty commissions. If they need special materials or want to assemble a team to go to an abnormal area, they post their request there. Extraordinary persons can take on the tasks they see.

"The bounty amounts from Forging Masters are very high. One task can sustain a small team for a long time, so many people don’t mind crashing here, ready to grab a task at any moment.

"Although this method is a bit troublesome, it helps prevent script-based bot snatching of tasks, which is favorable for mid- and lower-level adventurer teams."

"There are bots snatching these tasks too?" Zhou Yuan was shocked.

The girl in the white cheongsam nodded: "Of course, as long as there’s something on the internet—be it bounties, commissions, or goods—there will always be bots fighting over them.

"Especially now that the transcendent veil has been lifted, the wealthy and powerful around the world are scrambling to collect extraordinary items. Equipment and tools listed on major platforms get snapped up instantly by them; if left unchecked, it will soon become chaotic."

...

Zhou Yuan and Chen Guangxi were led to a spacious room with a towering iron forging furnace over two meters high.

The furnace was a round sphere covered in visible welding marks, like it had been patched up with various metal pieces, appearing rough and utilitarian.

Below the round furnace was a special rectangular base, preventing the high furnace temperature from burning through the floor and sinking into the ground.

At that moment, two other groups were in the room, nervously watching the roaring Random Forging Furnace, not daring to breathe too loudly.

"More people are here... huh, are you Chen Guangxi?" Someone stared in shock, unable to believe their eyes.

Holy crap, True Dragon!

"Hello," Chen Guangxi greeted with a smile, maintaining her idol-like composure.

Everyone felt their confidence boosted instantly. This was a True Dragon from legends!

Dragons were auspicious beasts, symbolizing blessings. Perhaps it might bring good luck, causing the furnace to produce excellent gear!

"The Shirtless Maniac!" someone exclaimed, recognizing Zhou Yuan and pointing at him in surprise.

Zhou Yuan’s face darkened: "If you had frequented the forums, you’d know that wasn’t me."

That infamous act was done by his alt account, not his main one, but many uninformed people still thought it was him.

It was impossible to clear his name, utterly impossible.

Hiss!

Just then, a plume of hot steam shot out from the back of the Random Forging Furnace, and everyone instantly perked up; it was opening!

A young man took a deep breath, as nervous as an anxious husband waiting outside the delivery room.

Click.

A sound like unlocking occurred, and the furnace automatically popped open a round door.

Clang.

Something was "spat" out by the Random Forging Furnace, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

Everyone focused, their expressions turning extremely strange.

It was a brick of fiery red metal, covered in spectacular patterns that looked like the Damascus steel blade designs, exuding a sense of preciousness.

[As you can see, this is a very cool-looking brick, but what’s it used for?

It’s super hard and looks great.]

Zhou Yuan saw the prompt and knew this round was a bust.

The young man stood still for a long time, then silently approached, picking up the red brick with the last vestige of hope, carefully examining and pondering over it.

After a long while, he suddenly erupted, smashing the brick against the ground:

"This is absolute bullshit!"

"I spent thirty million on this damn brick!"

"My materials, my equipment, my money! AAAHHHH!!!"

Cursing incessantly, he suddenly burst into tears and began slapping himself, making loud smacking sounds.

"Don’t, Mr. Luo, don’t do this," his companion rushed to pull him back, picking up the red brick and dragging him out of the room quickly.

Chen Guangxi tried to hold back her laughter.

Zhou Yuan couldn’t laugh at all.

For some reason, he had an ominous feeling, like he was glimpsing his future self...

Seeing this scene, the other group couldn’t help but gulp and grow even more anxious.

The next user was a white male from a supernatural organization in the America Continent.

He dumped his prepared materials into the Random Forging Furnace, then closed the lid, gesturing with his hands: "God bless."

Rumble...

The Random Forging Furnace roared to life, the forging beginning.

Nobody spoke during the process; the only sound was the furnace’s rumbling roar.

Finally, hot steam burst forth, signaling the completion of the forging.

The white man’s nerves were stretched taut like tight strings, his tension almost palpable. Sweat rolled off his forehead in large drops, soaking his hair and leaving wet streaks on his pale cheeks.

He recalled his first time having an affair with his boss’s wife—a wonderful evening that ended with his boss suddenly returning home with a shotgun, ready to blow his head off.

He hid in the closet, not daring to move, his breath almost stopping. Outside the closet, his boss moved closer with the gun, like a reaper’s scythe about to fall...

That same unprecedented tension of life and death sprang up within him again.

Clang.

A sound indicated something was spat out by the Random Forging Furnace.

The white man wiped the sweat from his eyes and looked closely.

On the ground lay something resembling a magic wand, but the tip was a golden statue of an upraised middle finger.

"Uh..."

The white man awkwardly picked up the middle-finger wand, and the moment he did, everyone present felt a surge of inexplicable rage, as if provoked by a street thug.

"What are you doing..."

The white man realized in horror that everyone was glaring at him angrily.

Bam bam bam!

A group of people swarmed up and started punching and kicking the white man until he passed out, screaming. He released the middle-finger wand, and everyone suddenly stopped, looking at each other in confusion.

"Get him to the hospital, I kicked too hard!" Chen Guangxi said urgently.

Moments later, the group rushed away with the injured man, carrying the middle-finger wand with metal tongs and placing it in a weapon box to prevent further brawls when someone picked it up.

"This thing causes the holder to release a powerful taunt to all nearby life forms, resulting in a group beating," Guangxi explained, with a pained expression. "This bizarre effect is unparalleled."

But to be honest, this tool was quite useful. It could draw aggression, divert attention, and buy time. Given to the right person, it could have unexpected results.

After the two groups left, only Zhou Yuan and Chen Guangxi remained in the forging room.

It was Zhou Yuan’s turn.

"Hurry up," Chen Guangxi urged.

Zhou Yuan took a deep breath and approached the Random Forging Furnace, dumping in his prepared materials.

He included items like an alloy wrench, a super sapphire dagger, and the Backwater Sword he no longer used.

Additionally, he added a Golden Dragon Scale, Satan’s ashes, and Essence of Life, which were high-quality materials.

Then, he looked expectantly at Chen Guangxi.

Chen Guangxi instinctively stepped back, wary: "What do you want?"

Zhou Yuan forced a flattering smile, rubbing his hands: "Sis, can I have some blood? Just a bit of support... I’ll treat you to a great meal later."

"I knew you were up to no good," Chen Guangxi rolled her eyes, taking out a small bottle of golden dragon blood from her storage ring and adding two more items.

One was a black iron ingot, and the other was a golden fruit radiating intense heat like a small sun.

"This is a mysterious metal I acquired years ago; this is a sun fruit I picked from [Crag of Sunnear]," Guangxi introduced.

The Crag of Sunnear was an abnormal plane with a peak taller than Mount Everest. Climbing to the top reveals a blazing sun close by, instantly incinerating those with insufficient strength.

Yet such harsh conditions produced life—sun fruit trees. The fruit contained potent sun essence energy and was a precious natural treasure, difficult to find in the market due to its tough harvesting process.

"Guangxi..." Zhou Yuan was touched, not expecting Guangxi to bring out such precious items.

"Stop calling me so gross. I just can’t use them," Guangxi shuddered, covered in goosebumps.

The furnace door closed, and the Random Forging Furnace roared to life, unleashing a torrent of noise.

Unfortunately, the Random Forging Furnace wasn’t affected by external forces. Otherwise, Zhou Yuan would have used [One-Hit Wonder], hoping it might produce something good.

After over half an hour of tense waiting, a hiss signaled steam bursting out.

Click, the furnace door automatically opened.

Zhou Yuan and Chen Guangxi watched eagerly.

Clang, the Random Forging Furnace spat out a magnificent golden rod.

"Wow, is that the Golden Cudgel?" Chen Guangxi was amazed. Had they really made some ancient divine weapon?

Zhou Yuan quickly picked up the rod, but soon his face darkened.

Bzzz bzzz bzzz...

The golden rod vibrated at a high frequency and rhythmically extended and retracted, growing longer and shorter, bigger and smaller.

Zhou Yuan: "..."

Chen Guangxi tried to hold back her laughter.

After a long silence, Zhou Yuan sighed deeply in genuine frustration and turned to Guangxi: "Want it?"

Guangxi shook her head: "I already have one."

"Ordinary ones wouldn’t last with your strength."

"I can hold back."

"..."

Zhou Yuan rubbed his temples. To be fair, the rod was quite good, with both high quality and great effects, but its vibrating and self-extending features were unnecessarily excessive, looking too ridiculous.

Guangxi patted his shoulder comfortingly and suggested:

"Just call it the Eastern Town Rod."