Chapter 63: Manifesting Wealth
None of that mattered now. Liam immediately checked the effects of Trinity Manifestation.
Trinity Manifestation
Rank: Cannot be upgraded.
Effect: You can manifest three clones. These clones inherit all of your attributes and traits but cannot be used for combat. They function only as support; any damage taken or dealt will cause the clone to dissipate.
Cost: 1,000 Mana.
Cooldown: One month.
Mastery: Cannot be upgraded.
Liam stared at the description, his mind blank for a moment. For a split second, he felt like he’d been played.
Was this it?
Trinity Manifestation?
Calling this a "nerfed" version of Trinity Manifestation would be an understatement. This was absolute garbage. He had harbored grand expectations when he first acquired the skill, but seeing these attributes now, the sense of being cheated was overwhelming.
Could this even be called Trinity Manifestation?
They couldn't participate in combat, and they would die from a single point of damage. They couldn't even serve as meat shields. What was the point of these clones?
Liam took a deep breath. Although he was irritated, he forced himself to think. A potential use for these clones quickly came to mind.
First, Sub-classes.
Grinding Mastery for a Sub-class was an agonizingly slow process. So slow, in fact, that almost no one in the early game was willing to waste time on it. However, in the late game, players would discover that the truly powerful weapons and equipment weren't dropped by monsters—they were forged by the hands of master Blacksmiths.
Beyond crafting, there were countless non-combat quests the clones could handle. Since they inherited all his traits and attributes, they could trigger quests for him; he would only need to step in for the combat phases.
But the most effective use was undoubtedly the Sub-classes. With three clones, he could grind the Mastery of three different Sub-classes simultaneously.
The most direct ways to boost combat power through Sub-classes were through an Apothecary, a Blacksmith, and a Talisman Master.
"It’s a far cry from the Trinity Manifestation I imagined," Liam muttered to himself. "But if I can start grinding Mastery right now in the early game, I’ll have an insurmountable lead. My future won't be half-bad."
Sub-classes were like Mages in the early game—mostly useless. At low levels, their skill proficiency was so poor that the items they produced were inferior to common monster drops. But in the late game, a Sub-class would be just as sought after as a high-level Mage, if not more so.
For now, this was his only option. He couldn't leave the Trinity Manifestation slot empty.
Before that, he needed to complete his First Advancement. He had originally planned to go to Blackwind City for his Class Advancement, but King Abraham’s lockdown had kept him out. Now that the ban was lifted, Liam could finally move forward.
The quest to lead The Primordial Eastern Empire to resurgence was restricted until his Second Advancement. He could finish his First Advancement now and push his level all the way to 50. Otherwise, he’d be restricted every time he tried to enter a high-level dungeon, forced to bring other players along to meet the requirements.
While plenty of people would jump at the chance to be carried by someone of his fame, Liam had no interest in babysitting.
Astral Capital.
The Class Advancement Hall was packed. Liam spent several minutes squeezing through the crowd before he finally reached the Archer trainer.
The trainer, Iris Bloom, looked up as he approached.
"I’m here for my Class Advancement," Liam said.
Iris Bloom's eyes widened. She gasped, "You're the Frost Monarch! Why would someone like you want to advance into a common class?"
"Is there a rule against it?" Liam asked.
"Of course not. Given your strength, I won't even bore you with an advancement quest. If you're ready, we can proceed right now."
"Fine." Liam nodded.
Ding! Do you wish to advance to an Elemental Archer?
"Advancing..."
Please select the elemental affinity for your advancement...
Liam didn't hesitate. He chose Wood Affinity.
The Archer’s First Advancement offered five choices based on the five elements. Each affinity provided a different title and a unique passive effect.
Metal Affinity focused on Armor Break, adding penetration to attacks. This was useless to Liam.
Water Affinity focused on crowd control removal, where attacks could dispel negative status effects. At the First Advancement level, however, the potency was far too low. With his Purifying Jade Amulet, this was redundant.
Earth Affinity focused on protection, converting a small percentage of damage dealt into a protective shield.
Fire Affinity focused on damage over time, adding a Burn effect to attacks.
Wood Affinity focused on Life-Steal.
A First Advancement didn't provide a massive power spike, especially for common classes. It was a modest boost and three new class skills. The stat bonuses were average at best. Among the five elements, Earth and Wood were the only ones useful to Liam, and he found Life-Steal to be far more practical than a minor shield.
Ding! Congratulations! You have advanced to a Verdant Archer. You may spend Gold Sovereigns to learn skills from your trainer.
Liam turned and walked away without looking back. Learn skills? Forget it.
Every skill he currently possessed—with the exception of the basic Rapid Fire—was powerful enough to put Iris Bloom’s entire repertoire to shame. It wasn't that he looked down on her; she was simply weak by his standards.
After completing the advancement, Liam checked the Verdant Archer’s trait.
Verdant Archer Passive: All your damage-dealing attacks grant 1% Life-Steal!
Now, this was interesting.
The Tome of Mortality counted as a damage-dealing attack. Chain Lightning counted too. Previously, the Life-Steal from his Bloodstained Necklace and The Ninefold Longbow didn't apply to the damage from those two sources. This new class trait, however, covered every form of damage he could output.
As long as The Tome of Mortality was active, he would be regenerating over 400 HP every second. It was a modest amount of healing in the grand scheme of things, but it was a steady improvement.
The most important benefit of the advancement was that his level was no longer capped at 20.
Liam didn't rush to dump his attribute points into Mana. Instead, he equipped a piece of gear that boosted his maximum MP, cast Trinity Manifestation, and then swapped back to his original gear. He ordered the three clones to head off and register for their respective Sub-classes. From there, they would grind their Mastery on their own.
Finding a quiet, deserted alleyway, Liam pulled out a Gear Evolution Scroll. He now had two in his possession.
"Use Gear Evolution Scroll. Target: Purifying Jade Amulet!"
Ding! Congratulations! Your Purifying Jade Amulet has successfully evolved!
Liam immediately checked the stats. The amulet’s debuff resistance had increased from 85% to 88%. The jump wasn't as large as the previous evolution, but Liam had expected as much.
He immediately used the second scroll.
This time, the resistance climbed from 88% to 90%. The growth was slowing down, but Liam didn't mind. A 90% resistance stat was already bordering on broken. He was confident he could find more Gear Evolution Scrolls in the future. Even if he couldn't reach 100%, hitting 95% was well within reach.
With that settled, Liam moved to the next phase of his plan: taking control of the Adventurer Guild and establishing a bank.
He headed straight for the Astral Capital's Adventurer Guild branch.
The guild was buzzing with activity. Players streamed in and out, mostly because the guild offered a vast array of repeatable material collection quests. For those looking to level up quickly, these high-experience rewards were essential.
Liam walked up to the reception desk. "I want to see your supervisor," he told the staff member.
The receptionist, a blonde woman with blue eyes, looked Liam up and down and shook her head.
"Not just anyone can see our supervisor," she said, her voice tinged with arrogance. "Only a 7-Star Adventurer has the right to request an audience."
By completing guild tasks, adventurers earned experience and specific rewards, but they also earned something unique: Guild Points. The more points you had, the higher your rank within the guild. Higher ranks granted access to Adventurer's Badges, which provided significant attribute bonuses.
"The game has only been out for a few days. How could any player be at seven stars already?" someone in the crowd muttered.
"This guy probably wants to pick up a high-level quest. Look at him, he hasn't even registered as an adventurer yet. What a joke."
"Stop wasting time watching this clown. Is anyone looking for a group to hunt Level 25 Emerald-eyed Serpents?"
Liam’s presence drew plenty of scoffs and sneers. He didn't care. There were always people who felt the need to project superiority; if he let every one of them bother him, he’d never get anything done.
Liam pulled out The Guild Master’s Insignia. "Do you recognize this?"
Before the blonde woman could respond, a man standing nearby stepped forward, proudly tapping a badge on his chest.
"Hey kid, look at this. This is an Adventurer's Badge. Whatever piece of junk you're holding, it's garbage compared to this."
The crowd gasped as they saw his badge. "Holy shit, that's a Two-Star Rank Badge! Brother, you're already a 2-Star Adventurer?"
The man puffed out his chest. "Keep it down. It’s nothing special. When you have the strength, ranking up is as easy as breathing."
Liam didn't say a word. The blonde receptionist, however, was staring at the insignia in Liam's hand. Her mouth hung open, and her face went pale with disbelief. It took her several seconds to find her voice.
"Please... please wait a moment. I will notify Zalea immediately."
She turned and sprinted toward the back of the building.
A few moments later, a tall woman with sharp, angular features emerged. Her eyes locked onto Liam, then dropped to the insignia in his hand.
"Guild Master... you’ve finally returned."
Zalea bowed deeply, a full ninety-degree angle of absolute respect.
The silence that followed was deafening. The players in the hall looked on in shock.
"How... how is that possible? What the hell is that badge? Why is the head of the Adventurer Guild acting like that?"
"Turns out we were the clowns all along. That's a real big shot."
Liam ignored the chatter and walked straight into the inner chambers of the guild. Zalea followed closely behind, her head bowed.
"Guild Master, we have waited so long for your return."
Liam waved a hand dismissively. "What’s the current status of the Adventurer Guild?"
"It is as it has always been. We act as intermediaries for quests and take a commission on the rewards."
Liam nodded. He knew the drill. Most of the tasks the guild posted were based on actual needs from the world, and the guild made its money on the spread. It was similar to an auction house—most of the items were provided by others, and the house just took a cut. Additionally, the guild maintained its own experience system to provide attractive rewards.
"I’m here because I have a way for us to make a lot of money," Liam said.
Zalea looked up. "What kind of way?"
"Simple. A deposit service."
"A deposit service?"
"We let the adventurers store their coins with us, and in return, we provide interest."
Zalea looked perplexed. "Money making money? That system already exists within the Astral Kingdom. It might be difficult for the Adventurer Guild to break into that market. Besides, our infrastructure isn't ready for a banking system. If we can't offer competitive interest rates, no one will come to us."
Liam remained calm. He was well aware that the kingdom had banking institutions. But he had the Passive: Compound Interest. The rates he could offer would make every other bank look like a scam.
"What are the current interest rates offered by the Mercantile Exchanges?"
"Usually between one and three percent annually. A few might go as high as five percent."
Liam smiled thinly. "And what if I could offer thirty percent?"
"What?" Zalea’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. She couldn't believe her ears. "Guild Master... the Adventurer Guild would go bankrupt. We would lose a fortune."
Liam shook his head. "No. We won't lose a single copper."
He shared the description of his Passive: Compound Interest with her.
"Not only will we not lose money, but we will also become the wealthiest institution in the land."
Zalea stared at the skill description, her breath catching in her throat. It was beyond anything she could have imagined. It was impossible, and yet, it was right there in front of her.
"I see... Guild Master, I will make the arrangements immediately. Every Adventurer Guild branch in the Astral Kingdom will begin offering Mercantile Exchange services."
"Go. Do it quickly," Liam commanded. "Don't worry about pressure from the other exchanges. If they want to cause trouble, I'll handle them."
The advance reading chapters on have reached 12chapters. Thank you for reading!
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