Chapter 334: Experience Skyrockets
First, in the most eye-catching spot of the item list, aside from the Stone Mask he wasn't interested in and the Devil Fruit he had already eaten, there was a new unknown item called Lucky Clover. It immediately drew Sunken Star Beneath the Water's attention.
Its selling price was 150 Vecktas per use. The effect: upon use, you gain twelve hours of good luck, followed by three hours of bad luck.
"Damn!" Sunken Star Beneath the Water couldn't help exclaiming. "Isn't this just a straight-up Luck Buff!?"
As long as he used those twelve lucky hours to farm dungeons and get loot, then stashed everything in storage before the unlucky period hit and went AFK in a safe zone for three hours — he could do whatever he wanted afterward. Wouldn't that make him unstoppable?
"Alright, I'll note it down… let's see what else there is first."
Next, Sunken Star Beneath the Water scrolled down to the bottom of the skill list — and suddenly widened his eyes.
"This is… a new type of Haki besides Armament Haki… Observation Haki! It's a passive skill that sharpens one's five senses and can also be used to predict and evade danger."
"And there's a new Gun-Fu – Psychic Counter! Perfect to pair with Observation Haki."
"Holy crap, and new skills Hive Shot and Tempest! Both single-target and AoE! These are advanced skills for the Wandering Gunslinger class! They're so cheap too — except for Observation Haki being a bit pricier, the rest only cost 20 Vecktas and 50,000 experience each. That's practically free!"
The more Sunken Star Beneath the Water looked, the more excited he became. Without hesitation, he instantly bought all the skills, took a screenshot of the shop, and posted it on the forum with a title: 'Shocking! The Strongest Class Has Been Born — See for Yourself!'
Sunken Star Beneath the Water's unique verified ID and that classic clickbait headline brought in massive traffic. Within minutes, his post dominated the board.
With the Apocalypse Professional League about to begin, these new skills were like a blessing from heaven for all the Wandering Gunslingers eager to perform well — no one wanted to miss out. In no time, players flooded in to learn the new skills. Even the grind-obsessed Jinse rushed out of her dungeon to join in.
This girl had appeared frequently in XB's recent livestreams. Whenever she teamed up with XB and Haicheng — both notorious for their clumsy gameplay — the party would get wiped repeatedly, breaking her spirit several times over. She was like a Lin Daiyu when silent, but a Lu Zhishen when she opened her mouth.
Though he had expected some buzz, Zhou Ning was still surprised by the sheer enthusiasm of the players.
[Player Xiuzhu has learned your skill Hive Shot. You gained 20 Vecktas and 50,000 experience.]
[Player Curry Overlord has learned your skill Gun-Fu – Psychic Counter. You gained 20 Vecktas and 50,000 experience.]
…
The notifications for skill purchases flooded his screen nonstop. Since the new skills required dual pistols, Zhou Ning's revolver stockpile — which he'd been hoarding — was nearly depleted. Even the Lucky Clover was bought out several times by rich players, something he hadn't expected.
Letting other players share the usage cooldown — that idea had just occurred to Zhou Ning. The inspiration came from the story of Richie Burke and Ingersoll escaping from a nameless island; they took turns using the Lucky Clover, maintaining their fortune while minimizing their misfortune.
Given the game's mechanics, the worst that could happen during unlucky hours was losing some experience. Money and gear could be safely stored, and players could just AFK in town to avoid risk.
But during the lucky period, the possibilities were endless — dungeon runs, field farming, crafting rare-quality items, or even gambling at NPC casinos.
Losses in NPC casinos didn't cost Zhou Ning a thing, and the players' growth only benefited him. After all, it wasn't his own wool being sheared.
Watching his experience and money skyrocket, Zhou Ning couldn't help but smile contentedly.
Time passed quickly. After nearly six hours of nonstop sales — from snow to clear skies to rain — Zhou Ning finally decided to call it a day around four in the afternoon.
When he glanced at his stats, even he was shocked. In just half a day, he'd earned 67 million experience — enough to raise his level significantly. In a few more days, he'd have the Demon Hunter class maxed and could start creating a new one.
For the first time, his savings had also surpassed 100,000 Vecktas. He was still short 150,000 to purchase the Mediocre Emperor Template, but his progress was looking very promising.
At the current grinding pace of Jinse the Grind Queen, the Professional League would begin in two to three days at most. These next two days would be prime time for massive profits — he had to stay busy, or he'd miss out. The orphanage investigation could wait until nighttime.
After finishing his sales, Zhou Ning headed to the alchemy shop, where Richie Burke was discussing expansion plans for the guild's temporary base with Boatswain Berg.
"How are things going?" Zhou Ning asked casually, sitting down beside them.
"Pretty smoothly," Richie Burke replied, startled at first before continuing.
"I've arranged for part of the mithril to be processed in Darkland City and Bryston City. Some has already been shipped to Ruins, while the rest is being sent in batches to the Byron Republic and the Sepharic Kingdom. I've also secured buyers in those two cities."
"As for the guild base… have you already dealt with the Lambert family? They just sent someone over — brought the deeds for several nearby shops. We should have everything finalized in a few days…" Richie's tone carried a hint of envy. Why was this guy so damn lucky?
The street outside Vick University was prime real estate — those deeds alone were worth at least 20,000 Vecktas.
"Pretty much handled," Zhou Ning nodded, clicking his tongue slightly. Those must be part of the mission's later rewards. As expected, the harder the task, the greater the payoff. The Lamberts really lived up to their reputation as a ducal family — he'd known they were rich, but not this rich.
…
After leaving the alchemy shop, Zhou Ning opened the forums.
Sure enough, the main page was filled with posts about the Wandering Gunslinger's sudden wave of new skills. Many were already analyzing class balance and comparing advantages.
Originally, once players hit level 30, melee classes like Warriors and Knights began to shine. Warriors gained Charge, Intercept, and Leaping Slash — powerful gap-closing moves that made it easy to crush ranged classes. Combined with their flashy Battle Aura, they were regaining popularity fast. The top contender from the Candy Super Sweet Club, Tang Shanda, was a Warrior with high odds of winning the championship.
Knights, meanwhile, could deal damage, control enemies, and even heal themselves. Their holy light and radiant effects gave them great flair, and after completing their level 30 mount quest, they gained strong chase abilities — a nightmare for fragile ranged players.
But the moment the Wandering Gunslinger's new skills appeared, Warriors and Knights immediately felt the pressure. With Observation Haki and Psychic Counter, both evasion and counterattack abilities improved dramatically, cutting down melee advantage by more than half. They became much harder to fight.
In the end, all blame fell on Wayne Sturwell.
That was the Knights' and Warriors' consensus — especially among players from other nations. They had never seen such a shameless person: simultaneously the story's protagonist, class mentor, quest giver, and traveling merchant. Utterly unfair!
Hard to beat, huh? That's how it should be…
Zhou Ning smiled. As someone who'd been through it all, he knew exactly how every class stood at this stage. Once players learned all the skills he'd released, the Wandering Gunslinger would have no natural counters. Against other classes, it would be a clean 60–40 advantage — or maybe 50–50 against some truly skilled Meteorologists.
Unless someone had completed other hidden quests, obtained overpowered skills, or wielded level-five or six magic scrolls or unknown artifacts —
Otherwise, the championship was almost certainly going to a Wandering Gunslinger.
Thinking about that, Zhou Ning turned southwest, heading toward the orphanage near Vick University to begin his investigation.
He had previously tried using the Compass That Doesn't Points North to locate Chris Fisher, but the needle had spun wildly — likely blocked by some extraordinary power. So now, he had no choice but to check each orphanage one by one.