Chapter 15-Heading To The Dungeon: Goblin Nest！

The box opened, and as the steam dispersed, its contents were revealed.

Inside was a skill token, just like the one Li Yao had received before—except this time, the emblem on it was clearly marked "S."

In addition, there were several bottles of mysterious, shimmering potions.

"So that's it!"

Li Yao's confusion vanished in an instant.

The Yu Wen Clan's attack on him was most likely because of this!

He picked up the S-rank skill token, unable to put it down, playing with it like a cherished treasure.

Even A-rank skills were incredibly hard to come by—let alone S-rank skills, which were almost never available on the market.

Even if they did appear in an auction, they were bartered rather than sold for money.

For context—

Even S-rank professionals could only comprehend an S-rank skill upon reaching level 20 and completing an advancement quest.

And once obtained, such a skill would be considered a trump card.

With that in mind, Li Yao immediately dismissed the idea of exchanging it for a summoning skill.

With his Star Ascension talent, he could upgrade any summon to S-rank for just a few dozen gold.

Using this token for a summon skill would be a waste.

A Perfect Fit.

Li Yao used the room's computer to access StarNet.

If he remembered correctly, there was a dream skill for all summoners, classified under S-rank.

He just didn't know if there was any stock available.

He opened the search page and entered the keywords.

A single skill book appeared on the screen.

"It's available!"

Ecstatic, Li Yao immediately redeemed it.

In an instant—

The S-rank skill token vanished, replaced by an ancient, yellowed book.

Li Yao reached out to touch it.

[Shackles (S)]: The summoner can designate one summoned beast to establish a Soul Link. The summoner shares all of the summon's attributes and skills for 20 minutes. Cooldown: 12 hours.

This skill was a perfect fit for Li Yao.

After all, he only had one summon worth linking to—

The Void Mantis.

With infinite strength growth, combined with his Chessmaster talent—

This was an absolutely broken combination.

A 20-minute duration was more than enough.

Once the attribute sharing was activated, if Li Yao couldn't finish a fight in 20 minutes, then he should probably start thinking about running instead.

For Li Yao, this S-rank skill was as valuable as a legendary SS-rank ability.

The Potions

After learning the skill, Li Yao's gaze fell upon the remaining bottles of potions.

Being stored alongside an S-rank skill meant they were definitely no ordinary items.

At the bottom of the box, there was a list detailing their effects.

S-rank Four-Dimensional Potions.

Now Li Yao finally understood just how generous the Dragon Nation was to its top talents.

These potions could be consumed once every 20 levels, with S-rank being the highest known grade.

Their effects were permanent attribute increases.

For context—

Every 20 levels, professionals had to complete an advancement quest.

These quests were solo-only.

Completing them determined future growth potential, so professionals would do everything to maximize their power beforehand.

The Four-Dimensional Potions were the most straightforward way to boost strength.

Essentially, they provided a significant stat advantage over others.

Since Li Yao was a summoner, Strength was his least useful stat, so there was no Strength potion in the set.

The remaining three attributes each had one bottle.

Each potion granted +20 points—roughly equivalent to a 2-level increase.

These potions were just like S-rank skill books—they never appeared on the market.

Most ordinary professionals would never have the privilege of accessing them in their lifetime.

Li Yao drank all three potions.

They tasted like bitter cold medicine, both astringent and nauseating.

The effects were not instant—the body needed several hours to absorb the medicinal properties.

During this time, weakness, dizziness, and general discomfort would set in.

Li Yao immediately lay down on the bed and closed his eyes.

"If I fall asleep fast enough, the pain won't catch me."

Nightfall.

By the time night fell, Li Yao got up from bed, feeling his body surging with newfound strength.

Satisfied, he nodded.

It was time to head out again.

His next target—

The Goblin Nest Dungeon.

A Crowded Scene.

Li Yao mounted the Void Mantis and rushed off in a specific direction.

Soon—

A massive vortex appeared before him.

At the same time, deafening noise filled the air.

It was like a crowded marketplace, a chaotic blend of shouting voices.

• "Molten Guild! 4 DPS, 1 Tank! Normal Difficulty! Level 15+ Mage classes only! Must be C-rank or higher! Speedrun team—no wipes!"

• "Normal difficulty! Need a healer for fast runs! What? You're only level 7? Why are you even here? Go grind the newbie dungeon! Wait, you'll pay 200,000 Dragon Coins? Alright, VIP lane this way!"

• "Silver Wolf Guild! Recruiting two level 17+ B-rank DPS for a Hard Mode raid! Loot distributed by contribution!"

• "Yu Wen Clan Hunting Team! Equipped with multiple level 15 Silver items! Seeking level 17+ Tanks with at least 200 Endurance for Master Difficulty! Open to hiring extra damage dealers—price negotiable!"

The Goblin Nest Dungeon was located at the border of Jiangzhou—

It was the essential leveling ground for all professionals.

Since its discovery, it had been permanently packed with players.

Li Yao approached the vortex.

Seeing the scene before him, he felt a wave of nostalgia, as if he were back in his past life playing an MMO.

"Young Master!"

A voice called out from the crowd.

Li Yao turned his head, saw the person, and nodded slightly, saying nothing.

As Jiangzhou's largest adventurer guild, Silver Wolf Guild had dedicated staff managing dungeons like Goblin Nest.

And not just Silver Wolf Guild—

He spotted people from the Yu Wen Clan and the Qin Clan as well.

Just then—

A team emerged from the dungeon portal.

Their gear was badly damaged, and they all looked battered and exhausted.

"That's the Qin Clan's squad, right? Looks like they failed another Master Difficulty run and had to use an Escape Scroll."

"Each Escape Scroll costs 1 million Dragon Coins. That's 5 million for their team. Add in high-tier gear repairs, and this reckless attempt at Master Difficulty must have cost them a fortune."

"But it's worth it! The Master boss is the Goblin Warlord—if they kill it, they might get a Legendary Gold-rank item!"

"Gold-rank gear? With Qin Clan's wealth, they could just buy one, no?"

"You don't get it. See that girl over there? That's Qin Yue, second daughter of the Qin Clan—an A-rank professional, Lightning Striker."

"Right now, the entire Qin Clan is focused on her advancement."

"And even if they don't get a Gold item, the Goblin Warlord's exclusive drop, 'General's Heart,' is a key material for crafting the Legendary Ring: General's Signet."

"Look—Yu Wen Clan and Silver Wolf Guild are preparing for Master Difficulty too.

If any of them gets the General's Signet, the others are screwed. Of course, they're fighting for it."

"Li Yao?"

A soft, pleasant voice rang out.

A girl in a fluffy, sky-blue robe, her face tinged with a rosy blush, came running toward him.