Chapter 5: Proficiency

---Exeter City Marketplace---

Vendor stalls and crafting workshops littered the walkways of Exeter's bustling Artisan District. The whole area hummed with sounds of crafters hard at work and merchants peddling their wares. One of the taller buildings in the zone housed a significantly more popular crafting profession than the others.

The blacksmith's workshop was a relatively large establishment situated in the heart of the market. On a typical day, NPCs and players alike could be seen crafting with a wide variety of materials. The forge never closed, so throughout all hours of the day and night, an almost musical rhythm from metals being hammered filled the air.

Ever since the Fu clan had taken control of the city, its economy had seen a boost in the production of goods. Traders passing through the Eastern Continent frequently visited Exeter and viewed it as a trading center with great opportunities.

Of course, one of the most popular crafting professions was Blacksmith. Who wouldn't want to be able to work with rare materials and one day craft their own weapons and gear? To one day be a master Artisan Spiritualist! Able to make legendary top-tier items that no one else could. To have the world know that some famous character used their weapon to pave the way to glory!

The ambition to experience something like that was as old as RPG games themselves, if not older.

At one of the workstations within the forge was a youth with long snow-white hair. He had been smelting ore for the past hour, and next to him was a rather large pile of [Copper Ingots]. Sweat dripped from his forehead as the heat pouring from the furnace he had been using was substantial. His arms were slender but sturdy enough to keep up the pace of consistent work.

The youth pulled the crucible of smelted ore out of the furnace, maintaining a look of concentration as he slowly poured the contents into a mold. The crafting process of making yet another ingot was nearly complete.

*Ding*

-- You have failed to craft [Copper Ingot]. --

As the ore in the mold cooled and hardened, it had become lumpy and inconsistent. Unlike the other bronze ingots he had crafted, which all immediately turned into useable copper, this one had become scrap. The white-haired youth wiped the sweat from his forehead with an annoyed look, and strands of his hair were still stuck to his face. He looked at the leftover scrap material with a disappointed expression, dropping the tongs he had been using, causing a loud thud to sound through the forge.

'Damn RNG(*),' Sun Zhou thought to himself.

Sovereign Spirit Online offered a splendid variety of Artisan opportunities. The processes of crafting and gathering were also somewhat realistic to a degree. While significant steps and motions were included in various crafts, other minute tasks had been left out to save the player time and keep the process fun yet immersive. For example, although more straightforward than most other metals, smelting copper still had more steps to making a pure ingot. Grinding and polishing the ingot had been left out. When a person poured the ore into a mold, the end product would either be a [Copper Ingot] or scrap metal.

One of the mechanics in SSO's crafting system was the bane of everyone who aspired to be an Artisan Spiritualist. The unforgiving RNG mechanic. During every crafting attempt, no matter the profession, there was a chance that the whole process may end up in failure. Just like in life, things don't always go the way you want, no matter how careful or prepared you are.

Sun Zhou looked at the pile of ingots in disappointment. He was able to craft these [Copper Ingots] consistently without any problem, but of course, the last one turned out to be a problem. With this blunder, Sun Zhou was one ingot short of his quota. On top of that, he was out of material!

"Hmm?" Sun Zhou around the forge but then quickly frowned. He had been so concentrated on his work; he hadn't noticed his actions had garnered the attention of some of the other crafters who couldn't help but stop and whisper to each other.

"The luck of this guy! He smelted so many ingots in a row and only just now had one fail!"

"I know, right? I'm only successful half of the time. Incredible! Also, look at the items! Their all copper? How is he able to work with copper already? The first item we're able to make is [Bronze Ingots], yet he's able to make copper?"

Sun Zhou ignored these people. He had no intention of explaining himself, and the fact he had once again made a spectacle of himself had put him in a bad mood. Sun Zhou had spent years of his life laying low in his past life, not drawing any attention to himself. He expected a certain level of curiosity from onlookers, but he still wasn't used to it.

"At this rate, I'll have no other choice but to take my chances outside the city. Damn." Sun Zhou mumbled.

-----A few hours ago-----

Tang Yuan's quest prompt hovered in front of Sun Zhou for quite a while. A moment of silence passed, and finally, Sun Zhou stood up, still staring at the lifeless Spirit in his hands. The light it emitted was feeble, not a good sign! Typically, this wouldn't have bothered Sun Zhou, but there was a larger problem. He couldn't discern what kind of Spirit this was!

Sun Zhou had experienced many adventures and witnessed incredible events that most people who played SSO could never have imagined. His complete dedication to SSO had allowed him to rise through the ranks of the Divine Continent's Spiritualists over the years. With everything he had seen, Sun Zhou was confident in his general knowledge of the world. Yet, when he looked at this weak speck of light in his hands, Sun Zhou was utterly at a loss.

"The fact that I can't even categorize this Spirit is shocking." Sun Zhou mused to himself, "But even so, it's still useless to me right now! How am I supposed to level up with a Spirit that I can't use or even feed? I'll have to spend a considerable amount of time figuring out how this Spirit operates and what it eats. It's going to make my leveling speed much slower."

Sun Zhou sighed with a defeated look on his face. If he had known this inheritance would be this complicated, he would have saved it for later! These first few months were imperative to overall plans, and any delays may cost him dearly.

Sun Zhou turned to leave, stowing the starving Spirit into the folds of his training outfit, "Well, at least the quest doesn't prevent me from using other Battle Spirits. I'll leave this be for now and get leveled up."

What Sun Zhou would never have guessed was how this inheritance would actually affect his chances at the Battle Pavillion-

-"Eh? You want a Battle Spirit? No way!"

Sun Zhou was taken aback, "W-what do you mean?"

One of the Fu Clan members stationed at the Battle Pavilion gave Sun Zhou a stern look, "You think you can just go around doing whatever you want? All of us saw how you bullied our sibling-disciple Bruised Leaf! Even after that, he was gracious enough to introduce you to his master! Hmph! You don't deserve the Fu Clan's generosity. Shoo! Off with you!"

Sun Zhou was in a state of shock.

This was the third person from the Fu Clan who had denied him a Battle Spirit! Sun Zhou was in complete disbelief. How could this be!? He stared at the rest of the Fu Clan stationed in the Battle Pavillion. They all seemed to be wary of him, taking extra precautions to not even look in his direction.

There's no way this was a coincidence. Sun Zhou put the chain of events together, realizing this sort of treatment from the NPCs was linked to his inheritance. It was apparent that his situation was meant to be a challenge for those who had been chosen. To reach level 100 without a Battle Spirit would take an incredible amount of time. Time that Sun Zhou had already made extensive plans for.

Sun Zhou stared off at the sky in frustration, 'What now then? Is this inheritance crafting related? That damn old Spiritualist, Tang Yuan! I'll have to change my whole schedule now! If I don't act quickly, I might end up missing some of the big events later on.'

Sun Zhou's reaction to the rejection at the Fu Clan's Battle Pavillion had him wondering if this inheritance was trying to push him towards the Craftsman and Frontier professions. Crafting and gathering relied heavily on certain Spirits and valuable materials to create all sorts of items and treasures. All Spiritualists relied on these objects to boost their attributes and create deadly techniques.

The road of an Artisan Spiritualist was just as long and arduous, if not more so, than a combat-oriented Spiritualist. A significant number of people specialized in these professions and spent their entire careers in SSO chasing the dream of creating legendary treasures. These individuals rarely saw combat and were invaluable to the factions that ruled the Divine Continent. A single high-rank Artisan Spiritualist capable of making high-tier items was worth more than an army of 1000 soldiers!

If talented enough, a Spiritualist would be able to use crafting or gathering as a means to increase their cultivation. As the saying goes, those who say money can't buy happiness don't know where to shop! With the income an Artisan Spiritualist can make from selling their goods, they could buy what they needed to increase their cultivation rank! There were an endless amount of medicines, elixirs, and spiritual pills that existed throughout the Divine Continent. Nothing was off the table, as long as you had enough money and influence to take it for yourself.

With all this in mind, Sun Zhou quickly departed the Battle Pavillion. There was no point in wasting his time with the place. He had created a tight schedule for himself and needed to progress quickly! He traveled to Exeter's Artisan District and made a beeline to the Blacksmith's Forge, immediately speaking to the Head Blacksmith of the establishment.

Like the Battle Pavillion, the Artisan District had several individuals in place who belonged to the Fu Clan. These Spiritualists guided rookie Artisan Spiritualists in the first steps of their profession. Although, these people did not give out Spirits. Instead, they gifted a small amount of material pertaining to their profession, along with a quest to craft or gather certain items. This process was how most Spiritualists started their careers. Either as an Artisan Spiritualist or a gatherer, otherwise known as Frontier Spiritualist.

"Look at those ingots he made! Everyone single one is high quality! Not only is he already past crafting bronze, but every single craft is also flawless."

"Is there some sort of exploit? I asked some of the NPCs, and they're more shocked than we are!"

Sun Zhou got up from his workstation. His last crafting process had failed, and he was in no mood to put on yet another show for these inexperienced people. Looking around the forge, Sun Zhou spotted the Head Blacksmith and made his way over to him.

The man was grizzly, reminiscent of a bear, complete with an ample supply of brown hair that covered his arms, face, and exposed chest. On his personal workstation was an iron nameplate with "Weyland the Smith" engraved on it.

"Hmm? You're back already?" asked Weyland.

"Yes, here are more of the ingots you requested," replied Sun Zhou, placing everything he had spent the last hour crafting on the desk in front of the Head Blacksmith.

Weyland leaned down and inspected the [Copper Ingots] before nodding, satisfied. Hovering his burly hand over them, Weyland activated the interspatial ring on one of his fingers and absorbed the items into storage.

*Ding

-- You have delivered x9 [Copper Ingots]. --

-- Quest Status: 99/100 [Copper Ingots] delivered. --

Sun Zhou frowned at the notification that had popped up, "Senior, would it be possible to request for more material?"

Weyland's eyes squinted, and he shook his head at Sun Zhou, "No! You've received the necessary materials already. When you first walked in here and showed me that half-dead Spirit you'd hidden away, I told you that you would receive no further help from me. Even if I made it more challenging for you, someone who treats their Spirits like that doesn't deserve any breaks! You're lucky I even gave you a chance when you dared to request the initial materials!"

Sun Zhou immediately turned to leave and let out another sigh of frustration. He was not by any means going to stand there listening to the Weyland drone on while all these other Spiritualists stared at him. However, the treatment he received from the Head Blacksmith was not a single event.

Half of the NPCs that Sun Zhou attempted to speak with wouldn't even give him the time of day. Sun Zhou naturally took out the starving Spirit that he had received from Tang Yuan. He needed to find information about it, but when the NPCs saw it, they were immediately cold to Sun Zhou. It was only by a stroke of pure luck that Weyland gave him a chance.

Walking through the city's streets, Sun Zhou recalled the night before, remembering the discussion he had with his brothers and playing it back in his head.

♦♦♦

----- The night before - Lau Jin-sah's Apartment -----

"So? What's your get-rich-quick scheme?"

"It's not a scheme. It's a strategy," Sun Zhou groaned.

Lau Jin-sah rolled his eyes, "Whatever. You mentioned a friend that works for Surreal Studios? They boosted(*) your character?"

Sun Zhou nodded. Earlier, he had offhandedly concocted some story about an acquaintance at the SSO's developing company. According to what he made up, this person gave him insider information about the game and altered Sun Zhou's character.

"With a boosted character, we'll have a much easier time leveling the both of you. With quicker access to specific higher-tier items, we'll be able to create a supply and demand for the in-game market before anyone else. Everything will begin in Exeter," explained Sun Zhou.

When Sun Zhou reincarnated, all of his character attributes had been completely reset. However, his achievements in the Proficiency of various skills, both battle and artisan related, remained. Proficiency was a mechanic that applied to all skills in SSO. When players increased their proficiency with a Battle Spirit or crafting profession, they would unlock higher tier items to craft or do more combat damage, amongst other effects.

Sun Zhou watched his two brothers scarf down their food with blazing speed. It was a habit they all inherited from the orphanage they came from. Food was always scarce when they were young.

"You can increase your proficiency the more you fight with a particular Battle Spirit or when you succeed in crafting and gathering attempts. The different stages of proficiency start at Novice and go all the way to Grandmaster."

Sota nearly choked as he inhaled his food. After managing to get it all down, he looked over at Sun Zhou: "Your friend set your proficiency in Scribe and smithing to Expert level, right? Is it really that much of a head start? Why not at Master or Grandmaster stage?"

"Not smith. Goldsmith. And you'd be surprised how significant the advantage is," said Sun Zhou.

In his previous life, Sun Zhou had not bothered with any of the Craftsman or Frontier professions in SSO.

At least at first. During his early career with the game, he was too obsessed with the territorial conflicts sprouting across the Divine Continent. Gaining strength, perfecting his battle style, and acquiring rare Spirits and treasures had been Sun Zhou's only priority.

It was only after years of playing SSO that he understood the significance of being a Craftsman or Frontier Spiritualist. The mercantile empires that high-rank Artisan Spiritualists had built were terrifying. By then, four years had already passed, and Sun Zhou was way behind his peers.

To catch up, Sun Zhou poured vital amounts of time and resources towards grinding(*) his proficiency in a few professions. After three years of hard work and countless items crafted and plucked from the world, he only managed to reach an Expert Proficiency level in the Goldsmith and Culinarian professions. A couple of other professions had gotten to the Adept level, but many remained at Novice. Although, even getting to Novice Proficiency took a lot of time for newer Artisan Spiritualists.

Sun Zhou focused on the Scribe and Goldsmith professions because they both shared a highly valued similarity: Consistent Profit.

The Scribe profession was ideal because it consistently earned money from beginning to end game. Not only that, the lower-tier item recipes required materials that were cheap! Frontier Spiritualists sold low-tier ingredients for next to nothing.

"Having these two professions will be very beneficial for us in the early cultivation ranks," Sun Zhou explained.

Sota shrugged, "Seems legit, I guess."

Sun Zhou smirked, "Expert proficiency is seriously a big deal," He tried to explain the situation to his brothers without revealing too much, "Most people won't reach Expert proficiency in the crafting professions for a few years. I doubt we'll even see more than a hundred Master level crafters in the whole game."

Lau Jin-sah wasn't convinced: "There are millions of people playing this game. It sounds ridiculous that no one would level their crafting."

"It's a huge grind. If you aren't always crafting, then it will take a very, very long time," Sun Zhou said, "There are going to be people who do nothing but craft, yet still not reach Master Proficiency for years.

♦♦♦

In his past life, the vast majority of players had been combat-focused. Even if newly crafted weapons, armor, or items were better than the treasures dropped in dungeons or out in the world, players felt that the time needed to devote themselves to being an Artisan Spiritualist wasn't worth the effort. That style of playing SSO just wasn't enough for them.

Just before his reincarnation, Sun Zhou realized the hidden potential that Artisan professions had. He understood the benefits of Artisan Spiritualists. After traveling nine years into the past, Sun Zhou now planned to invest in profession-type Spirits heavily this time around.

Before he could do anything, however, he needed to find a way to complete the quest given to him by that old Spiritualist, Tang Yuan. Sun Zhou was confident he could solve the mystery of the near-death Spirit he had been given, but he still could not get any information about it.

Without a Battle Spirit, and now with his Artisan plans put on hold, Sun Zhou was getting desperate. He knew that any other npc he asked about the unnamed Spirit he possessed wouldn't get him anywhere. In fact, it may hurt his chances with key figured in Exeter City, further lengthening his timeline. This was not something he could allow.

'There's only one thing I can do.' Sun Zhou thought to himself as he made his way to the city's main entrance.

The large gate furthest south from the city center was the main entry point into Exeter. Outside the city walls was a large clearing littered with numerous fields. Each one was contested, with Spiritualists attempting to slay all the spirit beasts in each area to test their Battle Spirits. Unfortunately for those rookie Spiritualists, the beasts didn't provide much to increase their Cultivation level.

They were mainly used as materials for crafting or quest turn-ins. Sun Zhou had intentionally avoided this area, as there was no merit in squabbling with people for no gain.

Once outside Exeter, Sun Zhou ran full speed until he arrived at the end of the path near the entrance to an incredibly dense forest. The main road to and from Exeter stopped here, at the gateway to the Desolate Forest. Sun Zhou observed his immediate surroundings, looking for signs of other Spiritualists.

'Nothing. It seems most Spiritualists haven't tried coming out here yet. Should I wait?' He thought, waving his hand to bring up the character interface.

---

[Player: Sun Zhou]

Cultivation: Level - 7

Race: Human

HP: 80/80

Vitality: 3

Strength: 5

Dexterity: 6

Intelligence: 4

Luck: 0

Defense: 0(+1) 1

Magic Defense: 0(+1) 1

Unused Attribute Points: 6

---

Sun Zhou nearly forgot that crafting all those [Copper Ingots] landed him enough experience to level up a few times! The rate at which he gained experience was pretty decent, but it was only temporary. The experience points required to level up before a player reached Rank 1 were drastically decreased as part of the 'tutorial' players encountered when they first started a character.

At this stage, everyone was significantly weak. The Fu Clan pushed new Spiritualists to complete missions, receive essence orbs, and get acquainted with SSO's mechanics.

Players also needed to complete their initial introduction to the critical inhabitants of Exeter City, as some of the rewards they gave were a necessity. Items like the [Tier 1 | Copper Interspatial Ring] were one of these rewards.

People could technically level to 100 within the city gates in this way. Meaning a player's real adventure truly began once their character's cultivation broke through to Rank 1.

Sun Zhou eyed his attributes. He now had a few unused Attribute Points, but he hesitated to allot the new points to any particular attribute: 'I don't know what attributes will benefit this unnamed Spirit. I should probably save them for now.'

Deciding to leave his attributes the way they were, Sun Zhou shifted his gaze between the character interface and the Desolate Forest.

'The Spirit from this ridiculous inheritance better be worth it,' he thought.

Sun Zhou eventually closed the character interface, walking towards the forest. The entrance to it was marked by a cobblestone wall, arching over the path that led into the endless sea of trees. On one side of the wall was the brick-laid road that traveled to the city, widened for traffic. On the other, the way transformed into a slightly narrower dirt trail. As he looked further into the forest, Sun Zhou could see where the course split at multiple intersections.

'How could it turn out like this? It would have been so much easier to level in the city, or anywhere else for that matter,' Sun Zhou lamented as he walked through the stone arch and disappeared into the forest.

******************************************

Author Notes:

(*) RNG - Random Number Generator - A mathematical construct, either computational or as a hardware device, is designed to generate a random set of numbers that should not display any distinguishable patterns in their appearance or generation, hence the word random.

(*) Boosted - Referencing a Character Boost in which a person's game character has their levels or strength unnaturally increased by means of administrator intervention or service.

(*) Grinding - refers to the playing time spent doing repetitive tasks within a game to unlock a particular game item or to build the experience needed to progress smoothly through the game.