Starting Unlimited Evolution from Grinding

Chapter 233: An Exceptional Scroll for Two Thousand Gold? An Earth-Shattering Steal

"Guide?"

Lin Mo raised an eyebrow as he looked at the man in front of him.

That shifty, furtive look really gave off the vibe of an information peddler.

Yet when the man had spoken earlier, his tone had sounded somewhat inexperienced—maybe a newcomer to the trade?

Curious and willing to try his luck, Lin Mo asked, "Can you get a priest skill scroll?"

"Hmm..."

The man in front of him froze for a moment, but then nodded without much hesitation.

"Yes, I can!"

"Good. Lead me there. If you can help me find what I want, I'll pay you ten silver coins as a reward."

Lin Mo didn’t hand over the money right away. He dangled the reward first. "Don't worry, sir. Whatever the request, I'll make sure you're satisfied."

Lin Mo subtly frowned. On the surface the man looked the part, but the way he spoke and acted differed from the reputation of true information dealers.

Real intelligence merchants cared about their long-term livelihood;

they wouldn’t boast recklessly and ruin their reputation. Once they gained a bad name, they couldn’t operate in this line of work.

"Anything you want" was an overly broad claim.

Still, until things were settled, Lin Mo held his judgment and followed the man into a narrow alley around the corner.

"Almost there, sir."

The man quickened his pace, leading the group deeper into the alley.

Lin Mo's brow tightened.

"Here we are."

The man pointed at a dilapidated shop at the end of the alley.

Sherfilia remained expressionless, but her hand had already rested on the dagger at her waist.

"Can that shop really have what I want?"

Lin Mo glanced skeptically at the man. The man didn't answer;

instead he called toward the shop, "Come out and serve the customer, old man."

"Yeah, yeah, don't rush me."

An impatient voice answered from inside. The creaky door swung open and an elderly man with a graying beard and a face full of wrinkles stepped out.

"What do you want?"

"A priest skill scroll."

The thin man replied on Lin Mo's behalf.

"Oh?"

The old man raised his brows and casually sized the group up with a glance.

"Wait a moment..."

He turned and walked back into the shop. Sounds of rummaging echoed from inside. After a while he came back out. "Here, the thing you wanted."

Lin Mo eyed the scroll in the man's hand suspiciously and examined it carefully.

A moment later the scroll’s information popped up in his mind.

[Skill Scroll (Priest)]: Shield Against Demons (Exceptional-grade)

Really?

Lin Mo was stunned. He had almost been certain the two men were scammers—some conmen who lured adventurers here to rob them or sell fake goods. He was about to act.

But the old man had genuinely produced a priest skill scroll, and not a low-grade one: an exceptional-grade scroll.

Could this shabby corner actually be hiding talents and treasures?

Lin Mo frowned and fell into deep thought. Priest skill scrolls were rare to begin with, let alone an exceptional-grade one. The unassuming old man clearly was not ordinary.

Although the man didn't look hostile, his scrutinizing gaze felt like careful evaluation.

"Sorry, I can't afford this scroll."

Lin Mo didn't want to entangle himself with people of unknown background. He intended to leave after saying that. It was true—priest skill scrolls were valuable, comparable to spell scrolls. Lin Mo's earlier excellent-grade magic skill scroll had sold for 3,000 gold coins;

an exceptional-grade priest scroll could well be worth over 10,000 gold coins. He simply didn't have the funds.

"Don't be in such a hurry, young man."

The old man smiled. "You seem fated. I'll sell this scroll at a low price... 5,000 gold coins. How about that?"

Lin Mo turned and stared at him in disbelief. The old man's manner of speaking was exactly like a con artist—if it were an act, his performance was far better than the gaunt man who led them here. Maybe the old man genuinely didn't know the scroll's true value and thought it was a fake? That seemed unlikely.

After thinking a moment, Lin Mo tested him, "Still can't afford it. I only have 2,000 gold. Will you sell for that?"

The old man's mouth twitched—this kid was asking for the world.

"Forget it, let's go."

Lin Mo, seeing no reply, turned to leave.

"Wa—wait..."

Sure enough, the old man panicked and hurried to block his way. "Fine, two thousand gold coins. I'll sell it to you."

Lin Mo sized the man up again, unable to tell if he was a master or a fool. Regardless, an exceptional-grade priest skill scroll for two thousand gold? Not buying it would be stupid.

"Alright then."

Lin Mo reluctantly nodded, took the scroll from the man's hand, and asked, "Do you have any more scrolls like this?"

"..."

The old man bit back an eye-roll, shook his head, "No, just this one."

"Good."

Lin Mo dropped the money and hurried away with the scroll. The old man sighed, picked up the heavy money pouch on the ground, and exchanged a look with the thin man.

"Old man, what do you make of him?" the thin man asked.

"Tons of qi and blood, and a surprisingly strong magic affinity. Truly an interesting young man."

The old man shook his head. "Forget it. We old folks shouldn't meddle with youngsters. Let the young handle their own affairs."

"Right."

Whether it was a lucky find or something else, Lin Mo had obtained the priest skill scroll he sought—and more than delivered, since it was exceptional-grade. Now he only needed a ranger skill scroll. Compared to priest scrolls, ranger scrolls were much more common.

After another hour of wandering through the underground market, Lin Mo finally found what he wanted at a stall. Beside the ranger skill scroll were many other scrolls, though most were fake.

"Customer, can I help you? My stall carries all kinds of skills for every profession..."

"Just looking."

Lin Mo kept silent and pretended to scrutinize the scrolls. He didn’t grab the ranger scroll immediately. Instead, he picked up a fake-looking one and inspected it carefully.

"Can I open and look?"

"Of course. I deal honestly—feel free to examine anything."

The scroll Lin Mo unrolled looked like a warrior skill according to its title. It was convincingly written and looked similar to a genuine skill scroll. Without his status panel for verification, it would be hard to tell truth from forgery. Lin Mo put that scroll down and picked up another, opening and checking it as well.

After repeating this several times, the vendor grew impatient. "Customer, have you found anything you like?"

"Your goods look mediocre..."

Lin Mo shook his head. "What's the price? If it's cheap, I might consider it."

"Well..."

The vendor's eyes flicked, then he tried to be accommodating. "You look like you're new to the city. Though I'm just a small stall, let me show some hospitality. These scrolls are cheap for you—150 gold each. How about that?"

Lin Mo frowned. "That's what you call a little cheap?"

"Ordinary skill scrolls usually sell for 100 gold, right?"

"Sir, you don't understand. Even ordinary-grade skills have differences. My stock is quality goods, better than what you'd find elsewhere!"

"Are you stupid, or do you take me for stupid?"

Lin Mo rolled his eyes. "Can't even tell if your scrolls are genuine yet... 80 gold each. Take it or leave it."

At that, the vendor’s confidence wavered. He put on a calm face but hesitated, then made a decision like he was betraying his ancestors: "85 gold—just to make friends."

"Fine."

Lin Mo nodded, casually selected two scrolls, stood, and tossed 170 gold across. The vendor counted the coins, watched Lin Mo’s retreating back, and sneered, "Fool!"

"Lin Mo, are those two scrolls real?"

Once they were away from the stall, Ellie asked curiously. The little wolf-girl was straightforward but not stupid—she could tell roadside stalls weren’t likely to carry many genuine scrolls. Even in a big city like Fargard, skill scrolls wouldn’t be so common.

"Yes."

Lin Mo nodded. "Vendors probably buy stock without knowing what’s real or fake. Among the rubbish there are a few true items."

He had wandered dozens of stalls and seen hundreds of vendors earlier, but found fewer than ten real scrolls—and those were basic skills like Slash, Rushing Punch, Thrust, and Backstab, which he already owned. This vendor, however, had hit the jackpot with two genuine scrolls at once.

Both were ordinary-grade: one for ranger and one for warrior—exactly what Lin Mo needed.

The ranger skill was called [Rapid Shot], a buff state skill. The warrior skill was [Grab], a damaging skill with control effects. The objectives were met. Lin Mo led the group out of the underground market. It was already midday.

They grabbed lunch at a nearby restaurant, and after the meal continued toward the plantation Lena had chosen. The plantation was about seven or eight kilometers from Breeze Residence—not close, but land for large-scale planting wouldn’t be in bustling areas, and seven or eight kilometers was fairly reasonable. Fargard City offered small hired carriages for travel;

though they only held two people each, they were sufficient.

The leasing process for the plantation went smoothly. Long-term agricultural operations were mature business models with fixed pricing, so the rental agreement was signed without fuss. They only rented a single plot for now, enough for Lena's current needs;

they could expand later if necessary.

With everything for the day done, and after a morning of shopping, everyone was exhausted. They hurried back to the inn and rested in their rooms. Lin Mo couldn't wait—he took out the three scrolls.

First, the two ordinary-grade skill scrolls.

"Learned skill [Rapid Shot], gained attribute point Agility +1!"

[Rapid Shot]: When activated, firing rate increases by 5%, arrow flight speed increases by 5%.

This state skill wasn't powerful, but its cost was low. Even low-level professionals could use it with little burden, making it a nice bonus skill. Rangers typically kept this skill active in combat, similar to the previously learned ordinary-grade Lightness skill. Rapid Shot consumed even less than Lightness.

After learning Rapid Shot, Lin Mo now had six ranger skills: Lightness, Swiftness, Eagle Eye, Spiral Arrow, Returning Arrow, and Rapid Shot.

Time to confirm his previous conjecture.

Lin Mo waited anxiously, and his patience paid off. A message appeared a few seconds after learning Rapid Shot.

"Promotion condition achieved: Ranger (Lv5) promoted — Current profession Ranger (Lv6)."

Going from level 5 to 6 was the key step to reaching Veteran rank, so he immediately received a 12-point attribute boost.

"Profession attribute increases gained: Strength +3, Agility +5, Constitution +2, Spirit +2!"

Next, his profession skills upgraded.

"Your assassin profession skill — Ranger's Heart — has upgraded!"

[Ranger's Heart] Lv2: Bow and crossbow hunting tears flesh;

you are a born shooter. Fast beyond ten steps, accurate and fast within ten steps!

Skill effect: Ranged physical attack damage increased by 20%.

It increased from 10% to 20%, matching the assassin profession's pattern. The assassin's Assassin's Heart increased close-range physical damage, affecting skills like Consecutive Thrusts and Swift Rushing Punch, but not Phantom Sword Dance or Blood Qi Blade. The ranger profession filled that gap by boosting ranged sword-energy warrior skills as well.

Upon reaching Veteran rank, he also received a profession insignia.

"Congratulations on becoming a Veteran Ranger. Your understanding of shooting has deepened. Your profession tier has advanced, granting the Veteran insignia: +10% ranged skill projectile speed!"

Nice!

Seeing the insignia made Lin Mo's eyes light up. Increased projectile speed—would that apply to magic too? He tested it right away. Lin Mo extended his palm and launched a fireball at the inn wall. A moment later, an ice-blue barrier appeared and blocked the fireball.

Indeed, the speed had increased. Lin Mo waved his hand and dismissed the barrier created by Frost Guard.

Frost Guard didn't gain proficiency from blocking his own attack. Lin Mo had tested that before—blocking self-initiated attacks didn't grant proficiency;

otherwise he wouldn't need practice partners.

After these messages, another promotion alert arrived. Lin Mo checked: his base agility had been 74 and he still had six ranger skills. So only crossing tier thresholds was blocked by insufficient skill count? That was convenient.

"Promotion condition achieved: Ranger (Lv6) promoted — Current profession Ranger (Lv7)."

Like other professions, going from level 5 to 6 gave a 6-point attribute increase.

"Profession attribute increases gained: Strength +1, Constitution +1, Agility +4!"

Nice and comfortable!

Next was the warrior skill [Grab]. Lin Mo opened the scroll, glanced, and then tried to channel his qi and blood to use it. A prompt appeared shortly afterwards.

"Learned skill [Grab], gained attribute point Strength +1!"

[Grab]: Transform hand into a claw to seize an enemy. If the target region (throat) is hit, a slight interrupt effect occurs.

A fairly ordinary skill, but acceptable for ordinary-grade. Its single-target nature made it harder to scale;

Lin Mo wasn't sure if evolution would improve it. If it stayed single-target, it wouldn't be a core training skill for a long time.

Finally, the unexpected delight—the exceptional-grade skill he’d purchased for 2,000 gold: Shield Against Demons. From the name, it sounded defensive, like a magic shield. Lin Mo opened the scroll and saw it was a magic skill, and being exceptional-grade meant its complexity was much higher. This required careful study.

Time passed slowly as Lin Mo studied. After a while he exhaled heavily—this was not easy.

"Learned skill [Shield Against Demons], gained attribute point Mana +3!"

His base mana was now 104—just 16 points short of level 11 and promotion to Elite. A headache.

He inspected the newly learned skill.

[Shield Against Demons]: Consumes mana and resonates with light elements, invoking the blessing of Holy Light to create a "Shield Against Demons" around the target, blocking damage. (Physical damage blocked: 50% reduction;

magic damage blocked: +50% absorption;

additional +100% absorption against dark element damage!)

A magic-defense skill with special effectiveness against magic. It provided only 50% protection against physical attacks, but 150% protection against magic attacks. Used well, this skill might perform miracles in critical moments.

Next, as usual, came the evolution route choice.

Please select an evolution direction—

Evolution Route 1: Magic Specialization I: Shield Against Demons’ magic absorption efficiency becomes 170%

Evolution Route 2: Physical Reinforcement I: Shield Against Demons’ physical absorption efficiency becomes 65%

One option strengthens the strong point, the other patches the weak spot. No hesitation—Lin Mo chose Evolution Route 1. He didn’t lack physical defensive means, and since this skill specialized in magic defense, he would maximize its advantage.

After waiting a bit, as expected there was no profession-level promotion prompt. He currently only had five priest profession skills. It seemed the limit to profession level advancement was indeed the number of skills—only by acquiring six relevant profession skills could he progress to Veteran rank. Should he acquire another priest skill? Although he hadn’t found one at the underground market, the Adventurers' Association or larger city shops might have one.