Chapter 37: The Ultimate Matryoshka!

[You have obtained the Golden-grade equipment “Withered Wood Staff.”]
[You have obtained a Golden-grade treasure map ×1.]
“A treasure map!”
Su Mubai’s eyes lit up as he immediately examined it.
[Golden-grade Treasure Map]: Following the guidance of the map, you will find a Golden-grade treasure chest.
[Tip: Would you like to use the treasure map? Using it will mark the treasure route on the system map.]
[Note: The final coordinates of this treasure map lie outside the beginner village.]
“Well, well, what a nesting doll!”
Su Mubai rolled his eyes.
Who would have thought that a Golden-grade chest could yield coordinates for yet another Golden-grade chest?
If a player painstakingly defeated the guarding boss only to receive such a thing, wouldn’t they be infuriated?
But for Su Mubai, this treasure map held an entirely different value.
If his suspicion was correct, the ultimate gain from this treasure map would be Legendary-grade!
At the thought, Su Mubai’s eyes gleamed brighter, and he gripped the map tighter.
[Cataclysm!]
[Target: Golden-grade Treasure Map!]
“Promoting one tier!”
[You have obtained “Dark-Gold-grade Treasure Map” ×1.]
“Got it!”
Su Mubai clenched his fist in excitement.
From Golden-grade to Dark-Gold-grade treasure map for free, then use that to get an Epic-grade treasure chest for free.
After opening that chest, the loot inside could be upgraded to Legendary-grade for free!
Three wins in a row!
Now that’s the ultimate nesting doll!
Before opening the chest, Su Mubai never imagined that a mere Silver-grade chest could eventually bring Legendary-grade rewards.
Compared to this treasure map, the Golden-grade Withered Wood Staff was insignificant.
Still, Su Mubai first promoted the staff to Dark-Gold-grade.
Mainly because he was still wielding a Level 5 Bronze equipment, the [Wooden Magic Staff], so the Dark-Gold-grade [Withered Wood Staff] was far superior.
[Withered Wood Staff]
Staff
Level 10
Dark-Gold-grade Item
Durability: 200/200
Equipment Requirement: Spirit 100
Spell Power +280
Spirit +30
Agility +10
Constitution +10

After triggering a spell critical strike, the next skill’s casting time is reduced by one second.
Additional Skill:
[Withered Wood Blossoms]: Instantly restores health equal to 100% of your spell power to the target. Cooldown: 120 seconds.
(Withered wood also has its spring.)
Although this equipment was not entirely suited for Su Mubai, having it was better than not.
It still boosted his Spirit by 30 points—what more could one ask for?
Casually tossing the [Withered Wood Staff] into his backpack, Su Mubai picked up the [Dark-Gold-grade Treasure Map] and chose to use it.
The moment after, the yellowed parchment slowly dissolved, merging into the system map.
Immediately, the smile on Su Mubai’s face vanished.
[Tip: Route has been marked. The final coordinates are located outside Jingli City of the Sakura Kingdom. Please proceed to Jingli City to begin your treasure hunt.]
“What the heck?”
Su Mubai’s expression shifted instantly from amused to serious.
The upgraded treasure map had gone international!
According to the information from the Multiverse Game, international borders had not yet opened.
The exact time of opening depended on the progress of Blue Star players within the game.
In other words, the Legendary-grade rewards were currently out of reach.
The anticipated ultimate nesting doll was stuck at the first step.
“What a disappointment.”
Watching the empty treasure chest fade away, Su Mubai snorted and sat down to continue leveling up.
Over an hour later, a golden light rose.
[Congratulations to player "White Night" for reaching Level 10. Attributes +1 to all stats, Skill Point +1, Free Attribute Points +15.]
[Tip: You have reached the level cap of the beginner village. Please find the village chief to be teleported to the city associated with Beginner Village 9527, or you will no longer gain experience.]
[Congratulations on being the first player in the Blue Star zone of the Multiverse Game to reach Level 10. You have been awarded the title “Far Ahead.”]
[Tip: Blue Star zone announcement incoming.]
[Due to reaching Level 10, the leaderboard for Beginner Village 9527 is now open ahead of schedule.]
[Tip: Beginner Village announcement incoming.]
A series of notification sounds rang out, leaving Su Mubai slightly stunned.
The first to reach Level 10 triggers a zone-wide announcement?
What an unexpected surprise!
[Far Ahead]: While wearing this title, experience gained from all sources is increased by 20%.
Each player can earn multiple titles, but only one can be active at a time.
Switching titles requires a 30-minute cooldown before becoming effective.
Su Mubai’s first thought was to use [Cataclysm] to exploit this for free.
However, to his disappointment, like [Summoning Space], this was merely an attribute, not a tangible item, and could not be upgraded.
“Ah well, a 20% experience boost isn’t bad.”
Adorning the [Far Ahead] title, Su Mubai waved his hand to recall the skeletal army into the summoning space and took out a Beginner Village return scroll.
He had purchased it earlier for just ten silver coins—very affordable for him.
A flash of white light, and Su Mubai’s figure vanished from the green plains, leaving behind the corpses of unrespawned wild monsters.

Meanwhile, a system announcement sounded throughout the area.
But the content was not triggered by Su Mubai.
[Announcement for Beginner Village 9527: Congratulations to the “Dominion Guild” for completing the “Mistlands” dungeon on Hard difficulty. This announcement serves to encourage all players to learn from them and earn rich rewards!] ×3
At the entrance to the Misty Forest, Hongtu Baye led his team out of the dungeon.
The system announcement echoed in his ears, putting him in high spirits.
At last, a breath of relief!
While he was running the dungeon, the Dominion Guild had not stopped recruiting.
Several promoted elders worked tirelessly and successfully increased the guild's membership to the maximum for a Level 1 guild.
Three thousand members!
That number was nearly a tenth of the entire Beginner Village 9527 population.
One could imagine how powerful the Dominion Guild had become.
Though these players were not very strong, they greatly boosted Hongtu Baye’s strength.
Having completed the first Hard-mode clear of Misty Forest, he was in high spirits.
“Get ready, the Nightmare difficulty run is next!”
Hongtu Baye looked around at the admiring gazes of the players and shouted out loud.
Just then, five flashes of white light appeared, and Fu Jiatiantian, Maple Xiao Xiao, and others emerged from another dungeon portal.
The next system announcement made Hongtu Baye’s expression sour.
[Announcement for Beginner Village 9527: Congratulations to player “Fu Jiatiantian” for leading their team to complete the “Mistlands” dungeon on Nightmare difficulty. This announcement encourages all players to learn from them and earn rich rewards!] ×3
In that instant, Hongtu Baye felt like a fool.
He looked at Fu Jiatiantian and the others in disbelief and asked sternly:
“How could you have cleared Nightmare difficulty so fast?”
“Just got lucky.”
Fu Jiatiantian smiled faintly.
Hongtu Baye snorted coldly, his gaze turning colder.
He had already learned from the guild chat why they managed to clear Nightmare Misty Forest so quickly.
It was all because of White Night!
Thinking of losing the chance to claim the first Nightmare clear, Hongtu Baye’s anger surged.
“You, White Night—why do you only sell equipment and skills to Fu Jiatiantian?
Do you think the honorable Dominion Guild leader is penniless?”
Recalling White Night’s rejection of his friend request, a sharp light flashed in Hongtu Baye’s eyes, and he made a mental note against White Night.
Sensing Hongtu Baye’s gaze, Fu Jiatiantian and the others frowned and turned away, ready to continue running dungeons.
The first clear was gone; next, they would challenge Hell difficulty!
Hongtu Baye also prepared to enter the dungeon again, likewise aiming for Hell difficulty.
But the next announcement caused both parties to halt simultaneously.