Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 175: Chapter 165: Life Attribute Set

Watching the sturdy trash can turn into a crumpled heap of scrap metal in the hands of the small, thin girl before him, a strange, indescribable feeling swept over Hu Laosan.

In his worldview, women had always been weak and needed to be protected.

Running into a girl with such Herculean strength was a first for him, and it was surprisingly refreshing.

”Fine, you’re on! I’ll contact you after the auction is over!”

On some strange impulse, Hu Laosan, who normally scorned the idea of fighting a woman, accepted her sudden challenge.

After all, auctions required a great deal of preparation and were held infrequently, so this one had gathered a vast collection of rare and abnormal treasures.

Tang Mo found it all novel at first, but after a while, she saw it was just the same few types of things over and over.

They were either to be eaten or worn—all of them items that raised one’s attribute values.

Occasionally, a few good materials appeared, but since she wasn’t a Caster, she could only stare at them with envy.

Before long, after the initial novelty faded, Tang Mo started to get bored.

”Are there any abnormal treasures with the Life Attribute at today’s auction?”

Tang Mo asked Hu Laosan, wanting to know if her target item would be appearing.

In truth, regardless of the answer, she had already gotten two good items, so the trip wasn’t a waste.

”An abnormal treasure with the Life Attribute?”

Hu Laosan lowered his head and racked his brain. There were too many items at the auction; there was no way he could remember them all.

However, he would definitely remember any that were especially rare and valuable, and as it turned out, there was indeed one such item in this auction.

”There should be a set with a Life Attribute bonus toward the end of the auction. It gives a 500-point bonus to your Life Attribute. Ma’am, if you look at these people...”

Hu Laosan gestured toward the many private rooms around them.

”They’re all here for that set.”

’A set with a Life Attribute bonus?’

’500 points?’

’If it can really add 500 points in one go, then this treasure is incredibly rare.’

So far, Tang Mo had never heard of an abnormal treasure that could grant such a massive bonus.

’A set...’

’Aren’t abnormal treasures discovered by chance, one piece at a time?’

’How could they possibly show up as a set? That doesn’t seem reasonable.’

But since the auction was clearly nearing its end and the item had yet to appear, Tang Mo suppressed these doubts for the time being.

During the second half of the auction, the bidding was almost exclusively from the people seated below; the private rooms above had fallen silent.

”And now, it’s time for our grand finale! I believe many of you came here today specifically for this item.”

As the final item was brought out, the auctioneer’s voice rose several tones, filled with passion and excitement.

A small leather case with an antique pattern rested on the table. The auctioneer carefully opened it, removed several small, delicate items, and placed them on the table one by one.

Tang Mo stood up and looked down at the table.

The auctioneer held up each item in turn to show the audience.

”Wearing this complete Life Attribute set will grant you a bonus of 500 Life attribute points! Among all known abnormal treasures, this is the rare treasure that provides the largest bonus. It’s a true life-saver for any mission.

This set consists of two knee pads, one wrist wrap, and an ear stud. It was originally a piece of fabric with an extremely high Life Attribute. Because the fabric was too small and exceedingly precious, a Caster forged it into these four abnormal treasures.”

The Caster is a profession that only came into being after the apocalypse; becoming one requires not just study, but also extraordinary Talent.

So far, even S Base only has a few exceptional Casters.

After humanity learned of the benefits of abnormal treasures, they were no longer content to rely on chance to find them. Instead, they began to do everything they could to use existing abnormal treasures or various precious materials from mutant beasts to create new abnormal treasures.

And this fabric was, in its original form, an abnormal treasure with an extremely high Life attribute value.

The Caster refashioned it so that its power could be maximized, tailoring its attribute bonus to be more practical for a life of combat.

’No wonder it’s a set. So it was all made from a single piece of fabric.’

Tang Mo enhanced her vision with spiritual power, observing the small items more carefully.

All of the items were pure black. The fabric didn’t look smooth; instead, it had the sturdy texture of cotton or linen.

The Caster must have added some sort of elastic to the two knee pads; as the auctioneer held them up, Tang Mo even noticed some small nodules on the side that would rest against the skin.

’Presumably, a design like this would ensure they wouldn’t slip off, no matter how strenuous the activity.’

That wrist wrap wasn’t shaped like a Wrist Guard, but was more like a silk scarf—a long strip of cloth.

’It was probably meant to be wrapped around one’s wrist or arm like a bandage.’

’That’s obviously more convenient. If you were injured, you could even use it to stanch the bleeding.’

Tang Mo nodded in satisfaction, as if the item was already hers for the taking.

The design of the ear stud was even more unique.

Looking closely, one could see that the tiny ear stud, from the post to the decorative element, was made by wrapping the black fabric.

The ear stud was very small; only upon close inspection could one tell that the decoration was in the shape of a rose. It was incredibly exquisite.

The Caster had coated the rose with some unknown special material that made it glitter under the lights; you would never be able to tell that the ear stud was made from a simple piece of fabric.

’So the 500-point Life Attribute bonus is for all four pieces combined. That explains it.’

Now that she had figured all this out, Tang Mo was even more delighted with the set.

’Most wearable Acquired Treasures nowadays give a bonus of a few dozen attribute points at most. There aren’t any that go over a hundred.’

’Compared to arming oneself with a pile of low-attribute gear, these few exquisite little items were far superior.’

’Knee pads, a wrist wrap... every single piece was something she could use in a fight.’

”Starting bid: 50 Intermediate Crystal Coins.”

60...

70...

100...

The price climbed relentlessly.

”100 High-level Crystal Coins.”

Just as the pace of bidding from the floor below began to slow, a voice came from the private room next to Tang Mo’s.

It was Li Xian’s voice. He had come specifically for this item, intending to give it to his precious daughter.

His daughter was older now and had recently been pestering him to let her go out and hunt beasts. He couldn’t feel at ease about it, but with this life-saving item, he would worry a little less.

”120 High-level Crystal Coins.”

Qin Fen made a bid as well.

After all, he was from the main branch of the Qin Family. While he couldn’t compare to Qin Ling, he had no reason to fear Li Xian.

”150 High-level Crystal Coins.”

A bid came from a private room on the other side.

”That family has nothing but money. They were also targeting this item.”

Hu Laosan offered a quick explanation to Tang Mo.

’Nothing but money, huh?’

Tang Mo secretly thought of her several Crystal Stone Mountains.

’This item is mine,’ she thought. ’And perhaps I can use this opportunity to show Xiao Tao just how rich Tang Mo truly is.’