Fang Zhen typed "anti-riot suit" into the Jingmao app, and a slew of search results quickly appeared.
He browsed for a moment, then sorted the results by price, from highest to lowest.
In the Nameless World, his physical abilities surpassed those of the goblins. In a straight fight, he figured he could take on five or six of them if fully equipped. The danger, however, lay in the fact that the world inside the instance wasn't like a game.
Fang Zhen was going in with his real body—there was no health bar. The monsters had weapons, and a single cut or stab could be fatal.
To minimize his vulnerabilities, he needed to buy an anti-riot suit. It had to be at least stab-proof; if it could function as light armor, even better.
For gear with those specs, anything too cheap was out of the question.
He had actually considered buying a full suit of armor, but he had no experience with it. It was too heavy, and if he ran into danger while wearing it, he might not be able to escape.
Fang Zhen browsed for a bit and found that the high-end anti-riot suits came in several price brackets.
There was a tier from 18,000 to 20,000 yuan, one around 5,000, and one just over 1,000.
He searched for more information, but online posts about the quality of anti-riot suits were inconclusive. Some of the information was even contradictory.
After looking a bit longer, Fang Zhen decided to go with the most expensive option.
'This is probably just a superstition,' Fang Zhen thought, 'but when I don't know much about something, I can't help but feel the most expensive option is the best.'
Especially since he'd be using it in the instance with his life on the line. It was gear meant to save him in a critical moment; going too cheap felt irresponsible.
Fang Zhen chatted with customer service for a bit to ask about shipping times and features. The representative confidently promised it could protect against stabs from a sharp dagger and offered a refund if it failed. With that, Fang Zhen placed the order.
The price was 20,000 yuan. Seeing that the store had a high rating, Fang Zhen also bought a police-issue Explosive-Proof Shield for another 800 yuan.
With his defensive gear sorted out, a weight was lifted from Fang Zhen's mind.
He started looking for a suitable weapon.
The collapsible baton he had used in the instance was now useless. He hadn't noticed at the time, but upon returning, he saw that he had swung it so hard it had bent.
Fang Zhen already had an idea for a new weapon.
His advantage against the goblins was his height and longer reach. 'During a fight,' he reasoned, 'their short little arms won't be able to touch me, even with weapons. That's the safest way to fight.'
His new weapon should enhance this advantage. Bows and crossbows would have been good options, but he had never practiced archery. Besides, Crossbow Arrows were considered contraband and couldn't be bought online. On top of that, the instance was in a forest, where bows and crossbows wouldn't be very effective anyway.
He'd once read that the ancient Imperial Court forbade commoners from owning bows and crossbows. He had filed it away as a piece of trivia, but now that he wanted to buy a suitable weapon for himself, he realized modern society was much the same, prohibiting such weapons among the general public.
Fang Zhen wasn't worried. If he couldn't get a crossbow, he had another option in mind.
He searched for "long spear" on the e-commerce platform.
Goblins had short legs and short arms, making their attack range a key weakness. Fang Zhen's strategy was simple: enhance his own strengths and exploit the enemy's weaknesses.
A long spear was simple and easy to learn, and it would dramatically increase his attack range. Ideally, the goblins wouldn't even be able to get close before he stabbed them all to death.
Moreover, he had learned some basic weapon handling as a teenager and had even studied the Shaolin Staff in college, so he had some experience with long weapons.
His criteria for a spear were straightforward: it had to be made of good materials so the shaft wouldn't break mid-fight, and it couldn't be too heavy.
Fang Zhen was well aware of his own physical limitations. He was the type with great explosive strength but mediocre stamina.
Back in school, he could usually take first place in the 100-meter dash, the high jump, or the long jump, but he always struggled with long-distance events. He could barely manage a decent time even in the 800-meter run.
A weapon that was too heavy would be too draining.
With his criteria set, he searched for a while and finally found a long spear he was quite happy with.
The spear was listed as a Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear, produced by the Longquan City Sword Factory.
The spear's specifications: a total length of 215 cm, a shaft of 155 cm, and a blade of about 39 cm. There was also a transitional section of material. The spearhead was made of folded, forged Damascus steel, and the shaft came in three options: stainless steel, padauk, and redwood. The weight ranged from 3 to 7.25 kg (approx. 6.6 to 16 lbs), depending on the shaft material.
After some thought, Fang Zhen chose the lightest option: the 3 kg (6.6 lb) solid wood model.
He also chatted with customer service and, for an extra fee, bought a spare 3.25 kg (7.2 lb) stainless steel shaft.
For a two-handed weapon, the weight was acceptable.
The only issue was that the spear wouldn't arrive sharpened; he'd have to figure out how to put an edge on it himself.
Fang Zhen placed the order.
The spear and its accessories cost him 1,750 yuan.
With the long spear purchased, Fang Zhen started shopping online for a Nepalese Curved Saber.
The spear was for fighting at a distance, but if a monster got in close, he would need a sidearm.
A collapsible baton was out of the question—its stopping power was too low. A bladed weapon was the way to go.
Since his main weapon was a long spear, a sidearm like a Tang Saber wasn't a great fit, and the extra weight would be a bit much.
Fang Zhen wanted to get a Nepalese Curved Saber, more commonly known as a Dog Leg Saber.
This weapon was perfect for close-quarters chopping, and it had another major advantage: it was extremely durable. It wouldn't run into issues after just a few swings like a Tang Saber might.
Fang Zhen once knew a guy who was into melee weapons. This buddy had bought a Tang Saber, and—whether due to poor quality or user error—the blade chipped while he was practicing swings in his garage. It nearly lopped off his fingers and left his hand a bloody, terrifying mess.
According to him, it wasn't even that rare an occurrence. In the melee weapon community, people losing their grip during practice swings was a common story.
Fang Zhen needed a knife for the instance. How cool it looked was a secondary concern; what mattered most was reliability. A good weapon was one you could count on.
The Nepalese Curved Saber was a much better fit.
However, after searching online, Fang Zhen couldn't find what he was looking for. The curved sabers he found were twenty-something centimeters at most—they looked like toys.
Fang Zhen wasn't satisfied.
'Are they not allowed to sell restricted blades online?' Fang Zhen wondered.
He examined the seller's information closely, found the manufacturer's name, and looked up the factory's phone number online. Then he made the call.
The call connected.
"Hello? Who is this?" a man's voice asked.
"Hi, I'm a customer. I found your factory's info on Jingmao," Fang Zhen said. "Do you carry Nepalese Curved Sabers? I'm looking for something a bit bigger and longer than the sizes I see listed online."
"A curved saber? What for?" The man's voice was tinged with suspicion.
"I'm a melee weapons enthusiast. It's for my collection," Fang Zhen answered simply and firmly.
"Oh, I see. Sorry about that, man. For a second there, I thought this was a sting operation," the man said, his tone relaxing.
"Is your business illegal or something?" Fang Zhen asked.
"Not illegal, no, just a little sensitive. Don't want to attract the wrong kind of attention," the man explained. "So, what kind of blade are you looking for?"
"A Nepalese Curved Saber, around forty centimeters long. I need it to be sturdy, with solid materials and high durability—the kind you could use to clear a path outdoors," Fang Zhen said.
"I've got just the thing. Add me on WeChat—the ID is my phone number. I'll send you photos and specs for a few knives, and you can pick the one you like," the man said.
"Sounds good," Fang Zhen said.
After hanging up, Fang Zhen added him on WeChat.
A few moments later, the man sent over photos of several blades.
Fang Zhen looked them over and found one that perfectly matched his requirements.
It had an African Blackwood handle, a 65° curve, and a D2 steel blade. The length and hardness were both good, and it came with a free frosted cowhide sheath.
The specs were great, and it was surprisingly good-looking, too.
Fang Zhen took one look and was sold.
"This is the one," Fang Zhen decided.
He asked for the price. It wasn't too expensive: 650 yuan.
Once Fang Zhen made his selection, the seller sent a message on WeChat: "Hey man, just need to check first—you don't live in the Capital City, the Southern Border, Bianzang, or Qionghai, do you? Security is tight in those areas, so blades can't get through. I can't ship it there even if you buy it."
"Nope, I'm in Xiahai," Fang Zhen replied.
"Xiahai? Oh, that's fine. No problem shipping there."
Fang Zhen transferred the 650 yuan via WeChat and sent his home address.
With everything taken care of, Fang Zhen let out a long sigh of relief.
Training dummy: 900 yuan. Anti-riot suit and Anti-Riot Shield: 20,800 yuan. Long spear and accessories: 1,750 yuan. Nepalese Curved Saber: 650 yuan. In total, Fang Zhen had spent 24,100 yuan.
The gear would take three days to arrive.
Fang Zhen got up from the sofa, unpacked the cardboard box with the training dummy, and set it up in a corner of the living room.
He grabbed a boning knife from the kitchen.
'Can't waste any time. I'll practice first.' Fang Zhen lifted the knife, walked up to the dummy, and slashed it across the throat.