Reincarnation of The Strongest Sword God

1-20

Chapter 1 - Starting Over

In the dead of night. At Green Bamboo upper-class area, Jin Hai City.

Shi Feng held a folder of documents as he sat silently on the leather sofa. Gazing at the pool outside through the French window, Shi Feng was filled with both frustration and unwillingness.

He was the captain of [Shadow], one of Jin Hai City's top four gaming Workshops. He had commanded a guild of tens of thousands of people. Even more, he was Jin Hai City's famous expert; he was the Sword Magician. However, now the only thing he could do was drink away his sorrows inside his home.

Ten years, he had spent in gaming.

Ten years, he had fought in blood-soaked battles.

He experienced countless trials and suffering. Under his leadership, Shadow had successfully established ten City States in <<God's Domain>>. They were finally capable of rivaling the First-Rate Guilds. However, before he could enjoy any of that endless glory, a single document had turned everything into passing smoke; once it was gone, it was never coming back.

Shi Feng never thought his ten years of effort would just go to waste. He sacrificed so much just for the game and yet, all he did was pave the way for others to the very end. All of this culminated because he had opposed the decision for Shadow to join the Super-Guild, [World Dominators]. It wasn't even the next day before Lan Hua Financial Group gave him their reply. He had to delete his Level 200 Sword King, the account he had spent ten years of blood and sweat on, and to collect his settlement check from the financial department.

All he received was 5,000,000 Credits and a single mansion. When compared to the established ten City States inside the money generating virtual kingdom, it couldn't even be considered a drop in the ocean.

Shi Feng thought about how much he had contributed to Shadow. He thought about how his efforts had turned Lan Hua Groups into a large financial group. Then, he thought about how they still threw him away, as if he was no different from garbage; Shi Feng swore he would take revenge for their actions.

"I won't just let this go. At worst, I'll just start over."

Shi Feng's eyes flashed with confidence and resolution; his hands tore the termination contract into little pieces. Grabbing the bottle of wine from the tabletop, he gulped down several mouthfuls.

Even if he no longer had his Sword King account, even if he no longer had his team's support, the skills and knowledge he obtained from the game would not betray him. As long as his skills remained, he could still rise once more within God's Domain; he could rebuild a virtual kingdom of his own.

Early morning. The sun had just risen.

Di! Di! Di!

The phone alarm continuously rang.

Shi Feng woke up resentfully. He helplessly reached for his phone by the bedside; the effects from yesterday's drinking still loomed over him.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Brother Feng, it's me, Blackie. You're still asking what's up? Didn't we agree to become professional gamers? Shadow Workshop is recruiting at our school today. Haven't you always wanted to become Shadow's core member?"

Shi Feng was slightly confused.

Lan Hua Financial Group just fired him, so why would he attend Shadow's examination?

"Brother Feng? Brother Feng? Can you hear me? They're testing at ten o'clock. If you don't hurry up, you're not gonna make it!"

"Blackie, stop joking around; I just got fired from Shadow."

"Fired? Brother Feng, how much did you drink yesterday? Even now, you're still not awake? How could you be fired if Shadow hasn't even recruited anybody until now? Alright, just come quickly."

Blackie had cut the call before Shi Feng could respond.

When Shi Feng looked at his phone in a daze, he discovered that this old and broken down iPhone 6 was not his phone. His phone was the latest iPhone 12.

Immediately, Shi Feng inspected his surroundings.

What met his eyes was a messy room, no larger than fifteen square meters. All around, there were books on gaming strategies. At a corner of the room, above the study table, there was an extremely outdated laptop. Within the wardrobe by the wall, there were clothes messily piled together. Inside the wardrobe, there was a mirror; a mirror that currently showed a familiar face.

Shi Feng jumped up in shock when he saw this extremely familiar face.

"How have I become young again?" Shi Feng immediately walked towards the mirror. Only after looking at the mirror, at the reflection shown on it, over and over, did Shi Feng confirm that he had indeed become young again.

He slept in his luxurious and spacious bedroom yesterday but now he was in this broken down place after waking up. Not only that, he also had become young again.

Shi Feng could still recall some memories regarding this place. He had lived here ten years ago. For over six months, Shi Feng rented this place in reluctance, all so that he could play God's Domain while also attending university. Only after he had earned some money in God's Domain had he rented a large condominium.

Shi Feng thought back to those arduous years. His family circumstances at that time weren't in good shape. For Shi Feng to attend university, his parents had racked up some debts. Even so, Shi Feng's parents still made sure to send him sufficient living expenses every month, taking on the suffering, themselves, in return.

Shi Feng wholeheartedly wanted to change his family circumstances. However, finding a well-paying job while the streets were filled with university graduates was tremendously hard; so he thought of the highly profitable Virtual Reality games. Setting professional gamer as his goal, he even bought a Virtual Gaming Helmet, training arduously within the game to improve his skills.

During that time, bread and instant noodles became his daily meals. To save money, he had also avoided participating in social gatherings held by his classmates, causing him to become an invisible existence in his class. The boys would look at him with disdain, while the girls would distance themselves from him. Everytime Shi Feng went shopping for cup noodles, his wallet would have no more than 10 Credits. He did not even dare buy a ham sausage that only cost a single Credit. In pity, the female salesperson there had offered him the ham sausage at a discounted price. However, the feeling of his empty wallet made Shi Feng refuse with great reluctance.

"Is someone playing a prank on me?"

Shi Feng stared at his younger self through the mirror and at the familiar surroundings. Shi Feng couldn't help but shake his head, denying such a conclusion.

Even America, as the world's most developed country, didn't have such rejuvenating technology. Besides, who would play such a joke with a poor old uncle like him?

Shi Feng looked at the time on his phone.

19th-April-2129.

"Don't tell me I have been reincarnated?" Shi Feng's face revealed a bitter smile.

He remembered today was the 5th of August, in the year 2139. It couldn't possibly be April of 2129, the year he was still attending university.

Shi Feng shook his head, trying to wake himself up. Yet, deep down, he still held onto a thread of hope, wishing that he could be reincarnated, returning to the time ten years ago. He walked towards the desk, powering up the laptop.

Even if the time on his phone could be faked, the information on the internet definitely couldn't.

After surfing the web for several minutes...

Shi Feng was utterly devastated. All the information he found on the internet showed that today was 19th of April, 2129. Even the highly anticipated official release date of God's Domain was clearly displayed on its official site, counting down to six days from now, the 25th of April.

"I really have been reincarnated! Did I really come back to ten years ago?" Shi Feng firmly stared at the news report of God's Domain, emotional tears leaking from the corners of his eyes.

Shi Feng's feelings were hard to describe at that moment. He felt both regret, sadness, and joy.

It was as if everything before him was just a dream.

Nonetheless, the chirping of insects and the cold wind blown from the air conditioner told him otherwise, that everything was real.

Looking at his phone, at the family photo he took when he entered university, Shi Feng never realized that his parents had white hair. The corners of his mother's eyes even had wrinkles. They were no longer as lively as before; they were truly old now.

A year and a half had already passed since God's Domain's release when Shi Feng noticed how aged his parents were. The large amounts of debt, excessive laboring, and stress had caused both his parents to fall ill, gravely ill. Curing them required millions of Credits but, during that time, Shi Feng was merely a squad captain in Shadow. The money he earned was far from enough to foot such expensive costs.

Shi Feng tried everything to collect enough money, yet it was still not enough. Even with trying his all, Shi Feng's parents still left him a few months later.

In his previous life, he failed to care for his parents properly. How could he have known of the pain and suffering?

After Shi Feng earned millions of Credits, this pain remained within Shi Feng's heart for forever more.

Never would he have thought fate would play such a joke on him. He unexpectedly returned to the starting point, starting back up from zero.

"Great! This is just too great! Hahaha! Since I have been reincarnated, I have to change everything. I will earn enough money to cure mom and dad and I will let them live a life without worries." Shi Feng silently swore to himself as he wiped away the tears.

Just when Shi Feng was planning for his future, Blackie's call came ringing again, continuously urging Shi Feng to go quickly to the university for the test.

Yet, Shi Feng did not rush. He dressed at a relaxed pace, tidying himself up before heading to Jin Hai University.

He could not be more familiar with Shadow.

Shi Feng still remembered. It was while he was still attending university, Lan Hua Group's prized son, Lan Hailong, started up Shadow Workshop to enter God's Domain. Lan Hailong also invested considerable funding into the recruitment of the student experts of Jin Hai University. Shi Feng participated in Shadow's examination at the time, successfully becoming a core member of the Workshop; whereas Blackie became an outer member. Shi Feng had been happy for quite some time after that incident.

After three years of being under the leadership of Shi Feng, Shadow Workshop allowed Lan Hua Group to greatly profit from God's Domain, quickly becoming a large financial group. However, Shi Feng would never have thought that Lan Hailong would be the one to fire him, personally.

Since he had been reincarnated, he had an absolute advantage within God's Domain that others did not. Naturally, he would not be joining Shadow to become a tool that profited others. He wanted to walk a different path; a path where he fought not for others, but for himself. He wanted to remove the need for his parents to send him living expenses. He wanted to pay back all the debt they had collected. To do that, he wanted to venture, to start his own Workshop, to start his own company, and to build his own virtual kingdom... all to live a better life.

As soon as Shi Feng arrived at Teaching Block 1, he caught sight of a thin and tall figure in front of the building. The tanned youth was pacing around the hallway in a panic; this person was Blackie.

"Brother Feng, you've finally decided to show up. Fortunately, registration hasn't closed yet, so let's hurry in and sign up." Blackie said anxiously after seeing Shi Feng.

Shi Feng shook his head, seriously saying, "Blackie, I'm not joining Shadow; I'll be opening my own Workshop. Will you join me?"

Blackie was someone Shi Feng met in another Virtual Reality game and the former had pretty good skills. The two of them had faced many challenges together and they were no different than true brothers at this point. During their time together working in Shadow, Blackie showed great talent in administration, even though he lacked the talent for gaming. He managed the hundred thousand Guild members clearly and orderly. If Shi Feng had Blackie's help this time, his plans would be one step further. Yet, he would respect Blackie's decision regardless. It was because Shi Feng had nothing right now, and Blackie's family circumstances were not that well, either. Blackie had only chosen to become a professional gamer and join Shadow to earn some Credits for living expenses.

Blackie blanked at Shi Feng's words, lowering his head in silence. It was just too sudden. Not only that, the Shi Feng that he saw today felt different. Unlike his usual impatient attitude, Shi Feng currently gave off an unshakable and confident aura.

After a full minute, Blackie raised his head to look at Shi Feng.

"Brother Feng, stop speaking nonsense. Do you know how much a Virtual Gaming Helmet costs? That's 8,000 Credits. You also need at least six people to start up a Workshop. What about the workplace, salary, and everything else? Just the initial startup funds would require seventy to eighty thousand. There are also the follow-up investments. That's a lot of Credits. Do you have that many Credits right now?" Blackie was very aware of Shi Feng's circumstances. He knew Shi Feng's household wasn't well off, so he wanted to persuade Shi Feng away from this sort of crazy thinking.

"You're right. Right now, I don't even have the Credits for a God's Domain Virtual Gaming Helmet." Shi Feng nodded his head in admittance. It was like Blackie said. Even just seventy to eighty thousand was considered a small amount. Shi Feng recalled Lan Hailong had spent over 5,000,000 Credits for the hundred man Workshop he had recruited. He had also spent more in the later stages to upgrade the Workshop's quality and strength.

"Since this is so, rather than take the risk, wouldn't it be safer to join Shadow? At the very least, Shadow can provide us with Virtual Gaming Helmets. Otherwise, forget becoming professional players; we wouldn't even be able to play the game." Seeing that Shi Feng understood the core of the problem, Blackie sighed in relief as he pulled Shi Feng into the teaching block.

Shi Feng shook away Blackie's hand, sternly staring at Blackie before saying in a grave tone, "I still plan on starting my own Workshop. I don't want to be controlled by others. So, Blackie, will you join me?"

Shi Feng would not insist to Blackie since he did not have any guarantees. He also couldn't reveal the secret that he had been reincarnated. He could only hope that Blackie would believe in him.

Seeing Shi Feng's serious expression, Blackie felt Shi Feng was acting weird today. This was madness. Everyone knew you couldn't earn money during the initial periods of virtual games. Did Shi Feng have some way to make money in God's Domain? Even if they did make money, it would be after a few months. They did not have that much time to waste.

After hesitating for quite some time, Blackie reluctantly answered, "I get it. You're the boss. I'll start a Workshop together with you but what about the Virtual Gaming Helmets? We can't play the game without them, right?"

Shi Feng's tightened brows immediately relaxed as he happily clapped Blackie's shoulders, saying, "Now this is my good brother! Don't worry about the gaming helmets. I recall that God's Domain had a trial period available for university students. Every university has a distribution point and, as long as you show them your student identification, then, for ten days, you can obtain a gaming helmet for free. Let's go and take a look."

"What do we do after ten days?" Blackie's tanned face turned ashen, suddenly feeling his future was pitch black. Why did he have to believe Shi Feng? Could it be Shi Feng's confidence and steadiness? There wouldn't be a problem venturing together with Shi Feng, right?

What could you do with ten days in God's Domain?

They would definitely miss out on the recruitment period of Workshops after ten days. In the end, they still had to buy the gaming helmet but where would the money come from?

Not even a professional gamer with a group would be able to earn 16,000 Credits within ten days of God's Domain's opening.

"Leave the money problem to me."

Shi Feng revealed a confident smile as he clapped Blackie's shoulders.

Earning 16,000 Credits in ten days was indeed a pure fantasy. However, he had his spirit as a reincarnated person. No matter what the challenges were, he would break through them all and the release of God's Domain was the starting point of his rise.

Afterward, Shi Feng brought Blackie to retrieve the virtual gaming helmets. He then used all his money to buy two large boxes of instant noodles, placing them under his desk in his rented house. They were enough to last him for over ten days. After briefing Blackie on some things in God's Domain, Shi Feng quietly waited for God's Domain's opening.

25th of April, 9 pm. Within the dark and silent room, a few glimmers of light flickered alive.

Shi Feng laid on his bed, gently pushing the start button as he closed his eyes.

"God's Domain, here I come."

Chapter 2 - Sherlock's Request

To accommodate the majority of players, God's Domain could be played while sleeping. Also, the time within the game was different than in reality, where two hours within the game was equal to one hour in reality.

Each day within the game was made up of forty-eight hours, consisting of thirty hours daytime and eighteen hours of night.

Not only that, to allow the bulk of working class people to enjoy the game, nighttime, in reality, was daytime in the game.

Shi Feng passed through a multicolored tunnel as soon as he arrived in God's Domain, arriving at a solemn. golden temple.

A female angel with four pairs of wings flew towards Shi Feng. She was only about palm sized.

"Hello Adventurer, welcome to God's Domain. I am the Navigation Angel, Gabriel. I will be introducing to you the four main categories and twelve main jobs. Please choose the job that you like most."

With a wave of Gabriel's small hand, an illustration introducing the twelve main jobs appeared in front of Shi Feng.

These twelve jobs were categorized into four main classes.

Warrior: Shield Warrior, Guardian Knight, Berserker.

Weapons Specialist: Swordsman, Assassin, Ranger.

Healer: Cleric, Druid, Oracle.

Mage: Elementalist, Summoner, Cursemancer.

Warriors specialized in defending against monsters; weapons specialists focused on physical damage output; healers focused on healing; mages focused on magical damage output. Every job had their own style of battle, which was one of the main selling points of God's Domain.

In his previous life, Shi Feng picked the Swordsman under Weapon Specialists and he was even known as the Sword Magician.

Shi Feng had already invested too much in the Swordsman job, so naturally, he would not choose any other job. He chose the Swordsman class he was familiar with without hesitation.

"Job selection complete. Please designate a name for your character."

"Ye Feng."

Shi Feng chose the same name he had in his previous life.

"Naming successful. Do you wish to adjust your appearance? Adjustment rate limited to 15%."

Thinking about it for awhile, Shi Feng chose to adjust his character's appearance by 15% as to not stand out. With this, nobody could recognize Shi Feng if they saw his character, though it wasn't as handsome as the original.

"Please select a birthplace in the Star-Moon Kingdom."

A map that displayed tens of cities belonging to the Star-Moon Kingdom appeared in front of Shi Feng.

The opening of God's Domain was globally synchronized. To accommodate for the hundreds of millions of players, the lands of God's Domain were incredibly vast, measuring up to two or three times of Earth, and the kingdoms within were even more plentiful. However, a player's living area and city, in reality, determined the country they would start in, so players could only choose the cities within the country.

"White River City."

Shi Feng did not plan to choose any other cities, so he chose the White River City that he was most familiar with.

White River City was Star-Moon Kingdom's fifth ranked city. It was an important city in the north of Star-Moon Kingdom There were quite a few Workshops that chose to develop there to avoid the struggles between large Guilds.

"City confirmed. Player will arrive in Red Leaf Town of White River City in three seconds. We wish you happy gaming."

The sight before Shi Feng immediately blurred as he was sent away.

Red Leaf Town, the buildings that were chaotically arranged there had a similar style to the medieval ages. NPCs filled the bustling streets, making them feel as if it was another world.

Shi Feng arrived at the front of a church, his new appearance resembling a penniless Swordsman. He currently wore a gray Novice Leather Armor and on his waist hung a Novice Sword.

"I still ended up in Red Leaf Town, in the end." Shi Feng smiled faintly as he looked at the familiar sight of the small town, confidence welling up within him.

At that moment, many players had started wandering around the town, speaking to NPCs in hopes of obtaining a trail for a Quest. There were also quite a few players that went out of the village, going out to the wilderness to kill monsters. Every one of them was carrying out their tasks as if their lives depended on it and they couldn't help but wish they could split their time in two.

Shi Feng didn't pay attention to the other players. With a slight wave and touch of his finger, a player's Attribute Panel appeared before him.

Character: Ye Feng (Human)

Affiliated Kingdom: Star-Moon

Title: None

Job: Swordsman

Level: 0

HP: 100/100

Physical Attack Power: 13

Defense: 4

Attack Speed: 3

Movement Speed: 4

Attributes: Strength 5, Agility 3, Endurance 4, Intelligence 2, Vitality 2.

Free Attribute Points: 4

Weapon Mastery:

One-handed Sword Mastery +5 (Apprentice Rank - Increases One-handed Sword Damage by 5%)

Two-handed Sword Mastery + 5 (Apprentice Rank - Increases Two-handed Sword Damage by 5%)

Free Mastery Points: 0

Job Talent:

Swordsman Talent 1: Sword-related Mastery +5

Swordsman Talent 2: Obtain 8 Free Mastery Points every 5 Levels.

Swordsman Talent 3: Sword-related skills proficiency increased by 50%.

Skills:

Chop. Active skill. Requirement: Sword. Additional 8 points of damage. Cooldown: 5 seconds. Skill Level: 1 (Proficiency 0/300)

Equipment:

[Swordsman's Leather Shirt] (Gray Trash)

Level 0

Defense +2

Durability 10/10

[Novice Sword] (Gray Trash, One-handed Sword)

Level 0

Equipment Requirement: Strength 3

Attack Power +3

Durability 15/15

Inside his bag, there were ten pieces of Bread and ten pouches of Water. Eating the Bread would recover 10 HP per second while drinking Water will recover 10 MP per second, and both effects lasted ten seconds.

Every Swordsman started with the same Attributes, the only difference being the allocation of the Free Attribute Points.

Each player could obtain 4 Free Attribute Points with each increase in Level. With each rise in Level, the different ways players used these points would result in their own unique style.

Strength increases Physical Attack Power and the weight behind each attack. Agility increases Attack Speed and Movement Speed. Endurance increases maximum HP and stamina. Intelligence increases Magical Attack Power and maximum MP and Vitality increases the recovery rate of MP and HP. Every Job places emphasis on different Attributes.

As Swordsmen belonged to the physical damage Jobs, most people would prioritize Strength. In his previous life, Shi Feng also made such a choice, adding 2 points to Strength, one point to Endurance, and one point to Agility for every Level. It was a very ordinary and commonplace choice.

However, Shi Feng did not plan to do so in this life.

Without hesitation, Shi Feng clicked on the plus sign (+) for Agility, placing all 4 Free Attribute Points into it. Shi Feng's Agility increased to 7 points; his Attack Speed changing to 4 and Movement Speed to 5.

This method of point allocation was something not even Assassins, who were widely known for their high Agility, would do. They would prioritize Strength first, as more damage meant an easier time leveling up.

Unfortunately, Shi Feng didn't think that way.

For melee Jobs, Agility was the best choice at the early stages of God's Domain. This was kept a secret, only being discovered several weeks after God's Domain's opening. When it was finally made known, countless melee players couldn't help but hammer their chests in regret.

After adding the Attribute Points, Shi Feng took a look at his surroundings.

Only a while had passed before another large group of players were sent here. Green rhombus-like symbols belonging to players filled the air of the central plaza, blocking out the yellow symbols belonging to NPCs. Such a situation made looking for an NPC an even greater challenge.

Di! Di! Di!

Shi Feng's voice communication rang, the caller's name showing Black Cloud. It was Blackie calling.

"Brother Feng, I chose Cursemancer and was sent to Falling Moon Town. Where are you?" Now that he had entered God's Domain, Blackie was extremely excited, itching to start his journey quickly.

"I'm in Red Leaf Town, not that far from Falling Moon Town. I'll help you level up, so come to Red Leaf Town." Shi Feng said.

"Brother Feng, you must be crazy. Do you know how far Falling Moon Town is from Red Leaf Village? The Map says that it'll take me seven hours to get there. I'll fall behind all the other players by a lot if I go there. We should just level up on our own and meet up at White River City after reaching Level 10." Blackie nearly coughed out blood in anger. Earning 16,000 Credits in ten days was already madness. Instead of frantically leveling up after entering God's Domain, he was asked to waste seven hours? He wasn't going to do that, even if he was beaten to death.

"Don't worry. You should just come over. You'll get back the time you waste very quickly." Shi Feng said dully.

When Blackie heard Shi Feng's confident tone, he asked excitedly, "Brother Feng, could it be that you have a Beta Tester's information?"

God's Domain had invited quite a few people to test the game before it opened and these people were called Beta Testers. These Beta Testers could get ahold of first-hand information for God's Domain and, although changes would be made to the game, the Beta Testers would most definitely know more than regular players.

"What do you think? Just hurry over here." Shi Feng answered in a mysterious tone, laughing.

Hearing Shi Feng's words, Blackie knew Shi Feng had reliable information, and he couldn't help but get excited, saying, "Ok, wait for me Brother Feng; I'll go there right this instant."

Ending Blackie's call, Shi Feng walked towards a small dark alley of the town.

There were hundreds of NPCs in Red Leaf Town. However, NPCs that gave Quests only numbered in the tens, while Hidden Quests numbered five, and Unique Quests numbered only one. A unique Quest would no longer be available once completed by a player.

The Unique Quest in Red Leaf Town was only discovered two months after God's Domain's opening and it had caused a sensation throughout the entire White River City the last time. As the Quest was unique, the lucky player revealed the method to obtain it, earning the envy of many players. Unfortunately for them, the Quest was no longer available, even if they wanted to do it.

Of course, Shi Feng wouldn't let this Unique Quest go in this life.

Shi Feng arrived at the dark alley filled with beggars in tattered clothing. The beggars were like wolves discovering fresh meat when they saw Shi Feng walking over, quickly surrounding him as they begged for food.

There was once a player who had given these beggars a lot of food. These beggars would ask for items after having their fill and they would ask for more expensive items after each time. The player had agreed to all their requests, consecutively fulfilling more than ten of their wishes. Unfortunately, the beggars gave absolutely nothing in return, causing the player to nearly pop a vein, becoming a joke for others.

"Get lost!"

Shi Feng yelled as he pulled out his Novice Sword, causing the powerless beggars to quickly hide away.

Shi Feng walked to a corner after the beggars dispersed; a vagrant middle-aged man was lying there. There wasn't much of a difference between the man and the other beggars but if there were one, it would be the man's unyielding integrity, as he was the only one not begging for food.

"Do you need any help, Sir?" Shi Feng formally asked the man.

"Can you give me some food? It's been five days since I've last eaten," the male beggar responded.

Shi Feng smiled faintly, seriously saying: "Unfortunately Sir, I cannot agree to your wish."

A normal person would probably spew blood out in anger if they heard such a reply. However, this beggar merely let out a sigh, no longer saying a word.

"However, if you are willing to pay an appropriate price, I can give you the food you need." Shi Feng said.

The beggar lifted his head and looked at Shi Feng, his eyes carrying a hint of anticipation as he said, "If I had the money, I would definitely be willing to pay this cost, but right now I have nothing. Although, if you are willing to help me, I will pay you a sufficient price. Are you willing to help me?"

"May I ask what you want me to do?" Shi Feng questioned.

The beggar said seriously, "Please help me kill the Mayor of Red Leaf Town, Cross."

Even though Red Leaf Town was just a small town, the Town Mayor was still a Level 15 Elite. There were also Level 25 Guards by his side. Aside from that, killing an NPC would result in being arrested. Killing the Mayor was, without a doubt, a crazy action and no player would believe this was a Quest, as this was no different than telling players to commit suicide. Nobody would agree to such a damnable request.

"Alright, I promise you." Shi Feng unhesitatingly agreed with a smile.

System: Unique Quest "Sherlock's Request" accepted.

Quest Details: Kill Cross, the Mayor of Red Leaf Town and bring the [Mayor's Insignia] back to Sherlock. Players must not exceed Level 10.

Shi Feng turned around and headed towards the Town Hall, the place where the Mayor was staying, at after receiving the Quest.

Chapter 3 - lonely snow

Shi Feng walked on the path towards the town hall, crowded with people.

The less than spacious road was filled with players. They were conversing with the NPCs, taking the chance to obtain a Quest. Such a scene gave one a feeling of arriving at a market.

Unfortunately, it was not an easy task obtaining a Quest in God's Domain. The main reason being, the NPCs had high intelligence, giving them the capability to hold one-to-one conversations. Also, players must watch what they say or risk being given the cold shoulder by the NPCs. And there was a tide of players as competition; obtaining an easily found Normal Quest was truly difficult.

After more than ten minutes since God's Domain started, there had yet to be a single player within Red Leaf Town to receive a Normal Quest.

In comparison, Shi Feng's advantage as a reincarnated person was truly great. Not only has he received a Quest, but it was a Unique Quest; albeit a slightly damnable one. However, a Unique Quest's reward was incredibly generous. Even top-tier players who had played God's Domain for a month would drool at the reward of this Unique Quest.

As a person who had been reincarnated, Shi Feng had the experience of leading thousands of people while he was in Shadow Workshop. They had even built ten City States. The amount of information on God's Domain that was within his grasp far surpassed what the average player knew. It was especially true when it came to strategies on leveling up and earning money. These were the must-have essentials for a Workshop with thousands of players to grow in strength.

Now that he had been reincarnated and was playing God's Domain again, Shi Feng wanted to use this information to accumulate a significant amount of advantages. It was all to build a better foundation for his future development. So naturally, he would not be imitating the average player, wasting hours on the streets just to fight over a single Normal Quest. Even more so, he would not be emulating those skilled players, using their refined techniques to kill monsters in the wild, because, at this moment, there were probably more players than monsters in the wild.

What Shi Feng wanted to do was to avoid these piles of players; hence why he chose the Unique Quest which had an absurd difficulty.

However, completing this Quest required money, something Shi Feng did not have right now.

Every player would receive 10 Copper Coins at the start of the game. Although it was not enough to buy a Weapon or Equipment, purchasing HP or MP replenishing refreshments was not a problem.

When Shi Feng arrived at the front of the two-storied Town Hall, he was met with a scene of hundreds of people, queuing up into a long line.

Regardless of which game it was, the Village Head or Town Mayor was unquestionably a target to receive Quests from. Naturally, no player would let this chance go.

"Hey newcomer, queue up if you don't wanna cause a public outrage," from within the queue, a simple and honest looking male Warrior looked at Shi Feng. The Warrior held up his hand, pointing towards the back of the line of people.

"I'm not here to receive a Quest." Shi Feng said indifferently as he looked at the long line in front of the Town Hall.

Compared to the other locations, this place had great order and efficiency. Although it would take more time to receive a Quest, it was much better than some who could not receive one at all.

The male Warrior cautiously looked at Shi Feng. Everybody was frantically trying to receive a Quest right now... but there was someone who actually said that he wasn't interested towards it? Not even a ghost would believe that!

"I'm honestly not here to receive a Quest," Shi Feng looked at the male warrior. Seeing the person's hostile eyes and how he thought Shi Feng had wanted to jump queue, Shi Feng said with a smile, "However, I advise you to receive a Quest somewhere else. You'll just be pointlessly waiting here."

"Why would it be pointless? There were already a few people who came out after receiving a Quest." After determining that Shi Feng had no intention to jump queue, the male Warrior let out a sigh of relief. He had already been in the queue for over ten minutes now and he definitely would not want someone to cut in line. However, hearing Shi Feng's firm tone made him curious as to why he would be waiting for nothing.

Shi Feng smiled but did not elaborate. Instead, he changed the topic saying, "Seeing as you're not a bad person, I'll point you towards a brighter path. Kill mobs in the fields. You'll have a better future than remaining here."

"I'm not going. There are too many monsters in the wild and I can't compete with those other people. This place is still better" the male Warrior shook his head. He was not an idiot. At this moment, there were definitely tides of people out in the Field Area. With just his skills, he probably couldn't even snatch a monster, so he was better off just waiting here.

"That's because you went to the wrong place. If you go somewhere with few monsters, naturally, there wouldn't be anybody to compete with you. Compared to the areas packed with both players and monsters, the leveling efficiency there is several times better. Not only that, the respawn rate of the monsters there is slow, so a single person could easily handle themselves," Shi Feng said with a smile.

"Is there really such a place?"

The male Warrior was excited after listening to Shi Feng. He was extremely interested in such a location. He still needed to wait for more than an hour to receive a Quest and the rewards he could obtain would only be EXP and some meager amount of money. If he could grind on monsters for an hour unhindered, the EXP he could obtain would far surpass that from the Quest.

"Of course there is. I'll give you a preferential price of 20 Coppers if you want to go to such a treasured location. Don't mention EXP; after grinding for a day, the materials you could obtain would earn you more than 40 Coppers. If you're lucky, you could make a ton more if a piece of equipment drops," Shi Feng walked closer to the male Warrior, whispering into his ears.

"You're not tricking me, right?" the male Warrior looked at Shi Feng with hesitation in his eyes. If there was such a treasured location, he could definitely surpass the other players by a lot; but 20 Coppers was not a small amount. The monsters in God's Domain rarely drop money or equipment, so Copper Coins were incredibly precious.

"If you don't believe me, you can pay 10 Coppers up front first. You'll know just from trying after you arrive at the spot. If it's true, you can then pay me the other 10 Coppers. I'm only telling you this because I see that you're a good person. Just forget it, if you don't believe me." Shi Feng turned and left after saying his piece.

Shi Feng wouldn't be doing this if he didn't lack money. At worst, he'll just use some other method to earn money.

Just after walking a few steps away, Shi Feng was stopped by the male Warrior.

"Expert, hold on a moment. Let's talk about it, alright? Isn't it just a deposit of 10 Coppers? Here, take it. I trust that an expert like you won't trick me." The male Warrior revealed an honest smile, resolutely trading 10 Coppers to Shi Feng.

"Seeing your performance, I'll give you a good location. Although this place is slightly far-off, there is only a single mage-type Level 0 Green Gnome. It has low defense and a quick respawn rate. Chances are also greater of money dropping. A Berserker would be great at killing there." Shi Feng gave the Warrior a good grinding location after happily receiving the ten Coppers.

The male Warrior was relieved when he noticed how familiar Shi Feng was with the wild monsters, even to the degree of knowing the amount of money dropped. He never imagined he would be so fortunate as to meet an expert of God's Domain and not just any expert; Shi Feng might even be a Beta Tester. The male Warrior became even more excited as he thought of this possibility.

"Brother Expert, do you know a location that drops skill books for Berserkers? It's really hard to fight against mobs with only a single skill." The male Warrior was more fond of Shi Feng now, even treating Shi Feng as his superior.

"It's fine if you want to know., but it'll cost you 2 Silvers," Shi Feng smiled. Who would give out such valuable information after only a short conversation? Shi Feng would not unless there was money involved, of course.

The male Warrior paled when he heard the price. Two Silvers equaled 200 Coppers. Not even the average Guild would have that much money.

"Expert, let's add each other as friends. I'm Lonely Snow. I'll contact you again once I've saved up enough money." The male Warrior sent Shi Feng a friend request.

"Alright." Shi Feng accepted Lonely Snow's request.

"Then I'm off to fight mobs, Brother Expert. I'll mail you the 10 Copper immediately after I've saved up enough." Lonely Snow happily parted with Shi Feng, leaving the long queue and dashing towards the grinding location.

Now that Shi Feng had money, he walked towards the fruit stall by the Town Hall.

"Boss, how much for this Tomato?" Shi Feng asked as he held up a ripe, red Tomato.

Both Fruits and Vegetables could aid in recovering a player's HP and MP. Their tastes were also quite delicious. The only downside was the bad recovery rate. In normal circumstances, players wouldn't buy them at all, especially during such a period where money was a big problem. Spending money on Fruits and Vegetables was just wasteful behavior.

"2 Coppers each."

"Give me ten of them."

Shi Feng paid the 20 Coppers. He walked into the Town Hall after receiving the 10 Tomatoes.

"Hey newcomer, queue up. Can't you see others are queuing up as well?"

"Swordsman over there, what do you think you're trying to do? Do you know how many people are queuing up behind?"

The players in the queue became enraged and started criticizing when they saw Shi Feng cutting the line, walking directly towards the Town Mayor. They would've long since murdered Shi Feng, were it not for the fact that they could be jailed for attacking another player inside the town.

"Sorry, but I'm really not here to receive a Quest. I'm just here to take a look." Shi Feng smiled at the players; he turned to look at the fat Town Mayor, Cross.

[Cross] (Elite, Friendly)

Level 15

HP 2400/2400

MP 1500/1500

There was not a single player who could beat him at this stage. It was not possible, even with a team.

Subsequently, Shi Feng took out a ripe and red Tomato, taking a bite out of it.

"What is this person doing?"

"Hell! He's actually eating a Tomato! Each of those costs 2 Coppers! Such luxury!"

The other players could not understand what Shi Feng was trying to do. By coming to the Town Hall to eat Tomatoes... was he trying to show off how rich he was?

Halfway through his Tomato, Shi Feng suddenly threw it towards Town Mayor Cross' face.

The Tomato accurately landed on Cross' face, spreading bright red liquid all over.

System: Cross' favorability towards you has been decreased by 100 points.

Unsatisfied, Shi Feng took out another Tomato from his bag, throwing it at Cross.

"Hypocrite! Fatty! Bloodsucker! You're not fit to be the Town Mayor!"

Shi Feng kept cursing as he threw Tomatoes, whereas Cross' favorability kept decreasing. Cross' body turned bright red as tomato juice kept flowing down his body. Adding to his enraged expression, it created an incomparably funny sight.

However, nobody within the Town Hall was laughing; it was exceptionally quiet. All of the players became slack-jawed and dumbfounded at Shi Feng's actions.

Just after twenty minutes since God's Domain's opening, there was a player that dared to actually attack an NPC and not just any NPC; he was attacking the leader of a town, the Boss of the Beginner's Area!

This person was insane! Wasn't he afraid of being jailed until his death?

Did he no longer want to stay in Red Leaf Town?

Even taking your revenge on society shouldn't be done in such a way!

Just when the other players were expecting the Guards to detain Shi Feng or for the Town Mayor to kill off Shi Feng in a rage, none of these things actually occurred.

None of the players knew that insulting an NPC was not considered an attack. Hence why neither the Guards nor Cross attacked Shi Feng. Shi Feng's actions would only lead to the NPC hating him to the bones and he could forget receiving Quests from the NPC in this lifetime.

As Shi Feng's last Tomato landed on Cross' face, Cross' favorability fell towards Hostile. Cross' Level became question marks and the yellow marker above him quickly turned a crimson red.

"Damnable insect! I'll send you down to hell!"

The bright red Cross roared loudly as he rushed at Shi Feng.

Chapter 4 - The sensation Caused by Death

Town Mayor Cross' furious roar reverberated throughout the entire Town Hall.

With a high speed, Cross instantly arrived in front of Shi Feng, his fist stretching out towards Shi Feng.

The other players were currently reveling in Shi Feng's misfortune, taking the chance to gauge Town Mayor Cross' strength.

Cross was a Level 15 Elite, and a single slap from him was enough to swat the current players to death. However, Shi Feng was foolish to the degree of actually angering the mayor. Not a single person in the entire Red Leaf Town could save him now. He would be jailed until he was on his deathbed or he would be chased out of Red Leaf Town.

However, Shi Feng's surprisingly calm attitude puzzled the other players. Was he already prepared for death?

When Cross was about to hit Shi Feng, the stationary Shi Feng finally moved. Like a hunter waiting for his prey, Shi Feng immediately unsheathed his Novice Sword. With swift motions, he used the sword to defend his body.

Peng!

Cross' fist landed on the Novice Sword, sending Shi Feng's entire person flying. Just as Shi Feng was about to fall, he flipped his body, landing steadily on the ground with the flexibility of a cat. However, his HP had instantly decreased by 84, and the Novice Sword in his grip trembled uncontrollably. The sword's durability had even reduced by 1 point; the weapon would become useless once its durability dropped to 0.

Si......

All the players drew in a cold breath.

Seeing Shi Feng's troublemaking, they had initially thought of him as a mere rookie. However, after Shi Feng's recent performance, anybody with a discerning eye could tell he was a very skillful person. Even if Cross had low physical damage as a mage, as a Level 15 Elite, he could still kill any of the current players in a single strike. Yet, Shi Feng was alive. He had used his weapon to block the attack, reducing the damage to a minimum.

"He's clearly a mage, and yet his strength and speed are truly shocking." Shi Feng silently marveled as he at looked the lamenting Novice Sword in his grip. Fortunately, he had added all his points to Agility, increasing his Attack Speed to 4. Otherwise, he would surely be dead by now, having to start his Quest all over again.

"Die, insect!"

After failing his strike, Cross was further enraged. Suddenly, his clothes were ripped apart, revealing a body covered in pitch black fur; Cross had turned into a Werewolf with sharp fangs.

Every player was shocked at this moment. Never would they have thought the mayor was an evil Werewolf.

Cross arrived at Shi Feng's back in an instant, raising his bright snowy claws and slashing them at Shi Feng's heart.

However, Shi Feng revealed a cold grin, even though he only had 16 HP remaining.

Cross' claws suddenly stopped; they were only a few centimeters away from dealing with Shi Feng. Unfortunately, Cross was hit by a Level 25 Guard's [Charge], entering a Fainted state for 1 second.

Shi Feng took this chance to quickly move away.

Just when Cross was about to rush Shi Feng after awakening, he was interrupted once more by another Guard.

Both of the Guards were Level 25 Warriors. Although neither of them was Elites, the damage they dished out was relatively high. A Charge, coupled with a normal attack, had quickly taken 300 HP away from Cross. Two Guards had taken away a total of 600 HP, causing Cross' HP to fall to 1700 in an instant.

"As expected of the Guards, their attack power sure is high." Shi Feng chuckled as he looked at Cross' sorry state.

Guards were the protectors of the town. They were specialized in protecting the town's civilians and resisting against the invasion of evil beings. At this moment, the mayor had transformed into a Werewolf; proof that he was not a human, but a spy for the powers of evil. The guards would naturally not let him go, killing him as if he were no different than the monsters in the wild.

On the surface, the conditions of Sherlock's request seemed harsh. In reality, however, players only needed to actively attack the mayor, subsequently surviving the mayor's first strike. Afterward was just smooth sailing. The Guards would handle the rest after the mayor revealed his true self.

In Shi Feng's previous life, the reason this Unique Quest could shock the entire White River City, was because the Town Mayor was a spy for the forces of evil. This Quest had allowed players to have a new perspective towards God's Domain; the NPCs were not entirely reliable, as they might be one of the forces of evil in disguise.

Simultaneously, the player who completed the Quest had shocked everyone with his method of baiting the Town Mayor. The player had racked his brain to complete the Quest and, naturally, he wanted to show off his efforts by revealing his strategy. Now, though, it was being taken advantage of by Shi Feng.

As such, Cross was now being attacked by the two Guards. Although the damage dealt by the Guards was very high, Cross' target had never shifted away from Shi Feng. He continuously aimed to kill Shi Feng but, unfortunately for him, the two Guards stuck to him like glue. One of the Guards used [Bone Crusher], while the other used [Thundering Strike], causing Cross' Movement Speed to plummet. Fortunately, Shi Feng was able to escape death with his 5 points of Movement Speed.

Just like that, Cross' over 2000 HP was nearly depleted.

When the other players saw Cross dying, many of them started becoming restless; they wanted to land the last strike on the mayor. They did not understand why the Guards were attacking Cross instead of Shi Feng but a Town Mayor who was also a Level 15 Elite...... if he died, he would definitely drop some great items.

Hiding some place far away, Shi Feng smiled in disdain in regards to their thoughts.

Was the Town Mayor someone they could have ideas about? Although the mayor had become one of the forces of evil, this was only a part of the Quest's plot. In the eyes of the other players, the mayor was still in a Friendly state; it was not possible to attack the mayor at all.

When Cross only had 100 HP remaining, all the other players started moving. All of them simultaneously rushed towards Town Mayor Cross. All of them wanted to give the final strike, snatching away the dropped items.

Seeing that Cross was only a hit away from death's door, Shi Feng, too, dashed out.

Unfortunately, Cross still died under the Guard's blade in the end. Not a single one of the players was able to strike at Cross. Although Shi Feng could attack, he did not want to risk it. After the mayor's death, he immediately took away the [Mayor's Insignia] and disappeared into the crowd.

NPCs within a city would not yield any EXP or loot if killed. Shi Feng wouldn't even be able to obtain the Mayor's Insignia were it not for a Quest.

"Crap! The System's bugged! Why can't I attack the mayor?"

"I want to complain! Why didn't the mayor drop anything after death?"

Some of the rookie players resentfully complained. A Level 15 Elite had died before their eyes, yet they did not obtain a single advantage; they simply could not accept it.

"Moron. Don't you know you have a Friendly relationship with the NPC? Players can't attack an NPC with a Friendly relationship. If you don't even know such common knowledge, why bother playing God's Domain?"

After ridiculing the rookies, the competent players searched for traces of Shi Feng. A player who could kill the Town Mayor in such a way was definitely an expert, someone they should associate with. However, they could not spot Shi Feng, even after looking for a long time. They also did not know his name. They could not help but secretly feel pity.

Meanwhile, news of Town Mayor Cross' death spread throughout Red Leaf Village, creating a sensation amongst all the players.

At this phase of the game, where players were still worrying over grinding monsters for Levels, the leader of a town was toyed to death so simply. This was just too mind-blowing!

Not even thirty minutes since God's Domain's opening, a news thread appeared on the official site's forums.

Mysterious Swordsman kills off Level 15 Elite, Red Leaf Town Mayor. The leader of a town was actually a Werewolf in disguise. Exactly what kind of game is God's Domain?

This news thread instantly caused a sensation amongst the players. It only took a moment for the number of clicks to the page to go past ten million. Everyone became interested with this mysterious Swordsman. Unfortunately, they could not contact the person since nobody knew his name.

By now, Shi Feng had already arrived at the dark alley.

"Mister Sherlock, this is the Mayor's Insignia that you requested." Shi Feng passed silver colored Mayor's Insignia to the beggar, Sherlock.

With the Quest's completion, bad news came to both the players who had already received a Quest and for those who were currently trying to receive one from the mayor. This was because Cross would not respawn. They would have no place to submit their Quest even if it was completed. Red Leaf Town would also no longer have a mayor, though Shi Feng could care less about that.

"Thank you. Thank you, so much. I have finally attained revenge for my friend. These things should be of help to you."

Sherlock passed Shi Feng a delicate little box. Subsequently, Sherlock took the Mayor's Insignia and left the dark alley.

System: Unique Quest "Sherlock's Request" completed. Rewarding 2000 EXP, 20 Free Mastery Points, 1 [Luxurious Ornament Box].

With a "Hua" sound, Shi Feng became Level 1, and he was only 1000 EXP away from Level 2. Shi Feng's Level became Red Leaf Town's top one, only thirty minutes after the start of God's Domain. In normal circumstances, the average player required 1000 EXP to rise to Level 1. Such an amount required at least six or seven hours of grinding monsters, as each Level 0 monster only gave 3 EXP. Time was also needed to look for monsters, to recover, and so on. Factoring in the massive amount of players at the start of the game that was fighting over monsters, taking over ten hours to arrive at Level 1 could be considered average.

"Why is the Unique Quest's reward so generous? Was it because I completed it at Level 0?" Shi Feng became slightly uncertain but he was still delighted with such rewards.

In his previous life, the rewards posted were not as luxurious. Although the amount of EXP was the same, the number of Free Mastery Points was not. The other person only received 10 points for it, as well as a Delicate Ornament Box, while Shi Feng received 20 points and a Luxurious Ornament Box.

Free Mastery Points were extremely precious in God's Domain. Rarely would a Quest award 3 to 5 points. This Unique Quest had awarded 20 points.

"Hopefully, it won't let me down. Although it isn't a Delicate Ornament Box, it is still the better Luxurious Ornament Box. It should come out." Shi Feng carefully held the Ornament box, a nervous gulp coming from his throat. Slowly, he opened the box.

Though the EXP and Free Mastery Points were great, what Shi Feng really wanted was the item inside the Ornament Box. It was an essential item he needed to complete his leveling and money making plans. It was also a top-tier item that many experts drooled over. Shi Feng would cry to death if something went wrong.

Chapter 5 - Black market Challenge 

As the Luxurious Ornament Box slowly opened, a dazzling array of multicolored light burst out from within.

Fortunately, Shi Feng was currently standing inside a dark alley; there were no players who would wander over here. Otherwise, such a spectacle would have incited the greed in their hearts and Shi Feng would be killed and robbed.

When the glowing brilliance faded, a simple silver necklace and a purple-gold ring could be seen lying inside the Luxurious Ornament Box. Carved on the ring's exterior were words resembling the ancient language of Elves and within them stored a tremendous magical power.

"Fortunately, it is still the Ring of Gravity." Shi Feng let loose his breath when he saw the appearance of the ring. Carefully, he took the ring out of the box and inspected it.

[Ring of Gravity] (Mysterious-Iron Rank)

Equipment Level: 0

Strength +2, Agility +1, Endurance +1

Additional Skill: 'Gravity Liberation'. Greatly reduces the gravity acting upon the user. Duration 30 seconds. Cooldown 5 minutes.

"Great! It's not just Bronze rank." After reading the item's introduction, Shi Feng became extremely excited. The situation was far better than he had expected.

The Equipment in God's Domain was categorized into Trash, Common, Bronze, Mysterious-Iron, Secret-Silver, Fine-Gold, Dark-Gold, and Epic.

At the start of the game, players only received Trash Equipment from the System. This equipment was utterly worthless. At this stage of the game, however, there were no players who possessed Common Equipment. While you could buy Common Equipment in large cities, the prices were costly. As for Bronze ranked, those were extremely rare and they also came with additional attributes. Mysterious-Iron Equipment, however, only dropped from Bosses and, needless to say, they were even more precious.

In Shi Feng's previous life, the Ring of Gravity obtained by the player was only Bronze ranked. It gave only an additional 1 point to Strength. The skill 'Gravity Liberation,' as well, only lasted for 15 seconds. It was a surprise to Shi Feng that completing the Quest at Level 0 would earn him a Mysterious-Iron Ring of Gravity.

As for the necklace, it was just a Gray Item. NPC merchants coveted these items and they were willing to buy them at high prices.

After wearing the Ring of Gravity, Shi Feng added the 4 Free Ability Points that came from leveling up all into Agility.

Shi Feng's Agility rose to 12 points, his Attack Speed to 5 points, and his Movement Speed to 6 points. He could almost rival a pure Agility Assassin of the same Level now.

"My Agility will reach 20 points after rising to Level 3. At that time, I can unlock the Hidden Basic Skill of the Agility System." Shi Feng looked at his Attribute Panel in anticipation.

Shi Feng moved his body, feeling it become a lot livelier than before. He wouldn't be in his previous sorry state if he were to face off with Town Mayor Cross, right now. If his Agility reached twenty points, the condition of his body would become even greater after activating the Basic Skill [Fast And Nimble]; he could even rival against those Wulin Experts depicted in Wuxia novels.

Afterward, Shi Feng added 15 of the Free Mastery Points towards his One-Handed Sword Mastery, keeping the remaining 5 points for future use. With his One-Handed Sword Mastery now at a total of 20 points, Shi Feng advanced from Apprentice to Basic Swordsman and the additional damage dealt by using a one-handed sword increased to 10%. He was still 30 Mastery Points away from advancing to an Intermediate Swordsman.

Regular attacks were only the basics for a Swordsman. If one wanted to become an expert with the sword, Skills were a must-have. The more, the better, as this would create more flexibility when in battle, thereby allowing the Swordsman to dish out greater Damage.

Shi Feng was both an expert of the sword and a person who had been reincarnated. Now that he had a special tool such as the Ring of Gravity, he needed a large amount of Swordsman Skills to display the true potential of a Swordsman. He could then level up at a fast pace. Otherwise, it was impossible to increase the efficiency of killing monsters by relying on normal attacks.

"I recall there being a Black Market Challenge in Red Leaf Town's Trade Area. Players who cleared the challenge for the first time would be able to obtain a skill book for Swordsman." Most skill books dropped from monsters around Levels 3 to 5 and their drop rates were pitifully low. At this stage of the game, there were still no players capable of grinding those monsters. It would be a big waste of time if Shi Feng wanted to obtain the other skill books for Swordsman. He also did not have the time for it. So, the Black Market Challenge was the only way for Shi Feng to quickly obtain a skill book in Red Leaf town.

Trade Area of Red Leaf Town

Shops filled both sides of the street. There were pharmacies, smithies, bars and more; it was extremely flourishing, just like a small market. However, the current trade area wasn't as lively as it should be. It hasn't been long since God's Domain started its operation, so most players were busy leveling up instead of enjoying what God's Domain had to offer. As a result, there was only the minority of Lifestyle players staying here. They were here to learn Auxiliary Jobs such as Enchanter, Forger, Pharmacist, Chef, Engineer, Alchemist, etc.

"Buying herbs at a high price, contact me directly if you have any."

"Buying ores; rip-offs can stay away."

"Sincerely buying high ranking equipment. Price is negotiable. Willing to pay with Credits."

Many logistics staffers of Workshops and Guilds had set up a small stall by the roadside of the Trade Area. They were mainly here to buy items and equipment.

Shi Feng quickly headed towards a two-storied building without halting. High-ranking Gnomes guarded the building, and above the building read 'Black Market'. This place was the dark side of Red Leaf Town and it was a place of entertainment built by the greedy Gnomes.

The Gnome's Auction House could be seen just after entering the Black Market. Going down along the basement staircase led to two empty fields; one was the Battle Arena, while the other was the field for the Challenge Race.

At the moment, several players were standing in front of the field. They were receiving the Gnomes' challenge.

"Good luck! You have to succeed this time!"

"Good luck! Stomp those Gnomes!"

A few players were currently cheering with all their might for an Assassin player that stood on the field. Their reddened eyes made them look no different than crazed gamblers.

The Challenge Race could be considered a testing grounds for a player's capabilities. Once a player entered the trial grounds, all their Attributes would be fixed at 10 points, their skills disabled, and their equipment rendered useless. Within the 30-yards-long and 10-yards-wide field, players were only allowed to block or dodge the incoming shots from the Gnome's muskets. A victory would ensue once players arrived at the finishing point.

The Gnomes gave out three ranks of challenges: Copper Prize, Silver Prize, and Gold Prize. After a challenge was completed, there would be a three-day cooldown. There was a fee of 5 Coppers for the Copper Prize, 5 Silvers for the Silver Prize, and 5 Gold for the Gold Prize. Naturally, the higher ranked the challenge, the greater the prize. There was even the chance of obtaining a Dark-Gold Equipment.

However, if a player obtained the First Clear for the challenge in Red Leaf Town, the reward of Copper Prize may be comparable even to the Silver Prize.

In Shi Feng's previous life, this First Clear was obtained by a Swordsman named Fierce Gale and the person had received a rare skill book for Swordsman.

After a short while, the Assassin on the field was struck. His body lay at the 20-yards mark, still ten yards away from the final point.

"Despicable. Just a little bit more. Do you guys still have money? I'll definitely clear it the next time." The male Assassin said after reviving from the field.

A male Cleric shook his head saying, "Boss Stabbing Heart, the five of us have already given you all our money. We don't have anymore."

By the side, Shi Feng shifted his sight towards the Assassin. He was shocked after hearing the two words 'Stabbing Heart'.

The person's body was covered in black clothing. He had a short and skinny stature, just like a monkey. Shi Feng could hardly believe that the 'monkey' in front of him was Stabbing Heart, the Assassin who ranked at number 10 on Star-Moon Kingdom's Assassin Leaderboard.

The Assassin named Stabbing Heart shifted his gaze onto Shi Feng. After sizing Shi Feng up, his eyes revealed a gaze as if they had just found prey. With a smile, he walked up to Shi Feng and said, "Nice to meet you, friend. I'm Stabbing Heart, Assassin Squad Leader of the [Assassin's Alliance]. Lend 5 Coppers to me and I'll return 20 Coppers to you tomorrow. How about it?"

Stabbing Heart was just ten yards away from the final point this time, so he was unwilling to accept defeat. He had already figured out some of the challenge's patterns; he would be able to clear it if given another chance. Hence, he thought of using his Guild's name to shock and awe Shi Feng into lending him 5 Coppers.

The Assassin's Alliance was a large Guild that was well known in the world of virtual gaming. Any veteran gamer would know this name. Someone capable of becoming the squad leader for Assassins was definitely a great expert, a figure that was respected by many players. Instead of lending, the average player would definitely just give the 5 Coppers to gain some favors.

"5 Coppers is it?" After some thinking, Shi Feng answered: "I can lend you the 5 Coppers, but you have to pay back 50 Coppers tomorrow."

Stabbing Heart was surprised. He was Stabbing Heart, the Assassin's Alliance's famous Assassin Squad Leader. However, Shi Feng's uncourteous reaction was completely different than what he had imagined it would be. Could Shi Feng be a rookie gamer?

Seeing Stabbing Heart staying silent, Shi Feng asked, "Still borrowing?"

"I'll borrow." Stabbing Heart wanted to weep. Other players would be going 'Expert, expert!' when they met him, yet Shi Feng showed no such reaction. However, when he thought about the bountiful reward awaiting him, even 50 Coppers was worth it.

"Here's 5 Coppers. Let's add each other as friends. Don't forget to return 50 Coppers to me tomorrow." Shi Feng took 5 Coppers out of the 60 he obtained from selling the necklace, not forgetting to remind Stabbing Heart to return the 50 Coppers.

With tears flowing down his face, Stabbing Heart received the 5 Coppers and said, "Fine. I won't forget."

Not knowing what Stabbing Heart was thinking, Shi Feng walked away after the trade was completed. He headed towards the green-skinned Gnome who was the Challenge Race's administrator.

"Sir, time is money. What business do you have?" The Gnome administrator said so in a lofty tone.

"I want to enter the Copper Prize Challenge." Shi Feng said as he handed over 5 Coppers.

After flipping the Copper coins a few times, the Gnome nodded his head in approval. He opened the wooden door to the Challenge Race, allowing Shi Feng to enter.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new challenger on the field. Please let us welcome this brave Swordsman." The gnome loudly announced.

"Boss Stabbing Heart, the kid that lent you money is participating in the Challenge Race," the male Cleric pointed out.

The resting Stabbing Heart laughingly said, "That kid's just a rookie. Does he think the Challenge Race is so easy? Even though the distance is only 30 yards, the Gnomes' attack pattern will change after you get past 15 yards and their attack rates greatly increase. Not to mention, even I have difficulty facing them."

"That's for sure! Even an expert such as Boss Stabbing Heart could only reach 20 yards. I'm guessing that kid will, at most, reach five yards before being done in." The male Cleric nodded with a smile.

Inside the field, the three Gnomes standing at the finishing line readied their muskets, aiming them towards Shi Feng.

Above the challenge field, the timer started counting down.

3......

2......

1......

Challenge Start!

Chapter 6 - stunning skills

The instant the countdown ended...

Shi Feng's body leaned forward and his legs bent. Just like a leopard, he dashed away from the starting line with explosive force.

Xiu!

By the time the muskets had started ringing and shooting towards the starting line, Shi Feng was already three yards away.

Subsequently, another volley of musket shots rang out; a total of six bullets shot towards Shi Feng's path. Several green lines indicating the trajectory of the bullets covered Shi Feng's body. Shi Feng would become a sieve if his reactions were not keen.

Just as the bullets were about to hit, Shi Feng dodged to the right with a sidestep. He rushed forward once more, after avoiding the second volley of shots.

Bullet casings fell to the ground consistently as the three Gnomes continued to aim and shoot. However, Shi Feng avoided them with the vigor of a leopard, every single time. The way he stayed a step ahead of the bullets made it seem as if he had control over them.

"It can't be. He's already at the 10-yard-mark." Seeing Shi Feng taking less than five seconds to reach the 10-yard-mark, the male Cleric couldn't help but be shocked; it was only a half of Stabbing Heart's time.

Stabbing Heart became speechless by the side. He silently watched Shi Feng's advance.

He had originally thought of Shi Feng as a fresh noob; someone that he didn't know of and someone that came to the Challenge Race for fun. Yet, the speed and accuracy Shi Feng just displayed were like a veteran who had tempered himself for countless years on the Challenge Race. Every move of his was straightforward and efficient, something a rookie definitely couldn't pull off. Even Stabbing Heart himself, after going through the challenge several times, felt he couldn't do any better.

Stabbing Heart had the pride of an expert. He did not think that Shi Feng could be stronger than he was. He explained, "With such nimbleness, maybe this rookie is an athlete or someone who trained in martial arts. However, the Gnomes will change their attack patterns after he goes past 15 yards. He won't be able to hold it, by that time."

"You're right, boss. If it's someone that isn't known to our Assassin's Alliance, he definitely isn't an expert. He'll surely be shocked once he reaches 15 yards. Then, he'll turn into a beehive."

"Right. After 15 yards, the number of bullets fired will be twelve. The target would also no longer be focused on the player, himself. Instead, it'll cover a wide area. Dodging to either side won't be an option."

The other members of Assassin's Alliance voiced their agreements. They, too, had already witnessed such a scene before, seven to eight times, at that.

Stabbing Heart passed 15 yards on his first challenge. In the subsequent challenges, however, his furthest distance was 20 yards. The difficulty after 15 yards was clear to behold.

"He went past 15 yards," an Assassin's Alliance member commented.

Stabbing Heart and the others quickly focused their sights on Shi Feng, wanting to see Shi Feng's performance.

On the field, the three Gnomes became enraged once Shi Feng stepped past the 15-yard-line. They no longer aimed as they fired their muskets with wild abandon.

Suddenly, the bullet trajectory-indicators within Shi Feng's sight covered a large area. There were only three bullets that would hit Shi Feng. However, it was game over if even a single bullet hit its mark.

"Finally, showing your shameless behavior, eh?" Shi Feng revealed an indifferent smile. Unsheathing his Novice Sword, Shi Feng used it to greet the bullets.

In his previous life, Shi Feng was always busy with work and leveling up as the captain of Shadow; he had no time to play the Challenge Race. However, he had seen it quite a few times, so he still had a clear understanding of the Challenge Race. He knew the Gnomes would change their attack patterns after the 15-yard-line.

The fifteen-yard distance of the Black Market's Challenge Race was a bar that tested a player's operating skills. Only those who passed it could be considered to have entry-level operating skills. However, a majority of the players required two or three months before being able to reach this level; a minority took a month. There were only a scant few experts capable of passing it in one try. Stabbing Heart was one of those few experts.

Three bullets were about to hit Shi Feng's head, chest, and arm, three locations.

"As expected, this kid's no good. The bullets are too numerous and too spread out. He's already forgotten to dodge them. He's even dashing ahead like an idiot." Stabbing Heart knew it was foolishness when he saw Shi Feng rushing towards the bullets. Did he think the challenge would continue if he were just shot by one or two bullets?

Right this moment, Shi Feng's head shifted. He waved his Novice Sword, creating a white streak of light.

Peng!

A spark was created. Shi Feng had waved the Novice Sword just at the right spot, effortlessly hitting the bullet that aimed at his chest.

The threat of the three bullets was simply resolved by Shi Feng. He had, once more, advanced another section of the distance.

Yet, the three Gnomes did not stop firing. The muskets in their hands were like machine guns, firing volley after volley of bullets. Within an instant, Shi Feng faced off with another five bullets. There were also bullets all around that prevented him from dodging.

Dang! Dang! Dang!

Shi Feng swiftly moved his body while waving his sword to deflect the unavoidable bullets. As the bullets passed by his body, his ears could even hear the air being split.

Only three seconds went by and Shi Feng had passed through the 20-yard-mark. He was only 10 yards away from the finishing point.

"Crap. Boss, who is this kid? He actually used his sword to block the bullets." The male Cleric widened his eyes in surprise. Shi Feng had given him an indescribable sense of shock.

Although the bullet trajectories were indicated, accurately blocking them was easier said than done. Such an action required extreme precision and skill to carry out. Not to mention, the margin of error allowed was a damnable one.

Stabbing Heart suddenly became speechless. Deflecting bullets with a weapon was like walking on a thread of wire high up in the sky; a single misstep would send you plunging into the abyss. As if he was enjoying it, Shi Feng blocked the oncoming bullets over and over. Whereas, the bullets seemed to have a life of their own, intentionally avoiding Shi Feng's body as they flew past.

"Boss, that Swordsman has run past 25 yards. He'll definitely pass the finish line at this rate." The male Cleric's heart became a chaotic mess as he watched Shi Feng danced forward, sparks occasionally flashing in front of his body.

"I have eyes. I don't need you to remind me." Stabbing Heart said in annoyance. He was deeply drawn in by Shi Feng's actions.

The moment Shi Feng went past 25 yards...

"Die, challenger." One of the Gnomes at the finish line laughed. The Gnome took out an automatic musket, sending a wave of bullets towards Shi Feng.

Suddenly, the number of bullets increased to twenty-four. Not only that, their distance from Shi Feng was a mere 5 yards. It was an unavoidable distance for players.

"Hell! This is cheating!" Stabbing Heart unwillingly shouted.

The other players became extremely nervous when they saw the scene and they couldn't help but curse at the shamelessness of the Gnomes.

Facing the hail of bullets, Shi Feng quickly turned grave. Although he had known about the second change at the 25-yard-mark, even he would panic in the face of so many bullets.

Shi Feng bent his knees, leaping forward like a leopard. He darted headfirst towards the area with the least amount of bullets, reducing the surface area of his body that would come into contact with the bullets. Following which, he madly waved the Novice Sword, simultaneously creating four streaks of white light.

Peng! Peng! Peng! Peng!

After a series of sparks, Shi Feng's body passed through the storm of bullets.

The moment his body was about to make contact with the ground, his free arm pressed downwards. Shi Feng quickly stood up with all his might, rushing past the finish line like a bolt of lightning.

Total time spent: 14 seconds. Estimated record time of 18 seconds for Copper Prize broken.

"Ng... I'm really not used to this soft and weak body," Shi Feng slightly lamented after passing through the finish line. If he was over Level 100, with his body's constitution, he could easily carry out the four simultaneous sword slashes with great ease.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, a round of applause! This Swordsman has passed the challenge!" The Gnome administrator announced loudly.

System: Player was the First to pass the Copper Challenge and break the record. Rewarding player with 1 Silver Coin and Swordsman Skill [Thundering Flash].

"It can't be. It actually gave out the super-rare skill, Thundering Flash. This is a skill that even a Swordsman over Level 100 can't get." Shi Feng thought he was hallucinating. However, he was shocked when he saw the Thundering Flash skill book inside his bag.

[Thundering Flash] (Action-type)

Requires: Sword

Rapidly send out three sword lights to 10- x 2-yards forward. Each hit will cause 130% damage and also give a Damage Amplification effect, amplifying the damage of your following attacks by 20% for 15 seconds.

Cooldown: 30 seconds

Without a second thought, Shi Feng clicked and learned the skill.

Swordsman was a Job that mainly focused on dealing damage to single targets; it didn't have many powerful AOE skills. Thundering Flash was one of the few powerful AOE skills a Swordsman possessed. If it were learned during the early periods, it would definitely create a huge gap from the other Swordsman.

After learning Thundering Flash, Shi Feng started to feel himself gaining the makings of a Swordsman.

"You guys continue playing; I'll be leaving first. Don't forget my 50 Coppers." Shi Feng looked towards the dumbfounded Stabbing Heart, leaving the Black Market after calling out to them.

Stabbing Heart indifferently nodded his head.

"Boss, he's gone. He took away the prize, as well. Should we chase after him?" the male Cleric asked.

Stabbing Heart's shock gradually faded after Shi Feng left. He stared at the male Cleric, scolding, "Are you an idiot? We'll be lucky if we have time to even curry up to such an expert Swordsman. Making enemies of him? Are you courting death?"

"Not good. I have to tell this to Guild Leader. Luckily, I added him as a friend. Is he called Ye Feng? I can't believe I've never heard of such an expert. Could he be some sword expert in disguise?" Stabbing Heart acknowledged that he could not pass the challenge in such a magnificent way. Especially the last bout after the 25-yard-mark; that was just cheating. It was impossible for players to block or dodge. Yet, Shi Feng had done it.

At the Trade Area, Shi Feng met with Potion Master Kevin. He spent 120 Coppers purchasing 20 [Exploding Berry], instantly shrinking his wealth down to 30 Coppers.

However, he still spent it, all to level at the speed of a rocket.

Shi Feng took the Exploding Berries and left Red Leaf Town, running westward.

At that moment, all players were at Level 0, and all of them were killing Level 0 monsters around Red Leaf Town. There were also a few with good techniques killing Level 1 Baby Wolves in a party. A Warrior tanking at the front and a damage dealer and healer behind, fighting together in an orderly manner. Although the EXP was shared between several people, the efficiency was a lot higher and there were fewer competitors.

However, Shi Feng did not plan to compete with these people. Passing through the Level 1 monster area, followed by the Level 3 monster area, Shi Feng headed straight towards Red Leaf Forest, a Level 5 monster area. There were no players who would go there.

There were still no players who dared to challenge Level 5 monsters at this stage of the game. Not only was there the suppression due to the difference in levels but there was also the significant disparity in HP and Attack Power. A Level 5 monster could easily steamroll over a Level 1 player. Even a 6-man-party was no match for a Level 5 monster.

There was a heavy penalty whenever a player died. Not only would they lose an entire Level's worth of EXP but their Skill Proficiency would also be decreased. There were simply no players who would take the risk. Otherwise, hours of their hard earned EXP and Proficiency would become pointless.

Chapter 7 - levelling with ease

Red Leaf Forest was made up of beautiful maple trees. Level 5 monsters roamed around the woods. To a player below Level 3, this was a restricted area. Shi Feng, as well, was no match for these Level 5 monsters, even though he had reached Level 1.

However, Shi Feng ran into the Red Leaf Forest without hesitation. Cautiously, he advanced towards the inner reaches of the forest.

Level 5 Forest Wolves could be seen patrolling around the woods from time to time. Shi Feng was currently just Level 1. If he did not stay a sufficient distance away from them, the Forest Wolf's sensitive nose would smell him out.

A Level 5 Forest Wolf had 400 HP. It also had high Attack Power. It would only take two bites from the wolf for Shi Feng's 120 HP to meet its end.

Shi Feng's only option was to stealthily avoid the Forest Wolves, taking a big detour around them.

Aside from the Forest Wolves, Shi Feng also met with adorable Bear Cubs. The little cubs fumbled and tumbled around on the grassy plains, giving an innocent and cute look. However, they were still Level 5 monsters, and they were hated by melee players. This was because of their high HP and Defense, making a fight with the Cubs very exhausting.

As Shi Feng used a tree to route past a Bear Cub, he heard a wolf's howl coming from behind him.

"Damn! A wolf den!" As calm as Shi Feng was, he still couldn't help but call out.

In his previous life, many players came in parties to the Red Leaf Forest. Most of them were Level 4 or 5. Aside from grinding a large number of monsters, the main reason players came here was because of the bountiful loot. Skill books, leatherworking materials, and equipment were such examples. There were also a large amount of herbs and ore that were attainable in the forest. However, a single mishap could still cause a party-wipe in the Red Leaf Forest. One of the dangers that caused such situations were wolf dens.

A wolf den was hidden and hard to notice. If players did not pay close attention, a pack of Forest Wolves would pounce forth once the players entered the wolf den's area of alertness. If less, there would be 3 to 5 wolves; if more, 6 to 8. It was a party-wipe trap.

Shi Feng's luck was bad. All at once, 7 Forest Wolves rushed out of the den; the meat on Shi Feng's body wasn't enough for them to share.

The speed of the Forest Wolves was fast, but Shi Feng wasn't slow either. With his attribute points all going into Agility, his Movement Speed was at 6 points. He was still a Level 1 Swordsman, in the end. Even if he was a pure Agility one, his speed was still a notch slower than the Forest Wolves.

Seeing the wolves catching up, Shi Feng stopped caring as he activated the lifesaving skill, 'Gravity Liberation'.

Shi Feng suddenly felt his body becoming as light as a feather. His speed increased by a massive leap, easily shaking off the Forest Wolves behind him.

In the end, a common monster was still a common one. They gave up after chasing past a set area, allowing Shi Feng to keep his life.

After running for over ten minutes, Shi Feng arrived at a range of mountains and hills. Several mountains stood over a hundred meters, located in the central region of Red Leaf Forest. The top of the mountains was surrounded by clouds and mist, creating a scene of immortal lands.

"Finally arrived."

Shi Feng looked towards the towering mountain and its surroundings. Discovering a waterfall, he walked towards it.

In his previous life, players were mostly over Level 20, so their attributes were naturally high. They could do much more than they could while they were low leveled. Many loved exploring the myriad of places in God's Domain. The central region of Red Leaf Forest was one of the famous places, so Shadow Workshop had sent a small party of Assassins to investigate.

Never would they have thought to find a treasure mountain there. On one of the mountains, they discovered many items: rare ore, herbs, and even Treasure Chests. At the peak of the mountain, there was a Secret-Silver Treasure Chest.

There were many secretive places in the wild of God's Domain. Most of these places housed Treasure Chests, awaiting to be discovered by players. The items within Treasure Chests varied considerably, ranging from Copper Coins to Dark-Gold Equipment.

The quality of Treasure Chests could be categorized into Common, Bronze, Mysterious-Iron, Secret-Silver, Fine-Gold, and Dark-Gold. However, even the loot from a Common Treasure Chest could rival the drops of Elite monsters. Not to even mention how good the loot from a Secret-Silver Treasure Chest could be.

This Secret-Silver Treasure Box quickly allowed Shadow to become a well-known Workshop in White River City. This allowed Shadow to amass quite a fortune during the initial periods of the game.

More than just equipment, the Secret-Silver Treasure Chest had a secret recipe for pharmaceutics and a Forging Design.

In God's Domain, the drop rate of pharmaceutical recipes was not even ten thousand to one; it was even lower for a Forging Design. You could create Bronze ranked equipment using Forging Designs, something sorely needed by players. With it, making money would become a simple task.

Shi Feng's plan to earn 16,000 Credits within ten days all depended on the design. So naturally, he wouldn't be leaving it for Shadow Workshop. However, low leveled players without 40 Agility were unable to activate the Hidden Basic Ability [Flying Steps]. Without it, they had no way of climbing the rocky mountain. There were also no paths that led up the mountain, leaving rock climbing as the only option.

Although Shi Feng did not have forty points in Agility, he had the Ring of Gravity. He could still climb the mountain after activating it.

Shi Feng easily scaled up the mountain after activating Gravity Liberation. He was already 5 meters up after a few moments.

When Gravity Liberation had 5 seconds remaining, Shi Feng found an empty spot of land to rest while waiting for Gravity Liberation's cooldown.

Not long after Shi Feng sat down, the rock wall suddenly shook. A [Rock Giant] appeared with bursts of roaring.

[Rock Giant] (Common Monster)

Level 5

HP 550

"That was quick."

Shi Feng had long since been ready when he saw the Rock Giant walking over. He took out an Explosive Berry from his bag and threw it towards the Rock Giant's feet; sticky orange colored juice erupted all over the ground.

As a Level 5 monster, the Rock Giant had extremely high Attack Power, HP, and Defense. However, it had low Attack Speed and reaction time. Its body's turn rate was even slower. A player only needed 20 points in Agility to easily toy with the Rock Giant. There were plenty of Assassins who loved dealing with such dumb monsters. They could easily be killed without wasting a single HP.

Although Shi Feng did not have 20 Agility, he had the Explosive Berries. Each had an effective area of 3- x 3-yards, reducing Movement Speed by 30%, and turn rate by 70% for one minute. It was a godly tool used to counter dumb monsters. Two months after God's Domain started, a lot of players would use such a method to kill high leveled monsters that were slow-moving. However, such slow-moving monsters existed in limited numbers in God's Domain, so grinding on them for quick levels was not possible.

The Rock Giant's speed sharply reduced after being hit by the Explosive Berry.

Shi Feng pulled out his Novice Sword and rushed towards the Rock Giant's back, chopping down at it.

Above the Rock Giant's head, three points of damage appeared. It was a hardly mentionable damage when compared to its 550 HP. The Rock Giant also regenerated 1% of its HP every 5 seconds; that was 5.5 HP every 5 seconds. It was very challenging to kill it within a minute.

The Rock Giant tried to turn around when Shi Feng attacked it. However, its body's turn rate was slow, to begin with. Now that there was an extra 70% speed reduction, it was just abominably slow. Shi Feng attacked it twice more, following up with another [Chop], causing a series of -3, -3, -6 to appear.

The effect of Chop was not that great due to the level suppression. However, because the Rock Giant was 4 Levels higher, there was an additional bonus towards Skill Proficiency. Coupled with one of the Swordsman's natural Talents, a single usage had increased Chop's SP by 3 points.

This was an absolute location for raising Skill Proficiency.

After much trouble, the Rock Giant turned around to face off against Shi Feng. However, Shi Feng did not give it any chance, quickly circling to its back where he continued attacking.

Thundering Flash!

Suddenly, a single sword light caused 4 damage, followed by another that dealt 5 damage, and the last one that dealt 7 damage.

After all three streaks of thunder hit its mark, Thundering Flash's SP increased by 3 points.

Another few slashes followed.

A series of -4, -4, -4 damage was dealt. Though each strike only had an increase of 1 damage, the totaled up damage would still be great. Although the effect of Thundering Flash lasted only for fifteen seconds, it had greatly increased the speed of killing the Rock Giant. The battle could be ended within a single minute now, saving up a precious Explosive Berry.

Even if the Rock Giant had high HP and Attack, it was no different than a practice dummy if it couldn't land a hit on Shi Feng. It was just giving Shi Feng EXP and SP.

Skill Proficiency could not be increased just by using the skill. When using it on a monster of the same level, there was a 20% chance to increase it by one point. For monsters of a higher level, there was a 40% chance if it was one level higher, 70% for two levels, 100% for three levels, 150% for four levels, and 200% for five levels. The maximum limit was 200%.

Now that Shi Feng was killing a Level 5 Rock Giant, his SP increased several times the rate of others.

Not even a full minute had gone by before the Rock Giant finally fell.

System: Level 5 Rock Giant killed. Level difference of 4. EXP obtained increased by 400%. Obtained 120 EXP.

Shi Feng's EXP bar increased by a chunk. He was now 880 EXP away from Level 2. That meant he needed to kill another 8 Rock Giants to reach Level 2.

These mountains in the central region were a great place for leveling up and looking for treasure. Unfortunately, two months had passed before people discovered them.

Shi Feng searched the Rock Giant's body after killing it, obtaining a [Bronze Ore]. It was a material used to make Bronze Equipment. He also acquired a piece of [Hard Stone]. Subsequently, Shi Feng searched around the empty land. A few moments later he found a rare herb called [Hundred Souls Flower]. It was one of the core materials used to make [Basic Regeneration Potion].

Just as he got close to it, another Rock Giant spawned. Shi Feng threw out another Explosive Berry.

Thundering Flash!

Chop!

In just a short moment, Shi Feng obtained another Hard Stone, 120 EXP and a large amount of SP.

Shi Feng continued climbing up when the cooldown finished on the Ring of Gravity.

On his way up, he searched for rare herbs while killing Rock Giants.

Following the fall of the 8th Rock Giant, Shi Feng became Level 2. He added all his points into Agility, letting it reach 16 points. He was just 4 points away from unlocking [Fast And Nimble]. The SP for Chop has also reached 300 points, raising the skill to Level 2; the next level required 600 SP. The skill now increased damage by 12 points, and its cooldown was reduced by 1 second.

The other players would go crazy if they found out about Shi Feng's leveling speed. Just going from Level 0 to Level 1 required more than a handful of hours. As for going from Level 1 to 2, at the very least, doing so would require seven or eight hours. Shi Feng spent less than twenty minutes to reach Level 2. His leveling speed was like a rocket launching.

Shi Feng walked towards a dead Rock Giant and searched it.

"Seems like my luck isn't bad at all. It even dropped equipment." Shi Feng discovered a piece of Cloth Armor, though he was somewhat disappointed.

[Gorgeous Cloth-Shirt] (Common Equipment)

Level 4

Defense +3

Mana +10

Durability 20/20

God's Domain had just started operating. The drop rate of equipment was extremely low. Common Equipment was extremely rare, especially a Level 4 Common Equipment. There was definitely someone who would buy it at a high price.

Shi Feng placed the equipment into his bag. Just as he was about to continue upwards, he suddenly noticed a cave not far ahead.

When he walked over to check, Shi Feng's heart rate quickened.

Shi Feng spotted a huge Rock Giant sleeping within the cave. Its entire body was made up of silvery rocks, different from the normal gray-colored ones.

[Shrews] (Special Elite)

Level 6

HP 900

Special Elites were a lot stronger than normal Elites. A regular Elite monster could decimate a 6-man-party of the same level. However, a Special Elite required twelve players of the same level to deal with, maybe even fifteen players. That meant Shrews required fifteen Level 6 players working together to kill.

However, Shi Feng rushed ahead without hesitation. He used Thundering Flash immediately, causing ray after ray of thunder to cut across Shrews' huge body.

Damages of -1, -2, -3 appeared above Shrews' head.

Chapters 8 - killing shrews

Even though the damage dealt by Shi Feng was negligible, Shrews still woke up from his deep slumber.

Anybody would be enraged when they were abruptly awoken.

"I'll flatten you, puny human!" Shrews bellowed. The entire cave shook as Shrews stood. With giant strides, Shrews walked towards Shi Feng.

Not giving Shrews any chance, Shi Feng took out an Explosive Berry and tossed it in front of Shrews' path.

Speed was always a Rock Giant's weakness. There was no exception even for a Special Elite. Shrews only had a larger size, a stronger Attack, and more attack methods. Though his Movement Speed and Attack Speed were slightly faster, under the slowing effects of the Explosive Berry, he was still as slow as a turtle.

On the other hand, Shi Feng's Movement Speed and Attack Speed were very fast due to his 16 Agility. Shi Feng immediately circled to Shrews' back and began his fierce assault.

A series of damages appeared above Shrews' head.

-2, -2, -2, -2......

They were followed by another Chop that dealt 6 damage.

It had to be said, Shrews had a frightening Defense. Even with the amplified damage from Thundering Flash, a Level 2 Chop had only dealt 6 damage. A Level 1 Chop would probably only deal 4 damage.

Shrews only turned around after receiving a series of attacks. It lifted its mountain-sized foot and stomped down, towards Shi Feng.

As a reincarnated person, Shi Feng had experienced countless battles in God's Domain. He did not have a thread of panic in him when facing against Shrews. With a step, Shi Feng nimbly evaded towards Shrews' back, avoiding Shrews' sluggish attack. Shi Feng then followed up with a series of mad cuts.

When five seconds passed, Shrews regenerated 18 HP, leaving him with a remainder of 886 HP. Half of Shi Feng's efforts had gone to waste within an instant.

Compared to Common ones, Elite monsters or above would regenerate 2% of their HP every 5 seconds during battle. Shrews had 900 HP, so it was 18 HP every 5 seconds. This regeneration had exceeded the damage Shi Feng could deal using normal attacks.

Even so, Shi Feng still calmly waved his sword, continuously reaping away Shrews' HP.

An average player would've already given up when seeing such high HP and regeneration. Shi Feng would not, though. Sixteen points of Agility allowed Shi Feng to avoid and attack with ease. His high Attack Speed also allowed the damage he dealt to mitigate Shrews' regeneration completely. However, killing Shrews required a lot of time.

It was very dull, just avoiding and madly attacking. Dealing out strong attacks was very tiring, both physically and mentally.

With each passing second Shrew's HP continually fell.

Fifteen seconds later...

Once Thundering Flash's amplifying effect disappeared, the damage Shi Feng caused sharply reduced. Each strike of his sword only dealt 1 damage, and Chop only took away 4 HP from Shrews. Shi Feng immediately fell into a bitter battle.

Another 5 seconds passed, and Shrews once more regenerated 18 HP.

However, Shi Feng only dealt 17 damage within that 5 seconds. It wasn't even enough to even make up for Shrews' regeneration.

Shi Feng wrinkled his brows. As expected, it was hard to kill off Shrews. It was just a pointless endeavor without sufficient damage.

Do I give up?

Just as Shi Feng was thinking so...

"I want to flatten you!" Shrews roared as he stomped his foot.

Suddenly, the entire cave shook. Sharp stalactites fell from the cave ceiling one after another, covering the entire cave.

"It even has a party-wipe skill?"

Seeing the bad situation, Shi Feng moved quickly away from Shrews' side, dodging the falling stalactites.

The stalactites continuously fell in great numbers. Their speed was quick as well. If a party came into this cramped space, there wouldn't be any place to dodge. They would definitely be party-wiped. If it weren't for his nimble body and the somewhat spacious area, Shi Feng would be hard pressed to avoid these falling rocks.

Shrews revealed an exhausted expression after finishing his skill. Shi Feng's eyes shone; he quickly rushed ahead.

Thundering Flash!

Chop!

-4, -5, -6, -10.

Suddenly, a series of terrifying damages were caused.

[Fatigue] state, it was a period of weakness that appeared after a Boss used a powerful skill. In this state, the Boss would have both its Attack and Defense greatly reduced.

With this Fatigue state, Shi Feng could see the hope of killing Shrews.

Shi Feng took the chance to attack even more fervently.

-4, -4, -4...

Each sword strike took away 4 HP while Shrews was under both states of Fatigue and Damage Amplification.

During this weakened period, Shrews' regeneration also fell to 1%.

By the time Shrews returned to his normal state, Shi Feng had already taken away 15% of Shrews' HP.

The subsequent battle was filled with persistence. Shi Feng would repeatedly attack to make up for Shrews' regeneration. Every 30 seconds, he would deal a burst of damage with Thundering Flash. Following which, he would await Shrews' use of his big move. This party-wipe skill was a nightmare to player parties. To Shi Feng however, it was a chance.

As expected, Shrews would again use his big move after a period of time. Shi Feng took this chance to take away 16% of Shrews' HP.

Time passed bit by bit.

After using 5 Explosive Berries, Shrews had 32% HP remaining.

When Shrews activated his big move once more, Shi Feng took away another 16% of his HP. Shrews was quickly left with 16% HP remaining.

Just as Shrews' HP fell to 15%, a sudden change occurred.

Shrews' body continuously shrunk, his Attack and defense reducing as well. However, his Movement Speed and Attack Speed kept increasing. This change was very disadvantageous to Shi Feng.

Although the Explosive Berry was still in effect, Shrews' attacks were becoming faster. He had nearly landed a hit on Shi Feng.

Shi Feng was just Level 2. Even if Shrews' Attack Power had reduced, a single hit was enough to end Shi Feng. If Shi Feng died, he would lose a level and a lot of Skill Proficiency; it was not something he wished to see happen.

"Fight!" A cold glint flashed through Shi Feng's eyes as he activated Gravity Liberation. Suddenly, dodging became relaxing.

It was impossible to easily give up on a Special Elite with only 15% HP remaining.

Shi Feng continued to circle and madly hack his sword at Shrews.

Every hit dealt 3 damage, slowly reducing Shrews' HP.

14%...10%...9%...8%...5%...

Gravity Liberation's duration became shorter and shorter. When there were only 7 seconds left, Shrews still had 5% of his HP. Shi Feng would definitely be one-shotted as soon as Gravity Liberation ended.

Quick! Quick! Quick!

Shi Feng's eyes turned blood red as his sword strikes became faster and faster.

Just as Shrews had only 10 HP remaining, Gravity Liberation ended......

Shi Feng's speed dropped sharply. A cold, human-like grin appeared on Shrews' face as he smashed his boulder-like fist down on Shi Feng.

"Die!" The cooldown of Thundering Flash finally finished.

Thundering Flash!

In an instant, three streaks of light passed through Shrews' body.

-4, -5, -6.

Shrews' final 10 HP was taken away.

Boom! Shrews turned into a pile of rubble.

System: [Special Elite] Shrews killed. Level difference of 4. EXP obtained increased by 400%. Obtained 940 EXP.

Shi Feng's experience bar abruptly rose by 27%, pushing him a big step closer towards Level 3.

After killing off Shrews, Shi Feng searched around in the pile of rubble.

The drops of a Special Elite were far better than a normal Elite. Shi Feng obtained an equipment, a skill book, and 16 Coppers.

"The rewards for challenging higher levels sure are good. Even a Bronze Shield dropped. I can definitely sell it for a high price. It would be great if I could grind it a few more times." Shi Feng looked at the blue cross-shaped shield in his hands. He could already imagine how the Guilds would be willing to pay a high price for the shield.

[Rock-Iron Shield] (Bronze Rank)

Equipment Requirement: Strength 8

Equipment Level: 5

Defense +21

Defense Rate 23%

Strength +2, Endurance +4

HP +30

The shield could be considered high-quality with such attributes. When equipped, the shield would greatly increase Defense. HP would also be increased by 110 points; this was equivalent to one-third of a Level 5 Warrior class' HP. Using it to dive into Level 5 Dungeons was more than enough. It could even be used to dive into Level 8 Dungeons.

The skill book was a good one as well. It was a skill that could be used by all melee Jobs, [Parry]. It required a melee weapon to be used. It could block a single attack that came from the front, and it had a cooldown of thirty seconds.

Parry was a popular skill among all melee Jobs. It was a must-learn skill for Warrior classes. The skill had a low drop rate, and it was almost never seen being sold on the market, as it was a lifesaving skill. You could activate it at a crucial moment, and it might even help you through a crisis. It was especially true when battling against a Boss. If the healers could not keep up, then you could use Parry to block an attack, giving the healers more time to heal you.

Taking a look at skill, Shi Feng decided to learn it. Although he could get a better price if he sold the skill book together with the shield, the action was no different than killing the chicken to get the egg. It was something Shi Feng wouldn't do.

Shi Feng continued climbing upwards after killing Shrews.

The Bronze Shield was worth only a meager amount of money. The real fortune was the Secret-Silver Treasure Chest.

Shi Feng only had 4 Explosive Berries remaining. However, he was not even a third of the distance to the peak. It was also very easy to meet up with a monster at the resting points. This caused Shi Feng to choose his path more carefully.

Half an hour later...

After cautiously advancing the entire way up, Shi Feng was finally at the peak of the mountain. The visibility at the top was very poor with all the white clouds and mist. Shi Feng could only see twenty yards in front of him.

On his way up, Shi Feng had used all 4 of the remaining Explosive Berries on Rock Giants. If another monster appeared, Shi Feng could only give up and start all over again.

Just as Shi Feng walked ahead a few steps...

A few blurry shadows could be seen up ahead.

At this moment, an emergency notification came from the system.

System: Player has discovered The Lost Lands. Activated Hidden Quest "Past Glory". Temporarily disabled player's communications to the outside world. Unable to leave the map until Quest is completed.

"Crap, those Assassins lied." Shi Feng silently cursed. Those Assassins had undoubtedly kept hidden some information.

The situation at the mountain peak was entirely different from what the Assassins reported.

Chapter 9 - Might of a Thousand

City In The Sky?

Shi Feng became shocked when he thought of this well-known city of God's Domain.

City In The Sky, the name of this city had once shaken the entire continent of God's Domain. There were countless legendary Jobs in this city. There was even the famous Demigod ranked Sword Saint, Ultear. It was a city which was even feared by Gods themselves. Unfortunately, the city had fallen during the Third God's War, becoming a regret of God's Domain.

"Respectful Elder, is there anything I can help you with?" Shi Feng smiled and asked in a formal tone.

"Help?" The white-bearded elder shook his head, smiling as he said: "No, I don't need any help. I imagine you wish to become stronger. I can help you with that, but are you willing to accept a test of mine?"

"Of course, I'm willing to receive your test." Shi Feng felt relieved. The trail to the Quest, Past Glory was here. He didn't have to die back to town, losing both levels and SP.The elder nodded his head in satisfaction, gravely saying, "I'll give you three choices. The first one is the Normal difficulty. After you pass it you'll get a Mysterious-Iron Treasure Chest. The second one is the Hard difficulty, where you'll get a Secret-Silver Treasure Chest. In addition, you can get additional rewards depending on your rate of completion. The third option is the Hell difficulty, where you'll be rewarded a Fine-Gold Treasure Chest. You'll also receive additional rewards depending on your rate of completion."

"Young adventurer, which do you choose?"

Three choices. Each harder than the other, and each more attractive than the other. The 6 Assassins who were over Level 20 had chosen the Hard difficulty. They returned with the Secret-Silver Treasure Chest but chose to hide the additional reward. This meant that the additional reward was even better than the Secret-Silver Treasure Chest.After some thought about it, Shi Feng decided to bravely challenge it. A person who had been reincarnated should have courage.

"Respected Elder, I choose the Hell difficulty." Shi Feng was confident he could manage this difficulty. If he could complete it, then it would have a great effect on his future developments."Hahaha! Young people sure are full of energy! I truly admire you, but be sure not to regret your choice." The elder disappeared after his hearty laughter.System: Quest "Past Glory" accepted. Face off against 1000 monsters of the same level. Considered Passed after killing 500 monsters. Time limit of 4 hours. Quest failure penalty - all Attributes permanently reduced by 10 points.

Attributes are the essence of a Job. If Shi Feng's Attributes were all reduced by 10 points, then he was as good as crippled.

"This penalty sure is ruthless." Shi Feng's scalp started itching as he looked at the countless Specter Warriors appearing below the tower.

The countdown started. There were five seconds remaining before the monsters attacked.

[Specter Warrior] (Common Monster)

Level 2

HP 230

Fighting against one of them would be easy. Against an ocean of them, however, even Shi Feng would start to panic.Rushing in was just plain suicide; Shi Feng would quickly become surrounded and killed. The only choice was to fight the monsters one by one.Shi Feng had a wealth of experience in battling. He quickly ran down the tower and stood at the staircase.

The stairs only allowed two monsters to pass through at a time, so it was the best place to attack from. Shi Feng would be able to clear this Quest so long as he guarded the staircase.

Once the five seconds were up, every single Specter Warrior rushed the tower with wild abandon. However, the staircase was too narrow. As a result, they were blocking each other; Shi Feng only had to face 2 Specter Warriors at a time. With regards to the warriors' attacks, Shi Feng could dodge them with relative ease.

Thundering Flash!Chop!

Three streaks of light flashed across, instantly causing a high damage of 60 to all Specter Warriors within a two- by ten-yard area. The Chop that followed dealt 33 damage.

Within an instant, the first Specter Warrior had only half of its HP remaining, whereas the tens of others behind had lost a quarter of their HP.

Previously, Shi Feng faced off against high-leveled monsters with very high defense; the effects of Thundering Flash and Chop were both greatly reduced.

Now that Shi Feng was facing monsters of the same level, Thundering Flash could vividly display its prowess as a powerful AOE damaging skill.

With Thundering Flash's damage amplification effect, Shi Feng only needed 5 strikes from his sword to finish off the first Specter Warrior.

In order to increase his killing speed, Shi Feng activated Gravity Liberation to increase his Attack Speed.

Coupled with the damage amplification, each warrior only needed three seconds to be dealt with.

Unfortunately, the Specter Warriors did not give any experience. Instead, Skill Proficiency had a 100% chance to increase by 1 point.

With every death of a Specter Warrior, Shi Feng's SP continuously increased. Shi Feng became very happy after seeing such a sight.

The elderly NPC probably had not imagined that a Level 2 Swordsman would possess such a powerful AOE skill. With such a skill, Shi Feng feared crowd-tactics the least. Shi Feng could also easily dodge attacks in a one versus two scenario.

Other players would have most likely failed the Quest, yet Shi Feng was able to complete it with perfection.

After two hours had gone by, Thundering Flash had reached Level 2 after its SP increased to 300 points. The skill's damage increased from 130% to 135%, and its cooldown reduced from 30 seconds to 28 seconds.

Chop's SP had also increased to 426/600. It would reach Level 3 with just a little more.Shi Feng's monster grinding speed increased once more after Thundering Flash reached Level 2. The Specter Warriors fell in batches. When there were only 20 over warriors remaining, there was still an hour and a half remaining for the Quest.With another use of Thundering Flash, the last remaining 20 Specter Warriors fell as well.

"Not bad. Here's your reward, youngster." The elder appeared once more with a chuckle. Looking at Shi Feng, the elder took out a Fine-Gold Treasure Chest and a pitch black longsword.

System: Quest "Past Glory" completed. Rewarding 1 Fine-Gold Treasure Chest, 1 Magic Weapon (Job-related). Obtained title "Might Of A Thousand".

[Might Of A Thousand] (Title)

When this title is in use, allies in a 30-yard radius will receive an attribute increase of 10%. Simultaneously, title user will obtain an additional effect of Strength +5 and Endurance +5.

"I've given you your reward. You can go now." The old man waved his hand after finishing his piece.

Shi Feng's vision blurred. When he opened his eyes once more, he was back in the plaza of Red Leaf Town.

Di! Di! Di!

Shi Feng's system communication continuously rang. Blackie was contacting him.

"Brother Feng, you've finally picked up. How come I couldn't contact you before? What should I do now? I'm already behind others by a level." Blackie was extremely panicked. However, he still patiently asked because he believed in Shi Feng.

He had wasted seven hours just to run to Red Leaf Town. While he was still at Level 0, the players that filled the streets were already Level 1.

How was he to make up for this gap? Nobody would want him in a party now; their minimum requirement was Level 1. A Level 0 noob like him would just be pushed aside.

"My bad, I was doing a Quest. Come to the central plaza, I'll take you with me to level." Shi Feng apologized.

It had already been over 8 hours since God's Domain started, and Shi Feng had spent over 5 hours doing his Quest.

At this stage of the game, most players had already risen to Level 1, while some professional players were already close to Level 2.

As a person who had been reincarnated, helping Blackie level up was an easy task. It wouldn't take long before Blackie would catch up to the professional players.

Chapter 10 - Abyssal Blade 

Shi Feng observed his surroundings after hanging up on Blackie. Seeing that nobody paid attention to his sudden arrival, he quickly entered an empty alley.

Opening a Fine-Gold Treasure Chest would definitely cause a commotion.

Opening and showing off a Fine-Gold Treasure Chest at the crowded plaza was a bold action. It was something only noobs would do.Compared to the real world, there were no constraints within the game world. It went without saying, the great powers in the game hungered for great treasures. If a player did not have the capability, one of the best case scenarios was one being killed back to Level 0 for the treasure. However, if the treasure did not drop out...... Then congratulations, you can only live in the city for the rest of your life. While other players were out in the wild leveling up, the only thing you could do was to hang around in the city. After a few months, you could proudly be promoted to 'City Guide'.Shi Feng was not an Assassin who was capable of stealth, hiding, and assassination. Currently, he did not have the sufficient strength to protect himself, so keeping a low profile was necessary.

Shi Feng quietly observed the empty alley for some time. After he made sure nobody followed him, he took out the black longsword.

Shi Feng's brows wrinkled when he looked at the black longsword.

[Abyssal Blade] (Magic Weapon)

Job Requirement: Swordsman

Do you wish to bind the equipment?

"Should I equip it or not?" Shi Feng became frustrated when he looked at the Abyssal Blade.

Shi Feng was very familiar with Magic Weapons. Magic Weapons were different from normal equipment. They did not have any rankings to differentiate them, and they were even rarer than Legendary Equipment. Its power was without question. However, a Magic Weapon was a double-edged sword. This was because the weapon had a side effect called Backlash. If the player using the Magic Weapon was not cautious, a single mistake could cripple their account.

In his previous life, there were a few experts in Star-Moon Kingdom that became top-tier experts because of Magic Weapons. Even during his peak, Shi Feng could only look up to them. However, after a period of time, two of those experts crippled their accounts because they did not deal with the Backlash properly; their only choice was to start a new account."Forget it, let's just set it aside for now. I can't take the risk right now." Shi Feng shook his head as he kept the Abyssal Blade. He had to earn 16,000 Credits in ten days. The pressure on him was huge. If any mistakes were to happen, then all his efforts before would become wasted.Shi Feng took out the Fine-Gold Treasure Chest.

Shi Feng looked at the gold-plated treasure chest, unable to suppress the excitement in his heart, "The Secret-Silver Treasure Chest they brought out the last time already contained a pharmaceutical recipe and blacksmithing design. I wonder what a Fine-Gold Treasure Chest would give?"

Shi Feng had been playing God's Domain for ten years now, and the number of Fine-Gold Treasure Chests he had seen did not exceed twenty.

Wars were fought over for every Fine-Gold Treasure Chest. Shi Feng would not even dare to dream that he could be in possession of one.Shi Feng slowly opened the treasure chest. Suddenly, golden rays of light leaked out from the chest, illuminating the small alley. It would definitely be a dazzling beacon of light if it was night time; it would attract everyone's attention.

Not daring to take any risks, Shi Feng quickly retrieved all the items from the chest. The dazzling lights slowly faded away after the chest was emptied.

Fortunately, it was an empty alley, so nobody would notice the short period of radiance.

"The settings for treasure chests in God's Domain really are damned. Luckily it's daytime here." Shi Feng glanced at the treasure chest by his side, then shifted his gaze towards the three treasures in his hands.

There were two ancient books and a battle armor.The battle armor was a Secret-Silver Equipment. It was much worse than Shi Feng had imagined it to be.

[Sky Armor] (Secret-Silver Rank)

Plate Armor

Equipment Requirement: Strength 20

Equipment Level: 5

Defense +25, Strength +6, Endurance +3, Agility +3

Durability 30/30

Additional Attribute: Power Weakening. Reduce physical damage received by 15% after equipping.Shi Feng became shocked after looking at the battle armor's attributes. Although the level of the equipment was a lot lower than the one in his previous life, its attributes were top-tier. If it was worn by a Warrior-class, the high Defense coupled with Power Weakening would make tanking physical Bosses no longer a problem. If this armor was sold now, its price would definitely be astronomical."This is too great. Now I have armor for Level 5." Shi Feng happily stored the Sky Armor. Swordsman wore plate armor as well. When Shi Feng wore it at Level 5, he could definitely become a Shield Warrior.

Shi Feng shifted his gaze to the two ancient books, becoming shocked once more when he saw their names.

[Book Of Forging] and [Records Of Potions]. These two were both extremely rare treasured books.

Everyone knew that Forging and Potion-making were extremely hard to learn. Every Forging Master and Potion Master were the symbols of strength of a Guild. Even Shadow, a Guild that possessed ten City States, only had two Forging Masters and five Potion Masters. Every one of them was treated like princes.

With these two books, Shi Feng could create a Forging Master and a Potion Master.

"I remember there being a Hidden Quest in Dark Moon Valley. Not only would it teach Forging for free, it would also reward a Forging Talent. If I have both the Forging Talent and Book Of Forging, I could quickly become an Advanced Forging Apprentice. Then I could make Bronze Equipment and earn a lot of money." Shi Feng recalled a member of Shadow called Hammer Trading. The person had become a Forging Master because he completed that Hidden Quest. Dark Moon Valley was a Level 4 monster area. The Quest as well was a difficult one and would take up a lot of time.

"It seems I have to buy some items and make proper preparations." Shi Feng stored the two books and sent a mail to Blackie, telling him to meet up at the Trade Area. Shi Feng then headed to the Trade Area, himself.

At this time, there were quite a lot of players at the Trade Area. Players who were tired of killing monsters would come to the Trade Area to rest, having a drink and chatting. There were also players selling their loot from grinding.

Shi Feng searched for an empty spot, covering the ground with a piece of white cloth. He placed down the equipment and herbs he picked, starting his stall.The Level 4 Common Cloth Armor was priced at 1 Silver 20 Coppers, while the Bronze Shield was priced at 21 Silvers. It was a fair and cheap price at this stage of the game.

"Rare herbs, high-level equipment, those interested come and take a look." Shi Feng shouted.

There were quite a number of players in the Trade Area. However, most of them were selling materials such as herbs, ore, etc. Until now, there had not been a single player selling equipment. Shi Feng's shout immediately became everyone's focus.

"It can't be. There really is equipment! A Bronze Shield even!"

"What unbelievable luck. I don't even have Common Equipment yet he's already got a piece of Bronze Equipment?"

"This is Level 5 Equipment. Is this a joke? I'm not seeing things, right?"

"What's so great about it? Don't forget, there was an expert that killed the Town Mayor. That was a Level 15 Elite. Now nobody can receive a Quest from the Town Mayor. Some players that received the Town Mayor's Quest are also fuming with rage; all of them want to eat that expert alive." "Twenty-one Silvers, this price is too high. I don't even have 1% of that money."The surrounding players were all in shock. God's Domain hadn't been open for ten hours till now, yet someone could obtain such top-tier equipment. The most unbelievable part was that it was even being sold.It should be known that most Guilds and Workshops would wear the equipment they obtained, increasing their advantage as much as possible. They would definitely not sell them. Right now, players were, on average, Level 1. Level 5 equipment was something impossible to imagine, not to mention a Level 5 Bronze Shield. However, 21 Silvers was too high of a price. The income of the average player did not exceed 20 Coppers, and 21 Silvers equaled 2100 Coppers. It was an impossible price for them to shoulder.Shi Feng silently smiled as he looked at the increasing number of spectating players.

He never hoped for these average players to buy it. What he wanted was the advertising effect.

It was only a moment before a party of players rushed over. Leading them was a Shield Warrior.

"Give way, give way. Now that we, Shadow, are here, we are buying everything on the stall. Everybody else can just leave."The party members of Shadow created a path for the Shield Warrior to walk through.Shi Feng sent them a glance, discovering that the Shield Warrior was someone he knew. The man was called Flaming Tiger; he was the Team Leader for Shadow in Red Leaf Town. In his previous life, Shi Feng was constantly used as cannon fodder, preventing him from rapidly rising. Flaming Tiger was responsible for three-tenths of that 'effort'. Shi Feng never thought he would meet up with this man so quickly.

"You the stall owner?" Flaming Tiger became excited as he looked at the blue cross-shaped shield. He then looked at Shi Feng. He did not have the [Observing Eyes] skill, so he could not tell Shi Feng's level. However, Shi Feng was only clad in novice equipment, and he did not have any Guild's insignia on him. He was definitely just an average player. Obtaining such equipment should be due to good luck.

Shi Feng nodded his head saying, "That's right."

"Good, I want everything here for 1 Silver." Flaming Tiger proudly stated.

He said it as if everything on the stall was just unworthy garbage, and that giving 1 Silver for them was looking up to one.

"I don't negotiate prices. Please don't hinder my business by acting like a lord." Shi Feng did not get angry, choosing to ignore Flaming Tiger. At this moment, Flaming Tiger's face became livid. He glared at Shi Feng, coldly saying, "Are you sure you want to oppose us, Shadow? I'll give you one more chance, think carefully before you speak."

Suddenly, all five other members of Shadow surrounded Shi Feng.Shi Feng rolled his eyes at Flaming Tiger, saying in a straightforward manner, "Fools."

He actually dared to threaten Shi Feng inside Red Leaf Town. Did he not know it was prohibited to take action inside a town?

"You're courting death!" Flaming Tiger raged, both his eyes turning blood red. He couldn't help but want to kill Shi Feng right this instant.

"Hahaha, truly interesting. A Level 5 Bronze Shield. How could us Assassin's Alliance be left out."

Another group of over ten players came at this moment. Every player wore the Assassin's Alliance's insignia. The person who spoke up was Stabbing Heart. He became shocked when he saw the stall owner.He did not expect to see Shi Feng, the expert who had cleared the Bronze Prize Challenge in a single try. Shi Feng had even obtained a Level 5 Bronze Shield now, so he had definitely killed a high leveled Elite monster. Stabbing Heart became even more respectful of Shi Feng.

"Here's 24 Silver, I want everything here. Let's become friends. The next time you have any good equipment, you must consider us, Assassin's Alliance." Stabbing Heart handed over the 24 Silvers without hesitation. Although it was not easy for the Guild to collect these 24 Silvers, it was definitely worth it if he could become friends with an expert like Shi Feng."Alright. Since you're so straightforward, I won't ask for the 50 Coppers anymore. I'll contact you in the future." Shi Feng understood Stabbing Heart's intention. It wasn't a bad deal if he could cooperate with such a large Guild.

Meanwhile, the surrounding players were shocked by Assassin Alliance's overwhelming aire, handing over 24 Silvers without batting an eye. Now, this was a large Guild. Such an action had made a lot of players wanting to sign up for the Guild. Compared to the Assassin's Alliance, there was no future in joining a Guild like Shadow. Everybody sent looks of contempt over to them.

After being looked down upon by Shi Feng, then being given a slap by the Assassin's Alliance, Flaming Tiger's face became beet red. His eyes nearly crackled from anger. He called over an Assassin, coldly saying, "Quiet Wolf, you keep an eye on that kid. I'll let him know what happens when he opposes Shadow."On the other side, Shi Feng had long since left the scene. He was currently purchasing items around the Trade Area.

He now held 24 Silvers on his person. It was an amount even greater than the total wealth of an average guild. Now that Shi Feng was an absolute tycoon, he started buying things without a single care.He bought 20 bottles of Black Steel Beer, each costing 25 Coppers.

He bought 30 Smoke Bombs, each costing 20 Coppers.He bought 100 Apple Pies, each costing 5 Coppers. Eating it recovered 30 HP every second, lasting 10 seconds.

He bought 100 Magic Water, each costing 5 Coppers. Drinking it recovered 30 MP every second, lasting 10 seconds.

Shi Feng spent a lot of his wealth within an instant, leaving him with only 3 Silvers.

"Brother Feng, you've finally decided to show up. What are we going to do now?" Blackie had been waiting in the Trade Area for some time now. He wore a dark expression on his face, and his eyes were filled with resentment. God's Domain had already been open for over 9 hours now. Aside from obtaining an [Explorer] title, Blackie did not obtain anything else. He was nearing the point of dying from depression.

"Let's go grind some monsters then." Shi Feng smiled, sending Blackie a party request.

Chapter 11 - Black steel beer

After leaving Red Leaf Town...

Shi Feng brought Blackie along as they headed straight towards Dark Moon Valley.

"Brother Feng, we're on the path towards Dark Moon Valley. That's a Level 4 monster area. Can't we choose a safer place?" Seeing that Shi Feng's target was Level 4 monsters, Blackie couldn't help but ask nervously.

Challenging higher levels in God's Domain was extremely difficult. Usually, players would just challenge monsters that are one level higher than themselves. Challenging monsters two levels higher required at least a 6-man party for it to be possible. However, even 6-man parties wouldn't carry out such an action. Compared to exhausting themselves just to kill a single Level 3 monster, it was much more efficient to just kill a Level 2 monster.

Shi Feng and Blackie were only two people. Ignoring Shi Feng, who was a Level 2 Swordsman, Blackie himself was still a Level 0 Cursemancer. He was just free food to a Level 4 monster. Going against Level 4 monsters just with the two of them was utterly suicide......

Shi Feng only smiled regarding Blackie's worries. He securely said, "Relax, can't you see that I'm already Level 2? That friend of mine is an expert Beta Tester. If it weren't for our good relation, he wouldn't even tell me such a secret. You can just wait to get on the leveling rocket."

Shi Feng pushed all the problems that came with him being a reincarnated person onto his 'good friend'. Now all his actions in God's Domain could be easily answered, too. He also didn't have to explain much since Blackie would easily believe him.

This was because a Beta Tester was the best explanation.

"As expected of Brother Feng, you're still the greatest. No wonder you didn't join Shadow Workshop to earn money. With an expert Beta Tester giving you pointers, you could definitely earn a lot of money in God's Domain. The happiness of my body's lower half will depend on you now." Blackie laughingly said as he became relieved.

When joined the party before, he was very surprised to see Shi Feng already at Level 2.

Currently, there had yet to be any news of a Level 2 player in Red Leaf Town. Even elites of a Workshop were no exception. However, Shi Feng had reached it. His leveling speed was absolutely terrifying.

Blackie knew about Shi Feng's standards. Although his skills weren't bad, he definitely wasn't that good. Before, Blackie still had some suspicions about the news of the Beta Tester. However, all his worries disappeared after seeing Shi Feng's level, because only a Beta Tester could make something like this happen. Blackie had also started believing the possibility of Shi Feng earning 16,000 Credits in ten days.

"Scram! This brother's straight!" Shi Feng rolled his eyes at Blackie, slightly widening the distance between them. However, Blackie's gaze still carried some impurities, causing Shi Feng to panic slightly.

"What are you thinking, Brother Feng? My dream lover is the Snow Goddess, Gentle Snow." Blackie hurriedly explained.

The Snow Goddess?

Shi Feng had a very deep impression of this woman. She had performed extremely outstanding in other virtual games. Not only did she possess an absolutely beautiful face and devilish body, but she also had a proud attitude which was backed up by her excellent battle techniques. Because of these traits, she became even better received by the public.

After three years since God's Domain's opening, she had become a top-tier expert within the whole country. She was also the top ten Berserker within the country. She was dubbed as the Battle Goddess. She had starred in plenty of commercials. Her personal net worth at that time had exceeded tens of billions of Credits. Not only that, but she was also the Vice Guild Leader of 'Ouroboros'; millions of players would move with her single command. During those times, Shi Feng was only a minor character within God's Domain. He could only look up to Gentle Snow's shadow. Unfortunately, sometime later, Gentle Snow suddenly vanished from God's Domain. Her disappearance became a hot topic within God's Domain for some time.

"Brother Feng, look. That's an Elite monster." Blackie pointed towards a snow-white fox in the distant paddy field as he shouted.

Shi Feng looked over to the golden fields, discovering a white colored fox. There was even a little rabbit in the fox's mouth right now.

[Cunning Snow Fox] (Rare Elite)

Level 2

HP 450

"Blackie, your eyesight and luck are seriously too good. You even spotted a Rare Elite. We're going to earn a fortune this time." Shi Feng stealthily walked closer to the fox as he directed Blackie, "You just attack from a distance and leave the rest to me."

Rare Elites were a special type of Elite. They had the same capabilities as a normal Elite monster, but the rewards they give out were a lot greater. It would take a long time for it to respawn after being killed. Whether you could meet one depended on your luck.

"Brother Feng, you must be crazy. That's a Level 2 Elite. We can't go against it."

Blackie wanted to stop Shi Feng. Only a small party of the same level could deal with an Elite. Fighting one alone, without any healing, would definitely lead to death.

However, Blackie was too late. Shi Feng had quickly circled to the Snow Fox's back, launching a sudden attack.

Chop!

A sword strike flew.

The Snow Fox's actions were very nimble. It immediately avoided a vital hit to its abdomen, taking only 32 damage.

"Such nimble actions. Its Defense isn't low either." Shi Feng made a quick judgment after observing how the Snow Fox dodged and took damage.

He had the Might Of A Thousand title, so all his attributes were increased by 10%. There was also an additional 5 points to both Strength and Endurance, increasing his Strength to 13 and Endurance to 10. His Agility was also increased to 17 points. Now his Attack Power was 29, and he had 260 HP.

With great speeds, the enraged Snow Fox bit towards Shi Feng's neck. It activated the skill [Fatal Blow].

However, with 17 Agility, Shi Feng's speed was not any slower than the Snow Fox. By the time the Snow Fox had rushed over, Shi Feng's Novice Sword had already struck down towards the fox's head.

Peng!

Shi Feng only had 13 points of Strength; it was still not enough to block the Snow Fox's attack. Forty-nine damage appeared above Shi Feng's head, and his Novice Sword's durability decreased by 1 point, as well.

On the other hand, the Snow Fox only received 5 damage. The gap between the two of them was as clear as day.

"We're dead! We're dead! We're so dead this time." Sweat started appearing on Blackie's forehead. He had seen damage from Common monsters, but he never imagined that there was such a great difference from an Elite monster. Shi Feng was lucky he had blocked the attack with his sword, only taking close to 50 damage. If the attack landed on his body, wouldn't it be over a hundred? Shi Feng had reached Level 2 with great difficulty. If he died this time, he would return to Level 1; his great advantage over others would be gone.

"Move, Blackie!" Shi Feng shouted.

"He really must've gone mad. Fine! Fine, at worst I'll just die once. I'm still Level 0, anyway. Blackie clenched his teeth and started chanting a curse, his hands making gestures.

A [Dark Arrow] shot out, dealing 5 damage to the Snow Fox.

Blackie sucked in a deep breath when he saw the damage. He had added all his points into Intelligence, yet 5 damage was all he could do. An Elite monster's Defense was just terrifying.

Shi Feng who was facing the Snow Fox was under even more pressure. The Snow Fox had very high Agility. It was able to dodge whenever Shi Feng wanted to use Chop. In the end, Shi Feng could only use normal slashes, dealing 18 damage each time. However, each successful bite from the Snow Fox would deal over a hundred damage; it was greatly disproportionate.

Tens seconds later, Shi Feng's HP fell to 31, while the Snow Fox still had 244.

"I guess there's still no way to directly face off against an Agility-type Elite with such a small amount of Skills." Shi Feng looked at the Snow Fox's half-remaining HP. If he continued to drag on this fight, he would be the one to die. He had to start bursting.

Shi Feng took out a bottle of Black Steel Beer from his bag. After taking two mouthfuls, he became slightly drunk, and his vision started becoming blurry. He then activated Gravity Liberation, his speed increasing by a huge leap. He arrived at the Snow Fox's side with lightning speed.

When Shi Feng looked at the Snow Fox's level again, it displayed Level 0, whereas he was Level 2. Suddenly, the suppression due to level difference was removed, letting Shi Feng's damage rise. Similarly, however, his body became difficult to control.

"Die!" Shi Feng's eyes were icy cold, his grip around the Novice Sword tightened.

Thundering Flash!

Hua! Hua! Hua!

Three lightning quick slashes struck past the Snow Fox's waist, causing it to let out a tragic cry. Damages of -30, -36, -42 appeared on top of its head, instantly taking away a quarter of its HP.

Afterward, another Chop dealt 43 damage to it.

The Snow Fox desperately resisted, but Shi Feng's speed after activating Gravity Liberation was very fast. Even if he was in a drunken state, with his many years of battle experiences, Shi Feng could still easily maneuver his body. This had placed the Snow Fox at an absolute disadvantage.

"Damn, what did you drink, Brother Feng? You're suddenly so fierce!" Blackie's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he saw Shi Feng's cheat-like performance. At this moment, the fierce Snow Fox had become Shi Feng's plaything. It had zero chance at resisting.

When the Snow Fox had 42 HP remaining, Shi Feng was about to give the last strike.

Suddenly, Shi Feng felt a shiver going down the back of his neck. It was as if he had a dagger pointed at his neck; it was a terrible feeling. Shi Feng instinctively leaped forward. In the next moment, a bright snowy dagger had slashed across his original position. Shi Feng had surprisingly avoided that strike.

Behind Shi Feng, a figure with an extremely surprised expression revealed himself. He had already kept his presence hidden incredibly well; he did not even let out a single sound. Not only that, after he had raised to Level 1, his Agility had reached 10 points. However, his sneak attack had actually been dodged. What sort of intuition did Shi Feng have?

"Friend, we have no hatred or enmity between us. It isn't good doing something like this." Shi Feng focused his gaze on the newly appeared Assassin as he coldly said so.

"If you wish to place blame, then blame yourself for angering us Shadow. It is too late even if you regret it now." Quiet Wolf said excitedly. He held his dagger in reverse grip, paying attention to Shi Feng's every movement.

Quiet Wolf had been following Shi Feng while also reporting his location. He never imagined that they would meet an Elite monster. The Snow Fox's current target was Shi Feng. Although Shi Feng had good skills, with the Snow Fox holding him back Quiet Wolf could definitely find a chance to kill of Shi Feng's remaining strand of life, then he could kill the Snow Fox. There were only benefits for him. As for the Cursemancer on the side, he was just garbage that was not even worth mentioning.

Naturally, the Snow Fox wouldn't care about any of this. It just knew that it had to kill Shi Feng.

The Snow Fox suddenly bellowed, its snow-white skin turning into a flaming red. Its body also increased in size and its HP rose by 20%. Then, the Snow Fox activated its final skill [Tearing Bite]. The skill amplified its damage by 50%, also causing a bleeding damage of 30, lasting for 5 seconds.

"You can go and regret, now! I'll take care of this Snow Fox in your stead." Quiet Wolf rushed at Shi Feng. He was prepared to kill off Shi Feng the moment he dodged the Snow Fox.

Chapter 12 - A timely Parry

System: Player Quiet Wolf has attacked you and entered a Yellow Name state. Duration of one hour. Any players who attack Yellow Name players will not receive any penalty.

Shi Feng only had 31 HP remaining. Being attacked from both sides by the Snow Fox and Quiet Wolf, put Shi Feng in a very dangerous position.

"Despicable!"Standing at a distance, Blackie scolded Quiet Wolf for sneaking an attack at such a moment. However, he couldn't change a thing about it. The two of them were too far apart. It was too hard for him to land a hit on Quiet Wolf. He could only aim his attack on the Snow Fox, hoping to kill it off a second earlier and not letting Quiet Wolf profit off of them.

Although mages had high output, compared to hitting monsters, it was far harder to land a hit on players unless they stood still without moving.This was because the moment the Dark Arrow shot out, there would be a prediction line appearing. In a situation where the distance was great, players with good standards could usually dodge it. If it was an expert, then dodging it would be a piece of cake.

Just as the Snow Fox and Quiet Wolf were about to rush up...The corners of Shi Feng's mouth revealed a cold smile. He had been interacting with Quiet Wolf in Shadow for years now, so he was extremely familiar with Quiet Wolf's strengths and habits. Shi Feng took two steps back, forming a perfect triangle between the Snow Fox and Quiet Wolf. Shi Feng gripped the Novice Sword tightly in front of his chest. He stood there without moving as he awaited the arrival of their attacks.

"Did he give up?"Quiet Wolf started looking down on Shi Feng when he saw Shi Feng preparing to block with his sword. Although players could reduce the damage received by defending the attack, the Snow Fox was an Elite. Even if Shi Feng could defend it, the attack would still cause around 50 damage. With just 31 HP remaining, Shi Feng couldn't even take a hit.

The Snow Fox was a step ahead, biting towards Shi Feng.

Tearing Bite!"Just in time." Instead of retreating, Shi Feng advanced. He rushed towards the Snow Fox.

The Novice Sword blocked the Snow Fox in its mouth. Using the lifesaving skill Parry, Shi Feng could block a frontal attack once. Shi Feng then continued by lifting the Snow Fox. The Snow Fox had low power, so Shi Feng had easily tossed it towards Quiet Wolf.Everything happened too quickly.Quiet Wolf who was rushing towards Shi Feng could not react in time. In an instant, his shoulder was bitten by the Snow Fox.

A damage of -164 appeared on Quiet Wolf's head. His HP was instantly cleared down to zero.

"How?" Quiet Wolf was unbelievably shocked. His heart was filled with unwillingness as he stared at Shi Feng's ridiculing smile. He never imagined that players could do such a thing. If he had known about it, he definitely wouldn't rush forward, just to get himself killed.

At this point, regardless of how unwilling Quiet Wolf was, his HP had turned to 0. His body could only fall and turn into starlight. He had even dropped a piece of equipment.In the distance, Blackie became dumbfounded. He had even forgotten to attack the Snow Fox."Blackie, stop daydreaming! Hurry up and attack the Snow Fox!" Shi Feng yelled and rushed at the Snow Fox again.

After Blackie started reacting again, he chanted a curse, madly attacking the Snow Fox.

Without Quiet Wolf's disturbance, the near-death Snow Fox was just a decoration. Within 10 seconds, the Snow Fox released a wail before falling down.

System: [Rare Elite] Cunning Snow Fox killed. Obtained 130 EXP.Shi Feng was Level 2 now, so this amount of EXP was nothing to him. What Shi Feng was concerned about was the loot. Rare Elites were the love of all God's Domain players because of their shocking drop rates. Furthermore, this was the First Kill of the Snow Fox, so the loot must be even better.

"It can't be. It actually dropped a weapon." Shi Feng obtained a Staff an Armguard.

[Blackwood Staff] (Bronze Rank)

Level 1

Equipment Requirements: Strength 5

Attack Power +8

Intelligence +3, Vitality +1, Mana +30

Durability 20/20This equipment would greatly strengthen a mage. Not only was its Attack Power high, it even gave an additional 3 Intelligence. If a mage equipped it, then their damage might increase up to two levels.

[Fox Skin Gloves] (Common Rank, Leather Armor)

Level 1

Equipment Requirements: Strength 3

Defense +4

Durability 20/20

On the other hand, Quiet Wolf had contributed a pair of Level 0 Common Leathered Shoes with +3 Defense.

"And here I thought it was some Gray Trash Equipment. It seems Quiet Wolf's luck isn't that bad, being able to obtain a piece of Common Equipment." Shi Feng had a different view of Quiet Wolf now. Obtaining a piece of Common Equipment at the starting period of the game definitely depended on luck. However, Quiet Wolf's luck now benefited Shi Feng instead. Swordsmen could wear both Plate Armor and Cloth Armor. Now that Shi Feng had two of these new items, his Defense had increased by a lot.

"Blackie, your equipment." Shi Feng passed the Blackwood Staff to Blackie.

However, Blackie did not receive the equipment. He had a hesitant look on his face. Killing the Snow Fox depended entirely on Shi Feng. Blackie wasn't of much help, yet he had received the best equipment; a piece of Bronze Equipment no less. At this stage of the game, there weren't many players capable of owning such an item. It was extremely valuable.

"What's happened to you; aren't we good brothers? Why are you being courteous with me? Besides, you're a Cursemancer. Once you've reached Level 1, you can fully exert the staff's greatest capabilities. With that, we can level even faster." Shi Feng said in a serious tone as if he knew what Blackie was thinking.

After some thought, Blackie was able to make sense of it. He no longer refused it, saying, "Thanks. I'll definitely use it properly."

"Now. that's much better." Shi Feng laughed, "Let's go. We're going to Dark-Moon Valley."

Red Leaf Town."Quiet Wolf, what were you even doing? Not only did you die, you've even dropped a piece of expensive Equipment. Do you know how precious that Equipment is?" Flaming Tiger snapped as he cursed.

Quiet Wolf's expression was as gloomy as dark water. That pair of shoes was something he had obtained after grinding for 7 hours, and now he had actually lost it. Even his heart was bleeding right now. Although he had wanted to explain, he did not know how to. Should he say how he was toyed with by Shi Feng? That wasn't something he was willing to admit. However, even if he wanted to snatch the equipment back, he wasn't an opponent for Shi Feng."Brother Tiger, I discovered a Rare Elite in the wild. I didn't think I would be discovered by that kid when I was about to kill off the Elite. That kid had even brought along another person. In a one versus three situation, I wasn't their opponent at all." Quiet Wolf pretended to be enraged as he turned black into white. He continuously tempted Flaming Tiger. "That brat should have killed the Rare Elite by now. He must've obtained some good equipment. They were on the path towards Dark Moon Valley. We could still catch up to them if we chase after them. We might even be able to get back the equipment."

"Rare Elite!?" Flaming Tiger's eyes started to shine. He no longer questioned Quiet Wolf. Instead, he was extremely interested in the loot of the Rare Elite. He said excitedly. "Let's go. We'll immediately chase after them. They actually dare to steal my equipment. I will make them regret even playing God's Domain."Within a short moment, Flaming Tiger gathered all the members of Shadow Workshop present in Red Leaf Town. He brought along 11 Workshop members and rushed towards Dark Moon Valley. No matter what, he wanted to kill off Shi Feng and obtain his equipment.

At this moment, Shi Feng and Blackie had already arrived at Dark Moon Valley.There was a smithy beside the flowing creek. Shi Feng and Blackie quietly stood in front of it. They were looking at a barechested, middle-aged uncle. In his hand, the man wielded a steel hammer. Ding! Dang! He kept hammering on the crimson red ore.

Time slowly flowed by, bit by bit.

"Brother Feng, are we still going to wait? It's already been half an hour now." Blackie said.

"We have to wait. Without patience, he won't give us the Quest." Shi Feng affirmed.

In his previous life, Hammer Trading had passed by this place on accident. He had discovered a smithy here. However, the blacksmith here didn't pay any attention to him regardless of how Hammer Trading talked to him. This had enraged Hammer Trading, so he decided to drag it on with the blacksmith. He kept standing to the side, sending death glares to the blacksmith. He had never imagined that after some time, the blacksmith would actively speak up. Not only that, the blacksmith even gave out a Hidden Quest. This had allowed Hammer Trading to learn the Forging Talent, becoming the Forging Master of the era.

When Shi Feng thought about obtaining the Forging Talent, coupling it with the Book Of Forging, advancing into an Advanced Forging Apprentice became a very easy task. When that time came, Gold Coins would rain into his pockets.

After waiting for more than ten minutes..."Do you two have an interested in Forging?" The middle-aged blacksmith suddenly asked.

"Yes, sir. We've loved Forging since we were young." Shi Feng immediately said.

The middle-aged blacksmith nodded his head, saying in a satisfied tone, "Then since you love Forging, I can teach it to you. But first, could you help me retrieve 100 pieces of Meteorite Ore? They can be found on the West side of Crimson Star Mine."

"Of course. We would gladly be at your service." Shi Feng respectfully answered.

System: Hidden Quest 'Road Of Forging' accepted. Player is requested by Forging Master Jack to obtain 100 pieces of Meteorite Ore from Crimson Star Mine.

Crimson Star Mine was the nest of Level 4 Kobolds. These monsters loved ore the most. They would spend everyday mining within the mines. As such, Kobolds were born with great strength. However, they had short limbs. Because they stayed underground for long periods of time, their range of vision was short. They could only detect enemies within a 35-yard distance. This distance was also the maximum range of attack for a mage.

At the mine's entrance, there were many Kobolds walking around. An entire group of them would be attracted even if only one of them was attacked.

[Kobold]

Level 4

HP 420

"Here. First, some food and drink to fill ourselves. We'll start work after that." Shi Feng brought out a Black Steel Beer and an Apple Pie.

Blackie didn't understand what Shi Feng was trying to do, but since it was Shi Feng's request, he must have his own reasons. Blackie sat down and started eating.

Ten seconds after eating the Apple Pie, all of Blackie's attributes were suddenly increased by +1 points, the effect lasting 30 minutes.

After drinking the Black Steel Beer, Blackie's vision started becoming hazy. When he looked at the distant Level 4 Kobolds, their Levels were suddenly reduced by 2; becoming Level 2."Alright, let's start then. A bottle of Black Steel Beer's drunken effect only lasts 30 minutes." Shi Feng stood up. He took out a Smoke Bomb and walked closer to the mine's entrance. Then, he threw it at the group of Level 4 Kobolds; there were currently over ten of them there.

[Smoke Bomb]

Able to reduce the visibility in a radius of 10 by 10 yards. Duration of one hour.

The Smoke Bomb was able to reduce a monster's vision by 10 yards. It wasn't particularly useful against other monsters. However, it was great when facing Kobolds. Their vision was now reduced to 25 yards. As long as a mage attacked from a 30-yard distance, the Kobolds would not be able to spot them at all. They could only stand there and wait for their deaths."Attack." Shi Feng pointed to the Kobolds within the smoke.

Blackie was half-doubting Shi Feng's actions, but he still chose to believe in Shi Feng. His mouth started chanting a curse. A moment later, a Dark Arrow shot out, landing directly on the foremost Kobold.

Chapter 13 - Blackie's good luck

The Kobold within the smoke was hit, 21 damage appearing above his head.

The Kobold became furious after being inexplicably attacked. Like a searchlight, the Kobold looked around in all directions with his blood red eyes. Such an action had also caused the other Kobolds to start being on guard.

Within the forest, Blackie's heartbeat kept on speeding up. He was extremely panicked.

Although the Kobolds looked to be Level 2, their Attributes 100% belonged to a Level 4. Drinking the Black Steel Beer allowed a player to become drunk, significantly increasing the player's courage. As a result, all enemies seen by the player would have their Levels reduced by 2. However, this would not reduce the Kobolds' Attributes.

If these Kobolds came rushing at them, only death awaited Shi Feng and Blackie.

Yet, Blackie's worries were for naught.

The attacked Kobold looked at its surroundings. However, it did not discover any enemies. After whining for a bit, it returned to its original state. The other Kobolds also stopped paying attention to their deranged companion as they continued walking about.

"Relax. They won't attack us as long as you maintain a 30-yard distance." Shi Feng clapped Blackie's shoulders as he confidently commented.

He had been planning all this ahead of time. Otherwise, he wouldn't have spent that much money buying all those items.

Blackie became even more courageous after Shi Feng's encouragement. He continuously chanted curses and shot out Dark Arrows.

The Kobold only had 420 HP, and it couldn't withstand Blackie's bombardment at all. After receiving more than twenty Dark Arrows, it breathed its final breath. Meanwhile, the other Kobolds by its side did not show any reaction at all.

Blackie became excited when he saw the first Kobold fall.

He had killed a monster 4 levels higher. Although the EXP was shared due to being in a two-man party, the amount of EXP he received was still plenty. His experience had risen by 5% within an instant.

This meant that Blackie would level up after killing 20 Kobolds. He was even safe and unharmed. If the monsters did not disappear completely, their leveling speed would be terrifying. With such a great way of leveling, they would be able to rise even to Level 6 very effectively. Blackie now understood why Shi Feng was so confident. Even if they had wasted several hours from traveling, being able to grind on monsters here was definitely worth it.

After a while, the group of twenty or so Kobolds in front of the mine's entrance was cleared out completely

Blackie had also raised to Level 1. After he equipped the Blackwood Staff and added all his Free Ability Points into Intelligence, his damage was increased by a large leap. He could now take away 45 HP from the Kobolds in a single hit.

Meanwhile, the group of Kobolds had dropped 12 Copper Coins and a Level 3 Common Cloth Armor. There were also 5 pieces of Meteorite Ore. Blackie's luck was quite good.

According to what Shi Feng had known, the drop rate of Meteorite Ore from the Kobolds was not high; only one would drop out of ten of them. Nearly 1000 Kobolds needed to be killed to obtain 100 pieces of Meteorite Ore. Now, however, just a group Kobolds had given them 5 pieces of Meteorite Ore.

After storing the drops, Shi Feng went on to lure more monsters. With the advantage of his 16 Agility, Shi Feng's speed was faster than the Kobolds. Within moments, he had lured over 30 Kobolds. He also maintained the distance of around 20-yards, but not exceeding 25-yards. When he had lured all the Kobolds into the smoke cloud, Shi Feng increased his speed abruptly. He quickly distanced himself over 25-yards from the Kobolds, causing them to lose their target. After losing their target, the Kobolds stood on the spot in a daze.

Blackie who stood over 30 yards away took the chance to attack.

The group of over 30 Kobolds took less than ten minutes to be cleared. They dropped another 21 Coppers and 6 pieces of Meteorite Ore. Shi Feng and Blackie's experience also greatly increased.

In such a way, Shi Feng continued luring monsters while Blackie continued dealing damage. Although the process felt mechanical and boring, Blackie was not complaining one tiny bit. On the contrary, he became even more vigorous with each kill. He wished he could just kill all day without resting.

After an hour, Blackie's level had also risen to Level 2. His Dark Arrow rose to Level 3, and his damage went from more than 40 to more than 60. Such a rocket-like leveling speed made him speechlessly happy, giving him even more motivation to aim for Level 3.

Their Kobold-killing efficiency also increased by quite a bit with Blackie's greatly improved damage. The only downside was the increase in MP consumption following the Dark Arrow's level up. Fortunately, there was the Magic Water that Shi Feng had bought. With it, Blackie could fully regenerate his MP before Shi Feng had lured a new group of monsters, allowing him to deal damage without pause.

Meanwhile, Shi Feng was observing Blackie's condition while he lured a suitable number of Kobolds. Other than that, he was just picking up the loot. The number of Copper Coins and Meteorite Ore were steadily increasing.

After another hour of Blackie's effort, they had managed to collect 73 pieces of Meteorite Ore, 6 pieces of Common Equipment, and 264 Coppers. They would be able to gather the remaining Meteorite Ore if they grinded for another hour.

The system notification rang out just at this moment.

System: Player Lonely Snow has sent you 10 Coppers.

Subsequently, Shi Feng received a communication request. The person contacting him was Lonely Snow.

"You are?" Shi Feng had just finished luring a group of monsters. Since he had nothing to do, he accepted the call request.

"Hello, Brother Expert. I'm Lonely Snow. We met before at the Town Hall, and you've even pointed me to a grinding spot. That place was just too great. There wasn't anybody stealing mobs from me, and I could also easily handle them. I'm already Level 2 now. I've also looted a lot of materials and Copper coins. I've already mailed you the 10 Coppers. I wonder if you've received it." Lonely Snow was extremely excited. Previously, he was worried that this expert would not bother with him any longer. This was because experts were usually very proud; they wouldn't even look at minor characters like him. Lonely Snow had earned over 60 Coppers from that treasured location he purchased. His level had even risen to Level 2, leading the other players by quite a lot. Spending 20 Coppers for this were definitely worth it.

"So it was you. I've received the 10 Coppers." Shi Feng only remembered about it after being reminded. Indeed there was such a matter. However, that was when he needed the money to kill the Town Mayor a little earlier, so he had just casually given out some pointers. He didn't really mind regarding the remaining 10 Coppers.

"Brother Expert, the Level 2 Dungeon [Deathly Forest] has already been opened, so I wanted to invite you to dive into the Dungeon. My friends are all veterans, and they're all Level 2 now. They will definitely not drag you down. Of course, all Swordsman Equipment obtained from the Dungeon will belong to you. Do you perhaps have the time?" Lonely Snow was slightly nervous. Experts usually disdained bringing along other people, especially rookie newbies. It was the reason why Lonely Snow mentioned that there were Level 2 veterans in the party; he was afraid Shi Feng would just outright reject him.

Deathly Forest?

Shi Feng had a deep impression of this Dungeon. As long as the number of Level 2 players in Red Leaf Town reaches a certain amount, the first Level 2 Dungeon in Red Leaf Town, [Deathly Forest] would be opened.

Along with the Deathly Forest's opening, players of God's Domain were made known to the difficulty of Dungeons. Deathly Forest was only conquered after many players had reached Level 4 or 5.

Meanwhile, Deathly Forest's true purpose was to increase the number of skills a player could possess. The monsters within the dungeon mainly dropped the basic skill books for every Job. However, the most precious item within the Dungeon was the forging design. Only the Final Boss, Werewolf Felot dropped it with a very low probability.

Shi Feng was very interested in this forging design. If he could learn it, then he would be able to further progress in his plans.

"Fine. However, I have a condition of my own. I will be bringing a Cursemancer, so all Cursemancer and Swordsman equipment will belong to me. Also, I want all materials and design papers that the Boss drops. If you all are willing to agree to this condition then I can go with you." Shi Feng had just casually asked for the majority of the profits. However, he did not feel anything wrong with it.

"This......" Lonely Snow started sweating all over after hearing Shi Feng's condition. As expected, an expert's asking price was definitely high. However, when Lonely Snow considered the strengths of a Beta Tester, he still reluctantly agreed, "Alright then, I agree. I'll tell it to the others. Expert, when will you be free to come?"

"We'll meet at the Dungeon's entrance in another two or so hours." Shi Feng estimated Blackie's killing speed. In over an hour, they would definitely be able to finish gathering the 100 pieces of Meteorite Ore.

"That's good. Then I'll start preparing over here. I'll see you at the Dungeon's entrance, Brother Expert." Lonely Snow ended the call, a heavy weight being freed from him.

At this moment, there were three other people standing beside Lonely Snow. Every one of them was Level 2.

"What did that expert say?" a handsome Ranger asked.

Lonely Snow explained it to them word for word.

"What dog's fart expert? He's just here to take advantage and rip off equipment from us. What's the point of inviting him? If we add another two damage dealers, we can enter the Dungeon all the same." a Shield Warrior angrily cursed.

The male Cleric standing at a side curled his lips, saying in a bad mood, "Then he's saying that all mage-class equipment belongs to his friend."

Lonely Snow advised, "That person is a real expert. He's also a Beta Tester. He definitely has a deep understanding of the Dungeon. He might even be able to guide us through it. Don't you all want to clear the Deathly Forest?"

"So, what if he's a Beta Tester? He just had an extra month of experience in God's Domain and a rough understanding of it. Besides, the data has long been changed after the game's official release. Even if he knew a lot about the Deathly Forest, how much use could there be?" The Shield Warrior asked in disdain. He felt that those Beta Testers were only lucky. Their actual skills and strength might not even be comparable to them.

"We'll see how it goes after they arrive. If it's no good, then by that time there will be a lot more Level 2 players. It won't be too late, even if we find someone else by then." The leading Ranger said.

After hearing this Ranger speak, the others nodded their heads in agreement.

At this moment, there was a flash of light in Dark Moon Valley.

Shi Feng had finally raised to Level 3. Unfortunately, the leaderboard for levels had yet to be opened. Otherwise, he would definitely be ranked first on Red Leaf Town's leaderboard for levels.

"Finally Level 3." Shi Feng hurriedly added 4 attribute points towards Agility, letting his Agility reach 20 points.

System: Player's Agility has reached 20 points. Activating Agility Hidden Basic Skill [Fast And Nimble].

[Fast And Nimble] (Active)

When activated, possess a body exceeding the normal man.

Body's degree of freedom is completely released.

Shi Feng suddenly felt a gush of strength from his entire body. He also felt his body becoming unspeakably agile. His five senses also received a great improvement. These improvements allowed Shi Feng to better exert his body's potential.

Besides Shi Feng reaching Level 3, the last Kobold that Blackie killed had unexpectedly dropped a Level 1 Bronze Equipment: Warboots.

Shi Feng couldn't help but admire Blackie's luck. Common monsters of Level 1 to 3 would not drop any Bronze Equipment. The drop rate of Bronze Equipment from Level 4 wild monsters was one out of ten thousand. Yet Blackie had actually got it; his luck was just heaven defying.

"Brother Feng, what are the attributes? Let me see as well!" Blackie said so excitedly.

"The Warboots' attributes are quite good." Shi Feng displayed the attributes.

[Recruit's Warboots] (Bronze Rank, Plate Armor)

Level 1

Equipment Requirement: Strength 6

Defense +8

Strength +1, Endurance +1

Movement Speed +1

Durability 20/20

"This is too great. With this equipment, Brother Feng's speed would become even faster," Blackie happily said. Before, it was only him who obtained a Bronze Equipment. It had troubled him to no end. Now that Shi Feng had one as well, his heart became relieved as he said, "Brother Feng, how many Meteorite Ore are we still missing?"

"Not many. Just 4 more pieces. We'll be okay after another wave." Shi Feng looked into his bag. Unknowingly, there were already 96 pieces of Meteorite Ores in his bag. If someone else had come here to grind, they might have needed five to six hours to obtain this many. Luckily, there was Blackie. They had gathered most of it after just killing a few hundred Kobolds.

Just when Shi Feng was about to lure more monsters, his keen senses detected three blurry figures were closing in from behind Blackie.

"Blackie, dodge quickly!"

Shi Feng yelled as he pulled out his Novice Sword. With lightning speed, Shi Feng rushed over.

Blackie remained ignorant of the situation. He was still stuck being happy, unaware of the things approaching him.

"Only finding out now? You're too late. He'll be the first one."

Three figures suddenly appeared. They were three Assassin players, and one of them was Quiet Wolf, the person who was killed before. A mage being simultaneously ambushed by three Assassins would die, without question. There would be no suspense to it, even if Blackie was 1 level higher than them.

Chapter 14 - Extraordinary Player's physique

The simultaneous attacks from the three Assassins caused a lot of damage to Blackie. Even though he wore several pieces of Common Cloth Armor, he had still lost nearly half of his HP.

System: Guild [Shadow] has attacked your party. All party members are allowed to attack members of Guild [Shadow] without penalty. Duration of 1 hour.

"I'll fight you guys."

Blackie knew he was sure to die. His speed was not comparable with an Assassin's. However, he also wanted to retaliate before he died. Blackie started chanting a curse, firing a Dark Arrow towards Quiet Wolf at zero distance.

Quiet Wolf smiled in disdain. Although the arrow was unavoidable, he still had 80 HP at Level 0. How strong could a Cursemancer's attack be? Could it possibly instant-kill him?

Hong! The Dark Arrow hit Quiet Wolf.

A damage of 76 points appeared above Quiet Wolf's head, instantly leaving him with only some leftover HP.

Quiet Wolf immediately became dumbfounded after seeing such damage; his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. The other two Assassins were equally shocked.

How is this even a Cursemancer?! This was just a cannon!

The person who dealt the damage was also shocked. Blackie had never imagined that the Level 3 Dark Arrow would be so powerful.

In reality, however, it wasn't just the Level 3 Dark Arrows taking effect. There was also the high damage Blackwood Staff, the aura effect of Might Of A Thousand, and the bonus damage from level suppression. Such extreme damage was only possible with all these added together.

"Crap Let's kill him, brothers. His Staff is definitely a Mysterious-Iron Equipment," as a veteran gamer, Quiet Wolf quickly reacted, revealing his greed towards Blackie's weapon. Blackie being able to deal such a high damage was definitely due to a Mysterious-Iron Weapon. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to nearly instant-kill Quiet Wolf.

Suddenly, the other two Assassins became full of energy as they rushed towards Blackie. Not to mention a Mysterious-Iron Weapon, they didn't even have a Common Weapon. If they could get Blackie's Mysterious-Iron Weapon, then they would profit beautifully.

The three Assassins attacked again, leaving Blackie with only 6 HP remaining. When they saw that Blackie was about to die, the three Assassins became even more excited; the Mysterious-Iron Weapon was about to come into their hands.

At this moment, with unbelievable movement methods, Shi Feng appeared in front, blocking Blackie. Three sword strikes blocked the attacks from the three Assassins, creating three sparks. All three Assassins were sent flying backward.

Before the Assassins could get over their shock, streaks of thunder appeared within their vision.

Three streaks of thunder struck the Assassins that were still floating in midair.

Damages of -32, -41, -50appeared on all three of their heads, all of their HP dropping to 0. Their bodies turned into starlight and disappeared within an instant.

Because Assassins had low Defense and were under level suppression, the effect of a Level 2 Thundering Flash was extremely horrifying!

"Brother Feng......" Blackie became dumbfounded as he looked at Shi Feng's back, dumbly saying, "Are you Brother Feng?"

Everything had happened all too quickly. Shi Feng had suddenly appeared and swung his sword three times, blocking three attacks from different directions. Then, he had followed it up with a Thundering Flash. All of these actions had been carried out within an instant. It was so fast that the Assassins could not even react.

Shi Feng's actions and reactions were just inhuman. If Blackie wasn't familiar with the Shi Feng in front of him, he might have even thought it was someone else pretending to be Shi Feng.

After sweeping his gaze around, Shi Feng discovered eight players surrounding them. Leading these players was Flaming Tiger. Shi Feng no longer dared to stay behind, hurriedly saying, "Why are you still in a daze? Let's go."

Shi Feng had activated Fast And Nimble, completely releasing his body's degree of freedom. However, even though he had a constitution that could keep up and react to his thoughts, his actual body's Attributes were too low. He had a very hard time controlling his body, and it was also mentally taxing. Taking explosive maneuvers two to three times was still possible, but doing it long-term was definitely too much. The enemies also consisted of numerous healers and Jobs that equipped plate armor. Shi Feng and Blackie's only choice, now, was to run away.

Blackie continuously nodded his head.

"Everyone go at them. You must definitely get me my Bronze Equipment and take over this mine." Flaming Tiger licked the corner of his lips. He was extremely excited. He did not mind the death of the three Assassins at all.

Originally, Flaming Tiger was still burning with rage. They had spent hours at Dark Moon Valley searching for Shi Feng and his partner, causing their leveling speed to fall greatly. However, they had accidentally discovered Shi Feng and Blackie grinding monsters.

At first, Flaming Tiger had wanted to immediately surround and kill the two. However, when he saw Blackie utilizing the smoke cloud at the cave's entrance to kill the Level 4 Kobolds, Flaming Tiger nearly died from excitement. His hatred towards Shi Feng had also reduced by a large half. He had even wanted to thank Shi Feng for giving him such a valuable location.

The difficulty of killing monsters of a higher level was famously known. If he could kill Level 4 monsters without any harm, then his leveling speed would be absolutely horrifying. It won't be more than ten hours before he would be leading the other players. After he had gained a huge advantage over others, the task of uniting Red Leaf Town would be at his fingertips. When that time came, he might even become Shadow Workshop's Captain.

Countless virtual game companies had closed shop because of God's Domain's opening. There were billions of players joining God's Domain. To obtain their share in this, many enterprises and financial groups started investing in God's Domain, one after the other. God's Domain could be said to be the most profitable virtual game in the world.

Flaming Tiger thought about how he would be able to stand out in Red Leaf Town. He thought about forcefully taking the large Guilds down a peg. He also thought about becoming Shadow's Captain. When that time came, obtaining expensive cars, beautiful ladies, and luxury mansions were only a matter of time. When Flaming Tiger thought of these things, he became unspeakably excited.

He had to appreciate Shi Feng for giving all of these things to him.

However, appreciation remained just appreciation. He still couldn't let the Bronze Equipment on Shi Feng and Blackie go.

"Brother Tiger, those two are too fast. We can't catch up to them." A Berserker said.

"They're lucky that they run fast. However, this precious piece of land is enough." Flaming Tiger's eyes shone when he looked at the mine. He had already fantasized himself leading Red Leaf Town with flair.

"Brother Tiger, what about Quiet Wolf and the other two? The three of them fell back to Level 0. They also lost quite a lot of Skill Proficiency," an Elementalist asked.

Flaming Tiger rolled his eyes at his subordinate, asking, "Is this even a problem? You saw as well just now. The Kobolds within the smoke cloud won't attack players if they're attacked from a distance. Those are Level 4 monsters. Leveling will be easy, so hurry them over here."

"Brother Tiger is still the smart one. Being able to find such a precious spot, Brother Tiger will definitely become the number one person in Shadow," the Elementalist started bootlicking Flaming Tiger.

"Scram! Number one person in Shadow? I am the number one person in God's Domain!" Flaming Tiger angrily responded.

The other members of Shadow also agreed, one after another, laughing at the Elementalist for licking on the wrong boot.

A moment later, three mage players started attacking from a distance. As for the other players, they lured the monsters into the smoke cloud. Under Flaming Tiger's command, they started killing the Kobolds in an orderly manner.

"Great, this is just great! Even after sharing a Kobold's EXP with so many people, my experience still increased by 2%."

"Brother Tiger, this is really fantastic! These monsters also drop ore and a lot of money. Not only that, but these Kobolds also respawn quickly. We can grind here without limits until we reach Level 6. By that time, we Shadow will definitely become Red Leaf Town's number one Guild."

The members of Shadow started laughing happily. It wouldn't take many hours before every one of them reached Level 6. It was already great just imagining how they would suppress the other Guilds in Red Leaf Town.

"Hahaha! Consider yourselves lucky for following me. The other team leaders are nothing. When the time comes, I'll become Shadow's Captain." Flaming Tiger was in a great mood. With such an increase in experience, it wouldn't take an hour before he rose to Level 2, compensating for his previous losses.

Meanwhile, at the nearby location of Crimson Star Mine, Blackie was grinding his teeth in anger.

"Brother Feng, are we just going to let this go? That was hard-to-obtain information that came from a Beta Tester, but now it's just profiting these people. I get angry just from thinking about it. These people from Shadow are just shameless. Fortunately, I didn't join them."

Shi Feng shook his head as he looked at the System Panel's clock, smiling indifferently, "They dare to steal my things. We'll let them enjoy it for now. In a moment, we'll let them know after happiness comes sorrow."

Chapter 15 - After Happiness, come sorrow

Time passed, bit by bit.

Shi Feng and Blackie did not just do nothing. They were killing Level 4 Roaming Gnomes in a place not far from Crimson Star Mine.

[Roaming Gnome] (Common)

Level 4

HP 400

Compared to the Kobolds, the Roaming Gnomes were much more agile. They were very good at dodging. However, their Attack and Defense weren't all that good.

Moreover, Dark Moon Valley had yet to be developed. The monsters here were more numerous, and there was nobody here to compete with; there was no need to search for monsters to kill.

Shi Feng was already a Level 3 Swordsman, while Blackie was a Level 2 Cursemancer. After activating Fast And Nimble, the Roaming Gnome's dagger had no chance of even touching Shi Feng. As for Blackie, his damage was even fiercer after drinking a Black Steel Beer. With Shi Feng entangling the gnomes in the front, and Blackie dealing damage from behind, killing off the Roaming Gnomes became very easy. The efficiency was even better than grinding off the Kobolds.

In the front of the Crimson Star Mine, groups of Kobolds laid still before the mine's entrance. Copper Coins and various kinds of ores were scattered all over the ground.

"Brother Tiger, this place is just too great. It's just been over half an hour, and everyone is already Level 2. So much money dropped, as well."

"Hahaha, keep up the effort everyone. You three, lure more monsters. As long as we continue grinding this way, it will only be three to four hours before we can rise to Level 3."

Flaming Tiger excitedly commanded the three Assassins that just recently arrived to lure the Kobolds. The mages were already Level 2, so the speed of killing the Kobolds had increased by a big leap. Luring a group of over thirty Kobolds was not enough for them.

"Brother Tiger, something dropped here." A Berserker held on to a book as he shouted.

"Bring it here, let me have a look at it." Flaming Tiger said while smiling. He licked his dried lips when he saw something dropped.

After Flaming Tiger received the book, he suddenly started laughing loudly.

"Great, really great! Not only has the spot that kid found after much effort been taken over by me, but if he knew a rare skill for Swordsman was even in my hands? I really want to see that kid's look of regret."

"Brother Tiger, I saw that kid when I came here. They were still nearby killing Roaming Gnomes. I'm guessing that they're still unwilling to leave and still thinking of this place. Why don't we go over and kill them? Save us some trouble." A cold glint flashed through Quiet Wolf's eyes. They were filled with killing intent. He was overcome by a great resentment after being killed twice by Shi Feng.

Flaming Tiger waved his hand; with a disdainful smile on his face as he said, "Then let them look. Watch at how fast we level up and earn money, and at how we become the tyrants of Red Leaf Town. Meanwhile, they can only watch from a side with their hearts full of regret and unwillingness. Hahaha, I feel great just thinking about it."

Although Quiet Wolf still held some resentment over it, when he imagined Shi Feng's unwilling appearance and how he could only exhaust himself killing Roaming Gnomes Quiet Wolf's heart felt a great gust of pleasure.

"Just you wait. The moment I reach Level 6 will be your death." Quiet Wolf did not actually give up on killing Shi Feng. Instead, when he thought about the pleasure he would feel after killing Shi Feng when he was Level 6, he couldn't help but look forward to it.

Meanwhile, in the forest 60 yards South of the Crimson Star Mine, Shi Feng was using a tree to hide while he observed Flaming Tiger and the others.

"Brother Feng, can the two of us handle it?" Blackie asked in a worried tone.

These 11 people were not just any average players. They were experts that had passed Shadow Workshop's examination. Moreover, there were two healers on their side. It was impossible to kill all of these people just by depending on the two of them.

"Relax. The time is almost up. We'll just watch the show." Shi Feng looked at the time, indifferently saying, "In a moment, you go stand at the back. Kill whoever has low HP; don't let even one of them get away."

"Time is almost up?" Blackie didn't understand what it meant.

Shi Feng pointed towards the smoke cloud in front of the Crimson Star Mine's entrance, saying with a smile, "That Flaming Tiger must think that killing monsters of a higher level is easy. The Smoke Bomb that we placed before we left has a time limit, and only two minutes are left before the hour is up. Did they think they could continuously enjoy my domain after stealing it from me? Now, I'll teach them how to be proper human beings."

Blackie was struck with a realization. His worship towards Shi Feng became even greater now.

"Brother Feng is still the smartest. Those brats from Shadow are definitely goners this time." Blackie said with a grin.

The reason they could cross levels and harmlessly kill Kobolds was that of the Smoke Bombs. They definitely couldn't do without them. If there were no Smoke Bomb, then the consequences would be horrifying.

Two minutes later, the smoke cloud in front of the Crimson Star Mine slowly dispersed.

"Brother Tiger, why is that smoke cloud disappearing?" an Elementalist asked Flaming Tiger after noticing the disappearing smoke cloud.

"The smoke cloud disappeared? It can't be." Flaming Tiger abruptly woke up from his nap. When he looked over at the mine's entrance, the smoke cloud really did disappear. "If it's gone, then fine. The smoke cloud might be a periodic thing. Don't bother with it; keep on grinding."

Just as Flaming Tiger finished speaking, the usually stupid-looking Kobolds that did not retaliate suddenly looked towards the members of Shadow Workshop in unison.

There were over forty Kobolds with blood red eyes. The Kobolds let out angry growls after finally discovering the people who had been attacking them. Suddenly, they all came rushing forth.

The members of Shadow did not react at all. Within an instant, they were surrounded and given a beating by the Kobolds. A Level 2 player could hardly take 3 hits from a Kobold, not to mention a group of Kobolds.

Seven players died within a blink of an eye. The backline players became a mess as they ran for their lives.

However, the Kobolds were very fast. It only took them moments to catch up to the escaping mages. For each mage, they were gifted a hammer to their heads. The mages quickly lie still on the floor, never to rise up again.

"Crap, what is going on here? Why did these Kobolds suddenly become insane?" Flaming Tiger cursed. He quickly turned tail and ran the moment he noticed the situation turned bad.

They had risen to Level 2 after much effort. However, this death sent them all back to Level 1. There were even three Assassins who were Level 0. It was an absolute loss. With such an increase and decrease, the dream becoming the tyrants of Red Leaf Town also perished. Instead, the current members of Shadow weren't even up to par with the average player. They were even further away from the other Guilds.

Flaming Tiger's heart started to bleed in pain.

"We meet again, 'Brother Tycoon,'" Shi Feng said with an indifferent smile. He currently blocked Flaming Tiger's escape path.

After seeing Shi Feng's sneer, even an idiot would understand that the Kobolds' rebellion had something to do with him.

"You're dead for sure, kid. You dare to actually scheme against me. If I don't kill you back to Level 0, then my name will be read backward." All of Flaming Tiger's hair stood up in anger. He raised his shield and swung it at Shi Feng.

Compared to the other members of Shadow Workshop, Flaming Tiger's skills were clearly a tier higher.

With one hand, he used his shield to block Shi Feng's vision, while he used the other to stab his short sword towards Shi Feng's vital point. It was simple, yet sinister, and it was very hard to stop.

However, Flaming Tiger's confident strike struck air.

"Where is he?" Flaming Tiger fixed his gaze to the front. However, there wasn't even a shadow of a person present.

"Over here." Shi Feng stood behind Flaming Tiger, his sword waving down.

Chop!

A damage of -36 appeared above Flaming Tiger's head. His HP had instantly gone from 220 to 184.

When Flaming Tiger was hit, he hurriedly spun around and used [Shield Bash].

However, Shi Feng had long since seen through Flaming Tiger's movements. He took a step backward and spun his body around, hiding by the shield. Then, Shi Feng arrived once more at Flaming Tiger's back, giving him another sword slash.

Without the use of any Skills, Shi Feng could only deal 23 damage to a Shield Warrior with high defense.

"You coward! Don't hide if you have the ability. I can kill you anytime I want!" Flaming Tiger could not land any hits on the agile Shi Feng. His HP was constantly decreasing, and only 83 points of it remained now. He had no way of dealing with Shi Feng's attacks, so he decided to start ridiculing Shi Feng in hopes of provoking him, allowing Flaming Tiger the chance to kill Shi Feng.

"Sure, I'll stand here without dodging. Come attack me then." Shi Feng answered without hesitation.

Flaming Tiger silently smiled. He never imagined that Shi Feng was such a fool, taking the bait with just a small amount of stimulation.

"Watch how I'll toy with you to death." Flaming Tiger raised his shield and used [Charge] at Shi Feng. If Shi Feng didn't dodge, then he could only take the hit forcefully. In terms of Strength, Flaming Tiger wouldn't lose to Shi Feng.

However, only disappointment was waiting for him.

Just when Flaming Tiger was 2 yards away from Shi Feng, Shi Feng immediately used Thundering Flash.

Three streaks of thunder went past Flaming Tiger's shield, directly landing on his body. Three high damages appeared above Flaming Tiger's head, -28, -35, -41, his HP instantly dropping to 0.

"You...... Despicable!" Flaming Tiger glared at Shi Feng. He was furious to the point of spitting out blood. If it weren't for himself rushing towards Shi Feng on his own accord, he wouldn't have been struck by all the attacks of that skill.

"Are you alright, Brother Tycoon? I said I would stand here without dodging, but I've never said I wouldn't move my hands. How could you be so gullible, even rushing over, yourself?" Shi Feng spread out his arms, showing that it was all a mistake, saying, "Oh, right. I still have to thank Brother Tycoon for earning me so many ores. You've saved me a lot of time."

Flaming Tiger pointed towards Shi Feng, wanting to say something. However, his body had already turned into starlight and disappeared. He couldn't even utter a single word, only leaving behind a pile of ore and a single book.

Chapter 16 - Everyone's a liar

In Red Leaf Town's noisy plaza, flashes of white light appeared. Following which, figures of players appeared, one by one. These players were the revived members of Shadow.

These people had down and extremely depressed expressions on their faces.

Nothing could beat the pain and entangled feeling of having recently gained something, then losing it again.

Just a moment ago, they were still dreaming of becoming the tyrants of Red Leaf Town. Their levels were increasing; it was like flying. In the next second, however, they died. Not only had their levels and Skill Proficiency decreased, but the experience they had at Level 1 was also lower than before. They were much worse off compared to the average player.

Flaming Tiger's expression after reviving was even more livid. His eyes alone could eat a person alive.

System: Player Ye Feng has killed you. You will be revived in Red Leaf Town after 3 seconds. At the same time, you will lose 1 Level, and all your Skill Proficiencies will be reduced by 100 points.

"Ye Feng! I will not let you off! I will definitely make you wish for death!" Flaming Tiger let out an angry bellow after looking at the numbers displayed by the System. His actions had caused the other players to quickly avoid him, not daring to look at this madman.

After venting for a while, Flaming Tiger ordered the other members of Shadow to check their bags, checking for the items they dropped.

Although this death caused great losses for everyone, there wasn't just the EXP gained from killing Kobolds. There was also loot; this was also the only thing they could be happy about. At the very least, they did not busy themselves for nothing.

When Flaming Tiger took a look into his bag, a sweet taste suddenly entered his throat; he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"At once! Immediately! We head for Dark Moon Valley, now! I must kill that kid!" Flaming Tiger's bellowed, his anger reaching up to the skies.

The skill book that he planned on using to ridicule Shi Feng was gone. It was an extremely rare skill for Swordsman, and it was also the most valuable item they got from grinding Kobolds. Now, it was gone.

However, the most unforgivable thing was that the skill book had fallen into Shi Feng's hands. In the end, all of Flaming Tiger's efforts had become Shi Feng's gains. This was something that he would not tolerate. His hatred was something that could not be resolved, even if he were to kill Shi Feng back to Level 0.

The other members of Shadow did not understand what had happened to Flaming Tiger. Going to search for Shi Feng right now was just a futile effort. Nobody would be foolish enough to wait for them to take revenge. Shi Feng would definitely slip away, snickering at them in some other place.

At this moment, Flaming Tiger's System Communication rang.

"Who is it! Disturbing me at this time, are you trying to die?" Flaming Tiger cursed after the call connected.

"Flaming Tiger, your temper sure has grown after not meeting for a day." The voice on the other side was ice cold, as if in a furious rage.

Flaming Tiger felt the familiarity of that voice. When he found the corresponding identity to the voice, his face suddenly turned extremely ugly, "Brother Zhang, it is you. I'm currently educating my subordinates. I never thought Brother Zhang would contact me. Brother Zhang, please don't mind it. I wasn't speaking about you just now."

"Enough. I already know about your problem. Just looking at the damage you've caused towards Shadow's development in Red Leaf Town,Looking at what the good you've done has accomplished towards Shadow's development in Red Leaf Town, I'll come to you immediately. From now onwards, you don't have to continue being Red Leaf Town's Team Leader. Silent Rain, the team's Elementalist will take over temporarily. If, you're still not Level 2 by the time I arrive in Red Leaf Town, then you can just get lost. Shadow doesn't need garbage."

Flaming Tiger became spiritless after hearing these words. His hatred for Shi Feng would never be washed away, even by the five lakes and four seas.

Meanwhile, in Dark Moon Valley, Shi Feng and Blackie were picking up the drops from the members of Shadow.

Shi Feng was currently holding the skill book dropped by Flaming Tiger.

"Flaming Tiger really is too generous. He had even left me such an item." Shi Feng chose to learn the skill without hesitation.

[Wind Blade] (Action-type)

Requires: Sword

Level 1

Proficiency 0/300

Ambush an enemy outside 5 yards and within 30 yards. Movement Speed will be increased by 40% when rushing towards the target and Attack Speed increased by 20% for 3 seconds.

Cooldown: 25 seconds

A Swordsman mobility would be greatly increased with this skill. It was a great counter to Rangers and mages who love to kite.

"Brother Feng, the Meteorite Ore we need are all here. There are also quite a few Bronze Ore. Shadow really helped us big this time." Blackie laughed loudly. As he was collecting the ore from the ground, he noticed a piece of dark green ore. Picking it up, he asked, "Brother Feng, what is this [Star Crystal]?"

When Shi Feng heard about the Star Crystal, he ignored the Meteorite Ore below his feet, instantly turning around and running towards Blackie.

"Damn, it really is a Star Crystal! Blackie, your luck is really too good. You even picked up such a thing." Shi Feng said excitedly as he carefully looked at the dark green ore after receiving it.

Every monster in the world had a chance of dropping a Star Crystal. The chances were a million to one. Maybe it was trash to other people, but to Shi Feng, it was a priceless treasure. It was also the thing he needed the most.

"Brother Feng, what is this Star Crystal for?" Blackie curiously asked. Shi Feng was usually calm and indifferent. Such an excited reaction from him displayed the preciousness of the Star Crystal.

"It's for eating, but not for players." Shi Feng smiled slightly but did not continue explaining as he kept the Star Crystal.

"It's for eating?" Blackie was slightly confused. Who would eat a rock? However, Shi Feng must have his own reasons for not explaining, so Blackie did not continue asking about it.

A moment later, all the drops were collected. They had received a total of 14 pieces of Meteorite Ore, and 32 pieces of Bronze Ore. Not only had they completed Shi Feng's Quest, they even had some leftovers.

Subsequently, the two of them arrived at the smithy.

"Master Jack, I have collected the Meteorite Ore you asked for." Shi Feng handed over all of the Meteorite Ore, not leaving even one behind. These were all Quest Items. A stack of them would only sell for 1 Copper to an NPC. It was utterly worthless.

"Not bad, young man. However, if you wish to become an outstanding Forger, you still need to have enough strength to obtain precious ore. There is a powerful Kobold Chieftain. Go kill it to prove your strength." Master Jack said eloquently as he stored away the Meteorite Ore.

System: Hidden Quest 'Road Of Forging'. Kill the Kobold Chieftain inside Crimson Star Mine. Time limit of 1 hour.

When Shi Feng saw that there was still a second stage to the Quest, Shi Feng wished he could curse Hammer Trading. He had caused Shi Feng big trouble this time.

As expected, everybody would have kept something to themselves. Nobody could be trusted. Everyone's a liar.

In Shi Feng's previous life, Hammer Trading had not mentioned a second stage of the Quest. Now a second stage, time-limited Quest had appeared. It was even against a Chieftain monster. That wasn't an Elite monster you simply run across. A Chieftain was even stronger than a Special Elite. It was the equivalent of a Dungeon's Boss. Shi Feng was just Level 3, and a Leader monster was just too deadly to him.

In Shi Feng's previous life, Hammer Trading was Level 16 when he accepted the Quest. Completing the Quest was extremely easy.

"Forget it; let's have a look at it first." He could do nothing about being tricked. However, Shi Feng did not plan to give up. The Forging Talent had too great of a use, and Shi Feng must learn it.

Following which, Shi Feng and Blackie cleared the way of Kobolds as they headed towards the deeper parts of the Crimson Star Mine.

Compared to the Kobolds at the entrance, the Kobolds inside were no longer Level 4; they were Level 5. They took more time and energy to kill. Often, another Kobold would respawn before one was killed. If there weren't enough Black Steel Beer to reduce the Kobold's level by 2, then Shi Feng and Blackie's killing speed would be completely unable to keep up with the respawn rate.

Half an hour later, Shi Feng and Blackie arrived at the deepest part of the Crimson Star Mine.

It was a large piece of empty land. There were over ten Kobolds mining for ore in the surroundings. There was a huge figure standing in the center of the empty area. It was a Kobold that wore armor, and it was constantly giving out commands to the other Kobolds.

[Kobold Chieftain] (Chieftain-rank)

Level 5

HP 2100/2100

Just its HP alone could cause a person despair, not to mention the heavy armor worn on the Kobold Chieftain; its Defense was definitely high. It was nearly impossible for physical-type attacks to cause a lot of damage. Moreover, Chieftain Rank monsters had a recovery speed of 2% HP every 5 seconds when in battle. That meant the Kobold Chieftain would recover 42 HP every 5 seconds. It was not a number to look down upon. An average Level 5 player with physical-type damage might not even be able to deal 42 damage within 5 seconds.

As for using the Smoke bombs to kill the Kobold Chieftain safely, that was completely impossible. A Chieftain monster's range of vision was extremely wide. Even a Kobold would have a vision range of 55 yards. Using the Smoke Bomb to reduce its vision by 10 yards would still leave it with 45 yards. Even for Rangers, who had the furthest firing range of 40 yards, it was not enough.

Shi Feng thought through it again and again as he looked at the Kobold Chieftain before him, helplessly laughing, "Do I really have to use that?"

Chapter 17 - Magic Weapon released, Flame Swordsman Born

"Brother Feng, can we really beat this Kobold Chieftain?" Blackie had not an ounce of confidence in him when he looked at the Kobold Chieftain. Ignoring its horrifying amount of HP, the giant ax on its back was enough to terrify someone. If Blackie were hit with that ax, he would definitely turn into meat paste within an instant.

"I don't know." Shi Feng shook his head. Plans can never keep up with change. There was not a single terrain within the mine that could be used. They could only fight the Kobold Chieftain head on if they wanted to kill it.

The Kobold Chieftain was the most powerful monster Shi Feng had met up with to this point.

If he had enough time, Shi Feng would come here when he was Level 5, with a full body of Bronze Equipment. He would have an eighty percent chance by then. However, there was little left of the time that Forging Master Jack gave him. If he wanted to finish the battle within the twenty minutes remaining, then he would need to send out a small party of Level 5 Elites to do so.

However, there were only two of them. Their equipment was also poor. Trying to kill the Kobold Chieftain within twenty minutes was utterly impossible.

However, there would be dire consequences if the Quest was not finished. There was only one chance to do this Hidden Quest. If it failed, Shi Feng would not be able to receive it ever again.

Thus, Shi Feng was even more unwilling to give up this Quest.

"I can only try it." Shi Feng unwillingly took out the Magic Weapon, Abyssal Blade.

In his previous life, the number of Magic Weapons Shi Feng had personally witnessed could be counted on his fingers. Anybody who had seen a Magic Weapon's power would be brought to submission by it. Whereas, those who could properly wield a Magic Weapon was as rare as a phoenix's feather.

Crimson War God was one such person. He had grown to fame within a Guild War that had involved over 100,000 people. During that war, Crimson War God held a bloodied Magic Weapon, the Crimson Ghost Ax. He rushed into groups of thousands of warriors with the ax and slaughtered. There was no one who could block his giant ax. In the end, the enemy Guild was forced to retreat in embarrassment. Crimson War God had created the scene of one man defending against 10,000. After that war, he built up the glorious War God Empire.

There was also the 'Madman', Windchaser. He held the Magic Weapon, Evil Spirit's Roar. With only the bow in hand, Windchaser had single-handedly defended a city. Of the thousands of enemy players, not one of them could enter within 100 yards of the city. Using a single arrow, Windchaser had even sniped Outstandingly Extraordinary, the Guild Leader of [Imposing Expert]. Outstandingly Extraordinary had been standing further than 100 yards from the city at that time.

As long as they were a Magic Weapon user, then they would be famous, top-tier experts in God's Domain that were respected by all.

System: Do you wish to bind the Abyssal Blade?

Shi Feng sucked in a deep breath, choosing to bind. He did not care anymore about the Backlash of the Magic Weapon. Since those people could control the Magic Weapons, then how could he, as a reincarnated person, lose to those 'newbies' that had yet to grow up?

The moment the binding was finished, Shi Feng could clearly feel his entire body's strength being sapped away. His levels, as well, dropped one after the other, becoming Level 0 within an instant. In another moment, however, a force of strength started flowing through his body. His body's current constitution was even stronger than when he was Level 3.

When he checked the Abyssal Blade' Attributes, Shi Feng became even more shocked.

[Abyssal Blade] (Magic Weapon, One-handed Sword)

Attack Power 24

All Attributes +10

Attack Speed +3

Ignore monster's Level by 5. Attacks have a 15% chance to cause 2 x damage, 10% chance to induce Doom Curse, reducing all stats by 30%, lasting 20 seconds.

If wielder belongs to any Swordsman Job, all Skill Levels +2. Increase Free Ability Points received by 2 points for every increase in Level.

Equipment Level 0. Can be leveled up. (Devour ten Level 5 Bronze Equipment and one Level 5 Mysterious-Iron Equipment to level up to Level 5). Can be evolved (Unknown).

Additional Skill 1: Phantom Kill. Instantly creates a doppelganger. You can control this doppelganger. Doppelganger will have 50% of original body's Attributes and all Skills. At the same time, Doppelganger and the original body can be swapped. Duration of 30 seconds.

Cooldown: 5 minutes

Additional Skill 2: Abyssal Bind. Binds enemies and prevents movement, reducing Defense by 100%. Duration of 3 seconds.

Cooldown: 1 minute

Additional Skill 3: Nine Dragons Slash. Instantly create nine phantoms of the Abyssal Blade for the wielder to use, each phantom sword is capable of dealing up to 30% damage. Duration of 20 seconds.

Cooldown: 5 minutes.

The Abyssal Blade was personally created by Master Smith Olysses, using the Black Dragon King's fangs as material. It is one of thirty-six famed swords, and it is ranked 31st. However, this sword has been cursed by the Black Dragon King. Aside from being able to provide the wielder with immense strength, there would be a Backlash after a certain period of time. If the wielder is unable to suppress the Backlash, the wielder will receive the curse of the Black Dragon King, permanently reducing All Attributes by 50%.

Unable to be dropped.

Unable to be traded.

Seeing such Attributes and these many Additional Skills, the Abyssal Blade was no different than a God's Weapon. However, there were still thirty-five of these Famed Swords, and the Abyssal Blade was just one of the lower ranked ones. It was hard to imagine what kind of sword the first ranked was.

"Brother Feng, please don't scare me. How did you become Level 0?" Glancing at Shi Feng from the side, Blackie became shocked. It had already been troublesome just facing the Kobold Chieftain. Now that Shi Feng had fallen back to Level 0, how could they fight it?

"Relax. Use the Smoke Bombs to clear off the small mobs first. Leave the Kobold Chieftain to me." Shi Feng called up the Attribute Panel, placing all 6 Free Attribute Points into Agility. His Agility had reached 20 points exactly, activating [Fast And Nimble]. Shi Feng was very eager to test his sword on the Kobold Chieftain.

Character: Ye Feng (Human)

Affiliated Kingdom: Star-Moon

Title: Might Of A Thousand

Job: Swordsman

Level: 0

HP: 460/460

Attack Power: 72

Defense: 4

Attack Speed: 10

Movement Speed: 8

Attributes: Strength 24, Agility 20, Endurance 22, Intelligence 13, Vitality 13

System: Strength has reached 20 points. Activating Hidden Basic Skill, [Smashing Fists]. Able to destroy Trash Weapons with bare hands.

System: Endurance has reached 20 points. Activating Hidden Basic Skill, [Robust Physique].

Along with the activation of the Hidden Basic Skills for Strength and Endurance, Shi Feng could now utilize the full potential of his current body. He was no longer a three-second hero.

Although he was Level 0, his current Attack Power and Attributes were far above that of when he was Level 3. His HP was even more awesome. It wasn't any worse than a Level 5 Shield Warrior's HP. Not to mention Shi Feng still had a bunch of high-level Skills. He could definitely fight it out with the Kobold Chieftain.

While Shi Feng was getting used to his body, Blackie had cleared all of the Kobolds in the surrounding areas, leaving behind only the Kobold Chieftain.

"Wait for me to pull aggro, then you can start madly attacking." Shi Feng instructed. Taking a step forward, Shi Feng rushed towards the Kobold Chieftain.

Wind Blade!

In the blink of an eye, Shi Feng had arrived in front of the Kobold Chieftain. The Kobold Chieftain had yet to react before two streaks of black light slashed at its neck. Suddenly, blood splashed from its neck, causing the Kobold Chieftain to scream in pain. Two frightening damages appeared above its head.

-63, -128...

The Kobold Chieftain finally reacted. However, just as it lifted its giant ax, another sword flash passed through an unprotected area of its body.

Chop!

Another -105 damage appeared on the Kobold Chieftain. The power of a Level 4 Chop was shocking.

When the giant ax landed on the ground, it created a large crater. However, Shi Feng had long since retreated and followed up by using a Level 4 Thundering Flash.

Three streaks of violent thunder passed through the Kobold Chieftain's gigantic body, creating damages of -84, -101, -123.

Shi Feng had taken over 600 HP away from the Kobold Chieftain after just a single exchange. The might of the Famed Sword, the Abyssal Blade even shocked Shi Feng himself.

Blackie, who stood a distance away, was even more dumbfounded.

Chapter 18 - nine dragon slash

The Kobold Chieftain became enraged when he was dealt the heavy damage by Shi Feng's surprise attack. The blood that leaked from its wound became its stimulant.

The Kobold Chieftain raised its giant ax, bombarding Shi Feng with one attack after another.

The Kobold Chieftain could not react appropriately towards Shi Feng's previous surprise attack. It could only instinctively attack, so its attacks were aggressive.

Against the wild attacks of the Kobold Chieftain, even a Level 5 Shield Warrior or Guardian Knight would die within an instant.

Shi Feng could only retreat under such intense attacks. He did not have any chance to retaliate. He also needed to dodge the incoming rubble the size of fists. If they hit him, it would cause quite an amount of damage.

A man and a beast exchanged moves at high speeds. If it were an average man, he most likely would not be able to make a single move. He would be halved by the giant ax, becoming very much dead.

"Blackie, hurry and attack it. I can't hold on for much longer."

Shi Feng had been dodging for a whole seven or eight seconds now. When he saw Blackie, having yet to attack, he shouted loudly.

They were currently facing a Chieftain Boss, not a little Elite. The attack patterns of a Chieftain Boss were not as monotonous as an Elite's; it had a variety of attacks. The Chieftain Boss was a monster that possessed intelligence. It would even change its attack pattern for specific players. Couple that with a strength that was two to three times that of a normal Elite, the Chieftain Boss was stronger than an Elite by at least four times.

Although Shi Feng had only exchanged blows with the Kobold Chieftain for seven or eight seconds, it felt like several minutes had gone by. Just from blocking attacks and the occasional counter attack had already taken over 100 HP from Shi Feng. If this situation continued, it wouldn't be long before his HP reached 0.

With the Famed Sword, Abyssal Blade, Shi Feng's Attributes were greatly increased. It allowed three Hidden Basic Skills that were most important to a melee player to be activated. With these Skills, Shi Feng was able to exhibit extraordinary attacks and dodges continuously. If he did not possess the Abyssal Blade, Shi Feng would have died long ago.

"Ah, I'll come help you, Brother Feng." Blackie realized his mistake as he finally reacted. He hurriedly waved his staff, his mouth chanting a curse. After aiming at the Kobold Chieftain, he shot a Dark Arrow.

The Dark Arrow landed on the Kobold Chieftain's body, only dealing 17 points of damage.

Blackie's mouth became wide open after seeing this damage. He couldn't help becoming astonished by a Chieftain monster's Defense. Blackie could cause over 50 damage if he attacked a Level 5 monster, however, it was only a third of that amount now. It could be seen how shocking a Chieftain monster's Defense was. On the other hand, Shi Feng could deal over a hundred damage in a hit. What kind of Attack Power was that?

Shi Feng abruptly slashed the Abyssal Blade in mid-battle.

Chop!

A black light dug itself through a gap in the Kobold Chieftain's attack.

Peng! Shi Feng took three steps backward before stabilizing his body, over 30 damage appearing above his head. On the other hand, only the Kobold Chieftain's giant ax was pushed back, pausing slightly in midair.

"It worked. It seems like my Strength is just barely enough." Shi Feng was very satisfied with the attack this time.

During battles within God's Domain, not only could players defend and dodge, but they could also interrupt a monster's attack; this would cause the monster's attack to stop briefly, ending the monster's offensive. It was a high-leveled battle technique. Such techniques only started becoming popular half a year after God's Domain's opening, especially in Boss battles. If the MT (main tank) did not learn such techniques, the end-result would be a party-wipe. This was because there were no players capable of blocking a Boss' crazed and continuous attacks.

The Kobold Chieftain's momentary pause had caused it to reveal a weak point.

Shi Feng rushed in without hesitation. Gathering all his strength into his hand, Shi Feng gripped the Abyssal Blade tightly and continuously struck the Kobold Chieftain.

Four streaks of sword light hit the unarmored parts of the Kobold Chieftain.

With the damage amplification effect, Shi Feng's attack instantly took to 300 HP away from the Kobold Chieftain. Adding in Blackie's attack, the Kobold Chieftain only had little over 900 HP remaining.

"Ao! Ao! Ao!" The Kobold Chieftain started going into a frenzy. It threw its giant ax to a side, pulling out two machetes from its waist.

The change in weapons caused the Kobold Chieftain's attack patterns to change.

If the Kobold Chieftain was a Berserker when he held the giant ax, then after wielding the pair of blades, the Kobold Chieftain was a dual-wielding Swordsman. The Kobold Chieftain now combined Strength with Agility, no longer just using violence to oppress its opponent.

The attack pattern of the pair of blades was no longer monotonous. The Kobold Chieftain's attack speed had a large increase as well. Just after Shi Feng dodged one of the blades, the other came following behind. Shi Feng hurriedly used the Abyssal Blade to block it.

Dazzling sparks were created when the blade and sword intersected with each other. Shi Feng's entire person was sent flying away.

When Shi Feng was still in midair, he saw the Kobold Chieftain leaping with all its might, it's machete raised high for a frontal assault.

"Is it going all out?" Shi Feng was shocked, hurriedly using...

Parry!

Hong!

The Abyssal Blade blocked the machete. However, Shi Feng was like a meteorite as he fell heavily to the ground. Shi Feng had thought the Kobold Chieftain's attack to be over. However, as it fell from the sky, its twin blades plunged downwards as well, with Shi Feng's chest as their target.

Shi Feng was unable to move to dodge the attack.

"Phantom Kill!"

Instantly, a doppelganger of Shi Feng appeared 3 yards away from him. With lightning speed, Shi Feng swapped places with his doppelganger.

When the Kobold Chieftain landed, both its blades stabbed into the doppelganger's chest. The doppelganger's HP madly fell, over 300 HP disappearing within an instant.

Just as the Kobold Chieftain revealed an excited smile, Shi Feng appeared behind its back. The Abyssal Blade in his hand was also letting out a faint black glow.

Nine Dragons Slash!

Nine phantoms of the Abyssal Blade appeared, silently floating in midair and circling Shi Feng.

Although Shi Feng could not completely control all nine swords, using the nine of them for a simple attack was not a problem.

Shashasha......

Nine Abyssal Blades danced as if they were playful sprites, continuously penetrating the Kobold Chieftain's body.

Small values that were just over -10 continuously appeared on the Kobold Chieftain's head. Although the damage was very low, the quantity was high. Including Shi Feng's Chop and normal attacks, the Kobold Chieftain's HP fell close to 500 HP.

Seeing the Kobold Chieftain wanting to turn around, Shi Feng did not dare give it any chance for a counterattack. Immediately, Shi Feng used Abyssal Bind. The Kobold Chieftain could not move for 3 seconds, and its Defense was reduced by 100%.

In a battle, where even blinking would get you killed, three seconds was enough to change the results.

The Kobold Chieftain could not move after being bound by the pitch-black chains which came from the Abyssal Blade. The nine Abyssal Blades continued attacking without stop, creating damages of over -20 with each hit. The Kobold Chieftain's HP madly fell, leaving it with only around 200 HP within a moment.

"Awoo!" The Kobold Chieftain bellowed as it became thoroughly berserk, its body size becoming two-folds larger.

Shi Feng watched as the 3 seconds passed by. The Kobold Chieftain's strength was no joke after becoming completely berserk. Its strength had increased by at least 30%.

However, all of Shi Feng's attacks and lifesaving skills were still on cooldown.

As if having seen through Shi Feng's distress, the Kobold Chieftain's face revealed a mocking expression. Two large blades came crashing towards Shi Feng, their speeds like that of flying arrows.

At the moment of life and death, Shi Feng noticed a Kobold miner respawning from the corner of his eyes.

Immediately, Shi Feng activated Gravity Liberation, followed by Wind Blade.

With lightning speed, Shi Feng dodged the chop from the twin blades and rushed towards the Kobold miner's front.

"Ao! Ao! Ao!" When the Kobold Chieftain saw the near-death Shi Feng actually dodging its attack, its strong legs abruptly stomped on the ground, pushing it straight towards Shi Feng.

Blackie felt chills down his back as he watched Shi Feng fighting. Regardless, his mouth never stopped chanting curses, sending out one Dark Arrow after another. However, the Kobold Chieftain's speed was too fast, trying to hit it was just too hard. Fortunately, there was more than a 20-yard distance between the Kobold Chieftain and Shi Feng. The Kobold Chieftain would still need some time to catch up to Shi Feng. Within this period, Shi Feng might even be able to kill off the Kobold Chieftain with the nine phantoms of the Abyssal Blade.

However, both Shi Feng and Blackie had underestimated the Kobold Chieftain's explosive strength. Not only were its Strength and Defense greatly increased, even its Agility had a great increase.

It only took 2 seconds for the Kobold Chieftain to reach over 20 yards.

The Kobold Chieftain lifted its twin blades, strongly slashing it down.

The Kobold miner in front of Shi Feng was split into two, and a rain of blood fell 5 yards around it. This slash had closely brushed past Shi Feng's cheek, nearly taking his life away.

Seeing the Kobold Chieftain preparing to slash down its other blade, Shi Feng strongly raised the Abyssal Blade in his hand. Three streaks of thunder penetrated the Kobold Chieftain's body, taking away its last remaining 130 HP.

Seeing the Kobold Chieftain finally fall, Shi Feng let loose a breath of relief.

The Chieftain monster is truly too strong. Even if Shi Feng came here at Level 5 fully equipped with Bronze Equipment, he would still be a goner. He could only kill it due to luck. Compared to a Level 2 Thundering Flash, the Level 4 Thundering Flash only had a cooldown of 24 seconds. The cooldown had finished just in time, allowing Shi Feng to escape death.

System: Level 5 Kobold Chieftain killed. Level difference of 5. EXP obtained increased by 500%. Obtained 2350 EXP.

Shi Feng immediately rose to 76% of Level 1.

System: Congratulations for becoming the first player to kill a Chieftain monster. Kobold Chieftain's item drop increased by 200%. Reputation in Star-Moon Kingdom increased by 10 points.

Suddenly, the Kobold Chieftain's body started expanding. Its size continued increasing until its body exploded with a boom, scattering a pile of items all over the floor.

Chapter 19 - Evil whip

When the Kobold Chieftain exploded, items scattered all over the floor. Copper Coins paved the floor as well in a copper glow, shining through the entire mine as if celebrating Shi Feng's success.

At the moment, Blackie sat paralyzed on the ground, cold sweat pervading his entire body. It was as if all of his strength was sapped out from his body; he could not care less about the drops on the ground. This battle was truly difficult. There was no time to even take a breath; every minute and every second were a soul-shocking moment that stimulated the eyes.

Every moment of the battle just toyed with Blackie's heart. He would not be able to take it at all if he did not have a strong heart.

As for Shi Feng, who could battle against the Kobold Chieftain head-on, what kind of heart did he possess?

"This is too great! We won, Brother Feng! You really are my idol!" Blackie loudly shouted in extreme excitement. Seeing Shi Feng's calm face, Blackie was filled with respect for him.

Although Shi Feng's former strength was quite good, surpassing many average players, he was still just an average professional player. Shi Feng's skill had never been out of reach for Blackie. Shi Feng had been previously quick to get excited. He would even get into an endless conflict over a piece of common equipment as if he was an unsheathed blade. However, the current Shi Feng was hugely different than before; it was as if he became a different person. The present Shi Feng was extremely calm and did things without hesitation. He gave off a certain serenity that resembled that of a dormant dragon; he did not do anything outstanding normally; yet when he did, it would shock the world.

"Blackie, wasn't your idol Gentle Snow?" Shi Feng slightly smiled as he said so.

"Of course Gentle Snow is my idol. However, you're awesome as well, Brother Feng! Usually, you keep quiet without revealing anything, but now that you've shown it, even such a powerful Kobold Chieftain was done in by you. Not even a true professional gamer could compare to you, so how could I not admire you? As they said, the shade is better under a large tree. Brother Feng, you should teach me how to play a Cursemancer! Even in my dreams, I've dreamt of becoming a professional gamer." In Blackie's eyes, Shi Feng was just like a mountain of gold. He was glad for the choice he had previously made. If he had gone to Shadow Workshop, he would probably still be a nameless gold-farming member. He wouldn't even have the chance to meet an expert; forget about becoming a real expert.

"Alright." Shi Feng smiled. Blackie's character was just so straightforward.

When Shi Feng was fired in his previous life, Blackie had resigned as well, without hesitation. Blackie had given up a job with an annual income of millions just to share the suffering together with him. Naturally, Shi Feng wouldn't betray Blackie; he would teach Blackie whatever he could. Although Shi Feng had not played a Cursemancer before, he had still observed plenty of expert Cursemancers. Shi Feng knew the general direction to develop a Cursemancer, and it was more than enough to give pointers to Blackie.

"Brother Feng, how do you think I should place my points early on? Do I go full Intelligence?" Blackie asked.

Shi Feng shook his head, saying after some thought, "Although it isn't bad to go full Intelligence during the beginning periods, Agility is a must if you wish to become a powerful Cursemancer. Aside from just increasing your Movement Speed, Agility can also increase your Casting Speed. Cursemancers have very few lifesaving skills, are slow runners, and have many skills that require chanting. A Cursemancer's Spells are also weak in power. They mainly rely on Curses to deal damage. However, unlike Elementalists, who are literal cannons, time is required for a Cursemancer to unleash that damage fully. Hence, after adding Intelligence up to 20 points, you should place half of your Free Ability Points into Agility. This will ensure your safety as well as allow you deal more damage."

In Shi Feng's previous life, there was an extremely powerful Cursemancer. That person had broken the traditional point-allocation method of a Cursemancer by adding a large amount of Agility. Not only could he deal damage both quickly and fiercely, but he was even more powerful in PK. He had destroyed Assassins that were counters to mages. Even in death, those Assassins had not landed a single hit on that Cursemancer, breaking the law that stated mages would die if they were closed in by a melee player. After that incident, many Cursemancers had started adding Agility, causing Assassins to be endlessly depressed as they became bullied constantly by Cursemancers.

Blackie nodded his head. He felt that Shi Feng's words made sense, saying with a smile, "Alright then. After my Intelligence reaches 20 points, I'll go full Agility."

After finished discussing how to add points for a Cursemancer, Shi Feng and Blackie started picking up the drops.

The Kobold Chieftain deserved to be a Chieftain-ranked monster. Adding on that it was the First Kill, its drops were extremely bountiful.

It had dropped a total of 8 pieces of Bronze Equipment; 1 Gray Giant Axe, 2 Plate Armor, 2 Leather Armor, 3 Cloth Armor. Aside from those, there were also 273 Coppers and 3 skill books. There was [Mock] for Shield Warriors, [Silent Steps] for Assassins, and [Evil Whip] for Cursemancers.

"Blackie, your luck really is too good. This Evil Whip skill book is rare with an extremely low drop rate. It is also one of the few control-and-damage skills that a Cursemancer has. As long as the skill's level is high, it will become a godly skill for grinding monsters." Shi Feng tossed the Evil Whip skill book to Blackie without hesitation. He also gave two of the Level 2 Cloth Armor to Blackie.

[Evil Whip]

Cast time 3 seconds.

Use 5 thorns to bind a target in a fixed area. As long as the target exits the area and breaks the thorns, every thorn will cause a base damage of 20 points, with an additional 30% Spell Damage.

Cooldown: 20 seconds.

Blackie became ecstatic when he saw the skill, learning it quickly. With this skill, his battle standards would be increased by a big leap. After he switched to the two pieces of equipment, it was as if he turned from an air gun into an artillery cannon. Blackie's Intelligence increased to 20 points, increasing his Spell Damage to 48, and also activating the Hidden Basic Skill for Intelligence, [Rapid Cast].

[Rapid Cast]

Allows the player to skip the chants of spells that are below 1.5 seconds, requiring only action to cast it.

Also, allows the caster to better focus on attacking their target.

As for the two pieces of Plate Armor, they were the [Recruit's Heavy Armor], and [Black Steel Armguard]. However, amongst these pieces of Bronze Equipment, Shi Feng only fancied the Black Steel Armguard's Attributes.

[Black Steel Armguard] (Bronze Rank, Plate Armor)

Level 3

Equipment Requirements: Strength 9

Defense +14

Strength +2, Endurance +2, Agility +1

Durability 20/20

The Recruit's Heavy Armor was just mediocre. The Level 5 Recruit's Heavy Armor could not compare to the Sky Armor at all. However, Plate Armors were still precious so it could be sold for a good price.

The two pieces of Level 3 Bronze Leather Armor could be sold as well.

Amongst these pieces of equipment, the most valuable one was the Gray Giant Ax. It was definitely the darling of Berserkers.

[Gray Giant Ax] (Bronze Rank)

Level 5

Equipment Requirements: Strength 15

Attack Power +21

Strength +5, Endurance +2

Durability 30/30

It was the absolute weapon for violence. If a Berserker got ahold of this weapon, their damage would become extremely violent and horrifying.

"If I could create a hype over this Gray Giant Ax, it would definitely be worth a lot of money," Shi Feng slightly smiled. He had a plan in his heart to make a load of money using the Gray Giant Axe.

Afterward, Shi Feng and Blackie returned to the smithy.

"Master Jack, I've killed the Kobold Chieftain. This is its skull." Shi Feng said respectfully as he took out a Kobold's skull.

Master Jack, who was currently hammering away on steel, glanced at the Kobold skull. After he confirmed that Shi Feng had done it, he satisfyingly said, "Not bad, young man. It seems you do have the right to inherit my forging skills."

System: Hidden Quest 'Road Of Forging' completed. Player has learned Forging. Player has become a Basic Forging Apprentice. Player has obtained the Forging Talent, 'Forging Genius'. Rewarding 10 pieces of [Hundred Refinement Steel]

[Forging Genius]

After a successful forging, there is a fixed chance to increase 2 Proficiency Points.

Two Proficiency Points were not to be looked down on. It should be known that a Basic Forging Apprentice making a piece of Common Equipment only had a 20% success rate. After successfully making the equipment, there was a 40% chance to obtain 1 Proficiency Point. Now, however, Shi Feng had a chance to obtain 2 Proficiency Points as long as his forging was successful, increasing his efficiency for promotion to the next rank by several folds.

Becoming an Intermediate Forging Apprentice required 1000 Proficiency Points. An average player required more than ten days, at the very least, to become one. Their supply of materials must also be continuous, as the horrifying rate of failure would waste large amounts of materials. With the Forging Talent, Shi Feng could now save a lot of materials, saving him quite the amount of money.

On the other hand, Hundred Refinement Steel was a good Support Material for making Bronze Equipment. It could increase the success rate of making a Bronze Equipment by 10%.

With the Forging Talent and Book Of Forging, Shi Feng couldn't help but wish to start forging equipment immediately. However, he needed materials if he wanted to forge equipment, and in a large amount as well. If he were to collect the materials himself, it would waste too much time. He could only purchase them in bulk. However, that required a lot of money. Not only that, making Common Equipment would not earn him any money, but instead cause him to lose it. Only Bronze Equipment could be sold for a good price, but that required Forging Designs that Shi Feng did not have.

"Deathly Forest is a must-go." Shi Feng thought about the Bronze Equipment Forging Design that could be obtained from within the Deathly Forest. The equipment that could be forged using the Forging Design was both cheap to make and had very good Attributes. In his previous life, there were quite a few Forgers who became rich because of that Design.

Just as Shi Feng turned around to leave...

"Young man, you truly make me look differently at you. Even after so many years of forging weapons, it is still my first time seeing a Magic Weapon." Master Jack called out to Shi Feng. He had sent his gaze towards the pitch-black sword hanging around Shi Feng's waist. Even if the black sword was rusty and looked like a fire poker, it could not escape the eyes of a Master Forger.

Chapter 20 - Curse of the abyssal blade

Shi Feng was surprised when Master Jack stopped him.

"Young man, are you willing to let me have a look at this sword?" Master Jack looked at Shi Feng with eyes filled with a burning desire. His tone was no longer indifferent, but instead a little whispered.

"This......" Shi Feng was at a loss at Master Jack's sudden initiative request.

However, it seemed logical after Shi Feng gave it some thought.

The preciousness of a Magic Weapon, not to mention a Famed Sword forged by a master smith, went without saying. A Famed Sword was the lifelong pursuit of every Master Forger. They would definitely want to experience it after seeing one.

Seeing Shi Feng hesitating, Master Jack quickly said, "You can be at ease. I only wish to see it, and I won't let it be for nothing. If you have any requests, do mention them."

When Shi Feng heard this sentence, he became extremely excited.

This was a Master Forger!

Just by simply forging, he could create a piece of equipment of Mysterious-Iron rank, Secret-Silver rank even. His request was just to have a look at Shi Feng's sword.

Shi Feng agreed without hesitation. He passed the Abyssal Blade over to Master Jack.

NPCs couldn't steal items from players, so he was completely unworried whether or not Master Jack would do away with the Abyssal Blade. He would allow Master Jack to look at it however he wished Afterward, Shi Feng would ask for a Secret-Silver One-handed Sword. By then, he would be able to fully display a Swordsman's true strength.

Master Jack held the Abyssal Blade that looked like a fire poker, both praising the delicateness of the blade and marveling at its strength. After looking at it for over ten minutes, Master Jack unwillingly returned the Abyssal Blade to Shi Feng.

"Young man, this is a good and infinitely powerful sword. However, the curse on this sword is extremely evil. The more you unleash the power of this sword, the stronger the curse will get. At the very end, its wielder will become trapped in the endless Abyss. It will be too difficult if you wish to control this sword with your strength, and the curse will easily devour you," Master Jack earnestly cautioned.

Shi Feng knew about this point. Otherwise, he wouldn't have hesitated for such a long time before binding the Abyssal Blade.

"Master Jack, do you perhaps have any methods to weaken the curse?" Shi Feng asked.

Although he knew some weakening methods, he did not have the ability to carry them out right now.

"Young man, you should know that the master smith Olysses forged this sword. There is only one of it in God's Domain, and only one of the other thirty-five Famed Swords could match up to it. Many unimaginably terrifying existences were killed in order for these Famed Swords to possess unparalleled power. After death, these existences were sealed into each sword by master smiths. It was impossible to suppress these swords without extremely great power." Master Jack's tone was filled with unparalleled reverence, but he immediately smiled and said, "However, it isn't that there is no way to weaken the curse."

"May I ask what kind of method is there?" Shi Feng quickly asked.

"If you wish to suppress a great power, you would need an equally great power to do so. The power sealed within the sword is a curse. If you wish to weaken it, you will need to have sufficiently great luck." Master Jack lamented, "In the continent of God's Domain, some stones have gathered the luck of God's Domain. These stones are named Lucky Stones. As long as you have a Lucky Stone, then you could counterbalance the curse. Although this piece of stone could be found throughout the whole continent, there are only a very few people who could obtain it. Even I have not seen it before. Trying to find one is truly too difficult. If you can find a piece of this stone, then I can help you weaken the curse on your sword."

Seeing Shi Feng's slack expression, Master Jack shook his head in consolation, saying, "Young man, you have to know that the Lucky Stone is extremely rare. You shouldn't feel discouraged. It is normal not being able to find one. Only those who are blessed by God can obtain a Lucky Stone, and they are people that we cannot compare to."

"Master Jack, is it this piece of stone?" Shi Feng slightly smiled as he took out the dark-green colored Star Crystal.

"Right, this is a Lucky Stone......" Master Jack nodded his head after seeing the dark-green colored Star Crystal. However, he became stunned a moment later. He was looking at Shi Feng as if he were looking at a monster.

Shi Feng shrugged his shoulders, indicating that it was nothing.

Shi Feng had been sluggish before because he found out that Master Jack was able to use the Lucky Stone to suppress the Abyssal Blade. It should be known that there was quite a few Master Forgers in the Star-Moon Kingdom. However, the number of Master Forgers capable of using a Lucky Stone to suppress the curse of a Magic Weapon could be counted on a single hand. Shi Feng had never thought that the Master Jack in front of him would be one of them.

"Master Jack, can you weaken the curse now?" Shi Feng asked with anticipation.

After a few moments, Master Jack finally recovered to his previous calmness. Pretending to be indifferent, he said, "Ok, no problem. I can finish it within half an hour."

To the side, Blackie held onto his stomach as he tried his best not to laugh. However, Master Jack's stupefied expression was truly too much for Blackie; he had to run off into the forest before laughing loudly.

Half an hour later, Shi Feng received the Abyssal Blade. He discovered some changes to the Abyssal Blade's introduction.

The Abyssal Blade was personally created by master smith Olysses, using the Black Dragon King's fangs as material. It is one of thirty-six famed swords, and it is ranked 31st. However, this sword has been cursed by the Black Dragon King. Aside from being able to provide the wielder with immense strength, there will be a Backlash every so often. However, after being remodeled by Jack using a Star Crystal, the strength of the Backlash has been greatly reduced. If the wielder is unable to suppress the Backlash, then the wielder will receive the curse of the Black Dragon King, permanently reducing All Attributes by 50%.

Shi Feng's heart relaxed by a lot after seeing the description in this paragraph of words. At the very least, the Backlash won't be too powerful in a short period of time.

Shi Feng stored away the Abyssal Blade. Suddenly, he noticed a lot of messages that had been sent by Lonely Snow. All of the messages asked why Shi Feng had yet to arrive, and how much longer would he need to reach the Deathly Forest.

"Blackie, let's go dive into a Dungeon." Shi Feng sent a reply message stating that he would come immediately.

Because of the issue with the Abyssal Blade, Shi Feng had completely forgotten about the appointed time. He let Lonely Snow wait more than half an hour. However, Shi Feng would make the appropriate compensations within the Deathly Forest.

"Okay. I was just worrying that I won't have a chance to try out my new spells," Blackie said excitedly.

When Shi Feng and Blackie arrived at the Dungeon Area of the Deathly Forest, the entire Deathly Forest was filled with people. Level 2 players were everywhere, and many players were forming parties to enter the Dungeon.

"Open party for Deathly Forest, welcoming violent damage dealers, 4 waiting for 2."

"Effective party for Deathly Forest, we are just missing a powerful healer; guaranteed to clear."

Seeing such a scene, Shi Feng shook his head slightly. He walked towards Lonely Snow who was waving his arm. In Shi Feng's previous life, the players had been stuck at the Deathly Forest for a long time. The Dungeon was only cleared when the majority of players were Level 5.

"Brother Expert, you're finally here. Those friends of mine are already becoming impatient from waiting. Let us hurry." Lonely Snow was burning with anxiety when he saw Shi Feng leisurely walking over.

Afterward, Lonely Snow brought Shi Feng and Blackie to the gathering point of the party.

"Lonely, this is the expert you said? I thought he was a person with three heads and six arms, but it seems he's nothing more than this." The male Cleric, Wordless Summer Night saw Shi Feng wearing novice equipment. There was also a fire poker that hung around his waist; it looked as if it was some trash weapon he had randomly picked up. When Wordless Summer Night saw this, he couldn't help but ridicule.

"Brother Wordless, how could you say such things about Brother 'Expert'? He is a dignified Beta Tester, so he definitely must have 'something extraordinary'. Otherwise, how would he dare to take all equipment for Swordsman and Cursemancer?" The Shield Warrior, Battle To The End, stood to the side and sneered.

The two of them had already felt displeasure for Shi Feng. This was because Shi Feng had wanted to take away all Plate Armor and Mage Equipment immediately after joining. Wouldn't they just be working away for nothing? If it were not for their Boss wanting to have a look at Shi Feng, they would have long since invited other players and dove into the Dungeon. Now that they saw Shi Feng in such poor equipment, they could criticize him and force him to leave.

Lonely Snow wanted to retort as Shi Feng was someone he had personally invited. However, Shi Feng's equipment did not give Lonely Snow any chance to do so. He could only stare in silence.

"Alright, let's party up. A lot of people have already entered the Deathly Forest. If we don't dive in, we won't have a chance at competing for the First Kill." As the party's leader, the handsome male Ranger, Waving Slowly But Surely interrupted as he said.

Blackie wanted to argue back, but Shi Feng stopped him. Shi Feng thought nothing of the two people's ridicule. No matter what he said, he and Blackie had left them waiting for more than half an hour, so couldn't he just let them speak a few more sentences?

Just as they finished partying up, the Shield Warrior furiously said, "Crap, this noob is just Level 1! He's just here to swindle equipment!"

"Boss, Deathly Forest is a Level 2 Dungeon. If we let a Level 1 noob enter the Dungeon, aren't we just waiting to get wiped?" Wordless Summer Night looked towards the Ranger, Waving Slowly, showing his displeasure.

Lonely Snow was equally shocked when he saw Shi Feng's level.

It should be known that many players had already risen to Level 2. How was it possible for a Beta Tester not to reach Level 2?

Boss Waving Slowly looked towards Shi Feng. Before this, he still had some hope for Shi Feng, but now it was all gone. He suddenly said in a cold tone, "Did you die once before this?"

"Nope." Shi Feng shook his head, honestly saying: "However, entering Deathly Forest at Level 1 is enough."

"Then you can go now. We don't need such an 'expert' like you here. We hope you can understand." Waving Slowly coldly said, his brows slightly wrinkled.

"Boss, this must be a misunderstanding. How about we try it out first?" Lonely Snow explained.

"Try it out?" Wordless Summer coldly laughed, "Then who will be responsible when we die? You should know that we still lose experience if we die in a Dungeon. Although it is low, that is still 10%. Can this noob repay such a loss?"

"Wordless, don't make it hard for Lonely." Waving Slowly repeatedly said, "Lonely, I know you are trying to cover for this Swordsman, but I have to take responsibility for our party. I will only find veterans to enter the Dungeon. I will not waste time partying up with a novice. You have two choices now; one is to follow us into the Dungeon, two is to leave the party together with them."

"I will leave the party." Shi Feng did not want to embarrass Lonely Snow. He immediately left the party, turning to leave, "Blackie, we'll party up with other people and enter the Dungeon."

"Alright." Blackie smiled with a 'hehe', leaving the party without a second thought.

"Humph, humph. The 'expert's identity has been seen through. At least he has some self-awareness to leave after knowing he can't swindle equipment anymore." The Shield Warrior grinned and jeered, "Lonely, you really are gullible. Such a noob would trick only you. You need to learn properly from Boss Waving Slowly in the future."

Lonely Snow's face turned livid after hearing this. However, he did not feel that he was mistaken; Shi Feng was definitely an expert.

"Boss Waving Slowly, sorry for this." Lonely Snow chose to leave the party. He was prepared to join Shi Feng in order to determine whether or not his judgment was correct.

"You!" Waving Slowly was immediately stunned. He never thought Lonely Snow would be so decisive. It was simply a foolish decision. He would have long since chased Lonely Snow away if it wasn't because he had good techniques.

Wordless Summer Night looked towards Lonely Snow, saying with a cold smile, "Lonely, you better not regret the choice you made. You'll regret when we clear the Deathly Forest and obtain great equipment. You'll regret it for ten years, twenty years that you didn't follow Boss Waving Slowly."