The small flask, which held the water from the spring, had a dreamy luster in the sunlight, and it reflected the old beggar's face, which was filled with amazement.
At that moment, the old beggar was stunned.
The players in the vicinity were also shocked, and they stopped what they were doing.
Nobody could have predicted that the black-haired youth would take out a small flask of water and hand it to the notorious old beggar. What was even more surprising, however, was that the small flask he was offering was the Quest Item, Small Blessed Flask!
The youth who was doing this went by the name of Ye Kong!
Or, more accurately, he went by his game ID, lacuna!
"That youth called lacuna... wasn't he the player who was in front of everyone else when we were racing over here?!"
"You're right! It's him! He was the one who managed to get ahead of us on the way over here!"
"No wonder I didn't see him until now—it turns out he'd gone to accept the spring water quest!"
Just then, the players in the vicinity recognized Ye Kong, and at that moment, they also made the same judgement about him:
"Looks like that lacuna is some kind of master at the game! But this is the first time I've seen that name..."
"You never know. Maybe the guy purposely changed his game ID so that we couldn't figure out his identity."
"That's true. Some players use different names from the ones they used during the closed beta test period so they can hide their identity from other people..."
During this time, the players quickly came to the conclusion that "lacuna" was a smurf—a professional player who'd changed his name to keep his identity a secret.
"So, you guys, in your opinion, who do you think is smurfing under the name 'lacuna'?"
"It's hard to say, but it's highly possible that he's a real alpha tester (3rd Test player). Compared to closed beta players (4th Test players) like us, he probably knows a lot more about the game's contents... that's probably why he's using the item from the spring water quest!"
When the nearby players heard this, they clenched their teeth in frustration. They were all secretly upset with themselves. "That's right! The small water flask from the spring water quest is a liquid material. Why didn't I think of that earlier?!"
"So that's the trick to activating the quest from the old beggar!"
"I guess he's not a real alpha tester for nothing. This advantage was deeply hidden..."
As the players in the vicinity started watching Ye Kong's every move in awe, a loud roar could suddenly be heard.
"You have betrayed the trust of the Horticultural Church!"
The Horticultural Priest, Pulitzer, who was close by, stared furiously at Ye Kong while loudly reprimanding him. "That blessed spring water is a gift of grace bestowed upon the devotees of the Horticultural Church, and it is not something to be used for your own personal benefit.
"The Forest Watchman, Pier, is plagued by his rheumatism, yet he continues to spend his life guarding the forest, acting according to the doctrines of the God of Horticulture. He is a loyal and faithful devotee, and he deserves the aid of the Horticultural Church!
"However, you have ruined everything. You have acted without my permission and have handed the blessed spring water to an old beggar!"
Pulitzer raised one hand and pointed a finger at Ye Kong, then issued a solemn oath.
"Your abominable deeds shall incur the wrath of the God of Horticulture!"
The words had barely left Pulitzer's mouth when Ye Kong received a notification.
System Notification: Your actions have incurred the ire of the Horticultural Church. Your reputation score with the Horticultural Church has dropped by 10 points.
System Notification: Your reputation level with the Horticultural Church has dropped to "Neutral."
When Ye Kong saw this, his eyes narrowed.
"As expected, my reputation has been reduced."
A player's reputation with a faction determined how he would be treated by the faction's NPCs. It also determined the level of quest he could receive from each faction.
According to the rules of "Demon Realm," when a player's reputation with a faction dropped to "Hostile," the NPCs belonging to that faction would refuse to interact with the player. If the player's reputation dropped even further to "Hated," the NPCs of that faction would attack the player on sight.
In summary, a player's reputation score was a key element in how he played the game, and it was something that shouldn't be overlooked.
Pulitzer's proclamation stirred up heated discussions among the players who were watching:
"Did that lacuna guy just get his reputation score reduced?"
"That's right. The declaration that priest just made confirms the stance of the Horticultural Church. His action was deemed unforgivable! When something like this happens, you guys understand what it means, right?"
"Mmm, his reputation score with the Horticultural Church has definitely taken a hit."
At that point in time, all of the players who had made their way to the residential district were essentially an elite group of gamers (closed beta players). When they heard what Pulitzer had to say, they immediately guessed the truth of the matter.
Not too far away, bigcat frowned. As he connected the dots in his mind, he came to the most crucial piece of this puzzle.
"If that lacuna is willing to sacrifice his reputation, it's probably safe to assume that the reward from the old beggar is going to be something amazing!"
With this thought fresh in his mind, bigcat kept his eyes fixed on lacuna. He wanted to see what he would get as a reward. What on earth could it be?
Strollingkitty also gazed at lacuna, a hint of curiosity and admiration in her eyes. Someone who could come up with the idea of using the spring water quest to meet the old beggar's needs was nothing short of a genius!
The nearby players all stopped in their tracks, and everyone's eyes were now focused on Ye Kong.
At that moment, Ye Kong became the center of everyone's attention.
"My belief is that giving the spring water to help someone in need is the correct way of using it. It doesn't matter to me whether that person is the forest watchman or this pitiful old man."
Ye Kong ignored Pulitzer and his murderous stare, then turned to face the old beggar. "Do you agree with me?" he said with a smile. "Do you need my help, old mister?"
"You've hit the nail on the head."
The old beggar squinted, and there was a slight gleam in his eyes. Then, under the watchful eyes of all the players, the old beggar dug out from his breast pocket... one Copper.
Pata!
The old beggar tossed the copper coin by Ye Kong's feet, as though mocking his efforts.
"Puhahahaha!!!"
The players around him immediately burst into laughter. Some of the players were laughing so hard that they were bent over, clutching their stomachs.
"Hahahaha. I still thought there might be a special reward, but it's the same?!"
"One Copper? WTF! hahahahaha!"
"Gave little ol' me a fright. I thought we were witnessing a master, but he was just some scrub! Hahahahaha!"
"Hahahahaha! Is he trying to get me to laugh to death so he can get my inheritance? Hahahahahahaha!"
In this short span of time, the dark side of human nature was exposed. Before, the other players were in awe of Ye Kong, but now they were ridiculing him, putting him down as if he were nothing more than an insect.
"Ah, another fellow who 'went for wool and came back shorn.'" As he watched the scene unfold, bigcat shook his head. "Kitty, we should go. Let's not waste any more time."
Clearly, in bigcat's eyes, Ye Kong was just a failure who was unworthy of his attention.
"Oh..."
Strollingkitty made a sound of acknowledgement, but she couldn't help but take one last look at Ye Kong. She didn't understand why, but she felt like the black-haired youth was hiding something...
At the same time...
Ye Kong ignored the jeering from the players around him. He crouched down and carefully picking up the copper coin, holding it in his hands. This was another unique feature of the game "Demon Realm."
Unlike other online games, the currency in the virtual world of "Demon Realm" could be placed in the player's inventory, or taken out as actual objects and held in the player's hands.
All types of coins, no matter if they were Gold, Silver, or Copper, could be taken out in this way, which made the game world feel incredibly realistic. Though perhaps it would be more accurate to say that "Demon Realm" already wasn't that much different from the real world.
Naturally, the game had protective measures in place so that other players couldn't steal each other's coins. However, when both parties agreed to a trade, coins could be exchanged in what was called a "physical transaction." Alternatively, by selecting the "Trade" option in the system quick-bar, both parties could perform a "virtual transaction."
Strangely enough, Ye Kong didn't place the copper coin in his inventory. Instead, as he continued to ignore the heckling from the other players, he nodded once at the old beggar and said, "Thank you, old mister."
Having said this, Ye Kong turned away without looking back and quickly left the residential district.
This series of events was interpreted quite differently by the onlooking players.
"He's leaving, he's leaving. Looks like that 'master' got discouraged, hahahaha!"
"Hahahaha, the master doesn't even want to do the 'Mail Delivery' now. Seems like he really took it to heart!"
"Well, can you blame him? He sacrificed his precious reputation score for a measly one Copper. He's practically lost the shirt off his back! Hahahahaha!"
"Show's over. I'm out, I'm out. I need to hurry and do 'Mail Delivery' now."
Having seen enough, the group of closed beta players all hurriedly entered Hudgens' alley and disappeared down the alleyway.
At the same time...
Ye Kong made his way out of the residential district and scurried into a small, secluded street. After he made sure that no one was around, he finally unclenched his fists, took the copper coin from his palm, and held it up to his eyes.
"hashe'loudm..."
Right away, Ye Kong found an inscription running along the inner edge of the copper coin. Just then, there was the sound of a system notification.
System Notification: You discovered an inscription on the mysterious copper coin. It's written in the common human language of this time, and its meaning is the Violet Mercantile Association.
System Notification: Congratulations, you have activated the Story Event, "The Hidden Traitor." The difficulty of this event is Elite Grade.
The Hidden Traitor: Players must reach the Violet Mercantile Association in 15 minutes. Otherwise, the quest will be failed.
As Ye Kong read this, there was a hint of a smile on his mouth. "As expected, the catalyst for the story event wasn't the Quest Item, Blessed Spring Water. The real condition was...
"Having the lowest overall reputation score of all the players in Qingmu Town!"