Nie Yan headed over to the Thief Association, his face hidden behind a cloak. He walked the streets of Calore, letting his gaze wander over his surroundings. Seeing players bustling about, discussing the latest gossip, haggling over prices at a stall—the usual sort of liveliness you would find in a large city—he felt a strong sense of familiarity and belonging. He was back home!
Even though Nie Yan had hidden his appearance behind a cloak, Kalenna hovering above his shoulder attracted the attention of many players. He felt a bit helpless. With her constantly by his side, it looked like staying low-key would no longer be possible.
Nie Yan discarded these unnecessary thoughts. Right now, he was the only Master Class player in the entirety of Conviction. In a few more weeks, a large number would emerge from Asskickers United, and from then on, they would stand at the very peak.
Nie Yan clenched his fists, his eyes burning with ambition. After Sun, King of the World, Xie Yao, and the others class advanced, he planned to set out on a campaign to conquer and unify the Viridian Empire! After that was the Satreen Empire!
The players on the street all gazed over in Nie Yan's direction and chatted with each other about Kalenna perched on top of his shoulder.
Nie Yan ignored their stares and entered the Thief association. The person at the reception was a 20-something-year-old NPC called Nia. Clad in leather Thief armour, she had a curvaceous figure with a girlish charm.
After raising her head and spotting Nie Yan, she had a dumbstruck look on her face. She snapped out of her daze and respectfully greeted him, "Sir Nirvana Flame, welcome to the Thief Association. Elder Fallon is looking for you. Please follow me."
"Aright." Nie Yan nodded. He didn't expect the Thief Association to already be looking for him. This saved him a lot of hassle.
Nie Yan followed Nia as she led him into a conference hall. In the center of the room was a large rectangular table surrounded by many chairs.
"We'll be entering your name into our records. You're the 67th Shadow Dancer of the Thief Association and the first among players. Elder Fallon will be here in a moment to give you your reward," Nia said. She took out a book and wrote down his name.
Nie Yan glossed over the contents of the book. Recorded in it were the names of all the Shadow Dancers throughout the Thief Association's history. Except for Nie Yan, they were all NPCs. His name was at the very bottom of the list.
"As a Shadow Dancer of the Thief Association, you'll have access to some special privileges. Besides this, your name will be announced to all the Thieves in the association…" Nia said. She handed over a silver white booklet containing various rules to Nie Yan. It was written in Modern Common.
Nie Yan skimmed over the book's contents. As a Shadow Dancer, the Thief Association didn't place many restrictions on him and only required him to follow some basic rules. For example, he had to lend his aid if the association was ever in danger of being destroyed. The pros far outweighed the cons. He would receive 3,000 gold every day, enjoy the best treatment in any of the branches of the Thief Association, and perhaps most importantly could hire mercenaries from the association. Among these mercenaries were even some Shadow Dancers. However, they were few and far between and not easily found. Most mercenaries were Great Thieves.
Nie Yan checked his notification bar. All Thieves had received a notification.
Nirvana Flame has become the first player to advance to a Shadow Dancer.
The notification was short and simple, but it had dropped a bomb on the entire player base. News of Nie Yan becoming a Shadow Dancer spread like wildfire, creating a huge uproar.
Asskickers United's players had also received the news. The guild chat exploded with activity.
「The boss became a Shadow Dancer?」
「The boss is invincible!」
「So amazing! He's the first Master Class player in the entire game!」
...
Everyone wagged their tongues fervently. They all wanted to know what the skills of a Shadow Dancer looked like, waiting in anticipation for Nie Yan to demonstrate his new battle prowess. However, he rarely showed himself, even to them. So, they could only patiently wait.
Nie Yan smiled after checking the guild chat. His class advancement to a Luminous Dancer was a cause for celebration for the players of Asskickers United. He had proven to his guild members that no matter when or where, they would always stand at the top.
Nie Yan patiently waited in the conference hall. After a while, an NPC walked in. It was Elder Fallon of the Thief Association. He had gray hair, and though he looked old, his eyes were full of spirit.
"Greetings, Sir Nirvana Flame. I am Elder Fallon. Congratulations on becoming a Shadow Dancer. This medal is your reward. Please accept it." Fallon handed over an azure coloured, crystal medal to Nie Yan. Sparkling and translucent, its edges were gilded with violet gold, and it was covered in elaborate and ornate engravings.
Nie Yan accepted the medal.
Shadow Dancer Medal of Honour (Legendary)
Properties: Dexterity +50%, Movement Speed +200%, Gale Step Skill Rank +5, Enhanced Invisibility Effect
Phantom (Passive): Confuse your enemies with a phantom mirror image. 70% chance of dodging an attack while running.
Restrictions: Nirvana Flame
Note: Cannot be dropped, destroyed, or traded.
"Huh!? These properties are way better than I expected." Nie Yan was puzzled. In the previous timeline, a Shadow Dancer had shared the stats of their medal on the forums. Theirs only gave Dexterity +30% and Movement Speed +100% while Phantom only had a 50% chance of dodging an attack. Furthermore, he recalled it was Sub Legendary.
When Nie Yan first saw the medal in his past life, he was extremely envious and felt it was quite overpowered even for a Sub Legendary-grade item. At that time, his goal was precisely becoming a Shadow Dancer and receiving such a medal. However, he simply didn't meet the requirements to become one back then, leaving him feeling a lifetime of regret.
Nie Yan didn't expect that the Shadow Dancer medal he obtained in this life would be even better than the one he saw online in his past life. It was quite the pleasant surprise.
This was probably the reward for being the first player to become a Shadow Dancer.
Nie Yan equipped the Shadow Dancer Medal of Honour. Looking at his stats, his Dexterity and Movement Speed sharply increased, and his Gale Step went from Rank 8 to 13. Its effects were astonishing, only losing out to his Rank 16 Shadow Waltz.
Elder Fallon talked about the Thief Association's history to Nie Yan. Ever since it was first established many, many years ago, countless Thieves had joined them, some of them eventually stepping into the realm of Shadow Dancer. They now had over 300 branches in the Viridian and Satreen Empires, and were a place where legends were born, such as the Eight Thieves in the Song of the Bramble Bird.
After Nie Yan finished talking with Fallon, he saved the clip of their conversation. It might come in handy in the future.
Nie Yan bid Elder Fallon farewell and exited the Thief Association. Standing in the middle of the street, he wanted to test something. Gale Step! He blurred into motion, dashing through the crowd and covering more than 500 meters in the blink of an eye.
The players Nie Yan passed by only felt a gust of wind sweep past them. Looking around suspiciously but not seeing anything, they continued on their way.
The people and buildings in the vicinity appeared to speed past him. This feeling of extreme speed was exhilarating.
Nie Yan flexed his muscles. This was a Shadow Dancer, the embodiment of speed!
The reason Magisters feared Shadow Dancers so much was precisely their frightening speed! Often times, they would be killed before even getting a chance to react.
Among all the Master Classes, Magisters represented unrivaled destructive power and wide-scale domination; Champions and Sword Saints represented the pinnacle of defense and strength respectively; Shadow Dancers represented the pinnacle of speed; Guardians represented the ultimate balance with the most comprehensive strength; and Archbishops represented the pinnacle of healing.
Because of their speed, Shadow Dancers were the nemesis of all casters.
"I could get addicted to this feeling," Nie Yan muttered as he sprinted around Calore.
Only two minutes laters, Nie Yan arrived in front of the Asskickers United guild office.
Nie Yan teleported to the Cripps Stronghold. It was even more bustling than before. With Asskickers United's evergrowing influence, more and more businesses were flocking over to set up shop, causing the commerce here to flourish. Numerous people were walking up and down the streets.
Nie Yan took off his cloak and headed to the guild headquarters.
Many Asskickers United players were dumbstruck after seeing Nie Yan. Rubbing their eyes and making sure it was really him, they all flocked to greet him. "Boss, you're here!"
Nie Yan nodded to everyone calling his name with a faint smile.
The players on the street parted ways, opening up a path forward. A large crowd formed around Nie Yan, resembling two rivers converging.
News of Nie Yan's return quickly spread, creating a huge stir in the Cripps Stronghold.
"The boss is here!"
"He's back from clearing his class advancement quest!"
Word got out quickly. When the players in the guild headquarters heard Nie Yan was back, they immediately headed out to greet him.
Nie Yan gazed at the surrounding players. Asskickers United's rapid expansion resulted in their membership tripling. There were many new faces for him.
Most of these players had never met Nie Yan before either. However, after finding out he was back, they also became incredibly excited.
There were a great many legends in the Viridian Empire, but Nie Yan was without a doubt the most notable among players. Be it his glorious achievements in battle or him becoming the first Shadow Dancer, everything he did was world-shaking.
As everyone gazed at Nie Yan's gear, they felt their heads spin. He had four pieces of Legendary-grade equipment, and even the worst of his equipment was Sub Legendary-grade. Needless to say, Zennarde's Sword was especially eye-catching. He also had a Battle Angel floating above his shoulder, and his Golden Dragon and Darkwing Dragon.
This kind of equipment was unattainable for ordinary players. They didn't dare to dream about it. Any piece of equipment on his body was probably worth more than all of their assets combined!
Seeing more and more players gathering around him, Nie Yan let out a wry smile. He didn't expect to cause such a huge ruckus by just showing his face.