When Wu Shaochen logged back in, his character was still in the War God's Temple. Just as he was about to consider where to go to grind monsters, a soldier suddenly approached him and respectfully said, "Respected adventurer, the Lord of the City requests your presence."
"Oh? The Lord wants me to come over, does that mean there's a mission?" Wu Shaochen's eyes lit up. Since he hadn't decided where to go yet, he quickly followed the soldier towards the Lord's Mansion.
Upon arriving at the Lord's Mansion, Wu Shaochen noticed that the Lord was pacing anxiously. When he saw Wu Shaochen approaching, he hurriedly greeted him, saying, "Chen Feng, you finally came."
"My Lord, is there something you wanted to see me about?" Wu Shaochen asked, puzzled.
Sighing, the Lord continued, "This matter goes back to the scroll you brought from Liu Family Village. At first, I had no idea, but deep within the Roaring Tiger Forest, there is actually a sealed passage to the Demon Realm. The Demon Realm is an incredibly terrifying place, so there can be no problems with the seal. When the Lord mentioned the Demon Realm, fear flickered across his face. Wu Shaochen remained silent, quietly listening. He felt that he had stumbled upon something extraordinary. The official information provided was just too limited, and judging from the Lord's words, the game's background seemed immense.
The Lord composed himself and continued, "Liu Family Village has been the guardian family responsible for protecting the seal for generations. However, five hundred years ago, their clan leader and elders sacrificed themselves during a great war against demonic creatures. Without their strength to suppress it, the seal has begun to weaken. Last time, I sent a seal master to reinforce the seal, and the journey to Liu Family Village went smoothly. However, on the way to the sealing location, they were attacked by the Jungle Tiger King. I specifically dispatched two Level 20 Golden Realm City Mansion guardians to deal with the Jungle Tiger King, but due to the leakage of demonic energy caused by the weakened seal, that originally Level 21 Golden Realm Jungle Tiger King absorbed the demonic energy and its strength increased to Level 30. Eventually, after paying a heavy price, our personnel retreated from Liu Family Village."
Hearing this, Wu Shaochen suddenly understood. No wonder there was a boss in the Level 21 Jungle Tiger area that he couldn't see the level of. It had mutated. He had personally experienced the strength of that Jungle Tiger King. If he hadn't escaped quickly, he would have been done for.
At this point, the Lord looked at Wu Shaochen and said, "Chen Feng, to be honest with you, the city's formidable experts have already been dispatched on special missions in recent times, so we can no longer spare any experts to deal with the demonic Jungle Tiger King. Among the adventurers, I only know you. See if you can find a way to deal with this demonic Jungle Tiger King. If there's no way, I'm prepared to issue a citywide mission, where all adventurers participate in killing the demonic Jungle Tiger King. However, the cost of a citywide mission is too great, and I don't want to issue it unless absolutely necessary."
Wu Shaochen was taken aback for a moment. "Is this the benefit of helping to clear the jungle tigers?" he thought to himself.
"Normally, the Lord would directly issue a citywide mission in such a situation. But now, he's asking if I have any way to handle it, which means if I do, this mission will become a personal one. If a citywide mission becomes a personal one, the rewards should be great," Wu Shaochen fantasized eagerly.
However, as soon as he thought about the terrifying demonic Jungle Tiger King, Wu Shaochen's face fell. He couldn't even check the opponent's attributes now, so how could he dare to fight? The last time he roared, he was left heavily injured. The memory was still fresh in his mind. However, his strength had improved since then. He decided to check the Jungle Tiger King's attributes once he reached Level 20 and then see if there was a way.
With this in mind, Wu Shaochen asked, "What is the time limit for this mission?"
The Lord pondered and replied, "Sealing the passage is urgent. I can give you a maximum of two days."
"Alright, let me think of a solution first. Please hold off on issuing the citywide mission for now. With the current strength of those adventurers, it's futile to confront the demonic Jungle Tiger King. It would only be sending them to their deaths," Wu Shaochen said. For him, reaching Level 20 within two days wouldn't be difficult. He was genuinely concerned that the Lord might not wait and directly initiate the citywide mission.
"Alright, I'll wait for good news from you," the Lord agreed.
After leaving the Lord's Mansion, Wu Shaochen opened the map and studied it for a while. He set his sights on a place called the Abandoned Mining Area. There were monsters ranging from Level 20 to 30 there. He decided against going to the Chaotic Stone Forest, where there were plenty of monsters but their skills were annoying, greatly hindering his grinding speed. So he needed to change locations. The monster levels in the Abandoned Mining Area were relatively suitable, but it was a bit far, around twenty kilometers away. The map showed it as a black area, only displaying the name of the location and the distribution of monsters, which were at Levels 20 to 30.
Only the area within 10 kilometers of the map was illuminated, allowing a clear view of the details and monster information. The area within 20 kilometers was black on the map, but it displayed the approximate monster levels without any specific information. Beyond that, everything was pitch black, relying solely on players' exploration. The better part was that the map would automatically illuminate where players had been. For example, Liu Family Village was completely black on the map before Wu Shaochen went there, but it had become illuminated after his visit.
Wu Shaochen checked his potion supplies and found that there was nothing he needed to replenish. He headed directly towards the Abandoned Mining Area, which was located to the north. He left through the north gate without any unexpected incidents. Those troublemakers from the Arrogant Heroes Guild were probably busy leveling up. After all, most of their guild members had dropped in levels and were now below the average level in Jinling City.
Wu Shaochen hurriedly made his way to the Abandoned Mining Area without stopping. It took him over half an hour to cover the 20 kilometers, despite having a movement speed of 573. In front of him was a massive entrance, leading into the mining area. As soon as Wu Shaochen stepped into the area, a cold wind blew, giving him a bad feeling. The monsters here were likely not friendly.
The entire mining area was extremely dark. Before Wu Shaochen, there was a large winding passage that seemed to lead nowhere. He didn't see a single monster in the entire passage, which made him uneasy. He summoned his Silver Thunder Wolf to boost his courage and cautiously followed behind it as they moved forward.
After a few minutes, there was suddenly a sound from beneath his feet. Wu Shaochen quickly stepped back, only to see a skeletal hand emerging from the ground.
"What the hell! What is this?"
Wu Shaochen was startled, and he quickly ran backward. His shout startled the Silver Thunder Wolf as well, and its entire body shrunk in fear. They both ran away for a long distance before Wu Shaochen turned to look. He saw a leisurely walking skeleton emerging from the ground and chasing after him.
"This thing is the monster here?" Wu Shaochen's heart pounded. It wasn't that he was timid, but the game was just too realistic, making him forget that he was in a game. Suddenly, a skeletal hand popping out of the ground while walking would scare anyone.
"Ah, why did I choose this place?" Wu Shaochen knocked his head in frustration. However, after regaining his senses, Wu Shaochen was no longer as afraid. After all, he was a grown man. It was just a little skeleton, so what was there to be afraid of? He casually threw two daggers at it and then ignored it, letting it wait for death. Wu Shaochen continued forward with his Silver Thunder Wolf by his side...