While fending off attacks from three Wolf King Guards, I gulped down health potions and scooped up the 25 gold coins dropped by the Sword Wolf King. I tossed the bloody wolf head into my inventory without a second thought.
There was no time to check the equipment's stats. I had to deal with the Wolf King Guards first, which took about ten minutes.
Moments later, Wolf's Bane Ridge fell silent. All monsters lay defeated, transformed into experience points and gold for me. I had also acquired a complete set of equipment - the five pieces of the Crimson Flame Set, plus three items dropped by the Blade Wolf King. In one night, I had obtained eight pieces of gear, and I was certain they were all of high quality.
The Blade Wolf King's experience boosted me directly to level 23, with my experience bar nearly full. I was confident that after turning in the quest, I'd reach around level 25.
The once-bustling Wolf's Bane Ridge was now eerily quiet. I sprinted through, encountering no resistance, and quickly reached the hunters' camp. I produced one hundred wolf pelts and dramatically tossed the Blade Wolf King's head onto the ground.
The hunter's jaw dropped in astonishment. After a long pause, he exclaimed, "Brave young warrior, you've accomplished an incredibly challenging task. Here is your well-deserved reward!"
"Ding!"
System Notification: Congratulations! You've completed the quest [Blade Wolf King]. You've gained 180,000 experience points, 10 gold coins, and 400 reputation points!
...
The experience, gold, and reputation rewards were substantial, befitting the quest's difficulty level of 387. The only disappointment was the lack of equipment, but I knew from research that the chance of getting gear from a quest was only about 25%, so it wasn't unusual.
As expected, the generous experience reward propelled me straight to level 25. I refreshed the leaderboard and found myself ranked 6th in US. Above me were five players, including the top-ranked level 26 female mage, Breeze Embracing Moon, and four players whose names all began with "War Soul."
I pondered for a moment. War Soul was a familiar name - a gaming organization that had suddenly risen to prominence in recent years. They had recruited a large number of elite gamers and dominated various online games. I hadn't expected them to make such a strong push into Ethereal Surge as well.
It seemed that the coming days in Ethereal Surge would be filled with intense competition. Guilds like Sword Fire and Arrogant Clan would undoubtedly clash with War Soul. Given the competitive nature of top gamers, no one would willingly submit to others. In the end, conflicts would be settled through combat, fighting until one side admitted defeat.
I checked the time - 4 AM. With an hour left before my standard logout time, I used a town portal scroll I had purchased for 1 gold coin to return to the newbie village. (Players can only set their return point to a secondary main city after reaching level 30.)
In a flash of white light, I appeared in the newbie village. My eyes were immediately drawn to the pitiful equipment of the low-level players around me. Most were still wearing the system-issued rags with 0-1 defense, making the scene resemble a gathering of beggars.
I made my way to the identification shop and placed the five pieces of the Crimson Flame Set on the table. The appraiser's eyes widened slightly as he examined them. "The identification fee will be 15 gold coins in total," he announced gravely.
My heart skipped a beat. At 3 gold coins per item, these must be bronze-tier equipment. It seemed that silver-tier gear wasn't so easily obtained after all.
After I paid the 15 gold coins, the appraiser waved his hand, and the five pieces of equipment began to glow with a soft light:
[Crimson Flame Chestplate] (Bronze-tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 55
Agility: +12
Stamina: +8
Required Level: 25
Set Effect: Increases ranged skill damage by 15%, defense by 5%, and grants a 12% chance to dodge physical attacks.
[Crimson Flame Leggings] (Bronze-tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 45
Agility: +9
Stamina: +6
Required Level: 25
[Crimson Flame Boots] (Bronze-tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 42
Agility: +9
Stamina: +6
Required Level: 25
[Crimson Flame Cap] (Bronze-tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 45
Agility: +8
Stamina: +4
Required Level: 25
[Crimson Flame Gloves] (Bronze-tier - Leather Armor)
Defense: 42
Agility: +9
Stamina: +6
Required Level: 25
...
Five pieces of bronze-tier equipment. While not of the highest quality, their high level requirement and impressive stat bonuses made them valuable.
I replaced my Shimmering Leather Armor and Wind Walker Boots with the complete Crimson Flame Set. As I donned the last piece, a warm sensation spread through my body, making me feel light as a feather. The Crimson Flame Set gleamed brilliantly, its exceptional nature evident to all.
"Ding!"
System Notification: Set effect activated. Your ranged skill damage is increased by 15%, defense is increased by 5%, and you have a 12% chance to dodge physical attacks.
...
I was astonished. The set was truly powerful. With this additional boost to my skills, I felt invincible!
I checked my personal attributes:
Frivolous Scholar (Apprentice Archer)
Level: 25
Health: 880
Attack: 175-230
Defense: 205
Reputation: 1041
Luck: 0
...
After leveling up, I had allocated all 45 points to strength, increasing my attack by 27 points. My defense had reached an impressive 205, an incredible feat for an archer. My health had increased to 650 after leveling up, and the set bonus of 26 stamina translated to an additional 130 health points for an archer, bringing my total health to 880!
I laughed out loud. Now, I was undoubtedly a high-defense, high-health archer to be reckoned with!
Suddenly remembering the equipment dropped by the Blade Wolf King, I took them out one by one. The first was a pair of plate boots. I handed them to the appraiser, who said without even looking, "Identification fee, 80 silver coins."
I immediately knew this item might be of lower quality...
Sure enough, after a flash of light, the boots' attributes appeared:
[Wolf Tail War Boots] (Iron-tier - Plate Armor)
Defense: 72
Strength: +4
Required Level: 27
...
Damn, it really was a low-quality item! However, I couldn't help but marvel at the impressive defense of warrior-class equipment. Even this iron-tier item far surpassed any piece of the Crimson Flame Set in terms of defense. If a level 27 berserker were to wear a full set of bronze-tier plate armor, I might need to use armor-piercing arrows just to deal damage!
The second item dropped by the Blade Wolf King was a book that didn't require identification:
[Crimson Sea] (Skill Book): Summons a sea of flames that deals continuous damage to targets in a certain area. Requires: Level 25 Mage.
I was secretly delighted. This was a mage skill book. Although it might not be useful for a few days while players were still at low levels, I expected its value to increase significantly in about a week when many mages reached level 25. I decided to store it away for now.
The third item dropped by the Blade Wolf King was a dazzling dagger. Just by looking at it, I had a feeling it might be silver-tier.
When I placed the dagger on the table, the appraiser's eyes lit up. "This... such a treasure! The identification fee will be 10 gold coins!"
My heart raced with excitement as I paid the fee. The appraiser waved his hand, and the dagger burst into brilliant light:
[Rippling Dagger] (Silver-tier)
Attack: 60-95
Agility: +15
Stamina: +8
Required Level: 25
...
A dagger with impressive attack power, though still slightly inferior to the Golden Bow. This comparison further confirmed that the Golden Bow's attributes truly exceeded silver-tier, likely placing it in the gold-tier category.
Archers can equip two weapons: a bow and a dagger. I immediately equipped the Rippling Dagger, which increased my health by another 40 points, bringing my total health to 920!
There were no other players in the identification shop, so I activated all the effects of the Crimson Flame Set and the Golden Bow. The room was instantly filled with dazzling light, a truly spectacular sight!
After indulging in a moment of self-satisfaction, I concealed all the effects. I would continue to level up discreetly, but when the time came for PvP, I would certainly make a stunning debut!
Stepping outside, I stored the Crimson Sea skill book and then shouted a few times to sell my replaced Shimmering Leather Armor and Wind Walker Boots. I managed to get 10 gold coins for them, bringing my total gold to 76 coins - a fortune at this stage of the game!
I restocked on potions but found myself with nothing else to do. Going back to Wolf's Bane Ridge now would be pointless - the Blade Wolves might not have respawned yet, and the round trip alone would take half an hour, leaving no time for actual leveling.
I shook my head and smiled. "I might as well get some sleep. A healthy body is the foundation of success!"
Just as I was about to log off, I heard a "ding" - a friend message!
I opened it to find a message from Violet Melody. Immediately, an image of her curvaceous figure flashed through my mind. What could this beautiful cleric want from me?
The message read: "Are you busy? Can you help me with something?"
Since I had nothing else to do, I replied: "Not busy."
A few seconds later, Violet Melody sent another message: "Then meet me at the village entrance!"
I glanced toward the village entrance and started walking. After a few steps, I saw a beautiful figure appear - it was Violet Melody!
She was wearing a faintly glowing robe, which appeared to be bronze-tier equipment. The Sword Fire family certainly had some connections to obtain bronze-tier robes so quickly!
Violet Melody was looking around, seemingly searching for me, her beautiful eyes filled with a unique charm.
Wearing my Crimson Flame Set, she didn't recognize me at first. It wasn't until I walked up to her and said, "Hi!" that she realized it was me.
Violet Melody looked up at me, her eyes filled with shock. After a moment, she smiled and said, "You've managed to complete a set so quickly. That's impressive..."
I replied modestly, "It's nothing special. So, what kind of quest do you need help with?"
"Well, it's a quest to kill a level 20 boss. Dragon Soul and Titan have logged off, so I thought of you. It won't take much of your time, and I can offer 5 gold coins as payment..."
Violet Melody explained earnestly.
I couldn't help but laugh. "Come on, aren't we friends? It's just a boss fight. I'll treat it as a sightseeing trip with a beautiful lady. I should be the one paying you for the company!"
My words made Violet Melody smile gracefully, a sight that was truly breathtaking.
...
Meanwhile, in another corner of the newbie village, a female swordswoman was finishing off a kobold with her blade.
A golden light washed over her as she wiped the fragrant sweat from her brow. She smiled sweetly and said, "Finally, level 20. I wonder if that silly guy has reached level 20 yet..."
In the moonlight, the young woman's fair face glowed with an ethereal beauty, a sight beyond compare!