The sky was azure, the sun glaring, and the desert seemed even hotter.
Sitting in the Land Rover military vehicle, Edward gazed out at the vast desert, which looked like a golden world. It seemed beautiful, but in reality, it was filled with the stench of death.
During the month since the server opened, Edward had explored the areas developed by players, all around Dream Star City. The 60-kilometer radius around the city was entirely desert, with 30-level monsters in the sand, like Desert Lizards, Flame Scorpions, and Sandstone Beasts. These creatures were already enough to give players below level 20 a tough time.
In four directions from Dream Star City were the Four Deadly Zones: Mirage, Wind Forest Volcano, Blood Wasteland, and Ice Plateau. Four highways led to these dangerous lands, and beyond that was the dark unknown, where no player dared to venture for fear of losing their lives.
Leveling in Star Wars World wasn't easy. Dying would cost you a level, and though Edward was at level 13, if Malagobi at level 26 died, he'd have to grind like mad in the desert for at least ten days. That would make him cry.
Speeding at 130 kilometers per hour, the Land Rover roared down the highway, with four people in the car.
This type of military vehicle had a cool name: Desert Fox. It cost about 80,000 credits, of course, a big money sink for players. But the speed and performance were almost indistinguishable from a real Land Rover, and sitting inside, you barely felt the bumps.
"Mommy" was driving, while "Hot Girl" sat in the front passenger seat, holding her gun, staring into the distance. The wind whipped through her long hair, her expression cold and aloof. Indeed, she was heroic and impressive.
But Edward had no mood to appreciate this beautiful scene of a hot girl and a fancy car. He had been down on his luck for the past ten days, and this mission didn't look promising either. Despite the 1,000-credit reward, if things went south, he could lose a level.
Last time, he'd joined a battle squad from Dream Star City to pioneer the Ice Plateau. After half a day of struggle, they pissed off the area's guardian boss. In a brutal fight, all 20 players died. The boss eventually went down, but there were too many small mobs. Edward was the last to die, frantically diving for the loot at the last second and grabbing the sensor device just before death. But the cost was steep—he lost a level and all his gear exploded, including his TT-type camouflage combat suit and G2-type highland boots, leaving him with nothing.
The worst part? His most valuable "Type 54" old handgun exploded too. It was a red-tier item, which he'd bought for over 600 credits, and now he was left without a weapon. He had to mine for a while and luckily dug up a high-quality B-grade crystal, which he sold for over 100 credits. That's how he managed to buy the Mauser pistol.
"At least it's better than bare hands," Edward sighed, patting the "Broomhandle" Mauser at his waist. The stats popped up:
White Tier Equipment
Level Requirement: 3
Length: 288mm
Weight: 1.16kg
Caliber: 7.63mm
Ammo Capacity: 10 rounds
Accuracy: 82.5%
Fire Rate: 1 round/sec
Muzzle Energy: 576 Joules
Effective Range: 50 meters
Looking at these stats made Edward feel gloomy. This gun could barely hold its own on the Ice Plateau, but in Wind Forest Volcano, it would just tickle the level 35 Flame Warriors.
Lost in thought, the vehicle screeched to a halt, parking steadily by the roadside.
Hot Girl turned on the car's TV. The screen displayed an electronic map, densely packed with red and white road markers. Edward had seen this kind of 3D map before—it's the vehicle's GPS system. It was incredibly expensive and could display detailed maps of developed areas, while unexplored regions were marked in black.
Wind Forest Volcano wasn't fully developed, with the map only showing up to halfway up the mountain. It didn't really matter if Hot Girl opened the map or not, since every player's receiver had a mini-map. But her next move confirmed Edward's suspicion—Hot Girl was an expert gunner.
For gunners, making good use of terrain was essential. You might not know the enemy's strength, but if you charge in recklessly without knowing the terrain, you're dead for sure.
Hot Girl marked three areas on the electronic map, implying that Malagobi could only be hiding in those three places. The logic was simple: although Controllers could use powerful elemental magic, they were physically weak. He wouldn't dare venture into the unknown zone alone, and he couldn't stay in the volcanic ash zone either, as the heat would fry anyone below level 20. Even if Malagobi were a tank, level 26 would still leave him half-dead there.
After ruling out the impossible, only these three areas remained. Edward had to admit, Hot Girl was no ordinary player.
"Any other questions?" Hot Girl looked at Mommy and Oath. They both shook their heads.
"And you?" She turned to Edward.
Edward mumbled, "You guys sure don't hold back when hunting someone."
Wind Forest Volcano was indeed a real volcano, towering and black, barren and desolate. The volcanic crater in the distance was constantly spewing black smoke, as if it was about to erupt at any moment. Heatwaves hit them as soon as they stepped onto the road.
Mommy was fully geared up in bright red metal armor. Her muscular arms were exposed, her chest barely covered, and she held a purple energy sword. Her whole body radiated power and strength.
"Gene Warrior?" Edward asked.
Mommy nodded seriously, "After killing this guy, I'll hit level 24."
"Didn't expect you to be this strong." Edward inhaled sharply, glancing at Oath, who was wearing a standard white medic suit, looking like an astronaut. To Edward, she resembled a firefighter, except she wielded a shiny little knife.
"Nervous?" Edward teased.
"Stop wasting time. You lead the way," Oath barked.
Edward nodded, taking the sensor device off his waist. The precision instrument immediately came to life, displaying a 2D map, with only red, black, and white colors. Edward pressed a few buttons, and the map started changing colors as the mini-radar scanned, updating various data rapidly:
- Temperature: 34°C
- Heat Energy: +36
- Liquid Levels: 46%
- Gas Sensitivity: 61%
- Vacuum: 2%
- Biological Units: 4
- Mechanical Units: 20
These numbers flashed by, constantly changing. Even Hot Girl, with all her experience, couldn't make sense of them. She remarked, "That's some gear. What does all this mean?"
Edward said, "It would take too long to explain. Just follow me, and I'll report if there's anything critical."
Hot Girl nodded, holding her gun and following closely behind Edward as they cautiously advanced.
Her 1,000 credits were well spent; in fact, they got more than their money's worth. Wind Forest Volcano was far more dangerous than she had anticipated.
The first zone was a wide road leading up the mountain. The path was about 20 meters wide, almost as broad as a highway, but the massive black rocks on either side blocked their vision completely. Edward zigzagged in a strange "Z" pattern as they moved.
Oath complained, "What kind of route is this? You're wasting time!"
Edward smiled, not arguing. Hot Girl coldly snapped, "Shut up. He's skillfully guiding us past four waves of enemies. Getting surrounded by four groups of level 35 Mechanical Warriors—imagine the consequences."
Oath paled and fell silent.
It was true. The sensor showed the red dots, representing enemies, hiding behind rocks. The mechanical units numbered over 30, with heat energy above 57+. The creatures in Wind Forest Volcano were all fuel-powered mechanical sentinels, generating heat that could be detected when it exceeded 30+, and anything above 50 could burn even a bio-warrior like Mommy.
The first zone passed smoothly. Hot Girl glanced at Edward, a hint of admiration in her eyes: "You seem very familiar with this terrain."
Edward replied calmly, "What you need to realize is that the target is even more familiar with this area. He doesn't have a sensor device, but he still managed to get up here without alerting any guards. And he's just a fragile Controller. That should tell you that this guy is no ordinary opponent. You better be careful."
The three women were stunned. It was hard to believe such a calm and professional assessment came from a level 13 player. Even Hot Girl was impressed by Edward's judgment.
"Your level isn't high, and your gear is pretty basic, but your expertise is undeniable," she noted.
Edward said calmly, "Because I rely on skill."
The second zone was a steep uphill path. There were no monsters here, and the view was wide open. The problem, however, was the temperature—it had already risen to 46°C, with heat energy reaching 64+. As they continued to climb, the numbers kept rising. Hot Girl and the others felt unbearably hot and noticed their HP dropping by 2 points per second, clearly from being scorched by the volcanic heat.
Yet, there were still no green dots on the sensor indicating biological life. This meant the target wasn't in this area either.
Oath had already begun casting "Energy Healing" spells to constantly heal the three of them. Based on the frequency of her spells, Edward asked, "Are you a focus-specialized medic?"
"How did you know?" Oath was surprised.
In the Star Wars world, every level-up grants extra attribute points. The mainframe had a "specialization" system for distributing points, such as Strength, Agility, Armor, Meditation, Focus, Ranged, and so on, forming a skill tree. Where you allocate points determines the development of your class. The "Focus" specialization reduces all spell cooldown times.
Most medic players prioritized Agility specialization, which boosted defense and movement speed, essential for survival, since medics had little attack power. But Oath, prioritizing Focus, clearly didn't care much about her own survival.
However, Edward saw it differently. He realized that Oath, Hot Girl, and Mommy were likely a well-coordinated team. Hot Girl and Mommy probably had poor defenses, relying heavily on Oath's healing. In turn, Oath depended on their high attack power to protect her. When a team plays to its strengths like this, it becomes incredibly effective. Otherwise, the three of them wouldn't have come after Malagobi alone.
Thinking this through, Edward glanced at Hot Girl. "You guys really are experts."
After passing the second zone, the four of them arrived at the entrance of a cave.
Mommy said, "This is the last place. That bastard must be hiding inside."
Edward fiddled with the sensor. "He's definitely in there. There's a green dot, which means there's a living being. If something's alive in here, it has to be a human, and likely someone over level 25."
Hot Girl pulled back the bolt of her gun. "Let's go!"
"Wait!" Edward stopped her.
"Is there a problem?" Hot Girl didn't bother to explain.
Edward nodded and put the sensor in front of her. "See for yourself."