Swhoosh!

As usual, I repaired my equipment and departed for Dark Moon City after appearing in Sky City. I was currently sitting on Level 140 and 27% experience, a level where my experience bar didn’t even blink when I killed a high-level mob, and things were only going to get harder from here. The Nine Lost Dragon Domains had also become temporarily unavailable to me, meaning that I had to find a whole new leveling map. It felt Level 150, the level I could finally ride a mount would never come.

After I entered Dark Moon City’s main hall, Dark Knight Hero Udal immediately saluted me before asking, "What are your orders, my lord?"

Well, nothing yet actually. I was just here to take a look at things.

Dark Moon City was now a Rank 6 Undead Castle. Once I upgraded the Nest of Corruption and Blood Pond Cemetery to Rank 6, and built a Desolate Knight’s Grave, I would be able to mass produce Dark Knights for defensive or offensive purposes. However, my plan changed a little after checking the unit characteristics. Instead of recruiting as many Dark Knights as I could, I decided to recruit only 50 and continue upgrading the city to Rank 10. I wanted to know what kind of buffs and tangible reward a Rank 10 city would offer!

I ordered Udal to sweep the resource mobs around the area with a Dark Knight legion. Then, I left to find a new leveling map.

I felt as fast as a flying arrow after I exited the territory. The 80% boost to movement speed from the Stormy Waves War Boots was seriously impressive.

On the way, I took a look at the Heavenly Ranking and noticed that everyone was leveling fairly quickly. Sky City really was overflowing with great talent—

NameLevelClassBroken Halberd Sinks Into Sand140Undead SwordsmanWind Fantasy137Light WandererBeiming Xue136Dark ArcherFrom Water136Magic KnightLegendary Brave135Dragon WarriorPurple Marquis135WarriorFarewell Song135AssassinGui Guzi135Undead KnightOctober Rain135ArcherClear Perfume135ArcherMurong Mingyue134PriestLaughing At The Heavens134Magic KnightShadow Chanel134Dark Tongue MageLittle Piglet134Cold Wind SwordsmanWarsky134Warrior

...

Everyone’s level was so close to each other that a moment of laxness could cause someone to fall out of the Heavenly Ranking. Unfortunately, this was almost certainly going to be the case for He Yi and Murong Mingyue because they wouldn’t be able to play the game for the next month to come. It couldn’t be helped. This was why I had to maintain my lead and carry the banner of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls until they returned!

As for my champion arena ranking, I had dropped to the 6th place because I hadn’t fought there for a while. I didn’t mind though. A sum of experience was rewarded to the players every week based on their ranking, but objectively speaking, grinding mobs was just faster if gaining experience was your goal.

I checked the world map and came to a decision quickly. The plan was to pass through Fire Maple Forest and check out the other side of the map. With my current abilities, I shouldn’t have any problems killing Level 160 shadow-rank mobs whatsoever. I was Level 140, and I had the amazing 6-star Heaven-grade weapon, the Cyan Netherworld Sword. With my ridiculous DPS and lifesteal, I should be able to grind the mobs in large numbers without too much trouble.

Rustle rustle...

It was autumn inside the game, and reddish maple leaves could be seen everywhere. It was how the forest got its name. Not long after I ventured into the forest, a giant shadow suddenly appeared some distance in front of me. It was an unusual-looking rhino mob with a fiery blade on top of its forehead and crimson skin. Its name was "Fire Rhinoceros", and it was a very impressive Level 158 shadow-rank mob!

Now I understood why very few people ventured to the east of Dark Moon City to grind. At the current stage, these Level 158 Fire Rhinoceroses were more than powerful enough to ravage 99.9% of the existing player base. Their Attack was high enough that most fighters wouldn’t be able to tank them successfully even with a priest in the party, and they roamed in large numbers inside the Fire Maple Forest. The experience they offered was delicious, but for now, most players could only sigh and turn their attention somewhere else.

Whoosh!

I summoned the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf before activating Thunderous Charge. After the mob was stunned, I slashed it a couple of times before unleashing the triple-hit Burning Blade Slash and War Crush, shaking its humongous body and annihilating its HP. The Fire Rhinoceros counterattacked, and I lost around 1800 HP to the fiery blade on its forehead. Considering my current Defense, it was a lot of damage. The average Level 120 warrior would’ve lost at least 10k HP.

My pet roared and swiped repeatedly at the Fire Rhinoceros. Although its DPS was far inferior to mine, it was still better than nothing.

A few seconds later, the mob died and dropped a round, red-colored shield. I picked it up and saw that it was a Level 125 Dark Gold–grade item. It could probably be sold for a couple hundred RMB.

He Yi had left GGS and lost her main source of income. Founding a new company takes a lot of money, and it wasn’t like she could sell the shares she owned overnight and without thought. Therefore, the salary Lenovo paid us and the income we made inside the game were now indispensable. I had to earn as much money as possible and help out He Yi’s finances. Every penny counts at this stage.

I tossed the shield into my bag and continued along my journey.

Dozens of Fire Rhinoceroses were dead by my hands as I ventured deeper and deeper into the forest. I opened the world map and noticed that Fire Maple Forest took up almost the entire window. What a huge place this was. This map was quite some ways away from Sky City, so plenty of mobs were free to enact evil as they pleased. I even noticed some traces of Night Creatures here and there.

I checked my progress. I needed to get another 5% toward the next undead rank and for that, I needed to absorb undead soul sparks. Right now I was an Asura, and the next rank was Asura King. Many undead beings would fear me after I became an Asura King, but the archbishops of the Silver Moon Alliance might very well think otherwise. They might even put me to the stakes and turn me into barbecue!

It was at this moment I heard the painful cries of an old man coming from somewhere inside the forest. I wasn’t expecting to hear any human voice in this monster-infested forest at all. Lucky! This has to be a quest!

I cut apart the greenery blocking my way and ran toward the voice as quickly as I could. After stomping a thorny bush beneath my foot, I finally saw an old man wielding a blade and a bow lying inside a clump of thick brambles. The old man wore black robes and a herb basket behind his back. His legs were torn and bloody as if they had been clawed by some ferocious beasts. Honestly, I was surprised that he was still alive and strong considering his age and injuries. The lines of text floating above his head also caught my attention—

Zatch the God Hunter Level 150

City: Wind City

Introduction: Zatch is a strange but extraordinarily talented person. He can hunt with his bow and blade, gather herbs with his shovel, and create countless dishes and medicine. He even killed a giant dragon and was named the God Hunter for his achievement. Zatch’s cooking and alchemy skills are second to none in the entire world, and many empires have tried to employ his services only to be turned down. He never stays in one place for too long, so it’s impossible to know his exact whereabouts.

……

I was completely dumbfounded. No matter how I look at him, his appearance doesn’t match his description at all...

"Who are you, boy?" Zatch spotted me at this moment.

"I’m an adventurer of Sky City, the golden guard of Princess Karinshan…" I bullshitted.

Zatch still trusted my words and relaxed immediately. He lowered his iron sword slowly before smiling. "I wasn’t expecting to run into an adventurer of Sky City here. I guess I’m not destined to die here today…"

I walked up to him and dropped down to one knee to inspect his wound. I asked, "How did you get this badly injured, senior? What was the thing that hurt you this badly?"

Zatch replied in a solemn tone, "Ohh, don’t remind me. I was careless, and I accidentally stepped into a headhunter’s trap. Then, I was wounded by those ferocious tigers. If I didn’t have a pair of quick feet, those animals would’ve devoured me already. Unfortunately their fangs are poisonous, and I couldn’t remove the toxin even though the injury could be healed. Boy, you must be a brave person to venture into this lawless place. You must help me!"

I nodded. "Tell me!"

"Alright!"

Zatch thought for a moment before starting, "There is a forest called ‘Cyan Tiger Forest’ to the east, about 1.5 kilometers away from here, that is infested with countless Cyan Battle Tigers. I want you to kill 1000 of them and gather 100 Cyan Tiger Teeth so I can create a cure. I will reward you handsomely for your efforts!"

He looked at me again, and suddenly the cloudiness in his eyes disappeared as if it was never there. He exclaimed in astonishment, "Boy, both your Cooking skill and Foraging skill are at Rank 10?"

I nodded. "Yes, they are. What’s wrong?"

Zatch suddenly looked at the sky and laughed loudly. "Wonderful, wonderful! To think that there exists a powerful hunter who’s willing to settle his mind and learn cooking as well! Boy, you are the person I’ve been looking for for many years! Listen well. Finish this quest, and I will teach you the secret to combining Cooking and Alchemy together!"

"Oh?"

I broke into a grin. "Okay, senior. I’ll complete this quest for sure…"

The quest appeared with a ding—

The God Hunter’s Request (Current Quest Rank: SS+)

Description: Head to Cyan Tiger Forest, kill 1000 Cyan Battle Tigers and collect 100 Cyan Tiger Teeth. Bring them to the God Hunter for a generous reward. But be careful, the Cyan Battle Tigers are extremely powerful, and there is a high chance you may be killed at any moment. You are advised to bring some allies with you.

……

I smiled when I saw the quest tip. Putting the Cyan Netherworld Sword on my shoulder, I turned to the Sky Obsidian Greedy Wolf. "Let’s go! Hmph, who needs allies when you’re the king of solo leveling?"