Ancient Divine Dragon Fossil (Divine Rank Mount)

Stage: Unhatched

……

I was so excited I could almost cry at the sight of the crimson-colored mount fossil. I also double-checked its name to confirm that it stated "Divine Dragon”. It was because the double-winged dragons of western mythology were at best "Holy Dragons", and no more than that. Assuming that the designer of this mount was Chinese, then there was a chance it was an actual eastern divine dragon that soared the skies. It would also be the first flying mount ever and the page turner of aerial battle in Heavenblessed...

"Alright, enough, you’re keeping the host waiting…" said Eve while giving me a playful bump on the shoulder.

"Oh. Right."

I wiped the saliva trickling down the corner of my mouth before facing toward the host. "Please continue…"

"Okay!"

The host smiled and said through the mic, "Before we move onto the next phase, let’s congratulate Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand for obtaining the super Divine-grade reward, the Divine Rank mount ‘Ancient Divine Dragon Fossil’, shall we?”

After a brief pause, she continued.

“Now then, it’s time we move on to the final stage of the WEL internationals, the MVP award! I’m sure we all knows who is the MVP of this competition already, and yes, it’s the player who didn’t lose a single match throughout the entire WEL, the expert from China—Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand!"

My ID appeared on the big screens as she said this. At this point, even those who couldn’t read Mandarin would know who I was. I was the man who beat many powerful opponents such as Breeze and Rain, Tear Stain, Vienna’s Sorrow and Red Maple in the solo matches, and there was no one who was more deserving of the MVP title than I was!

"Next, we would like to invite the MVP to say a few words to the crowd." The host passed the mic to me, catching me off-guard. Naturally, I wasn’t prepared for this because I had no idea that I would be asked to speak during the award ceremony. What the hell should I say? Oh man...

I was drawing a blank in my head, but I gave it a shot anyway and said in a stiff tone, "Mn, I’m very happy and excited to obtain the Ancient Divine Dragon Fossil, and er… er… right! The Chinese dishes during lunch were really tasty. If there’s anyone out there who’s interested in trying out Chinese food, I would recommend giving it a try. And er, that’s it. Thank you~~"

A thunderous applause erupted all across the stadium. Every true gaming fan liked truly skilled players, no matter which country they belonged to, and there was no one who performed better than I did in these internationals. I had slain Red Maple, outskilled Breeze and Rain, fought God of War to a standstill, and defeated Vienna’s Sorrow; all legends in their own right. It was no wonder that I was worshipped by the fans like Messi in soccer, or Kobe in basketball. When it comes to the love of sports, there is no such thing as borders or nationality.

Lian Xin curled her lips and said to me, "Look 45 degrees to your right, Lu Chen. There are three American university girls screaming ‘I love you’ at you. It looks like you’ve made some diehard female fans in America…"

I felt pleased, but He Yi immediately threw a cold bucket of water over my head and said, "Yiyi and I are right here, you know? Hmph!"

Before I could reply, the host pointed at the touch screen again and said, "Now then, please step forward and prepare to draw your MVP reward, Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand. You will be given a selection of choices this time!"

"Okay!"

I scanned my retina again before the device, and three options appeared in front of me. I could only choose one of them as my MVP reward—

Option A: The main city player “Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand” is affiliated with, Sky City, obtains the title "King of Cities." Increases city defenses by 50%, NPC attack power by 50%, Attack and Defense of all players within its borders by 15%, decreases cost of all repairs, purchases and services within the city by 50%!

Option B: The city of player “Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand”, Dark Moon City, obtains sovereignty and can be upgraded to a county. Increases city defenses by 120%, NPC attack power by 50%. Increases Attack and Defense of all players from the defending guild and 10 selected subguilds within its borders by 50%. As a county, costs will be covered by the system, causing it to become exempt from all territory taxes!

Option C: Player "Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand" obtains Cambrian Divine Armaments, Bright Holy Dragon Helmet, Bright Holy Dragon Battle Armor, Bright Holy Dragon Cloak, Level +10, the qualifications necessary to ascend to Heavenly River Realm at Level 210, 25% increased power for all skills, 50% increased Intimacy with all NPCs, 15 Luck, and 75% reduced chance to drop equipment upon death!

……

My mind turned into a complete mess when I saw the three shiny options in front of me. I swore, "Holy fuck! All three options are so… How the fuck am I expected to choose between these three!?"

The girls were just as bewildered as I was. He Yi’s blinked her long eyelashes as she voiced her agreement. "Yes, it is a difficult choice!"

The first option buffed the fighting power of Sky City, the NPCs’ Attack by 50%, and the Attack and Defense of the players defending it by 15%. Depending on how many players were defending Sky City at the time, millions could partake in the buff. It was incredible to say the least.

The second option drastically buffed Dark Moon City and its bound guild. The players of the ten subguilds of our choosing could enjoy a 50% increase to their Attack and Defense as well. If I chose this option, Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls would become the best guild in the entire world instantly. No one would be able to stop our Dragonlight Cavalry and Dragonlight Archers anymore.

The third option buffed only me. I would be gifted three Cambrian Divine Armaments, 10 levels, 15 Luck, and the power of all my skills would be increased by 25%. Even just one of these boons would be enough to make me salivate for three days and nights, much less all of them...

The first option was the most selfless choice, empowering the entire China server at the sacrifice of self-improvement. The second option was a balance between selflessness and selfishness where the improvements were focused on Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls only. Finally, the third option was the most selfish choice where I became a god at the expense of everyone else. If I chose this, I could enter the game, stand at the top of Sky City’s gate and declare myself the strongest player of Heavenblessed right away.

……

A moment later, I came to a decision and looked at He Yi. "Boss, we can’t be that selfish, can we?"

He Yi nodded with a gentle smile on her face. "Mn!"

"Dark Moon City is already the strongest territory in the server. We can always find another opportunity to upgrade it to a county, right?"

"Mn!"

"I’m choosing then!"

"Mn!"

With that done, I tapped the first option without hesitation and filled the big screens with dazzling light—

System Notice: The main city player “Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand” is affiliated with, Sky City, obtains the title "King of Cities." Increases city defenses by 50%, NPC attack power by 50%, Attack and Defense of all players within its borders by 15%, decreases cost of all repairs, purchases and services within the city by 50%!

……

Every Chinese player and exchange student in the stadium rose to their feet, raised their arms and shouted in unison. It was impossible to identify what one single person was shouting, but I could imagine that they were praising my selfless choice. Well, they’d better fucking be, because my heart hurt like a motherfucker every time I thought of the other two options. My new and improved Dark Moon City! My Cambrian Divine Armaments! Ah… it felt like something had sliced a huge chunk of flesh from my heart. I wasn’t going to forget this pain anytime soon.

At least I had the Ancient Divine Dragon Fossil, so it wasn’t like I was walking away from this competition with nothing to show for myself.

With that done, the WEL internationals finally came to a beautiful end. Of course, the end of the event didn’t mean the end of our troubles. The host had requested us and the Top 3 teams to stay behind to take a commemorative photo. There was also the photo session with the fans. Honestly, all I felt like doing was to get back to the hotel and check out the hatching instructions for the Ancient Divine Dragon, but it was literally impossible to break away from the layers upon layers of people surrounding all of us.

The activities lasted until nighttime. The organizers had prepared a dinner banquet for all the team leaders, players and other officials, but we, the Chinese team—after acquiring the approval of our team leaders—declined to participate. It was because we had decided to eat at a Chinese restaurant. No matter what our individual result was, the glory of winning the WEL internationals belonged to all of us. That alone was worth celebrating together.

……

It was sunset. We cast long shadows as we strolled along the streets of Los Angeles.

He Yi, Murong Mingyue and Lian Xin were conversing with one another at the front while Li Chengfeng and I hung back. Li Chengfeng shot me a grin and asked me, "Was it a difficult choice?"

I nodded. "Of course it was! My heart hurts even now!"

Li Chengfeng laughed. "Like I always said, a hero must sometimes be willing to make the hard choices to defend their ideals. Ai, I probably would’ve chosen the second or third option if I was in your place. I can’t ever imagine giving up the option to strengthen Dark Moon City and make Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls the best guild in the entire world!"

However, I smiled at him and put a hand on his shoulder. "I know you would’ve made the same choice as me. After all, we’re the same type of person, aren’t we?"

Li Chengfeng looked surprised, but he smiled back and gave me a nod. True brothers would understand each other without needing to say a word, and I knew that neither me nor Li Chengfeng were selfish people who cared only about ourselves. All we ever wanted was to fulfill our dreams and leave behind a legacy that we could be proud of.

……

Suddenly, a beautiful figure appeared next to me. It was Lin Yixin. After shooting me a smile, she moved in front of me and stepped on my shadow with every step.

I zigged away from her feet, but she followed my movement easily almost as if she was my shadow. I couldn’t help but admire her all over again. At least some of her genius was reflected in real life as well.

"So… you hugged Sister He Yi on stage… huh?"

Lin Yixin suddenly paused her footsteps and asked. The question sounded harmless, but Li Chengfeng bounced away immediately almost like he was repelled by some sort of invisible force. The guy was sharp.

I nodded and answered, "Mn!"

A bit of jealousy leaking into her voice, Lin Yixin said, "Do you know how much I wished I was a member of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls in that moment?"

I shrugged. "Hey, I invited you before, but you turned me down…"

"You know I have responsibilities…" Lin Yixin looked at me.

A sudden shiver suddenly coursed through my heart, and I grabbed her hand and said quietly, "I love you, Yiyi. I will always be by your side. Is that okay?"

"Well, I guess that’s acceptable for this stretch of the road…"

But the road wasn’t long, and we would reach the end in almost no time. A hint of sorrow colored her eyes, and she almost broke into tears.

"What’s wrong, Yiyi?" I looked at her intently while holding her shoulders.

She hurriedly wiped the tears at the corner of her ears before smiling at me again. "It’s nothing. It’s just, you know… Anyway, let’s find something to eat, shall we?"

I smiled and said, "Mn."

……

I was an idiot. I knew Lin Yixin was hiding something, but I just couldn’t find the words to ask her about it.