Chapter 124 - 5 Dragon Soaring Knight - Players in All Shapes and Forms

Chapter 124: Chapter 5 Dragon Soaring Knight - Players in All Shapes and FormsThe two hastened along their way, and the barren farmland on both sides of the road gradually gave way to sparse woodland and wilderness. As they walked, they cautiously observed their surroundings, fearful of inadvertently encountering powerful wild monsters and initiating a battle. Fortunately, it seems the monsters near the Sick Village might be an exception. Along their journey, the most common sight was still ordinary wild beasts. Wolves, wild boars, deer, and the like, only their levels were somewhat higher, and their sizes were larger. Huge Wolf: Level 8-9, Big Wild Boar: Level 9-12. Whoa, there are even bears! Seeing a massive grey bear scratching its paws against a tree, Xiao Jie couldn’t help but feel a pang of envy, thinking that having one as a pet would be really impressive. But upon checking its level, which was 13, he decisively gave up on that thought. Maybe another time. The two were eager to get on their way and didn’t intentionally provoke these wild animals. Fortunately, the monsters in this game had a warning range: as long as you didn’t enter it, you wouldn’t trigger a fight. It was relatively easy to avoid them as long as visibility was good. Occasionally they accidentally attracted one, but it was not too difficult for the two to team up and take care of it. However, Xiao Jie could distinctly feel that these outside beasts were obviously stronger than those in the valley, and inevitably fights resulted in some blood loss. If only he hadn’t dismissed Meiqiu, fighting three against one would definitely have been easier. Luobo had practically no combat ability. Howl! A mournful wolf howl in the distance made both of them alert, and they looked toward the sound to see a gigantic white wolf on a small cliff in the wilderness, wailing at the sky. Bai Ling (Demonized Giant Wolf): Level 16, Life Value 1400. Damn, it’s a BOSS! Surrounding that Demon Wolf was a pack of normal wild wolves. Shit! A wave of goosebumps swept over Xiao Jie, realizing danger was everywhere. Thankfully, the Demon Wolf was probably hundreds of meters away from them, far enough to not immediately pose a danger. But it still set Xiao Jie’s heart racing. Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, it’s just a game. That thing, no matter how far its warning range, couldn’t possibly notice them from over here. Finally, as the Demon Wolf moved out of sight, Xiao Jie breathed a sigh of relief. However, they hadn’t gone far when a group of robbers appeared ahead. There were eight or nine of them, scattered in twos and threes around the road. The leader, a robber chief holding a big sword and wearing thick leather armor, stood in the middle of the road with an imposing stance. His level was as high as 13. The other ordinary robbers seemed to be around levels 10-11 as well. The problem was that these guys didn’t have the ’Lost Soul’ prefix, meaning that once a fight broke out, they would likely call their companions. The thought of the two of them facing eight or nine robbers was daunting. If they could attract just two or three at a time, they could probably handle them. Facing the bandits ahead, Xiao Jie felt troubled. "Feng, should we try to bypass them through the forest?" "No way," Xiao Jie decisively shook his head. Too many beasts lurked in the forest, and poor visibility made it easy to draw in several monsters—it was still very dangerous. "Then what do we do?" "Wait, players often pass through these roads close to towns." Sure enough, within a few minutes, they heard the sound of horse hooves from afar. "Feng, look quickly! There are many horsemen." They could see a group of over ten cavalrymen rapidly approaching from the east. Xiao Jie’s heart skipped a beat, but thankfully, all had white names. This squad of cavalry charged directly at the bandits. The first row all hoisted long spears, with a charge of the Riding Spear instantly taking down three and heavily injuring two. The second row was all archers, who rained down arrows in a flurry and quickly concluded the battle. While others were clearing the battlefield, one of the leading horsemen charged towards them. Xiao Jie gave the man a look: he was clad in shining silver Armor, and astride a pure white steed, giving off an impression like a knight in shining armor. Hidden Dragon Do Not Use (Captain of Cavalry): Level 24, Life Value 440. "A newbie?" "Yes, thanks a lot for the help, brother." "Don’t mention it, we are from the Dragon Soaring Knights, our guild is dedicated to maintaining fairness, justice, and harmonious order within the game, helping weaker players survive in this harsh game world. If you encounter any troubles in the future, you can come to us. Our guild’s doors are open to like-minded newbies, as long as you are willing to abide by the game’s order and our guild’s rules, any player can apply to join our united and friendly family." I Want to Be Immortal listened with longing, but Xiao Jie felt nothing inside. Whether it’s organizations in the real world or in virtual worlds, they all like to have grand titles, do some good deeds, but at the end of the day, the usual ultimate goal is to strengthen their own power and gain greater benefits. The so-called good deeds are perhaps nothing more than a marketing ploy. Of course, it’s possible that the Dragon Soaring Knights is an idealized organization that purely wants to help newbies. But as for human nature, after what happened with Liu Qiang, Xiao Jie didn’t hold out much hope. However, one should still be thankful for the help received. "Much appreciated, we’ll definitely take you up on that if the opportunity arises. Oh, by the way, on our way here we saw a demonized giant wolf called Bai Ling. Seems like a BOSS. We didn’t dare to provoke it, but maybe you are interested?" A small field BOSS like that should interest them. "Bai Ling? Where?" Sure enough, Hidden Dragon Do Not Use suddenly became interested. "Just a five-minute journey to the northwest, on top of a small hill." "I know the place, thanks a lot, brother." After that, a whooshing sound was heard as the knights quickly gathered around. It was then that Xiao Jie noticed that not all of the eighteen knights were players; ten were players, and the other eight were NPC cavalrymen. Xiao Jie had read about the game and knew they must be soldiers hired by Generals, but to think that there were eight Generals among ten players was quite impressive. These Generals were of various levels, the lowest being Level 15, the highest Level 24, all with steeds, clad in various styles of metal armor, wielding long spears, big halberds, crescent long blades—all kinds of long weapons. Gathered together, they gave off the feeling of being in a Three Kingdoms game. "If you continue east for over ten minutes, you will reach Luoyang Town. The monsters along the way have been cleared, so it should be safe for a short while. Brothers—we move out! To slay the Wolf King!" With a whoosh, the eighteen knights dashed off like the wind. "Damn, that’s quite domineering," I Want to Be Immortal remarked in awe. Indeed, cavalry appearing and disappearing like the wind, once formed into a sizeable group, could be truly terrifying in the open fields. Probably even high-level players around Level 30 to 40 would have a tough time if they really got into a fight with such a group. It seemed the Dragon Soaring Knights must be a major guild, otherwise they wouldn’t be able to train so many Generals, likely focusing on concentrated training. Luckily, they weren’t hostile. But judging from this group’s attitude, the interactions between players in this game might be quite harmonious after all, which was good news. "While the monsters haven’t respawned, let’s hurry on our way." Picking up the pace, the two hurried eastward. As expected, they didn’t encounter any monsters along the way. Occasionally, they would come across corpses of dead robbers and beasts. Fifteen minutes later, far in the distance, the outline of a town appeared. Seeing the walls of the town, Xiao Jie felt an instant sense of closeness. Having traveled in the wilds for two or three hours felt like walking for two days. "Quick, let’s enter the town." Luoyang Town might be called a town, but it was more like a small city with tall stone walls and armored soldiers standing guard on top of them. Once inside, the first impression was that it was bustling. "So many players!" Most of the players seemed to be over ten levels, over twenty levels. The two of them at Level 10 newbies did not stand out in the crowd, but they were still relatively incognito. Looking at the pedestrians coming and going on the street, Xiao Jie was truly experiencing an online game for the first time. There were all sorts of people on the main street. Many simply found a spot, spread out a blanket, and set up a stall to sell things. Thanks to the real-time voice feature, the shouting all around was incessant, recalling the feel of a busy market in the real world. "Freshly made tiger soul pills, 5 taels of silver each, come and take a look even if not buying." "Bright Silver Armor, blue quality, only twenty silver taels." "Top player power-leveling service, 50,000 RMB a day, insurance agreement available, guaranteed safety." "Sword Technique Secret Books for exchange for Saber Skill Secret Books, come exchange!" "World Association is recruiting players to explore Old Soil. Newbies looking for an organization, hurry up and sign up. We have a Level 28 top player personally leading the team to fight monsters and farm equipment, ensuring fairness and justice, don’t miss this opportunity!" Listened to the noisy hawking around him, I Want to Be Immortal felt a bit dazed. Xiao Jie, on the other hand, was quite familiar with this atmosphere, which made him reminisce about the times he played new games. Ah, such good memories. "Where are we heading now, Feng?" "To sell stuff, then to learn skills."