MMORPG: The Elementalist

Vampire Leech was killed!

Player gained 2621 experience! Poochie gained 1726 experience!

The system notification rang after the Vampire Leech succumbed under Qin Ruo’s constant assault that persisted for more than half an hour. Qin Ruo won the battle with an overwhelming advantage.

Unlike other monster Boss which died dramatically, the Vampire Leech passed away in a peaceful way. As its HP dropped to zero, the monster’s bloated and smooth body deflated as if it was a pile of rotten meat and ruptured into the Frostlake.

“Eh?”

Using his Elemental Perception, Qin Ruo could examine the rewards dropped by the Vampire Leech, but he realized something was out of place.

Out in the Frostlake, not a single gold coin was detected.

If this happened in a different setting, Qin Ruo would have started cursing by now. At present, it would be quite a torture to pick up the gold coin one by one out from the freezing lake.

“Sigh. Forget it, saves me the trouble.”

Qin Ruo moved near the Vampire Leech’s corpse and retrieved the two Dark Gold and four Gold equipment floating on the Frostlake into his backpack.

He scanned the remaining loot and prepared to leave the rest for Dark Cyclone and company. This was when he saw it.

The item was carried in Poochie’s little claw. The Pet jumped up and rested on Qin Ruo’s shoulder. Then, it handed over the sapphire crystal half the size of its head to its master while chirped proudly.

Qin Ruo was moved by Poochie’s action. “Where did you get the crystal from?” He asked Poochie with a puzzled look. He remembered the stone was not in the Frostlake when he scanned the area with Elemental Perception.

He took the item over and had a look.

Vampire Demon Crystal (Unidentified)

Qin Ruo frowned doubtfully.

‘I thought it’s a Mana Core dropped from the Vampire Leech. Since it needs identification, I guess it’s something else. What is this crystal? Forget it. I will check it through after I leave the Graveyard of the Gods. The pressing matter here is to leave this place immediately.’

He was now in the Graveyard of the Gods. More players would soon find this place. Though Qin Ruo did not mind to collect more Honor Points from Demon Faction players, it was rather time-consuming and labor intensive.

The second level of the Graveyard of the Gods was Qin Ruo’s real purpose. Besides, those who were capable of going into the next level were more powerful than those who remained at the first, thus there was a higher chance to snatch Honor Points from Demon Faction players at the next stage.

After he kept the Demon Crystal in his backpack, Qin Ruo realized that Dark Cyclone and others were standing at a distance and looked at him respectfully. Though he was not used to being regarded that way, he knew well the fact that there were indeed a lot of fanatic players in this H&G world. Like Brother Da, their obsession with the game had also influenced their behavior in this virtual world. Thus, it was common that these players would be in awe and showed utmost respect from the bottom of their heart to higher rank player, even when the player was a total stranger to them.

Qin Ruo recognized that the battle proficiency he had displayed was unimaginable to the likes of them. He decided to speak nothing about his discomfort under their gaze and asked them after they had collected all the remaining loot, “Do you guys wish to stay here or follow me down to the second level?”

In Qin Ruo’s opinion, although Dark Cyclone and company ware only ordinary players, they might be of great help since they could carry out his orders.

‘If they really have the desire and grit to enter the second level, then there’s no harm bringing them along together. Once they experience the true horror and danger of the Graveyard of the Gods and cannot stand it, they will leave automatically then.’

For Dark Cyclone and company, they were more than delighted to hear that. There was no consideration needed for such a wonderful offer. They could appreciate the battle style of high ranked players from close range while being given a share of the reward without needing to involve much (Qin Ruo had no interest in most equipment except the one worn by Cruz). Furthermore, they did not encounter much danger thus far and such a valuable opportunity did not come easily. As expected, all five of them decided to follow Qin Ruo to the next level.

Qin Ruo nodded with a smile and said nothing else. He spun around and recovered his own as well as Poochie’s HP back to the tip-top condition with two successive Aquaheals. Under Qin Ruo’s lead, six Angel Faction players walked enthusiastically toward a small warp point near the bank next to the Vampire Leech’s corpse.

‘The second level!’

“Here I come!”

***

The scene switched to a local company. An IT expert in his teens dressed handsomely sat in front of his work desk. He held a cup of steamy espresso and was flirting with a decent female colleague. He joked with the lady while constantly having his eyes on the minute hand of the Rolex watch wrapped around his wrist.

‘Another half an hour to go before I can leave work.’

It was always torturing to watch time pass. He couldn’t wait to leave work and return home for his game.

‘Screw working days.’

“Hey Crackpot, do you still have any accessories suitable for a Priest with you? It will be best if it carries healing effect. I dropped my Mercy Ring after dying in the Graveyard yesterday.”

The IT expert relieved his frowned forehead silently and raised his head with a grin.

“Sure. Let me check the vault later.”

“Oh great! Thanks, Crackpot.”

“Alright, alright. Please don’t call me by my in-game-name. So you want to hang out at my place after work?”

“Ah, I can’t. I promised someone to enter the Graveyard together. So sorry, let’s do that some other time.”

“Alright then.”

Crackpot was disappointed with the reply. He lost his interest with the lady and shifted his gaze back onto the laptop placed on his work desk. The webpage displayed on the screen was none other than the official H&G forum.

He refreshed the page by clicking F5 and a red viral thread grabbed his attention entirely.

‘A new thread that has reached a million views so quickly?’

Crackpot was astonished and clicked into the link without having a proper look on the thread title.

Most viral threads that popped up were all related to the latest development in the Graveyard. Almost every topped thread was picked out by the H&G employees. These viral threads usually contain valuable information and were followed by a lot of H&G players during their working hours.

That was why Crackpot was very excited when he saw a new viral thread, despite seeing one from yesterday which seriously displeased him. However, he could not deny that the content of that thread was indeed worth the attention.

Before he clicked into the new thread, Crackpot’s eyes saw the annoying viral thread placed higher up in his peripheral vision. He frowned as the emerging despicable face in his mind that had embarrassed him in front of the public at the Snow Domain.

‘Qin Ruo! Only about ten days after our encounter and this Tier 3 scum has risen to such heights!’

Although he could tell Dark Dragon from Netherspirit’s Claw never took Qin Ruo seriously, the steady and calm counter displayed by Qin Ruo, as well as his precise manipulation and the tacit combination with his Pet made him a force to be reckoned with. The Aquamancer had certainly put Dark Dragon in a tough spot, as he showed flashes of explosive attacks that had threatened the pro to a certain extent throughout the fight.

Qin Ruo is definitely no ordinary player. His skill and power... Thinking of this, a gloomy, miserable expression flashed on Crackpot’s face. He removed the face of the wicked fellow from his mind, while comforting himself thinking, ‘You arrogant person without any backing. It’s one thing to offend me. Now you even dare to provoke Dark Dragon?! You will soon face your pitiful fate.’

The page turned and revealed the contents of the latest viral thread.

The title of the thread that entered Crackpot sight startled him a little.

[The Devilish Aquamancer that Slaughtered a Tier 5 pro at the Underground Frostlake]

‘Devilish Aquamancer? Slaughtered a Tier 5 pro? Don’t tell me...’

Crackpot’s pupils constricted and he quickly clicked on the play button.

A great scene like those seen in a magical action film was played on the monitor screen. The eerie location, a quiet environment, and the “now you see me, now you don’t” main actor...

As the video progressed, Crackpot’s face became grimmer and grimmer. His breath quickened as his grip tightened on the coffee cup. He gazed deadly on the screen and the previous gloomy look returned to his face and got more miserable.

“Damn... You are... that powerful already?!”

No wonder the thread was named “Devilish Aquamancer”.

Qin Ruo possessed a Stealth ability, a hidden spell trait allowing him to attack continuously, and the terrifying Frostrampart skill in addition to his breathtaking Element Manipulation technique. He even owned a powerful Pet now.

Crackpot watched the video repeatedly and painfully figured out that Qin Ruo had grasped all the initiative at the earlier stage of the fight. ‘This must be due to Elemental Perception.’ He could tell that because Qin Ruo seemed to have eagle-eye vision when he eliminated the Bowmasters and Elementalists later on. No other skills or techniques aside from Elemental Perception could achieve such a feat.

Crackpot felt that his gap with Qin Ruo was once again widened. He realized his recent achievement and effort on the Mythical Battlefield was nothing in comparison. He rose up the coffee cup in his left hand and placed it near his mouth, then immediately putting it down without taking a sip.

A few seconds later, Crackpot’s face turned sly as he typed furiously on the keyboard. He had just logged into the inner circle of Netherspirit’s Claw League.