After taking the scroll from Bisel, Lu Yang could not calm his heart. He clearly remembered the grand scene from his previous life, when hundreds of millions of players had been trapped before the Serpent Valley dungeon, unable to clear it.
Given the difficulty of Second World's dungeons, it was absolutely impossible to defeat the monsters in a level 10 dungeon without level 5 to 8 equipment.
Just as players throughout the region were growing frantic with anxiety, someone suddenly began selling Antitoxin Potions at the auction house. Excited players rushed to buy them, and a single Antitoxin Potion was artificially driven up to five silver coins per bottle. Even so, demand still far exceeded supply.
"Brother, you've given me a tremendous gift," Lu Yang said.
Bisel said indifferently, "It is only a small gift. Compared to my life, it is nothing."
Settar said, "Not only do we wish to give you a small gift, sir, but we also wish to ask you for a favor."
"What favor?" Lu Yang asked.
Settar did not answer. Instead, he gave Bisel a slight bow.
Bisel took out a letter of commission from the hands of a goblin behind him and said angrily to Lu Yang, "Those damned trolls actually dared to attack our Venture Capital Firm! They even tried to kill me. I will make them pay. I hope you will accept my commission and slaughter those damned trolls."
Lu Yang accepted the letter of commission. It read:
Venture Capital Firm Commission Slaughter the Trolls: Those damned trolls dared to attack a Venture Capital Firm caravan. To teach them a lesson and serve as a warning to the other races, the Venture Capital Firm commissions Mr. Lu Yang to travel to the Troll Camp and kill all remaining trolls. Troll Bone Chains worn around the trolls' necks will serve as proof. For every troll killed, the Venture Capital Firm is willing to pay Mr. Lu Yang twenty copper coins as a reward.
Lu Yang did the math. Around one hundred trolls spawned in the Troll Camp at a time. Killing them once would earn him two thousand copper coins, or twenty silver coins. It was quite a good deal, and he could use the money to buy materials for making Antitoxin Potions.
"I accept this commission." Lu Yang signed the letter, then returned it to Bisel.
"That is wonderful, brother. I knew you would accept my commission," Bisel said happily.
Lu Yang checked the time and found that he had already delayed for a while in the Goblin Camp. For some reason, he thought of what Liu Jie had done in his previous life, and a sense of urgency rose in his heart.
"Brother, I'll head to the Troll Camp now. Wait for my good news," Lu Yang said.
"Alright. The caravan has no outgoing missions for the time being. If you come looking for me, go to the Merchant Guild Hall on the east side of the camp. I will be waiting there," Bisel said.
Lu Yang nodded, bid Bisel farewell, went to the riverbank to make another two hundred Crispy Electric Eel Meat, then ran into the Troll Camp. Targeting a troll, Lu Yang began chanting the spell for Pyroblast.
The goblins also respawned once every fifteen minutes, but these monsters were harder to fight. Every time Lu Yang attacked, he had to carefully dodge the spears they threw. If he failed to dodge even once, the spear would kill him.
In truth, this leveling speed and monster-farming method were far inferior to the location Lu Yang had arranged for his little brother Xiao Liang. Besides, he had already accepted the goblins' commission, so he could have waited until level 10 before returning to complete this quest.
By then, Lu Yang would have a full set of equipment. He could bring a team over, and everyone could split the loot evenly. However, other players who had not received the goblin commission letter would not be able to obtain Troll Bone Chains. It would be equivalent to Lu Yang hiring players who came to this camp for free to collect Troll Bone Chains for him.
Yet Lu Yang did not do that. On one hand, he wanted to hone his control skills. On the other, he did not want to miss any opportunity to build an advantage.
Game currency had not yet been linked to real-world currency, and players had almost no money on hand. Even if he killed only one hundred trolls, twenty silver coins counted as a huge sum in the game and could accomplish many things. Besides, Lu Yang's goal was not merely to kill one hundred trolls. At this stage, this was the furthest he could go in killing monsters above his level. If he wanted to challenge higher-level monsters beyond this point, he could not do so without better equipment, skills, or special items.
After killing continuously for an hour, Lu Yang felt a trace of fatigue. As the night grew darker, he found a place without monsters and rested. Maintaining focus for so long while dodging troll spears was no easy task, especially at night.
He opened his friend list and pressed the call button for Xiao Liang.
"Brother, how are things over there?"
At the bugged spot in the Orc Cave Hall, Xiao Liang was still using the Serpent Venom Orb to farm orcs in groups.
"Boss, killing monsters here is ridiculously satisfying. I'm almost level 7 already," Xiao Liang said happily.
Lu Yang's eyes lit up. He had not expected Xiao Liang to level up so quickly. "Not bad, brother. That speed is impressive."
It was more than impressive. The outside world had already fallen into chaos. An unknown player had suddenly entered the top ten of the Level Rankings, then surged ahead, overtaking guild leaders such as Black Blood, Twilight, and Xiong Ba. In just one day, he had reached level 7 and firmly claimed second place on the Level Rankings.
Players on the world channel were all discussing the matter. Many were envious, and even more were jealous. Some had even gone to the game company's official channels to report a bug, because Black Blood and Twilight had only just reached level 6 and a half. No one could understand how a player named Black Armored Warrior had leveled up.
"He must have used cheats." In the Rock Cave, Zheng Yuan, who had only recently climbed back from level 2 to level 3, said indignantly.
They had previously challenged the level 3 dungeon and died five times in a row, dropping back to level 2 at 50%.
"That may not necessarily be the case," Zhang Zibo said.
"What do you mean?" Xia Yuwei asked as she fought monsters.
"Did you notice? When Black Armored Warrior was leveling up rapidly, Lu Yang, who was ranked first, was also leveling up quickly. I suspect Black Armored Warrior knows Lu Yang, and the two of them are leveling together," Zhang Zibo said.
"Damn it, are those two idiots out of their minds? Fine, Lu Yang can't be contacted, but Black Armored Warrior has also disabled his friend feature. Don't they know they could make a lot of money by selling their leveling method?" Zheng Yuan cursed.
Xia Yuwei said, "It can't be helped. Experts are always a little unconventional. Don't let this ruin everyone's mood. Keep leveling up. Our leveling spot isn't bad either."
Zhang Zibo and the others nodded helplessly. They simply lacked equipment right now. If they had equipment, they would have long since reached level 4 by relying on the countless level 1 and 2 monsters in this cave.
As Lan Yu watched Xia Yuwei and the others discuss Lu Yang, she felt strangely unsettled. It was an indescribable feeling, carrying a faint sense of mystery and fluttering anticipation, as though she were secretly doing something bad and was afraid of being discovered.
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