Arena

The town was bustling at night, with all players below level 20 gathered in this area.

Some hurried about, while others drowned themselves in pleasure. Their Martial Tools came in every imaginable variety, from cold weapons to firearms, from staves to concealed weapons. There was nothing you could think of that no player was using.

"Recruiting! Recruiting! Dynasty Guild is taking in new members! Great compensation, excellent benefits!"

"Selling starter equipment, definitely cheaper than what the Game World sells."

"Bro, this Gunslinger Job Certificate is absolutely worth 1,000 Copper Coins. Think about it—early-game players don't have high stats yet. Having a gun versus not having one is practically the difference between two worlds! I'm an old player. I wouldn't lie to you..."

"What stats are you stacking? Have you even played games before? If not, I'll teach you. In games, it's all about equipment and skills. Stats only add a few points of damage early on, but powerful equipment is different. It can help you get through the early stages much more easily. Besides, if you work hard enough, you can basically stack your Main Attribute to 50 before level 20."

"Why can you only stack it to 50? Ahem, ahem. Oh, my equipment looks pretty good, doesn't it...?"

Chen Yi absorbed knowledge of the Game World like a sponge and gained a rough understanding of the players' current major schools.

The mainstream was the Traditional Game School. Players worked hard to level up and upgrade their equipment, aiming for stronger and better gear.

Due to racial restrictions, players needed to make a breakthrough once their Base Stats reached 50. Chen Yi had yet to find out how to do that. Perhaps Old Ban knew, but 50 points in stats was still far too distant for Chen Yi, so he was in no hurry.

Characters had stat limits, but equipment did not. The slogan of these players was: as long as you maximize every detail of your gear, your improvement will exceed your imagination.

Traditional Game School players improved quickly, but whether they became powerful in the end depended on wealth and luck.

The second type was the Scholar School. They focused mainly on skills, seeking to understand them like Chen Yi did and refusing to use the Smart Casting provided by the Game World.

Only a small number of people chose to try this method because its progress was simply too slow.

Powerful players of this school could surpass players from the first school at the same level, but weak ones could not even leave the Novice Village. They were the kind nobody wanted in a party.

However, Chen Yi had no intention of changing his plan to become stronger. Most players formed parties to play, but Chen Yi did not yet have any trustworthy teammates. He could not afford to leave himself with an obvious weakness.

Later, Chen Yi picked up a staff and a ring from a stall.

Withered Vine Staff

Quality: White

Physical Attack: 10-12

Magic Attack: 15-21

Effect: When casting *Fireball*, there is a greater chance of setting the target on fire.

Durability: 15/15

Level: 5

Evaluation: A wooden staff casting... *Fireball*?

A good Martial Tool immediately increased Chen Yi's combat power by a great deal. No wonder so many players pursued better equipment.

Ring of Contemplation

Quality: Green

Intelligence +1

Effect: Improves meditation effects to a certain extent.

Level: 5

Durability: 5/5

Evaluation: A gift from a mentor to an apprentice.

Although this ring was Green Quality, its effect was truly terrible. It had been sitting at the stall for several game cycles already.

Seeing that Chen Yi was interested in the ring, the stall owner immediately boasted about how quickly it restored Mana and claimed that he and Chen Yi had hit it off at first sight. He said Chen Yi could take it for just 200 Copper Coins.

Including the 900 Copper Coins spent on the Martial Tool, Chen Yi suddenly felt terribly poor. He did not even have enough money to put together a full set of equipment.

He kept a few Copper Coins in reserve and spent all the rest on red and blue potions.

Big Red Potion x3

Restores 25 Health over 10 seconds.

Evaluation: An inferior product brought out of some world, but at least it tastes alright.

Price: 150 Copper Coins

Big Blue Potion x1

Restores 20 Mana over 10 seconds.

Evaluation: If you have no Mana, can drinking this really make it in time?

Price: 100 Copper Coins

In the Arena, Chen Yi's opponent was a level 12 Gunslinger. The two stood fifty meters apart.

His opponent looked relaxed, spinning a revolver in his hand. "Kid, did you come to the wrong place? This is the Arena for players above level 10. You should be playing house with the other newbies."

Chen Yi said nothing. He naturally had his reasons for coming here.

His opponent's trash talk did not affect Chen Yi as the countdown in the air steadily decreased.

The instant the countdown ended, Chen Yi ran in a zigzag pattern. Bullet holes had already appeared where he had been standing.

Although the Gunslinger player had acted as though he looked down on Chen Yi, he showed no intention of holding back.

At this level, both Gunslingers and mages were considered mid-range classes. They could attack each other while standing still, so the contest came down to attack speed and projectile speed. Clearly, bullets were faster.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Revolver bullets constantly streaked through the air. With Mental power far beyond what was normal for his level, Chen Yi could still catch sight of those bullets, though his dodging was anything but graceful.

"Damn it! Why is he as slippery as a loach?!"

Each revolver held only six bullets, and now both were nearly empty.

The Gunslinger player swiftly pulled an Ice Grenade from a pouch at his left waist and threw it at Chen Yi. He ran away from Chen Yi at the same time, skillfully reloading his guns.

But the Ice Grenade that was supposed to stop Chen Yi did not explode. Instead, it flew back toward him.

"What?!"

With a sound like shattering glass, a small patch of ground froze over, trapping the Gunslinger player's feet in the ice.

Before he could shoot through the ice with his revolver, Fireballs bombarded him one after another.

You were hit by *Fireball* and lost 25 Health.

You were hit by *Fireball* and lost 20 Health.

You were hit by *Fireball* and lost 22 Health.

You lost the match.

By the time the Gunslinger player came to his senses, he had already been ejected from the Arena. "Damn it, I actually ran into a Scholar School mage. Didn't they say this school was trash in the early game?"

The Fireballs came flying at him as if they required no casting time at all. It was an obvious trait of the Scholar School.

Thinking of how Chen Yi seemed to be only level 5, it looked like the Scholar School was about to produce a genius.

After winning, Chen Yi reflected on the problems in that battle. Distance was a mage's lifeline, but it was also the lifeline of certain other classes.

When facing enemies who attacked faster than he did, he lacked ways to deal with them.

Chen Yi had already spent two days in the Arena, losing more often than he won.

At first, he had indeed gone to the Arena for players below level 10. But just as the Gunslinger player had said, it was no different from playing house for the current Chen Yi.

Job Certificates generally required players to reach level 10 before they could undertake the relevant quests. In other words, players below level 10 normally fought using only basic skills and basic stats.

Such battles usually ended as soon as they began and could not give Chen Yi the slightest bit of pressure.

Only in the level 10-20 Arena did players truly begin to display their strength: all kinds of classes, strange skills, and even wealthy second-generation guild players.

Looking at those wealthy players, then at himself, who could not even put together a full set of equipment, Chen Yi could not help shedding tears of envy.