Hardcore Game

Yuanfang shook his head at that question.

"I still can't jump to conclusions about how these two attributes improve."

"After raising them, I tried many things, but I didn't feel any noticeable improvement."

"But I do have some immature guesses."

"How so?" Li Miao asked curiously.

"Based on their literal meanings and past gaming experience, these two attributes are most likely closely related to mage-type classes and skills," Yuanfang said.

Li Miao felt that made sense.

However, Spirit Candle only had the two of them as players for now. More content would probably unlock as the game progressed.

By then, they would naturally learn what the Spirit and Faith attributes were for.

Just then.

Li Miao heard a call from outside the game again. His roommate was reminding him that it was time for class.

"I have to go to class. You keep playing—I'll log back in tonight."

"Oh, right. What's your contact info, big bro Yuanfang? I can call you when I log in later."

Li Miao extended an invitation to this major powerhouse.

"Sure." Yuanfang did not refuse and gave Li Miao his contact information.

"Did you claim your reward?" Yuanfang had a good memory and specifically reminded him.

"Reward? Oh! Right, let me check..." Li Miao suddenly remembered and checked his quest. "It's already been issued."

"I'll log off first, then."

"Okay, bye." Yuanfang nodded.

"Poetry and the Distance..."

"What terrifying talent..."

Rogue, who had been keeping an eye on the players while killing monsters, had also taken Yuanfang's conclusions to heart.

He had not missed Yuanfang's earlier performance either.

Exceptional combat talent, a calm and clear mind, unmatched insight and thirst for knowledge...

If an ordinary player possessed even one of those traits, they would have a good chance of joining the top ranks with enough effort.

Yet those qualities seemed to have gathered in Yuanfang alone...

Li Miao's gaming talent was already quite decent in Rogue's eyes, but Yuanfang was even more formidable!

Fortunately, he was Rogue's player.

It had to be said that he had truly summoned a glittering SSR this time!

However, he had yet to realize that this glittering little player would soon cause his first big problem...

Li Miao went to class, but Yuanfang did not log off.

After checking how much wax oil he had left, he thought for a moment before leaving Reef Cave with his dagger once more.

This time, he did not head toward the shore where the Fishmen were. Instead, he began moving along the edge of the isolated island.

Clearly, Yuanfang intended to explore the entire island.

Rogue had also stopped to rest by then, silently observing his movements from within the Spirit Candle.

Yuanfang was highly purposeful and decisive.

After setting his goal of exploring the whole island, he actively detoured around monsters along the way. He did not even spare a glance for seemingly tempting side paths.

However, he could avoid monsters like Fishmen that were visible at a glance, but there would always be monsters that were difficult for him to notice.

For example, the ones about to make their appearance...

[Tidal Sandworm]

[Rank: Cinder]

[Level: 6]

[Talent: *Blood Drain*]

[Skill: *Conceal*]

[Description: Worms that lurk beneath the beach. They become unusually excited after successfully attacking an enemy.]

These dark yellow Sandworms, averaging just over a meter long and equipped with savage Mouthparts, did not seem much stronger than Mudflat Mermen based on their information alone. Judging by their size, they even appeared less threatening than the Fishmen.

Yet the wandering souls floating in the air explained everything.

[Dead]

"A group attack... Attacks hidden beneath the sand really aren't easy to spot."

Yuanfang frowned slightly.

After lingering in place for a while and realizing he could not gather any more information, he quickly returned to the cave before setting out again.

This time, he tried to detour around them, but soon perished under the encirclement of another group of Tidal Sandworms.

Yet Yuanfang was not angry. He calmly observed them for a while and committed this location to memory as well...

[Dead] [Dead] [Dead]...

Yuanfang's wandering soul traveled back and forth without feeling the slightest fatigue.

He also worked out the Tidal Sandworms' territory and arrived directly behind the cave entrance after circling clockwise around the island.

The monster that attacked him this time came from the sky.

It was called a "Poison Mist Bird."

But before Yuanfang could even check its details, his wandering soul was pulled back beside the Spirit Candle by an irresistible force.

[Insufficient wax oil remaining]

[The Candle Keepers have provided the wax oil for this reconstruction of your body]

His body was reconstructed once more, and wax oil spread from the Spirit Candle, condensing into Rogue's form.

Yuanfang remained calm. He naturally knew he did not have enough wax oil; he had merely been testing what would happen.

"A newborn Flame will inevitably encounter storms it expects."

"But if you truly are not suited for this place, perhaps staying safely in your original world would be a good choice."

[Warning! Please maintain sufficient wax oil to support your number of deaths!]

[The Candle Keepers' impression of you will affect your game progress. In severe cases, you may be expelled and unable to enter the game!]

[Exit the game?]

As Rogue finished speaking, an eye-catching game prompt appeared before Yuanfang, thoughtfully providing an exit option as well.

Rogue had no intention of showing favoritism toward this player with exceptional talent. He simply spoke calmly.

Of course, he knew Yuanfang was testing things.

But this was a bottom line. It was the same for everyone, and Rogue had no intention of making any concessions.

To put it bluntly, he had summoned players to help him acquire resources faster.

If every player wanted to freeload on his reserves until not a single drop of wax oil remained, how was he supposed to develop? Was he supposed to spend every day killing monsters just to pay for the players' revivals?

So this bottom line had to be upheld, especially when dealing with creatures known as "players."

Yuanfang was not angry in the slightest. Instead, a look of just as I thought flashed through his eyes.

In his view, aside from its incredibly realistic simulation technology, this game did not have universally accessible gameplay.

In other words, most ordinary players would be unable to adapt to a game like this.

Its combat was extremely demanding, and the monsters were incredibly powerful—so much so that it even approached reality.

A hardcore game like this was probably never made for all players in the first place, but for a particular gaming demographic...

Now, the reaction of the "Candle Keepers," this game NPC, and the game's feedback had basically confirmed his guess.

This was a hardcore game made for a select few. Those with poor combat talent or who could not adapt would most likely choose to leave on their own or be "persuaded" to leave.

"And... this Candle Keepers NPC seems to have an affinity system?"

Yuanfang pondered silently. With those gains, dying once had not been a loss at all.

The next moment, he directly selected "No" and said, "There were just some unexpected circumstances earlier."

"Please rest assured, Candle Keepers. I will adapt to this place."

[Avoid dying again until you have collected enough wax oil]

"Let us hope so."

Rogue nodded slightly without saying more. After leaving behind a prompt, he directly dissolved into wax oil and vanished again.

"I'll have to explore the map later..."

Yuanfang shrugged slightly, picked up his dagger, and walked outside the cave.

His calm gaze turned toward the Mudflat Mermen by the shore.

At this point, the Fishman Leader was nowhere to be seen by the sea. In its place were ordinary Fishmen.

They wandered back and forth with vacant eyes, completely unaware that a nightmare was about to descend...

Without another word, Yuanfang began clearing out the Mudflat Mermen along the shore.

There was no need to question his combat talent. In just one morning, he had thoroughly figured out the many uses of Dodge.

In his eyes, these Fishmen were nothing more than walking wax oil...

Squelch, squelch...

The sound of the dagger piercing flesh rang out continuously, while Yuanfang's figure flickered unpredictably in the dim light.

[You killed a Mudflat Merman]

[You killed a Mudflat Merman]

[...]

After slaughter after slaughter, the Fishman Leader appeared repeatedly. After dying a few more times, Yuanfang had also figured out its spawn conditions.

A Fishman Leader would appear after he killed around ten Mudflat Mermen in succession.

It would wander by the shore for about a minute. If there were no enemies, it would dive into the sea and disappear.

After collecting some wax oil, Yuanfang allocated points to his character and reached Level 5.

It was worth mentioning that he put all four attribute points gained from leveling into Agility. Combined with the point he had added during his earlier tests, it had reached ten.

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