Class Change

"Nobody will die here!"

Uwan Ryu shouted and looked at the archers standing on the stairs. "Lower your bows!"

The archers exchanged glances, then slowly loosened their bowstrings.

Uwan Ryu then looked toward 'Yan San.' Wearing the Evil Spirit Mask, he was impossible to read.

"Let it go this time."

Yan Qing found it a little strange. Based on his previous impression, Uwan Ryu did not seem like someone who was this easygoing. But he did not dwell on it. Instead, with only a third of his health remaining, he hurried to a corner and ate a Blood Replenishment Pill and some Roasted Chicken. Then he saw 'Yan San' on the screen, holding the Roasted Chicken and wolfing it down behind everyone else's backs.

The Underground Martial Arts Arena fell silent. The archers seized the chance to rest. They had fired nearly ten volleys in a row, and even the Hundred Guard Cavalry were all elite troops, so their arms were bound to be sore and weak.

Just as Yan Qing pretended to stroll around and pick up the dropped items, he saw Uwan Ryu walk to one corner of the arena and open the treasure chest there.

"One thousand spirit jades, five bottles of Blood Replenishment Pills, and three Refined Steel Ingots."

Uwan Ryu counted the items in the chest once, then closed it. When he turned and saw 'Yan San' watching him, he said, "Every time the secret realm is entered anew, everything inside reappears, including the monsters and treasure chests. The same items appear in the chest every time, so anyone with sticky fingers will be discovered immediately."

The treasure chests in the dungeon must be their most important source of loot, Yan Qing thought. But the dropped items are the real prize. Missing out on what's in the chest doesn't matter much.

After resting, they continued onward and arrived at an underground hall. Treasure chests piled high with gold, silver, and jewels were scattered throughout the hall. In the middle of all that treasure sat a large bed.

Before entering the hall, Uwan Ryu had everyone draw their bows and aim at the left side of the bed. He himself switched to an iron shield, then stepped into the hall.

The moment Uwan Ryu crossed the threshold, a puzzled voice came from the bed:

"You actually found this place... Your luck is truly terrible."

A rather kind-looking middle-aged man climbed down from the left side of the bed. If not for the name "Suppressor of Three Mountains Shan" above his head, no one would have guessed that this ordinary-looking man with a slightly troubled expression was the final BOSS.

Whoosh!

At that moment, the Hundred Guard Cavalry loosed their arrows in unison. If Zheng Shan had not been a digitized monster, he would certainly have been turned into a pincushion. But he lost less than ten percent of his health and calmly drew the two straight blades beside the bed. Then—

Swish!

He turned into a blur and crossed more than a dozen paces in just a few breaths, bringing both blades down on Uwan Ryu's iron shield at the front!

"Surround him!" Uwan Ryu roared. Three shield-bearing swordsmen had already spread out in different directions and charged Zheng Shan with their shields raised!

Zheng Shan continued hacking at Uwan Ryu stroke after stroke like an executioner, but with people surrounding him on all sides, he could not perform any evasive maneuvers. The archers had also all switched to spears and stabbed Zheng Shan through the gaps.

'Yan San' was already holding a spear, so he naturally joined everyone in ganging up on Zheng Shan. Zheng Shan's health rapidly fell. Just as it reached one-third, the archers suddenly retreated. Yan Qing was still at a loss when he saw Zheng Shan on the screen roar:

"Moon Ring!"

Zheng Shan spun once with both blades in hand. The fierce blades of light actually covered the space within three paces around him. The shields of Uwan Ryu and the other soldiers were carved with deep gashes, while 'Yan San,' the only fool without any defenses, instantly lost fifty percent of his health!

Yan Qing's first thought was: The people in this world really understand the BOSS's mechanics. They must be unable to see health bars—if they could, they would realize there was something wrong with Yan San—but they can still accurately judge when the BOSS is about to use a skill.

His second thought was: Uwan Ryu never intended to let him leave alive!

If 'Yan San' had not been a digitized character, Zheng Shan's skill would certainly have left him severely wounded, if not on the verge of death!

Yan Qing's thoughts raced as he controlled 'Yan San' to withdraw from the battle. He leaned against the wall, making himself look severely wounded and near death, then opened his personal storage and hurriedly took some medicine. Sure enough, no one noticed anything wrong. Everyone thought 'Yan San' was doomed and continued their frenzied assault on Zheng Shan.

When Zheng Shan had only a sliver of health remaining, Yan San immediately charged over and finished him with one thrust!

"You comprehended Basic Spear Technique. Current level: 8"

"Your Vitality increased by 0.1"

"Your Spirit increased by 0.5"

"Your Dexterity increased by 0.5"

"You reached Level 10!"

"Congratulations, player, you have reached Level 10. Would you like to undergo your first class change immediately? Note: Your class is related to your gameplay experience and skill proficiency."

Yan Qing selected 'Yes!' without the slightest hesitation.

Three boxes appeared on the screen, listing three available classes:

"Spear Herald"

"Attribute Bonuses: Vitality +5, Spirit +2, Dexterity +5"

"Thrust (White Trait): When wielding a polearm, attack speed +20%."

"Weakness Breakthrough (Blue Trait): When using a polearm relic, it becomes easier to attack an enemy's weak points, and critical hit rate +15%."

"Defense Herald"

"Attribute Bonuses: Vitality +10, Spirit +2"

"Hold the Line (White Trait): Defense of any shield +15."

"Defensive Counterattack (Blue Trait): After using a shield relic, your next melee attack is guaranteed to be a critical hit."

"Battlefield Herald"

"Attribute Bonuses: Vitality +4, Spirit +4, Dexterity +4"

"March (White Trait): Movement speed +25."

"Weapon Mastery (Blue Trait): Any weapon relic you use deals an additional 5 points of damage."

Of the three classes, Defense Herald and Spear Herald were both good choices, and 'Yan San' had the highest spear skill level. There was just one problem—they needed relics of their corresponding weapon types to show their full effects.

If he obtained a relic for another weapon, the traits of these two classes would be no better than blank traits.

If this were a game, there would be no need to worry about such a problem. There was a player market, dungeon guides, and even generous players. If you shouted in the local channel that you lacked a certain weapon relic, it was not impossible for a high-level player to casually toss you a decent one.

But in reality, he had to consider this issue. Even if 'Yan San' could obtain a relic, he would most likely have no chance to pick and choose. He could only use whatever he managed to get!

When all was said and done, why did every class have Herald as its suffix?

Because within the "Herald" system, players—or rather, anyone—possessed no supernatural abilities. Even if one's vitality was as great as a mountain and one's spirit as vast as the sea, and one stacked one's attributes to the peak, one could only do things humans might possibly accomplish, such as blasting a mountain apart with a single punch or memorizing several million words in one second—but one could not breathe fire, soar through the sky, or resurrect the dead and restore flesh to bare bones.

To wield all sorts of bizarre and wondrous abilities, a Herald had to rely on relics. Different relics had different effects. All a Herald could do was activate the 'commands' within the relics and make all things in heaven and earth submit.

Following the command of the relic, wielding heaven and earth in its stead—such was a Herald.

But conversely, a Herald without a relic was no different from an ordinary person.

Therefore, Yan Qing had to choose a class that could immediately come in handy, and obtain his first relic as soon as possible. Just then, through the corner of the screen, he caught sight of white-highlighted loot glowing on Zheng Shan's corpse!

"Congratulations, player. You have changed class to 'Battlefield Herald.'"

"You gained Vitality +4, Spirit +4, Dexterity +4!"

"You unlocked Spirit Energy Value. Current Spirit Energy Value: 0/20"

The outline of 'Yan San's' character suddenly glowed crimson. His health and injuries instantly recovered. This was an unexpected bonus. If he had known, he would not have wasted the healing medicine earlier.

"You... changed class to Herald?"

Not far away, Uwan Ryu stared fixedly at 'Yan San.' His shocked voice came from beneath the Evil Spirit Mask.