A Group's Suffering Is Another Group's Monster Grinding Spot

"Bang."

Mirian pulled the trigger, letting the scorching lead bullet fly from the muzzle and hit the eye-covered, fanged giant spider lunging at her.

The creature was the size of a millstone, and its rapid lunges in the shadows were terrifying. However, its greatest threat was likely its appearance. After being shot through the body, it disintegrated into wisps of dim smoke on the spot.

But before Mirian could celebrate, the cloud of smoke quickly merged with the heavy shadows around it, transforming into a grayish, four-legged snake that lunged at her.

Mirian's face turned pale with fright. This was no creature for a lady or a budding scholar to deal with!

"Get out of the way!"

Niu Niu, who had just killed a wild dog illusion with his hunting rifle, roared. He grabbed the Vampire Crest Shield by his side and blocked the charging four-legged snake, sending it flying. Che Che next to him let out a strange cry and rushed forward, slashing wildly with its two Swift Swords, cutting the monstrous thing into several pieces.

"Thanks."

The red-haired girl quietly said to Niu Niu, but she doubted he understood. The tall and strong man quickly and excitedly went to harass those Astral Creatures with his War Spear.

Mirian found it difficult to comprehend the thought processes of these Murphy Warriors.

The past ten minutes of defensive clearing had proven that these monsters were unkillable. They had no physical form, seemingly projections of chaotic power in the material world.

Any normal person would know to conserve their strength and retreat in such a situation, but these guys were tirelessly defending the position, battling every monster they could see.

Some even bravely abandoned their hunting rifles, opting for melee weapons to engage the dangerous creatures up close.

It often took several people working together to defeat a wave of monsters with no reward, yet they were all excited, as if they had struck gold.

Mirian wondered if all these Otherworlders summoned by Murphy were irredeemable, born battle-maniacs.

The truth, of course, was not that.

The Little Players weren't enthusiastic about battles without rewards, but if they could endure fighting in the same place repeatedly without any drops, it meant they were definitely gaining something from the process.

For example...

"Proficient! My Blood Vulture Swordsmanship is now Proficient! My Character Level is also 3, hahahaha, Che Che knew Che Che was a peerless martial arts genius!"

Wielding Dual Swords and protected by Niu Niu, Invincible Tyrannosaurus Che Che laughed to the sky after defeating another phantom monster. Just moments ago, his player interface had informed him that his only mastered melee skill had broken through. Before the third syllable of his laughter, another pop-up notification made Che Che's eyes widen.

"Holy crap! I can change classes!"

He excitedly shouted to Gu Gu Ji and Niu Niu beside him, "The interface says I've become a Professional because a skill reached Proficient, and I can change class to 'Swordsman.' What about you guys? Did you get any notifications?"

"I'm only level 2, almost there."

Gu Gu Ji glanced at his player interface. The experience bar representing Strength Control was at 70% for level 2. He leaned on his Hand-and-a-half Sword and said to Che Che, "I should level up in about ten more minutes."

"Don't just hack and slash randomly! This isn't like other games where monsters give experience. Killing monsters here doesn't give experience. I already told you, the experience bar represents Skill and Strength Control."

As a "pioneer," Che Che became smug and instructed Gu Gu Ji, "You need to use the sword techniques the White-Haired NPC taught you to kill monsters, understand? The more you practice, the higher your proficiency will naturally become."

"Whoa, I got one too!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Niu Niu, who had just killed a giant spider with his shield and sword, also received a notification. However, after looking closely, he said to Che Che, "But my class change notification isn't 'Swordsman,' it's 'Shieldbearer.' Damn it! Am I really going to develop into a Shield Tank?"

"You three, come back first!"

While the three of them were undecided, Brother Wu Miao's voice came from their Computing Orb. As the temporary "team leader," Brother Wu Miao spoke with a measured tone, "You've charged too deep. Come back quickly! Lord Murphy's order is to defend the City Wall position. There are dangerous things inside the city, don't go too deep. Oh, right, did you get your class change notifications? Don't rush to change yet! Come back, and we'll discuss it. We seem to have found a pattern. Especially you, Niu Niu! You have two Character Specialties, don't mess up your account by changing classes randomly. There's no respec in this game."

"Let's go, finish this and we're done. Time to slack off."

Niu Niu slung his shield onto his back, grabbed another War Spear in his hand, and, along with his two brothers, quickly passed through the already cleared crevice in the city wall and returned to the player position.

By now, the Little Players had basically completed the defensive mission assigned by Murphy. Although the monsters turned into black smoke and reformed into other forms after being killed, they couldn't withstand the repeated killings. The dim shadows near the torn crevice in the city wall were noticeably thinner than elsewhere. This was the result of the Little Players' "crazy slaughter" over the past thirty minutes.

"Ah, finally I can grind monsters freely. Even though there are no drops, increasing skill proficiency is still good."

Leading Big Pigeon, resting in the position, had personally killed many monsters and enjoyed a good session of shooting guns. He was currently immersed in the joy of reaching level 3. Like others, his swordsmanship had also rapidly improved during the intense combat, and he had acquired a Character Talent: [Basic Marksmanship Mastery].

"Don't rush to change classes yet, everyone!"

Brother Wu Miao sat on a rock in the position, loading bullets into his hunting rifle, and said to the players who had rotated out for a rest.

"I just discussed it with Happy Stick. He's played with guns before and always practices shooting in games, so he got a 'Gunner' job change prompt! Plus Niu Niu's 'Shieldbearer' and Che Che's 'Swordsman,' this already shows that the job system in this game isn't fixed.

The system definitely assigns job change prompts based on our Strength and Skill proficiency. Although everyone has three job slots, from my years of gaming experience, the first job is still quite important in the early stages."

The cunning Social Person touched his cheek and said to the Little Players watching him:

"If you just want to have fun, then of course, pick whatever you like.

But we're the first batch of players. We'll definitely need to tackle instances or BOSSes later on. Allocating job combinations from now on will give us a head start in terms of strength."

"You mean, creating job synergy?"

Bionic Snail, who was drinking from his water pouch, looked up and asked Brother Wu Miao:

"Are you planning to form a guild? Or become a professional player?"

"Something like that. We're beta testers, aren't you guys aiming to be top-tier big shots? If you don't have dreams when playing games, what's the difference between you and a noob who gets a perfect starting hand but decides to slack off?" Brother Wu Miao didn't hide his ambition. With a click, he cocked the hunting rifle in his hand and said to the others:

"The project the test group assigned us is very difficult, you all know this. So I think everyone should be cautious. Even if we don't form a professional team, we should still leverage our advantages.

For example, Niu Niu's 'Brawler' character specialty and his Strength of 8 points. If he becomes a pure Shieldbearer, wouldn't that be a huge waste? I suggest Niu Niu seize his advantage and start practicing close combat. Maybe he can even change to a hidden class like Monk later.

And Che Che's 'Optimistic' specialty.

This is clearly a resistance talent tailor-made for Caster classes. Even though his Intelligence is only five points, why would you have such a good specialty and not play Psionic, only to become a Swordsman!

Didn't you learn Psionic Shock from the Young Miss?

Why don't you use it when fighting monsters?"

Nags from him, Che Che and Niu Niu rolled their eyes in disapproval. The Student Faction didn't care about these calculations; they just wanted to have fun.

But it was true that some others, prompted by Brother Wu Miao, re-examined their plans and development in the game.

Although the Social Person's approach was utilitarian, it was indeed correct. In any situation, to stand out, one must first identify their strengths.

"What about you? Wu Miao, what are you planning to change into?"

San Wudou couldn't help but ask. Wu Miao grinned mysteriously and said:

"Me? I'm not changing for now. I'll raise my Character Level and build up some NPC favorability first. I plan to change into a Vampire later, a Night Bloodkin, how cool is that."

"Damn! You can even change races? Where did you get that info?"

San Wudou immediately jumped up. He raised his hand high and said:

"Coach, I want to be an Orc! Big, dark, thick, and strong, the kind that always bullies Elf Girls until they cry!"

"Don't be ridiculous. I said Vampire because our NPC is a Vampire. I specifically asked Maxim, and Vampires in this game can perform First Embrace."

Brother Wu Miao pouted, looking at the other Little Players with a sense of disappointment.

"Use your brains, everyone. If Vampires weren't selectable, why would they arrange for a Vampire to be our Guide NPC?

If it was just for popularity, wouldn't arranging a Busty Beauty be better and more enjoyable?

When a game of this scale makes these detailed arrangements, there must be a deeper meaning. Do you understand? Just like that Red-Haired NPC, Mirian.

Don't look at her as insignificant, but I asked her too.

In her background, she's studying at a Halfling university. Halflings are the race most skilled at mechanics in this game. So, if you increase Mirian's favorability, you might be able to get a Mechanic class or something from the Halflings later.

You guys!

You need to use your brains when playing games, understand?"

"Learned it, learned it. Brother Wu Miao is indeed amazing."

Some Little Players nearby immediately expressed their admiration, which greatly satisfied Brother Wu Miao's vanity. Just as he was about to set up and say more, he was unexpectedly interrupted by the strange cry from Happy Stick overhead.

The guy had climbed halfway up the collapsed City Wall and was observing the surroundings with a monocular telescope. He shouted now:

"Quick! Send a few people over to defend! Wu Miao, stop bragging and bring people up! Meow Meow Shark and Pigeon Treasure, you two have shooting talents. Quickly turn on your Automatic Hunting Crossbows and prepare for Suppression Fire!

Our NPC is here, and he's carrying someone!

A lot of NPCs from the city are running over with him. He must have rescued them. Damn it! I knew why they insisted we hold this safe passage here. It turns out to be a Rescue Mission?"

"Old Qu!"

Brother Wu Miao called over Electronic Succubus, the most accurate shooter under his command, gave him his and San Wudou's guns and bullets, and whispered:

"We're a fixed five-person team. Your Dexterity is the highest, so you'll be the Marksman from now on. Let the high-Stamina San Wudou be the Shield Tank, the Strength-based Black Silk Brother be the Swordsman, Jie Chong be the Dual Wielder, and I'll play Mage as a guest."

"Huh?"

Electronic Succubus was stunned.

He stared at Wu Miao, suspiciously saying:

"But your Intelligence is only 4! Lower than mine. Are you sure you can be a Mage? Damn, you're not trying to slack off, are you? Slacking off at work is one thing, but you're planning to slack off even while playing a game?"

"You talk too much!"

Brother Wu Miao, annoyed, put on a "I'm the boss, I'm right" expression and said:

"It's okay that my Intelligence is low now. When I successfully change to Vampire, won't my Intelligence increase? Just like the Young Miss, I'll grow Wings and take you all flying. Just you wait and see."

"Bang!"

The Happy Stick, occupying the high ground above, fired the first shot. He was currently a solo player without a team, so he acted on impulse, having just transferred to the "Gunner" class.

Thanks to the class talent bonus, his firearm shooting became more precise and lethal. The flying bullet grazed Murphy's shoulder, hitting a strange bird that was pouncing from behind him with a headshot. His skill experience increased by a tiny bit.

This gunshot was like a signal.

The Little Players on the defensive positions immediately opened fire, repelling the intangible monsters chasing after Murphy.

Murphy, carrying the weakened Triss on his back, strode forward. Beside him was an Astral Wolf the size of a calf. This beast was incredibly ferocious, guarding Murphy's side and pouncing left and right, preventing the monsters emerging from the shadows from getting close.

As for the nearly a hundred panicked citizens following behind Murphy, they were purely an accident.

Murphy hadn't intended to bother with them.

But while he was looking for wine to suppress Triss's pain, he unexpectedly found a few survivors in the general store. They were neighbors, and he couldn't bring himself to turn them away. As a result, while he was escorting them towards the crevice in the city wall, the terrified citizens gradually joined them, leading to the current situation.

With so many lives filled with fear gathered together, their emotional fluctuations naturally attracted the Astral Creatures that fed on mental energy. All sorts of twisted creatures continuously emerged from the shadows.

From time to time, one would snatch an innocent person and feast on them, scaring the others into not daring to stray far from Murphy.

They were already exhausted from the torment of disaster and fear, but now, as they reached the passage of the city wall and saw support ahead, these innocent people finally saw hope.

They unleashed their last reserves of strength, quickening their pace, and, under the support fire of the Little Players, struggled to escape Cadman City, which had become hell.

"Mirian!"

Murphy rushed out of the crevice in the city wall, with no time to rest.

He surveyed the Astral Energy constantly seeping out of the city into the outside world, then turned and shouted to Mirian, who was hiding behind the Little Players, pretending to be a powerful DPS but actually slacking off to her heart's content:

"Get these people to a safe place! Triss told me that Astral Creatures feed on their minds and emotions. If they stay here, they'll only attract more dangerous things."

"And you?"

Mirian, hearing that she could leave the battlefield, breathed a sigh of relief, but still asked with a desire to save face, "Murphy glanced at the Little Players still fighting behind him and said loudly:

"I can't abandon my warriors. I need to stay here and continue fighting with them."

He said it with a noble air.

It was also a way to gain favor with the Little Players.

The truth was, not only did the Little Players need skill proficiency, but Murphy did too!

Seeing the players grinding monsters here with such ease, how could Murphy miss out on such a good opportunity?

According to Triss's explanation on the way, it would take at least another seven days for Cadman City to be swallowed by the Astral Plane and for this catastrophe to subside. Therefore, he decided to act as a powerful grinder here, leveling up both of his dual-class levels and his character level to 10.

Although snatching experience from players wasn't exactly a good look, there was no other way. If he couldn't level up, how could he lead the Little Players to conquer this Otherworld?

So, tonight, this monster grinding spot on the city wall is all mine, Young Master Murphy!