Zone 18

When the twentieth new player stepped onto the landing point in Zone 18, Wind Snow Traveler lowered his eyes to glance at the list in his hand, then finally stepped forward at an unhurried pace.

"We're all here." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone's ears. "Next, I'll go over the things you need to know about Zone 18."

As soon as he finished speaking, every player turned their attention to him.

"I'm Wind Snow Traveler, the Village Chief of Novice Village, Zone 18."

"Once you enter the village, each of you can claim a free map. It marks the species and levels of the Fierce Beasts around Zone 18."

"Of course, the information isn't absolute. The creatures in Cloud Sea are like the creatures in our world. We can't guarantee that Fierce Beasts of other levels won't appear in a Level 1 Fierce Beast area. You'll have to be careful."

"It's best to return to Novice Village before dark. The wilderness is extremely dangerous at night. Of course, the village might not be safe at night, either, so you'd better not sleep too deeply."

"The thatched cottages in the village cost money to use. They're only ten Core Power a month."

"In Cloud Sea, no one is obligated to help you, including me."

"But you can come ask me simple questions. The largest thatched cottage in the center of the village is where I live."

"Lastly, I have one more thing to remind you: Zone 18 has no hospital and no Healer Class players. Don't overdo it when you go out to hunt Fierce Beasts. It's best not to get hurt."

"Does anyone have any questions?"

Wind Snow Traveler looked around. When he saw that no one spoke, he waved a hand.

"Go on into the village."

Seeing Wind Snow Traveler leave, the twenty new players hurried after him.

A simple table stood at the village entrance, with twenty maps laid out on it. They had to be the maps of Zone 18 that Wind Snow Traveler had mentioned.

One for each person, no more and no less.

Xiao Fan picked one up and flipped through it. It clearly marked the Fierce Beasts found in every area around Zone 18, along with their species, traits, and levels.

It was indeed very useful for new players.

After getting their maps, one player suggested they explore Zone 18 together. Quite a few players raised their hands in agreement.

Xiao Fan glanced at the Novice Village, which was small enough to see from one end to the other, and politely declined.

Once the others had left, Xiao Fan immediately opened the game interface.

View Information.

ID: Jiu Chen

Level: 2 (0/100)

HP: 210/210

MP: 266/266 (+31)

Strength: 10

Intelligence: 10

Spirit: 10

Agility: 10

Constitution: 10

Trait: Saint

Skills: Halo of the Saint, Gift of the Saint 2

Equipment: None

Core Power: 630

He also had five Free Attribute Points.

Looking at his hefty 630, Xiao Fan decided to find Wind Snow Traveler and rent a thatched cottage.

Zone 18 was in terrible shape. What if it got windy or rained while he was sleeping outside? The weather in Cloud Sea changed just like it did in the real world.

The temperature during the day was normal enough, but who knew what might happen at night?

He wasn't short on Core Power anyway. He might as well rent a cottage and make himself more comfortable.

When Xiao Fan found Wind Snow Traveler's place and said he wanted to rent a room, a flicker of surprise crossed Wind Snow Traveler's eyes.

It was rare for a player to be willing to rent a place on their first visit to Novice Village.

After paying Wind Snow Traveler ten Core Power, Xiao Fan received a large red banner.

Wind Snow Traveler told him that any thatched cottage without a banner in front was unoccupied. He could choose whichever one he liked and plant the banner outside.

Xiao Fan walked around the village and finally chose a house near the entrance.

First, if he had to carry out any secret operations in the future, the other players in the village wouldn't notice as easily.

Second, if anything unusual happened in the village, he'd be the first to know from his position at the entrance.

The thatched cottage was tiny. There was nothing inside except a bed.

Xiao Fan didn't mind. He set the backpack he'd brought in down in a corner.

Then he began thinking about what to do next.

After renting the cottage, he had 620 Core Power left.

Without a weapon or a damage-dealing skill, he couldn't hunt Fierce Beasts on his own.

"Right!" Xiao Fan suddenly remembered that players could create their own weapons in Cloud Sea.

Although he didn't have a skill yet, his stats meant he could still hunt low-level Fierce Beasts with a weapon.

With that in mind, Xiao Fan opened the game page and searched for ages before finally finding the weapon creation interface.

Player level too low. Cannot create weapons.

"Damn! You have to reach Level 5 to create weapons? This game's so damn strict!"

Xiao Fan couldn't help cursing.

He was only Level 2. Reaching Level 5 would take another 11,000 Core Power, and he only had 620!

He was just a little short.

Xiao Fan finally understood why, even though people could gain great power in Cloud Sea, so many still stayed in the real world and refused to enter the game.

This was a game where even breathing cost money!

"No weapon! No skills! Looks like I can only team up with someone else if I want to level up."

Xiao Fan regretted a little that he hadn't created a damage skill.

Since it was still early, Xiao Fan decided to head out of the village and take a look around.

According to the map, there was a forest southwest of the village.

The forest's outer reaches were full of harmless plants and Fierce Beasts called Red-Eyed Rabbits.

Red-Eyed Rabbits were Level 1 Fierce Beasts, and their combat power was among the lowest of all Level 1 Fierce Beasts. Even Level 1 players could kill them easily.

With Xiao Fan's current strength, he could only explore the forest's outer reaches.

The other players were still exploring Novice Village, and no one noticed Xiao Fan leave.

As soon as he entered the forest, Xiao Fan spotted little flowers of every color growing beneath many of the trees.

The good news: these flowers had health bars!

The bad news: the bars were green.

Name: Seven-Colored Flower (Harmless)

Level: 1

HP: 100/100

"Aw, if only it were red." Xiao Fan looked disappointed.

Just as he was about to leave, an idea suddenly flashed through his mind. He stopped and turned back.

"Let's try it first."

Xiao Fan crouched in front of a Seven-Colored Flower and carefully pulled it out, roots and all.

When he checked its information again, he saw that the flower had lost two HP.

Xiao Fan's eyes lit up. He set the Seven-Colored Flower aside, and when its HP had dropped to 80, he picked it up and replanted it in the ground.

"Its HP is going back up."

Seeing the Seven-Colored Flower's HP rise from 80 to 82, Xiao Fan could barely hide his excitement. He stared intently at its health bar.

He watched its HP rise from 82 to 84, then 86, then 88...

Xiao Fan's heart pounded so hard it felt like it would leap into his throat.

At last, the Seven-Colored Flower's HP reached 90.

+1 MP

Seeing the message, Xiao Fan was so excited he nearly jumped.

"It really works!"

The HP restored by planting flowers counted as his healing, which meant he could activate his passive skill, Halo of the Saint!

Xiao Fan looked at the Seven-Colored Flowers growing all over the forest.

"That means I can farm MP here endlessly."

"Your big brother's destined to create countless skills. With enough MP, I'll be able to bury my enemies under a mountain of skills!"

The more Xiao Fan thought about it, the more excited he became, and the faster he pulled flowers.