The Shadowglide Skateboard cut across the sky, carrying Lin Ji straight into a fog-covered region of the map that his fellow countrymen had yet to explore.
After more than an hour of travel, he finally reached the early-game leveling haven: Soul Rift Valley.
Before him stood two dark red rock walls hundreds of meters high, as though torn apart by the brute strength of a giant god. Between them yawned an enormous, winding fissure whose depths disappeared from sight.
Jagged rocks filled the valley floor, scattered with weathered bones and metal fragments, while dry dust hung in the air.
A humming rumble could be heard from deep within the earth veins.
The source of that rumbling was the enormous, hill-like figures moving slowly through the valley: Rock-Capped Beasts.
They were a special kind of semi-elemental life-form, generally over four meters tall. Their bodies consisted of thick, rough, dark brown slabs of rock fitted together, with an enormous stone mouth at the center that opened and closed constantly, spewing scorching air.
Their arms were long and thick, ending in solid stone fists like battering rams or bristling with sharp, jagged stone spikes.
Their footsteps were heavy, each one making the ground tremble slightly.
These creatures filled the entire valley as far as the eye could see.
The environment was extremely harsh. The monsters were tough, immensely strong, and their attacks carried a concussive dazing effect, making them a nightmare for early-game physical players.
Assassin players in particular found it exceedingly difficult to dodge the spreading shock attacks.
But to Lin Ji, these lumbering brutes were nothing more than moving nourishment for his growth.
The Shadowglide Skateboard dove and braked in one clean motion, delivering him steadily onto a relatively open gravel platform.
The skateboard dissolved into pixels that attached themselves to