Negotiation

The risks were enormous, but so were the rewards. Killing a named boss or hero, especially a powerful one, earned reputation points, which were the key to advancement for players with hero or boss templates. The higher their reputation, the higher their rank. Boss ranks were represented by skulls, while hero ranks were represented by stars. Xiao Yu, for example, had reached the three-skull rank by killing several NPC heroes.

Also, killing a boss or hero in the storyline yielded all of that boss's or hero's belongings, even their exclusive weapons. Take the Hammer of the Balrog in Xiao Yu's hands: an ordinary adventuring party had only a seven percent chance of obtaining it by killing Raglios, the Balrog Lord, and even then, it would be a system-generated knockoff. If Raglios died at a hero's hands, that hero would obtain the one and only genuine Hammer of the Balrog.

But for all the rewards, they still paled in comparison to the risks. After all, death meant losing the entire character. As a result, players with hero and boss templates generally tried to avoid this situation. Unless they were absolutely certain they could kill their opponent, they generally avoided encounters with hero or boss players of the same rank. It was the so-called rule of kings never meeting kings.

Judging by his name, this Long Ao Jiutian in front of me should be a player. Is he really so confident he can beat me? Xiao Yu wondered uneasily. Still, it was hard to say. Judging by the man's equipment and party composition, he had clearly come prepared. If Xiao Yu really fought him, he wouldn't have much chance of winning.

While his mind was racing, the boss fight before him had already reached the halfway point.

Long Ao Jiutian tanked the three-headed hellhound while the others spread out, avoiding its Lava Breath and concentrating all their fire on its middle head. In less than five minutes, a boom rang out, and one of Garix's heads exploded.

Not good. These guys seem to have come prepared.

Each of the three-headed hellhound's heads had its own health bar. Parties that didn't know this usually attacked at random, spreading out their DPS. Once the hellhound had taken a certain amount of damage, it would go berserk. But this party clearly knew the three-headed hellhound's details inside and out.

Having lost a head, the hellhound was much weaker in battle and posed even less of a threat to Long Ao Jiutian. In less than twenty minutes, it let out a wail and fell.

The adventuring party quickly skinned Garix and stripped out its tendons-all top-grade materials-picked up the equipment it dropped, and set off for Lava Valley.

World announcement: In the year 1375 of the Firmament Era, the human hero Long Ao Jiutian slew Garix, the three-headed hellhound, in Blazing Flame Canyon. This deed has been recorded in the Chronicles of the Firmament.

System notification: Congratulations! You have killed Garix, the three-headed hellhound, and gained 375 reputation points. As this is the tenth canine boss you have killed, you have earned the title "Dog Slayer."

Dog Slayer, huh? Heh, don't expect me to wear a lousy title like that out in public. Still, that's a lot of reputation. Once I finish this dungeon, I should be able to advance to a three-star hero, right?

Long Ao Jiutian stood beside the three-headed hellhound's corpse, thinking to himself.

"Everyone, out of the way! Let me loot the corpse!" Long Ao Jiutian said, clicking on the boss's corpse.

Garix's Collar (epic belt), Vicious Dog's Fang (epic dagger), Garix's Soul Core (epic accessory), Garix's Stomach Pouch (20-slot bag), high-tier demon crystal core (epic material)...

Long Ao Jiutian couldn't help getting excited at the long list of drops. Storyline kills really are great. There's no chance of bad loot luck at all—the boss even dropped its underpants in one go.

Suddenly, a message appeared in his chat box.

Fire Demon King Lagrios: "Hey, buddy, are you a player?"

Long Ao Jiutian froze. What's going on? The boss actually sent me a private message?

Long Ao Jiutian (Dark Avenger): "Huh, you're a player too? A player with a three-skull boss template—that's rare. How much did that template cost you?"

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "I didn't buy it. I trained it up myself from a low-level mob."

Long Ao Jiutian was stunned. He trained it himself? Seriously? His own hero template had cost him 800,000, and he had only raised it to two stars by killing several bosses and completing several storyline events with a game studio's help. He had always been proud of that, but the other man had actually leveled up a wild monster template bit by bit until he was stronger than him. He was utterly shocked, and at the same time, he felt a twinge of jealousy.

He immediately sneered. "Impressive. This is the first time I've seen someone level a wild monster template into a three-skull boss. You're pretty damn good."

Xiao Yu, however, didn't notice the displeasure in his tone. He believed in making money through harmony, so when he encountered situations like this, he generally tried to talk things over. A peaceful solution was best. After all, he made his living from the game and couldn't be as willful as an ordinary rich player, much less take this risk lightly.

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "So it hasn't been easy. I'm a professional player, and this is how I make a living. Could you, uh, stop advancing?"

Long Ao Jiutian (Dark Avenger): "No way. Do you know how much I spent preparing to clear this dungeon for the first time? I spent 50,000 on fire resistance potions alone, and this fire resistance gear cost me 500,000. I got it especially for you. You tell me to leave and I just leave? Who do you think you are?"

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "Of course I'm not asking you to really give up. I mean, you should withdraw from the dungeon first.

"Aren't you here to destroy the Flame Altar? Once you've withdrawn, I'll return to the Elemental Plane, and you can tear it down however you like. That way, you'll destroy the Flame Altar, complete the storyline event, and still get plenty of reputation. I'll go set up a dungeon somewhere else afterward, and we can stay out of each other's way from then on. We can even call it the start of a friendship. How about it?"

Xiao Yu's plan was as reasonable as it could be, taking care of both face and substance. The only problem was that Long Ao Jiutian wasn't the compromising type.

Long Ao Jiutian (Dark Avenger): "What's the point of that little bit of reputation from destroying the Flame Altar? Killing a storyline boss gets reputation faster."

Damn, this guy's pushing his luck. Xiao Yu cursed inwardly. Looking at that punchable face on the screen, he nearly started cursing out loud. But this was how he made his living, after all. He gritted his teeth and swallowed his anger. Looks like I'll have to pay a little more.

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "How about this? I'll leave two of my underlings behind for you to kill. That'll get you plenty of reputation too."

Long Ao Jiutian (Dark Avenger): "Forget it. Those guys are only one-skull bosses. Their equipment drops aren't even as good as what I'm wearing. What's the point of farming them?"

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "Then what do you want?"

Long Ao Jiutian said arrogantly: "What else? I'm going to farm you today. What, scared? Hmph, if you can't afford to play, why set up a dungeon?"

Fuck! Xiao Yu really couldn't take it anymore. This guy's fucking sick in the head. Looks like it's a fight to the death today.

He wasn't the sort to offer his right cheek after being slapped on the left, either. He had put up with it before mainly because he wanted to make money through harmony. Now that he saw the other man was determined to pick a fight with him, he steeled himself.

Raglios, the Balrog Lord: "So there's no room for negotiation? Then come on. But don't blame me for not giving you a chance."

With that, Xiao Yu closed the private chat.

"Guild leader, what happened?" the female paladin beside him asked. Long Ao Jiutian turned to look at her concerned face, a sneer appearing on his own. "Nothing. Some guy wanted me to spare his life, but I happen to be in a very bad mood, so-let's move!"