Chapter 130
Shen Xing was also somewhat surprised and asked, "How did you rush so fast?"
He had previously thought Qin Lang would at most make it into the top 5,000, but he didn't expect him to make it into the top 3,000 so quickly.
"Hahaha!" Qin Lang sent a string of smug emojis and explained, "This is all thanks to the [Sacrifice Knight's Proof] that Shen Xing gave me."
"Let me tell you, the Sacrifice Knight class is absolutely awesome!"
"With just one [Hymn of Sacrifice], the attack power of the entire legion will surge dramatically, and [Glorious Devotion] will significantly enhance their defense."
"With this profession, I led my troops to be unstoppable, and my points skyrocketed!"
Qin Lang spoke at length, praising this new profession highly.
Then, with a touch of melancholy, he added, "The knight class in this game is a bit different from other games; each spell requires sacrificing a large amount of life force."
"After such a big battle, it felt like I'd been pulling all-nighters; I was completely exhausted."
Shen Xing keenly caught the word "sacrifice" and was startled.
He frowned and asked tentatively, "Are you sure... it's about sacrificing lives?"
Chapter 102: Top 100 Lords Ranking, Influential Figures
Are you sure... what was sacrificed was a life?
Shen Xing frowned, typed a few words in the chat box, and sent it.
"Yes," replied Cilantro Who Loves to Play, "I only learned the difference between the knights in this game and traditional knights after I changed jobs."
"Although they also have the ability to Charge and protect their teammates."
"But no matter what skill you use, you'll have to pay a price."
"And it's not just the Sacrifice Knight class, there are also Pain Warriors, Torture Assassins, Bonebreaker Archers, and so on."
"Warriors increase their attack power and attack speed by accumulating pain points; the more pain they experience, the stronger they become. Some players even enhance their strength before battle by removing all their fingernails or breaking their fingers."
"With each strike, the tormented assassin would inflict a cut on himself. By the end of a battle, before the enemy was even defeated, he would have been slashed hundreds of times."
"With each arrow fired, the Bonebreaker Archer will randomly break a bone in his body, increasing the power of his next attack."
"These injuries aren't fatal; they'll heal after resting by the Bonfire, but the pain is real."
After hearing his description, Shen Xing felt very strange.
Aren't these professions designed to be a bit too sinister?
Is it really that absurd to increase one's fighting power by torturing one's own body?
Luckily, he didn't change his class back then, otherwise, with his physique, he would have been wiped out before even defeating the enemy in a major battle.
"Qin Lang, are you sure sacrificing your life force to unleash your skill won't have any negative effects on your body?"
Shen Xing was somewhat worried, after all, this game was synchronized with reality.
Just like he ate a loaf of bread in the game, he felt full in real life as well.
Perhaps there are unseen hidden dangers associated with this sacrificial knight profession.
Cilantro Who Loves to Play replied, "What impact could it have? At most, it'll just deplete some life force; a good night's sleep will replenish it."
"I've tried it these past few days, and it works perfectly to quickly replenish vitality by consuming Blood Fruit."
"Alright, I'm not going to chat with you two perverts anymore, I'm going back to climbing the rankings!"
"I'm here for the first thousand!"
This guy couldn't wait to end the chat and continue his ranking campaign.
Shen Xing stared at the text on the screen, her brows slightly furrowed.
He felt that there were some strange aspects to the game's design, and that each class had to pay a certain price to unleash its full potential.
Whether it's one's own vitality, pain, emotions, or a certain part of the body.
In short, it boils down to this: acquiring power comes at a price.
It sounds like an equivalent exchange.
But Shen Xing felt that this was more like something else—a sacrifice.
By sacrificing something precious within oneself, one can gain immense power.
"Speaking of which, when I first entered the game, awakening [Life-Sacrifice Evolution] also required sacrificing a certain attribute to help improve my unit."
"Later, during the exploration, we discovered that both the Demon Statue and the Holy Altar required sacrifices to obtain rewards."
"It feels like this game is constantly about sacrifice. What does this imply?"
Shen Xing darted around, and she felt as if she had vaguely touched upon something deeper.
However, there is too little information at the moment to piece together a complete picture.
"Forget about that for now, let's check out the forums."
He shook his head, interrupting his thoughts.
Then I opened my phone and logged into the Huaguo Pioneers Forum.
A series of popular posts flashed across the screen.
A Class B abnormal energy reaction has occurred in Fengyuan City, and Transcendent Rank monster has appeared. Anyone want to team up?
Good news! Yang Shuofeng, the genius of Zhenyuan City, has moved up thirteen places and has officially entered the top fifty!
"Wu Wen of Tianmen City has broken into the top twenty and is now sprinting towards the top ten, about to become the first top ten lord in Hua Country!"
"Detailed Information and Combat Strength Analysis of Hua Country's Top 100 Genius Lords, Continuously Updated — By Mist City Know-It-All"
The number of new players in the Land of Mist is steadily increasing; it's already surpassed 10,000 in less than a day!
As expected, most of the posts on the forum were discussions about the global newcomer rankings.
Shen Xing took some time to check and found that this game releases a major expansion pack approximately every ten years.
Each time a new expansion is released, a new player leaderboard will be launched simultaneously.
Moreover, most of the lords who ranked high on the list later became powerful figures who held significant influence throughout the world.
Therefore, every time the leaderboard is launched, it attracts a lot of attention.
Shen Xing glanced around and then clicked on the post titled "Detailed Analysis of the Top 100 Lords."
The poster's name is "Mist City Know-It-All," and he seems to be an officially verified celebrity on the forum, with over a thousand posts.
He wrote at the beginning of the post, "The great river flows eastward, its waves sweeping away the heroes of the past; the truly remarkable figures are those of today."
"Hello everyone, this is the Mist City Know-It-All, and I'm here again to update you on this year's rankings of Hua Country's most outstanding talents."
Let's take a look at some of the outstanding newcomers this year!
He meticulously listed the detailed information of the top 100 lords within Hua Country, line by line.
First and foremost, the highest-ranking person in Hua Country, is Wu Wen from Tianmen City.
They've already climbed to 15th place, and it's said that this player has more than two Transcendent Rank units under their command and is aiming for the top ten.
The second player is Hu Wei, from Zhenyuan City. He is currently ranked 21st and also has two Transcendent Rank troops under his command.
Third place...
Then it goes all the way up to the ninth one, which is Shen Xing.
However, the above only indicates that he is currently ranked 95th, and the specific information and intelligence are still being verified.
The comments section below this floor is also the most lively.
Donut: "This Shen Xing, who's ranked 95th, should be from Jiangcheng. He even took first Mist Void Realm a few days ago."
Aurora-chan: "You're talking nonsense. We have a Shen Xing in our Shui City too, and he already has Transcendent Rank soldiers. He's much stronger than the one you're talking about."
Maiden Orange Juice: "Stop arguing, this is Shen Xing from Mo City. I'm friends with him, and he just admitted it himself."
Shen Xing looked at these comments and felt a strange sensation in his heart.
I never expected there to be so many players named Shen Xing.
But then I thought about it and it made sense. There are so many people with the same name across the country, it's perfectly normal for there to be a few Shen Xing.
But it probably won't last long. This Mist City Know-It-All seems to have a strong intelligence-gathering ability, so he should be able to figure out his identity soon.
"It doesn't matter. The moment I decided to compete for the rankings, I never intended to hide it."
He browsed the forum for a while longer, then switched to the trading channel to check the progress of his item matching.
Two days ago, he put up the upgrade material [Shattered Eyeball].
The current status shows that it is matching, it should be done soon.
Next, he spent another 1,000 contribution points to buy a level 4 lantern.
Although the territory already has two lanterns, it is still not enough.
He has more and more capable generals under his command, all of whom are talented individuals who can be put to good use.
Preparing more lanterns and having them explore separately will not only speed up the development of the territory but also help Shen Xing with his work.
Later on, he could dump most of the work on Hellscream and the others, becoming a hands-off manager.
After finishing all that, Shen Xing returned to her bedroom to rest.
Meanwhile, in a conference room on the ninth floor of the Jiangcheng Player Association.
"Zhou Zheng, isn't this Shen Xing, who's ranked 95th, the little guy who took first place in the Mist Void Realm a few days ago?"
With a kind face, Elder Wang sat upright in a rattan chair, pointed to the list on the screen, and asked.
"It should be him." Zhou Zheng nodded. "Although there are Pioneer named Shen Xing in other cities, none of them have shown the same momentum as him recently."
"Furthermore, he received many rewards after the last Mist Void Realm ended, so his strength will definitely increase dramatically."
"Not bad, I didn't expect that after so many years, Jiangcheng would produce another newcomer in the top 100."
Elder Wang nodded with satisfaction, then his voice deepened slightly. "However, we must be careful about his personal safety."
"In previous years, these talented players who entered the top 100 were the focus of attention for other countries, and assassination attempts, intimidation, coercion, and bribery were common tactics employed."
His usual amiable smile gradually vanished, replaced by a cold glint in his eyes. "Next, I'll give you a special operations team and a list."
"These are all suspected foreign agents lurking in Jiangcheng in recent years."
"Let's take this opportunity to wipe them all out in one fell swoop."