The valley ahead glowed red on the minimap, signifying extreme danger to players. Lin Zhao, however, paid it no mind, cutting his way through as if swatting flies. Relying on his high attack and defense, he charged in. Upon entering the valley, the minimap finally revealed its name: "Wolf King Valley," a common trope for every game's starter village.
There, the Wolf King lay sprawled on a massive rock, as if surveying all beings like a king. But its reign was over. On the official forums for "Tian Xia," various "insiders" had predicted that major starter villages in the Chinese server would spawn Golden Bosses precisely at midnight on the first day. By then, the top players would be level 20, and it would be impossible to defeat these Golden Bosses without a large group of players who had mastered their level 20 class skills.
However, under Lin Zhao's blade, this Wolf King wouldn't even make it to midnight; it would likely be reforged before ten o'clock.
...
Lin Zhao continued his slaughter. As he approached within 30 yards of the Wolf King, some introductory information finally appeared:
【Golden Mane Wolf King】 (Golden-grade Boss)
Level: 20
Attack: ???
Defense: ???
HP: ???
Skills: ???
Description: Leader of the starving wolves, one who has achieved greatness.
...
Lin Zhao narrowed his eyes, almost chuckling. "One who has achieved greatness," interesting. In that case, he, a mere level 12 Swordmaster, would challenge it. After meticulously clearing out all the surrounding mobs, he walked step by step towards the Wolf King, his iron sword held high.
"Roar~~~"
The Wolf King sensed the impending danger and rose abruptly, its eyes fixed on Lin Zhao as if he were a meal. It leaped down from the rock. Unlike the other starving wolves that would immediately pounce with no patience, it maintained eye contact with Lin Zhao, circling him slowly, probing and testing, occasionally lunging with its claws.
Lin Zhao's combat awareness was exceptionally sharp, a testament to his eight-realm martial artist background. He saw every probing swipe of the Wolf King's claws clearly, but he couldn't block them all. His speed wasn't enough. A level 12 Swordmaster only had 24 points in speed, making it impossible to outmatch an agile Golden-grade Boss in a speed contest.
Finally, the Golden Mane Wolf King couldn't wait any longer. With a furious roar, it lunged forward, its claws slashing and its maw opening to bite.
Lin Zhao had been waiting for this moment. He swept his blade horizontally. With a "shing," no skills involved, just a basic attack. A bloody gash instantly appeared on the Wolf King's neck!
"1277!"
With one strike, he had almost depleted 25% of the Wolf King's HP. This indicated the Golden Mane Wolf King had around 5000 HP, not excessively high. However, its attacks were incredibly fast. With its sweeping claws and biting maw, several attacks had already dealt nearly 200 points of damage to Lin Zhao. At this rate, other players truly wouldn't stand a chance. Even with luck, a few pieces of Bronze, Black Iron, or even Silver gear, without the coordination of level 20 skills, it would be absolutely impossible to defeat such a top-tier beginner village Boss.
"Roar roar—"
The Golden Mane Wolf King retreated in pain, its back fur bristling. Its eyes were locked onto Lin Zhao, realizing that this seemingly weak human was incredibly powerful. But it couldn't retreat. The game's rules offered no escape for Bosses. Thus, the Golden Mane Wolf King could only continue its assault.
However, its subsequent attacks failed to significantly wound Lin Zhao. Instead, the Wolf King itself was struck three more times, its HP reduced to mere sliver.
"It's over."
Lin Zhao charged forward, his sword piercing the Wolf King's throat, killing it instantly. The Wolf King collapsed, dropping a pile of gold, silver, and copper coins, along with two equipment items. Lin Zhao then opted for anonymous broadcast. The next moment, a bell sound echoed across the map of Luoxia Village—
"Ding!"
System Announcement: Congratulations to player 【**】 for successfully defeating the 【Golden Mane Wolf King】 (Golden-grade Boss). Rewards: Level +1, Prestige +50, Gold Coins +10!
...
At this moment, with the experience gained from a level-defying solo kill and the first-kill bonus, Lin Zhao had already reached level 18. But this wasn't what made him happiest. His gaze was fixed on the two items dropped by the Wolf King, the ones he truly anticipated!
He walked forward and opened the Wolf King's corpse, collecting the coins and other miscellaneous items first. Then, he examined the loot, which consisted of two items: an exquisitely crafted armor shimmering with silver light, and a pair of boots with a bronze sheen. With anticipation, he first looked at the boots. He flicked his hand, and their attributes appeared before him—
【Wolfskin Boots】 (Bronze-grade)
Type: Armor
Defense: 24
Stamina: +5
Required Level: 15
...
Bronze-grade equipment already provided additional attribute bonuses. These Wolfskin Boots added a full 5 points to Stamina. For a Swordmaster's Stamina growth, which was roughly 1:10, 5 Stamina meant 50 HP, allowing him to sustain a bit more damage.
"Clack," he said, putting them on.
Next, he looked at the silver-gleaming armor. The moment Lin Zhao touched it, he knew it was likely Silver-grade. The item emitted a strong spiritual aura, similar to the magical artifacts he had encountered at the Heavenly Lake in Xueyu. Of course, the strongest artifact Lin Zhao had encountered was the Dragon Slaying Sword, followed by the brush named "Thousand Cavalry Rolling Snow," unfortunately lost with his death in his previous life.
He flicked his hand, and the armor's attributes appeared before him, living up to his expectations—
【Silver Scale Armor】 (Silver-grade)
Type: Armor
Defense: 35
Strength: +18
Stamina: +15
Required Level: 15
...
In "Tian Xia," equipment tiers progressed sequentially: Broken, White, Bronze, Black Iron, Silver, Gold, Dark Gold, Earth, Heaven, Ghostly Divine Artifacts, and so on. On the first day of the server launch, seeing Silver-grade equipment was already fortunate, let alone a piece of armor that suited him so well. This was like adding wings to a tiger!
The next moment, Lin Zhao put on the Silver Scale Armor. Instantly, he looked like a seasoned expert. A pair of boots, a suit of armor, and an ancient sword on his back. If he had a cloak, he'd look even more dashing. His attributes had also increased significantly—
【White Robe】 (Apprentice Swordmaster)
Level: 18
Attack: 82-163
Defense: 91
HP: 2000
Critical Hit: 0
Lifesteal: 0
Comprehension: 99
Charm: 0
Prestige: 50
Combat Power: 45
...
At this point, Lin Zhao's true attributes were Attack Power 1640-3260 and Defense 1820, making him a true super demon king in the beginner zone. However, he was also tired and hungry, and couldn't last much longer. The foundation of an eight-realm martial artist was carried into the game, but not into reality. Lin Zhao was still a mortal, no different from anyone else.
But with such strong attributes now, wouldn't it be a waste not to show them off?
He opened the Luoxia Village map again. He was now viewing the map with the perspective of a level 18 player. Indeed, besides Wolf King Valley, there were two other maps glowing red. They should also be Bosses. There couldn't be only one Boss in the starter village; otherwise, resources would be too scarce, and competition too fierce, leading to public outcry.
"No choice, the capable must shoulder the burden. I don't want to..."
He shook his head helplessly and drew his sword, heading towards the next red dot. Although he was level 18 now and could learn the Swordmaster's two level 10 skills, what was the point? Fighting Bosses was far more important. Besides, with his current attributes, he could simply charge in without any suspense.
...
In the western jungle of Luoxia Village.
A stunningly beautiful mage slowly looked up. She wore a Black Iron-grade mage robe and wielded a Bronze-grade staff. Her leg guards, boots, and gauntlets were all White-grade. Level 20. As the first player in Luoxia Village to reach level 20, she should have been surrounded by adoring fans. In fact, she had planned to organize the members of the Star River Guild to tackle the level 20 Golden Boss at 11 o'clock before leaving. But then, some anomaly appeared out of nowhere and defeated the Golden Mane Wolf King beforehand, seemingly solo!
"Damn..."
A level 19 Star River Guild Archer frowned and said, "Who is this deity? They actually took on a level 20 Golden Boss so quickly, and even defeated it. Are they cheating?"
"Impossible."
Shen Xingchen's delicate eyebrows furrowed. "The system and game engine of 'Tian Xia' are the culmination of peak global technology. Data errors are impossible. It must be that person who defeated the Boss through some extraordinary means."
"Vice Guild Leader."
A level 19 Templar Knight beside her frowned. "Should we advance our plan? We can't wait until a dozen people reach level 20 to tackle it. Since that person has the strength to defeat the Golden Mane Wolf King, they have the strength to defeat the other two Golden Bosses. Our plan needs to be accelerated, and we must bring more people. Perhaps that person also has a powerful team supporting them, allowing them to take the first-kill bonus alone."
"Mm."
Shen Xingchen calmly replied, "So be it. Gather the manpower immediately. The four of us who have reached level 20 will return to the city to learn skills. After learning the skills, we will all set out to attack the Boss in the eastern forest!"
"Understood!"
...
First day of the server launch, 10:45 PM.
The Luoxia Village branch of the Star River Guild was forced to advance its plan. Nearly a hundred people swarmed into a golden pine forest map. Two level 20 Templar Knights led the way, followed by Shen Xingchen and another level 20 mage. These four had already learned their level 20 skills, essentially representing the peak of beginner players in Luoxia Village.
However, there was a higher lightning rod above the ceiling—Lin Zhao.
Just as Shen Xingchen and the others reached the outskirts of the Boss area, Lin Zhao had already charged into the Boss zone. Wielding his level 1 iron sword, he swung it at a monstrous Golden Slime King.
One strike!
Two strikes!
Three strikes!
The battle seemed to be over.