"Some grunts?"
Chen Tian looked at the dozen or so soldiers in front of him with a calm expression. They were all level twenty-five, but their attributes were negligible to Chen Tian, who possessed 'Perseverance' and 'Torso Reinforcement.'
Then, Chen Tian stood before the assembled soldiers. At the forefront of these soldiers was a commander clad in shimmering silver armor, wielding a silver spear.
The soldiers, completely encased in silver armor, turned their gaze towards Chen Tian in unison.
"Who goes there? This is the Empire's business, leave at once!"
The leading general spoke with authority. Chen Tian's lips curved slightly upwards. "To enter this room, you must first defeat me!"
"It seems you are a subordinate of some traitor. Brothers, attack!"
"Attack!"
A terrifying aura instantly enveloped the surroundings, making Chen Tian feel as if he were on a battlefield.
The soldiers' morale instilled a flicker of apprehension in Chen Tian. However, he quickly regained his composure, his expression turning expectant.
Clenching his fists, he stomped his foot, his speed surging. He was the first to charge into the throng.
His hands formed blade-like shapes, crossing inwards.
A cross-shaped blade shot out, striking a soldier with a whistling sound.
"Ding!"
The blow felt like striking steel, causing no damage. Chen Tian's figure blurred into countless phantom illusions. His speed had now reached nearly a thousand, making him capable of fending off these minor bosses.
Furthermore, the 'Perseverance' skill was active, causing his attributes to continuously increase while in combat.
"Form ranks!"
The leading general spoke with a calm demeanor. How could a soldier seasoned in countless battles be affected by Chen Tian's actions?
The dozen soldiers clustered together, their spears spinning incessantly.
Wind howled, afterimages swirled.
Chen Tian's attacks collided with their spinning spears, constantly parried by the rotating weapons.
Seeing this, Chen Tian shifted his strategy. He ceased accelerating his speed and instead moved to a corner, unleashing a punch in an instant.
This punch contained Chen Tian's strength of nearly nine hundred, and it instantly shattered the spinning spears and clashed with Chen Tian's own attack.
Chen Tian delivered a series of blows. The formation of the group instantly developed a gap. Before him, after several consecutive punches, the entire spear broke in two.
Chen Tian's fist struck the enemy's armor, and the silver armor instantly emitted a blue light.
The damage of this punch was nullified.
Chen Tian, noticing the movements of the other soldiers, quickly retreated. The other soldiers had already reconfigured their formation, closing in for a pincer attack. If he didn't retreat, he would face attacks from all sides.
Activating the 'Gale Phantom' skill, Chen Tian's figure instantly reappeared elsewhere, foiling the encirclement.
"Armor remaining: 21 points! This armor is quite troublesome!"
Chen Tian looked at his fist. With his current strength exceeding nine hundred, he could have finished them off in a few punches. However, the enemy's armor value was 30.
In the game 'Chronos Epoch,' armor value was a stat inherent to the armor, capable of nullifying damage. Only blue-quality armor possessed this attribute.
One point of armor value could negate one hundred points of damage. Chen Tian's strength attribute was over nine hundred, so he had dealt nine points of damage to their armor.
Chen Tian now found himself in a predicament. This mission was proving difficult!
After all, he lacked a proper weapon, making it hard to fight. He could only rely on his fists.
Furthermore, some of his skills were unusable. If he had a weapon, even a white-quality one, he could contend with these soldiers.
His skill mastery had already increased to over a thousand at this point.
Chen Tian gazed at the dozen or so soldiers, and a plan instantly formed in his mind.
One word: stall!
He had activated 'Perseverance,' which increased his attributes over time. Eventually, his attributes would break a thousand.
At that point, even their formidable armor wouldn't withstand a single punch from Chen Tian.
He unleashed his speed to its fullest, initiating a defensive battle. Chen Tian wasn't attacking but rather evading.
As long as he remained in combat, the effect of 'Perseverance' would not disappear.
However, the enemy had no intention of letting Chen Tian stall. Seeing Chen Tian constantly harassing them, the soldiers kept their eyes fixed on the door of the secret room and charged towards it.
Chen Tian, seeing this, felt a pang of trouble. The enemy had discerned his intentions, forcing him to engage in a frontal battle.
Subsequently, Chen Tian's figure appeared ahead of the door, blocking the soldiers.
Then, his fists began to rain down, a continuous barrage of blows.
Fist shadows flickered, a tempest of strikes.
"Ding! Congratulations to the player for learning the skill: Fist Rain!"
Chen Tian had thrown countless punches, and these fists collided with the enemy's spears and armor. Chen Tian single-handedly held off the dozen soldiers.
Listening to the electronic voice in his mind, he realized he had learned a skill.
Judging by the name, it sounded like a skill for a pugilist.
Chen Tian then opened his class description interface and began to read.
"So that's how it is. My attributes have reached the standard for a Pugilist, allowing me to learn Pugilist skills."
Chen Tian read the description and requirements on the class panel. A Pugilist required a Strength of 700 and Constitution of 500.
Chen Tian's attributes had long surpassed these requirements.
Instantly, Chen Tian switched his class to Pugilist.
Along with the class change, Chen Tian gained some Pugilist skills.
His confidence against the dozen or so soldiers surged.
A Pugilist's primary means of attack were their fists and their body.
Devastating fists combined with formidable physical prowess could crush all opposition.
His speed exploded. Even without using skills, Chen Tian's speed had now reached 1500.
Phantom afterimages, a rain of fist shadows.
Sounds erupted as countless soldiers were sent flying, their armor bearing numerous fist imprints.
Chen Tian looked at his fists. A Pugilist, truly one of the top three combat professions, these two skills alone made Chen Tian no longer fear these soldiers.
"Change formation!"
The soldiers, responding to their leader's command, formed a single line with their spears.
Chen Tian observed their formation change and suddenly sensed something. He was about to move, but for some unknown reason, the enemy suddenly surrounded him.
Their spears connected to form a circular cage, enclosing Chen Tian.
Chen Tian couldn't help but marvel at the game 'Chronos Epoch,' which was incredibly well-designed.
It even incorporated tactics and strategies.
As Chen Tian was surrounded by spears, the morale of the dozen soldiers surged, flowing into the weapons.
Instantly, the connected spears began to spin, and fierce winds erupted from beneath Chen Tian's feet.
The rapidly spinning spears resembled coiled serpents, and the howling winds engulfed Chen Tian. Chen Tian's expression grew serious.
His health was rapidly declining. This move was directly draining his life force.
He unleashed his fists, striking the spears.
"Ssszzzz!"
However, the collision between the rapidly spinning spears and his fists produced a grinding sound, like sandpaper on an object.
Chen Tian was once again repelled by the force generated by the friction.
Chen Tian watched as a massive tornado slowly formed. This tornado was composed of morale. To break this move, the morale had to be extinguished.
Otherwise, there would be no hope.
"What should I do?"
Chen Tian's brain, which hadn't been taxed in a long time, began to operate. The genius gamer from four years ago once again shone brightly.
Countless images flashed through his mind, and Chen Tian's expression instantly calmed.
He straightened his arms to the sides and planted his feet firmly on the ground, beginning to spin rapidly.
Spinning, spinning, never stopping.
A small whirlwind began to emanate from within Chen Tian's body.
Compared to the massive tornado, this whirlwind spun clockwise, while the soldiers' tornado spun counter-clockwise.
They canceled each other out. Chen Tian's health stopped decreasing, his attributes continued to increase, and the whirlwind grew larger.
"Retreat!"
The leading general, seeing this, exclaimed in alarm. Instantly, countless soldiers stopped channeling their morale, and the spinning of the spears slowed.
They abandoned their spears and fled, not bothering to retrieve them.
The massive tornado before them could crush them, so they had no time for their weapons.
After all, the Empire had plenty of such weapons; losing them was not a concern.
When the tornado dissipated, Chen Tian looked around in a daze.
The spinning had been too fast, making him feel a bit dizzy. After all, his consciousness had entered the game world, and there was still some residual feeling.
When Chen Tian stabilized, he noticed that the soldiers were gone. The ground was littered with spears, and the soldiers had vanished.
"It seems they've left. This is just the first wave of attack! I truly don't know how I'll last three days."
"Never mind, I'll put the loot in my inventory, then exchange it for Epoch Coins. After that, I'll buy a weapon to make things a bit easier."
"Right, I think I learned some skills just now. Let me check!"
Frenzied Tornado: A whirlwind generated by self-rapid rotation, tearing and crushing all enemies, causing continuous skill damage. Cooldown: one day!
(Note: The effect is better when used with the Mage profession!)
Chen Tian looked at the skill with indifference, accustomed to it.
Learning skills seemed to be a simple matter for him.
Then, Chen Tian tapped a few times on the electronic screen and instantly disappeared from outside the secret room.
In the game 'Chronos Epoch,' the progress of missions could be paused, giving players time to grow. After all, some missions required immense strength and skill to complete.
In the city, Chen Tian reappeared from a beam of light and opened his map.
He arrived at a weapon shop and converted the mission loot into Epoch Coins, a total of five hundred.
Chen Tian now possessed a total of one thousand two hundred Epoch Coins and began to browse.
There were weapons of all kinds for various professions, ranging from blue quality at the highest to white quality at the lowest.
The cheapest blue-quality weapons started at a thousand Epoch Coins.
Chen Tian pondered what weapon he should choose. He could currently use the Pugilist, Shadowblade, or Twin-Blade Assassin professions.
The required weapons were dual blades, gauntlets, and sets.
He decided against sets for now, as they were not sold. The Shadowblade profession required a full set of equipment.
Due to the special nature of its skills, weapons and armor had to be purchased together, making it too expensive.
So, he could only choose between dual blades and gauntlets.
However, after much deliberation, Chen Tian decided on dual blades.
His speed was his advantage, and it was his highest attribute. The Twin-Blade Assassin relied entirely on speed.
Speed determined everything, dictating the order of attacks and the evasion rate.
With his twelve hundred Epoch Coins, he managed to purchase a blue-quality pair of dual blades.
The information about the dual blades appeared before Chen Tian.