Chapter Thirty-Eight: Setting Dongyuan City Ablaze

Currently, nearly all the monster zones outside Dongyuan City are controlled by various factions. Ordinary players wishing to enter and hunt monsters must first obtain permission. However, once an elite monster appears, regular players are expected to yield the area automatically. Such domineering behavior naturally breeds discontent and frequent conflict. But within Dongyuan City, powerful alliances have already formed, leaving solo players or small groups of three or five to swallow their grievances in silence.

These territorial struggles have reached a fever pitch over the past three days. Whether in the streets or out in the monster zones around the city, clashes between rival factions have become a common sight. In this chaotic world, the rise of such power structures has been surprisingly swift.

Weaker groups are confined to the outskirts near Dongyuan City, while only the truly large factions dare venture farther afield, hunting along the fringes of the current beginner maps. All this, simply for the chance to obtain a single guild token.

While the major powers of Dongyuan City were fervently hunting elite monsters, Zhao Nan and Finina quietly and diligently went about their own monster hunting.

If one wishes to explore this world, overwhelming strength is a must. The most direct way to grow stronger is to level up. At this stage, no matter how rare the equipment, it cannot compare to the improvement of one’s character and skills. Only after reaching level 40 will the true power of equipment reveal itself.

Since changing her class to Sky Sword Saint, Finina’s close-combat abilities have become formidable. With her as his shield, Zhao Nan is free to unleash the ancient might of the Arcane Master’s magic without restraint.

Fireballs and explosive fireballs rained down like heavy machine gun fire—monsters of level 8 or even 9 fell before they ever drew near.

“Here. What are you looking at?” Finina handed over a bottle of clear water and a piece of elven biscuit.

“I’m reading the messages Gao Mingyang sent,” Zhao Nan replied.

“How many has he sent now?”

“Quite a few.” Zhao Nan paused thoughtfully, then finally replied with a brief message: “Handle it yourself.”

He then switched off new message notifications.

At that moment.

Within the territory of level 10 monsters—the lesser tyrants of the zombie class—Zhao Nan and Finina were taking a break in a narrow safe zone.

A small area of the lesser tyrant’s domain had already been cleared, and new monsters were slowly respawning. This was one of the few edge areas not yet seized by the major factions. The lesser tyrants were among the toughest monsters on the outskirts of Dongyuan City, extremely numerous, with precious few safe zones, making the area unsuitable for any group to hold.

Crucially, the lesser tyrant region stretched right up to a dense layer of fog—a mist that nearly encircled the city. Beyond the mist lay unopened territory, which meant even more powerful monsters awaited. With the current abilities of players, venturing there would be suicidal.

“Nan, we’re already at level 13. Isn’t it about time we head back?” Finina suggested.

Zhao Nan nodded. “Let’s finish grinding for today. We should be able to hit level 14 by nightfall. We still have half a day.”

“Wait, that elite tyrant seems like it’s about to respawn,” Finina said suddenly.

“Heh, maybe we can get you another ring this time—complete the pair.”

When they had first entered this area, they’d run into an elite lesser tyrant. It had taken the two of them over thirty minutes to bring it down, but they’d been rewarded with a blue ring perfectly suited for Finina’s melee style.

“Great!”

They exchanged a smile. Having defeated it once, it was much easier this time. The Arcane Master’s ultra-fast casting time caused streams of damage numbers to float above the elite monster’s head.

Elite monsters are generally two levels higher than regular ones; this elite lesser tyrant was level 12. Defeating it netted more experience than killing a hundred regular lesser tyrants.

Half an hour later, Zhao Nan stretched his numb arms. With Finina’s defense, the elite monster hadn’t been able to get close and was blasted apart by a continual barrage of fireballs.

When the elite lesser tyrant fell, a golden light shone from its remains. Zhao Nan inspected the loot, his expression turning a bit odd.

“A Basic Guild Token…”

So it was that.

Finina took the token with a laugh. “Those factions stake out elite monsters for days, but the drop rate is so low. We were just hoping for a ring, and out pops this!”

“Just a happy accident.” Zhao Nan shrugged.

He had no intention of forming his own guild—otherwise, he wouldn’t have given his Intermediate Guild Token to Gao Mingyang.

“Still, this is more valuable than a blue ring,” Finina said with a smile. “Everyone wants one.”

Zhao Nan nodded. “Guild tokens are rare now. Selling this could cover our expenses for a long time. But the sooner we deal with it, the better... Hm, I’m starting to regret giving that other token to Gao Mingyang.”

Finina giggled, hugging Zhao Nan from behind and peeking out from under his arm. “As if you’d ever regret it!”

After their playful banter, they returned to monster hunting.

With the experience from defeating the elite, they leveled up faster than expected, reaching level 14 in half the time they’d planned. As dusk fell, they finally returned to Dongyuan City.

Zhao Nan headed straight for the Trade Hall.

Once the city’s stock exchange, it had now become a sprawling marketplace. However, at this stage, business was slow; the game had only been running for less than a month, and few players had the funds to be active consumers here.

After browsing the wares listed for consignment, Zhao Nan was rather disappointed. There were no rare items to be found—anything useful was likely kept for personal use, and only surplus equipment was put up for sale.

Consignment fees at the Trade Hall were steep, but consigning items eliminated the risks involved with direct trades, ensuring both parties’ safety. While it was quiet now, the Trade Hall would surely become one of the busiest places in the future.

However, Zhao Nan didn’t opt for consignment. He chose another feature instead—Auction!

Auctions charged no listing fee, but the hall took fifteen percent of the final sale price. The advantage, though, was the system-wide announcement: every player in Dongyuan City would be notified of the auction.

Zhao Nan waited in the auction area for over an hour. Just as impatience crept onto his face, the system’s voice rang out.

“Announcement! Player Philip Lincoln of Free City has successfully formed the guild ‘United Heroes,’ becoming the first player to establish a guild in the game!”

Zhao Nan laughed aloud. “I was about to give up, but someone finally did it!”

“You knew this would happen?” Finina asked curiously. Was this why Zhao Nan had been waiting so long?

“It was inevitable that someone would succeed—it was just a matter of time,” Zhao Nan replied matter-of-factly. “I just wanted to wait a little longer to see if someone would manage it. Honestly, if no announcement came in another half hour, I would have auctioned the token anyway.”

“But what difference does it make?” Finina wondered.

Zhao Nan grinned. “Human beings are strange creatures. When everyone is racing for first place, there’s enthusiasm and competition, but not true madness. The real frenzy begins when someone manages to pull ahead—yet the chance to catch up is still there.”

“So, you wanted to wait for the first guild to appear before putting your token up for auction?” Finina realized.

“Exactly.” Zhao Nan licked his lips and said quietly, “Now let Dongyuan City truly go mad.”

Calmly, Zhao Nan stepped into the auction area of the Trade Hall.

“Ding! An anonymous player has listed a ‘Basic Guild Token’ at auction. Starting price: 1,000 gold coins. No upper limit. Auction time: 12 hours!”

The system’s announcement rang out.

For a moment, the lively night in Dongyuan City fell silent—then erupted into chaos.

^^^^^^^

PS: Just checked, there have been requests for more updates… 9,000 words today.