Chapter Thirty-Two: The Hurricane Wolf King

The next day, I woke up early and logged in. The others were still asleep, so I was alone at the gates of Heavenly Dragon City. In the game, dawn had just broken. The gate guards maintained their perpetual smiles meant to encourage players, but after staring at them for a while, I found their expressions rather odd.

At this early hour, there were few people on the streets. I headed first to the general store and sold all the crystal cores I had collected. Inside, only three or four others were browsing the shelves. The shopkeeper, still bleary-eyed with sleep, barely looked up as I placed my haul before him, but his expression changed when he saw the palm-sized crystal core of the Human-faced Demon Spider—astonishment flickered across his face.

Perhaps in the future, such crystal cores would be commonplace, but for now, it was enough to startle even the jaded shopkeeper. He examined the core carefully, then exclaimed in surprise, "This is a Human-faced Demon Spider crystal core, and a high-quality one at that! Adventurer, you didn't kill the spider alone, did you? Incredible!"

I said nothing, merely replied coolly, "Sell them all."

A few people nearby cried out in disbelief, "No way!"

I ignored them and urged the shopkeeper to hurry up with my payment. The shopkeeper quickly tallied up the crystal cores and materials. Altogether, I earned fifteen silver coins and seventy-five copper coins, but the Human-faced Demon Spider core alone fetched thirty gold coins, which shocked me. My purse grew heavy in an instant.

The others nearby stared at me, unable to hide the greed in their eyes.

I spent ten silver coins on a small backpack to replace the starter one from the system and left the general store feeling quite satisfied. As I walked out, I overheard two male players behind me muttering, "Who is that guy, anyway?"

One replied, "No idea which master he is, but to take down a Human-faced Demon Spider alone? I remember last time, Snow Night led a hundred-man team and still got wiped back to town by one of those spiders."

The other sighed, "There are always experts hiding among us!"

After leaving the general store, I found a breakfast vendor, bought a few meat buns and some rice porridge to replenish my hunger and thirst, then went to the pharmacy to restock on red and blue potions and drinking water. My next stop was the equipment appraisal shop to have the gear dropped by the Human-faced Demon Spider identified.

At the appraisal shop, the appraiser looked over the equipment and said, "That'll be thirty gold coins."

I was stunned—there went the money from the spider core. I tried to bargain, "Can't you make it cheaper?"

The appraiser nodded solemnly, "Do you want them appraised or not?"

Reluctantly, I handed over the thirty gold coins. The appraiser took the money, swept his hand over the four pieces of equipment, and dazzling light flashed, turning the whole shop bright as day!

I retrieved my items and examined the first one—a fine sword.

Blazing Sun

Grade: Violet Gold

Attack Power: +185

Strength Mastery: +4

Attack Speed: +5%

Accuracy: +2%

Effect: 2% chance to increase damage by 20% on attack; 1% chance of triggering a fiery explosion on attack

Sharpness: B

Required Level: 25

I stared at its formidable stats in awe. Violet gear truly was powerful. I couldn't decide whether to keep the sword, sell it, or give it to either Leafy or Little Moon—whoever reached level twenty-five first would have it.

Next, I checked the second item.

Frost Legguards

Grade: Crimson

Defense: +40

Armor Mastery: +6

Water Resistance: +5

Effect: Increases damage of water-type skills by 5%

Required Level: 25

Then, I picked up the third item.

Blackfeather Bracers

Grade: Pale Blue

Defense: +22

Health: +100

Required Level: 20

Blue-grade bracers—interesting. I decided to equip them myself. The last one remained; I hoped it was something worthwhile.

Flame Staff

Grade: Violet Gold

Magic Attack: +180

Magic Mastery: +12

Casting Speed: +8%

Effect: +10% fire magic damage; reduces all fire spell cooldowns by 1 second

Required Level: 25

Staring at the Flame Staff, my mouth dropped open. "Such... such powerful magic attack!" I couldn't help but exclaim. The thirty gold coins spent were more than worth it! Two pieces of violet gear, though neither suited for me. Still, selling them could easily net me a thousand gold coins or more—perhaps even more than the market could supply, given how hard money was to come by.

After sorting out my equipment, I decided to buy some summon beast eggs. Having only a Black-furred Dog was not enough; facing the Human-faced Demon Spider, I realized that if I'd had a second or third summon beast, the battle would have gone much better. I was determined to raise more summon beasts.

I went to the summon beast vendor. Each egg cost ten silver coins, so I bought ten eggs for a gold coin and prepared to hatch them.

Leaving Heavenly Dragon City, I decided to head to the Blood Wasteland to level up. I also learned EMP, adding another skill to my arsenal. However, my weapon needed upgrading; the bronze knuckle-dusters couldn't keep up with my level anymore.

After walking for over an hour, I arrived at a huge graveyard on the edge of the Blood Wasteland. The nearby shambling skeleton warriors were all level twenty. Many players were leveling up here in groups, but I didn't stop and pressed onward.

Before long, I found myself in a vast basin of black, corroded earth, flies buzzing everywhere. Hordes of skeletons roamed the area, but unlike those outside, these wore crude armor—their black shells, though battered, certainly offered extra protection.

Skeleton Warriors, Level 30, Normal Beast. Level thirty monsters were perfect for leveling. Meanwhile, my Black-furred Dog had finished evolving. I summoned it immediately—

Name: Hurricane Wolf King

Type: Animal

Race: Beast

Quality: Advanced

Evolvable: Yes

Health: 1,500

Attack: 550

Defense: 400

Skills: Twin Claw Charge, Spiral Hurricane, Rending Claw, Furious Howl, Destructive Death Ray

Description: The evolved beast form of the Black-furred Dog. Its gloved paws protect it from sharp objects as it runs or walks, greatly enhancing both leg strength and movement speed. It can also rear up on its hind legs like a bear to fight. This summon beast combines the traits of both wolf and bear.

Impressive! After evolving, the Black-furred Dog had become the Hurricane Wolf King—now standing nearly 1.8 meters tall and over two meters long. Its fur had turned blue, and each of its four paws wore a glove. Its eyes shone brightly. I patted it happily, and it licked my face as a group of skeleton warriors rushed at us. Before I could act, the Hurricane Wolf King opened its jaws and unleashed a tornado—damage numbers like –740, –813, –784 flashed in rapid succession. I was astonished to see it was an area attack skill. In one move, seven or eight skeleton warriors were wiped out, dropping a silver coin and a rusty sword.

Curious, I picked up the “Corroded Rusty Sword”—just a material, nothing special. Then an idea struck me, and I swiftly leapt onto the Hurricane Wolf King's back. The beast could easily bear my weight, and riding it didn't hinder its performance at all. I used Burn to lure five more skeleton warriors, then had the Hurricane Wolf King use Spiral Hurricane. After two or three blasts, the skeletons all fell, dropping another rusty sword, which stacked neatly in my pack.

Clearly, five monsters were too few. The next time, I lured twenty skeleton warriors at once. With the Hurricane Wolf King, their attacks were no threat to me. My movement speed didn’t let me outrun them by much, but I still managed to lead the horde to my summon, where the Hurricane Wolf King easily turned them all into experience and coins with its Spiral Hurricane.