Chapter Nine: Conversation

Leaving the sanctuary, the village chief was already waiting for me. He said, "Congratulations, young man. You can now truly call yourself an adventurer. This village is no longer suited for you. You can leave and explore the outside world."

I replied, "Of course. Quickly, tell me where the teleportation portal to the main city is."

The village chief shook his head and said, "Sorry, young man. We don’t have a teleportation portal to the main city here."

"What!" I was taken aback.

The chief continued, "Not building a teleportation portal is a tradition here. We provide departing adventurers a test of wisdom and courage."

"What kind of test?" I asked.

The chief answered, "You must walk through the Shadowy Forest."

A prompt appeared: "Ding~! Do you accept the final trial of the quest?"

I hesitated for a moment before immediately clicking 'confirm.' The chief said, "Good lad, you’re brave. Since you’re the first adventurer to take on this quest, I’ll give you something useful." He pulled out a stool and said, "Take this. You’ll need it on the road."

I accepted the stool and checked its attributes.

Exquisite Stool
Grade: Pale Blue
Effect: Recovers 50 health per second when used.

It was indeed a great item, so I quickly stowed it away. The village chief then said, "Before you set out, let me share some advice. As an adventurer, you level up by killing monsters and absorbing experience points. Once you accumulate enough experience, you can level up. But besides absorbing experience, you must learn to harness your energy, potential, combat experience, wisdom, insights, and understanding. All these together will yield great rewards. Most importantly, you should look into trial points—they’ll benefit you greatly."

I asked, "What are trial points?"

The chief replied, "One day, you’ll encounter them."

...

I said, "Alright, I’m off then."

The chief nodded, "Go on, young man. I have a feeling you’ll achieve greatness."

"Let’s hope so," I replied, bidding farewell to the chief. At last, I left this frustratingly idiotic village. I checked the time; it was already 7 PM in the real world, so I logged off and stepped out of my room.

As I left my room, Ye Shuang came out as well. Upon seeing me, he immediately shouted, "Bro, did you change your class yet? I was hoping you could carry me in the future! And be honest, did you pick up any beauties?"

I rolled my eyes, "What’s that supposed to mean? I worked hard and I’ve already completed my first job change. Plus, I’ve got purple gear!"

He stared, "Damn, you’re really something. I’ve only got blue and white gear left. Tell me, what exactly did you do?"

I had to confess everything: PKing against Royal Dynasty, making friends with Firestorm, grabbing the boss and its gear—I told him all about it.

"Wow, bro, you’re amazing! You took on a whole group and scared them all off. From now on, I’m sticking with you!"

Looking at his excited face, I had a bad feeling. "With all that talent, shouldn’t you treat me to dinner? Let’s go to Heaven and Earth."

Heaven and Earth? Damn, he sure can pick a place. Well, I was in a good mood, so I agreed, "Alright, but it’ll just be the two of us."

Just then, Ye Shuang’s phone rang. A female voice sounded on the other end, "Yezi, where are you?"

Ye Shuang replied, "Dragon’s Nest." That’s what we call my home.

"Oh, I made some money today and want to treat you two to dinner! Interested?" she said.

Ye Shuang quickly answered, "Perfect! We were just about to head to Heaven and Earth. We’ll secure a table. Hurry over!"

He hung up and, grinning, dashed off to change clothes.

I had a headache. Of course I knew who the caller was—my senior, now in university. She played a crucial role among us, though not a positive one.

She’s two years older than me, named Feng Xiaoyue—a famous figure in our school. When I entered high school, she looked after me and was a beauty, the class belle and campus queen. But any boy who tried to get close to her was either scolded or beaten—tragic, really. Joking aside, a black belt in Taekwondo isn’t someone you can mess with.

Heaven and Earth was only ten minutes from my home, so we arrived quickly and found a private room to wait for Feng Xiaoyue.

Soon, a graceful beauty in a sky-blue woolen casual suit entered. I had to admit, the ensemble was stunning.

Without a doubt, this was Feng Xiaoyue. A beauty is a beauty—she looks good in anything, and even better in nothing.

I said, "Heh, why the sudden conscience, treating us to dinner? It can’t just be because you made some money."

"Order up, I’m starving!" Ye Shuang shouted. I said, "Miss, let’s start with some appetizers—candied longan, embroidered scallops, fried pearl chicken, cream fish fillets, hmm, spicy duck gizzards, and then a whole chicken and maybe a roast lamb."

"Bro, we can’t finish all that," Ye Shuang protested.

"If we can’t, we’ll pack it up for a midnight snack. Right, Xiaoyue?"

She knew I was teasing her but remained silent.

"Dragon Spirit, should warriors put some points into armor specialization?"

"Sure, you can go all-in on strength specialization, or agility specialization, and carve out your own path. Wait, aren’t you playing a mage? Why the concern about warriors?"

"Oh, I was planning to play a mage, but I got a talent called Divine Might. Every level, strength specialization increases by one. To be safe, I haven’t assigned other points yet. If I stick with mage despite this talent, wouldn’t my character be wasted?"

I was surprised, "Really? You’ve got good luck."

"Enough! What are you two talking about, anyway? What game are you playing?" Feng Xiaoyue finally spoke.

"Second World. Surely you’ve heard of it?" Ye Shuang glanced at her, eyes twinkling.

"Of course, I play too. So you’re a warrior—Dragon Spirit, what’s your class?" Feng Xiaoyue asked.

"I’m a summoner," I replied.

Ye Shuang exclaimed, "Bro, why’d you pick such a trash class?"

"How so?" I asked.

Feng Xiaoyue interjected, "Let me explain. Every class has its strengths and weaknesses. The summoner’s sole advantage is being able to carry five summoned beasts. All the rest are disadvantages."

"Go on," I prompted.

She said, "Let’s compare a warrior to a summoner. Imagine both are at the same level. At the start, their basic attributes aren’t much different; at the first job change, the gap is still small. But as they progress, the attribute difference widens: a warrior’s attack and defense far surpass a summoner’s. Especially with specialized warriors—full attack or full defense types—the gap is staggering. To balance, I’ll discount one of the summoner’s beasts. Dragon Spirit, any objections?"

Ye Shuang nodded, "Makes sense. Maybe even more than one."

"Alright, so four beasts remain. Where else do warriors hold an advantage?" I asked.

Feng Xiaoyue smiled, "Warriors can use contract skills to summon magical beasts for assistance—they serve as mounts and battle companions, and are definitely not weaker than summoned beasts. Summoners can’t use contracts for magical beasts, so that’s another beast offset."

Ye Shuang’s eyes lit up, "Mounts? That’s so cool!"

Feng Xiaoyue continued, "Except for summoners, all four other classes can use contracts to gain a mount."

"Why can’t summoners have mounts? That’s unfair," I protested.

She laughed, "Silly, you can ride your own summoned beasts—provided they can bear your weight!"

"Even so, summoners only lose two beasts; three remain," I argued.

Feng Xiaoyue explained, "Then there’s equipment. Summoners can use wands, whips, and staves—these have far less attack power than warrior weapons like swords, hammers, or axes. Warriors can even dual-wield, stacking attack power for frightening damage. Or they can use a shield for extra defense. All these are beyond a summoner’s reach—this gap is enough to discount another beast. The biggest difference is skills: summoners have fewer, weaker skills, while warriors learn many powerful abilities. That’s another beast offset. And finally, it’s nearly impossible for a summoner to have five strong summoned beasts. In a duel, a warrior stands a much higher chance of victory. An experienced warrior can even defeat a summoner before their beasts reach him."

I felt a bit disheartened. With that analysis, summoners seemed utterly useless: poor stats, weak weapons, meager skills, hard-to-train beasts, and even if you manage it, your beasts might not help before you’re killed yourself.

Feng Xiaoyue added, "But don’t be too absolute. Summoners have great potential. Dragon Spirit, work hard to become a summoner with five powerful beasts."

I asked, "You’re really something. What’s your class? How much did you earn today, to treat us?"

She replied, "I’m a warrior too. I made over five thousand in-game today, so I came to treat you both. Dragon Spirit, I want to discuss something with you."

"With me?"