“Ding! Congratulations to your team for slaying the Level 10 Elite BOSS—the ‘Mutated Goblin Overlord’—and earning 100 Reputation points.”
“Ding! Your level has increased to Level 9.”
Accompanying the system’s chime, the Goblin Overlord’s massive body crashed heavily to the ground, and in the next moment, it was buried under a deluge of gold, silver, and purple loot.
As the dust settled, Bai Xia finally let out a profound sigh of relief.
This mission had been fraught with peril, yet the rewards were equally unimaginable. Setting aside the various equipment dropped by the Goblin Overlord, her own level alone had soared from a mere Level 5 before the expedition to a full Level 9 in a single mission!
Upon reflection, however, it wasn’t so surprising. The sheer number of goblins within this cave was astounding, and with the final BOSS being a Level 10 Elite, all the experience had been absorbed entirely by just her and Tian Zheng. Naturally, their leveling speed was beyond the imagination of other players.
Yearning for even faster leveling? Then simply claim an entire area for yourself!
****
“After all that hard work, let me see what treasures dropped.”
With the Goblin Overlord vanquished, Bai Xia scanned her surroundings to confirm there were no lingering dangers before her gaze settled upon the scattered equipment.
In *Another World*, monsters of Reinforced grade and above always yielded their highest drop rates upon their first defeat. Moreover, their corpses would not immediately vanish, allowing players to extract numerous valuable items through the system’s gathering skills.
Setting the Goblin Overlord’s corpse aside for a moment, Bai Xia turned her attention to the spoils of their battle.
As a Level 10 Elite BOSS, the Goblin Overlord was far from as stingy as its common brethren; in fact, it could be considered exceptionally generous.
Bai Xia didn’t meticulously count the gold and silver coins, but there were over fifty gold coins alone, making the creature a veritable tycoon compared to ordinary goblins.
Beyond the commonplace white-grade equipment, an astonishing three pieces of Excellent-grade armor had dropped!
Two pieces of light armor and one piece of leather armor, all superb gear usable only after reaching Level 10.
Within the game, armor was categorized into four types: cloth, leather, light, and heavy. Each profession, in turn, had its own suitable armor type.
Just as one would never equip a mage in heavy armor for battle, a shield-guard, responsible for tanking damage, would never venture onto the battlefield clad in cloth armor.
Light armor, specifically, was ideal for agile warriors like Tian Zheng. Bai Xia, as an assassin, also belonged to the highly agile professions, making form-fitting leather armor the most suitable for her.
Given that the BOSS had dropped three pieces of high-grade armor, Bai Xia had no intention of monopolizing them this time. Instead, she traded the light armor chest piece and gauntlets entirely to Tian Zheng.
After a slight hesitation, she also traded over the Goblin Overlord’s sole weapon drop.
It was a massive saber that the Goblin Overlord had seemingly pulled from who-knew-where. Without the crackling lightning that had once enveloped it, the blade appeared crude, bulky, and rather unsightly, yet its grade was… Epic!
An Epic-grade weapon, honestly, made Bai Xia feel a pang of regret at parting with it. However, Tian Zheng had taken great care of her throughout their journey, so it was only natural to think of him when good items appeared.
Tian Zheng didn’t refuse the two pieces of armor, but he showed no inclination whatsoever to accept the great saber.
At this, Bai Xia couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, looking at him with utter bewilderment. “You don’t want it? This is an Epic Level 10 weapon, you know!”
“Too ugly to wield.”
Tian Zheng glanced at it, his face etched with disdain.
Bai Xia was somewhat speechless. While the great saber’s appearance was admittedly a bit homely, at this stage of the game, it was a genuine, top-tier item that money couldn’t even buy!
‘Hmph, men.’
The person shaking their head with a cold chuckle had completely forgotten that they themselves had been a man not long ago.
Since Tian Zheng didn’t want it, Bai Xia naturally wouldn’t insist. It would be perfect to sell for money; at most, she could treat him to a meal once she was rich… ‘Oh, where would we eat? In the game, of course! You don’t mean in reality, do you?’
Retrieving the items, Bai Xia searched around once more, checking for any overlooked loot.
Meanwhile, Tian Zheng briefly scanned the two pieces of armor before his gaze fell upon the Reputation tab in his own attributes, a thoughtful expression settling on his face.
Reputation was a very special attribute in the game, often only obtainable by slaying Elite-grade monsters and above. It didn’t affect one’s personal attributes, but rather how NPCs perceived them.
For instance, by continuously accumulating Reputation, one could earn titles like ‘Valiant’ or ‘Hero’. While these titles didn’t significantly impact personal stats, players possessing them were more readily recognized by NPCs, found it easier to accept high-level quests, and even received more and better rewards!
Furthermore, if players wished to upgrade their guild after creating one, a prerequisite was to possess a certain amount of Reputation points.
It was also rumored that reaching a certain level of Reputation could grant discounts when purchasing items from the system shop.
Thus, while Reputation might seem inconsequential in everyday play, it actually influenced many aspects of the game.
****
While Tian Zheng was lost in thought, Bai Xia didn’t disturb him. After wandering around to check for any missed items, her gaze landed on the Goblin Overlord’s corpse, its eyes still wide open in death.
Approaching it, she cast several gathering skills directly.
“Ding! Gathering successful. Congratulations on obtaining the advanced material ‘Goblin Overlord’s Bone’.”
‘Goblin Overlord’s Bone?’ The system’s notification made Bai Xia feel a wave of nausea. Had the system not stated it was a good forging material, she might have tossed it the moment she acquired it.
“Ding! Gathering successful. Congratulations on obtaining ‘Goblin Poop’.”
“…”
Bai Xia admitted she was thoroughly disgusted. ‘Bones are one thing, but what the hell is this poop!?’
Without hesitation, she immediately chose to destroy the item labeled as a special toxic substance. With a dark expression, Bai Xia then cast another gathering skill and drew her weapon, ready to desecrate the Goblin Overlord’s corpse further.
Then, as if Bai Xia’s resentment had taken effect, with a flash of light and shadow, a strange small item suddenly appeared in her hand.
“What is this?”
It was a small, round bead, appearing unremarkable, yet its interior seemed to condense faint sparks of lightning.
[Heavenly Thunder Stone]: Special Item. A peculiar object formed from intensely concentrated thunder source energy. Usage conditions unknown.
‘Heavenly Thunder Stone?’
Recalling earlier events, the Goblin Overlord had seemingly evolved after swallowing something strange, and most of its attacks had been lightning-based… Could it be because it had swallowed this very item?
However, the system provided no detailed explanation of its purpose, leaving Bai Xia utterly bewildered for the moment.
“What are you spacing out for?” As Bai Xia pondered, gazing at the small bead in her hand, Tian Zheng walked over. She glanced at the man, then directly tossed the item to him. “Just gathered something strange from the Goblin Overlord.”
“Heavenly Thunder Stone?”
Tian Zheng glanced at the Heavenly Thunder Stone’s attributes, then rubbed its surface with his finger twice. Seeing no reaction, he tossed it back.
Bai Xia reached out to catch it, then heard him softly say, “Since the mission and the BOSS are both handled, shall we head back?”
“Yes, let’s go back. But after returning to the新手村 (TL Note: Newbie Village), I’ll probably have to log off, as today… Hmm?”
Bai Xia’s words were cut short. Then, to Tian Zheng’s bewildered expression, she abruptly walked straight towards the deepest wall in the cave.