Gamers of the Underworld

A Skeleton ran quickly in the corridor. He was wearing a long robe with the number 56254 on it and carrying a large piece of paper that was his examination notes.

Behind him was a Lich with the number 62521.

Both Liches entered the Teleport Portal consecutively. They arrived at the Control Platform on Level 4 and started preparing for their examination.

Five Goblins appeared within the crystal ball. After entering the Training Grounds, they put down their backpacks and started checking their equipment.

The two Liches stared intently at the images in the crystal ball. Lich 56254 lifted his paper to check his written notes.

“They don’t have Kite Shields.”

“They don’t have Flails.”

“They don’t have Helmets!”

“They don’t have Bladder Bombs!”

“Great, Senior!” Lich 62521 shouted excitedly at 56256, “They are low difficulty Goblins! We’re going to win.”

“D*mn!” Lich 56254 knocked 62521 on his skull and said, “The graduation Strategy Guide said not to mention winning! If we say we’re winning, we’ll fail 80% to 90% of the time. Make haste!”

“Pooh, pooh, pooh!”

Lich 62521 poohed and spat saliva.

A battle that was important to both sides was about to begin.

…

“Ah… too difficult… this Instance Dungeon! We fought until midnight to complete it!”

TakeASpearHit sat on the ground. He wasn’t feeling tired, his leg was broken.

When he defeated the BOSS, the Orc Skeleton fell to the ground, and his weapon crushed TakeASpearHit’s leg.

“Dragonborn, you’re strong! What technique did you use, Tiger Kill With Sliding Hack?” SealHeadLingChong complimented.

Dragonborn smiled with embarrassment and said, “No, I’ve practiced full-armor fighting before. I slipped carelessly and hacked the BOSS’ leg accidentally. It wasn’t a technique.”

“I don’t care. It’s cool anyway! I’m feeling your strength, and you have good equipment. Perhaps you have a chance to beat Arthur! People are praising Arthur too much,” TakeASpearHit said indignantly.

“Perhaps Arthur is indeed strong, and he’s rich. He has the best equipment, and he killed an Underground Spider single-handedly. That’s powerful. Now that he’s a Gnome, are you butting your head against him?” SealHeadLingChong was in favor of Arthur.

“Do you feel that there are less and less Underground Spiders?” Compared to the legendary veteran gamer Arthur, Dragonborn was more concerned about the Spiders’ Lair.

He was worried because equipment improvement required materials from the Spiders, but only the deep end of the Spiders’ Lair had Underground Spiders.

Though the discussion forum had the Spiders’ Lair map and the cave walls had symbols drawn by their seniors, some crazy gamers drew misleading diagrams that caused them to be lost.

There were gamers who enjoyed sabotaging the experience of other gamers.

“Besides the Instance Dungeon, the refresh rate of the game monsters is slow. If we kill too many monsters, their numbers will diminish,” SealHeadLingChong said.

“On the discussion forum, they mentioned locking down the Spiders’ Lair for a period of time to allow the Spiders to multiply. I heard that Underground Spiders were found near Entrance No. 2, but they haven’t found the Lair,” TakeASpearHit said.

While they were chatting, they picked up their loot and two corpses of their comrades.

Their bodies were laden with equipment that made clanking noises as they dragged their casualties back to Eternal Kingdom.

They were heading towards the Lich’s Burial Hall to revive their comrades when they encountered Mufasa, who was dragging a pile of clay. When Mufasa saw the three of them and the grotesque corpses, he lowered his pale face and ran off.

“The realistic NPC reaction is awesome.”

They complimented the game and went into the Lich’s Burial Hall.

…

TakeASpearHit, Dragonborn, SealHeadLingChong, SoftCandyGal, and NightlyClown shared the loot equally. They used the ROLL method to resolve any disputes.

SoftCandyGal asked, “Can’t I touch the Darting Bird?”

TakeASpearHit raised his hand and said, “No, the gamers have been touching the Darting Bird until it’s almost bald. I feel like my Darting Bird is depressed. It’s not lifting its head and looks listless.”

“Pooh!”

SoftCandyGal spat saliva at TakeASpearHit and left.

SealHeadLingChong and NightlyClown teased TakeASpearHit before NightlyClown left with his loot.

Dragonborn and his two companions proceeded to appraise their equipment.

Dragonborn took out a single-handed Axe and appraised it after spending some bronze coins and Reputation Points.

[Specter Single-Handed Axe (Green Excellent Equipment)]

Damage: 0–20

Weight: 25

Durability: 10

Equipment Location: “Specter College: Training Grounds”

Required Reputation: Dungeon: Eternal Kingdom Reputation Level 2

The equipment specially prepared by the Liches belongs to you.

Dragonborn felt that his luck was pretty good since it was a piece of Green Excellent equipment. He could sell it for 100 to 200 Renminbi.

TakeASpearHit shouted in despair, “Wah Ah—! Why did I pick up a piece of Gray Trash equipment? The defense rating is so low! Why am I so unlucky!”

“Er…” SealHeadLingChong hesitated as TakeASpearHit looked on, but he said, “Superior Short Sword, Damage 0-25.”

“D*mn!”

TakeASpearHit had just finished cursing when a Stone Golem carrying all sorts of goods appeared from the Teleport Portal Hall.

Dragonborn was surprised. He thought that there might be new Plots.

Lord Sherlock walked out from the Dungeon Lord Main Hall.

The gamers gathered to watch, and they were restrained by Sherlock’s dominant aura. They could neither move nor speak.

Sherlock talked to the small Stone Golem and brought him to the warehouse. Before long, numerous small Stone Golems carried wood, bowstrings, and other materials out from the portal.

After transporting the goods for an hour, a Stone Golem talked to Lord Sherlock before he bowed and all the Stone Golems left via the Teleport Portal.

The gamers were guessing about the new Plot. What was the wood for?

Dragonborn was curious too. He saw Sherlie walk to the plaza in front of the Dungeon Core Main Hall and write on the signboard.

Then, Lord Sherlock went back into his Dungeon Lord Main Hall. In the next instant, the door opened, and a sign was hung outside.

“Don’t knock on the door. If you do, your account will be terminated.”

After that, the Dungeon Lord Main Hall door was shut.

The gamers immediately ran to the signboard and saw:

“Citizens of Eternal Kingdom:

To help everyone in clearing the Large Lizards around Eternal Kingdom, I’ve purchased some materials for Longbows and Short Bows.

To obtain the Longbows and Short Bows, continue to work diligently and obtain Reputation Points. You can only purchase Longbows or Short Bows if you attain Reputation Level 3 and above. Please help to disseminate the information.”

Everyone was taken aback. BurningChestHair looked hopeless as he muttered to himself, “We’re done for. It’s not safe anywhere…”