“This world is called the Skyline Continent. It was once home to countless powerful races. Though wars were frequent, there was still a semblance of peace and stability. Until they connected with a game called the world of Gods…” The beggar’s face was nostalgic as he spoke slowly.
John frowned. He knew about the plight of Skyline Continent and feared that Earth’s future would mirror its fate.
But wasn’t the beggar supposed to tell his own story?
Moreover, John remembered this beggar was also a Dark Human. The tragedy of Skyline Continent was closely linked to them.
Why did it seem like he was now speaking on behalf of the races of Skyline Continent?
The beggar continued, ignoring John’s reaction: “One day, beings who called themselves the envoys of the gods, known as the Dark Humans, descended upon Skyline Continent. They unleashed brutal massacres on the various races, eventually conquering the continent. The gods’ malevolent hands then reached out to another world…”
The beggar took another swig from his jar, not continuing his tale.
He seemed satisfied with John’s shocked and puzzled expression. “Young man, don’t doubt it. It’s just as you think.”
John looked at the beggar, remaining silent.
He had known these things already. His confusion lay in the fact that the beggar’s hidden quest wasn’t supposed to be about this.
He remembered that the person who received this hidden quest in the previous life mentioned that the old beggar had tasked him with killing two demon guardians to avenge his deceased wife.
The beggar’s story was intriguing and shocking, but it seemed unrelated to the hidden quest.
Unsure of how to proceed, John decided to go along with the beggar’s story.
He asked, “If what you say is true, is there any way to prevent this disaster?”
The beggar shook his head, his eyes filled with deep helplessness. “Everything is controlled by the gods. They are high and mighty. How can mere mortals possibly stand against gods?” “Isn’t there any way at all?” John’s desire to find a solution was ignited. Regardless of whether others believed it possible, he was determined to stop this disaster and protect Earth.
The beggar looked at John, silent for a long time, then sighed softly. “If you help me with something, I can tell you some methods to counter the gods. But I can’t guarantee they will be effective.”
John was puzzled. This seemed to align with the hidden quest, but why had the person who received it in the previous life not mentioned this part?
Had the beggar not revealed it, or had that person deliberately concealed it?
John only knew that this hidden quest ultimately failed, which was why the person had revealed it; he didn’t know any other details.
He nodded and said, “Go ahead.”
The beggar continued, “My wife was brutally murdered by two demon guardians. If you can kill those two and avenge my wife, I will tell you the secrets to counter the gods.”
[Ding, S-level hidden quest triggered: Merchant’s Revenge. Do you accept?]
A prompt appeared, indicating that things were finally back on track.
“Accept!” John immediately chose to accept.
[You have accepted the S-level hidden quest, Merchant’s Revenge: Kill the demon guardians and avenge the merchant’s wife; Quest duration: None; Quest reward: Unknown; Quest failure penalty: None]
The beggar fumbled in his pocket and took out a crumpled map, handing it to John. “Young man, this is the map to the demon territory. You can only enter with this map. There are thousands of demon soldiers and two demon guardians, all above level 60. This is not urgent; you can wait until you reach level 100 and are at the fourth tier before dealing with them.”
John took the map, not paying much attention to the beggar’s advice.
He accepted this hidden quest for his third-tier advancement trial and couldn’t wait until the fourth tier.
“Don’t worry, I will avenge your wife,” John assured as he pocketed the map.
The beggar said no more, leaning against a pillar and returning to his usual despondent state, continuing to drink.
John bid him farewell and examined the map the beggar had given him.
It marked a hidden location in the forests surrounding Silverleaf City.
Outside Silverleaf City, there were many powerful level 60 and above beasts.
For ordinary players, this quest might indeed require the strength of a level 100 fourth-tier player to complete.
But John was confident he could complete it now.
…
The forest was quiet and deep. Powerful beasts roamed about.
Fire Bats, Minotaurs, Fire Spirits, Dragon Monsters…
All were level 60 and above powerful beasts, but they were no match for John.
He didn’t deliberately provoke them and quickly made his way to the land of darkness
according to the map’s route.
Without Avis, traveling was much less convenient.
John couldn’t help but hope that Avis would complete its advancement soon.
The increase in strength was secondary to him; the most crucial part was the ability to fly.
…
John moved swiftly through the forest, killing dozens of beasts and collecting three high- quality pieces of equipment. Finally, he arrived at the location marked on the map.
The surrounding trees were denser, the environment deeper, and the area was eerily quiet,
with no sign of any beast activity.
This must be the land of darkness.
He entered directly.
[Ding, you have discovered a hidden map, the Land of Darkness]
The notification popped up, but John paid no mind to it, staying alert and continuing forward.
Clang, clang…
From the depths of the forest came the sounds of battle and fighting.
John was puzzled; it seemed like two groups were fighting each other. Could there be other races here besides the demon soldiers?
He quickened his pace.
Emerging from the dense forest, he found himself on a vast plain with a majestic black city
standing tall.
In front of the city, two groups of soldiers were engaged in a deadly battle, all of them demon soldiers, numbering over a thousand.
John approached slowly and overheard their conversation.
“Joel, your men are about to collapse. I think you should just surrender,” said a burly man clad
in heavy armor.
He was a demon guard, a level 70 epic boss.
The other, referred to as Joel, was also a demon guard.
Joel snorted coldly, watching the battlefield intensely. “Evan, don’t celebrate too early. It’s
not over yet.”
He looks the battlefield nervously. Obviously, his soldier has almost defeated.
John hid and watched in amazement.
He had encountered many races but had never seen members of the same race fighting each
other.
The demon race was the first.
John focused on the two demon guards. Both were level 70, third-tier epic bosses with
120,000 health points, and their strength and mental attributes reached 8,000 points. They
were adept in both dark magic and close combat.
The demons were one of the few powerful races that mastered both physical and magical
abilities.
“This is a bit tricky,” John muttered with a serious expression. If he only had to deal with one demon guard, he was confident he could kill him.
But facing two demon guards simultaneously, along with over a thousand level 60 elite
demon soldiers, he wasn’t entirely sure.
“I’ll need to launch a surprise attack to kill or seriously injure one of the demon guards first,”
John planned as he slowly approached the two demon guards.
Both were focused entirely on the battlefield and didn’t notice John getting closer.
The battle was already in full swing and nearing its climax.
Joel and Evan gripped their fists tightly, cursing and directing the fight.
Soon, the last of Joel’s demon soldiers fell, dying in a pool of blood.
Seeing this, Evan laughed triumphantly. “Haha, Joel, you lost again… Huh?”
His laughter abruptly stopped as he sensed danger.
A wave of powerful magical energy made Joel turn his head as well. Flames roared, Wind Blades whistled, and lightning flashed as multiple spells struck.
However, they weren’t aimed at Joel but at Evan.
“Who dares?” Evan cursed, forming a magical shield in front of him. The spells struck.
Boom! Boom!
The magical shield shattered under the barrage, and damage numbers floated above Evan’s
head.
-8593
-17180
-8601
…
With his Spell Combo talent, John landed two consecutive hits and even scored a critical
strike.
Evan’s health dropped by a third in an instant.
Shocked and unable to react, he saw a figure rapidly closing in on him.
A flash of cold light, and he was hit again.
-9797
-9729
-19440
-19458
…
More terrifying damage numbers flashed, with two critical hits this time.
Evan’s health plummeted to less than twenty thousand. He stumbled back in panic, finally seeing his attacker clearly.
“A human, an adventurer?” Evan exclaimed, disbelief in his voice as he struggled to comprehend how a weak human adventurer could inflict such terrifying damage. “Just a bit more!” John thought, eyes narrowing as he saw Evan retreating. He could tell
Evan’s health was critically low; one more round of attacks would surely finish him off. However, with Evan retreating, another surprise attack was no longer possible. “Ha, interesting!” Joel’s mocking laughter echoed from the side. He was delighted to see
Evan in such a state.
Fixing his gaze on John, a mischievous smile played on his lips. “Evan, let’s change the bet. Whoever kills this guy gets to be the lord of the city, how about that?” “Fine, if you can kill him, I’ll forever acknowledge your position as lord,” Evan agreed without hesitation. He knew Joel was no match for this human and anticipated a mutually destructive fight, allowing him to swoop in and claim victory.
“Agreed, it’s a deal!” Joel, unaware of Evan’s cunning, eagerly accepted and charged at John.
“Die!” Joel roared, wielding his massive cleaver in a straightforward but powerful strike
aimed at John.
John’s body was covered in Rock Armor, ready to absorb the blow.
Bang!
The Rock Armor shattered instantly.
-2210
John lost over two thousand health points.
Joel’s physical attack power exceeded eight thousand, but John could barely withstand it.
John swiftly retreated, ignoring Joel. His focus was on the heavily injured Evan. He resolved to eliminate Evan first and then deal with Joel and the remaining demon soldiers.