After equipping the Cursed Necklace, Yu Zhun opened his status panel, having just leveled up twice.
[Character Name: Yu Zhun]
[Level: Lv5 (5/600)]
[Profession: Assassin]
[Profession Talent: Open and Aboveboard (SSS-Level)]
[Wearing Title: Demon Sheep Nightmare (Green)]
[Attributes:
Health: 264→1050 [Equipment +220] [Equipment Effect +100%] [Title +10%]
Mana: 90→100
Physical Attack: 140→80 [Equipment Effect -50%]
Magic Attack: 0→0 [Equipment Effect -50%]
Physical Defense: 55→70 [Equipment +5]
Magic Defense: 55→70 [Equipment +5]]
[Skills: 4/4] (Skill Points: 1)
[Skill 1: Lurking (Lv1)]
[Skill 2: Swift Step (Lv1)]
[Skill 3: Sword Dance (Lv1)]
[Skill 4: Self-Healing (Lv1)]
[Equipment: 3/3]
[Weapon: Dagger (White)]
[Armor: Leather Armor (White)]
[Accessory: Black Demon Sheep's Cursed Necklace (Blue)]
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." Looking at his attribute panel, Yu Zhun couldn't help but shake his head. "At Lv5, my Health exceeds 1000, and my Physical and Magic Defense have both reached 70. This is just too reassuring."
Even if he just stood still and let a Gray Demon Dog hit him now, it would take a lot of effort for the monster to reduce him to critical health.
Wait...
"Aren't I an Assassin?" Yu Zhun scratched his head.
Ever since he acquired the [Open and Aboveboard] talent, his mindset had become increasingly skewed. What happened to his promise of being a sneaky Asshole for the rest of his life?!
Then again, a single Outstanding Level equipment had boosted his stats by this much. If he gathered three pieces of Outstanding Level equipment, or even obtained purple Master Level equipment—which was a tier above Outstanding Level—just how strong would he become?
After a brief moment of daydreaming, Yu Zhun's eyes fell on the "Skill Points: 1" section of his panel.
"Upgrading skills requires caution," he pondered. "Because items that can Reset Skill Points can only be obtained when a player changes their Profession. Therefore, I choose..." Yu Zhun glanced at his four skills and ultimately dumped the Skill Point into [Swift Step].
"At this stage, a Lv1 [Sword Dance] is already sufficient. Needless to say, I haven't even used [Lurking] once since I chose my Profession. [Self-Healing] only restores health after leaving combat, and upgrading it merely increases the recovery speed, which isn't very meaningful."
After the upgrade, Yu Zhun took another look at [Swift Step].
[Skill 2: Swift Step (Lv1): Grants a 30% speed boost when walking out of combat, and a 10% agility bonus in combat, allowing for faster dodging or attacking.]
↓↓
[Skill 2: Swift Step (Lv2): Grants a 50% speed boost when walking out of combat, and a 20% agility bonus in combat, allowing for faster dodging or attacking.]
Yu Zhun took a few casual steps and felt his body become much lighter than before. He nodded in satisfaction. This was definitely worth it.
Looking at the Gray Demon Dogs wandering not far away, a thoughtful look appeared in Yu Zhun's eyes. Since he had gained such a massive power boost, wouldn't it be too inefficient to keep grinding Gray Demon Dogs?
How about... he just directly take on the Demon Dog Leader!
Just like the Black Demon Sheep was to the regular Demon Sheep, the Demon Dog Leader was the Elite Monster among the Gray Demon Dogs. However, unlike the Black Demon Sheep which stayed hidden and only appeared after fifty regular Demon Sheep were killed, the Demon Dog Leader resided in the deepest part of the Gray Ruins.
Unlike the regular Demon Sheep that were loosely scattered across the Demon Sheep Wilderness, the Gray Demon Dogs were distributed more densely the closer one got to the center of the Gray Ruins. By breaking through their blockade and reaching the very center, one could encounter the Demon Dog Leader.
That was a Lv8 Elite Monster! Upon killing it, there was a chance it would drop Outstanding Level equipment.
With this thought in mind, Yu Zhun didn't hesitate any longer. With wind under his feet, he charged straight toward the deepest part of the Gray Ruins.
Along the way, his newly upgraded Lv2 [Swift Step] fully displayed its astonishing speed. To avoid wasting time, Yu Zhun bypassed all the Gray Demon Dogs on his path, focused entirely on racing against the clock.
[Deepest Part of the Gray Ruins]
It wasn't until these words popped up that Yu Zhun abruptly stopped in his tracks. This prompt, which only appeared when transitioning to a new map, meant he had finally entered the area where the Demon Dog Leader was located.
"Come on, let's see what this Demon Dog Leader is capable of!" Yu Zhun shouted, gripping his dagger tightly.
Immediately after, he saw a Demon Dog Leader—measuring a full five meters long, incredibly massive, and completely blood-red—stumble toward him.
[Demon Dog Leader (Lv8)]
[Attributes:
Health: 4000
Mana: 100
Physical Attack: 250
Magic Attack: 0
Physical Defense: 50
Magic Defense: 50]
Yu Zhun: "?"
It actually came right when he called? This was like his words had become law!
However, as the Demon Dog Leader drew closer, Yu Zhun quickly noticed something unusual. The massive beast was covered in wounds. The health bar above its head was visible, showing that its health was at less than a third.
It was at critical health.
It seemed this was a Demon Wolf currently being attacked by others, as it hadn't even entered an out-of-combat state yet. Jungle farming had its rules. Hijacking a wild monster that was already engaged by another team halfway through was no different from outright provocation.
With this in mind, Yu Zhun stepped to the side, intending to let the Demon Dog Leader pass. Unexpectedly, a sudden change occurred.
"BARK—"
The critically injured Demon Dog Leader let out an angry roar and lunged directly at him.
Yu Zhun: "?"
Silently repeating "I am acting in self-defense" three times in his heart, he sighed softly and raised his dagger.
"My name is Self-Defense... Ah, no, my name is Yu Zhun..."
The Demon Dog Leader died.
***
"Yu Yu, hurry up and keep up."
A handsome young man sprinted forward, followed by a panting teenage girl. Glancing back at the girl, the young man revealed a helpless expression. "Your physique was Enhanced after entering the game. How are you still this weak?"
"I..." The girl rolled her eyes, not wanting to speak.
How could a Lv10 Warrior running at full speed expect a Lv3 Priest to keep up? Even if their physiques were Enhanced in the game, there were still differences between players!
"Forget it, forget it. That Demon Dog Leader has already been beaten to below half health by me anyway; it can't run far," the young man said, growing a little frustrated. "It's my fault. I forgot that the Demon Dog Leader triggers a fleeing Mechanism when its health drops below half.
"Later, I'll beat it down to a sliver of health, and you can finish it off by smacking it with your Priest's Book.
"Getting the kill will grant you a title that will be helpful to you."
"Mhm!" The girl quickened her pace slightly. "Brother, let's hurry up..."
THUD!
Her head bumped right into the young man's back.
"Brother?"
The girl poked her head out from behind the young man's back, staring at the scene unfolding before her in stunned disbelief.
A ferocious, heavily wounded Demon Dog lunged fiercely at a frail-looking (an illusion) teenage boy. The boy calmly raised the dagger in his hand, and with just a single slash, the Demon Dog Leader's mountain-like body crashed to the ground.
The siblings stood petrified on the spot, staring blankly at the scene.
Who were they?
Where were they?
What were they supposed to be doing again?