Chapter 28: The Orc Warrior

In fact, Black Blood was already doing exactly that. Golden Eagle and Wind Patrol, along with their three companions, were Black Blood’s real-life underlings. When they returned to him in a disheveled state after respawning to report the situation, Black Blood learned that the five of them had lost several pieces of equipment each. Enraged, he logged out of the game immediately and gave them a brutal beating in reality, berating them for an entire afternoon before finally stopping.

The equipment those five were wearing had been painstakingly gathered by Black Blood after killing thousands of players. To have several pieces lost just like that drove him into a frenzy. After he finished venting his rage, he logged back in and issued a bounty: any player who killed Lu Yang could bring the video evidence to the Eternal Guild’s steward to receive a reward of 100 credits.

Lan Yu said, "Master player, if you ever need me to buy potions or deliver items for you, just let me know. I promise I won't tell anyone, and I'll bring them to you myself."

Lu Yang was quite touched by her words, but he possessed the Heart of the Demon God, the Pyromancer’s Staff, and the Golden Electric Eel meat, so he didn't need her help for the time being.

"Thanks for the offer. If I need anything, I'll definitely look for you." Lu Yang opened his friends list, checked Lan Yu's level, and asked, "You're all about to hit level 3, right?"

Lan Yu nodded and said, "Almost there. We've also managed to gather quite a few white-tier items."

"Are you all planning to run the level 3 dungeon then?" Lu Yang asked.

Dungeons were a major feature of "Second World." A dungeon requiring a minimum of 20 participants was the second primary way for players to obtain gear in the game.

"Yes, our three warriors have all finished collecting a full set of defensive gear. Sister Xia Yuwei wants to lead a team to give it a try," Lan Yu replied.

Lu Yang asked, "What is the defense rating of your warriors?"

"The three warriors are at about 62 points each," Lan Yu said, which was the standard attribute for white-tier equipment.

Lu Yang said, "If you trust me, don't go. Your warriors' defense isn't high enough; going in now is just asking for death."

Not a single dungeon in "Second World" was simple. Beyond the need for perfect coordination among the 20 players, the hardware requirements—the equipment stats—were extremely demanding.

If Lu Yang were leading and commanding the team, they might have a chance to clear it even with suboptimal gear, but with a novice like Xia Yuwei in charge, it was absolutely impossible.

Lan Yu said, "Oh! I'd better go tell Sister Xia and the others right away. They're discussing it right now."

Lu Yang emphasized again, "Remember, if the warriors' defense isn't at least 71 points, you absolutely must not go."

If it were anyone else, Lu Yang would never have shared this secret, but he couldn't bear to watch Lan Yu lose levels.

"Oh, I understand," Lan Yu replied.

Inside the rock cavern, Xia Yuwei, Zhang Zibo, Zheng Yuan, and the others were discussing the dungeon run.

"Have you heard? Twilight and Xiong Ba have already gone to scout the dungeon. If they succeed, they'll claim the 'First Clear' achievement, making it much easier for them to recruit top players. It will be very hard for us to catch up to them after that," Zheng Yuan said excitedly.

Zhang Zibo added, "Zheng Yuan has a point. We're about to hit level 3, so we should try this dungeon. With our current gear, there shouldn't be any problems."

Xia Yuwei was also very tempted. When the eight of them started their studio at the beginning of the game, they had done so with a cautious mindset, which was why they hadn't spent heavily to compete with large guilds for top talent. As a result, they had fallen a step behind at the start. For the sake of their future, Xia Yuwei was eager to compete for this First Clear achievement.

"Alright, then let's—" Just as Xia Yuwei was about to say they would give it a try, Lan Yu suddenly spoke up: "Wait."

"What's wrong?" Xia Yuwei, Zhang Zibo, and the others looked at Lan Yu.

Lan Yu said, "Um... well, I don't think we can beat this dungeon."

Xia Yuwei frowned and asked, "How do you know we can't?"

"Huh?" Lan Yu was reluctant to tell them that Lu Yang had told her, but seeing Zhang Zibo, Zheng Yuan, and the others staring at her, she sighed and said, "The big brother who gave me the equipment told me. He said that if the warriors' defense isn't at 71 points, we absolutely shouldn't go."

"How would he know that?" Zheng Yuan exploded with jealousy. "Xiao Yu, why are you still in contact with him? And calling him 'big brother'? He offended the Eternal Guild; be careful not to get dragged down by him!"

Lan Yu frowned slightly. "Zheng Yuan, please call me Lan Yu. Furthermore, the reason every member of this studio has been able to stay in the top 500 of the server rankings is entirely because of the secret locations he told us about. He also taught us about cooking. We should never forget the help he has given us."

Zheng Yuan wanted to argue further, but Zhang Zibo stopped him. "Lan Yu is right about this. If it weren't for that person, we wouldn't be where we are today. If he needs help, we should certainly assist him. However, this has nothing to do with the dungeon. I still want to give it a try. We only get one chance at this, and it's only a 7-point difference in defense. I feel like it shouldn't be a problem."

Zhang Zibo didn't want to discuss these non-leveling issues, so he quickly steered the conversation back and looked at Xia Yuwei.

Xia Yuwei had already been eager to run the dungeon, and after hearing Zhang Zibo, she was even more determined. "It's settled then. We'll keep grinding mobs, and as soon as we hit level 3, we head to the dungeon."

"Fine," Zhang Zibo, Zheng Yuan, and the others agreed excitedly. Even the hired studio members were in full support.

Seeing this, Lan Yu had no choice but to stop trying to persuade them and continued killing mobs with the group.

Meanwhile, on the other side, after finishing his conversation with Lan Yu, Lu Yang continued to grind mobs with Xiao Liang. By now, the orcs in the cavern hall had all been killed through their joint efforts. Xiao Liang had successfully reached level 5, entering the top 10 of the level rankings, while Lu Yang had reached level 7, leaving the second-place player, Xiong Ba Fengyun, behind by two full levels.

Just as the two were chatting, a bright white light suddenly appeared on the seat directly opposite the entrance of the cavern hall.

"Roar!"

Following a massive, thunderous roar, Lu Yang and Xiao Liang were startled to see a giant orc appear, twice the size of a normal one.

This orc held two gleaming black axes and was clad in black steel armor.

"An Orc Warrior?" Lu Yang said, narrowing his eyes.

"Boss, can we take him?" Xiao Liang asked.

Lu Yang replied, "Of course."

The Orc Warrior was an elite-tier mob among orcs. This type of monster was notoriously difficult for melee classes like warriors and thieves because its defense was incredibly high, and its black, giant axes dealt devastating close-range damage. However, the monster had one fatal flaw: it lacked magic resistance.

Mage-class players could kill this monster easily, but there was one thing to watch out for: the Orc Warrior had a "Charge" ability. If hit by that charge, a single swing of his axe would mean certain death for a pure mage like Lu Yang.