Chapter 350: 267: Lanxing Situation and 'Public Test' Players (4K)_2
From what he gathered, there now existed three types of players: Lord players, Ranger players, and Awakened players.
It was somewhat analogous to alpha testing, beta testing, and public testing.
Only that, ‘alpha’ testers could still vie for the lofty path of Lordship; even if they couldn’t become a Lord, they just as well had the chance as Ranger players to get through numerous thresholds and make it to the Legendary Realm.
As for Awakened players, things were a bit grim; it was very difficult to alter profession inheritance, and players who awakened to a common one-star profession would essentially remain commoners for life.
However, everything was possible, and the future was never predetermined.
Players who had awakened the Little Skeleton profession weren’t necessarily without the chance of being favored by a wealthy lady. If they stumbled upon some grand opportunity, they could also defy fate and change destiny.
In addition, Ranger players and Awakened players had the opportunity to embark on the path of Lordship, though the chances were extremely slim.
“When we first arrived, most people’s initial troops were common one-star soldiers, with the highest being common three-star soldiers, but…” Jiang Luoxing said, “Public testers are different from us. The highest profession they can awaken is not confined to common three-star.”
He went on, “At present, players have awakened a rare three-star profession: Groveling Shaman. Yes, the player who awakened this profession is the patient from the Qing Shan Hospital.”
“However, according to experts’ speculation, the rare three-star tier is not the limit, players have the chance to awaken to an Excellent Tier profession directly.”
The odds may be very low.
However, with a massive population of billions in Xuan Country, it means that once the two realms integrate, the Tai Xuan Alliance can produce a batch of promising talents.
“Moreover, who knows if the Excellent Tier isn’t the upper limit? If anyone were to awaken an Epic Profession, they would be transported from hell to heaven.”
Jiang Luoxing sighed.
He felt that such a person who could be rocketed from hell to heaven…might really exist! Just thinking about it made him envious. After all, he had absolutely no idea when he himself would be able to recruit an Epic.
Or rather, it might be possible that he would never recruit an Epic in his entire lifetime.
Just like his father, he had heard news about Epics several times, but each time, he had been just a step away and ended up empty-handed.
How pitiful he was.
Mu Yuan thought for a moment and asked, “It seems impossible to hide the world merger anymore, so what’s the situation like in Lanxing now?”
“The chaos is definitely bigger than before,” Jiang Luoxing said, “Overseas in the Star Splendor Federation, items are being bought out everywhere. Some smaller countries are even torn by warlords. As for us in Xuan Country, there is some chaos too, but thankfully overall order still remains…”
After all, disasters were increasing, and some commoners were bound to panic and lose their minds.
That society had not descended into total chaos yet was due to Xuan Country’s early planning, but also because various large companies and forces were proactively maintaining order.
This wasn’t the end of the world, but merely a transformation.
Once this catastrophe was over, life would proceed as usual.
“So, even though players who possess supernatural powers might harbor dark thoughts, the vast majority of them still remain rational. Of course, there are always those who are irrational, but these are mostly commoners or ordinary players, who were quickly arrested and suppressed.”
“This kind of stable situation under chaos is difficult to maintain in the long term, but if it’s just for another month…I think it should be okay, however…”
At this point, Jiang Luoxing’s voice changed.
“Actually, compared to ordinary people without any powers, we new Lords are more likely to be targeted. After all, the qualification to become a player is very random. In Lanxing, there are many wealthy businessmen who desire a player slot but cannot get one. For us Lords, who own many supernatural items and are not yet strong enough, we make the best targets for underhanded plunder.”
“To my knowledge, some new Lords have already had their families kidnapped and been blackmailed. Some have even died as a result.”
Mu Yuan touched his chin.
He had also heard from Sophia about the recent unrest. In addition to that, the price of the ‘Heritage Stone’ was soaring. Previously, Heritage Stones were valued much lower than corresponding Remnant Souls. Even Nature Elf Heritage Stones which were quite popular were not as expensive as Nature Elf Remnant Souls.
After all, players who liked elves tended to prefer recruiting an elf that they could command freely rather than transforming into one themselves.
But now things were different.
Naturally, this had to do with the impending realm merger. Upon the merging of the two realms, commoners would randomly awaken a profession. Wealthy individuals naturally wouldn’t want to gamble on the slim chance of a high-tier profession, let alone risk awakening a profession like Little Skeleton or Goblin.
They wanted to take charge of their own destinies, even if it meant spending enormous sums to secure a desired Heritage Stone.
What if money can’t buy one? Then they would resort to other methods!
Before they entered the Eternal World, before the world transformed, they had to be fully prepared so as not to fall down to the same level as commoners.
Not all those with wealth and power think this way, but some definitely do. In their eyes, a rich but incapable novice Lord is the perfect person to take advantage of.
Supernatural power? Professional elite-level? How many bullets and cannon fire can they resist?
…
Lanxing, late at night.
On the road back to Baijiang City from Baiyun State Prefecture, a convoy consisting of three off-road vehicles was driving along this desolate national highway, devoid of any other cars.
The speed wasn’t fast.
The driver, extremely cautious, constantly focused on the road condition. From time to time, one could see street lamp posts snapped in half and toppled onto the road, or the road splitting open abruptly, or massive monster footprints.
The driver had to carefully avoid these.
Sometimes, when suddenly faced with fleeing monsters, all three vehicles would stop abruptly. The doors would open and fully armed security personnel would step out, swiftly cutting down the fleeing monsters before continuing on their way.
They exuded proficiency.
But this was due to the deteriorating situation. Nowadays, the populace had all gathered in the city districts, and Xuan Country’s Authority had focused their efforts on securing each prefecture-level city.
Beyond the cities lay barren lands.
Due to the deteriorating situation, roaming monsters could be found everywhere outside the cities, making resource trading less convenient.
Consequently, Sophia had no choice but to travel all the way to Baiyun City to trade in person.
This cost her a lot of time.
“The boss gave me another massive sum of one thousand soul crystals, but…I didn’t even finish spending the previous batch. I couldn’t possibly spend it all. I’ve let the boss down!”
Although the boss didn’t blame her and told her to do her best, Sophia was still distressed.
Remnant Soul prices have plummeted;
We have more funds now;
But why has our Remnant Soul acquisition speed slowed down?
It’s the environment! Remnant Souls are cheaper, but trades have become harder. Even a large trading house like One-Handed Chamber of Commerce only delivers between cities and provinces every few days.
Sophia could not afford to wait.
Lanxing’s greatest advantage, information exchange and logistics trade, is now halved. The remaining half would eventually disappear entirely as the two worlds merge.
Sophia sat in the back seat of the off-road vehicle, pondering how to complete the Lord’s task— to spend the remaining thousand plus soul crystals in her hand.
Suddenly, the convoy stopped.
Lin Sushuang, a senior player who was one of the security team leaders, got out of the front passenger seat and said, “Miss Phi, there are monster remnants blocking the road ahead. We’ll clear them shortly and we can resume our journey soon.”
“Hmm.”
Sophia nodded indifferently. She propped her head with her hand, still deep in thought.
Suddenly, she frowned.
Lin Sushuang outside the car felt her hair stand on end. She caught sight of a large-calibre bullet spinning in mid-air, tearing through the air towards her.
Before she could dodge, a wisp of black flame rose up in the space in front of her, transforming into one, two, three pieces of black feathers and forming a net to block the path of the bullet.
In an instant, the bullet shattered the soft black feathers, only to lose its momentum and drop to the ground.
It made a “ding dang” sound.
Thrice.
Three bullets were fired simultaneously just now!
“There’s a sniper!”
“Hmm.”
Sophia looked towards a pitch-black low hill to the side. Already in a somewhat unpleasant mood, her eyebrows seemed to ignite with flames.