In a deserted temple, the front hall.
As soon as Chun Hei stepped in, his attention was drawn to a Buddha statue emitting a faint blue flame.
[Sit opposite the Ghost Monkey]
A prompt appeared, and he sat before the Ghost Monkey as instructed.
[Ghost Monkey
By resting at the Ghost Monkeys located throughout Ashina Castle, you can utilize various functions.
Resting completely restores your HP and refills the uses of the Healing Gourd.
Upon death, you will respawn at the last Ghost Monkey you sat opposite.]
"Isn't this just like the bonfires in Dark Souls?"
After reading the introduction, Chun Hei understood instantly. Players familiar with Dark Souls could quickly adapt to the Ghost Monkey's mechanics.
After replenishing his status and healing flasks, Chun Hei made his way into the town of Ashina Castle.
His missing left arm had been replaced with a cybernetic arm by the Sculptor, currently equipped with only the [Grappling Hook] function.
Using the grappling hook, Chun Hei zipped through the densely packed houses, his mobility improving dramatically.
After half an hour of sweeping through the town, he finally understood why Wolf's left arm was severed in the storyline.
This was the designer actively giving the player an advantage!
Without the cybernetic arm, Wolf, with his intact limbs, would have no advantage in such an open map.
With the help of the grappling hook, stealth and assassinations became much easier and faster.
Whether grinding mobs or traversing the map, Chun Hei's efficiency increased significantly.
The excessive smoothness gave him a sense of playing a "musou" style hack-and-slash game. Just as he was about to relax his tensed attention... images of being schooled by Teacher Gundyr and tested by the nameless headmaster in Dark Souls flashed through his mind.
*Hiss~~*
A chilling wind seemed to blow past his back, jolting him awake.
"Almost got fooled. How could a VR game have a musou gameplay?"
"If it did, it would absolutely be a trick from the designer. Losing vigilance at a time like this would lead to a great loss."
Chun Hei silently warned himself, but at the same moment...
"Hahahaha, isn't this a musou game?"
Sister Zhou's wild and arrogant laughter filled the entire stream: "With the grappling hook, these monsters are easy to assassinate!"
As expected,
Many players were indeed lulled into complacency by the initial ease, completely forgetting that this was a game produced by Ling Jing.
Sister Zhou was one of them. With her accumulated practical experience, she could now flexibly use assassination techniques to easily deal with the slow-witted minor enemies, clearing away the frustration of being brutally defeated by Xiao Shichō. Arrogance and presumptuousness replaced it.
"Is that it? Is that all...?"
Easily defeating two wolves that charged at her, Sister Zhou swung her Ziying Sword in the air, showcasing her imposing demeanor.
'This isn't the Sister Zhou I know!'
'Quick, tell us, who possessed you?'
'I have a premonition that the more arrogant you are now, the more satisfying it will be when you're proven wrong later.'
'You truly know how to enjoy yourself.'
......
"Who are you looking down on!"
After hearing the comments from the barrage of messages, Sister Zhou's lips curved slightly, and she declared generously: "Losing to Xiao Shichō was purely due to a massive attribute gap, it was the designer's way of giving players a warning."
"Look at me now, with synchronized improvements in attributes, equipment, and skills. If I face Xiao Shichō again, I'll make him call me daddy!"
"If you want to see Sister Zhou make a fool of herself, go queue up in Paris!"
Sister Zhou, typical of someone who forgets pain once healed, was about to face the consequences of her words.
*Swish~*
Using the grappling hook to reach the roof beam, an elite monster stood quietly in the backyard.
An opportunity to show off had arrived!
Seeing the elite monster, Sister Zhou's eyes lit up. She cleared her throat and said, "Cough, cough... You guys always thought my previous kills of minor enemies lacked skill. Now, I'll show you what a master technician looks like by slaying an elite monster!"
With that said, Sister Zhou leaped off the castle wall and immediately entered stealth mode.
She landed lightly, not drawing the attention of the Shaving Knife River Field Sheng, the elite monster. Then, Sister Zhou crept forward, cat-like, apparently intending to steal a bit of health with an assassination.
However, just as Sister Zhou was within three feet of the Shaving Knife Master in stealth, an accident occurred!
*Clang!!*
A five-foot curved saber lunged directly towards Sister Zhou's face. With no time to draw her own saber to block, she took the hit head-on.
*Splat—!*
Her full health bar instantly dropped by half!
"Huh?"
After being struck, Sister Zhou gasped, clearly not expecting the story to unfold in this direction.
But she had no time to ponder the reason. The Shaving Knife Master's attacks were incredibly brutal, each one aimed at a vital spot. She could only barely parry with her sword.
By the time Sister Zhou's posture gauge was full, she still hadn't found a way to break through.
*Splat—*
A stab to the heart, and Sister Zhou knelt down unwillingly.
[Noob]
"What in the world is going on!!!"
"How did he find me? I was clearly in stealth."
Her ever-reliable assassination technique had failed, leaving Sister Zhou utterly perplexed.
Little did she know, the old rogue Lu Li had intentionally set traps on some bosses to enrich the VR game's settings.
For instance, the Shaving Knife Master before her had extremely sharp senses. Players who habitually tried to get a free hit first would inevitably pay the price for their cleverness.
Theoretically, opportunities to skip encounters were few and far between.
After all, this was a VR world, not a PC game. As long as players could escape the boss's aggro range, the boss would lose its target.
Then, they could repeatedly dance at the edge of its range, tormenting the boss. Such scenes would be rare in VR.
Although VR was also an artificial intelligence created by programs, it possessed a greater sense of realism, immersing players completely.
Many things that were limited by technology on PC had no such limitations in VR.
Therefore,
Sister Zhou's assassination technique, which had always worked, was nerfed. However, for the skilled Sister Zhou, this was not a major setback.
"I'll let you have one health bar first, and I'll still defeat you!"
With that said, she charged towards the Shaving Knife Master, wielding her Ziying Sword.
*Clang, clang, clang—!!*
Face-to-face combat was still viable!
Sister Zhou's initial direct confrontation was quite impressive, with both sides dealing damage. Trading blows, she wasn't losing, exuding a master's aura.
This made her feel a tiny bit proud.
However,
As the clang of steel grew more intense, Sister Zhou gradually couldn't keep up with the Shaving Knife Master's rhythm.
*Zing, zing, zing—!!*
The Shaving Knife Master suddenly increased his speed. The dark curved saber in his hand danced into three sword blossoms, shooting towards Sister Zhou from different angles.
At this moment, Sister Zhou's arms were slightly numb from the previous intense clashes.
Seeing the three sword blossoms, she instinctively raised her sword to block.
*Clang, clang!!*
Two crisp clangs echoed. Sister Zhou had pushed her reaction speed to its limit, yet there was still a slight mistake.
She was then struck by the Shaving Knife Master, her health bar immediately dropping to a sliver.
Just as she was preparing to counterattack, she was struck again.
The Shaving Knife Master's attack speed was astonishing.
[Noob]
What?
"Where's my character?"
Sister Zhou looked on in disbelief, "Are you f***ing killing me like a pig?!"
......