Chapter 1

A Berserker leaped high, using the momentum of his descent to slash his sword at Nie Yan.

The Berserker’s greatsword whistled down, already upon Nie Yan's head.

Nie Yan sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the Berserker.

In Faith, ranged attacks had auto-correction and could only be dodged by rolling, while melee attacks could be evaded by sidestepping.

This sidestep-evasion against an oncoming cleave required quick reactions and precise timing. Nie Yan had practiced it to perfection in his past life. After dodging the swordsman, Nie Yan sprinted towards the lake.

The Berserker's sword missed its mark, leaving him momentarily stunned. The guy was fast—fast enough to dodge that.

By the time the Berserker turned, Nie Yan was already far away. He raised his sword and gave chase.

"Old Three, what's wrong with you? Can't even stop someone?" A Sword Shield Warrior rushing over complained.

"That Thief is too fast. I couldn't stop him."

The Sword Shield Warrior glanced thoughtfully at the corpse of the Elementalist, Purple Flame. Purple Flame was a loner, but his skills were not to be underestimated. Yet, he had died at the hands of that Thief. It seemed that the Thief was truly not simple.

"Let's stop him together!"

The Sword Shield Warrior and the Berserker quickened their pace.

Seeing that the lake was getting closer, only five or six yards away, Nie Yan pulled out a bottle of low-level underwater breathing potion and gulped it down.

"He's trying to escape by jumping into the water!"

"Don't let him get into the water!"

The Sword Shield Warrior and the Berserker attacked simultaneously with practiced coordination. Both belonged to the warrior class, and their momentum-assisted attacks after a jump were much faster than other melee classes.

"Assault!"

"Flame Slash!"

The Sword Shield Warrior advanced, sword drawn, forcing Nie Yan back.

The Berserker swung his sword, unleashing a Flame Slash.

They were still some distance away. Nie Yan turned to look at them, the flames and sword slashes coming towards him. A strange smile appeared on his lips as he leaped backwards, plunging into Lake Rando.

Ripples spread across the calm surface of the lake.

The Sword Shield Warrior and the Berserker reached the edge of the lake. Just as the Berserker was about to jump into the water, the Sword Shield Warrior stopped him. "Forget it. Don't pursue a desperate foe, especially since neither of us has an underwater breathing potion." The Sword Shield Warrior recalled Nie Yan's strange smile and hesitated to enter the water, fearing some trickery. He might end up trapped at the bottom.

"Just like that?" The Berserker was frustrated.

"Consider Purple Flame unlucky. He was being arrogant, breaking away from the team. Consider it a lesson. There are many experts out there."

Several triumphant players, mostly Mages and Priests, ran up, panting. They couldn't keep up with the warriors' speed, so they had fallen behind.

"How was it? Where is he?" a Mage asked.

"We didn't catch him. He jumped into the lake," the Sword Shield Warrior replied, shaking his head.

The Mage glanced at the Sword Shield Warrior and the Berserker in surprise. Purple Rock and Purple Nether were among the top warriors in the guild. That Thief had first killed Purple Flame and then escaped the encirclement of Purple Rock and Purple Nether. What was the Thief's background?

"What's the Thief's name? Ask Purple Flame. He's already resurrected in the graveyard," the Mage said.

"Purple Flame said the Thief's name is Nie Yan," Purple Nether said, firmly etching the name in his mind.

"Have our subordinates keep an eye out. If they encounter this Nie Yan, report it immediately," the Mage said with some concern. They hadn't gained any advantage over Nie Yan. If ordinary guild members ran into him, the consequences were unimaginable.

After Nie Yan jumped into the water, he swam stealthily. The water of Lake Rando was crystal clear, with beams of light shining down from the surface, refracted into a kaleidoscope of colors. Aquatic plants swayed with the current, creating a fantastical and magnificent scene.

As he swam through the aquatic plants at the bottom of the lake, Nie Yan suddenly remembered that there was supposed to be a chest in Lake Rando, but he wasn't sure of the exact location. His memory was a bit hazy.

It should be around here. The chest contained a support skill book, Gathering. Although Gathering wasn't a rare skill book, it was scarce at the current level. Players who learned the Gathering skill could increase their income significantly. Every team needed at least one, and every solo player needed one as well. High market demand and imbalanced supply led to the price of Gathering skill books being inflated.

Finding that chest would be quite beneficial. A Thief’s class characteristics allowed them to reach places others couldn't, maximizing the effectiveness of the Gathering skill.

A low-level underwater breathing potion only lasted fifteen minutes. Nie Yan regretted not buying a few more, knowing he'd be searching for a chest in the water.

Something in the distance slowly descended from the surface. In the sunlight, Nie Yan finally saw it clearly—a Level 3 Murloc. It had the body of a fish and constantly moved its limbs, swimming at an amazing speed. It also carried a steel trident.

Nie Yan quickly hid in the aquatic plants.

One-on-one, Nie Yan could easily take down a Murloc, but the annoying thing about Murlocs was that they would emit a shrill cry when attacked, attracting all the nearby Murlocs.

For safety's sake, Nie Yan decided not to provoke these troublesome creatures.

The Murloc swam past not far from Nie Yan, parted the aquatic plants, and disappeared inside.

As the Murloc parted the aquatic plants, Nie Yan noticed something vaguely hidden within.

Seeing the Murloc move away, Nie Yan cautiously swam over. This was Murloc territory, so it was dangerous to be discovered.

Nie Yan parted the aquatic plants and searched, finally finding a wooden chest among the plants. It was a low-level, white chest. He wondered if it was the one he remembered.

He opened the chest and reached inside. Surprisingly, he didn't find a skill book but a bead.

Nie Yan checked the item's attributes.

Murloc Water-Avoiding Bead: Special Item. Attached skill: Underwater Breathing. Underwater Breathing: Allows breathing underwater for thirty minutes when activated. Skill cooldown: 12 hours.

It was a low-level special item. Although not particularly valuable, it could at least save Nie Yan a few low-level underwater breathing potions and would be useful in the future.

Apparently, there was more than one chest here. Come to think of it, such a large lake wouldn't only have one treasure chest. Nie Yan continued searching, weaving through the plants. With a Water-Avoiding Bead, he had plenty of time to search for chests underwater.

The aquatic plants nearby stirred. Nie Yan was startled and quickly hid in the nearby plants.

A Murloc emerged from the plants, swimming slowly through the gaps between the plants, not far from Nie Yan.

After a while, another Murloc swam towards Nie Yan's location.

One after another.

The frequency of Murlocs appearing increased.

Damn, had he stumbled into a Murloc nest? Or perhaps a group of Murlocs was just passing by.

A Murloc was getting closer and closer. Nie Yan's heart was in his throat. He gripped the dagger in his hand tightly. There was no way to hide now. He had to find a chance to escape. But he couldn't swim as fast as the Murlocs. He wondered if he could get away.

With so many Murlocs nearby, surrounded on all sides, Nie Yan would surely die.

He could only blame himself for being too greedy, forgetting the danger in his quest for treasure chests.

The Murloc swam to within three yards of Nie Yan. As if sensing something, it stopped and raised the steel trident in its hand.

*Squeak squeak,* the Murloc made some strange noises.

Nie Yan looked in other directions. At least a dozen Murlocs were surrounding his hiding place. The gleaming steel tridents completely blocked his escape route.

It was over. There was no way he could defeat these Murlocs. The Murlocs swam incredibly fast in the water, and once their sharp teeth bit onto an opponent, they wouldn't let go until they had torn them to pieces.

There was absolutely no way to escape. A direct confrontation was impossible.

Nie Yan mentally prepared himself for death, scanning the Murloc’s bodies. They had a red spot on their abdomen—their weak point. Even if he died, he would at least take one down with him!

Just then, a sharp horn sounded from the distant lakeshore, with a tense rhythm and a clear sound that carried far.

It was the warning signal that the Murloc tribe was under attack!

The dozen or so Murlocs surrounding Nie Yan simultaneously stopped swimming and listened intently. They chattered to each other, then unanimously swam rapidly towards the lakeshore.

The dozen or so Murlocs swam farther and farther away. Hundreds of Murlocs gathered from all directions, like a school of fish in the water.

The Murlocs disappeared from Nie Yan's sight.

A stroke of luck! Nie Yan was secretly shocked. The cause and effect were unexpected, yet also within reason.