Chapter 23：Invasion Warning

"If her level's that low, why didn't you defeat her?" Xiao Ling gave the old warlock a sharp look. He did not believe that the old warlock could not even defeat a level 30 Elite. If he was lying, Xiao Ling would immediately give up on the quest!

"Even the most skilled hunter can't do anything about the sly fox that has slipped into a hole. The terrain of the Scarlet Monastery is too complicated, with traps and contraptions scattered all over the place. Only a handful of Mechanical Alchemists steeped in engineering could find the central courtyard of the Scarlet Monastery," the old warlock explained.

His explanation was acceptable. Xiao Ling asked, "Why didn't you seek the assistance of a Mechanical Alchemist, then?"

"That's got something to do with the conflict between the Brakada factions, I can't explain well. However, this does not seem to be a problem for you. You were a Mechanical Alchemist before you obtained Hilaire's Demon Ring." The old warlock was in no apparent hurry. He had planned this in advance. He did not believe that Xiao Ling would pass on a quest with such handsome rewards. If Xiao Ling gave up on this, he would achieve nothing on his journey in search of strength.

When Xiao Ling had come to the Appraisal Hall to have his Hilaire's Demon Ring appraised, he'd been wearing the outfit of a novice Mechanical Alchemist. This was why the old warlock said what he had now.

The old warlock seemed to have predicted what person would accept this quest. Indeed, Xiao Ling found it hard to resist the allure of the rewards. There were not many players who would let the opportunity to accept a quest with such handsome rewards slip past their fingers. "What's the penalty if I fail the quest?"

"You'll lose five levels," replied the old warlock. This penalty was considered light. Compared to the value of Ellandi's Necklace, a legendary item, the penalty was nothing.

"Alright, I'll accept it." Xiao Ling glanced at Ellandi's Necklace. The old warlock put the necklace away, and it vanished from Xiao Ling's sight. Xiao Ling felt a strong urge to possess Ellandi's Necklace. That necklace was truly too powerful. Since he had seen it, he would not let it slip through his fingers.

System: You have accepted the quest: suppressing the Scarlet Monastery. You have three weeks to complete the quest.

Xiao Ling was given a lot of time for the quest, and so had ample time to prepare. He decided to level up and improve his strength as quickly as possible. Other matters could wait.

The old warlock smiled. "I'll await your good news."

Xiao Ling was indifferent. He walked past the old warlock and exited the Appraisal Hall. He proceeded southward. He would be busy for some time. He had to level up to at least level 30 as quickly as possible so that he could finish the quest.

Xiao Ling reminisced about his past experiences. Perhaps he had too many strange encounters, or perhaps the Legendary items and Artifacts were too common, but he had seen one Legendary item and two Artifacts already. Xiao Ling recalled the story of the game, and guessed, 'Since the old warlock is willing to offer Ellandi's Necklace as a reward, there must be many Legendary items and Artifacts.'

The Endace Continent's history alone spanned more than 10,000 years. He wondered how many Legendary and Artifact heroes had been produced throughout the years. The Artifact heroes Xiao Ling himself knew numbered more than 30,000, and there were innumerable Legendary heroes. Every Artifact and Legendary hero had left behind some of their equipment which bore their emblems. These equipment would in turn become Legendary equipment and Artifacts.

As for Heirlooms, those were for the possession of the gods.

Although these items which he encountered were so rare some might not even have a chance to encounter them, they definitely existed. Of the billions of players, there should have been many who were equipped with Legendary equipment or Artifacts. He made a mental note to be careful around such players in the future. The Legendary equipment and Artifacts were too powerful. They would not be easy to deal with.

Xiao Ling immersed himself in his thoughts as he walked toward the south gate. Brakada's players were roused. They jostled about in the streets. He wondered what had happened.

Just when Xiao Ling was stuck in his bewilderment, a shrill sound broke across Brakada's peaceful skies. A fiery light shot into the skies and exploded with a loud bang between the blue sky and the white clouds. It turned into thousands upon thousands of red lights which illuminated Eddins completely.

It was a warning flare made by a Mechanical Alchemist!

It was the warning about an attack!

Eddins was under attack!

Shortly after, system messages completely filled the sight. They were all messages about an attack. Xiao Ling quickly extracted the most important pieces of information.

System: Eddin's Frielanz's Town is under attack.

System: Invaders have entered Frielanz Town. Descendant of the Warlock King Arland, take up your arms, defend the glory of Brakada, and drive these infidels out of our lands! For the true god Terhida, for our king, Arland... Fight, mighty warriors!

Frielanz Town was not far from the main city Eddins. It was under the jurisdiction of Eddins. No wonder the elders of Brakada fired the warning flare.

Once Eddins fired the warning flare, the players with military ranks and nobility would swiftly gather to defend Eddins. If Eddins was taken, the players of Brakada would lose their capital and experience a 10% drop in all their attributes until they could retake their capital. However, with a drop of 10%, the first thing they would have to face was the onslaught of the Evil Alliance. With a 10% drop in their attributes, 10 of them might not even be a match for a single enemy player of the same level.

Hence, the capital was extremely important. Every local player had the responsibility to defend their nation's capital.

Frielanz Town was located south of Brakada. It was coincidentally on Xiao Ling's way to the Scarlet Monastery. Xiao Ling would play no part in such a large-scale battle. Players capable of invading another nation would be at least around level 40, and they would come in the thousands. A battle of such a level was not something that Xiao Ling could take part in.

However, Xiao Ling had no choice. He had to go through Frielanz Town! Xiao Ling gave it some thought. He could sneak around the edges of Frielanz Town. There was a high slope and low forest beside Frielanz Town near the Kilo Mountains. He could choose to make his way through the low forest.

He walked along the path outside Eddins. The players hurrying toward Frielanz Town formed a magnificent traffic of characters. Some of them wore flashy purple armor, and there were Barbarian Warriors with huge weapons in each hand, rogues in black cloaks, druids who took the form of bears, storm crows, lions, and leopards, elven archers with silver longbows, Hunters, dwarf lictors, and other types of characters. The sheer variety and number of players dazzled Xiao Ling.