Chapter 47 - Demon Eye

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The Alterac Valley was as serene and beautiful as they remembered it. It seemed to be isolated from the secular world. It was as if the conflicts between humans and other living beings would never affect this place. Even if the battles between humans and monsters left wounds in the landscape, nature would swiftly take its course and heal the land.

The steep flanking precipices towered to the heavens, inspiring fear in those who set eyes upon them. There was a cave opening that was five or six meters tall at the base of the precipice. It was dark and deep, leading to parts unknown. Vines hung over the cave’s entrance as they swayed with the wind. There was a faint scent of ivy in the air.

This was their destination, the Boar Mine.

The five players stood at the cave’s entrance and peered into it. Tian Kuang produced a map and flattened it out on the ground. He pored over it.

This map was roughly a meter in length and width. A dense magic aura pervaded the map. Tian Kuang infused some of his magic element into the map as the map shifted. Clumps of magic elements flowed across its surface like a hologram which depicted the terrain inside the Boar Mine clearly. Even the rocks and distribution of Bosses were replicated with the utmost likeness by the magic elements.

This was Xiao Ling’s first time seeing a map of Brakada like the ones sold in NPC stores. This had to be the full and accurate map which cost 5,000 gold coins. When he saw the high-fidelity virtual hologram, Xiao Ling was filled with awe.

Tian Kuang studied the map carefully. He seemed to have come up with a plan. He pointed at the map, and said, “This is the spawning ground for normal Boars. If we farm about 150 of them here, we’ll be completing three quests related to normal Boars. Then, we’ll pass through this narrow cave. This is the spawning ground for Frenzied Boars. There’s a 0.1% chance of encountering a Frenzied Boar King, which is a level 17 quasi-Boss. We must be careful. If we kill 200 Frenzied Boars, we’re basically done with our quests. If we have enough time, we’ll be heading here.” Tian Kuang pointed to the end of the Boar Mine. It was a patch of empty land. There was only a black Boar wielding a cranium crusher.

Tian Kuang looked around at everybody. Finally, his gaze rested on Xiao Ling. “Level 22 quasi-Boss. Demon Boar King. This Demon Boar King can drop some pretty neat items. There’ll also be something for you.”

“For me?” Xiao Ling asked, puzzled.

“Demon Eye skill tome. It’s an expensive item worth 15,000 gold coins. The only problem is that the drop rate is quite low,” said Tian Kuang with a smile.

When he heard the words “Demon Eye”, Xiao Ling felt a jolt of excitement. This classic Demonic Warlock spell could increase his leveling time twofold! Due to the time limit of their demonic summons, Demonic Warlocks were slower to level up compared to other classes, even though they made formidable opponents in PvP. High-level Demonic Warlocks were generally of lower levels compared to players of other classes. Hence, the system compensated the Demonic Warlocks with the Demon Eye skill tome. It was a skill tome with an extremely low drop rate and an extremely high price tag.

If they could get a Demon Eye skill tome, he would be able to increase his leveling speed by leaps and bounds. Naturally, Xiao Ling wanted this skill very much.

“Is this Boss spawned at random or at fixed intervals?” Under normal circumstances, a killed Boss would vanish, and another Boss would randomly spawn. Bosses that spawned at regular intervals were rare, but not completely nonexistent.

“The Demon Boar King can be revived before 12 a.m. regardless of how many times it was killed by players. This Boss should be one of the few Bosses that spawn at regular intervals. However, the drop rate of Demon Eye is 1%. So, only a handful of the Demon Eye skill tomes have dropped here before,” said Tian Kuang.

Xiao Ling remembered his words. It was impossible for Tian Kuang and the others to accompany him in killing the Boss until the skill tome dropped. However, Xiao Ling was determined to have the Demon Eye skill tome. Since he did not have the money to buy it, his only choice was to have it by killing the Demon Boar King. For the time being, it was impossible for him to take on the Demon Boar King alone. It would only be possible if he was five or six levels higher than the Boss, and his defenses and attacks were improved. Then, he would be able to overpower the Boss through sheer advantage in levels.

After learning that the Demon Boar King was a source of Demon Eye, Xiao Ling set his eyes on the monster. He wondered if he could take on the Demon Boar King daily when his level was high enough in the future.

“Beep, beep.” Tian Kuang had a notification. When he saw the sender, his expression changed.

“What’s wrong?” Tian Xin asked. He seemed to have guessed the message’s contents.

Lin Fei saw his expression. “Is it the guild?” she asked.

Tian Kuang gave a bitter smile, and said, “Yes.”

Tian Kuang turned to Xiao Ling and said, “Something’s come up in the guild. We’ll have to head back to headquarters the day after tomorrow. We’ll keep in touch.”

“Alright,” Xiao Ling responded. He could only level on his own now. Although it would not be as fast as following the four of them around, he was confident that it should be an easier job now that he had a mechanical gargoyle.

“Let’s head in.” Tian Kuang folded the map and stuffed it into his bag. Tian Fei and Tian Xin wore grim expressions.

Xiao Ling was bewildered. ‘They were only called back to the headquarters, do they have to be so glum about it?’

What Xiao Ling did not know was that they disliked their guild and some of its members. That was why they went away on their own. It was only natural for them to feel reluctant to head back, but they had no choice.

Lin Fei used her Stealth and entered the Boar Mine ahead of the others. Spellcasters were too fragile. If they accidentally plunged into a sea of monsters, there would be no chance for their survival. Hence, the melee class players would usually scout the area, followed by the spellcasters.

Lin Fei kept Tian Kuang informed on the situation inside the cave.

“There aren’t many monsters inside. Let’s go.” Tian Kuang entered the cave after he finished speaking. Xiao Ling, Tian Fei, and Tian Xin followed behind him.

Tian Xin tightened his grip on his azure staff. He was prepared for any incoming monsters. He would unleash a single target frost skill which would slow them down without hesitation.

Some fat pig monsters roamed about in the Boar Mine. Their skin was a dark shade of gray, and they had fangs as sharp as sickles around their snouts.

Boar: Level 16.

It was slightly dark in the cave. They could still manage to see with the help from the light coming from the outside. Their vision reached about 50 yards.

They ran into the occasional monster along the way. Lin Fei would go behind the Boars under her Stealth mode and unleash her Sap. Then, the monster would be left to Xiao Lin, Tian Xin, and Tian Fei. The three of them could take out one Boar after casting their spells in turn. Sometimes, Tian Kuang would cast his spells as well. However, he had to maintain his mana bar so that it was more than 80% in case something awry happened. He would usually wait for his mana to be regenerated and replenished after casting a few spells.