Chapter 398 - Underground Arena
After Gentle Snow and the others had waited at Blue Mountain Restaurant for some time, a young girl in green robes finally appeared before them. Her hair had been pulled back into twintails[1], and she radiated a holy aura.
Shi Feng walked up to the young girl’s side, turning to look at Gentle Snow and the others as he said, “Let me introduce you. This is Violet Cloud, a healer of Zero Wing’s core team.”
Violet Cloud grew nervous as Gentle Snow and the others stared at her. Lowering her head, she softly muttered, “Hello.”
Gentle Snow’s team was stunned.
The great expert Shi Feng talked about was actually a young girl. Moreover, she was a Cleric. She was only Level 22, the same as Shi Feng. As a great expert, Violet Cloud’s level was somewhat low.
After all, they were all Level 24.
Although a two-level gap was not considerably large, when experts fought, this little gap might lead to a loss. Such incidents were common in God’s Domain.
Moreover, it was common knowledge that, although Clerics had a certain amount of combat power, compared to other classes, they were, by far, inferior. Violet Cloud might possess excellent combat techniques, but that would only work against ordinary players. If she fought an equally skilled expert with a pure combat class, Violet Cloud had no chance of obtaining victory.
Zhao Yueru immediately shot a hateful glare at Shi Feng.
Originally, she had thought Shi Feng’s behavior had changed for the better. However, she now discovered that she had been greatly mistaken. Shi Feng simply did not have a bottom line. Even during such a crucial time, he still had the audacity to make fools out of them.
Did he really think they were going up against a bunch of noobs?
However, just as Zhao Yueru was about to give Shi Feng a piece of her mind, Gentle Snow stopped her.
“Since everyone’s here, I’ll lead the way, then,” Gentle Snow said. She then went out to the street and hailed a carriage.
In reality, Gentle Snow also thought of replacing Violet Cloud. However, since Shi Feng had guaranteed results and she had already arrived, rejecting Violet Cloud would only disrespect Shi Feng.
In any case, the result would be the same even if she replaced the Cleric with a random player. Since it wouldn’t really matter who took Violet Cloud’s place, she might as well humor Shi Feng a little.
Shaking his head, Shi Feng could not help but laugh as he watched Gentle Snow’s figure board the carriage. He then said, “Violet, I look forward to your performance today.”
“Yes, sir! I definitely won’t disappoint you!” Violet Cloud nodded with determination.
Following which, the two boarded the carriage as well.
Shi Feng was very familiar with Violet Cloud’s combat techniques. She was a first class Cleric in Zero Wing. Only, due to the limitations of her initial class, she could not display her strength fully. Now that she had successfully become an Astromancer, however, things had changed.
Moreover, until now, Gentle Snow and the others had failed to notice one thing.
He and Violet Cloud were no longer Tier 0 players. They were now Tier 1 players.
Of course, a player’s tier would not reveal itself to a basic identification skill. One required an advanced identification skill. It was also because of this that advanced identification skills became must-have skills later in the game. If one unknowingly provoked a high-tiered player, it would be too late for regrets. After all, the gap in tiers was much wider than the gap in levels.
At this stage of the game, players rushed to level up and raid Dungeons. It was even more so for the members of the various Guilds. Nobody had the time for their Class Change Quests. After all, a Basic Class Change Quest required players to invest at least two to three days. Moreover, Class Change Quests were not easy to complete. On the off chance that they failed, they would have wasted a lot of their time. Hence, everyone chose to level up first and upgrade their equipment so that they would have a much easier time with their Class Change Quests in the future.
Even a great expert like Gentle Snow was of the same mind.
There was also another reason why nobody was in a hurry to challenge their Class Change Quest.
Everyone still lacked a clear understanding of Tier 1 classes. They did not know just how much of an improvement a Tier 1 class could provide. Hence, none of the Guilds in God’s Domain were in a hurry to push their members to complete their Class Changes. They all focused on claiming the First Clear of Dungeons, setting aside their Class Changes for now.
Two hours later, Gentle Snow led everyone to Star-Moon City’s Underground Arenas.
The Underground Arena was a holy land for players who loved PvP. During the later stages of the game, it was also a place to make a lot of money. Countless players would come to watch the fights here, and many of these spectators would bet on their favorite players. Meanwhile, the winners could receive a commission from the bets.
The Underground Arena was also separated into a few different areas. There was the Basic Area, Advanced Area, and Special Area. Meanwhile, the commission players could obtain and the conditions to enter each zone were different.
In the Basic Area, any player could enter to watch or participate in the fights.
The Advanced Area was slightly different. If players wished to watch the fights there, they needed to pay a small fee. Meanwhile, if one wished to participate in the Advanced Area, they needed to face a minimum of 20 opponents in the Basic Area and win 80% of their matches. Victors in the Advanced Area would receive a commission of 1%. In other words, they would receive 1% of the total bets placed on their match. If a lot of players gambled on the fight, it would serve as a hefty income. Lastly, the victor would also receive 10% of the entrance fees.
The Special Area had an even higher entry requirement. First, the entrance fees were much higher for the Special Area. As for players who wished to join the fights, they needed to have a minimum of 20 matches in the Basic Area under their belts and have won 90% of their battles. However, there was another option for players to become participants in the Special Area: the System’s test. The System had to determine a player was an expert before they could fight in the Special Area. Meanwhile, victors would receive a 3% commission in addition to 30% of the entrance fees.
In the Basic Area, Advanced Area, and Special Area, there was one more difference between them: the size of the arenas. Each of the arenas in the Basic Area could only house up to 300 people, while the Advanced Area could house up to 1,500 people, and the Special Area could house up to 10,000 people.
As long as a player had sufficient strength, they could make a lot of money in the Underground Arenas. In the past, Shi Feng had earned quite a lot from this place.
At this stage of the game, although the Underground Arenas were not particularly popular and many of the rooms were empty, one could already see signs of prosperity in this place. In a few months, this place would definitely become very lively.
“Basic Room 29. This should be it.” Gentle Snow looked at the number plate hanging on the door before opening it.
Inside the room, over 30 players had already gathered. These players all possessed very high levels. The lowest among them was Level 23, while the highest was Level 25. None of these players were ordinary.
“Nimble Snake, you traitor! You dare to show your face here!
“Have you forgotten who it was that helped you to achieve the wealth and status you possess today?!”
Zhao Yueru’s temper exploded the moment she saw a simple-looking youth standing among the crowd.
That simple-looking youth was none other than the person Gentle Snow had spared no effort in cultivating, Nimble Snake. He was a Level 24 Assassin, and currently, he was fully armed with the Level 20 Crimson Blood Set Equipment, a Secret-Silver Set Equipment meant for Assassins.
In response to Zhao Yueru’s curses, Nimble Snake remained calm as he swept a glance at Shi Feng and Violet Cloud. He then laughed coldly and said, “Zhao Yueru, I admit that Gentle Snow has treated me well these past few years. However, as the saying goes, ‘man struggles upwards; water flows downward.’[2] Since Brother Cao’s team is stronger, what is wrong with me joining them? With your strength, you wish to contest for the position of Guild Leader? Don’t make me laugh.
“Zhao Yueru, you, on the other hand, you are someone that Brother Cao has always liked. Join us, and everyone will be on the same side in the future.
“Of course, you can also refuse. When you all lose, Brother Cao can only follow the appointed rules, and Gentle Snow can forget about the virtual gaming world in the future!”
TL Notes:
[1]twintails:
(a) Human:
http://images.dannychoo.com/cgm/images/post/20130202/26833/165543/large/31737a7801b431a814073a0ccfa2f59c.jpg
(b) Anime: http://i.imgur.com/3GMv5y8.jpg
[2]man struggles upwards; water flows downwards:
to pursue their own ideals, for the good life, this is very normal, it is understandable.