Chapter 4

"Hey, we played all day, let's go out for breakfast. Qin Yan, do you not have to work today?" Yang Ye was busy with his hands while answering. This lock is really old, it won't lock no matter what, I need to replace it, which will cost a lot of money.

"Ah, I'm off today. Big Brother Xiaoye, come to my place, I bought breakfast! You don't have to run around anymore!" The girl was very excited, seemingly very happy.

"Phew, finally locked it..." After fiddling with the old lock, Yang Ye turned around and saw Qin Yan holding a large bag of vegetables in one hand and some breakfast in the other. The girl wasn't very tall, about 1.65 meters, which was average for a girl. She had a neat ponytail, and a few strands of hair stuck to her forehead from sweat, clearly the items were heavy. Her eyes were very beautiful and deep, exuding a sense of strength and a hint of passion. Her face was clean, with no trace of makeup. She wore a light purple T-shirt and faded jeans, which were old but clean, and had a apron tied around her. "Why did you buy so much? Look how tired you are. Next time, if you buy so much, ask me to help you carry it, okay?" Yang Ye pretended to be angry and scolded the girl, while taking the items from her hand and said, "Let's go to your place for breakfast!"

Qin Yan giggled and opened the door for Yang Ye. Yang Ye and Qin Yan lived across from each other, and they were about the same age, with Qin Yan being 18 and Yang Ye 21. They became so close because of a story.

Qin Yan's home had the same layout as Yang Ye's small "home," with only a few more clothes, which belonged to Qin Yan's mother.

At that moment, Qin Yan's mother was watching TV in the living room. Seeing Yang Ye come in, she was very happy: "Xiaoye is here, come in and sit down. Qin Yan, get your brother a glass of water." Then she heard Qin Yan respond and turned to get water for Yang Ye.

Yang Ye put down the items and sat next to Qin Yan's mother, smiling and asked, "Auntie, you look much better today, much younger."

Qin Yan's mother laughed happily and said, "Young men know how to speak. Are you on holiday? Have you found a job?"

"Yes, I've been on holiday for a long time. I've found a job that pays around 3300 a month. I'll keep 1000 for myself, and the rest will be used to buy medicine for Auntie."

Qin Yan's mother, originally named Yang Xiang, lost her legs in a car accident and lost her ability to work. In that accident, Yang Xiang's husband, Qin Yan's father, also died. Qin Yan's father originally ran a transportation business, and the truck was bought with a loan. To save money, Qin Yan's mother always accompanied her husband to take care of him, while Qin Yan lived in a dormitory. However, fate was unpredictable, and in her senior year of high school, Qin Yan's father had a car accident due to overloading, which caused the brakes to fail. As a result, Qin Yan dropped out of school. Her father died on the spot, and her mother was rushed to the hospital, where her legs were amputated, and her body also suffered. At the age of 17, Qin Yan took on the responsibility of the family and took care of her mother. The compensation from the accident left the family heavily in debt, and even after selling all they could, they still owed 120,000. Additionally, Qin Yan's mother needed medication to maintain her health. During the summer of his first year of college, Yang Ye moved here and met this family. At that time, Qin Yan's mother was hospitalized due to a worsening condition, and the cost of over 10,000 for medication left the 17-year-old Qin Yan exhausted. She cried all night in her room. Yang Ye heard her cries all night and could feel the despair and unwillingness in her voice. The next day, he asked all the neighbors and, after learning the details, resolutely found Qin Yan and gave her all the 12,000 yuan he had earned from part-time jobs.

Now, Qin Yan's mother's condition had improved, but she still needed about 3000 yuan a month for medication, which Qin Yan alone could not afford. Yang Ye had contributed a significant portion.

"Xiaoye, you've saved half of my life. Meeting you is a great blessing for our family..." Qin Yan's mother was somewhat melancholic, as a once-stranger had been providing her with nearly 2000 yuan a month for almost a year, totaling over 20,000 yuan. And Qin Yan's mother knew that Yang Ye was also an orphan, whose high school tuition was paid by kind people, and his college tuition was supported by scholarships, grants, and part-time jobs. With her illness, Yang Ye barely had any money left after working hard each month.

Seeing Qin Yan's mother's low spirits, Yang Ye smiled and said, "Auntie, don't say such things. Don't you know me? I never regret my decisions! By the way, Auntie, the job I found recently pays well. Don't worry, money is not a problem."

Yang Ye decided to make money by selling gold!

"Don't do anything illegal or immoral!" Qin Yan's mother put on a serious face to scare the young man who wanted to make money.

"Sure, sure, I won't do anything immoral, illegal, or against my conscience!" Yang Ye said.

"Good, good, I know. Come, let's eat breakfast, it will get cold soon."

...

After leaving Qin Yan's house, Yang Ye was even more determined to speed up his money-making efforts!

Back at his small home, he fell onto the bed and slept until late evening. He had dinner at Qin Yan's house and then hurriedly logged into the game.

His vision gradually cleared, and Yang Ye appeared in the newbie village.

"Phew... Level 9, let's level up to 10. At level 10, I can go to the central main city to get a dungeon quest. Entering the dungeon to level up is faster, and there might be good equipment. Plus, there are definitely many hidden quests in the main city!"

After making his plan, Yang Ye called out Lilianna. One advantage of having a follower is that they can find a place to rest and recover their health and stamina when the player logs off, but the cost still comes out of the player's pocket. For example, this time, Lilianna stayed in the best room of the best inn, costing Yang Ye 30 silver coins, which made him quite upset.

Yang Ye didn't buy any potions and just wielded the Mad Demon Sword to head towards the level 10 monsters—Vampire Treants.

Vampire Treant (Normal)

Level: 10

HP: 600/600

MP: 120/120

Physical Attack: 44~47

Magic Attack: 37~39

Skills:

- Ground Spike: The treant's roots grow rapidly from the ground, suddenly emerging and causing significant damage, dealing 100 fixed damage.

- Embrace Strike: Ohoho~ The treant gives you a warm hug! It binds the target for 2 seconds, steals 20 HP, and deals 155 damage, followed by a Ground Spike. If the hug fails, the treant enters a rejected state, reducing all attributes by 50% for 10 seconds, with a 10-second cooldown... Drops one root (Hidden Quest: Collect 99 roots to apply for the village construction quest from the newbie village mayor)

Yang Ye chose this monster because it has a dual attack, with both physical and magical attacks, and a lot of HP. The skills are also tricky, and it can heal itself. However, the key is that when the hug fails, all attributes are reduced by 50%, making it a great monster for solo grinding! Of course, this is for Yang Ye; regular players usually don't come here.

Others might find it hard to grind treants, but would it be hard for Yang Ye? The Ground Spike skill has a long preparation time, and its position is fixed. By the time it emerges, Yang Ye would already be long gone, as he can see the position of the spike. The Embrace Strike is a linear skill, where the treant locks onto a target's position and charges. If it succeeds, it deals significant damage. But for Yang Ye, it's just a straight line, and he can easily predict and avoid it, making it easy to dodge. After dodging, he can attack the treant, and the experience will pour in.

With the script set, Yang Ye stepped forward and dealt a heavy blow to a treant with his only damage skill before level 10—Gravity Strike!

-72!

Great, the damage is significant!

"Who! Who disturbed the treant lord's rest! Damn it, I'll kill you!" The treant roared fiercely and lashed out with its two branch-like whips. Yang Ye saw the trajectory and rolled backward, easily dodging. He narrowed his eyes; the Ground Spike was coming!

The Ground Spike is tricky because it has no warning, only a brief pause when it breaks through the ground. This pause is hard for new players to grasp, making it easy to get hit. But Yang Ye had a miner's helmet, which allowed him to see the position of the spike. After rolling, he stood up and ignored it, charging directly at the treant. As he took a step, the spike burst out of the ground, but to others, it might seem like Yang Ye had a quick reaction, while to him, it was just a matter of timing.

Yang Ye sprinted a few steps, then suddenly stopped and jumped to the side. At the same time, the treant launched its Embrace Strike—

"Ha, let the treant lord hug you!!"

The treant's charge grazed past Yang Ye, and the Embrace Strike failed. A card-like object appeared above the treant's head:

Good Person Card +1

Yang Ye laughed, realizing that being rejected meant receiving a Good Person Card. He then checked the effect—

Good Person Card: The treant lord was heartlessly given a Good Person Card by the player, causing its mood to drop and all attributes to decrease by 50%.

What are you waiting for, attack! Yang Ye excitedly swung his sword, and Lilianna cheered and encouraged him, making the experience even more enjoyable.

[System: You have killed a Vampire Treant, gaining 1200 EXP, Lilianna gains 800 EXP, and you obtained one root (Hidden Quest: Collect 99 roots to apply for the village construction quest from the newbie village mayor)]

Ha, it worked! Collect 98 more, and I can take on this hidden quest. A village construction quest sounds impressive; I wonder what the reward is.

With the support of the hidden quest, Yang Ye's enthusiasm remained high, and he quickly leveled up by grinding monsters.

An hour later, Yang Ye reached level 10 with a golden flash, and grinding treants also yielded two pieces of equipment—

Sunset Shoulder Guard (Armor - Silver Tier)

Equipment Level: 10 Warrior

+46 Physical Defense

+32 Magic Defense

+41 HP

+22 Strength

+12 Stamina

Bravery: Makes the warrior more formidable! Increases maximum HP by 2%

Guard: Is that all you've got? Underestimating a warrior! Reduces skill damage by 5%

Sunset is truly beautiful... —Sunset Shoulder Guard

Glory Flame Bow (Bow - Silver Tier)

Equipment Level: 10 Archer

+52 Physical Attack

+22 HP

+32 Strength

+18 Stamina

Armor Penetration: Where the longbow points, nothing can stand in its way! 4% chance to cause armor penetration, reducing the target's physical defense by 8%.

Split: Hey, I'm an arrow, and I have a twin brother. Look, he's flying towards you! Normal attacks split into a second arrow, dealing 30% of the main arrow's damage, which only causes normal damage and has no additional effects.

Shine! Glory! We are invincible... cough... middle school syndrome... —Glory Flame Bow

Great! Great! All top-tier! Yang Ye put away the longbow and equipped the Sunset Shoulder Guard, feeling much stronger!

With full confidence, he called out to Lilianna, "Lilianna, let's go back!" Lilianna cheered and ran to Yang Ye's side. Lilianna was already level 9 and would soon be level 10, ready to change her attributes and learn new skills.

I still need a few more roots to reach 99. I'll buy some from the market. Next, I should head to Rainfall City, I'm really looking forward to it...

Just as Yang Ye was about to leave, he heard a voice from a distance. One voice was particularly loud, giving orders:

"Hurry up, damn it, that guy is right ahead. When we get there, surround him, damn it, he dared to mess with me! Let him know how to play the game!" The leader was clearly the mage from the group of three who tried to buy Lilianna's quest for 1 silver coin—Demonic Blood Fury.

Yang Ye saw Demonic Blood Fury, and Demonic Blood Fury naturally saw Yang Ye. Seeing the group of seven or eight people quickly approaching, Yang Ye was startled—

They don't seem to have good intentions.

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