Chapter 99

"Your endurance seems to be better than before." The scavenger, holding a dagger, occasionally cut away the weeds blocking their path. They had been walking for over an hour, and the scavenger glanced at Kantu, who was not even out of breath, and spoke.

"Better endurance? I don't think so. My attributes haven't increased, and I haven't changed any equipment." The scavenger's words made Kantu pause. He checked his attribute panel and said with a puzzled look.

"Your attribute panel hasn't changed?" The scavenger leading the way was also taken aback. He looked at his own attribute panel and, after a quick calculation, realized that his initial attributes given by the system when he first entered the game had not changed at all.

The scavenger suddenly remembered a common mistake he had made while playing games. Every time he changed weapons or equipment, he only looked at his attack power and didn't pay much attention to his other attributes, assuming that as long as his attack power was sufficient, it was enough. He never realized that his initial attributes had not changed at all.

"Have your initial attributes changed?" After discovering this issue, the scavenger asked Kantu.

"It seems they have increased a bit. Isn't that normal? When you level up, your initial attributes should naturally increase, right?" Kantu looked at the scavenger with confusion.

"My initial attributes haven't increased at all."

"Really? That's strange." Kantu was taken aback.

"What did your initial attributes increase in?"

"Everything—spirit, strength, and stamina. But not by much. Stamina increased the most, by a total of 11 points."

"What was your initial stamina before?"

"61 points. Now, without my equipment, it's 72 points. After walking for an hour, I only lost 5 points of stamina. Only 5 points! In the past, I would have needed to rest and eat to replenish my stamina after walking for an hour. My endurance really has increased?" After calculating, Kantu realized his body seemed different from before.

"Leveling up doesn't increase initial attributes, but initial attributes can be increased in other ways. As initial attributes increase, the physical energy players consume within the same time frame decreases, or in other words, players' physical abilities increase. They won't feel as tired when expending the same amount of energy as before." The scavenger frowned and analyzed.

"How can this be? And why did mine increase while yours didn't?" Kantu scratched his head, still puzzled.

"It's probably related to your recent training. A person who can't usually run 5 kilometers will be out of breath if they do. But if they train regularly, running 5 kilometers will become easy. Each run expends the same amount of energy, but their physical ability has increased, so they won't feel as tired. As for why mine didn't increase, it's because my body hasn't reached its limit."

"Hasn't reached its limit?" Kantu was still confused.

"Let's use an analogy. You could only run 1 kilometer before and would be out of breath. After training, you can now run 5 kilometers. So your physical ability has increased by 4 kilometers. I could run 10 kilometers or more before. Now, I can still run that far, or even further. Training only maintains my physical ability without decline but doesn't increase it beyond my original level." The scavenger thought for a moment and explained.

In all previous battles, the scavenger had never reached his limit. After all, having experienced real combat, the battles in the game seemed like children's play to him. Although he had been forced to use his mutation twice and even solo a dungeon, everything was within his capacity. This kind of training only maintained his physical ability without decline but didn't increase it. Therefore, his initial attributes had not changed at all.

The scavenger didn't expect that his casual comment might have uncovered a hidden game setting. He quickly shared his analysis with Taohuayan.

"Your analysis seems correct. If you don't train to break your limits, your initial attributes won't increase. My initial attributes, except for spirit, have all increased slightly after these days of killing monsters with you. But my spirit hasn't changed because its use hasn't reached my limit, so there's no training effect. This is probably one of the game's hidden settings." Taohuayan quickly gave an answer after comparing it to his own experience.

"If initial attributes don't increase after leveling up, what's the point of leveling up? Is it just to match your level with the weapons and equipment you can use, and to learn some skills?" The scavenger asked, puzzled.

"Let's make an assumption. If initial attributes can increase, then each level might have a limit for how much they can increase. For example, at the Private level, no matter how much you train, you can only increase by 1 point. After leveling up, you can increase by 2 points, and after another level, by 3 points, and so on.

This level system is designed to gradually unlock the potential in players' bodies. Our initial attributes are too strong to provide any real challenge in the early stages of the game. The potential that can be unlocked by leveling up is something we already possess, so our initial attributes don't change."

"Doesn't that put us at a disadvantage? Watching others catch up while our initial attributes don't increase at all." The scavenger frowned.

"This might be a hidden balance in the game. After all, with our strong initial attributes, we have a significant early advantage, being more resistant to hunger and gaining more benefits than other players. If we were treated equally, our advantages would only grow, making the game unbalanced.

For example, it might take several teams to clear a dungeon, but you could do it alone. The benefits would be vastly different. If the game didn't balance this, you would be far ahead, and other players wouldn't have a chance. In my view, we can still increase our initial attributes, but it's more difficult for us compared to players with weaker foundations.

After all, it's easy for someone to increase their strength from 10 to 50, but much harder to increase it from 50 to 100. It's even harder to go from 100 to higher levels. This aligns with human mechanics, and the system isn't targeting us. Players with weaker foundations can indeed increase their attributes more significantly."

"That's true, but we can't just stand still. Our advantages will gradually diminish." The scavenger understood Taohuayan's point.

A student who usually scores 30 suddenly scores 60, improving by 30 points. A student who usually scores 80 and now scores 100 has a higher score, but the improvement is only 20 points. Improving from 30 to 60 is easy, but going from 80 to 100 is much harder. But if you don't try to improve because it's difficult, you'll eventually be overtaken by others. This isn't the scavenger's style.

"We can try some methods. For example, my spirit is 100, while your attributes are in the 90s or 80s. This means these attributes have room for improvement, but they haven't met the requirements yet. Attributes above 100 probably still have room for improvement, but it will be much harder than going from 80 or 90 to 100."

"I think that's right. My highest initial attribute is spirit at 93, which might be hard to increase. But my speed is only 87, which should be easier to improve. I'll do some experiments after resolving the Hongxing issue." The scavenger couldn't help but feel excited.

Continuously challenging his limits and feeling his body transform was something the scavenger used to enjoy. But after retiring, he found that his efforts and dedication in the ordinary world didn't pay off as much as earning more money. Increasing his physical strength and combat ability had no real application in the ordinary world.

Moreover, the scavenger no longer had the comrades who saw him as a goal and worked hard to surpass him. He gradually became lax in his physical training. After entering the game, he relied on his previous foundation and felt comfortable, not noticing any significant changes. But today's accidental discovery reignited his fighting spirit. Doing what others couldn't and leaving them in the dust, though not out of vanity, was indeed an exciting feeling.

"What's wrong with the captain?" Seeing the scavenger standing still, with a glint in his eyes that he had never seen before, Kantu asked, somewhat surprised.

"Oh, nothing. I discovered a hidden setting that can help increase our combat power. You're in luck." The scavenger patted Kantu's shoulder, a mysterious smile on his face.

Hearing about the hidden setting that could increase combat power, Kantu's eyes lit up. But seeing the scavenger's smile, he felt a chill, though this was overshadowed by his excitement, and he didn't pay much attention.

But Kantu didn't realize that this momentary oversight would become a nightmare for him for a long time. When the scavenger smiled like that, it meant he was serious and was about to put them through hell. This kind of hellish training would make even the toughest man never want to experience it again.

But at that moment, Kantu didn't know that the scavenger was planning a big meal for him. Excited by the prospect of increasing his combat power, he eagerly followed the scavenger. The two of them circled around and headed towards the place where the monk was leveling up.

After another hour, they stopped to rest and eat. They were now at the location the gambler had provided, where the monk was leveling up. The scavenger and Kantu were in a thicket, opposite the monk's leveling area.

On their way, the scavenger had briefly surveyed the surrounding terrain. Although the area wasn't large, it was enough to pick off the monk and his group one by one. After replenishing their energy, they moved towards the monk's leveling area.

"The monk is a big bald head, but there's no big bald head over there." The two of them quietly climbed a tree and used a telescope to observe the Hongxing players in the area. The region was filled with low shrubs, and tall trees were rare, giving them a clear view from their vantage point.

"There isn't. Maybe the monk isn't leveling up here?" The scavenger was also unsure as he scanned the area and didn't see the monk's distinctive bald head.

At this moment, Kantu, who had more game experience, opened the friend search function and his expression changed.

"What's wrong?" Noticing Kantu's odd behavior, the scavenger turned to him and asked.

"I searched for the monk, and... he's not online."

"Not online?" The scavenger was taken aback, not immediately understanding. But as Kantu was about to explain, the scavenger realized, "He logged out?"

The scavenger and Kantu stared at each other, the atmosphere becoming awkward. They had circled around, scouted the terrain, and carefully approached the opposite side of the Hongxing players, only to find that the monk had logged out. This was indeed a frustrating result, and logging out was undoubtedly the most powerful escape in the game.

"What do we do now?" After a moment, Kantu asked, looking at the scavenger.

"What can we do? We've come this far, we can't just go back to the city. Since the boss isn't here, let's kill some of the smaller players as a consolation." The scavenger tried to hide his embarrassment with a calm tone.

The scavenger was indeed embarrassed. It was like going on an assassination mission, spending a lot of effort to infiltrate, and just as you were about to strike, you realized your target wasn't there. This was indeed a frustrating result. (To be continued. Please search for Piaowen.com for better updates and faster updates!)