Chapter 3: Shadow Steps

Looting:

[Rusty Iron Bar ×5]

[Blood-Stained Pitchfork ×3]

[Rust-Eaten Iron Sword ×2]

Qin Yu had already begun his work of “scavenging junk.”

Everywhere he passed, he left nothing behind—much like an RPG player obsessed with looting every single item in a game.

He simply didn’t feel comfortable if he didn’t take it all.

After scavenging along the way, Qin Yu hadn’t encountered any real danger yet, which was quite lucky.

Many players who had set foot on this land were already suffering; some even let out blood-curdling screams, drawing the aggro of nearby monsters.

“I hope you’re reborn in Mizuryu Kei Land in your next life; don’t come back to Fate Paradise…”

Qin Yu joked to himself as he moved forward.

His destination was still some distance away, and he might encounter patrolling monsters, so he had to act with caution.

To dampen the sound of his footsteps, Qin Yu swapped his light armor for a pair of scavenged leather boots.

Elsewhere, a female player dressed as an assassin was also stealthily exploring her surroundings.

“Incredible. This is completely different from those half-finished VR haptic games. It’s my first time playing something so realistic—this is so exciting!”

This female player was the aforementioned Sugar, though her in-game ID was “Don Quixote”; “Sugar” was the ID she used when she previously participated in esports competitions.

Embracing her desire to explore the game, Sugar felt she had to delve deeper into this gloomy town.

Mottled walls and pitted streets—this certainly didn’t look like a place where people lived.

Every house was dilapidated, and not a single living soul could be seen inside.

“…”

While carefully crossing a street, Qin Yu suddenly slowed his pace; something was approaching him.

He quickly found a hidden section of wall and waited for the sound to pass.

“Strange. Is there really no one here? Not even monsters?”

Sugar felt a bit lost; the environment clearly had her confused.

As a genius PVP pro who only played esports titles, she had always struggled with high-freedom exploration games like this.

Trit-trot, trit-trot…

Suddenly, a mess of footsteps headed her way.

Just as Sugar was about to investigate, an invisible hand covered her mouth and dragged her into the shadows.

“Mmph—!”

Sugar instinctively tried to attack her captor, but she was easily blocked.

“Shh! Quiet.”

The person who had grabbed Sugar was Qin Yu.

Nearby, a squad of eerie, masked monsters in tattered clothing marched through the area.

Sugar didn’t dare move until the group of monsters had passed, and only then did Qin Yu let her go.

“…Thank you for just now.”

Although Qin Yu’s actions had been rough, he had essentially saved her; that squad of monsters was roughly Tier 1 or Tier 2.

Currently, players only had Tier 0 strength.

They could fight Tier 1, 2, or even 3 enemies; as long as the strength gap didn’t exceed three tiers, they could still deal damage.

For instance, a Tier 5 entity can only be damaged by someone at least Tier 2; a Tier 1 attack would be like trying to polish their armor.

The game’s power levels were divided from Tier 0 to Tier 10.

Being able to deal damage didn’t mean one could kill them, especially for current players who lacked combat power.

Coming across a group of Tier 1 monsters meant their only option was to run.

“Don’t mention it.”

Qin Yu hadn’t originally intended to save her.

Wouldn’t it have been better to let her get caught and draw the surrounding monsters away?

But on second thought, Sugar might be useful in the future.

As the saying goes, another friend is another path, so Qin Yu chose to save her.

“There’s another patrol of Blood Servants to the west. If you see them, don’t get curious. Just run.”

Qin Yu left her with that warning and prepared to depart.

“Wait a minute!”

Seeing that Qin Yu was about to leave, Sugar called out to him.

“Is there something else?”

“Are you very good at these types of games?”

Sugar noted how calm Qin Yu seemed in this environment and combined that with what he had just said; she figured he must be a high-level player skilled in this genre.

“I know a bit.”

“Then, can you carry a newbie like me who isn’t very good at playing this?”

Faced with Sugar’s request, Qin Yu felt a surge of secret delight; acting mysterious had caught her attention.

“Does the genius player ‘Sugar’ count as a newbie?”

Qin Yu asked her directly.

Sugar froze for a moment—did this guy know who she was?

Was he a fan?

Unlikely; what kind of fan would be so cold to their idol?

“People have different specialties. I lean toward PVP; I’m not very good at PVE.”

Sugar was humble about this point.

Moreover, as the game was just starting, having a knowledgeable expert to lead the way was a good thing.

“Fine. Just don’t hold me back.”

Qin Yu’s goal had been achieved; he had established a connection with Sugar that would definitely be useful later.

The two began to travel together.

“What should I call you?” Sugar asked.

“Wing-Yu.”

Sugar didn’t expect Qin Yu’s ID to be similar to hers—a combination of English and Chinese.

“Can I just call you Yu?”

“Sure, Miss Don Quixote.”

“Just call me Sugar. Also, it’s ‘Don Quixote,’ not ‘Don Quix-oat.'”

“Oh, there doesn’t seem to be much difference.”

“How could there be no difference? Can’t you tell the characters apart? Are you a ‘Starcraft player’ or something?”

‘I’m used to saying it my way. I’m too lazy to change.’

“…”

Sugar puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

With her ponytail swinging behind her head, she looked a bit like a little girl, appearing rather cute.

After walking for a while, the two arrived in front of a street with no lights; beyond this was the place Qin Yu was looking for.

“Can you walk a bit slower? I can’t keep up.”

Sugar didn’t understand why Qin Yu walked so fast; she had to jog just to keep pace with him.

“The physical stamina of young people today is really getting worse and worse…”

Qin Yu lectured his junior in the tone of an old man.

“Looking at you, you aren’t much older than me, are you?”

“I was born in ’97,” Qin Yu replied.

“I was born in ’98,” Sugar reported her own age.

“Then I can’t beat you in a match…”

After a bit of banter, it was time for serious business.

Qin Yu unequipped his gear, preparing to move light.

He had worn it previously to prevent dying from a sudden ambush, but to cross this street, he had to unequip all gear with attributes.

Of course, titles didn’t count.

“What are you doing?”

Sugar saw Qin Yu suddenly strip off his equipment until he was left in just a thin shirt and trousers.

For a moment, she wanted to scream “pervert.”

“It’s nothing. To walk through this Shadow Street, one must be lightly equipped and have a mind free of distractions…”

Qin Yu didn’t wait for Sugar and walked right in.

Seeing this, Sugar grew anxious and quickly unequipped her gear, following close behind him.

The two entered the pitch-black street.

This location, known as Shadow Street, was a hidden spot where one could learn skills.

As for the condition for learning them, it was naturally to cross the street without wearing any equipment with attributes; otherwise, the quest wouldn’t trigger.

It sounded easy, but doing it was another story…

As soon as she entered, Sugar was dumbfounded.

She truly couldn’t see anything; it was absolutely black.

“Yu—are you still there?”

“Don’t think about anything else. Just walk forward with a clear mind. Don’t stop.”

Qin Yu was already far ahead.

Relying on the buff from his title, he had already crossed two-thirds of Shadow Street, while Sugar hadn’t even finished a third.

A moment later, Qin Yu stepped out, successfully completing the challenge.

[Congratulations! You have passed the Shadow Sprints challenge and achieved an S-Rank evaluation!]

Reward: [[Advanced Shadow Step] Skill Book ×1]

Extra Reward for the first Perfect S-Rank: [[Fade into Shadow] Skill Book ×1]