Heavenly Martial Path, an MMO ga with a pitifully low number of players.
Still, even if that was the case, you would still find so players after logging in. A small community who basically already knew each and every other person around.
And "False Fisherman" was soone none of the veterans recognized.
"It’s been months since Kakrooch ca, and a new one finally arrived!"
"Ugh, don’t remind of that poser... It’s great that he left the ga quickly."
"Still, what a... unique na. Almost sounds like an NPC’s na..."
The people—though they looked dangerous in their expensive-looking robes and carried cool, deadly swords, spears, or gauntlets—were kind at heart. In fact, as soon as Xu Tao arrived, several nearby players quickly gathered to speak to him.
"Hey there! Is this your first ti playing the ga? Want so pointers?"
"Pointers? From you? If he wants to learn, it’s better to go with as your teacher! I’m ranked #1 on the PVP leaderboard!"
"Who are you kidding? You’re just a cheater! I’m ranked #1 overall, so he should learn from !"
"Try ignoring those two, they always argue like that. Here, take a few Qi Gathering Pills. I’m sure they’ll help you at the start."
Xu Tao hadn’t even taken a single step, and already players were swarming him—offering help, handing out freebies, and explaining so simple chanics.
He wasn’t ungrateful, of course. He gave proper thanks to those who helped, whether they offered information or items.
"Thank you, seniors. Then, I’ll try to figure things out myself for now," he said politely, before walking toward the training grounds—one of the veterans had pointed the way.
Apparently, after starting the ga, rushing into the hunting grounds wasn’t advisable. The reason was due to the player’s inability to fight properly using just their fists.
It was normal for soone to never use their fists to fight in real life; as such, most newbies ended up dying repeatedly to even the weakest mobs, simply due to poor movent and untrained reflexes.
Xu Tao was confident in his skills. But confidence and ignoring his seniors’ suggestions were two different things.
He wasn’t here to play around, anyway. He was here to figure out how the system worked. And just as he suspected, the main nu was exactly the sa as the Lost System’s—minus the Gacha and Managent Panels.
As he arrived at the training grounds, however, he was finally convinced of sothing.
"This place... is teeming with Qi."
One might assu that because it was a martial arts ga, of course there’d be Qi—but no. Xu Tao wasn’t referring to virtual Qi. He ant actual Qi. It was a mystery how he could feel, and even gather, real Qi from within the ga.
As a test, he tried drawing in as much of the ambient Qi as he could.
His character sat down, ditating, as the virtual Qi began pooling around him—and then into him. But not just that. Even the real Qi followed suit, entering Xu Tao’s virtual body... and then flowing directly into his real-world Dantian.
"...!"
It was a bizarre feeling, as if the Qi had leapt through dinsions to reach him.
But more importantly, this experience revealed a startling truth.
"This must be the ga the cultivators at that Happy Lucky VR Cabin Café were using to cultivate!"
[Congratulations! You have broken through to Bronze Level 2!]
[Physical Stat Multiplier increased from 1.00 to 1.10!]
[You have unlocked...]
"Hmm..."
Xu Tao frowned, seeing the flood of notifications—still identical to the Lost System’s. But just as he was about to clear the windows, voices echoed behind him.
"Damn! Did he just hit Bronze 2 after sitting for a few seconds?! That’s cheat-level speed, bro!"
"What kind of cultivation technique was that?! I’ve never seen that one before!"
"Maaan... Are you really a newbie?! You’re better than this trash Khufra over here!"
Unbeknownst to him, the gallery of veterans had actually followed him, watching his every move. They had seen it all from start to finish.
Xu Tao wanted to scold them for peeking at soone’s cultivation technique without permission—but he was also at fault for cultivating out in the open. Thus, he judged that both sides were to bla—a tie.
"It’s nothing much, really..." Xu Tao sighed, scratching his head. "I just used the basic Seven Breaths and Six Principles cultivation thod. It’s quite versatile and fast, after all."
"Seven... breaths?"
The veterans exchanged looks, then shook their heads one by one. None of them had ever heard of a technique by that na.
"Just curious, but... where did you learn that breathing thod?" one of them finally asked, unable to hold back his curiosity.
"That? I just read about it in an ancient scroll at Baidu Peak."
"..."
Another na they didn’t recognize.
Unknown information—an opportunity for a new breakthrough!
All of these veterans had been playing the ga for a long ti, but none of them had ever completed the final quest. The reason was simple.
Even if they combined all their strengths and used every doping item possible, they still couldn’t defeat the final boss. The power scaling was so broken that half the high-level players quit because of it.
The few who remained had already explored the entire ga world, found every item, and learned every available skill. As such, a prospect of new knowledge none of them knew wasn’t sothing they’d let go easily.
"Where’s this Baidu Peak?"
One of the veterans pulled out a map and spread it on the ground. At a glance, it was nearly fully explored—except for a single dark dot in the center of it: the vault protected by the final boss, and the only section left uncleared.
They all unanimously assud Baidu Peak must be hidden there, and were wondering how Xu Tao had managed to reach it—but—
"Huh? No, Baidu Peak isn’t in that map. I an, it’s located outside the ga..." Xu Tao explained.
"...!"
The casual clarification made everyone gasp.
"Taking knowledge from outside the ga..."
"Learning more efficient techniques not from the system, but through actual training!"
"How could I not have thought of that?! Cultivators exist in real life... Why didn’t I try using their techniques in here too?!"
Though he hadn’t intended it, Xu Tao ended up creating a small splash in the stagnant waters of Heavenly Martial Path. A splash whose ripples were slowly growing, building into a powerful tsunami.
But it wasn’t just the veterans who benefitted from their interaction—Xu Tao gained sothing too. A brilliant idea that would save them tons of trouble in the future—
"Can’t I use this place to train Uriel and Henrietta?"
The ga... had just begun.
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