MMORPG: The Elementalist

“What a pleasant surprise. It’s crazy to see how far these top players in H&G were willing to go in the fight for personal glory.” At an underground organization, Mr. Zhao lamented and rubbed his temples after he finished watching the battle videos of more than forty Veteran Champions.

Beside him, an experienced operator adjusted his glasses and pointed out the facts. “Since the Currency Exchange System will go online soon, this might be their last stage to shine. The future H&G might have no place for them anymore.”

The staff around them nodded in agreement.

They who monitored the game behind the scenes could clearly feel the drastic increase in the number of players within these few days, as well as the rise and fall of the gold coin stock. From these traces of activities, they could foresee some very big changes were looming ahead.

The exchange volume of gold coins and equipment had skyrocketed.

Players below Tier 5 had pushed up their levels at an unprecedented rate, while those above Tier 5 had begun to collect good quality equipment which were available in the market.

Businessman, too, had decided to hoard the good stuff and waited to sell it at a high price once the system got online.

Clans and leagues, in the meantime, had poured in all their men and energy into this Grand Tournament.

Apart from participating actively, top-tier players like Qin Ruo, Sinistress, Savior, and Netherclaw had probably anticipated how the launching of the Currency Exchange System might affect their current supremacy in the game. Hence, they were willing to reveal their trump card and even generously put the luxurious mana core into good use.

Qin Ruo summoned two Tier 5 Minibosses.

Netherclaw decided to sacrifice the Tier 6 Elite Miniboss.

Meanwhile, Savior and Sinistress had relied on the infamous Lich.

Dinosaurcerer was also one of the more generous spenders. He summoned more than fifty Tier 6 Monsters in the previous round. His monster army had successfully taken down a Tier 6 Megaboss, a few Tier 5 Megabosses, and several Tier 6 Minibosses. This had temporarily placed him among the top ten players in the rankings.

All these indicated that the Currency Exchange System would definitely be the precursor to a larger scale of competition across the Mythical Continent, or even the entire H&G world.

However, Mr. Zhao seemed to think differently and spoke, “Whether the stage is theirs or not totally depends on their determination and ability. It is not something that we can decide or interfere with. But judging by the current development, I don’t see how the new force could replace the old one anytime soon,” While he talked, he instructed his operator to bring up the screen to show Qin Ruo’s present location.

On the screen, they could see Qin Ruo, Dinosaurcerer, and a few cadre of Fallen Angels were gathering at Savis Town’s Champion’s Restaurant’s main hall. They were drinking and chatting happily.

The screen then turned and showed a slightly dimmer environment. It was the Neversleep Restaurant in Sin City.

Sinistress, Savior, and a group of gloomy Demon Faction Champions were there.

Sinitress had gained 470,000 points.

Savior had scored the same amount too.

They were still more than 10,000 points behind the highest point of 578,000 points. Others were even further away, with most of them trailing by at least 300,000 points. There was nothing much the Demon Faction could do despite being highly dissatisfied at seeing the top spot being snatched by an Angel Faction player.

“Alright, that will be enough.” Mr. Zhao grinned happily. “The result of the third stage is basically finalized. Sort out the videos we have gone through just now and release them to the official site. We have to get ready for the surveillance of stage 4.”

“Yes! Mr. Zhao!”

***

Champion’s Restaurant.

After all the core members from the Fallen Angels had arrived, they transferred to a room across the main hall.

“From now on, let’s talk through the private channel.” Right after everyone settled down on their seats, Qin Ruo immediately formed a private chat group and announced to those who were added into it.

The majority of them agreed implicitly, but some did not understand why the gathering had to be so secretive.

“Why the formality?” Black Rock asked in the channel, “Anything serious?”

“…”

“I am not going through it all over again. You will all eventually understand, so just pay attention.”

Qin Ruo did not jump into explanations immediately. Instead, he requested them to be patient, then turned to the three ladies led by Little Rice and asked, “How is it going? Have you confirmed the selection?”

Little Rice and Ace of Spades looked toward Helga. The latter nodded and replied on behalf of the ladies, “Yes, so far we have narrowed it down to five targets. It’s up to you which one goes to use.” Those who were present, other than the already informed Violet Orchid, Homme Fatale, Dinosaurcerer, and Xiaoxiao, were confused and bewildered. None of them had heard anything about Monster Cavalier before today.

They got even more confused when Helga began to list out several types of Tier 5 and 6 Agility Type Monsters. Despite that, everyone remained silent and listened attentively without interrupting her.

Helga narrated carefully, “Silverhorn Rhino, Level 57. Assault type monster. Dual Element of Earth and Thunder. Fits the criteria of high mobility, ranged attack, and Barrier. Its defense is almost on par with a normal Tier 6 monster. At the same time, this Rhino is capable of boosting its defense in a short time…” Violet Orchid and Homme Fatale nodded silently. They had encountered this monster before. Although it was only a Tier 5 monster, its great overall stats made it a formidable force. This monster might be a little dumb, but its high durability often deters enemy player parties from making contact.

Too much time spent, too few rewards.

“Double-horned Scalewolf. Level 54. Highly agile. It possesses a defensive skill similar to Aura Drill. The period of its immunity is two seconds. However, this monster is not good with ranged attacks. Most of its skills fall between short to mid range. Its Attack is above average.”

“Black Flame Steed, Level 66. Fighter type. Also possesses Aura Drill. It mastered both Fire and Dark Type Attacking Spells. This monster is more outstanding than the previous two in terms of its aggressive outlook. Its aggression is very much like the Pangolin monster that the Clan Leader had mentioned before. In battle, this monster will wrap itself with a layer of intertwined black and red flames. It’s a horrific scene when a horde of these monsters attack the players. Once it has exploded, the Steed can release an even hotter blue flame and continuously burn everything comes within two meters near it. More importantly, the Black Flame Steed has an elegant appearance. The current market price for its Pet Egg is as high as 10,000 gold coins. Many high-tier players are attracted by it and have all headed to Black Flame Valley to farm for its egg.”

Qin Ruo was apparently interested and kept nodding while keeping the name Black Flame Steed in his mind.

“Aggression!”

Succumbing to the enemy even before the fight had begun was going to be vital. Black Flame Steed was currently the monster that fit Qin Ruo’s requirements best.

“How about the rest?” Qin Ruo urged Helga.

She paused a while, then continued to explain, “The remaining two are something you very familiar with. One is the Blackscale Pangolin you had encountered in Mythical Mirage. We found the same monster in The Abyssal.

I think you know it’s skills and abilities better than us. The last one is handpicked by Dinosaurcerer. It’s a type of Avian Monster. The one Dinosaurcerer recommended is the Dark and Frost Type Monster, Chimera.”

“Splendid.” Qin Ruo nodded.

“For the Monster Cavalry Troop, both the Blackscale Pangolin and Black Flame Steed seems to be a suitable choice. Let’s discard Silverhorn Rhino and Double-horned Scalewolf as they are too ordinary.”

Qin Ruo finally made a brief introduction about his idea of constructing a Monster Cavalry Troop. Then he asked for his comrade’s opinion, “So, which one do you all prefer? Pangolin? Or Steed?”

They finally understood why Qin Ruo had gathered them in such short notice. His actions of creating a private chat room and hiding the content of their conversation from outsiders were also totally justifiable.

During the five days of the Grand Tournament, the staff involved in surveillance were allowed to monitor all their movements at any given time and place. If the news accidentally leaked to other organizations, this Cavalry Troop plan might lose its effectiveness as Qin Ruo had envisioned.

While most of them were still in awe of the grand scheme and stayed quiet, Violet Orchid broke the silence. “Let’s pick both.”

“What?” Qin Ruo was first baffled, then enlightened after Xiao Xiao’s quick response. “Sister Violet, you are saying that we should form two separate Cavalry Troops?”

“That’s right.” Violet Orchid smiled and nodded. “You certainly have to involve me in such an awesome plan. Besides, if everything really goes according to plan, these cavaliers will be the Fallen Angels army that gallops across the Underworld, as well as our city guards in the Buried Land. How about this, we will take the Blackscale Pangolin, while Little Qin forms the Black Flame Steed troops? Since the latter’s noble status is a better fit for the primary clan of this League…”

“I am very fond of the idea.” Qin Ruo approved Violet Orchid’s suggestion. Then he suddenly turned around and faced the three ladies. “How about the opinion of our clan members?” This was also one of the most important links to the plan. If the Swordsmasters rejected his idea, there would be a big question mark on whether this plan could be carried out before the City Building System was in place.

Perhaps…

Fallen Angels might need to undergo their first member purge.

After he asked the question, the three ladies fought to answer him, all eventually saying that, “Nobody would say no to the three of us.”

“We haven’t told them the details yet. But we have explained to them that you are plotting a reform within the clan. The Swordmasters will all be given a new Pet with high levels and strength guaranteed.”

“Hehe. We even chose to announce the news after your points broke the 500,000 mark. Other than a few who already owns a powerful Pet, most of the members have agreed to it.”

“Haha! Just now, a few sisters almost fainted when they heard about getting a Black Flame Steed as their new Pet.” The three girls twitter accounts slightly mitigated the solemn atmosphere inside the room.

“Great.” Qin Ruo was relieved too. “In that case, alright, let’s get our people ready. We will charge into the Black Flame Valley in three sorties. Let’s conquer the entire place.”

“Conquer?” Everyone was shocked.

Black Flame Valley is a place packed with high tier players. Moreover, it’s the only source of the Black Flame Steed’s Pet Egg. Many Leagues had connections there. It was simply too difficult to conquer the entire place.

“Don’t worry. I am done with the third stage now anyway. I will personally lead the troops.”

“What?” They were dumbfounded once again by Qin Ruo boldness. “Don’t you think it’s a little overboard?”

Qin Ruo flicked his sleeves and laughed it off. “Stop worrying. I will inform the other League Commanders. After all, when the Currency Exchange is opened, the price of the Black Flame Steed’s egg will certainly hike even further. Fallen Angels will need the money to maintain its operations, so we have no choice but to do this, right? I am sure they will understand.”

“…” The others were rendered speechless. “Are you serious?”