Virtual World: Close Combat Mage

Translator: Exodus Tales  Editor: Exodus Tales

“Y-Yo-You—” A sword bathed in a dark purple sheen, a black mage robe, and a propensity to insta-kill things without batting an eyelid via Twin Incineration. This time, Gu Fei’s image completely fit his legend to a T, and this player’s right hand pointed at him tremblingly. In the next moment, he covered his mouth with it and took several steps backward.

“Are you Thousand Miles Drunk?” The player finally managed to squeak this question out.

“You know me?” Gu Fei was astonished.

That’s it. I’m about to die… That was the only thought running through the man’s head in the moment, because he realized that he was trying to get back his grinding spot from the greatest PK-er throughout Parallel World – the king of killing, Thousand Miles Drunk.

“Uhhhh… I have something on. May I take my leave first?” the guy asked.

“Ah?” Gu Fei could tell that this man’s attitude had taken a full 180-degree turn, as if the latter were actively trying to avoid him. Despite being the perpetrator, Gu Fei simply did not know that he had this ability to strike overwhelming fear in people’s hearts.

“Hey, bro. I think you’re mistaken.” It was, instead, Brother Assist who had realized what was going on, and he quickly, and very deftly, came forward to clarify everything.

“Eh?”

“We’re just borrowing a few of your monster spawns to familiarize ourselves with this type of monster. We’ll be leaving very soon.” Even after putting some thought into it, he was still unable to come up with a proper way to explain this.

“Oh… Whatever you guys want.” How could this man dare to disagree?

“Demonstrate twice more!” Brother Assist called out to Gu Fei.

“Got it.” Gu Fei took out his lousy one-handed sword while removing all his equipment, all of which increased his chances of proccing additional attacks, to give a complete demonstration.

Thereafter, he stepped forward again and engaged with two more monsters. Brother Assist spectated from the sidelines as he quickly jotted down in his booklet crucial details he did not want to forget before shutting his eyes to review everything in his mind twice. After confirming that he had no further queries, he moved to hail Gu Fei for them to take their leave when he realized that a crowd had once more formed.

Those players that had dispersed earlier threw glances Gu Fei’s way at irregular intervals during their grinds, hoping to see him put up an exciting performance again. What they had hoped to see did not happen, but they did catch that moment when Gu Fei tried tempting Brother Assist twice with his attacks. That frightening speed at which he efficiently slew those monsters drew people’s attention once more, and plenty of players began to make their way over yet again.

When he cast his Twin Incineration afterward, those players positioned further away who were unable to see what had happened from up close only thought that it was an even more efficient kill style. Later, when he slowly demonstrated his fighting style, the players who had seen the previous two efficient kills came to a realization: This was a demonstration Gu Fei had intentionally slowed down for the two players to watch.

An expert! I’ve met a living and breathing expert today! The players were all excited. There were often a few schools of fighting styles in MMOs, and even though everybody used those, very few actually knew the creators of the said styles. A preeminent master capable of pioneering a new style was like a godly existence in these people’s hearts and minds. Now that an expert of originator caliber had appeared in their midst, the adulation of all these players had already surged forth like open floodgates.

There were even some players who had noticed that Gu Fei was only a Mage, and that there was likely to be a cap to the level of damage he could deal; Were they in his shoes, their eventually increased damage output would surely result in an even greater efficiency. This could possibly double their current rate of grinding or, perhaps, even triple it. Seven Bottlenecks! Ten Great Adepts! Five Unyielding Experts! The number one Sovereign! It was as if every title were waving their hands at them. Many of these players were daydreaming, only to realize that there were people running toward Gu Fei, and this was when they recalled that they had yet to learn this efficient fighting routine!

“Buddy!”

“Friend!”

“Big brother!”

“Bro!

These players were just short of calling Gu Fei ‘father’.

“What?” Gu Fei had quite a fright. Before, when the crowd surrounded him, they were merely watching, but this time, these men were not simply onlooking; they actually looked to be steadily making their way over to him.

“What was it that you just did there? Teach us!” one of the players called out in a northeastern accent, expressing what everybody was thinking.

Gu Fei beamed. “You wish to learn?”

“Yeah!”

“Are you a Warrior?” Gu Fei glanced at the man.

The person nodded vigorously.

“Did you add points to Agility?”

“Agility?” That person was stunned. It was not that Warriors refrained from allocating points to Agility, but it was most definitely not something most people would think to do.

“This sort of fighting routine requires at least eight levels of Agility for any job class that are not inclined to that stat. You’re a Warrior, so you will have to calculate just how many points you need,” Gu Fei explained.

That man was in shock. Sure enough, it was hardly surprising that there were certain stat requirements for some fighting styles, but any requirement toward Agility would more often be for some manner of kiting. This person was clearly fighting in melee range, and it was truly rare to find one that would still require Agility. After a moment’s pause, the man asked, “Bro, have you allocated points to Agility as well? How many?” He could tell that Gu Fei was a Mage.

“All-Agility.” Gu Fei chuckled.

“An all-Agility Mage!” The crowd was astonished. Next, they noted his black robe, his superiority, and his expertise. This man was the legendary—

“Thousand Miles Drunk?” There were a good number of players who had paid attention to the discussion regarding Gu Fei, so quite a few of them had easily summoned his name now.

“Eh? More people that know me?” Gu Fei expressed the same surprise as before, while Brother Assist was already laughing bitterly at the side. He could tell at once that Gu Fei did not visit the forums, for the man had no clue even now how explosive his name was out there. The name was on the level where players bragging in their posts about their indomitability would face replies, such as, “Go challenge Thousand Miles Drunk if you have got the guts,” and the original posters would suddenly disappear from their threads in response.

“Bro, you’re my idol!” Many Mages squeezed through the crowd, fighting for a chance to call Gu Fei their comrade. Because of his existence, those who were Mages felt that they were magnificent existences themselves, and that just sharing the same job class made them a cut above the rest.

“Ahem…” Gu Fei felt awkward, for he had never thought that this would happen.

The scene was now in an uproar. Not many displayed abject fear like that man from before when they first heard Thousand Miles Drunk’s name come up, and a majority of them were more curious about this expert. Given that the legend himself was right before their eyes, each of them bravely came forward to see the man’s true colors personally.

“Whoa! Is that the rumored Moonlit Nightfalls?” Someone enviously fawned as he stared at that level 22 trash-tier one-handed sword Gu Fei was holding.

“F*ck! What do you even know? That sword’s been sold off days ago; d’you know its selling price? 20,000 gold coins!” someone, who was up to date with Gu Fei-related news, said.

A boisterous discussion ensued, where the man of the hour, Gu Fei, could not even get a word in edgeways. It was unknown just where the king of mediation, Brother Assist, had ducked in such a chaotic backdrop, but it clearly showed his stance to wash his hands from smoothing things over with this crowd.

“Bro, is it true that the fighting routine of yours requires Agility?” Finally, someone pulled the conversation back on track.

“Yeah. Mages and Knights will need at least eight levels’ worth of Agility; the more Agility, the safer it will be. The other job classes must adjust it according to their calculations. A sword has to be the weapon of choice,” Gu Fei stated.

“Will daggers work?” a Thief asked.

“Daggers have too short a reach; meaning, there may be times when your attacks fail to connect. Gratuitously wasting opportunities like that will just undermine your goal of efficiency,” Gu Fei explained.

The crowd was stunned. Following which, there was a unanimous question. “Can you teach us?” Whether they had enough Agility or the right weapon, all of them had the same idea: I’ll learn it first and then try it for myself later.

“No problem!” Gu Fei happily agreed.

Applause immediately rang out, and plenty of players invited him over to their respective grinding spots as they boasted about the quantity of monsters spawning in their place, their good attitude, and presented them to be the best companions to grind against.

“Heh… No need to be this courteous. Anywhere is fine.” Gu Fei laughed.

Thus, everyone settled for the place they were at, providing space for people to pull monsters over. Almost instantly, seven or so monsters were aggroed and led over to this spot from every possible direction.

“No need to get a lot. Just one will do.” Gu Fei sweated profusely.

The crowd each lent a hand and killed all but one, leaving that last one to Gu Fei.

Gu Fei rolled up his sleeves, making a statement before he began. “To ensure that everyone can see this clearly, I’ll do my best to slow down my pace of attacks and lower my damage output as well.”

Everyone in the crowd nodded accordingly.

Brother Assist was currently huddled under a large tree away from the crowd, yawning. He was thinking to himself just how kind and honest Gu Fei was; it was unlikely for any experts, even the honest-to-a-fault Sword Demon, to be as patient if put in his shoes.

Gu Fei slowly demonstrated the entire sequence once within the crowd, addressing the people after he was done. “Do you guys remember it?”

No one answered him. After all, everyone present was sincere about learning this, and there was no way they would fake knowing for fear of not grasping everything in its entirety. Thus, even those who had the slightest doubt in their minds did not claim to understand what was going on, much less when this fighting routine was not in the least bit easy for people to comprehend it from one viewing.

Gu Fei knew that most people would not have such talent either, and when he began searching all around him, the more intuitive players quickly pulled another monster over for Gu Fei to use.

This time, the demonstration was not simply just that, as Gu Fei would often repeatedly show them a move and explained his actions with great clarity as he went; he made sure to give them the reasoning behind his positioning and attack execution.

As such, with his act of ensuring that they had everything down pat, players quickly got a good grasp of the fighting routine, especially in those areas none of them understood until Gu Fei emphasized them. These people immediately came to the realization, Oh, yeah! Hitting the monster this way in this part is far simpler and more straightforward; why haven’t I thought of this before?

Once this monster was killed off, Gu Fei once more asked the crowd if they had any further questions. This time, quite a few of them shouted that they understood, causing the others who were still lost to panic. They had no wish to lose this chance of learning just because some person stepped out to represent the crowd, and indirectly misrepresent their own grasp of the routine. This was an area for solo grinding, after all, and almost none of them had come here with a friend. No one knew each other, so if they did learn this, there was essentially no way that they could ask about it anywhere else. Hence, these players were not courteous and shouted that they were still uncertain.

Gu Fei did not falter and could only pull another monster to explain everything again. After this third demonstration, he asked the crowd if they understood everything now. There were those that shouted that they did, but a majority still belonged in the other camp.

Gu Fei was beginning to feel annoyed. These gathered people were not young noobs like his students; rather, they were adults possessing greater understanding of this game as players capable of grinding monster five levels above theirs. They were experts in their own rights, so there was no reason for them to still be clueless about this after hearing and seeing his thorough explanation and meticulous demonstration twice.

Are they making fun of me? Gu Fei was suspicious, sternly regarding these players around him. That was when someone pitifully asked, “Bro, can you explain it one more time?”

Gu Fei looked at the man’s yearning gaze and judged that he was not faking it. Thinking that it was possible for some people to have terrible comprehension skills, he decided to demonstrate it once more!

Just as a monster was instantly brought to him proactively, Gu Fei received a message from Brother Assist. “This won’t ever end if you keep going like this.”

“What?” Gu Fei asked.

“Those guys at the beginning mostly left to grind on their own, and new players ended up streaming in to watch your demonstration. How long are you going to keep teaching there for?” Brother Assist could see the whole situation from outside the crowd; plenty of players beyond curiously joined in when they saw this crowd forming. In the end, upon realizing that there was someone giving lessons, those clueless latecomers, who had only seen what had happened once, or even less than that, as well as those curious players, who were streaming nonstop, shouted accordingly.

“What do I do?” Gu Fei asked.

“I don’t know.” Brother Assist was amused. He was truly looking forward to seeing how Gu Fei would extricate himself from this situation and had his quill and booklet at the ready. This was a scene worth recording.

Gu Fei scratched his head in exasperation as he looked around. “How many of you out there still don’t get it? Raise your hand for me to see.”

A sea of hands shot up, with some even raising both arms.

“One last time!” Gu Fei declared.

“All right!” Those that were present naturally cheered; why would they even care about those who would come after them?

Gu Fei nodded, and a monster was brought to him pronto. Pulling its aggro from a player, his demonstration and explanation began once more.

Outside the crowd of players, Brother Assist continued to snigger. Well beyond the crowd, he could of course not see Gu Fei’s demonstration, but he could hear the latter’s voice. At the same time, he easily caught sight of players running over from every direction, and he knew that Gu Fei’s ‘last time’ would definitely be rescinded again, since it would be the newcomers that would do so.

After another demonstration was completed, Gu Fei wiped off his sweat and proceeded to walk away without saying anything else. In the end, another player leaped out piteously. “Bro, can you demonstrate it once more?”

“Didn’t I already tell you that that’s the last time?” Gu Fei asked.

“When did you say that? We don’t know what’s on; we’ve just arrived!” This person looked questioningly around him as he said this.

“Yeah. We’ve just arrived. Do it once over!” many others begged.

Gu Fei might be someone who stood resolute in the face of the bigger picture and would never yield to force or words, yet in the face of such minor matters, he was actually easily susceptible to persuasion. Hearing all these people pleading, Gu Fei relented with a sigh. “Just how long do I have to keep demonstrating if you guys leave once you understand the routine, only for newcomers to take your place?”

“How about we wait, then? Wait for the others who don’t know to come and join us!” These people actually did not care for the others at all, but now that Gu Fei had mentioned it, in order not to further trouble this expert, they were willing to make sacrifices and show the admirable trait of being considerate and willing to wait for those interested in learning this to turn up.

And so, the crowd of players began to wait patiently. Gu Fei, who had been at it for a whole afternoon now, was feeling a little weary, so he sat on the ground to rest up. At this point, plenty of players who were curious at the large gathering of the crowd, came over to take a look. What they saw was a Mage in black robe sitting in the middle of the crowd and those around him not saying a word. These players all wondered what sort of performance they had stumbled upon. Some attempted to ask those around for an explanation, but all they got was a gesture for them to remain quiet. Everybody seemed to realize that their hero was resting, and none of them dared to make a noise.

All the latecomers to this situation could not bear to leave despite not knowing what was going on, so this crowd only increased in size until even Brother Assist, who was still under the same tree, was enveloped in it. Some of those already in the crowd looked back to see if there were still people arriving, only to get quite a fright when all they could see was a mass of players behind them; how could they even check to see if there were more joining in?

“You’re really a good guy!” Brother Assist, who was getting squeezed into this mass of players, privately messaged Gu Fei to express his awe.

The crowd of players thronged, yet Gu Fei enjoyed a good clearing within. At this time, the man stood up and looked around. All he could see was players, so he nodded and said, “This is quite the crowd; while I’m grateful… Do tell me; where are the monsters going to squeeze through now that you’re all here?”

The crowd broke into a cold sweat. The Wilderness Camp was now completely occupied by this mob of players, and all the Campfire Patrollers got slain by them the moment they popped up. As this was all a simulation of reality, this meant that there would never be any possibility of something spawning over something in place. With the entire area brimming with players, the spawn points of monsters would be adjusted accordingly. After all, there was no way that they could overlap on the players. The order in the Wilderness Camp had been completely ruined as a result.

There was no way for his demonstration to begin without any monster, so the players closer to the action began to panic, yelling to those in the outer circle. “Pull a monster in!”

Alas, many of those in the outer perimeter of this crowd had no idea what was happening. They only joined the crowd in the spirit of wanting to see what the hubbub was about, so they were completely oblivious when they heard this shout, yelling back, “What monster?! What for?!”

Almost instantly, the crowd descended into chaos.

“Everyone, silence!” Gu Fei bellowed. It was obvious, though, that his voice alone could not drown out the cacophony of yells around him. After bellowing a few more times, people finally began helping him by echoing his shout until all the players were enthusiastically yelling, “Silence! Silence!” It was quite the phenomenal incongruity. In any case, after a few more rounds of ‘silence’ going around, silence really descended among them. Gu Fei cleared his throat and shouted as loud as he could. “Can those people at the back see me?!”

“No!” a united voice answered.

Gu Fei scratched his head, for there was nothing he could do for them, either. Looking all around him, he suddenly saw a unique rocky outcrop, meters high, in the distance. It was a naturally formed perfect podium; he raised his hand to point over there. “Position yourselves below that rock!”

That rock was very prominent in the Wilderness Camp and was, in fact, a landmark of sorts in the area called 9527, after the longitude of its coordinates.

Everyone in the crowd responded quite enthusiastically to this, fighting with one another as they made their way over. Gu Fei was neither too slow nor too fast as he pushed through the crowd. None dared to get in his way, anxiously giving him space when their paths happened to be intersecting his. Gu Fei was like the eye of a whirlpool moving down a stream; everything spiraled in activity around him, leaving Brother Assist feeling jealous as he was left dizzy with the moving crowd around him.

The players quickly gathered below the 9527 rocky outcrop; a wide lane was intentionally left open for Gu Fei to make his way over. He was like a Hollywood star walking the red carpet. Hefting his robe in the breeze, he slowly walked right below the rock, suddenly pointed his finger upward, and disappeared. The crowd was surprised, but people soon spotted him standing atop the outcrop. Applause and cheers resounded, even as a good portion of the people gathered asked, “What’s all this about?”

“Watch and you’ll find out.” Those in the know were too lazy to explain it.

“Get a monster over!” Gu Fei called out.

There were of course plenty of monsters now, but drawing a monster over was hardly an easy task, especially when everyone thought that they had to bring it atop the outcrop. When Gu Fei saw how they were all clueless as to how to achieve this, he directly addressed the crowd. “Get a Fighter to bring a monster up here with Seismic Toss!”

Suddenly coming to this realization, they began searching for Fighters in their midst.

Following which, many Fighters stepped out and ran forth to grab hold of monsters. Gu Fei glanced at the time and saw that this had dragged on past his dinner. His friends list was lit by the glow of players online.

“Sir, where are you? Why aren’t you here yet?” The messages from his students began coming in.

Gu Fei laughed bitterly, replying, “Your teacher’s about to erupt.”

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