001 Underwater Adventure!

The Ogras continent is divided into thirty-two regions, all located along the borders of the mainland, where the environment is rather harsh. Deserts, plateaus, ravines, abysses, fissures, and barren wastelands are common sights. Players who reach level thirty must use the teleportation array set by the High Judge in the main city to enter the grand map. This is a one-way portal—returning requires a hearthstone or a special teleportation scroll.

Morning Wind entered Region Twelve, a stretch of stony desert with a small human outpost nestled beneath a cliff, well-hidden from view. It would be difficult for the Horde to discover this outpost, and even if they did, conquering it would not be easy. In a sense, this was humanity’s sanctuary on the Ogras continent—their last paradise.

The reason for choosing the stony desert of Region Twelve was its proximity to the southern island of the Ghana Sea. Morning Wind intended to search for an Assault Fragment there. Of the six fragments, Morning Wind already possessed two, knew that one was on the southern island of the Ghana Sea, and another at the Ice Lake. For now, the Ice Lake was beyond Morning Wind's reach; without attaining level forty, entering it would mean being frozen solid in an instant.

Seal form!

Morning Wind had never visited the southern island of the Ghana Sea before, so this pioneering mission was naturally undertaken with a shapeshifter alt. In seal form, he could swim freely through the sea, easily avoiding high-level monsters and enjoying a bit of exploration. With the magic ring equipped, he no longer feared being tracked.

The outpost in Region Twelve was twenty nautical miles from the southern island. It would take Morning Wind some time to get there. The island itself was riddled with Horde outposts, with patrols ten times more numerous than those in empire territories. To find a single fragment on such an island would be extremely difficult. For now, with no apparent advantages to leverage in the grand map, Morning Wind decided to search for this fragment first.

Level thirty-three man-eating sharks, level thirty-eight tuna, level forty-two red demon octopuses, level forty-eight trident fishmen…

As a seal, Morning Wind could dart swiftly through the waters, passing by many high-level beasts. Luckily, aquatic creatures were less sensitive to others of their kind, and he did his best to avoid them and keep out of combat. If attacked and forced into combat, his seal form would immediately dissolve, which would be disastrous. Spending more than a minute underwater would see his health plummet at a rate visible to the naked eye.

Along the way, Morning Wind spotted several treasure chests, but fifty-level sea snake sentries guarded them. He dared not approach for now and simply noted their coordinates for another time. Ordinary chests held little value for him—he made notes as he went, planning to revisit them when searching for Assault Fragments in the future.

After nearly two hours of swimming, fatigue set in. Morning Wind settled atop a coral reef to rest. No sooner had he landed and prepared to sit for a moment than a flicker of orange light caught his eye ahead. In-game, what was the most mysterious color? Orange! Wherever that glow appeared, treasure was sure to await.

As he was about to investigate, he noticed three blue sea snakes patrolling the rocks nearby—level sixty, elite black venom sea snakes. A brush with their poison would drain one hundred percent of maximum health in ten seconds, a terrifying prospect. And that was just the effect of the venom, not counting the snakes’ attacks.

Elite creatures! Six hundred thousand health points—how could he kill them? A level gap of thirty meant certain death! With such formidable guardians for that orange glow, how could Morning Wind possibly claim the treasure? Orange-glowing loot was clearly out of reach; he felt it hopeless.

Just as he was about to give up, a plan sprang to mind. Unsure if it would work, he set a spatial teleportation flag at his location, then hearthstoned back to the main city and bought some shark blood lure from the seafood merchant. The scent of shark blood would attract surrounding sea creatures for thirty seconds. Many had once used this trick to pilfer underwater chests.

Thirty seconds was a short window. Ordinary players would never escape in time; the black venom sea snakes would sense them and attack before they could even open the chest—instant death, no hope of success.

To approach the chest without alerting the sea snakes, Morning Wind would have to take a roundabout route, costing valuable time. Opening the chest would require five to ten seconds—no fixed duration. So even with thirty seconds, danger loomed.

An orange chest! He had only discovered it by entering the grand map early—there was truth in the saying that the earlier you enter, the greater your advantage. But to seize treasure early, one needed strength. All his preparations now seemed more than justified.

One hundred meters.

Morning Wind chose a starting point one hundred meters from the orange chest. At his maximum swimming speed of ten meters per second, bypassing the rocks and avoiding the black venom sea snakes would take about eighteen seconds. That left twelve seconds to open the chest—undetected. In an ideal scenario, this would suffice. But the ocean floor was unfamiliar territory; he conservatively guessed the detour might take up to twenty-four seconds.

He checked his equipment and skills, ensuring he had a retreat option in case of failure. A trial run along the route took about seventeen seconds. If shark blood drew other sea creatures, it might take even longer.

He had to try. To pass up an orange chest at arm’s reach would be a lifelong regret. If it yielded legendary gear, he’d be set for life—though the odds were one in a thousand; he recalled only one person ever finding orange equipment in the past.

Ready at last, he uncorked the shark blood and hurled it away, then quickly retreated—he must avoid being tainted by the scent, or he’d be hunted by every sea creature nearby. He sped behind the coral, then began his detour. The blood turned the water a violent red, spreading rapidly. Hidden, Morning Wind crept forward, watching as the black venom sea snakes and other creatures surged toward the lure.

He dashed for the orange chest, taking care to avoid the other monsters; it took him twenty-one seconds. Without hesitation, he pushed aside the rocks and started opening the chest. Luckily, it was unlocked—otherwise he’d have had to flee immediately.

Let it not take ten seconds!

Five percent, ten, twenty, forty, sixty, seventy-five, ninety-five percent…

At the twenty-ninth second, the orange chest opened. He snatched up its contents and stowed them in his pack before darting away. At his speed, escape was impossible—the black venom sea snakes moved several times faster. Here, his equipment came into play: the Magnetized Gravity Ring, with its magnetism skill.

[Magnetize]: Magnetic skill. Magnetizes two targets within forty meters—choose S or N pole, lasts six seconds. Same poles repel, opposites attract. If heavy metal is nearby, both targets are drawn toward it. If light metal is present, it flies toward both targets. Cooldown: ten minutes. No cost.

Morning Wind magnetized a stone thirty-eight meters away as the S pole and himself as the N pole—the opposites would attract. He was instantly pulled toward the stone; combined with his swimming speed, he left the danger zone in a flash. At that moment, he slipped just beyond the sea snakes’ field of vision. If he could hide before they returned, he’d be safe.

Stealth Escape!

This skill randomly teleports the user twenty meters away—possibly backward—but guarantees three seconds of undetectability. Because of the magnetic effect, Morning Wind was instantly pulled back toward the stone after teleporting twenty meters. Simultaneously, he shifted from seal form to wildcat form. Thanks to the underwater breathing potion he’d taken earlier, he could remain submerged for ten minutes without breaking stealth.

Typically, switching from seal or raven form would revert the player to human form first, but only wildcat form allowed stealth. Thus, he leaped straight from seal to wildcat. After three seconds, he was sure to be discovered, and the magnetic effect still held him fast.

But Stealth Escape was only a ruse to shift into wildcat form! With three seconds of guaranteed undetectability, he gained extra mobility.

Greater Invisibility!

In stealth, Morning Wind activated the magic ring’s Greater Invisibility, gaining two seconds of invulnerability. Since magnetism was a neutral, slightly negative status, he could choose to remove it with invulnerability. He did so, breaking free from its pull. Thanks to the three-second stealth effect of Stealth Escape, even if Greater Invisibility’s concealment was slightly weaker, he would not be detected by the returning sea snakes.

Wild Displacement!

This skill instantly teleports the user twenty meters away and shifts them into wildcat form, entering stealth. Morning Wind used three stealth skills in succession, all to escape. Shapeshifters lacked the rogues’ superior concealment and could only rely on equipment for extra stealth and mobility.

After teleporting, he immediately located a rock to hide behind, avoiding the sea snakes’ attention. Once calm returned, he dared not shift back to human form immediately for fear of discovery, instead slipping away under the cover of stone. Only when he had put a hundred meters between himself and the danger did he transform to human, then back to seal form.

Now, at last, Morning Wind could savor his spoils! What could the orange treasure be, stolen at great peril from elite level-sixty creatures?