Heroes' Prison

Chapter 193 - 191 Dawn of the Hero

"When the Pope’s Angel Legion had already killed the first Boss Fist and brought the Zombie King to his second form, Dao Feng hastily formed an incomplete team, then entrusted the full command to Instakill. Over the next 37 minutes, what unfolded was like a miracle, so inconceivable yet so vividly real. Instakill employed a series of new tactics related to his unique skills, and, in a mere 37 minutes, snatched the first kill from the Angel Legion! And the lead was less than a second! It was so reminiscent of that great basketball game 118 years ago, where victory was grasped by a mere sliver, an almost negligible advantage!"

Following this, the author of the post turned their focus to the Pope’s Angel Legion: "For a single general’s fame, thousands of bones lay dry. What forged Instakill’s success wasn’t the triumph of Dao Feng’s Yanhuang Legion, but the failure of the Pope’s Angel Legion. Had the Pope not launched that sudden attack, Instakill securing the Zombie King’s first kill in 37 minutes would have been but an ordinary first kill. However, the Pope did launch the attack, and under the circumstances of a sudden assault and such a clear lead—where the Pope even employed the level-dropping skill twice—it still could not stop Instakill’s pursuit, ending in a miserable defeat."

"If prior to this, the Pope and his Angel Legion stood atop the world, then this first kill struggle they initiated was akin to casting themselves down from the Altar of the Gods, from then on becoming the laughingstock of the entire world. And judging by today’s approval ratings, the Pope, the Angel Legion, and Heaven’s Guild have all been affected, with a sharp drop in support, and a reputation built over a long period of time destroyed in an instant..."

This post largely represented the current trend of public opinion, where, aside from a portion of American players, the rest were predominantly in support of the Yanhuang Legion. They vehemently criticized the Pope’s Angel Legion, a team that had won the best team award last year yet, in just 37 minutes, ruined all its past honors.

Of course, had the Pope ultimately been victorious, the public sentiment would have been different. Onlookers often judge by the outcome; the victor receives excessive praise, while the loser is subject to unwarranted blame.

Huang Yi returned to the homepage and checked other messages.

In yesterday’s global event, there was also an American player named Fire Dragon who synthesized the first Artificial Energy Stone in the world, but this achievement did not spark the appropriate level of attention amidst the first kill competition.

Huang Yi did want to learn how to synthesize Energy Stones, as they were incredibly rare resources. Currently, only some Rare Classes and Advanced Classes used Energy Stones. But once the Common Class players underwent Job Change and began to use Energy Stones for their Class Ultimate Moves, the already scarce Energy Stones would become a universal necessity, even more precious than before. Huang Yi, possessing the Eye of Time and his Exclusive Skills, Judgment, which required a significant amount of Energy Value to use, would certainly not have enough Energy Stones.

Following that, Huang Yi searched for relevant information about Dragon City.

So far, there were no changes in Dragon City; the Skeleton Army outside just surrounded the city, making no move to attack. Guifu Heilang (Ghost Axe Black Wolf), its leader, hadn’t returned either, leaving his whereabouts unknown. Inside the city, the million inhabitants were mostly suffering from the "hunger" adverse condition, with greatly diminished Attributes; they lacked the strength and morale to fight any longer. These million people would typically log in to check the situation and then log off, waiting for the chance to evacuate.

After reading posts for a while, Huang Yi returned to The Second World.

At this moment, he was still in that same square, which was empty and silent; the bonfire had long since died out, leaving only disorder. Presumably, most people had logged off to go to work.

Huang Yi decided to leave Xuanyuan Town without disturbing anyone and without saying goodbye to anyone. He walked alone toward the South City Gate; Ruoshui had once said that walking south for over ten days would lead him to Dragon City.

The first light of dawn rose, casting its warm glow over the small town. Huang Yi had only been here for one day, yet had met a group of friends. In this cold dawn, he was again ready to proceed alone.

After a long walk, Huang Yi finally left through Xuanyuan Town’s South City Gate.

Outside the gate on the green grass, a girl stood silently!

The golden morning sun shone on her exquisite, youthful body, full of vibrant energy.

She stood on the dew-tipped grass, graceful and elegant, demurely watching Huang Yi as he emerged from within the city, like a celestial angel untouched by the mundane world.

"Ruoshui, why are you here?" Huang Yi asked as he approached the girl.

This girl was indeed Ruoshui. Looking at Huang Yi, she said softly, "I thought you might leave today. You mentioned going to Dragon City, so I waited for you here at the South City Gate."

"Why wait for me?" Huang Yi stood before her.

"Because it’s lonely to hit the road alone, if someone sees you off, then you won’t feel so alone. I know you’re someone who is on a hero’s path, and Ruoshui is just an ordinary girl who can’t walk that road with you, so I’m satisfied just to see you off," Ruoshui said with a bite of her lip, her clear eyes fixed on Huang Yi.

"It’s not that dramatic. I’m just walking my own path," Huang Yi said as he handed her his business card. "This is my card; keep it. If you need anything in the future, feel free to call me."

"Okay!" Ruoshui’s eyes brightened as she happily accepted the card, then handed her own to Huang Yi, "This is Ruoshui’s card, take it too, Brother Instakill! I really hope that one day in the future, when I open my eyes to a dawn just like this one, with the rising sun outside the window, and dew glistening on the grass blades. Then, I receive a message from you—it could be about anything, even just a simple ’good morning’—I will be happy for a long time. It would let me know that on that distant path I cannot reach, you are doing well."

Huang Yi lowered his head with a smile, took Ruoshui’s business card, and placed it into his storage ring.

"I have to go to class in a bit, and this is probably the last time I’ll see you in this life! After school, when I log on again, you will have already gone far away. But no matter what, Ruoshui will always be waiting here for you, no matter when you come back, you can find me. Before that, I hope you take my prayers with you and climb over mountains and ridges, no longer traveling alone."

After saying that, Ruoshui walked a few steps forward, stopped in front of Huang Yi, bowed her head, closed her eyes, and placed her hands in front of her chest in a prayer gesture.

"I pray that the person standing before me can carve out a path to the distant lands; I pray that every inch of land he travels is sprinkled with morning sun and dew; I pray that when he reaches the end, countless people are celebrating and cheering; I pray that he can meet the one he loves and embrace them in the fade of the evening lights..."

The golden sunrise shone on Ruoshui, dyeing her hair a golden hue, her long eyelashes sparkling slightly, her complexion fair and moist.

At that moment, Huang Yi was very close to her, so close he could smell her fragrance and feel her breath.

"The prayer buff is in place, Ruoshui is logging off now, goodbye, big brother Instakill." Ruoshui suddenly opened her eyes, waved at Huang Yi, and then logged off, disappearing from the spot.

A crystal-clear teardrop fell from where she had disappeared, sparkling in the sunlight.

In the morning light, amidst the green grass, Huang Yi was left alone.

He turned around and walked towards the distant horizon.

...

The sun climbed higher and Huang Yi could no longer see Xuanyuan Town’s silhouette.

At that moment, he was walking through an uninhabited range of mountains, an endless broadleaf forest, with mottled sunlight streaming through the gaps in the leaves to the forest floor, while the birds sang freely, an aura of tranquility and peace pervading the air.

Summer was fast approaching and the weather was starting to heat up. Huang Yi began to sweat lightly, a breeze bringing refreshing coolness.

"Tap tap tap!" At that moment, a group of deer hopped through the woods. Seeing Huang Yi, they kept their distance, their lively eyes fixed on him.

These deer were smaller than normal deer, with fur patterned like that of a zebra, making them quite distinctive.

"Hmm? Those are Spotted Deer." Huang Yi couldn’t help but take a closer look at them, slightly surprised.

Spotted Deer were an extremely rare species, listed as a Second Level endangered animal in the "GITES Convention Appendix II Protection List," issued by the Oskan Royal Academy. They are found in the hilly forests of only a few continents. It was rumored that Yordles were the most adept at raising Spotted Deer, just as Yordles and Spotted Deer were both rare, belonging to the category of Rare Races.

The knowledge Huang Yi had about them was taught to him by the old scholar Luo’an in the small library on the fifth floor of Thornbush City’s Warrior Hall.

However, most players didn’t understand much about this protection convention; most people had only heard of another convention issued by the Oskan Royal Academy, the "Fallen God Covenant"-- Whoever among Heaven’s Chosen first reached Level 100 would receive 2 National Honor Points, and the academy would prioritize nurturing that person, eventually letting them lead the most outstanding group of Heaven’s Chosen to the Fallen God Continent, to investigate the enigmatic death of Bloodhoof the Ascendant, the last Divine Enthronement powerhouse.

This was a world task and a goal that seemed incredibly distant to all players at the moment; after all, reaching Level 100 was an unknown far off event. Moreover, even upon reaching Level 100, one couldn’t immediately undertake this task because the cause of Bloodhoof’s death wasn’t something mere Level 100 players could inquire into; it would take at least Level 200 or 300 to embark on this quest.

Huang Yi paid no attention to the group of Spotted Deer and continued to walk through the Linshan Old Forest, his footsteps disturbing the peace of the woods.

"Boom!" Just then, Huang Yi suddenly stepped on something, which exploded violently!