Modern online games come in all kinds of styles, but the one Ian Song and his two companions are playing is a wuxia game called "Sword Saint."
Of course, this game was recommended by Mason Hu, who claimed it was incredibly fun.
Ian put on the helmet and switched it on. Instantly, he felt a special energy inside the helmet trying to grab hold of his consciousness.
He didn’t resist, letting part of his consciousness get pulled away. By contrast, Mason Hu and Evan Lin had about eighty percent of their minds drawn into the game world, leaving them half-unconscious. Ian, however, stayed fully alert. Of course, if their bodies were attacked or stimulated, their minds would snap back from the game instantly.
Once Ian’s consciousness entered the game world, it transformed into a handsome young man dressed in coarse cloth.
Then, a quest window appeared. The first task: kill three wild rabbits and bring their pelts to Blacksmith Liu in the village to exchange for an iron sword.
Ian swung his fists and stretched his legs, quickly realizing that his strength was only about average for a normal person.
However, the game system only gave out the quest without telling him where the rabbits were.
This didn’t stump Ian. He simply asked around for Blacksmith Liu’s location and went there to wait. Surely, other newbies would have the same quest. Instead of searching all over for rabbits, why not just wait here and let the quest come to him?
Sure enough, before long, another young man in coarse clothes came running over, holding three rabbit pelts in his hand.
Suddenly, Ian had a thought—could he just rob the other player’s rabbit pelts and use them to get the iron sword?
After all, it was just a game, so Ian didn’t hesitate. He stepped forward and blocked the other guy’s path.
"What do you want?" the other player asked.
"Robbery. Hand over the rabbit pelts!" Ian snarled fiercely.
"What?"
The other player froze, not expecting someone would actually try to rob rabbit pelts.
"Hand them over!"
Taking advantage of the other player’s daze, Ian snatched the rabbit pelts right out of his hands. Only then did the guy react, shouting, "Give me back my rabbit pelts!"
"Get lost!"
Ian kicked the guy away and went straight to the blacksmith’s shop, easily trading the pelts for an iron sword.
At the same time, the system notified him that he’d completed the first quest.
Soon after, the system issued another quest: kill wild pheasants to collect 'pheasant treasures' and sell them for silver. Ian couldn’t be bothered, so he just went to the market and robbed a bunch of people, snatching fifty pheasant treasures from five players. After selling them, he pocketed fifty taels of silver.
Then came the third and fourth quests.
The third quest: use ten taels of silver to buy a horse.
The fourth quest: go to any of the nine major sects and become a disciple.
After a few rounds of robbery, Ian was hooked. He didn’t bother buying a horse—he just hung out at the horse market, waiting to rob newbies as they came to buy one.
When he rode out of the Starter Village on a stolen horse, the third quest was complete.
The newbie he robbed, meanwhile, cursed Ian’s entire family up and down.
It’s worth mentioning that time in this game runs at a rate of one year in-game for every one day in the real world.
Sword Saint is fun because it’s so realistic. You can play by the book, or you can play like Ian and break all the rules.
Ian got bored after three months in Sword Saint and logged out of the game world.
Still, his name became famous in the game. He was notorious for breaking conventions, pulling dirty tricks, and doing all sorts of shameless things. In just three months, he’d become the chief of a major mountain bandit stronghold, leading a gang of bandits to terrorize the region.
Countless players became his victims.
He glanced at Evan Lin and Mason Hu, who were still totally absorbed in the game, with no intention of logging out.
It was nearly seven in the evening, so Ian just shook them awake.
Both of them seemed reluctant to leave the game.
But after checking the time, they knew they had to head back to the hotel. If the deputy minister caught them, she’d definitely nag them to death.
In another room, Erin Cooper angrily logged out of the game, cursing, "So infuriating! Absolutely infuriating!"
Daisy Morgan, who logged out right after her, couldn’t help but ask, "Erin, who are you cursing at?"
"Some guy named Ian Song." Just saying the name made Erin grit her teeth in frustration.
"What did he do to make you so angry?" Daisy Morgan asked, curious.
"Back in the Starter Village, that guy tried to rob my silver. I refused, and he beat me half to death. Later, he became a bandit, and I joined the Emei Sword Sect. Then, during a bandit-suppression quest, I ran into him again—and he killed me.
Ever since, I’ve tried to get revenge, but I never succeeded. He killed me nine times—nine times!"
"Pfft!"
Hearing Erin’s story, Daisy Morgan couldn’t help but burst out laughing. She thought to herself, you really are persistent—getting killed so many times and still wanting revenge.
Erin went on, "After that, I got smarter. I did a bunch of quests and even learned a sword technique. Then I went to look for that guy again. But guess what? He deleted his game account. Which means I’ll never get my revenge!"
Daisy Morgan consoled her, "Come on, Erin, it’s just a game. Don’t get so worked up. Let’s head back to the hotel!"
"Hmph, just wait till I find out who Ian Song is. I’ll never let him off!" Erin said, shaking her fist fiercely.
Meanwhile, Ian and his two friends opened their door and stepped out.
By coincidence, Erin and Daisy Morgan stepped out of their room at the same time.
The moment Mason Hu saw Erin, he instinctively glanced behind her. When he spotted Daisy Morgan, his eyes lit up and he started to approach, but Erin shot him a glare and snapped, "You again? Why do you keep haunting me?"
Mason Hu ignored Erin and gazed dreamily at Daisy Morgan. "Miss Daisy, are you two here to play games too?"
"Who said you could call me Daisy? Buzz off!"
Erin stepped forward, blocking Mason Hu’s view and glaring at him even more fiercely.
Mason Hu couldn’t hold back anymore. He pointed at Erin and said, "Hey, what’s your deal? I haven’t done anything to you, so why are you always glaring at me?"
"Because I don’t like you!"
With that, Erin swung her large palm at Mason Hu.
"You’re being ridiculous! You think I’m afraid of you?"
Mason Hu snorted and threw a punch to meet her.
Bang!
Palm met fist. Mason Hu was knocked back a few steps, while Erin stood her ground, looking at him with disdain. "Pathetic!"
"You... One more time!"
Humiliated in front of the girl he liked, Mason Hu couldn’t stand it. He charged at Erin, unleashing a flurry of Baji Quan attacks.
But Erin was stronger and tougher. After ten moves, she knocked Mason Hu back with a single palm strike. When he tried to rush her again, Evan Lin held him back.