Chapter 235: Rankings
At the same time,
Shavin Empire, King's Capital Troon, Zui Jue Residence
A Dark Elf girl draped in a black cloak silently appeared in a large room, where dim firelight flickered. The stone chair nearby was empty, only the persistent darkness stubbornly lingered, like a shadow that had lost its body.
“She’s not here after all…”
Ji Xiaodao murmured softly, then gently waved her hand to extinguish the gloomy firelight on the walls. She then turned and left the large room, stepping into the not-so-bright sunlight.
The next second, a crisp system notification sounded in her ear…
“Dear player: Ji Dao, congratulations! You have ranked third on the ‘Player Individual Combat Power Ranking’ and seventh on the ‘Player Comprehensive Strength Ranking’. Given that your alignment is chaotic evil, you can choose to hide your name. Please select whether to hide.”
“Hide.”
The girl answered without hesitation.
“You have hidden your name. Please select a profession to display on the ranking. (Hint: Profession is mandatory. If no selection is made, the player’s current highest-level profession will be automatically defaulted to).”
Ji Xiaodao hesitated for a moment, then whispered, “Rogue.”
“Your public profession on the ranking is: Rogue. Players have three opportunities each month to change their public profession before leaving the ranking. This operation must be completed in the Public Space.”
After this explanation, the system notification stopped sounding.
“I can only choose to be Anonymous, but I can’t remove myself from the ranking… And I have to at least display one profession…”
The Dark Elf girl slowly walked into the main hall of the Zui Jue Residence. After casually dismissing the trusted servants Garros had sent, she returned to her room to ponder. She sat gracefully on the long chair by the window, her slender legs gently crossed, and a hint of relief flashed in her crimson eyes: “chaotic evil players can hide their names, huh? Heh, that’s really thoughtful. Good, this way I don’t have to worry about my sister and those guys figuring it out…”
No player can voluntarily leave the ranking, and players outside the 【chaotic evil】 alignment cannot hide their names on the ranking. These two points could be easily deduced from the recent system notification. It must be said that this saved Ji Xiaodao a lot of trouble, as she had always presented herself as a casual scenery-lover to her sister and those who could be considered friends. And a casual scenery-lover obviously couldn't appear in such terrifying positions as third in individual combat power and seventh in comprehensive strength.
No fool would believe that!
So, what level of player is capable of being ranked in this position by the system?
Let’s take a look…
【Ji Dao】
HP: 640 / 640
Stamina: 420 / 420
Mana: 420 / 420
Acuity: 1640 / 1640
Professions: Rogue Lv15, Shadow Swordsman Lv21
Faith: None
Alignment: chaotic evil
Talents: Sin of No Heart, Paradox, Solo Dance, Tragic Despair (Inactive)
Basic Attributes: Strength 10, Dexterity 77, Wisdom 32, Constitution 32
Civilized Attributes: Eloquence 10, Charisma 30, Knowledge 35, Leadership 20
Combat Attributes: One-Handed Weapon Mastery Lv20, Melee Specialization Lv10, Cunning School Lv18, Shadow School Lv22, Fire Element School Lv20, Wind Element School, Water Element School Lv20, Thunder Element School Lv15, Earth Element School Lv10
Skills: Triple Spin Dance, Wind Calamity, Shadow Meld, Ghostly Flash, Shadow Weave, Blazing Sword Wheel, Dark Ice Storm, Treacherous Wind Iaijutsu, Nether Thunder Shock, Filth Earth Intercept, Puppet Sword Pierce, Puppet Sword Limb Sever, Puppet Sword Black Scar, Wind and Thunder Sword Shadow Bombardment, Triple Control, Shadow Blessing, Shadow Affinity (Passive), Sin of No Heart Style One: No Sorrow (Temporarily Unavailable)
Equipment:
Head: Silver-Patterned Hairband (Enchantment: High-Rank Eagle Eye) - Excellent
Shoulder: Black Curse Gauze (Enchantment: Fire Element Amplification) - Fine - Set
Cloak: Elegant Long Scarf (Enchantment: Ice Element Amplification) - Fine
Chest: Judy’s Lament (Enchantment: Earth Element Amplification) - Unique Fine
Legs: Wind Dancer Leggings (Enchantment: Thunder Element Amplification) - Fine
Shoes: Graceful Dance Boots (Enchantment: Wind Element Amplification) - Fine
Wrist: Black Curse Bandage (Enchantment: Shadow Amplification) - Fine - Set
Hands: Black Curse Gloves (Enchantment: Greater Agility) - Fine - Set
Main Hand: silent return (Enchantment: Armor Penetration) - Unique Fine - Growable
Off Hand: night rain (Enchantment: Magic Penetration) - Unique Fine - Growable
Ring 1: Old Grudge - Unique Epic
Ring 2: Enduring Affection - Unique Fine
Amulet: Black Curse Skull - Fine - Set
Special Equipment: Uncrowned One’s Sash (Built-in Weapon: 10/10) - Fine
The above is Ji Xiaodao’s complete character data, representing the strength of the player ranked third on the Player Individual Combat Power Ranking. At this stage, no matter from what angle… it is extremely brutal…
Actually, these are all nonsense. How could she achieve such terrifying strength as third in individual combat power if she wasn't brutal?
“So, it’s not that I’m really weak.” Ji Xiaodao casually pulled out the rapier, which was already a bit outdated, from her inventory and softly muttered to herself, “It’s just that the two people I met happened to be the only two monsters stronger than me in this broken game, which is really…”
She shook her head and got up to leave the room.
Although that guy hadn’t come online yet, there were still mountains of things to deal with.
“I must be crazy…”
…
Real-world time AM 03:08
Mo Tan, who had just finished celebrating the New Year with the Wang Wang Squad on Tian Zhu Mountain (mainly the three players celebrating, the fake teeth duo just went along for the fun), got out of his game pod. After washing his face, using the restroom, and drinking a cup of coffee, he lay on the sofa and began to actively switch personalities, taking nearly twenty minutes to revert to the ‘Absolute Neutral’ state.
He didn’t know if it was his imagination, but recently he felt that the time it took him to actively switch was getting longer and longer. Well, switching from the Absolute Neutral state to the other two personalities was still relatively normal.
…
Game time AM 00:03
“Your mental connection has been detected.”
“Entering 【Innocent World】 — Player Public Space.”
“Hint: After the update on February 1, 2049, public areas 1-30 have been unified.”
“Accessing public area. Since you have chosen to directly access the Public Space, you cannot leave the designated area to enter the You'an Dense Forest. All space-teleportation spells/skills/talents/effects/items will be frozen.”
“Welcome, Absolute Neutral Black Vatican.”
…
This time, Mo Tan did not appear in that single cell, nor was he prompted with “Do you want to blur your appearance?”. Instead, he appeared directly in a vast space.
He was spawned in a silver-white plaza. Besides the bustling players, there was nothing else around. Fortunately, this boundless space was indeed large enough that even during the peak online period of New Year’s Day night, Mo Tan didn't feel crowded, only that it was extraordinarily lively.
The next second, a system notification appeared before him — “Player: Chen Wangyu (Absolute Neutral) invites you to teleport to her side. Do you accept?”
Mo Tan smiled slightly and immediately chose to accept.
The next second, he appeared in front of a giant light screen. Besides a large crowd of noisy players, there were also several familiar figures.
A red-haired beastman with a war drum at his waist—this was Huo Yan Yang.
A humanoid creature carrying a staff—this was Cordova.
A long-haired beauty with wings on her back—this was Ji Xiaoge.
A Dark Elf wearing a snow-white robe—this should be Ji Xiaodao.
A little saintess with a slight smile—this was Yu Cheng.
A man who looked handsome but was actually a Zombie—this was Yi Dong.
A golden-haired elf who was so handsome he looked a bit effeminate—this was Kang Lan, who had almost Photoshopped himself into another person.
Well, actually, Mo Tan didn’t recognize that it was Kang Lan, but he could use the process of elimination…
“The new features in the Public Space are very convenient~” Yu Cheng smiled sweetly at Mo Tan, sticking out her tongue: “But it seems they won’t be available after a while, hmm, that’s what the system said.”
Ji Xiaoge made a funny face at Mo Tan and joked, “Long time no see~”
Although it was obviously a joke, for Mo Tan, who had just parted ways with Ji Xiaoge on Tian Zhu Mountain not long ago, this sentence felt a bit too out of place.
He shrugged: “I was working, just finished and came online. I don’t even know if someone will drag me away midway later~”
“Tch.” A certain Zombie rolled his eyes discreetly not far away.
Kang Lan chuckled, patted Mo Tan’s shoulder, and then pointed at the light screen behind him, saying, “Look at this, look at this! The new feature they talked about during the upgrade, I’m on the ranking! Holy cow, I’m actually on the ranking!”
Mo Tan looked up…
【Player Combat Power Ranking】
No.1: ??? - Summoner
No.2: Cordova - neutral good - Deputy
No.3: ??? - Rogue
No.4: Xing Long - lawful neutral - Monk
No.5: Christina Yuke - neutral good - Dragon
No.6: Old Dou Ge - chaotic good - Jungle Ranger
No.7: ??? - Necromancer
No.8: Seventy-Six Sticks - lawful evil - Shaman Priest
No.9: Feng Liu - lawful evil - Swordsman
No.10: Lan Yue Meng - lawful good - Cleric
The remaining ninety names will not be listed individually.
…
Mo Tan’s first reaction after reading it was to look back at Cordova: “Second, huh? Impressive, impressive.”
“Oh, it’s nothing, just luck.” Cordova said nonchalantly, but his wide mouth was already stretched to his ears, a look of smugness on his face.
Kang Lan cleared his throat: “I’m here too, I’m also on it.”
Ji Xiaoge peered around for a long time: “Where is it?”
“No.79: Luen Zhoulan - neutral good - Jungle Ranger.”
Ji Xiaodao said faintly from the side.
Wan Yang immediately burst out laughing, pointing at Kang Lan and saying, “You and Yu Ge are almost eighty ranks apart, and you still have the nerve to challenge him to a fight?”
“I didn’t know Yu Ge was so fierce.” Kang Lan gave a dry laugh, his head drooping somewhat dejectedly, and he mumbled, “But this ranking isn’t necessarily accurate, what if I can beat him…”
He said that, but anyone could tell that he had absolutely no confidence left in his heart.
“Speaking of which, what’s with all those question marks?” Yi Dong looked curiously at Cordova and Kang Lan, wondering, “Can this thing be Anonymous?”
Both shook their heads, stating that they received a prompt directly after logging in, then were asked to choose a public profession, and there was no option to be Anonymous.
Someone present did know, but a certain Dark Elf girl disguised as a scenery-lover certainly wouldn’t say.
“Who knows~” Huo Yan Yang, the War Priest support, looked at the ranking, which had nothing to do with him, with considerable indignation, and snorted, “Maybe they’re not online or have some special reason, who cares.”
Besides them, there were a large number of people around also discussing the ranking. ‘Xing Long’ and ‘Feng Liu’ seemed to be quite well-known, with many people marveling at them, while also questioning the unknown first and third places, and complaining about the completely unfamiliar second place, which was the obscure Cordova…
However, Mo Tan didn't pay too much attention to these, merely continuing to quietly browse the ranking.
Soon, he found a familiar name…
No.23: Shuang Ye - chaotic neutral - Law Bender
“As expected, so strong!”
Mo Tan secretly sighed in his heart, then weighed the strength of his various characters, and immediately felt that finding an opportunity to take down Shuang Ye would indeed be quite difficult. One must know that his strongest character, ‘Mo’, wasn’t even on the ranking. Even a simple estimation would reveal how powerful that SUN was, plus the ‘Law Bender’ profession, which, though unclear, sounded incredibly cool.
None of his three characters appeared on the ‘Individual Combat Power Ranking’, which was a very normal thing. After all, Mo Tan’s game time was literally three-quarters less than other players. If he could still stand out here, that would be cheating…
In short, besides Shuang Ye, Kang Lan, and Cordova, everyone else on the ranking in front of him was unfamiliar to Mo Tan, well, probably.
At the same time, Ji Xiaodao was also looking with interest at a position further down on the light screen…
No.92: Gawen - chaotic evil - Juggler
Although she had received the news within half an hour of coming online, Xiao Dao was still genuinely impressed by the progress the girl, who had been completely helpless not long ago, had made in just a few days.
Hmm, in less than a few seconds, Gawen’s ranking had moved up a little further. It seemed she definitely wouldn’t drop off anytime soon.
“As for that first place…”
Ji Xiaodao pouted. Who else could it be but that monster who instantly killed the second-place holder with a single skill?
A moment later, everyone successively teleported into the Public Arena located above the Public Space. Huo Yan Yang and Kang Lan had already gone ahead to open a room.
However, just a few seconds before being teleported, Mo Tan glanced at the ‘Player Comprehensive Strength Ranking’ in the distance and was surprised to find Ji Xiaoge’s name near the top. Although Yu Cheng was also among them, it was only natural for a saintess of a major church to have such a level.
No.10 - Ye Ge - chaotic neutral - Chef
No.5 - Chen Wangyu - Absolute Neutral - Priest
No.17 - Tan Mo - chaotic neutral - Thief
…
“Truly super user-friendly…”
Chapter 230: End
