Kalis bent down to pick up the dark gold-glowing skill book. The moment his fingertips touched the cover, the system panel popped up with the attribute description:
[Crystal Barricade (Rare Skill)]
Level Requirement: Advanced to Official Class (After Class Advancement)
Class Requirement: Mage
Effect: Summons a crystal barrier that absorbs damage equal to 130% of your Spell Attack Power. The barrier has no base defense attributes and lasts 32 seconds.
Mana Cost: 12
Cooldown: 28 seconds
"This skill was tailor-made for me!" Ecstasy flashed in Kalis's eyes.
Amplified ten thousand times by the [Ultimate Amplification] talent, this barrier could absorb an astonishing 279,100 points of damage (207 Attack Power × 130% × 10,000)—equivalent to a mobile fortress!
With a 32-second duration and 28-second cooldown, it could almost be used seamlessly. Even if besieged by ten thousand people, he could withstand the damage head-on.
But this joy was quickly dampened by reality.
The skill required advancing to an official class to learn, and the [Eternal Hatred Curse] prevented him from entering any temple for class advancement.
This meant this god-tier skill would have to stay in his backpack for the time being.
"Augustus's curse is really frustrating." Kalis sighed helplessly, put away the skill book, and continued pushing deeper into the Shadow Marsh. The tedious grind of monster hunting continued.
Ten minutes, twenty minutes... Time passed slowly, and Kalis's experience bar grew steadily. An hour and a half later, he successfully reached Level 37.
It had been nearly five hours since the server launched. Most players had left the starting village one after another, flocking to major main cities to form teams and challenge dungeons.
Just then, three consecutive system announcements echoed across the entire zone, shattering the marsh's tranquility:
[Zone Announcement: Congratulations to the player team "Kalis Shall Perish" for the first clear of the Level 25 Main Quest Dungeon [Hidden Outpost]!
First clear players: Shadow Claw・Vaelen, Shadow Claw・Gareth, Shadow Claw・Bjorn!]
[Announcement: Congratulations to the player team "Kalis Shall Perish"...]
[Announcement: Congratulations to the player team "Kalis Shall Perish"...]
Kalis: "???"
The team name in the announcement was an obvious provocation.
He immediately recognized it was the Shadow Claw Guild Vaelen, and the others he had killed nearly five hundred times in the starting village were retaliating in this way.
The communicator rang instantly.
Lenore's lively voice came through, filled with anger: "Kalis! What the hell! How dare these bastards insult you? They're so arrogant! Using a name like that for the first dungeon clear, they're obviously looking for trouble!"
Following closely was Eira's calm supplement: "Their first clear of the Level 25 dungeon means they've formed a team with all basic classes.
Their equipment and levels must have improved significantly. Shadow Claw has a huge number of members; they can probably rally ten thousand people now. A head-on fight would be disadvantageous for you."
"I know." A cold smile curved Kalis's lips. "I killed them hundreds of times in the starting village. These guys hold grudges."
"But now isn't the right time. I haven't advanced my class, so I can't learn [Crystal Barricade] or more damage skills. Facing ten thousand people, even if I can kill a thousand, I'll still lose levels; it's not worth it."
He was now Level 37. Dying once would deduct 25% of his experience, dropping him back to Level 36.
Not to mention wasting a lot of time making up for the experience, it was completely uneconomical.
"So we just let them get away with it?" Lenore shouted unwillingly. "That's not like you! Before, whoever messed with you, you'd chase them until they quit the game!"
"Endure? Not a chance." Kalis's eyes turned sharp. "Once I find a hidden class to advance, learn [Crystal Barricade] and more skills, Shadow Claw's good days will be over.
They want to build a guild territory? They'll never get the chance! By the way, have you heard any news about Mage's hidden classes? I can't enter any temples to advance now, it's a bit troublesome."
Eira spoke up at the right time: "I logged off briefly to check the forums. There's a lot of discussion about hidden classes.
One player shared that he triggered a hidden quest in an NPC town outside the main city. He helped an exiled Mage lift a curse and successfully advanced from Assassin Apprentice to [Shadow Ranger]. Maybe you can try looking for clues in NPC towns, you might trigger a Mage-type hidden class."
"An NPC town?" Kalis's eyes lit up. He had only been thinking about killing monsters to level up, forgetting that hidden classes were often hidden in side quests or special NPC interactions.
Lenore quickly added, "People on the forums also say that triggering a hidden class doesn't necessarily require killing monsters.
Sometimes, completing special dialogues or finding hidden items works! You're good-looking, you have a lot of admirers in real life. Maybe you can impress some mysterious NPC with your charm?"
"Cut the nonsense." Kalis chuckled and opened the map to search for the nearest NPC town.
Soon, a town named [Silverpeak Hamlet] appeared in his view, located in a mountain valley on the edge of the Shadow Marsh, only 12 kilometers from his current position.
"Found it. I'll head over now to check." Kalis immediately changed direction and raced toward Silverpeak Hamlet.
Silverpeak Hamlet was small, mainly providing supplies and small quests for players leveling in the wilderness.
Two militia guards in leather armor and holding short spears stood outside the town. When they saw Kalis approaching, their eyes were filled with obvious hostility, clearly the effect of the [Eternal Hatred Curse].
[Silverpeak Hamlet Militia]
Level: 25
HP: 550,000/550,000
These militiamen's attributes were no match for Kalis, but their NPC status showed "Friendly - Unattackable." He didn't bother arguing and walked straight into the town.
The town had a peaceful atmosphere. Several NPC women were drying herbs and weaving cloth outside their houses, and a few children were chasing and playing on the streets.
He was the first player to enter Silverpeak Hamlet since the server launched. All NPCs looked at him curiously; only the militiamen and town guards related to "war" still had unfriendly eyes.
"Young adventurer, please wait!" A woman wearing a linen headscarf and a coarse cloth dress took the initiative to approach, her face full of anxiety. "My daughter Leah went to pick berries outside the town and hasn't returned yet. Can you help me find her?"
"Ding～ Accept the side quest [Missing Maiden]?" A system notification popped up.
Kalis shook his head firmly: "Sorry, I have more important matters to attend to."
Disappointment flashed in the woman's eyes, and she turned around and left silently. He wandered around the town, scanning every NPC in an attempt to find clues related to Mages.
Unfortunately, after walking around, all he saw were farmers, blacksmiths, laundresses, and children, not a single spellcaster in sight.
"Looks like this was a waste of time." Just as Kalis was about to leave, hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the town. A militiaman covered in blood with broken armor stumbled in, his HP only 6% remaining, his face filled with terror.
"It's a disaster! We're doomed!" The militiaman roared, his voice trembling. "A group of [Abyssal Burrowers] suddenly swarmed out of the Silverpeak Mine! All the miners have been attacked! Hurry and send someone to report to the Valorian City Lord's Mansion! If it's too late, the entire town will be destroyed!"
At the same time, a system notification sounded in Kalis's ear:
"Triggered Public Quest [Catastrophe of Silverpeak Hamlet]! Deliver the alert to the Valorian City Lord's Mansion or War Hall to receive rewards: 120,000 Experience Points, 12 Gold Coins, Silverpeak Hamlet Reputation +500!"
Looking at the quest rewards, Kalis couldn't help but feel a little tempted. But then he thought—he was the top-level player and the solo killer of a Mythic Boss. Why would he need to run errands to deliver messages?
"Why not charge directly into the mine and kill all these Abyssal monsters in one shot? It's much more efficient." A confident smile curved Kalis's lips.
He turned around and walked toward the Silverpeak Mine outside the town.
He hadn't found any clues about the hidden class yet, but he had no reason to refuse the experience and reputation that came right to his door.