Lord Of The Lost

And for William what was happening to the other didn't matter, the path forward was clear: to crush the Thief's Path and claim victory, one trait at a time.

A more powerful bandit force is closing in on Border Town, and their intentions are clear: to seize the forbidden power hidden deep within the Black Forest. The time has come for the thieves to launch a large-scale invasion. With Snow Wind City unable to hold back the tide, the border town is left vulnerable and in shambles.

Some players whisper that the thieves' forces, powerful and growing, may be the only ones capable of surviving the catastrophe tied to the Black Forest. In contrast, Border Town appears weak and on the brink of collapse.

William, wiping blood from his spear, remains silent. To him, everyone's fate is determined by their own choices.

The player community is fractured. Some stand with Border Town, while others defect to the thieves, lured by promises of power and freedom. Thieves, while infamous for their brutal reputation, have become an alluring option for some, especially those dissatisfied with the struggles of defending the town.

Even though the Forum Master established a forum for coordination, it's clear not all players operate openly. Many communicate privately through real-world contacts, forming smaller factions and secret organizations. Despite this, the Forum Master's influence remains strong. When he called for players to rally against the thieves, most answered his summons, choosing to stand by his side.

But the Forum Master, too, understands the appeal of the thieves' camp. If he ever switched allegiances, it's likely many players would follow. For now, though, he has chosen to stay on the side of Border Town, weighing the risks and rewards.

As William sees it, the war against the thieves isn't driven by morality, it's about survival. They fight not because thieves burn and pillage, but because they stand in the way of their progress.

Leaving Fengzheng Village, William passed the aftermath to the Forum Master and transformed into a black crow. Spear in hand, he flew across the skies, hunting for the next target.

His enhanced demon wolf senses quickly detected a group of thieves. Swooping down like a black fighter jet, he struck fear into their ranks. Ordinary thieves scattered in all directions, unable to stand against his overwhelming presence.

Among them, however, were extraordinary individuals, thieves with supernatural abilities. William canceled his black crow form and engaged them head-on. His superior attributes and combat skills made him fearless, even against extraordinary opponents of his level.

The fight was brief. In less than five rounds, William decapitated the leading extraordinary thief, his victory swift and absolute.

A familiar notification flashed in William's mind:

- [Your talent, Killing to Prove the Way, has taken effect.]

- [Physical value +0.1, Spirit value +0.08, Energy value +0.05.]

- [You have absorbed the complete extraordinary characteristics of thieves.]

- [You have absorbed harm.]

William surveyed the battlefield, cleaning up the remnants and picking up the fallen Elite Machete, a trophy of his victory.

With each kill, his power grew. However, the higher his stats climbed, the slower the gains from ordinary opponents. Only extraordinary enemies now offered significant progress, their life essence far more potent than that of ordinary thieves.

For William, the path forward was clear: to grow stronger, he must continue to hunt extraordinary foes. And with the border town hanging by a thread, there was no shortage of enemies to face.

Killing ordinary thieves was becoming a chore for William. After slaughtering dozens, he barely managed to scrape together 0.01 attribute points.

It didn't take long for him to realize why this was the case. The extraordinary abilities within these low-level thieves were diluted, almost nonexistent. Their powers lacked the purity needed to form meaningful gains. To accumulate just one set of extraordinary characteristics, hundreds of such thieves would need to be taken down.

The Rogue Path itself seemed to be built on three core characteristic abilities. But were these abilities what defined a thief, or did they merely represent pieces of a larger framework? William didn't have the answer.

What he did know, however, was that killing two extraordinary thieves had given him more than just raw attributes; it had also granted him proficiency in the skill [Harm], one of the foundational cornerstones of the thief's pathway.

For ordinary thieves, [Harm] was a core extraordinary characteristic; a symbol of their path. But for William, it was merely another skill, no different from the basic gunmanship he gained after killing zombie guards.

Still, the more he used [Harm], the more proficient he became. As his mastery grew, the skill became easier and smoother to execute. With enough dedication, William realized, [Harm] could evolve into something indistinguishable from an extraordinary ability.

This sparked a revelation:

"Extraordinary characteristics are nothing more than skills pushed to their absolute limit," William thought.

He envisioned how these pathways might have been created. An individual begins with basic skills, which are gradually refined through talent, experience, and the influence of mysterious forces. Eventually, this process triggers a qualitative transformation, elevating ordinary skills into extraordinary characteristics.

The Rogue Path, like all others, likely began as a raw template, gradually refined and perfected over time.

"A king has the talents of a king, and a chef has the talents of a chef," William mused. "If a chef masters their craft to perfection, they too can awaken extraordinary abilities."

In his case, relentless practice with his spear could lead to the development of similar traits. If he elevated [Harm] to the highest level, he could even combine it with his [Piercing Attack], creating a devastating fusion of skills.

But that day was still far away. For now, William set his sights on a clear objective:

"Next target, the extraordinary thieves, he was going to end them once and for all!"

Hunting the Extraordinary

With determination blazing in his eyes, William leaped into the air scanning for the thiefs.

Whoosh!

He soared across the sky, scanning the landscape with razor-sharp focus. His demon wolf senses heightened his perception, allowing him to detect even the faintest traces of extraordinary activity.

It didn't take long for him to find his next prey.

A group of thieves, dozens strong, had gathered around a single figure; a pot-bellied man with a bare chest and a balding, Mediterranean look. The man exuded an unmistakable aura, one that only extraordinary individuals possessed.

William's instincts flared. This was no ordinary thief. This was an extraordinary one, and William's next challenge had just begun.

Without hesitation, he clenched his fists and descended, ready to strike. The hunt continued.

The Dive Begins

William dove from the sky like a predator locking onto its prey.

[Piercing Attack]!

For the first time since becoming a demon wolf, he unleashed this powerful combat skill. Channeling every ounce of energy in his body, his silver-white spear turned jet black, infused with dark energy. Its tip gleamed menacingly, radiating a sharpness that could make anyone's skin crawl.

Whoosh!

The air roared around him as the force of his dive created a violent vortex. Below, the extraordinary thief, armed with a unique meteor hammer adorned with spiked chains; watched in shock. Reacting instinctively, the thief swung the chain with all his might, hurling the meteor hammer toward William's attack.

Clang!

The clash of metal against metal echoed like a thunderclap. Sparks flew as William's spear shattered the meteor hammer's momentum, sending it spiraling away.

A Relentless Strike

William didn't stop. Folding his wings tightly, he streamlined his body into a deadly spear of his own. The force of his dive was unstoppable, the momentum like an arrow that could never be recalled.

In one swift motion, William's spear pierced straight through the thief's chest.

Phew!

The extraordinary thief's body convulsed as William flapped his wings, lifting him high into the air like a predator carrying its prey. It was like watching a pilot recover a plane just before a crash, pulling up sharply at the last moment.

With a final surge, William soared higher, yanked the meteor hammer from the ground as a trophy, and then released the lifeless body from the spear. The thief's corpse plummeted from the sky, disappearing into the distance like a falling star.

No Time to Rest

Thieves communicated in ways most players couldn't understand, and William knew it was only a matter of time before they realized what was happening. His goal was clear: eliminate as many extraordinary thieves as possible before they could organize a counterattack.

Flying at blistering speeds; over 300 miles per hour, William streaked across the skies of Border Town, hunting his next targets with unrelenting precision.

In just thirty minutes, the results were devastating.

Six extraordinary thieves had fallen by his hand.

William didn't pause to celebrate. With his unmatched agility and the power of his demon wolf form, the hunt was far from over. Every kill brought him closer to dismantling the Thieves' Path and closer to his ultimate goal.