Worldwide Awakening: My Soul Kinds Are Lost

Something's not right. Extremely not right.

Wang Linchi stared at the Abyss Level version of Black Wind Stronghold, keenly noticing the differences.

Previously, he had cleared a Normal and a Nightmare Level, following the route and tactics from the forum guides: minion → Third Master → minion horde → Second Master → minion boss → Head Boss.

He had cleared it very smoothly then. The entire run was just fighting monsters, with no need to consider anything else.

Whether bosses or minions, they were all as rigid as the NPCs in Novice Village, so the guide's strategies worked perfectly.

But the Abyss Level of Black Wind Stronghold was different; these bosses and minions seemed to have come alive.

Moreover, his spawning point was no longer at the foot of Black Wind Stronghold mountain but in the ruins of a village, and it was currently nighttime.

Before Wang Linchi could start investigating, a burly man dressed in sackcloth emerged from the darkness. His sharp long knife was dripping blood. "I never thought this old man would slip up and actually leave a lone young master alive," the man growled.

Wang Linchi immediately recognized him as a minion from Black Wind Stronghold, but he looked completely different from the dungeon version.

Strange patterns had surfaced on his body. Upon closer inspection, quite a few mutations were visible. Although his hands still looked human, they appeared somewhat twisted, and something occasionally squirmed beneath his skin.

[Demonically Transformed Minion LV10, Health (1000/1000)]

Its stats have increased tenfold, haven't they? Wang Linchi noted. The Nightmare Level minions only had 100 Health. After all, they were just minor monsters, not even counting as Elite Monsters, so their attributes and Health couldn't be too high.

Now, it wasn't instantly killed by the Saint Master, even though it was at a disadvantage.

As its Health dropped to 500, Wang Linchi watched the Demonically Transformed Minion's flesh tear apart, transforming it into a Half Human, Half Demon entity. Its combat power increased at least twofold, and its Health was also rapidly regenerating.

However, its regeneration speed couldn't keep up with the damage dealt by the Saint Master's attacks.

Wang Linchi cast "Know Self, Know Other" on himself to increase his hit rate. He then continuously used Literary Warfare, which, enhanced by various equipment, dealt corresponding Fixed Damage.

The damage is a bit low, but I'll just treat it as grinding Proficiency.

He had invested all his Skill Proficiency points into the Passive Skill, Calligraphy. Active Skills could be improved by grinding, but Passive Skills were more challenging—Calligraphy's Proficiency increased by copying books, at a rate of roughly one point per ten thousand characters.

Therefore, he had decisively given up on grinding to improve Passive Skills.

Active Skills, on the other hand, gained one Proficiency point per use, so Wang Linchi wasn't concerned about them.

Under the Saint Master's assault, the Demonically Transformed Minion's Health bar quickly depleted to zero, and it died.

[Your summoned creature has killed the Demonically Transformed Minion. You've gained 1000 Experience Value.]

It didn't drop any money, but it did give Experience Value. There was no major loot explosion on the ground either, which Wang Linchi found strange.

With his Luck stat, after fighting so many monsters, whether in dungeons or quest-related encounters, they would typically drop everything they possibly could.

He had already tested this when he first entered the Black Wind Stronghold dungeon to try it out.

The only thing on the corpse was a black stone. Wang Linchi picked it up—it was a material.

[Abyss Crystal]

[Type: Material]

[Quality: Abyss]

[Use ①: Can be used to exchange for unique rewards once the Abyss Level dungeon is cleared.]

[Use ②: Can be used to exchange for enhancement rewards in all main cities.]

[Use ③: Can be used as a main material to enhance Abyss-quality equipment.]

Seeing this item, Wang Linchi finally understood. Abyss Level didn't drop items, but it did drop exchange materials.

"Could this be the real world?" Wang Linchi murmured.

He reasoned that because they were living beings, it was impossible for them to drop nonexistent items. Therefore, the God-given World probably extracted some kind of power from their bodies to form materialized crystals, which could then be used for exchanges.

Abyss, huh?

Wang Linchi suddenly understood why the Abyss Level dungeon was so difficult and why no one had managed to clear it yet.

He tossed the Abyss Crystal into his Player inventory and then began to search the entire ruined village.

He found no survivors, only a large number of mutilated corpses.

They were eaten. Judging by the tooth marks, they were initially human, but after being eaten, they no longer count as such. Wang Linchi noted. By "no longer count," he wasn't speaking metaphorically but in a biological sense.

The bite marks on the corpses increasingly resembled those of a carnivore, a clear sign of an intensified Degree of Demonic Transformation.

The God-given World wouldn't have sent me to this ruined village for no reason. There must be some deeper meaning. Otherwise, it could have just sent me straight to the entrance of Black Wind Stronghold and let me fight my way up.

Wang Linchi had seen some information about Abyss Level dungeons on the forums, but it wasn't from game studios or gaming clubs; it was from Loose Player Cultivators.

The major gaming factions all wanted to be the first to conquer it.

Rumor had it that the first clear of the Abyss Difficulty for the first three dungeons would come with a server-wide announcement and first-clear rewards, which were said to be extremely generous.

So, these studios and clubs were all vying to be the first.

The rewards themselves were secondary; what truly mattered was the fame and publicity generated by the announcement.

After a thorough search, Wang Linchi found nothing. This was just an ordinary, ruined village.

Where could the turning point be? Surely, I can't just rely on stats to crush everything? How long would that take? Wang Linchi felt a bit helpless.

Some Players were already approaching Level 15, yet no one had managed to clear the Abyss Difficulty of Black Wind Stronghold, a Level 10 instance.

This indicated that relying on stats would require being at least Level 30. Level 10 was for the first class advancement, and Level 30 for the second.

But leveling up wasn't that easy. According to the forums, after the first class advancement, the Experience Value required increased dramatically, starting at one hundred thousand. The game's difficulty also rose significantly because NPCs behaved like real people; there were kind and helpful ones, but also cunning and cruel ones. Many Players had been severely tricked by NPCs.

Fortunately, after the first class advancement, although death resulted in level loss, Players would only drop to Level 10 at the lowest, not to Level 0, which served as a safeguard after class advancement.

If I can't find it, then so be it. I'll just head straight to Black Wind Stronghold. Wang Linchi had already searched three times. If there really was something, even if I were blind, my Luck should have helped me stumble upon it. Since I haven't found it, it means there's truly nothing here.

There's only one path. Black Wind Stronghold should be this way.

Wang Linchi had noticed during his earlier search that there was only one road.

Even if he took the wrong path, it wouldn't matter, as there was only this one.

However, before he even left the village entrance, he detected movement.

Someone's coming? Wang Linchi immediately hid in the dense bushes lining the road. He had recalled the Saint Master because its large size made it difficult to hide, and he could summon it again at any time.

From a distance, he saw a group of people riding... horses?

Damn, are those things horses? Wang Linchi thought.

Their bodies still resembled horses, but they had undergone various grotesque mutations. Some had human heads, while others had pus-filled boils covering their skin.

Even the Black Wind Stronghold bandits riding them only appeared human from a distance; up close, they were clearly monsters.

Even the horses have Health bars and are considered monsters. This difficulty is just too high!

If Wang Linchi's true self were here, or if the Book of Records wasn't suppressed, these bandits and their mounts wouldn't stand a chance against the Saint Master.

Unfortunately, Wang Linchi met neither condition. If he encountered these Black Wind Stronghold minions, he would undoubtedly be surrounded and killed.

He counted them: a total of thirteen bandits, including three senior minions and one minion chief.

Where could they be going? Wang Linchi wondered. He curiously followed the bandits from a distance, staying close enough not to lose them but far enough to remain undetected.

He couldn't beat them anyway. If strength wouldn't work, then he'd rely on Luck. What if he got lucky? He had nothing to lose.

As for delaying his leveling, that mattered even less, since he couldn't maintain his level anyway.

These horses may look ugly, but they're really fast. Their demonic transformation must have boosted all their stats.

Wang Linchi pursued them for a good ten minutes. Fortunately, a Player's body didn't experience fatigue or pain; otherwise, someone with normal physical endurance would never have been able to keep up.

Games without stamina bars are just amazing!

The God-given World truly dared to provide convenience where it was needed, while still maintaining realism in other aspects.