Chapter 321: Special Individuals
After the obliteration battle in the Underground Ruins, the players collected every last blue crystal they could find.
With that, the collection rate of blue crystals soared to 90%, just shy of their target. The remaining 10%? Ah, just a little bit of luck would do the trick.
When it came to restoring the Golden City, they didn’t need to reclaim every last drop of energy—about 60% would do the trick. Hitting that benchmark would magically allow the city to absorb energy from a wide radius through a final restoration ritual, which was the main reason for all the energy surges.
In the end, the Golden City was projected to bounce back to a glorious 90% energy. The leftover bits of energy? No sweat! Not recovering them wouldn’t mess with the city’s operation.
So, this Underground Ruins turned out to be an early energy collection device, helping Yuliya tackle the pesky blue crystal collection issue with ease. As for those remaining red and yellow crystals? Well, the adventurers would just have to collect those at their leisurely pace!
These two were relatively easier to snatch up, but, surprise surprise, there weren’t any concentrated spots. You’d spot them while strolling along the roadside, but you’d have to bend down repeatedly to pick them up like you were in some kind of Olympic event.
This whole obliteration extravaganza felt like a festive event for the players. Profits came pouring in like it was Black Friday!
For example, everyone ended up with a dozen sets of monster material armor, just itching to duel it out on the arena. In the past, gathering enough materials for a single set took days, and breaking them would break your heart!
But now? Just smash away! If I break a set, I swap it out for another right on the spot!
Winners in the arena weren’t always the strongest; sometimes, they just had more gear. With dozens of lives against your ten, it was a numbers game, right?
Of course, monster materials were just the icing on the cake—merely a fun little bonus. The real excitement was racking up points for even more fun!
Many players had snagged their first skills by now, and occasionally, someone would discover some genuine gems buried amidst the wreckage.
Every monster had a minuscule chance to drop something special—like equipment, rare consumables, or even skills. With so many monsters to wipe out, a few lucky players were bound to strike gold.
Like that one guy who found a monster core! That thing could be enchanted into weapons, adding some poison attacks to those swings. Others found blue or even purple gear—perfect for selling, even if it wasn’t their style.
And skills? Who knew if anyone had found one of those? If someone did, you could bet they’d keep that info tightly locked away, cashing in silently.
Beyond all this loot, the players also stumbled upon some rather surprising news.
You wouldn’t believe it, but the princess—oh, she was terrifyingly powerful!
After dismissing those three fools, Yuliya immediately took to the forums to share her exploits. A swift jab here, a pull there—she was toying with monsters as if they were mere action figures!
Now, that was the real strength of the Little Princess!
Brothers, a word of advice: tone it down, will ya? Stop teasing her, or you might just find that she’s strong enough to squish us like bugs with just one hand.
It’s just lucky that she’s nice to us! If it was any other NPC, those who behaved like lunatics in front of her would likely have been respawned more times than they could count.
Uh… “more times” isn’t an exaggeration; players really have the potential to d*e a lot here. They’d literally grind you down to level one.
And we had the photographic evidence! No doubt about it, that was the real deal.
Many recalled back when Little Princess was still just hanging around in Beginner’s Village, not even a princess yet, and managed to trigger a record-setting moment, dealing a total of five points of damage in four attacks to a monster.
How long has it been? And now she’s zapping level 30 monsters into oblivion?
But wait! Back then, she was not yet a princess!
And here she is now, all decked out in royal glory—things are obviously different!
With all those fancy items or inherited powers, the reality is she can still wipe the floor with us at level 30 monsters.
Looking back at the previous battle strategy meeting, most players had come to the realization:
That Little Loli was the genuine article, a true princess, not just a pretty face.
Wait a minute… Are Lolis really this ferocious?
The last one was also off the charts!
Is this game, or this world, maybe a little partial to Lolis, giving them a bonus buff or something?
Anyway, Yuliya’s desired authority was indeed taking root among the player collective.
From “How can such a cute Loli punch without crying?” to “How can such a cute Loli punch me and not cry?”
Hehe, those tiny fists were packing some serious punch!
But some players began to notice a few oddities.
Their reasoning always began with the premise: Why was the Little Princess so nice to the players?
Why indeed? Why was she so friendly?
Every other NPC had a bad attitude. Some were indifferently rude, while a few would barely treat players normally. But none could be described as “nice.”
Only Yuliya was the odd one out.
From the first day she appeared to now, she’s always had this vibe.
Many players had questioned this before, though it could be brushed off as just game mechanics.
But now they knew: this was no simple game but a tangled web woven by five major nations, all emphasizing their importance, each making subtle moves.
Uh… although the Huaxia Kingdom was the only one loudly declaring this while the others were like turtles in their shells.
But that just highlights the issue even more!
She was not just nice to the early players; once the Golden City opened up, she was equally welcoming to all players from every server. Truly, fair and just!
Now, that’s greatness! That’s compassion!
Yuliya still had many mysteries surrounding her, ripe for speculation everywhere.
But players, content with their gains, wouldn’t dig too deep. Who would want to risk their perks for the sake of probing into potential issues?
This whole discussion about Yuliya was destined to fizzle out.
Players had no means to investigate and certainly wouldn’t dare to pry into a lofty imperial princess’s affairs.
Yuliya, on the other hand, noticed their lively discussions online and simply smiled, completely unfazed by it all.
She was the princess; no one could touch her.
Also, the Golden City’s operations were on autopilot now. Even without her around, it could continue without a hitch.
Until all the energy was fully collected, after which she’d issue a massive quest in the name of their guild, and the Golden City would be restored, no fuss, no muss!
After that? Honestly, she wouldn’t care anymore! The players would be out of the picture.
Yuliya had a hunch that day was fast approaching, and soon she would bid farewell to this group of players.
