'Extremely Lethal?!'
Mad Blade Ranging Sword nervously swallowed hard. When detecting the armed guards on the train earlier, the danger level had only been 'High.' This was the most dangerous individual he'd ever encountered—every data point except the name was a question mark.
What level of threat could this person possibly be?
Shouldn't the city be relatively safe? Was he about to lose his virginity to death today?
Just then, Xiao Han spoke. His opening line nearly sent Mad Blade Raging Sword tumbling.
'Detecting others upon meeting is rather impolite, you know.'
Mad Blade Raging Sword jolted upright.
The official guidelines stated: if the level difference exceeded 30, players detecting NPCs would be detected. Had he encountered such a high-level powerhouse immediately upon entering the city?
Xiao Han chuckled inwardly: 'You little blighter, I know you lot well enough. Throwing out a scan upon meeting? I was just the same back in the day!'
Ever since learning of the closed beta launch, Xiao Han had been contemplating engaging with players. He'd mapped out all the newbie starting points, with the nearest being the Great Horn Mountain settlement—a mere three days' journey away. But with Sprout now actively seeking intelligence on him, Xiao Han was reluctant to leave the Western Capital lightly.
Only beta testers could post on the forums now. Xiao Han monitored the discussions and soon spotted a thread analysing the beta's map-unlocking advantages. The username stood out: Eternal Moonlight.
A legendary pro gamer, he frequently posted guides and tutorials, a genuinely decent chap, and rather handsome (key point), boasting a massive fanbase. A true powerhouse, he'd won numerous honours, consistently ranking within the top thirty on the Chinese server's elite leaderboard in his previous life. Xiao Han's best achievement had been forty-seventh place, and during the years he was dating, he'd even dropped out of the top hundred. Thus, he drew a conclusion: Stay away from girls, achieve career success.
Xiao Han shared this insight with the perpetually single owner of the corner shop downstairs, whom he knew well. The shopkeeper merely gave a cold chuckle and said, 'Well put, but I choose girls.'
'Except girls don't choose you.'
And thus, Xiao Han forfeited his right to the shop's 5% discount.
The Chinese Region's Master Rankings judged prowess not solely by operational skill. Sterllaris Legend featured diverse competition formats: individual duels, tournament rounds, team battles, mission challenges, timed free exploration, survival hunts, base sieges, speed pursuits, mixed slaughter matches, secret realm trials, and more. Small-scale one-on-one brawls only represent a fraction of one's capabilities. Xiao Han, who'd spent years avenging others, possessed exceptional operational skills. Yet, he lacked proficiency in other areas—such as trash-talking, which could be a formidable weapon against opponents. He'd been diligently practising that, though.
After reading the post, Xiao Han suspected beta testers might be arriving in Western Capital. He'd been lurking near the checkpoint for days. The moment the four professional players passed through, he spotted them. It wasn't his keen eyesight, but rather his sudden ability to see names above players' heads. Blimey, what a dazzling array of pro IDs—all big names from his previous life. Impossible to miss.
'Could it be because I possess a player interface?' Xiao Han wondered inwardly.
This was rather good news. Players had detection capabilities, allowing them to see all NPC names, and he could instantly spot players amidst the crowd.
'Am I an NPC with player functions, or a player with NPC functions?' Xiao Han couldn't help but mentally grumble.
This encounter with players was precisely to test the robustness of his NPC functions.
'Brave warrior, I require assistance. Might you spare a moment?'
A standard quest-triggering opening line, utterly adorable.
Mad Blade Raging Sword froze upon hearing this. Though unsure why Xiao Han sought him out, it did little to dampen his excitement.
Triggering a high-level NPC upon entering the Western Capital? This place is truly my lucky spot! Mad Blade Raging Sword was ecstatic, forcing his tone to remain calm. 'I'm willing to help.'
'I require a loaf of bread. Could you procure it for me?'
The words had barely left his lips when Xiao Han received a prompt.
[Do you wish to assign a task to [Mad Blade Raging Sword]?]
Here we go!
So his interface could actually prompt NPC functions? Could it possibly quantify every single one of his actions?
Perhaps this wasn't an ordinary player interface after all. It must have mutated during his transmigration. Felt rather impressive, this.
Xiao Han narrowed his eyes. Time to test its capabilities.
'Yes.'
[Please define the mission requirements and rewards. Rewards are subject to an experience cap determined by your level, tier, faction influence, and legendary status.]
[PS: You may grant additional material rewards—anything within your possession: currency, items, experience, skills...]
A phantom interface materialised before him, divided into left and right sections. The left pane listed mission types: routine missions, prize pool missions, competitive missions, challenge missions, series missions, ring missions, faction missions, and more—a vast array.
The right pane displayed allocation limits under two headings: 'Maximum Reward Cap' and 'Daily Total Cap'. The current experience cap stood at 11,600 points, with explanatory notes provided below.
[Maximum Reward Limit: 11,600 EXP]
[Total Level 24: +7200] (After advancement, the experience bonus per level increases; first advancement grants +300 bonus per level)
[Tier e: +3000]
[Faction: Sprout (Hostile) +1000, Bureau 13 (Neutral) +400]
[Legendary Rating: 0]
The maximum reward cap represents the upper limit for a single mission's reward. This means that Xiao Han can only set a maximum reward of 11,600 experience points per mission.
The daily total cap, as the name suggests, is the maximum reward that can be granted in a single day. Currently set at five times the maximum reward cap, this amounts to 58k points, refreshing every twenty-four hours.
After testing this feature, Xiao Han discovered limitations: if his maximum reward cap fails to meet the base reward threshold for a mission's difficulty level, the mission posting will fail. For instance, attempting to post a mission to destroy the Sprout organisation (a Grade A mission) would fail because the minimum reward requirement for Grade A missions far exceeds his cap.
With a quota of 11,600, he could only issue E-rank ordinary tasks. The minimum standard for D-rank tasks was 30,000 experience points, and different task types had varying quota requirements. The interface provided no clarification, forcing Xiao Han to test each one individually. A prompt would appear when a task failed to materialise.
'If only I could convert this credit into my own experience,' Xiao Han mused idly. He tested this notion, only to find it impossible. The credit wasn't his experience, nor could he assign tasks to himself; targets were strictly limited to players.
This confirmed a suspicion: his essence wasn't that of a player, merely possessing an interface.
Xiao Han pursed his lips. Currently, he only gained two or three thousand experience points daily, yet possesses nearly sixty thousand in reward quotas. If he were to fully cultivate a player, their progress would skyrocket. However, he wouldn't pursue that path.
'This function seems capable of commanding players...' Xiao Han's eyes suddenly lit up as he instantly grasped its myriad applications. The most obvious was attracting players to undertake quests, transforming them into his assistants—a tactic that could yield extraordinary results in many situations.
Player interests came first; they could be treated as a mercenary force with no scruples. As long as the rewards were generous, they could be utilised. Players wouldn't waste time on low-reward tasks. If you wanted the horse to run, you had to feed it grass. Therefore, increasing the reward quota was imperative. The higher the quota, the greater the assistance it provided.
Beyond experience quotas, Xiao Han could also expend his own items as supplementary rewards.
Bloody hell, are high-level NPC quests this simple? Just one loaf of bread, and the reward is only one coin! Are you bloody penniless?
'Wait!' Mad Blade Raging Sword realised something. Drawing on his experience playing virtual MMORPGs, this must be a prerequisite quest—a test! He had to satisfy the NPC to trigger subsequent tasks. Failure meant missing out on this opportunity entirely.
The more Mad Blade Raging Sword pondered it, the more plausible it seemed. He promptly produced seven loaves of bread (his entire stockpile) and handed them all to Xiao Han, declaring with feigned sincerity, 'This is every last piece of bread I possess. It's all yours.'
Xiao Han was utterly perplexed.
What on earth? Had modern players grown accustomed to exceeding quest requirements? This didn't match his recollections at all.
Taking the bread, the quest prompt marked completion. Everything proceeded smoothly, and Xiao Han silently nodded in satisfaction.
With numerous quest types available, Xiao Han didn't intend to test them all immediately. He prioritised exploring other NPC functions first.
Xiao Han noticed a small human-shaped icon appear beside the ID above Mad Blade Raging Sword's head. Focusing his attention on the symbol, a new prompt instantly appeared on his interface. A phantom, health-bar-like object materialised before his eyes—visible only to him—with a small needle poised in the centre. The left side was red, the right green.
[Adjust Mad Blade Raging Sword's Affection Level?]
You can actually tweak this?
Xiao Han stared in disbelief. Could this actually alter his own thoughts? If he maxed it out, would he suddenly go gay?
No way, can't risk it!
Xiao Han tried nudging the needle to the right... Er, left. He lowered the affinity by 5 points and realised his thoughts hadn't changed. He breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, affinity was just a number; it didn't affect his true feelings.
'This feature seems rather pointless...' Xiao Han mused inwardly....
[Xiao Han's affinity towards you has decreased by 5 points. Current relationship status: Cold.]
Bloody hell, why would completing a mission lower affinity?!
Mad Blade Raging Sword was utterly bewildered.
What the hell!