Chapter 36: Now Showing: Jaws
Editor: Atlas Studios
Da Fei took a deep breath and immediately composed himself after being shocked.
Leadership was a compulsory skill for a Hero. Sooner or later, one had to learn it. If he added points wrongly now, so be it. Anyway, he had more Skill Points. It was a given that he would continue to master Luck Skills. He had to negate the effects of the curse by Bad Luck. He must not make any mistakes with the remaining sharks.
Da Fei pulled out the Luck Skill Book and golden light flashed.
—System Message: You used one Skill Point and learned Elementary Luck Skill!
—Elementary Luck Skill: Increases the Luck Value of heroes and hero troops by 1 point. 1 point of Luck increases 2% chance of getting a Lucky Strike that doubles the maximum Damage.
Da Fei could finally kill the shark confidently.
The Ballista roared, and with every roar, a shark's life was taken away. The surface of the sea turned red with blood and the stomachs of dozens of dead sharks bobbed up and down in the bloody waves. The sharks that could not reach the tuna began to eat the bodies of their dead companions. For sharks, as long as there were blood and flesh, it did not matter whether it belonged to their kind. Once the shark smelled blood, its Damage and Attack Speed would be greatly improved. This was the sharks' most powerful special skill, Bloody Rage. It would be a Godly skill if not for the fact that there was a chance one might hurt their allies.
Finally, another golden light shone down from the sky.
—System Message: Congratulations! You have leveled up to Level 18! You received 1 Assignable Attribute point, 1 Skill Point, Health +2, Command Power +1.
Da Fei breathed a long sigh of relief. It was great that he was able to keep the Ballista safe. It was said that it was difficult to level up after Level 10. Was it really that hard? He was a pro. What might be hell to a low-leveled player was Heaven to a high-leveled one! Wahahaha!
There were more than a dozen left. He would send all of them on their way. Unfortunately, after killing so many sharks, he did not even get a shark's fin.
The Ballista twanged and took the life of another shark. At this moment, the sharks were like a flock of birds that had been spooked. They all scattered until none were left.
Da Fei could not help but be momentarily stunned. Why did they suddenly run away? There were still tens of thousands of EXP to be had from them. Just as he was puzzling over it…
—System Message: Reconnaissance Skill warning! There are powerful enemies near you, please be alert!
A red light immediately flashed on the map! What the heck, it was a Boss! No wonder the sharks ran so fast. It was an enemy that even sharks were afraid of! He had thought that once the sharks were under the effects of Bloody Rage, they would not be afraid of anything.
Da Fei immediately took out his telescope and looked in the direction of the warning dot on the map. Sure enough, he saw a huge dorsal fin breaking through the waves like a motorboat in the distance—the Great White Shark! Overlord of the ocean, one of the strongest in Overlord! According to legend, in the ocean, the speed of the Great White Shark could reach that of a car. Judging from its amazing speed, it was true!
Da Fei was suddenly confused!
Is it here to eat or smash the ship? As long as it's not here to smash the ship, it's fine. I won't attack you! No, no, no, there's no one here, you can eat all the meat you want in peace!
Da Fei was terrified that it would see him. He ran to a closed artillery window in the artillery cabin and peered out through the gap. After all, the legendary Great White Shark was the only shark that could hold its head upright above the water. Its vision was different from that of ordinary sharks. Once one was discovered, God knew what would happen.
The Great White Shark drew closer. Its size was beyond imagination! It was almost half as long as the ship! This was a megalodon!
Among the floating bloody corpses, its first target was the tuna that had been all chewed up and smelled wonderfully delicious! Then it opened its scarily huge mouth that was as big as a garage door—Woo!
—Boom! The hull shuddered! Da Fei felt a jolt in his heart!
This was a megalodon? Was he going to die? No, no, he had just watched Hemingway's "Old Man and the Sea", and now it was Spielberg's "Jaws". What was next? "Pacific Rim"? Should he summon Gundam?
The huge waves seemed sky-high and the hull began to shake violently. The strength of the Great White Shark was spectacular!
Da Fei's heart clenched tight. If this continued it would be time for "Titanic"! He decided he had to disengage himself and quickly untied the ropes.
As Da Fei ran towards the deck, he felt the ship begin to move at a fast speed! The Great White Shark was towing the boat!
Da Fei was shocked! Why did the shark not attack his ship?
Was it still "The Old Man and the Sea"? In the show, the tuna towed the Old Man's boat in the sea for a few days and nights until it died of exhaustion, right? Did that mean that the Intelligence of this giant shark was at the same level as that tuna? Did it know that the rope around it was tied to the ship?
If that was the case, should he bet on it!?
As a lottery fan and a speculator, this was not a problem! Da Fei suddenly realized that he might have gained some, but he also lost some after he got the ship. If it were in the past, he would never have made such an amateur mistake.
Yeah, when he was an expert treating all those professionals all those years ago, he never did lose his temper at them, and it was not because he felt he himself was more skilled. Da Fei was well aware that he was not. In truth, it was because he never took gaming seriously. That was why he could simply diagnose people without scruples, leading to his remarkable achievements.
In the end, what he really needed to do was transcend himself!
He would bet on it! He had a treasure map, as well as information on the super Ballista. He was also well on his way to Epic Captain. Was it not just an in-game ship? He could afford it.
Now, "The Old Man and the Sea" was playing again and Da Fei was the protagonist. The supporting role had become a Great White Shark and the little boat had become a ship. Pulled by the Great White Shark, SV Fly cut swiftly through the waves.
What was ahead? He did not care anymore. He would simply go with the flow!
Though Da Fei thought that, he was unable to calm down. On the ship, Da Fei shrank back and did not dare to move at all. He was afraid that any sound would alert the shark to his presence.
Suddenly, Da Fei felt a strong sense of unease. Why did the shark not attack his ship? If it did attack, he was doomed. This was the same scenario as during the Trial Mission, "Assist the Captain in Battle". The monsters only attacked the Captain and ignored him. Was the System lowering the difficulty level manually?
If he thought about it carefully, the storm came as soon as he had repaired the ship. Well, the story mission was moving along, as it should.
Then, when he ran out of food, he fished. That was expected.
After that, monsters like tuna, sharks, and Great White Shark, which were rarely seen by nautical players during the open beta all appeared in this sea. It seemed too deliberate. Under normal circumstances, every boss in the game was extremely powerful and it was rare to meet one. This was obviously a system glitch? Just like in the Undead World when the system kept spawning monsters to attack the island.
Could it be that the Beginner Trial was not over yet? However, on the island, it clearly showed the prompt that said "Assist the Captain in Battle" was complete. The experience had been awarded and he had already taken the ship. He was not far from becoming an Epic Hero. For a beginner, the rewards were already abundant. Why was it not over yet?
Wait! "Assist the Captain in Battle" was such a difficult quest. It was unlikely that it was meant for him, an obviously non-combat hero type, right? Wasn't it asking too much of him? The System might be a little unfair, but it would definitely not send an Admiral to the mountains, nor would it arrange for him, a player who started off with Nautical Skills, to engage in melee battle.
Could it be that he had taken over Raging Sea of Blood's portion of the Trial Mission as well, after getting rid of him? And his own portion of the Trial Mission had just begun?
In that instant, Da Fei had a sudden realization!
It was possible! Everything was possible! Although Raging Sea of Blood's specialty was powerful, it was only effective against people and monsters. Da Fei's specialty was fighting against Heaven and the sea. It was on a whole different level! Only Heaven and the sea had the right to test him!
That's right, his Trial Quest had only just begun! Wahaha—uh! Suddenly, Da Fei, who had just figured things out and started laughing, covered his mouth with his hand. He must not let the shark hear him. If the ship was destroyed, the Trial Mission would end before it even began.
Having figured one thing, Da Fei suddenly had an insight into several others that had been troubling him. If the ship, sword, and Epic Hero title were actually prepared for the Admiral, then what reward would he get since he had just started training for it? What kinds of rewards were worthy of him who fought against Heaven and the sea?
Legendary weapons? A peal of thunder would roar above the ship, and a Titan Sword would appear?
Markal? He was already an NPC for Epic-level missions.
A God-level skill? It was impossible for the System to award such without any information or clues. In this pay-to-win game, it would be more believable that such skills could be purchased from the System.
Hidden occupation?
Da Fei frowned. Was there a beginner's village anywhere in this world that did not allow a player to change jobs? No! Was it not strange that a Level 18 beginner still could not change jobs? It was very strange!
Then…
At that moment, the word "Voyager" appeared in Da Fei's mind!
In the Captain's diary, every other sentence was about Voyagers. Even the first sentence of that strange Skill Book was about Voyagers, as if it was afraid that Da Fei would not know that he was a Voyager. Just what, however, was a Voyager?
The Voyager was, of course, an occupation! However, Miners, Doctors, Cooks, Fishermen, Dancers, and his Pikeman were all occupations. There were so many occupations in the game. The key question was whether the Voyager was a Hero occupation? It did not seem so on the official website.
The Hero occupations of the Human Race on the official website were Knights and Priests. For the Elves, they were Rangers and Druids, Death Knights and Necromancers for the Undead, Shamans and Barbarians for the Orcs. In short, they were warrior and magic types. They were all occupations that could increase the power of the entire regiment, definitely nothing like minor cooks!
If the Voyager was a hidden Hero class, then it was likely to be his Trial Mission reward!
The job of the Voyager is to lead the whole crew in the most dangerous job in the world. Is it possible that it's not a Hero's occupation? I fought under him once! So what are the criteria needed to be a Voyager?
—"As an excellent voyager, mastering the battle and adventure skills are never enough. The ocean is unknown territory to humans. We are so tiny and insignificant in front of the ocean. Our knowledge and skills will never be enough."
Da Fei once again flipped open Renoir's Special Edition Skill Book in sudden realization!
-- Gift
received