Chương 16: Guidance
"Hmmm… A sect without any disciples and elders... We do have something like a Sect Master, but according to his words, we should not treat him as one. What is a Game Master even? More so, a Game ID? This is so confusing…" Nee Chen mumbled to himself.
"And you, should I address you as elder or senior?" He added, asking the innocent little bunny for its opinion.
"Kyu?"
Xiang Ya and Lu Gao made a weird faces at Nee Chen's actions--- Are you crazy? Why are you talking to a bunny? ---that kind of face. Then, the two realize the one who is being weird is them instead. What is so wrong with talking to a bunny? One that is as smart as Bi Yuan?
Ping! Receiving Quest… Game ID!
Quest Description: As a member of the System's Providence Sect, you are required to have a Game ID of your own! Simply, it's a moniker or a nickname that shall represent you in the cultivation world! Think of an awesome nickname for it could be hardly changed after creation.
Quest Reward: Game ID, Exp Boost for the next 48 hours.
"What's that?" Lu Gao.
"Did you hear that?" Xiang Ya.
"It sounded like a~ ping." Nee Chen.
"Kyu?"
Bi Yuan in all of her innocence doesn't understand what the ping means. The only thing she knows… is that it was all a waste of time, so she rejected the quest.
Ping! Game ID is automatically set up to 'Bi Yuan'.
"Game ID? Is this like the epithet of legendary heroes? Like the famed names among cultivators?" Nee Chen thought aloud.
The trio contemplated this.
There is the 'Wolf King' further north, a mercenary cultivator who is contracted with the government. Here in the Biron Kingdom, there was also the royal princess known as 'Iron Witch' who was feared for her high-handedness. In many places, there are plenty of experts who possessed quite dangerous-sounding names like Bloody Hound, Saw Dragon, Poison Ghoul, and all sorts. The famous experts from different orthodox sects have no need to be mentioned. They too have notable experts who possess profound-sounding names like Ice Jade Beauty, Sword Hero, etc.
The trio, Nee Chen, Xiang Ya, and Lu Gao stared at each other. As if brainstorming with their eyes, they had an understanding.
Ping! Game ID is set up to Humble Blade.
Ping! Game ID is set up to Lady Luck.
Ping! Game ID is set up to Hyper Blast Super General.
Nee Chen and Xiang Ya looked weirdly at Lu Gao.
"Brother Chen, don't mind it… He is a nine-year-old after all."
"I know… but don't you think it is kinda long?"
Lu Gao looked above him; his Game ID, Hyper Blast Super General, was displayed in all of its glory. He blushed in shame. Nee Chen and Xiang Ya also had their Game IDs displayed above them.
"Lady Luck, you have a nice sounding Game ID."
"So are yours brother Humble Blade."
"Uummm… Guys, won't you compliment mine?"
Bi Yuan just watched on the sidelines as her juniors make fun of themselves.
Nee Chen though was feeling a bit conflicted inside. Somehow, he feels like something wrong is going on. Now that they have monikers, Nee Chen slowly realizes what is wrong. The three of them haven't performed any feats yet worthy of earning monikers, but now, they have one each for them. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?
Deeds first, and then fame, and then moniker? Isn't that how it should be?
What happened now is... moniker first, fame and deeds later...
"Now, enough with this. Let's talk business." Nee Chen snapped his fingers trying to get the attention of his companions. He pushed his weird thoughts deep inside the rabbit hole.
And just right on time, the resounding Ping made its appearance.
Ping! Receiving Quest… Bus!
Quest Description: Join Bi Yuan's Bus as she power-levels her juniors to the next level!
Quest Reward: Exp Boost (Bi Yuan Only), Levels, and Exp points (Everyone)
Questee: Bi Yuan, Lady Luck, Hyper Blast Super General
"Kyu!" Bi Yuan called to the other two as if telling them to follow her. Xiang Ya and Lu Gao don't know what is this 'Bus', but somehow they could tell with their intuition the same way Bi Yuan could.
Nee Chen the sanest of the three of them inquired to the system what a Bus is...
[Bus- A vehicle with four wheels used to transport a lot of passengers averaging 200 to 400 hundred in each trip. In gaming terms, Bus refers to the act of helping lower-level players to gain levels.]
"???"
The first sentence was too mind-baffling. Nee Chen ignored the first half in its entirety. Nee Chen was thinking of following Bi Yuan's party, but he already have a different mission.
Nee Chen is facing a different quest.
Ping! Receiving Quest… Class Advancement!
Quest Description: Choose your class! Become stronger! Warrior? Rouge? Mage? Healer?
Quest Reward: Any of the four starter classes.
Questee: Humble Blade
Nee Chen watched his companions led by the little bunny go somewhere else as he contemplates of the meaning of his quest.
…
Deep inside my cave, I was fidgeting a lot because of either guilt or shame. What I am doing is basically manipulation. I rationalized to myself that it was simply guidance.
But not that far from the future… I can imagine this guidance becoming an issue of control which I prefer not to happen, I don't want to be a control freak!
I should do something.
Seeing Nee Chen, Xiang Ya, and Lu Gao blindly following the quests I set up, I thought that it would be detrimental to my player empire's growth. While it is good that I have faithful players at my every command, I would prefer someone who could think for themselves at any time of the day.
Like Bi Yuan… No, I don't know about Bi Yuan… The Game ID quest is literally a freebie.
That aside.
I decided to tinker with my questing system. I should divide it into NPC-generated quests and self-generated quests.
The former would be something that came from me or other people who I label as NPCs. Meanwhile, the latter would be something that comes from the player's adjusting situation at hand. NPC-generated quests can be denied, and have a reputation system. Meanwhile, the self-generated quests are entirely 'situational' and only happen by chance, a totally random quest that comes from the player themselves.
The self-generated quests need more polishing, but the idea is similar to Daily Quests, Event Quests, and Hidden Quests in games.
[Name: Fu Shi
Quintessence: 1
Players: 4/10]
I don't have enough quintessence though, so that has to wait for another time.
…
Nee Chen has an inkling of what are quests for. One, it's a way for the Game Master to send his intentions. And two, it could be a way to reward the Sect's members.
In a way, it's an intricate work and reward structure.
Reading the description of his quest, Nee Chen took his sweet time to think of what class he should pick.
"Xiang Ya and Lu Gao must've received a different quest since they are not at the 1st stage yet."
Nee Chen felt for his limbs, sensing the qi within flowing through his veins. A cultivator would achieve the most optimized state of their flesh at the Martial Tempering realm.
It is not yet at the level of superhuman, but it is definitely at the peak of mortal abilities. Though not superhuman, they could achieve something of a similar state by tapping on the power of their raw qi, allowing them a momentarily burst of strength.
"I have decided. I want to become a warrior."
Ping!
[Become a Warrior!
Swing the sword a thousand times 0/1000
Rewards: Achieve Warrior status. Arts. Remove Level Cap.]
Nee Chen without any complaint drew his sword and started to swing it. He thought that it would be hard at first, but slowly he is getting used to it. An hour has passed and he is already sweating.
Immersed in swinging his sword, he didn't even take notice of the time.
Ping!
Nee Chen's thoughts were interrupted by the pinging sound.
Swing the sword a thousand times 1000/1000
Dusk is already upon them. The little bunny with her party hasn't returned yet.
A warm sensation spreads into his body. His Dantian which was as rigid as a rock swirled, further expanding. His prime meridians opened as the qi-filled blood flowed into his veins.
[Name: Nee Chen (Humble Blade) | Class: Warrior | Level 11 (1ststage—Martial Tempering)]
His cultivation base didn't change, but he felt like getting stronger. He thought that he would be receiving a martial scroll after the quest or be directly thought of by the Game Master himself.
But what he received went beyond his expectations. Knowledge gushed into his mind in a gentle manner, and skills such as 'Equip' and 'Boost' made themselves known in his consciousness.
This is the Game Master's and the system's guidance.
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