Chapter 18 Main Quest
Soon, the night passed.
Morning.
Shen He sat up in bed and instinctively glanced at his left arm.
Hmm, it looked no different from his right arm.
Still, he could clearly sense that the Earth Dragon Bracer was right there on his left arm, even if he couldn’t feel it physically.
That was perfect—he could wear it all the time without any discomfort.
Most importantly, no one could see it.
He got up, went to the bathroom to wash up, and then sat on the sofa to check the translucent screen before him.
The daily tasks had refreshed.
[Daily Task One: Survive seven days]
[Remaining time: 5 days, 15 hours, 47 minutes, 58 seconds]
[Reward: 3 free attribute points]
[…]
Shen He yawned as he read the first task.
This daily task really did eat up one of his daily slots, and it looked like it would persist for a few days yet.
Which meant, for the next several days, he’d only have two daily tasks.
And three free attribute points was quite a lot.
As a beginner, shouldn’t he be diving into the main storyline to survive? Was the damn developer slacking off, still not giving out a main quest?
Trying to mess with him with these trigger-based missions?
You sly fox, you’re quite the player!
What, did they expect him to praise the game’s freedom or something?
Shen He turned his attention to the second daily task.
[Daily Task Two: Give Up Your Turtle Fist]
[Task requirement: Show discipline and technique]
[Time limit: 8 hours]
[Reward: +1 skill attribute point]
[As an Earth Online player about to graduate from the newbie guide, you shouldn’t just be flailing your fists with brute force.]
[…]
Shen He: “???”
Damn it, mocking me again?
What’s wrong with the turtle fist?
Hadn’t he just used that very move to knock out a few thugs trying to scam him the other day?
And “just brute force”…
He was so elegant, why say he relied solely on brute strength?
Damn developer, show yourself—he’d punch him so hard blossoms would bloom.
Anger surged in Shen He’s chest, and he wished he could use his turtle fist to beat the developer who set this up to death right there.
Suddenly, he noticed a new glowing dot on the screen before him.
He tapped it open.
Aha! Main quest.
Could it be the developer heard him grumbling and hurriedly added a main quest?
If that really was the case…
Then this world truly was a ragtag troupe.
No, perhaps it wasn’t just this world.
Shen He looked closer.
[Main Quest One: Practice Makes Perfect]
[Requirement: Achieve first-tier strength, all stats raised to 10]
[Time limit: 30 days]
[Reward: Complete Earth Dragon Set (missing left arm version)]
[Right now, your stats are worse than a mutated rat’s. To avoid being eaten by rats, hurry up and improve yourself.]
[…]
Shen He’s face flushed bright red at the lines floating before his eyes.
Warning! Warning! Approaching boiling point!
Damn, he just slaughtered a third-tier Earth Dragon yesterday, and today the main quest is telling him he isn’t even as good as a rat.
Who were they looking down on?
What kind of rat could be so impressive—bring it out and let him see!
As Shen He’s blood pressure soared, lines of text appeared before his eyes.
[First-tier Mutant Rat King]
[Strength: 4]
[Endurance: 4]
[Agility: 5]
[Spirit: 6]
[…]
Phew…
Shen He exhaled deeply.
If he wasn’t as good as a rat, then so be it. Did they have to put it so harshly?
He leapt up from the sofa, shoved his keys in his pocket, and headed out the door.
As soon as he closed his door, the one next to him opened.
Shen He ignored the flashing red screen before him and greeted Lele.
“Morning, heading down for breakfast?”
“Nope. Hey, since you’re going, could you take out the trash for me? Thanks.”
No sooner had she spoken than she handed him a bag of garbage.
This time, the bag was perfectly clean on the outside—no sign of those battle-damaged black stockings. Disappointing.
Shen He, trash in hand, stared in confusion at the now-closed door.
Was streaming always this exhausting?
He quickly checked Lele’s favorability score.
[Fifth-Tier Storm Queen Lele]
[Favorability: 80]
[…]
Hiss~
That was high. No wonder she was always thinking about his “innocence.”
Shen He jogged downstairs.
He tossed the garbage into the bin, and as he looked up, he spotted an old man climbing along the outer edge of the second floor.
It looked like Old Li from the third floor.
But wasn’t Old Li ninety-one years old?
How was he still so spry?
He called up, “Old Li, doing some morning Spider-Man training?”
Old Li, just reaching the second floor, didn’t even look down as he cursed, “Nonsense! I went out to buy breakfast and forgot my keys. Climbing up to get them.”
Shen He couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of his mouth.
He glanced up at the security bars on the third-floor window. “Old Li, you’ve got bars on your windows—how are you getting in?”
At that, Old Li looked up at his own apartment.
The security bars stood perfectly in place outside the window, looking brand new—probably just installed recently.
In a flash, Old Li cursed, “Damn, I forgot about the new bars from yesterday.”
He looked down, then quickly started climbing back down the way he’d come.
Shen He nearly burst out laughing.
But seeing how nimble Old Li was, he held it in and hurried out of the compound, planning to grab breakfast first.
After eating, Shen He walked along, pondering how to complete the second daily task.
Although there were a full eight hours for the task—well, seven hours and fifteen minutes now—it still wouldn’t be easy.
Give up the turtle fist, use proper technique.
Was this a hint to sign up for a class?
Suddenly, inspiration struck.
That could work. If he couldn’t use the turtle fist, all he needed was some technique—sign up for a class and train for a few hours.
With his talent, picking up some form wouldn’t be hard.
He acted at once.
Pulling out his phone, he searched the map for any nearby combat classes.
Hmm, had to be an adult class.
A few minutes later, he brightened at what appeared on the map.
There really was one.
A large shopping mall nearby offered all kinds of classes.
Taekwondo, kickboxing, Sanda, women’s yoga…
Shen He waved down a taxi and said, “New Galaxy Mall, please.”
The driver nodded and started the meter.
A few moments later, Shen He looked out the window at the passing street, frowning slightly.
He said, “Hey, I’m a local. Don’t take the long way.”
The driver quickly replied, “I’ve been a cabbie for years—would I take you the long way? We’ll be there in ten minutes.”
As he finished, he floored it and swung the car off the ring road.