Chapter 1104: Master Swordsman
Translator: alyschu
The Ancient Divine Dragon passed through the clouds and soared like an airplane toward my destination. Fifty minutes later, we arrived at the edge of the map of the China server. I had been maintaining my altitude and checking out the ground from time to time. One thing I noticed was that White Rose Fortress had finally been rebuilt. It stood tall as a barrier between the China server and the Japan server.
Not long ago, we had spilled sweat and blood to defend our homeland and launched a counter-invasion against the invaders. I felt many emotions as I checked out White Rose Fortress and the distant Impassable Great Wall. My return home could only be temporary because one, there were people waiting for me to return to them at Iron Skull Wilderness, and two, the China server still couldn’t accept me. I wouldn’t return until all the filth on my person had been washed away!
……
It wasn’t long before the tall, long body that was Dragonbone Mountain Range appeared in front of me. I wiped away the clouds blocking my sight, locked onto Rinser’s coordinates and began my descent. The Ancient Divine Dragon let out a mighty roar as its body slithered across the top of the snow ridges and kicked up a ton of ice and snow.
Bang!
The Ancient Divine Dragon landed like a rock. Then, I made it walk slowly toward Rinser.
Three meters in front of me, the old skeleton was staring at the Ancient Divine Dragon with fearful eyes and a scream in his throat. "H-has God Domain finally sent someone to punish me? This divine draconic aura is… it’s a descendant of the ancient gods! I’m so fucking dead…"
It wasn’t until I dismounted from my dragon’s back did his fear finally lessened. "Boy, how… how are you riding an ancient divine dragon?"
I shot him a grin. "I came across it by chance. Long time no see, mentor."
Rinser finally relaxed and walked closer to me to tap my chest armor with his scepter. "Boy, you’ve become even stronger than the last time I’ve met you. I’m glad. Now that we’ve gotten the pleasantries out of the way, will you tell me what you are planning to swindle from my pockets this time?"
I shrugged. "Swindle? Swindle what? It’s not like you have anything that’s worth swindling! Anyway, I returned to apply for my class promotion, mentor. I’m pretty sure I’m strong enough, right?"
"Oh, I see!"
Rinser examined me for a moment before replying, "It’s true that your strength had surpassed my expectations. Yes, yes, you’re definitely qualified to advance to the next class. Some time ago, Lady Wind Singer came over to tell me to tell you that there is a class that is very suited for you. However, you will have to obtain the proof of class advancement yourself."
I asked, "Oh? What exactly is this proof, and how do I obtain it?"
Rinser replied with a smile, "Long story short, you will need to obtain a handwritten letter from Princess Karinshan. Give me her letter of recommendation, and I will grant you this great class. Oh right, you also need to pay the processing fee of the class promotion, which is 100k gold in total. Are you sure you want to do this, boy?"
I swore inside and outside my mind, "100K GOLD? Are you fucking serious? This is beyond pale, you greedy, shameless bastard!"
Rinser shook with anger as he pointed a finger at me. "You brat! If Xinran wasn’t your sister, I… I would’ve turned you into a pile of rotten meat already!"
I brandished the Purple Ying Sword and said with a smile, "You want to kill me? Come on then! Let’s see if you can actually do it!"
Rinser took one look at the growling Ancient Divine Dragon behind me and shivered from head to toe. "Whatever, what am I doing fussing over money with a brat like you anyway. Now go. Seek out Princess Karinshan and have her write a recommendation letter. I will then grant you your eighth class promotion."
"Got it!"
I waved my hand and jumped up the Ancient Divine Dragon’s back. "Let’s go, little dragon!"
Well, there was no avoiding Sky City this time.
The Ancient Divine Dragon let out a mighty roar and left Dragonbone Mountain Range instantly. In less than five minutes, it was already circling above Sky City. I dared not enter the eastern plaza though. While I missed the days I set up stalls and sold stuff on the plaza a lot, heading there as a red name was just asking for trouble. The good news was that Tang Long had the power to make me a red name in every Chinese player’s eyes, but not the NPCs. Not even he had the authority to alter the game’s main program.
After I slowly descended at the center of the royal palace—just in front of the stairs—hundreds of NPC guards looked at me before recognizing the emblem on my shoulder. They immediately dropped to one knee and greeted me, "My lord!"
I smiled. It was nice to confirm that my status and military position in the Silver Moon Alliance was high enough that I could enter and exit the royal palace unhindered.
……
As I slowly climbed the stairs and entered the royal palace, the Ancient Divine Dragon blinked once before shrinking itself to around two meters or so. It followed me into the palace hall and stayed very close to me, almost as if it had a feeling that we might be attacked here. It was why it maintained a form where I could mount it immediately.
There were two rows of military generals standing at the end of the palace hall, and between them was a huge sand table with all kinds of terrains and units on it. They were clearly discussing some sort of battle. Princess Karinshan herself was a martial general, and her way of protecting the balance of the world and conquering it was through martial force. It was also why she was seen as the final hope and mental pillar of the humans, the succubi and the elves.
Karinshan was pointing at a corner of the sand table when she cleared her throat and said, "If we climb over Dragonbone Mountain Range and enter Wind City’s territory, we’ll be able to set foot on Bloody Shield Domain. The Night Creatures have gathered an undead army of five hundred thousand, and Wind City’s city lord has sent us a letter for reinforcements. As the treaty dictates, we have a responsibility to march to their aid, so, Stark!"
A general clad in black armor immediately dropped to one knee. "Yes, Your Highness!"
Karinshan said, "You will ride to Wind City’s aid with 200000-strong Black Wind Cavalry. I will send you the army provisions you need at a later time. If you discover a powerful Night Creature among the enemy forces—someone at the level of a Purgatory Sovereign—then focus on defense and wait for further orders. Also, send a secret message to Vanished God City’s Heartless Knight, Cloudway, and have him join you. He has been trained by the Wind Singer herself, and his martial skills are much greater than what they used to be. He may be of great help to us."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Karinshan nodded. "Mn. If there is nothing else, then you may leave now and prepare for your departure!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
……
Stark was about to walk away when he saw me. He broke into a smile and greeted me, "Long time no see, my friend! You look like you’ve grown even stronger than before!"
I nodded back. "Yeah. Hello to you too, Stark!"
"Haha!"
Karinshan also walked up to me with a smile, "Oh, it’s you, my young friend! Have you come for business, or…?"
I answered, "Nah, it’s nothing big. I’m just here to ask you to write a recommendation letter for me. It’s a requirement set by my mentor, Rinser, to promote my class to a higher level."
"Oh, I see…"
Karinshan smiled as she tilted her head a bit. "I have a question though. Why are you still obeying Rinser when you’re already this powerful? Hmph, that old bastard is a good undead, but only just barely. Just last month, he drank a dozen barrels of wine without paying a copper. He even went out with a girl at the inn, had… well, you know what I mean, and left without paying her anything!"
Karinshan’s face was red with embarrassment when she said this.
I swore loudly inside my head. I should’ve known that something was off! Rinser was still a skeleton the last time I met him, but today I discovered that he had evolved into an Asura and gained a physical body. At the time I didn’t think much about it, but now I learned that the fucker had evolved into an Asura to have sex! Motherfucker, the stuff he did at the inns of Sky City could only be described as terrible!
I pursed my lips. "Er, Rinser is my mentor, yes, but… his private life is completely separate from mine. So please don’t lump me together with him, Your Highness!"
Karinshan burst into laughter. "I understand. Anyway, you need a recommendation letter, right? Very well, I’ll write it for you right now. The battle situation at the frontlines is rather critical right now, so I can’t afford to waste too much time here…"
"Got it, thanks!"
Karinshan turned around and accepted a goose-feathered quill and paper from her servant. Then, she lay the paper down on the sand table and wrote with fine handwriting—
Rinser:
May this letter be the embodiment of my will.
The Sky City adventurer who hands in this letter is looking for a class promotion from you. You will do as he says, and you shall not hinder him any further. If you dare to slack off on your responsibility, I promise you I will send a great army to Dragonbone Mountain Range, dismantle that grassy hole you call home, get back the 79 gold you owe our town’s inn, and beat you up so badly that you will need someone to support you when doing something as mundane as peeing!
Sincerely, Karinshan of Sky City. Do not keep me in your mind.
……
I couldn’t stop my jaw from hitting the floor when I read the letter. No wonder she was the regent of Sky City. Every word she wrote was so lordly and forceful that I couldn’t help but want to bow my head to her…
"Alright!"
Karinshan clapped her hands once before accepting her helmet from a guard. She then slapped my shoulder once before bidding me goodbye, "I have to leave now, my dear warrior. See you in the future!"
I nodded back. "I look forward to it, princess!"
Princess Karinshan exited the palace hall, got up her warhorse and disappeared from my view in no time.
I also left the palace hall to return to Dragonbone Mountain Range. The moment we stepped out, the Ancient Divine Dragon immediately grew larger and waited for me to mount it. Then, it jumped into the air and soared to the sky in one smooth motion. The commotion was loud enough that a group of players who were buying potions just outside the palace immediately looked up and caught a glimpse of the vanishing Ancient Divine Dragon. A young girl about 17 to 18 years old blinked her eyes before saying, "Did… did my eyes just deceive me? That dragon rider just now looked like Lu Chen… Has the Little Heavenly King finally returned to us?"
The manly man next to her immediately quipped, "It’s not good to idolize someone so much that you see things, girl! Lu Chen is still roaming the foreign lands, so how could he possibly appear in Sky City?"
The girl pouted but said nothing in reply.
……
Pa!
After the Ancient Divine Dragon appeared on Dragonbone Mountain Range once more, I passed him Karinshan’s recommendation letter and 100k gold. Then, I said, "Mentor, here’s everything you requested. Can I please promote my class now?"
The old fellow examined the bag of gold for a bit before smiling widely. "Very good, I knew that my disciple was a tall, handsome, cool, mighty, powerful and rich man!"
Me: "…"
……
After that, he put his hand on my shoulder and said in a deep voice, "In the name of the war god, I, Rinser, grant you a new class and a title—the Master Swordsman of Death!"
Ding~!
System Announcement: Congratulations, player "Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand" has obtained the eighth promotion class, Master Swordsman of Death! As the first eighth-promotion player in all the servers, they obtained rewards: Luck +5, Level +3, and an item reward: "Fire War God Card” x50!
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