“Due to the disappearance of a large number of adventurers, the guild is in chaos. Even though they’ve posted several urgent missions, the missions are too dangerous, and low-level adventurers are too scared to take them on. Hiring high-level adventurers is very expensive and takes time.
It’s been a very long time since something like this happened. In the four hundred years since the Demon Gate was sealed, such incidents have been rare.
You were lucky to have wandered into an area with few goblins and to have had the help of Sekamens, one of the top young adventurers. Otherwise, you might have ended up missing like the others, with your fate unknown.”
The severity of the situation was far beyond what Yang Yu had expected, and the guard sighed heavily as they chatted.
After a while, the tired receptionist hurried back, instructed the guard to continue assisting adventurers, and began working through a thick stack of documents on her desk, clearly too busy to talk.
A quick glance showed that she was dealing with requests for high-level adventurer support and forming a large temporary adventurer team.
Even if these requests were approved, it would be hard to gather people to form a temporary team in such an atmosphere.
Not wanting to disturb the receptionist, Yang Yu approached the guard who had become the temporary receptionist and applied for a mission, personally posting it on the mission board.
[Mission: The mystery of the Goblin Forest’s fog—entering is a life-or-death gamble. During this crisis, many of you must be bored, as I am. As a new adventurer, I’ve decided to set up a challenge. I will duel with fellow D-rank adventurers. Anyone who defeats me will receive a rich reward (500 gold coins).
Of course, I can’t lose. Don’t misunderstand, I’m not targeting anyone in particular. I’m saying that everyone here is garbage.]
As soon as this mission was posted, the quiet tavern erupted in uproar.
“This kid is too arrogant! He looks down on us! I remember he registered as an adventurer just yesterday, and now he says no D-rank adventurer can beat him? Do you know how long I’ve been stuck at D-rank without moving up to C-rank? No way, I have to teach this kid a lesson about the harshness of society.”
“Fighting for 500G, with nothing to lose if I fail? I’d be a fool not to take it!”
“I’ve been itching for a fight. Since he’s offering, I won’t hold back.”
One by one, burly adventurers cracked their knuckles and accepted the challenge.
Yang Yu had originally planned to use this method to gain experience once he was at a higher level. But given the current situation, he had to risk losing money to challenge the adventurers, in order to gain the strength needed to venture deep into the Goblin Forest and complete the urgent mission.
So far, the plan was going smoothly. Many adventurers were eager to beat him up.
Since the Adventurers’ Guild prohibited private fights, Yang Yu set up his challenge at the training ground frequented by adventurers.
Many D-rank adventurers who didn’t take the mission still gathered to watch, deciding whether to participate based on what they saw.
D-rank adventurers had varying strengths. Some were on par with Yang Yu, while others were close to the strength of Sekamens’ team members, nearing the threshold of C-rank.
Yang Yu fought without mercy against manageable opponents. If the opponent was too strong, he accepted defeat gracefully.
At first, Yang Yu lost more than he won, his coins flowing out rapidly. Fortunately, he didn’t mind the losses.
Seeing others walk away with 500 gold coins, the D-rank adventurers in the stands couldn’t resist the urge to fight and stepped forward.
Yang Yu welcomed all challengers.
Gradually, the rules relaxed. As long as an adventurer showed their D-rank badge, they could fight without formally taking the mission from the guild.
Many D-rank adventurers, initially mocking Yang Yu, realized he was actually performing a charitable act. He was probably on a secret mission from the guard to boost morale during this crisis.
As time passed, Yang Yu’s stamina waned. Without a healer, he relied on herbs and potions to recover. After each fight, he would eat herbs or drink potions and send Bai Jin to buy more from nearby stores.
After several rounds, Yang Yu smelled like a medicine jar, and Hemeng found him unbearably smelly, preferring to stay on Bai Jin’s shoulder.
“Hehe, you smell weird, like you’ve been soaked in one of my strong medicinal brews. If you keep this up, you’ll turn into a human pill, chased by monsters through the forest.
If you don’t want that, don’t push yourself too hard.”
Bai Jin tried to smile and offer some advice but ended up saying something strange.
“Thanks for your concern. Don’t worry, it’s almost over.”
“You understand what I mean?”
“Sort of.”
After spending the day together, Yang Yu had gotten a sense of Bai Jin’s personality and mannerisms.
So, she says weird things when excited or agitated. I’ve played enough games to understand characters with twisted personalities. Interpreting her words isn’t hard.
Swallowing another herb, Yang Yu left the rest area and entered the training ground. He burped and checked his stats. His resistance panel now had a new entry: +10% Drug Resistance.
He had consumed so many herbs that he’d developed resistance, reducing the effectiveness of potions.
Yang Yu shuddered. If his drug resistance continued to increase, he might end up dying of illness with no effective medicine left.
It seems not all resistances are beneficial.
Stretching his body, Yang Yu felt stronger than in the morning, and his level had increased.
More importantly, he had learned about many skills and how to counter them.
As evening approached, Yang Yu’s comeback began.
In each match, he fought with confidence, defeating many self-assured challengers. With an eleven-win streak, he ended the day, his experience bar full, leveling up from 18 to 19.