Chapter 62: Number One on the Rankings?

(1/3)

[Charm] Gazes at the target, channeling spiritual energy to unleash a charm shock. The target must make a mental willpower check (based on the levels, spiritual attributes, and status of both parties).

If the check succeeds, specters will fall into a brief "Charmed" state (1-5 seconds, based on the level difference), during which they may stand dazed or attack other nearby units. High-intelligence specters, undead, and certain special entities may be immune or experience greatly reduced effects.

Players/Spirit Beasts will fall into a "Trance" state (0.5-3 seconds, based on the level difference and the target's willpower), resulting in delayed reactions and significantly decreased attack/defense/evasion capabilities. Repeatedly using this on the same target yields diminishing returns and carries the risk of triggering spiritual backlash.

Cooldown: 5 minutes.

(This skill consumes an extreme amount of spiritual energy and may affect Little Dango's own condition, use with caution.)

Favorability: 60

Meanwhile, Little Dango's core spatial talent erupted like an ignited spark!

Su Liu clearly felt that her exquisitely decorated, 8-square-meter "cozy little home" began to vibrate violently! The spatial barrier, like a soft bubble, was gently yet firmly pushed outward by an invisible force!

Hum—the intense spatial tremor lasted for a few seconds before subsiding. When Su Liu looked around again, she couldn't help but cover her mouth in pleasant surprise.

The space had expanded to a full 16 square meters! The edges of the space were no longer regular cubes, but possessed a nebula-like texture with a hint of swirling chaos, as if connecting to the endless void, heralding infinite potential for future expansion. The energy concentration throughout the space had also risen by a notch, and the air seemed even fresher.

Su Liu took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the dizziness caused by the successive massive surprises. She stepped forward quickly, scooped up Little Dango, who was still innocently feeling its new power, and buried her face deeply into its fluffy fur that radiated a faint warmth and starlight aura.

"Dango! You are amazing! A mental-type, this is heaven-defying!" Her voice trembled slightly with lingering excitement. "16 square meters! There's so much more we can do!"

Little Dango also felt its master's wild joy, emitting a pleasant purr as its three fluffy, large tails happily wrapped around Su Liu's arm: [Sister Liuli is happy, Dango is happy! Dango will become super, super strong to protect Sister!]

At this moment, Su Liu's gaze finally fell upon the golden holy chest radiating a divine glow on the ground.

Amidst her happiness, a trace of worry crept into her heart.

The novice protection period had ended, and supply chests were bound to spawn specters. Being a golden holy chest, the level of the specter inside definitely wouldn't be low.

Opening it inside the space risked destroying the furniture, and the limited area wouldn't allow her to maneuver freely.

Opening it outside meant dust storms paired with specters, a thought that gave Su Liu a headache.

(1/3)

(2/3)

Just as Su Liu was hesitating over how to safely open the golden holy chest, a new system broadcast abruptly rang out, interrupting the varied thoughts of both her and the players across the entire server:

[The Novice Protection Period Leaderboard for District 888 has been settled!]

[This district's leaderboard displays only player scores and kilometers traveled.]

[Ranking criteria: Kilometers traveled, total supplies, number of dungeons completed (including mandatory and random).]

A phantom leaderboard with a light gold border, covering the field of view of all players in District 888, condensed in mid-air.

1. Doomsday Madman
Score: 1078 | Kilometers Traveled: 320km

2. (Hidden ID)
Score: 689 | Kilometers Traveled: 187km

3. Fountain Commander
Score: 627 | Kilometers Traveled: 184km

......

19. Like a Dream Geometry
Score: 431 | Kilometers Traveled: 102km

20. Luoluo Xiaofang (Bottom of Leaderboard)
Score: 408 | Kilometers Traveled: 100km

The name [Doomsday Madman] topped the list, with a score that towered above the rest, leaving the second-place runner behind by nearly 400 points! The milestone of "320km" caused quite a few players to gasp in shock.

The District 888 chat lobby, which had just been bombarded by the server-wide announcement of the first Level 3 Spirit Beast upgrade, was once again ignited by this district-internal "explosive news"!

(2/3)

(3/3)

[Chat Lobby - Regional Channel 888]

"Dreamer on the Keyboard": "My titanium alloy dog eyes! 1078 points?! 320 kilometers?! Great God Madman, did you use a teleportation cheat during the novice protection period?! I've only managed to run a little over 100 kilometers! My score just passed 400!"

"Luoluo Xiaofang": "Ahhhhh! Great God Madman!!! Big Boss at the top of the leaderboard, please let me hug your thighs! 1078 points, and I only have 408! The gap is way too huge! How on earth did you run 320 kilometers? I worked myself to death and only got 280!"

"Like a Dream Geometry": "Heeheeheehee! I'm basking in the glory of Great God Madman! If I hadn't traded for the big boss's supplies last time to get through the hard times, I wouldn't have been able to open nearly as many supply chests! Big Boss is awesome! I'm on the leaderboard too! So happy!"

"Return Through Wind and Rain": "Tsk, these stats... The kilometers traveled isn't too outrageous, but this cliff-like first place in score can only mean the big boss's supplies and dungeon rewards are completely overwhelming. Think about those pizzas and announcement rewards... Reasonable, utterly reasonable."

"Nickname Failed to Load": "320 kilometers? Could it have been cheated and farmed? How much time is there in a single day of the novice protection period? Don't you need to eat, drink, excrete, sleep, kill monsters, and open chests? It's fundamentally impossible for a normal person to run this distance! Strongly demand a system audit!"

"Marshmallow Bear": "Wuwuwu... 320 kilometers... 1078 points... I didn't even reach the bottom of the leaderboard... The gap between humans is bigger than the gap between humans and specters... I just want to know how 'extremely abundant' the big boss's supplies actually are to make the score this explosive?"

"Cloud's Edge Big Club": "Heh, it's her again. A 'Madman' who hides even her name, making such a huge fuss just afraid others don't know she's rich? Now that the novice protection period is over, once natural disasters strike, the road won't be so easy. Ranked first? Just wait to be watched by countless pairs of eyes—an innocent man treasuring a jade ring becomes a criminal!"

"Fountain Commander": "Your Excellency's 1078 points lead by a wide margin, and your strength is unfathomable. Truly a blessing for our District 888! I wonder if Brother Madman would be willing to share some tips on supply gathering and mileage advancement? Sharing the joy is better than enjoying it alone, after all. May peace and such formidable strength go hand in hand,呵呵."

"I Hate Advanced Math": "Investigate! Must investigate! These stats are too absurd! Either a system bug or found some cheating method! @System is this reasonable? Demanding a re-audit of the leaderboard! Return a fair gaming environment to us! Does she have some shady relationship with the game system?!"

"Riding a Snail Chasing a Missile": "Stop whining, sour grapes above! Big Boss Madman has the legendary spirit beast that was the first server-wide to reach Level 3! How could supplies not be abundant? How could strength not be formidable? So what if she ran a little distance? If you've got the ability, go get a golden holy chest to show us! Big Boss is awesome! Top leaderboard boss, please notice me!"

Messages in the chat lobby scrolled at lightning speed. Envy, astonishment, praise, mixed with dark skepticism and sharp sarcasm, intertwined around the ID "Doomsday Madman" and that shocking "1078 points/320km," forming a massive vortex of public opinion.

In the dim lava cave, "I Hate Advanced Math" spat out a mouthful of sand-stained blood, staring at the golden residual shadow of the server-wide announcement and roaring: "320 kilometers? Even running a mule to death in the novice period wouldn't catch up! I risked my life and only got 102 kilometers!"

He slammed his hand against the rock, the searing pain only fueling his ruthlessness: "Is the system blind?!—Report! Must report!" With trembling fingers, he pulled up the reporting interface and savagely smashed the ID "Doomsday Madman" into the input box:

(3/3)