Chapter 8: The Moon Demon Temple!
Perhaps it was fate that led Lu Ming to be reborn in Linhai City. Coincidentally, Ye Linger’s hometown was also in Linhai City.
In the Abyss World, the beginner zones were divided according to real-world cities. Linhai City corresponded to Beginner Zone No. 1947—the Moonfall Town.
All players who first logged in at Linhai City were automatically assigned to Moonfall Town.
This meant that Ye Linger’s younger brother, Ye Chen, would log into the same beginner zone, Moonfall Town, at 8 a.m. today.
Lu Ming’s plan for revenge was to lie in wait at Moonfall Town and catch Ye Chen as soon as he came online.
Ye Chen had just turned eighteen today and had only recently registered his Abyss account. Taking advantage of him still being a powerless novice was the perfect moment to exact revenge.
After finishing a late-night snack, Lu Ming returned to the internet café. Checking the time: it was already one in the morning.
Whether it was the thrill of wielding a ten-star account or the burning desire for revenge against Ye Chen, Lu Ming found himself unable to sleep.
He powered on another machine and logged back in.
“Ding! Welcome back to the Abyss World, esteemed ten-star aptitude account player—Nether!”
Every time he heard this system notification, it cleared his mind and refreshed his spirit.
It proved that as long as you were powerful enough, even the system would treat you with utmost respect.
Lu Ming recalled that in his past life, his one-star account had never triggered any such greetings upon logging in.
He checked his current status: level 5, 83.5% progress.
Attempting to grind ordinary quests to the tenth tier seemed tedious and ultimately unprofitable. The highest reward for completing the tenth tier was a single piece of ordinary black iron equipment, which paled in comparison to the allure of the Moon Demon set.
“Better to directly grind the Moon Demon Sanctuary dungeon. If luck favors me, I might even get Moon Demon set gear to form a three-piece combo. That will significantly improve my chances in the upcoming level 8 dungeon—the Bloody Forbidden Zone.”
“Moreover, the chance to obtain skill scrolls in the dungeon is much higher than in the wild. Even if I don’t get equipment, a skill scroll would still be a valuable drop.”
With that in mind, before leaving Moonfall Town, Lu Ming made a stop at the town’s pharmacy.
While other novice players barely had a few dozen copper coins scattered in their pockets, Lu Ming now carried a fortune of 4 silver coins and 28 copper coins.
He bought ten sets—100 bottles—of Level 1 Ordinary Mana Potions for 3 copper coins each.
The potion instantly restored 30 mana points upon use and continued to regenerate 2 mana points per second for 15 seconds, with a 60-second cooldown.
He spent 3 silver coins all at once.
Though reluctant to part with the money, Lu Ming understood that only by investing could he reap greater rewards.
These mana potions would allow him to fight without resting to restore mana, saving time and speeding up dungeon runs.
Ready, Lu Ming left Moonfall Town through the south gate, following the map toward the level 6–8 dungeon, Moon Demon Sanctuary.
The wild monsters along the road were sparse, so no grand battles were necessary.
Lu Ming summoned ten undead warriors to harvest the monsters along the way.
Twenty minutes later, as he reached the destination, a golden light shone down upon him.
“Ding! Congratulations on reaching level 6! Attributes +1 to all five stats, +10 mana, +20 health, and 3 free attribute points! Next level requires 1,800 experience points!”
He now met the level requirement to enter the Moon Demon Sanctuary dungeon.
Everything was going according to plan.
He allocated all three free attribute points to Spirit, bringing it to 21.
Meanwhile, his War Stomp skill had leveled to 6, increasing its buff to friendly attacks: from 10% attack power to 20.
However, the skill’s continuous mana consumption had risen from 2 points per second to 3.
With 21 Spirit, mana regeneration was only 2.1 per second—insufficient to cover the skill’s cost.
Fortunately, Lu Ming had stocked ten sets of mana potions.
Of course, potions were only a temporary solution; to truly resolve this, he needed to reach level 8 and equip the Moon Demon set.
Ahead of him stood a colossal purple light barrier, stretching seven or eight meters high, shimmering within a ruined relic.
This was the sole entrance to the level 6–8 Moon Demon Sanctuary dungeon.
Two fully armed level 20 NPC soldiers stood guard on either side of the entrance.
Several players loitered outside the dungeon.
Though all ranged from levels 6 to 8, it was easy to distinguish the newcomers who had just entered Abyss World from veterans who had deliberately held themselves at level 8 for one or two years or longer.
The novices were clueless, their eyes shining with innocent foolishness, like recent college graduates entering society, eager for a skilled veteran to guide them through the dungeon.
The veterans’ eyes gleamed with sharpness, regarding the newcomers like a pack of hungry wolves on the hunt.
“Little brother, need a ride? Professional team, affordable prices!”
“Hey there, pretty girl, want big brother to take you through the dungeon?”
The novices had nowhere to hide in their gaze.
Yet no one approached Lu Ming.
His eyes were even sharper than theirs.
Thus, Lu Ming walked straight up to the two guards at the dungeon entrance, only to learn that solo entry was impossible.
“Almost forgot—all Abyss dungeons require a five-player team to enter…”
As Lu Ming scanned the crowd for suitable teammates, a man with the ID [AAA Moon Demon No. 2], a level 8 middle-aged warrior with a long beard and a greatsword slung over his shoulder, casually whistled at three passing girls.
“Ladies, want me to carry you through the dungeon? I have a solid record—1,249 runs of the Moon Demon Sanctuary, consistently clearing the seventh tier!”
“Original price for solo runs is 300 each. How about 250 apiece for you three?”
The three girls hesitated.
After a moment, one with a low ponytail and glasses, appearing rather demure, timidly asked, “Can it be… 240?”
Moon Demon No. 2 feigned a thoughtful expression before replying, “Alright, alright, I’ll make a little less this time—consider it paying for friendship!”
“Add me as a friend; next time you find me, I’ll give you the biggest discounts!”
The girls thought they’d gotten a bargain and were overjoyed.
“Thank you, uncle!”
Just as they were about to add each other as friends and transfer money, a sudden voice rang out:
“I’ll take you through the dungeon for just 100 each.”
The girls looked toward the voice and saw it was Lu Ming speaking.