"Uncle, are you picking on that poor ghost just to vent your frustrations?"Cheng Yao's teasing voice broke through the tense silence.
Wang Xian choked on his breath, turned, and glared at her. "You're scared of ghosts, yet you're worried it's pitiful?"
"Being afraid of ghosts and that specific ghost are totally different things," she replied smugly, clinging to Nangong Wu's arm with exaggerated pride.
Wang Xian opened his mouth, thought for a second, and sighed.Yeah… he really had no counter for that logic.
Too lazy to argue with her innocent brain circuitry, Wang Xian turned and continued forward, illuminating the dark crop fields ahead with a soft [Illumination] orb.
After ten minutes of walking deeper into the farmland, he stopped.The ghosts here were stronger. Specifically—Wandering Souls.
[Wandering Soul]
Level: 15HP: 2300Spell Attack: 250Magic Defense: 100Skills: Unknown
Wang Xian frowned slightly. Not bad.These things were clearly a step up.
For him, they weren't much of a threat. But for others—especially newly classed players—this was dangerous. A wandering soul's attributes exceeded most players' stats at this level, even if they'd min-maxed a single attribute line.
Still, they were manageable.
Then, Wang Xian opened his own status panel.
[Wang Xian – The Sacrifice]
Level: 15Class: Sacrifice (Hidden)Title: Immortal KingAge: 24HP: 3000MP: 1650Physical Attack: 350 (+35)Magic Attack: 165Physical Defense: 430Magic Defense: 215Strength: 67 (+3)Agility: 36Spirit: 33Physique: 60Endurance: 86Free Attribute Points: 15 (+65)
Talents:
[Learning] (Normal)
[Growth] (Taboo)
[Sage] (Myth)
Skills: (omitted)Deaths Remaining: 3
The past few days had pushed his level from 12 to 15, and the changes were noticeable.He'd also discovered something curious—an unexpected bonus tied to his hidden class.
Normally, when leveling up, you'd gain 5 free attribute points. But with his class?He got 10—5 free and 5 automatically assigned to the base stats.
This perk was massive.
Most players got standard distributions depending on class type:
Warriors: STR-heavy
Mages: SPIRIT-heavy
Rogues: AGI, etc.
But Wang Xian's 5 extra points were evenly distributed—one for each stat.
At first, he thought it was a small bonus. But when you imagined 10, 20, 50 levels later, the compounding value became game-breaking.
Still, there was one issue…
He had no idea which direction to take.
Warrior? Mage? Assassin? Support? He could do anything—and that was the problem.He wanted to hurl elegant spells like a mage, deal swift criticals like an assassin, tank like a blood-soaked warrior… and more.
If he went all-in on versatility, he risked being a "jack-of-all-trades" and master of none.
He sighed.
"Son?"
A hand clapped his shoulder, shaking him from his thoughts.
"Huh? Oh—yeah, Dad?"
"You good?" His father squinted at him, concerned. "You've just been staring into space for five minutes."
"...I was assigning my stats," Wang Xian lied smoothly.
"You sure you weren't possessed?" His father stepped back suspiciously.
"I'm fine! And for the last time—they're monsters, not real ghosts."
"You didn't answer the question," his father muttered. "Possession sounds like something someone possessed would say."
Wang Xian rolled his eyes. "You're watching too many old dramas."
His dad grunted. "So… what do I do now?"
"Honestly? Just stand back and paddle."
"Paddle?" His father raised an eyebrow.
"It means you don't have to fight. Just be in the party for XP gain."
"Uncle!" Su Jin chimed in brightly. "It's a gaming term! Like… leeching experience without doing anything."
"I see…" His dad puffed his chest. "So you're saying I'm useless?"
"No, I'm saying you're a warrior who can't hit incorporeal targets," Wang Xian deadpanned.
"...Fair."
His dad sighed in defeat. "Alright. I'll go paddle."
"Great."
Wang Xian turned to the others and raised his voice. "Let's begin."
He spotted a wandering soul hovering about ten meters away and raised a hand.
⚡ [Lightning] ⚡
A flash of energy cracked through the sky, striking the ghost.
−130
The wandering soul wailed and immediately turned, shrieking toward Wang Xian in retaliation.
The hunt had begun.