128 - I’m Really Not an NPC

"Have you heard? Master Shifang is personally going to deal with a human." The speaker was a yellow ox with smooth fur, munching on a clump of tender grass while mooing softly. "Have you lost your senses?" A nearby earth-brown bull sneered, its face full of mockery. "This has triggered a regional event; other than the NPCs, which player doesn't know about it?" Not long ago, throughout the entire Shifang region of the Great Mountain Range, three regional announcements echoed continuously: [The Demon Venerable Shifang calls upon all demon clans to converge at Spirit Spring Valley, unite, and slay the human Yue Ling!] Thus, now there wasn't a single Shifang region player unaware of this matter. "Uh..." The yellow ox, embarrassed, quickly shifted the topic. "So, who is that human exactly? To trigger a regional event like this?" "Yue Ling, a woman, an NPC. That's about all I know." "Oh." The yellow ox pondered for a moment and said, "I want to go too!" "What are you going for?" The earth-brown bull looked astonished. "This type of mission is obviously fraught with danger. With your skills, are you going to just be another dish on the menu?" "No!" The yellow ox shook its head, resolutely stating, "I must witness how a high-level NPC like Master Shifang fights, and how a human expert fights, too. It will definitely provide me with great insights." Seeing the determination and courage in the yellow ox's eyes, the earth-brown bull suddenly felt displeased and sneered, "Don't kid yourself. Even if you go, you probably won't learn anything useful. What's the point?" "Even if I don't learn much, witnessing the grace of supreme beings is worth it!" The yellow ox remained unshaken. The earth-brown bull inexplicably grew angry and snapped, "Hmph, go to your death then, while I comfortably continue leveling here!" "Alright, then." The yellow ox nodded silently and resolutely turned, step by step heading toward the mission location, leaving the earth-brown bull dumbfounded, staring blankly. Meanwhile, on the Ask Immortal forum, demon players were in an uproar. After all, this was the first time Shifang region players had encountered a regional event. "Can anyone tell me, who exactly is Yue Ling, and is she as strong as our brother Baihui?" "I heard that because of her beauty, human players have exaggerated her abilities. In my opinion, she's just a 17-year-old girl. How strong could she really be?" "So, Baihui is stronger, right?" "Of course! Baihui is our demon clan's once-in-a-millennium A-level genius. Not only is his swordsmanship exceptional, but his level is high, too. As the current leader among Shifang region players at level 16, he'll have no trouble dealing with a mere human girl." "The humans are really laughable, praising someone to the skies just because she's pretty. There were even ridiculous rumors of her soloing a level 120 BOSS. It made me laugh so hard my tail tied around my head." "Suddenly curious how the guy above ties his tail around his head." "Hehe, since the human players hype Yue Ling so much, why don't we capture her and humiliate her in front of them?" "What a brilliant idea! Isn't there an Ask Immortal broadcast now? Let's get a low-level beast to broadcast live for them, they would be infuriated, haha." "Uh, let's not. What if it provokes the human players and they strike back?" "No big deal. Unlike before, now humans, like us, all start from scratch. Even Wang Xuan and Su Yu are only at level 16. The outcome is still uncertain!" "Stop talking; Baihui has gone live. He said he's going to publicly slay that human cornerstone figure and broadcast it to the humans. This is going to be exciting." "I can't wait to see those humans hopping mad, haha, it'll be so satisfying." Over time, the various demon forces from the Shifang region converged around Spirit Spring Valley, yet Yue Ling and her companions were oblivious to these happenings. In Spirit Spring Valley, disciples of the Fierce Sun Sect were all in a dilemma, clutching their long swords, drawing them out, then reluctantly sheathing them again. In front of the group, humanoid tree monsters kept charging at them with claws bared, but before they could grow anxious, Yue Ling would casually strike down with her sword, cleaving them in half. Yue Ling stood like a steadfast rock amidst a torrent, impenetrable by any number of enemies. Yet with every tree monster Yue Ling killed, the disciples felt a pang of anguish. These were valuable experience points, just hacked to bits by her sword. Secret Realm monsters were known to yield considerable experience, wasting it on an NPC was incredibly painful for them. What the disciples saw as precious experience was utterly beneath Yue Ling's notice. Killing a tree monster netted only 4000 experience points, and after a cut, just 2000. Given her experience bar nearing a million, Yue Ling felt indifferent, more eager to finish the Secret Realm and continue her next exclusive mission. [Ding~ You have triggered the Azure Cloud Order mission: Protect the Fierce Sun Sect disciples until mission's end. Note: You will receive corresponding Azure Cloud points based on their survival count.] Yue Ling frowned slightly, feeling hesitant. Initially, she wanted these Fierce Sun Sect disciples to be wiped out so she could vent some anger. But doing so would cost her the Azure Cloud Order mission, and Azure Cloud points were crucial for dispatching Azure Cloud tasks to have players aid her in tasks. Abandoning it would be a pity. Was there a way to achieve both ends? Yue Ling pondered. Not far behind, Huoyun observed everyone's expressions. Noting the disciples' heartache and regret, an idea struck, prompting Huoyun to step forward and say loudly, "Fairy Yue Ling, excuse me." Under everyone's astonished gaze, Huoyun spoke earnestly, "Though I understand your goodwill, if you keep slaying these tree monsters, we can't gain any combat experience." These words immediately sowed seeds of resentment among some experience-hungry disciples. If she hadn't swept the monsters clean, perhaps they would have gained much by now. Yue Ling paused, glanced back at the disciples, noting some indeed harbored such thoughts and even resented her. Her heart sneered coldly, and she said lightly, "Alright." She promptly sheathed her sword, gracefully stepping aside, no longer impeding the aggressive tree monster. The disciples of the Fierce Sun Sect were overjoyed. Without Yue Ling intervening, at last, they could gain the experience. Indeed, the sect leader possessed extraordinary courage, daring to speak such words to Yue Ling!