Elf Kingdom: Game of the World Tree-Chapter 211 - 205: The Illusion of Hard Labor

Chapter 211: Chapter 205: The Illusion of Hard Labor

Following the system’s prompt, Transforming Ji Gang followed the mini-map and arrived at the teleportation array marked “Black Dragon Castle.”

“This quest seems to be about finding the task issued by Black Dragon Mairrel, hmm… there’s also a friendly tip? When receiving the quest, I must refer to it as ‘Lord Silver Dragon,’ or there’s a chance the quest might fail?”

Transforming Ji Gang was a bit puzzled.

However, although he felt strange, he quickly stepped into the array.

A flash of light passed through the array, and Transforming Ji Gang felt a dizzying sensation. When he saw his surroundings clearly again, he found the scene had changed.

It was no longer Chosen City but an ancient, time-worn castle!

This castle was very tall, seemingly built to accommodate some large creatures, and the interior was quite spacious, with the gate alone being over ten meters high.

As Transforming Ji Gang was teleported over, he saw several veteran players in luxurious gear grilling meat over a campfire outside the castle, and in a cart beside them, a pile of grilled meat was already as high as a person.

So much grilled meat?

Transforming Ji Gang was taken aback.

Noticing the light from the array, the veteran players also looked over, and when they saw Transforming Ji Gang’s initial equipment, their eyes lit up.

“A newbie? Third-phase player?”

A female player in a dazzling magic robe asked curiously, her avatar name above her head read Little Xian Miao.

Little Xian Miao? This name sounds familiar, I think I’ve seen it online… probably another big shot.

A thought crossed Transforming Ji Gang’s mind, and he quickly smiled:

“Yes, hello, big shots! Um… I came to find the Black… Silver Dragon NPC to get the feeding task.”

Upon hearing his words, the veteran players grilling meat instantly understood.

Little Xian Miao, while instructing several players to turn the meat, said with a smile,

“Then you’ll have to wait a bit, Mairrel went for a stroll and should be back around mealtime.”

Mealtime?

Transforming Ji Gang’s expression was strange as he looked at the meat in the players’ hands, making a guess in his mind.

Noticing his gaze, Little Xian Miao smiled:

“We’re on a quest too, a personal task from Mairrel, preparing its lunch. The reward’s pretty nice. If you’re good at grilling, you can collect it when it returns.”

Ah, I see.

Transforming Ji Gang nodded.

Having done his homework beforehand, Transforming Ji Gang knew there were four types of tasks in “Elf Kingdom”:

The most important were the main storyline quests.

These quests often involved the Goddess Eve, triggered randomly as players explored, driving the game’s storyline forward.

Each player who triggered or uncovered a hidden main storyline usually made a fortune, and might even receive an audience with the Goddess, gaining enviable abilities.

Therefore, the main storyline quests were considered the best tasks in “Elf Kingdom.”

Next were side quests and daily tasks.

These were generally tied to main quests, often directly issued by the game system. The former was one-time, with considerable rewards, while the latter offered smaller rewards but could be repeated.

The feeding task Transforming Ji Gang collected was a daily task.

Then, there were personal tasks.

These were quests issued by NPCs based on their needs, with rewards depending on the rarity of the NPC and the player’s rapport with them. Generally, veteran players preferred getting these tasks from familiar NPCs.

It’s said that personal tasks issued by purple template NPCs offered rewards nearly rivaling main quests!

The players grilling meat were engaged in a personal task issued by the Black Dragon.

While Transforming Ji Gang and the veteran players started chatting, a distant dragon’s roar echoed:

“RUA——!”

With a whoosh of wind, a massive shadow covered Transforming Ji Gang and the others.

He looked up to see a huge creature with a wingspan of over twenty meters descending toward them…

The black scales, the menacing Skull Armor, and the terrifying dragon’s might made Transforming Ji Gang’s legs tremble, his face turning pale…

Black Dragon! This was the Black Dragon!

Although he had seen it flying in the sky from afar in Chosen City, it felt different from up close…

Now, with it right in front, the pressure from such a massive creature, the intimidation from this higher-level being, filled Transforming Ji Gang with awe.

*Even knowing it’s a game, the immersion was too real, creating a genuine sense of fear…*

“Hey! Mairrel! There’s a newbie, you’ve scared him!”

Little Xian Miao called out to the Black Dragon from the side.

After speaking, she disdainfully waved away the dust kicked up by the dragon’s wings:

“How many times have I told you, keep your distance when landing, it’s all dust… Your grilled meat’s covered in dust too! You’re a big dragon now, be more considerate!”

Watching the female player talk to the fearsome Black Dragon so casually, Transforming Ji Gang was a bit stunned.

Then, to his surprise, the sinister and evil-looking Black Dragon didn’t get angry, but instead awkwardly grinned with a creepy smile:

“Ahem, no problem, no problem! I’ll be careful next time! The great Lord Mairrel doesn’t mind a bit of dust, but… did you put honey on the grilled meat?”

“Sure did, come eat!”

Several players pushed the cart full of grilled meat over.

Then, Transforming Ji Gang saw the Black Dragon’s eyes light up, and it instantly pounced like a husky seeing food from its master, munching eagerly…

Meanwhile, the veteran players, taking advantage of the Black Dragon’s focus on the meat, sneaked to its side, using big steel brushes to scratch its back while happily collecting shiny triangular scales from the ground…

Those were scales that had fallen off Mairrel.

Some players even started picking directly from its body, pulling out shiny dragon scales one by one…

Transforming Ji Gang: …

He was left wide-eyed.

*These players… were they really this daring?*

Of course, he didn’t know that Black Dragon Mairrel was entering a new growth phase.

During this time, the Little Black Dragon’s body would grow quickly, becoming larger, while old scales would gradually fall off, replaced by newer, larger, and tougher scales!

However, only Little Xian Miao and two skilled BBQ buddies from the Northeast dared to touch Mairrel’s scales, and Mairrel only turned a blind eye to their little actions.

After all… they had to eat.

Little Xian Miao could endlessly supply it with the finest Demon Beast meat, and the two male players were the best at grilling. They were its favorite attendants!

Anyway… the shed scales were useless, so consider them a gift.

“Oh, right, Mairrel, this new Chosen One is here to get the feeding task from you, give him the task when you have a moment.”

Little Xian Miao said while happily picking up scales.

“A new Chosen One? Finally, someone’s arrived to work?”

Visit freewёbnoνel.com for the best novel reading experience.

The Black Dragon turned its head, with eyes like copper bells, looked towards Transforming Ji Gang.

“Uh… ahem… right, Lord Silver Dragon, I’m here to take on the task of feeding the livestock.”

Transforming Ji Gang let out a couple of dry coughs, then showed a sheepish smile…

…

Transforming Ji Gang smoothly received the task.

Following the quest prompt, he made his way to a considerable farm near Black Dragon Castle, where he found a sizable livestock farm.

The farm housed over two hundred cows and sheep, along with a substantial amount of chickens, ducks, and geese.

“Why would the Elf Force have a farm in this game? Are they for eating?”

Transforming Ji Gang curiously inspected the farm as he followed the task instructions, gathering fodder, preparing feed, and feeding the livestock and poultry.

While feeding, Transforming Ji Gang reflected on the Black Dragon NPC he had just met.

“Although I already knew from game videos that the NPC system in ‘Elf Kingdom’ was impressive, I never imagined it could be this formidable!”

“*Dialogues without any awkwardness, lifelike expressions and emotions… It feels like they’re more than just NPCs; they’re like real-life beings capable of communication and forming friendships with players!*”

“*It’s no wonder people say ‘Elf Kingdom’ is like a second life. It’s truly well-deserved. With such an incredible game and that extraordinary time-acceleration technology, it’s hard not to see it getting popular.*”

Transforming Ji Gang mused.

“*I wonder… what the main quests are like? The video made them look quite exciting, especially the massive battles against the Half-Beasts, truly exhilarating… and the Goddess’s animations were incredible.*”

“*I’m so looking forward to it! I really want to level up quickly!*”

With that thought, Transforming Ji Gang felt a surge of motivation.

…

Transforming Ji Gang wasn’t the only new player who chose this task.

After about an hour, he completed his part of the task and successfully earned his first experience points and contribution since entering the game.

Of course, the contribution couldn’t be used immediately, as the exchange system would only be available once players reached level 11.

This meant that until reaching level 11, new players had to either join a veteran player’s employer team and pay to get stronger or diligently grind through tasks.

It’s said that when the server first opened, there were quite a few Demon Beasts suitable for newbies near the safe zone.

Unfortunately, except for the Shadow instance, monsters in “Elf Kingdom” didn’t respawn. Veteran players had hunted down all the core area’s Demon Beasts.

Though the game’s guides mentioned many Demon Beasts further north, it was dangerous — disastrous for new players, and even veterans could face setbacks…

Therefore, for ordinary new players, leveling up to 11 and reaching the minimum level requirement for the Underworld and Shadow instance would primarily rely on tasks.

Fortunately, the game tasks provided substantial experience, as just one feeding task leveled Transforming Ji Gang up to level 2.

However, the daily tasks in “Elf Kingdom” were different from what he imagined…

Many daily tasks didn’t involve much of a story, requiring only work that demanded effort and energy, like feeding livestock, collecting wood, transporting goods, and brick hauling…

“*Why do I feel like I’m doing manual labor in the game?*”

After completing the feeding task and returning to the farmland near Chosen City to take on a sowing task, Transforming Ji Gang looked at the crop seeds in his hand, pondering deeply…