Chapter 5: Leveled Up

The ranger class occupies a rather awkward position in the game. Officially, it is designated as a provider of powerful ranged firepower and a natural tamer of beasts. However, in "Echoes of the Gods," every ranged weapon suffers a -15% penalty to accuracy. Considering the players' real combat skills, in actual battles, as long as the distance exceeds twenty meters, the probability of hitting with a bow rarely surpasses fifty percent.

It’s simply too low.

Rangers gain five energy points with a normal attack hit, and double that with a critical hit, yet most skills require energy to use. With such low accuracy, it’s nearly impossible to sustain even the most basic energy consumption.

Capturing pets is even worse—trying to catch a top-tier pet at low levels is about as realistic as buying a lottery ticket.

You suggest going in with a blade? Why bother playing a ranger, then? Rogue, warrior, monk—any of them are far more enjoyable than the ranger.

So, after the initial surge of excitement, the number of ranger players declined sharply, and soon the ranger was poised to replace the warlock as the least-popular “panda” class in "Echoes of the Gods."

The bald warrior’s mind spun rapidly. This backpack expansion quest was a solo task; if this ranger could complete it, he must be a true expert!

“Hey, brother, don’t rush off! Our guild is recruiting—are you interested in joining?” The bald warrior reacted quickly, noticing that Lu Kuan lacked a guild emblem on his chest, and immediately switched tactics.

The others caught on as well, warmly striking up conversation with Lu Kuan. What matters most in this century? Talent! An expert playing such a rare class would be a tremendous asset to any team.

Their words were polite, and Lu Kuan could only smile as he repeatedly declined. Finally, he excused himself by saying he already had a guild with his classmates, freeing himself from their lingering enthusiasm, and left the morning market.

The quest turn-in went smoothly—just five minutes, and Mitchell the tailor added two item slots to Lu Kuan’s backpack.

This meant he could carry an extra stack of fresh water and food, or a moderately sized weapon. For Lu Kuan, who suffered from mild obsessive tendencies, this was nothing short of a blessing.

“System notification: Congratulations, you have completed the backpack expansion quest and gained 190 experience points.”

“Character level increased to: 10.”

“System notification: You have received 1 skill point and 1 specialty point. Please allocate them as desired.”

A character gains 1 skill point per level, and 1 specialty point every ten levels. Lu Kuan had already planned his allocations; he opened the character panel, invested the specialty point in “Vigorous Endurance,” and gave the skill point to Aimed Shot.

Vigorous Endurance: Increases maximum stamina by 30%.
Aimed Shot: 1.5 seconds casting time, deals extra physical damage to the target and restores 12 energy points. Damage is determined by character attributes and weapon quality.

With this, his stamina increased to 62, and Aimed Shot rose to level two, greatly enhancing his combat endurance and giving him a sense of confidence.

Upon completing this quest, Mitchell gave Lu Kuan a follow-up called “More Bags (Difficulty B+).” This task was more challenging and twisted, but the reward was tantalizing—a ten-slot backpack.

Players can equip up to four independent backpacks at once; each additional bag drastically improves sustainability.

Those players who threw backpack expansion items onto the auction house would surely be spitting blood in regret if they heard this news.

But now, the backpack quest could only be pushed down Lu Kuan’s agenda. He bid farewell to Mitchell and left the commercial district for the Alchemy Hall of Lava Fortress.

This rectangular hall served as a public alchemy room. For a modest rental fee, anyone could use its expensive alchemical apparatus. It was the first choice for most crafting players.

At this hour, the hall was quiet. Under the glow of magical torches, only two or three people were hard at work. Lu Kuan glanced around and unexpectedly spotted a familiar figure.

It was a female human warrior, clad in light brown chainmail, her face covered by a white veil, engrossed in manipulating alchemy equipment.

Today marked the fifth time; every visit to the alchemy hall, Lu Kuan had seen her. Although the game allowed female players to conceal their faces for privacy, Lu Kuan could easily recognize her.

She stood at least 175 centimeters tall, her slender figure was eye-catching, and her exposed eyes were long and alluring. Yet her gaze was chillingly cold—any normal man would involuntarily take a second look. Her distinctiveness was undeniable.

Lu Kuan had no inclination to strike up a conversation. He merely glanced at the warrior’s shapely figure before moving to his own alchemy station.

He adeptly lit the lamp, placed various materials on the table for simple processing, and then followed the skill prompts to brew potions in sequence. The more precise the operation and the better the timing, the higher the success rate of potion making.

In the game, crafting professions were ranked: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Master, Grandmaster, and Archmaster, with three levels per rank. Once at Grandmaster, further improvement depended on luck.

All crafting skills were like this—tedious and joyless, but if one wished to surpass others, there was no alternative.

“Crafting failed. Lost 2 silverroot herbs, 1 additive...”

“Crafting successful. Congratulations, you have obtained a Level 1 Recovery Potion (1 bottle), skill proficiency +1, current alchemy skill proficiency: Level 2, 37%...”

“Crafting failed...”

Lu Kuan soon entered a state of absorbed focus. As the materials on the table dwindled, the pile of finished products grew. Unbeknownst to him, daylight slowly crept in through the window.

Amber morning light slanted across the table, casting long shadows. The sunlight reflected off the glass bottles, dazzling his eyes. Lu Kuan instinctively squinted, only then realizing it was morning.

By now, more players had arrived at the alchemy hall. The table in the corner was empty—the beautiful warrior had vanished at some point.

“About time~”

Lu Kuan stretched comfortably, packed up his things, and headed straight for the north gate. Just as he left Lava Fortress, his message manager beeped.

“Knew you’d log in early—come level up with me!” Dai Guang’s raspy voice rang from the communicator.

Dai Guang played a priest. Lu Kuan knew the other worried that solo leveling as a ranger would be too tough. He replied with a smile, “Don’t worry about me; you go ahead. I have other things to do.”

“Alright, just don’t push yourself. Solo leveling as a ranger is asking for trouble.” Dai Guang knew Lu Kuan’s nature and didn’t press further, just gave a reminder.

Lu Kuan agreed with a laugh, exchanged a few pleasantries, and disconnected.

The green hills north of Lava Fortress formed a vast leveling zone, teeming with everything from Level 1 wild boars to Level 9 venom wolves.

Lu Kuan followed the main road eastward, carefully avoiding high-level monsters roaming the path. If he couldn’t avoid a minor beast, he dealt with it swiftly.