As for these NPCs in front of him? Ryan Carter knocked them down one after another out of sheer boredom. A computer is always a computer—using such rigid attack patterns over and over again is simply useless. Sooner or later, all players will figure out the computer’s attack routines. For example, that Blade just now—with his mind and reflexes, he’s bound to become a top player.

By the pond at the foot of the hill, Ryan Carter had been grinding monsters for a full two hours. In his eyes, he wasn’t fighting monsters; he was just practicing his martial arts routines. The feeling of sweating profusely and moving with such freedom was something he loved, and he didn’t find the repetition boring at all. The reason he could persist when all his family members had given up on martial arts was because Ryan Carter himself was truly passionate about it, finding endless joy in the process.

After taking down another six vagrants, Ryan Carter had already reached level sixteen. He scooped up some water from the pond and wiped his face. The hot sweat on his face, cooled by the cold water, felt incredibly refreshing. For the first time, Ryan Carter genuinely marveled at the game’s realism—the sensation of sweating and the cool touch were just amazing.

Just then, Ryan Carter received a notification of a new message. He opened his inbox, and sure enough, it was from Blaze: “Drunk Bro, Drunk Bro, what level are you now?”

“Level 16,” Ryan Carter replied.

“Ah! Ah! So fast, I’m only just level 10.” Just looking at the text, Ryan Carter could feel Blaze’s wail. But it had taken him two hours to reach level 10, while Ryan Carter had only fought two rounds by the pond at the time. It seemed that in Parallel World, fighting higher-level monsters was the key to leveling up quickly!

“Drunk Bro, Drunk Bro, are you done? I’ve saved up some money, come back to the city and I’ll buy you a drink!” Blaze messaged again.

“Sure!” Ryan Carter replied, and began to loot the six guys he had just defeated. A small amount of coins, some herbs and plants of unknown use, and then the meat-cutting knives—Ryan Carter had collected over a dozen by now and had nowhere left to put them.

Even though it was fully realistic, as a game, characters still needed an inventory. In Parallel World, the inventory was designed as a pocket. Anything you picked up, as long as you tossed it into the pocket attached to your right hip, was considered stored in your inventory and wouldn’t fall out. When you wanted to retrieve something, you’d reach into the pocket and feel neatly arranged slots inside—whichever slot you reached into, the item in that slot would naturally end up in your hand. Once your hand came out of the pocket, the item was considered taken out. It felt as magical as Doraemon’s pouch.

Ryan Carter tidied up, climbed to the top of the hill, and looked around to get his bearings for the way back to Cloud City.

By chance, he saw that by the pond at the foot of the hill, there was another person grinding levels. Stealthily, he approached a vagrant from behind, landed a backstab, then withstood the monster’s counterattack and unleashed a flurry of stabs, quickly taking one down before dashing away to rest. Once his health recovered, he repeated the process.

The dagger in this person’s hand emitted a faint blue glow. Ryan Carter smiled—he recognized this person as Blade. His level seemed to be in the twenties, so grinding here was just right. But groups of six vagrants weren’t suitable for solo players—aside from someone with Ryan Carter’s freakish skills, only a player as calculating as Blade could handle it.

There should have been six vagrants around the campfire, but there were only three. When the fourth respawned, Blade would immediately move in—stealth, approach, backstab, forceful attack, retreat, rest, wait for respawn, and repeat.

The method Blade used to attack was actually the same as Ryan Carter’s—a repetitive routine tailored to the NPCs’ characteristics. Ryan Carter couldn’t help but admire him inwardly.

But Ryan Carter soon noticed that not far from him, on the slope, there was another person also watching Blade’s performance.

This person wore a form-fitting purple robe that showed off her figure. It was obvious she was a female player. From the side, Ryan Carter couldn’t see her face clearly; he only saw her right arm cradling her left, with her left hand’s two fingers gently resting on her lips, watching Blade on the slope below with great focus.

He hadn’t expected a girl to have such an eye for skill. Ryan Carter smiled. At this moment, Blade had just finished off another vagrant and retreated to rest. He patted his pocket, apparently realizing his inventory was full, let out a long breath, then looked up and spotted the two people watching him from the slope. He paused for a moment, then turned and left.

At this distance, I wonder if he recognized me, Ryan Carter thought. After all, he didn’t have any distinctive equipment like Blade’s Frost Memory.

With their target gone, the two spectators each chose a direction and left. Ryan Carter noticed that the girl was heading in the same direction as Blade, and chuckled to himself: Could it be that Blade is about to have a romantic encounter? His gossiping curiosity was piqued, but remembering that Blaze was still waiting for him at the bar in the city, he gave up on the idea of following to watch.

Chapter 10: A Special Taste

On the way back to Cloud City, the number of players gradually increased as he got closer. It was clear that most players weren’t focused on leveling up yet; they were still enjoying the novelty of the full-immersion simulation game. Two people standing together, shaking hands, patting each other on the shoulder—it all felt incredibly new.

Ryan Carter returned to Cloud City, asked Blaze for directions to the tavern, and headed toward the city square.