Time ticked by, and Brian Carter felt himself growing increasingly nervous. He had already decided on his class: Druid! This was because, during the beta test, his father had played this class the most and had left him the most tips and insights about it.

Just as he was thinking, a dazzling white light flashed before his eyes, as if he were traveling through a tunnel of time. After a moment, the white light gradually dimmed, and a fairy with wings no bigger than a palm and as transparent as glass fluttered before him. He found himself standing on an altar, surrounded by all kinds of unknown wildflowers in full bloom, colorful butterflies dancing in the air, making the place look like a fairyland.

The fairy was a beautiful young girl, with delicate skin and exquisite features—even her upturned eyelashes were clearly visible.

What a realistic feeling—so this is Dictator’s Sword! It was far more realistic than any virtual game he had played before. Brian Carter couldn’t help but marvel. No wonder his father said Dictator’s Sword would be a revolution in virtual gaming—this virtual technology was truly astonishing!

“Hello, I am the guide fairy Nora. I will lead you into Dictator’s Sword. Please choose the continent and city you wish to enter.”

Residents of Earth could only choose between the Osland Continent and the Okado Continent.

“Osland Continent, Carlos City, Kerfield Town, Tagite Village.” Brian Carter didn’t hesitate at all. Going to Kerfield Town in Carlos City on the Osland Continent was a requirement from the studio. As for the village, Brian Carter could choose freely.

“You will appear in Tagite Village, Kerfield Town, Carlos City, Osland Continent. After testing, your basic attributes are: Agility 9, Strength 9, Spirit 10. Your physical fitness is exceptionally strong, so no extra attribute compensation is needed. Please choose your class and talents.” Some players with low base attributes could receive extra attribute points as compensation, but Brian Carter didn’t need any—his agility, strength, and spirit were all quite good, so no extra compensation was necessary.

“Druid class!” Since he had already made up his mind, Brian Carter was very decisive.

“You have two talents to choose from: one as your primary, one as your secondary.”

Druids had many talents, including Elemental, Plant, Summoning, Shapeshifting, and so on. Each Druid could choose two talents. The primary talent gave a 10% bonus to skills of that type, while the secondary talent gave a 5% bonus.

“Primary: Plant, Secondary: Shapeshifting,” said Brian Carter. Most Druids usually chose Elemental or Summoning as their primary, and very few picked Plant. Choosing Shapeshifting as secondary was more common, but Brian Carter had already thought everything through.

“Please name your character!”

“Dark Night.” Brian Carter casually picked an ID.

Chapter 5: Black Oil Spell

“Do you have any questions I can help answer?” The guide fairy Nora asked with a smile.

“No, let’s enter the game!” said Brian Carter. He knew that the questions the guide fairy Nora could answer were all quite superficial, so there was no need to waste time here.

“Alright, welcome to the world of magic.”

System: Game starting...

A flash of white light, and Brian Carter appeared in a run-down village, with only five or six old, low houses and twenty or thirty NPCs dressed in all sorts of strange costumes. There were no other players yet on the small stone-paved road in the center of the village. At this time, most players were probably still considering which class and talents suited them best, or consulting the guide fairy. Very few, like Brian Carter, had entered the game so quickly.

The surroundings were as realistic as scenes from real life. Brian Carter couldn’t help but take a deep breath, savoring the atmosphere of this world.

There wasn’t much time. Before the flood of players arrived, he still had a few things to do. Brian Carter quickly opened his attribute panel to check his talents. Looking at the primary talent panel, he breathed a sigh of relief. Just as his father had said, choosing Plant as the primary talent granted a talent state: Through the Thorns!

Through the Thorns: Druids can move through forests, thickets, swamps, piles of rocks, and areas with dense vegetation at 90% speed without being affected. Immune to Mud Spell and Web Spell, and has a 30% chance to be immune to binding magic.

This is exactly what he wanted!

Brian Carter thought excitedly as he ran toward the center of Tagite Village. In the middle of the village stood a dilapidated library made of wood, but it was already the tallest building in Tagite Village. Besides the main hall below, there was also an attic above, and the eaves were covered in moss.

Entering the library, Brian Carter found an elderly man wearing a tattered mage’s robe, a tall pointed hat, and holding a pitch-black nanmu staff.

The librarian of Tagite Village Library was named Solomon.

“Respected elder, hello.” Brian Carter placed his right hand over his chest and bowed in greeting.

“Young man, hello,” Solomon replied with a faint smile. “You are the first to arrive here. Every young person in Tagite Village can choose two skill books here as their basic skills for training. As the first to arrive, you may also choose an additional secondary skill book as a reward.”