Chapter 3: Undercurrents in the Wilds

To find the mysterious shadow, Ye Ling ventured alone into the 'Deep Wilds,' an area not fully monitored by the system. Here, there were no warning alerts, nor fixed monster respawn times. Dense Originium exhaust fumes permeated the woods, with remnants of abandoned defense towers scattered everywhere. It was here that Ye Ling encountered the shadow again – 'Night Owl.' Night Owl wasn't an officially registered hero in the system, but a wanderer who refused to have a tactical chip implanted. "You think you're directing the match?" Night Owl thrust the dark blade in his hand into the ground, Originium pulses flickering. "You're just replaying thousands of repeated commands. The Temple of Light has set three paths for you, and you really only dare to take those three paths?" "Paths are for efficiency and order," Ye Ling retorted. "Order?" Night Owl pointed to the sky above. "That's so you can be like minions, going wave after wave to crash against the enemy's crystal."