333: mortal

The number of players in Newcomer Valley was growing, and while the area was large enough, the resources were clearly insufficient.

Some clueless players were even collecting wood in this area, preparing to build houses, seemingly intending to reside there long-term.

However, players like Wan Lin, who had a clearer goal for the future, headed towards the valley exit.

Soon, Wan Lin saw one veteran player after another outside.

The veteran players were dressed in ancient styles; some wore exquisite, patterned armor, some donned Daoist robes with an air of immortality, and others were clad in black, giving them a demonic allure.

"20 trade points for a ride to the nearest teleportation array! All are welcome!"

"'Newbie Mutual Aid and Benefit Group' is recruiting!"

"Any cute girls? Add me as a friend!"

Wan Lin bypassed the noisy crowd and walked towards the nearest teleportation array himself.

He knew that powerful veteran players didn't have time to waste in Newbie Village; those who came here were, without exception, all low-level players.

In Wan Lin's opinion, interacting with them was a complete waste of time and utterly meaningless.

The only meaningful thing would be to have a Foundation Establishment player carry him to save time, but unfortunately, he didn't have any trade points, nor did he have the time to search for resources or temper his body in Newcomer Valley to earn trade points.

He traveled alone, walking rapidly across the land of the Xuanhuan World.

This body was that of a Mortal, which veteran players would consider very weak, not fast, and with strength so negligible it was practically nonexistent.

But to Wan Lin, this was a perfect body.

There was no scorching pain when he breathed, no tearing agony when he stepped; he could even run, shout, and jump.

In the eyes of other players, Wan Lin seemed like a bumpkin experiencing a virtual world for the first time; some even laughed at him wildly.

But Wan Lin only felt moved, almost shedding tears.

He felt as if he had been reborn.

"Such a perfect body, even if it's just an ordinary Mortal physique. If I can Cultivate and access the Cultivation Techniques veteran players talk about, to what extent can this body reach?"

"Xuanhuan World... I am so satisfied!"

Filled with endless excitement, Wan Lin didn't find the journey monotonous; instead, he considered it a great enjoyment.

His legs quickly grew tired, his breathing became rapid, his chest began to heave, and he felt somewhat exhausted.

But the expression on his face grew even more excited.

The normal state of a person after excessive exercise was incredibly novel to him.

He relished his exhaustion, feeling no discomfort or pain whatsoever.

He continued to run like this, and after an unknown period, he finally arrived at a small city.

This city had walls about ten meters high, guarded by Immortal Dynasty soldiers, with orderly streets and houses inside. The central plaza was his destination: the teleportation array.

Players had differing opinions on the state-stabilizing seal, but one thing all low-level players agreed on was this:

The Immortal Dynasty under the rule of the state-stabilizing seal was indeed much safer and more convenient for travel than the former Four Kingdoms.

There were no evil Cultivators, no wars; everything was peaceful.

As a harmless Mortal, Wan Lin entered the city with ease.

He quickly reached the vicinity of the teleportation array.

The teleportation array appeared as a platform several tens of meters tall, covered in various glowing, star-like patterns, looking very mysterious.

Cultivators of the Immortal Dynasty guarded it.

Only then did Wan Lin realize that using the teleportation array required Spirit Stones, and he had none.

A kind Mortal guard nearby told him how to earn Spirit Stones:

First, mine and gather herbs for a few decades, save enough money to join a Sect for Cultivation, and then he would have Spirit Stones.

"No way? It's all virtualized, and I still have to start from the bottom?"

Wan Lin was dumbfounded.

He thought about it and decided that Mortals indeed didn't deserve to use teleportation arrays; perhaps there were other means of transportation.

So he asked the Mortal guard how to get to Great River City.

The guard looked at him with surprise and explained:

"Great River City? It's over ten thousand li from here. If you ride a horse thirty li a day, you'll get there in about a year."

Wan Lin was instantly stunned.

Wait, isn't the map of this Xuanhuan World too big?

He was currently in the central part of the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty, and Great River City was only not far from the south of the Great River. This actually spanned ten thousand li?

How vast, then, was the entire Great Jiang?

It was then that Wan Lin remembered that during the previous Xuanhuan World test, it seemed that initially, the other three kingdoms and parts of the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty were open, and even that spanned several thousand li.

And when the Great Jiang Imperial Dynasty was fully opened, the overall strength of players had risen; many were at Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment, some had reached Golden Core, and Spirit Stone resources were no longer scarce, so everyone's perception of distance wasn't as deep.

But now, as a Newbie Mortal, facing this vast distance once again, Wan Lin suddenly found it absurd.

Although time accelerated within the Xuanhuan World, at least at a 1:100 ratio, a year in-game would only be about four days in reality at most.

But for Wan Lin, that was a solid year...

"Forget it, I'll just honestly work to earn money first, then figure out how to get Cultivation methods. I see many Cultivation methods circulating among veteran players..."

"Oh no, the new version doesn't have Lifespan acceleration. Does that mean even if I can Cultivate, it will take a lot of time to get started?"

Wan Lin stood bewildered near the teleportation array, suddenly realizing a fatal problem with the new version of the Xuanhuan World:

Time.

Before entering the game, although the official announcement had repeatedly emphasized it, and many players had speculated about it.

But Newbies like Wan Lin still didn't have a strong sense of time.

Until now, he suddenly discovered that the time span of the Xuanhuan World seemed overly exaggerated.

A Mortal traveling within a country would take a year, and if one wanted to Cultivate, with poor Aptitude, getting started might take ten or twenty years.

This long duration suddenly made Wan Lin feel a bit suffocated.

He looked at the teleportation array, suddenly thinking of a key point: perhaps he could cut corners?

He thought to himself: "Analyze!"

【Small Teleportation Array】

【Basic Analysis:】

【A teleportation array built by the former governing power of the Prison Land, usable only for the internal teleportation network within the Prison Land. Over the long passage of time, many teleportation arrays were damaged, eventually causing the teleportation network to shrink and even collapse.

【Some carefully preserved teleportation arrays lost their function of transmitting within the network, retaining only basic functionality. They were later repaired by Formation Masters and a new teleportation network was established, making the transferable areas increasingly limited.】

【Advanced Analysis Requires:】

【Formation Attainment: Fifth Grade】

【Inscription Attainment: Fifth Grade】

【Metallurgy Attainment: Fifth Grade】

Wan Lin sighed as he looked at the analysis.

It seemed there was no possibility of cheating; the analysis wasn't fully effective and still adhered to all the settings of the Xuanhuan World.

He had no choice but to leave the teleportation array area, preparing to find a place to work and Cultivate.