TSA Chapter 75

Happy Good Friday~

After clearing the dungeon, the group headed into the wild and went on a monster-killing spree. Thanks to the increasingly rewarding repeatable quest, they managed to push Ran Qi and Gu Le to level 45 within a day, while Night Owl soared straight to level 50.

[System Announcement] Congratulations to player [Night Owl] for being the first to reach level 50! Rewarded with the title [Dominance Unrivaled] and [Physical Exchange Coupon *1].

[World] Summer Fireworks: As expected of a god-tier player! Absolutely insane!

[World] Quicksilver: This is just depressing. I just hit level 40 and barely had time to celebrate, and he’s already level 50…

[World] Shura: Sigh, I thought I had a chance to surpass Night Owl since he’s been online less these past few days!

[World] Thousand Mechanisms: Yeah, you were dreaming. Have you even seen his stat sheet?

……

Night Owl’s stats were undeniably the best in the entire game. His superior physical fitness gave him a naturally high base stat advantage. On top of that, he had maintained the number one spot on the level leaderboard, earning countless title rewards that kept stacking his stats. Forget about his terrifying attack power—just his health pool alone was leagues beyond that of regular warriors.

To an average player, Night Owl was practically a boss-tier monster.

Night Owl said, “Let’s go. We need to head to Otto City.”

Once a player reached level 45, they could move on to the next main city—the third one, Otto City.

“Oh my god, Otto City is so far away!” Gu Le exclaimed as he opened the world map.

“Seriously? Let me see!” Soul Chaser also pulled up the world map and gasped. “We have to cross four entire maps to get there?!”

Traveling to Otto City required crossing four maps. Since the maps in this holographic game were significantly larger than in traditional games, walking on foot without mounts would take an excruciatingly long time.

“No worries! I know a faster way to Otto City!” Ran Qi grinned.

“What way?” Everyone immediately turned to look at him in unison.

“Follow me!”

Ran Qi led them back to Sina City and found Patrick, the priest who had previously helped him advance his class quest.

“Just talk to him like I do,”

Ran Qi said before stepping forward to greet the NPC. “Priest Patrick, long time no see.”

“Oh, brave warrior, it has been some time! You have finally grown stronger!” Patrick looked at him with kind eyes and spoke in a sorrowful tone. “The demonic energy is spreading, and the forces of darkness are beginning to engulf this land. This place is no longer safe—you must leave quickly!”

At the same time, Ran Qi’s system prompt popped up.

[System] Priest Patrick wishes to send you to the next main city. Do you accept? Yes / No

Ran Qi immediately chose Yes, and Patrick handed him a token. “Take this token to the eastern part of the city and find Rita. She will guide you out! May the grace of the gods always be with you.”

The others quickly followed suit, obtaining their own tokens and heading east, where they found the NPC named Rita according to the map’s guidance.

Rita was an animal trainer who had secured a plot of land outside the eastern part of the city to raise animals. When they presented their tokens, she brought out six Golden Eagles—just the right number for their group.

“Since Priest Patrick sent you, I’ll have my Golden Eagles take you on your journey!” Rita said, patting the back of one of the massive birds.

Ran Qi had ridden Golden Eagles countless times through a screen before, but now, in full immersion mode, the enormous birds looked more majestic than ever. Their golden feathers shimmered under the sunlight, making them absolutely stunning.

“The Golden Eagles are incredibly fast. They’ll take you somewhere safe, so don’t worry,” Rita reassured them, giving the bird another gentle pat. The Golden Eagles flapped their wings, stirring up powerful gusts of wind before taking off, soaring high into the sky in an instant.

“Wow, these Golden Eagles are amazing!” Soul Chaser’s eyes sparkled. “I wonder if I can get one as a mount in the future?”

To his surprise, the moment he finished speaking, Rita’s expression shifted, and she spoke in a sorrowful tone. “With the demonic energy invading more and more, I don’t know how much longer I can protect them. If you’re willing, you can take them with you.”

A system prompt immediately appeared in front of Soul Chaser.

[System] Rita is willing to sell her Golden Eagles for 300 gold each. Would you like to purchase one? Yes / No

Soul Chaser: “……”

Of course, he wanted one! The problem was—he didn’t have enough money!

The exchange between in-game currency and real money hadn’t been enabled yet, making gold coins extremely valuable. 300 gold was an exorbitant price. Soul Chaser only had a little over 100 gold, and that was after constantly farming monsters, selling materials, and slowly accumulating wealth. As for other regular players, having even a few dozen gold was already considered impressive.

“Damn! 300 gold?! No way, I can’t afford that!” Everyone else received the same prompt. They all wanted the mount but simply didn’t have the money. Even Night Owl didn’t have enough.

Yet, none of them wanted to leave, afraid that if they missed this opportunity, there wouldn’t be another chance.

Ran Qi hadn’t expected them to trigger a mount quest this early—let alone one for high-grade flying mounts like Golden Eagles. In <Magic Realm>, mount quests were usually only available after level 50 and required completing the main storyline first. Even then, the reward was just low-tier land mounts like Thunder Hooves or Wind Runners. High-grade flying mounts? Those were only obtainable through pay-to-win loot boxes.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If they missed it now, who knew when they’d be able to get a flying mount again?

After thinking for a moment, Ran Qi said, “I only have enough for two. How about you guys wait here while I go back and sell some stuff? I’ll be back soon.”

Ran Qi had made quite a fortune selling food and equipment, making him the richest player on the server—far wealthier than the rest of the party combined. Of course, since he always remained anonymous, very few people knew about this.

“Alright… We’ll leave it to you then…”

Ran Qi tore open a Return Scroll, instantly teleporting back to the main city. He swept up a bunch of materials from the Trading Hall, crafted high-quality food and equipment, and listed them for sale.

With players leveling up, farming, questing, selling materials, and crafting had all become viable ways to make money. Many players now had at least 10 to 20 gold, leading to a surge in activity at the Trading Hall. Ran Qi’s items had excellent stats, and the moment they were listed, they were instantly snatched up. Seeing such high-quality gear appearing on the market, players who managed to buy them immediately called their friends, turning it into a full-on shopping frenzy.

With so many buyers, Ran Qi’s entire stock sold out in no time. In just a short while, he earned 1,500 gold, bringing his total wealth to over 2,000 gold—and even unlocking the ‘Tycoon of the Realm’ achievement.

With his pockets full, he returned and bought all six Golden Eagles in one go.

[System Announcement] Players [Night Owl] [Soul Chaser] [Plume Ink] [Sword at Fleeting Time] [Bai Ran] [Coke] have successfully triggered the hidden quest [Mounts] and obtained high-tier mounts! The Mount System is now available. Players may now visit mount trainers in major cities to purchase mounts.

It was only after seeing the announcement that they realized they had triggered a hidden quest. The requirements were actually quite strict: players needed to reach Revered reputation in Sina City, gain an NPC’s favor, and be in a full party—all at the same time.

Since they had been grinding endless repeatable quests for EXP, their reputation had unintentionally reached the required level. Their high NPC favorability came naturally, thanks to being recommended by Priest Patrick. Without realizing it, they had met all the quest conditions…

“All thanks to Brother Ran! If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have even known about repeatable quests, let alone gotten these amazing mounts!”

“Yeah! Brother Ran, you’re the best!”

“It’s nothing, really…” Ran Qi said, feeling a little embarrassed.

[World] Quicksilver: WTF, IT’S NIGHT OWL’S PARTY AGAIN?! THEY GOT MOUNTS?! I WANT ONE SO BAD!!!

[World] Summer Fireworks: INSANE! AS EXPECTED OF A GOD-TIER PLAYER!

[World] Returning to the Sea: I just checked at the main city’s NPC—even the lowest-tier mount costs 100 gold, mid-tier costs 200, and high-tier is 300 gold!

[World] Shinian: A poor man sheds tears of poverty…