Golden Shard

On the morning of the second day in the game, when the sky turned bright, Nocturne and the old man ended their fishing trip.

"I have to admit you are quite good, you are gifted in fishing."

"Thank you, pops! You are really kind."

"Okay then, since I got my Moonscale Fish, I'll give you this as a reward."

The old man then gave Nocturne an item.

"Completed quest: Fishing Moonscale Fish. Acquired: Golden Shard."

[Golden Shard (Unknown)]

[Character Bind]

[Note: It is unknown what it has inside but the constant holy light proves that it is something extraordinary.]

[Requirement: Unknown]

"This is…"

"This is a treasure that I got during my younger days, it's something great but I've researched and studied it for half my life and still can't find a way to utilize it. All I know is that it has something to do with fishing and halo skills. I'm old and I won't live forever, so even if I can use it, it will be a waste. I see your talent in fishing and halo skills, so I wanted to give it to you. I hope you can find out the secret, consider it my final wish."

"Pops, you don't have to, what if I can't find out the secret?"

"Then be like me. Find another talented young man and give it to him, pass it on to the next generation."

"Okay…"

"What's with that face? You don't like it? Give it back if you don't like it, I'll give you something else in exchange. Take the lantern instead." The old man was irritated by Nocturne's faint reaction and was almost rendered speechless.

"No way. I knew this was something great from the first glance. Thank you pops, for the gift. But… that lantern is really convenient during night fishing, so maybe…"

"You want it? Sure, but on one condition. Since we have ourselves some Moonscale Fish, why don't you cook me some. If I'm happy with your cooking, the lantern is yours."

"Not a problem! I'll make sure to fill your heart and stomach! But I don't have any tools with me, I'll have to go back to the village to cook."

"Accepted quest: A Table Of Dishes!"

A Table Of Dishes (Quest difficulty: Level C)

Quest description: You've accepted an unknown old man's request to cook a table of dishes to make him happy.

Completion: A happy old man 0/1

"You don't have to. I have the tools. Even though I am not a good cook, I carry tools so that I can cook myself a meal wherever I go."

The old man then took out a full set of cooking utensils from his bag. He also set up the table and waited for Nocturne to cook.

"Okay pops. Have some rum first. I'll be right back."

With a full set of cooking utensils at his disposal, Nocturne pulled out a few more bottles of rum for the old man, telling him to drink while waiting. He then started to cook a feast with the fish.

"Oh pops, before I forget, do you want them to be spicy?: Nocturne noticed the old man was not a fan of spiciness, so he asked.

"Mhmm, I think it's better for you to make them spicy but don't go over the line." The old man reacted with a complicated look and after some hesitation, he decided to go with the spicy one.

"Okay~"

…

After feasting on the delicious fish, the old man was satisfied. As promised, he gave Nocturne the lantern before he left.

"Completed quest: A Table Of Dishes. Acquired: Magic Lantern.

[Magic Lantern]

[Toy]

[Usage: To light up the dark]

[Note: A product of magical alchemy, deeply favored by night fishers.]

Nocturne earned a ton from the quest.

Even though he had no idea what the Golden Shard could do, he knew at first glance that it was something good. He decided to keep it, maybe one day he would get to know how to use it.

He looked at the time. It was almost 8:00 p.m. in real life, so he decided to go offline for dinner before coming back to clear the quests.

He continued playing until it was bedtime and he almost cleared out all the quests. He decided to clear more fishing spots the next morning and then hand in the quests to level up. He would be able to leave the newbie village then.

…

The next day, after clearing up the fishing spots, Nocturne handed in the quests at the village and got to Level 10. 

He got to the chief and prepared to leave the village.

"Oh, Nocturne! Look how much you have grown. It's time for you to meet the outside world. This is the map, have a look and tell me where you want to go."

"Chief, I like fishing so are there any recommended spots?"

"Fishing? Then I guess Lake Town is your best choice. That place is filled with all kinds of lakes and more importantly, it is near to the sea. It's heaven to fishers."

"Okay chief, Lake Town it is."

"Good. Come here, stand on that teleportation circle." The chief called Nocturne over and pointed at a teleportation point.

Nocturne stood on the teleportation point as told. The chief waved at him and the teleportation circle started to glow.

In the blink of an eye, Nocturne found himself in a different place.

"You have left the starting village. Granted access to multiple functions: ranking, auction, dungeon raid, mercenary guild."

Nocturne checked the functions out. He noticed there were many categories of ranking, such as character level ranking, achievement ranking, first clear of sudden death dungeon etc.

At the current stage, most of the rankings were empty. The ranking with the most attention would probably be the character level and achievement rankings.

Achievement Ranking

1. Nocturne (2)

2. Beitang Meng (2)

3. Wind&Rum (1)

4. Mayday (1)

5. Faraway Song (1)

The achievement ranking was actually the global message that the system sent out during the Alpha Wolf raid. The number behind the names were how many achievements that particular player had and tapping on the name would show the player's details and stats.

Character Level Ranking

1. Beitang Meng. Human. Assassination Rogue. Level 12

2. Faraway Song. Human. Elemental Mage. Level 11

3. Wind&Rum. Human. Protection Warrior. Level 11

4. Mayday. Human. Holy Priest. Level 11

5. Quintuple Fireball Cult. Elf. Elemental Mage. Level 11

6. Furious. Orc. Fury Warrior. Level 11

7. High IMO. Human. Arcane mage. Level 11

8. Green Light Empty Wine. Human. Retribution Paladin. Level 11

9. Dwarf Low Slash. Dwarf. Arms Warrior. Level 11

10. Ninja Turtle. Dwarf. Protection Paladin. Level 11

As for the other two rankings, there were no names yet. 

Nocturne once read that in Destiny Online, the most important measurement of a guild's strength would be the guild's raid dungeon progression. 

After all, there were only so many bosses in the wild and it would take days or even a month to spawn. Competition for bosses in the wild would be fierce and there was only so much gear dropped by the bosses.

However, a raid dungeon was different. As long as one was powerful enough, anyone would have the chance to clear the boss for the best gear in game. Joining a strong and quick guild would mean increasing the chances of getting good gear and the choice was obvious for most of the players.

There were two types of dungeons in Destiny Online: the public dungeon and adventurous dungeons.

The public dungeon could be accessed by anyone in the game but adventurous dungeons required the particular dungeon's scroll to access.

All dungeons had three modes: normal, hard and sudden death.

The mode of adventurous dungeons was determined by the scroll instead of choosing the difficulty.

Normal mode was simple. A party would be able to clear a dungeon in normal mode after dying a few times during the early stage of the game. Of course, given its difficulty, the loot was nothing stellar. It was easier than a hard dungeon but it allowed casual players to experience the excitement of a boss fight. 

Normal mode was the most popular choice for casual players.

Hard mode, as its name suggested, was harder than normal. It required party members to understand each other and to move and act tacitly in the shortest time possible. In the current stage of the game, a party would have to go through hell to be able to clear at least once.

As for sudden death mode, it was the hardest mode. A slight mistake would cause the entire raid party to be wiped. Strategy and teamwork were important and its rewards were higher than the other two. All the gear dropped in sudden death mode were at the highest ranks and it would even drop all sorts of rare commercial skills, blueprints and mounts.

In short, casual players would usually go for normal and hard mode. Sudden death mode was designed for major guilds. 

Of course, such measurements would only apply to the early stage of the game, it could not be used as a reference when guides for raids and overpowered players were factored in.

All three modes were interrelated. Hard mode was only accessible after clearing normal, and sudden death was only accessible after clearing hard mode.

The first party to clear sudden death mode would take a spot in the first clear of sudden death dungeon ranking.

The ranking would rank the party based on the party's average level, from the lowest to the highest and the game would send out a global message.

It would be the biggest advertisement for an individual player or a guild.