Rock Centipedes

"What the heck?" Jin Xing was shocked to see a new quest interface appear and suddenly recalled the broken wooden sign outside of the mine.

'Beware of...Rock Centipedes!' Jin Xing's heart sank as he finally realized why and how he received this quest. It wasn't a bonus quest, it would probably naturally occur if someone stayed in the mine after completing their initial quest.

'Did this occur because I stayed after completing the secret quest?' Jin Xing was both nervous and cautious. He kept the light orbs rotating around him in case a Rock Centipede appeared somewhere.

After looking at the rewards for the completion of the quest, he suddenly realized something.

"This quest shouldn't be too hard since the rewards are a little better than the blacksmith quest rewards. And I'd recieve the rewards even if I don't fight the Rock Centipedes. But if I manage to kill them all, then I'd get more EXP from the kills."

Jin Xing wagered the pros and cons and decided to stay and slay the Rock Centipedes since it'd help him level up quicker. Since he was still level 1, he wanted to level up as fast as possible.

Another thing that Prism Online changed was the EXP requirements for leveling up. Normally it'd only take 100 EXP to level up from level 1 to 2, but in Prism Online, it took 1,000 just to level up.

Many players didn't like this change to the leveling system but discovered that it wasn't as bad as they thought. It was just to encourage the players to accept more quests.

Jin Xing suddenly had an idea and pictured the light orbs in his mind before imagining them becoming fireballs.

Suddenly, an orb made of fire that didn't give off much light but felt incredibly dangerous and hot appeared above Jin Xing's cane.

He was surprised by this because he didn't think it'd be that easy to make a variation to the light orb skill, but remembered that it was because he needed to steadily supply the orbs with mana or they'd disappear.

"These will be named Fire Orbs."

Making these fire orbs was like making fireballs that wouldn't disappear after not launching them at a target. Similar to fireballs in a passive state or something.

'The fire Rock Centipede I see is gonna get hit hard. I won't be surprised if they don't die immediately after the first fire orb so I'll use a fireball afterwards.'

Jin Xing knew it wouldn't be easy to kill such mobs because they were earth-elemental based on his guesses. The idea of basically having fireballs on stand-by made him a little relaxed.

He felt that until his cast speed was fast enough, he'd have these fire orbs around him at all times in situations like these. Jin Xing knew that the fireballs would only appear after a full second, which in times like these, was too slow.

Ssssss...

Jin Xing felt his hair stand on end as he heard a slithering noise coming from beneath the ground. His expression became firm as he awaited the Rock Centipede's arrival.

Suddenly, the ground 10 meters in front of him burst open as the silhouette of a gigantic beast erupted from below and towered before Jin Xing.

"I've fought bigger enemies than you!" Jin Xing said with a firm tone and quickly launched 2 fire orbs at the Rock Centipedes.

"SCREECH?!" The Rock Centipede frantically wriggled around when the fire orbs set fire to its body. The fire burnt up the Rock Centipede's body, yet it did not die.

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'As I thought!' Jin Xing cast a fireball and launched it at the centipede, setting its entire body up in flames. This time, the centipede wriggled maniacally before collapsing on the ground.

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A system message then appeared, informing Jin Xing of his kill.

[You killed 1 Rock Centipede! +100 EXP]

Jin Xing felt satisfied, knowing that it didn't take too many attacks to kill such a creature. But in the face of an average player, it'd take around 5 people who dedicated all of their stat points into mana to kill just one of these centipedes.

Ssss...Ssssss...

Jin Xing heard two more sounds and prepared himself. He created 4 fire orbs that were ready to fire at the first Rock Centipede that revealed itself.

Suddenly, the earth in front of him ruptured again as another centipede emerged. Before he could launch his fire orbs, he heard the sound of the ground being torn through again.

It irked him every time he heard it. The thick roots underground were torn asunder, making it sound as if someone's bones and flesh were being ripped apart.

Now two centipedes were glaring menacingly at Jin Xing as if they knew he killed one of their comrades. Jin Xing found it weird that they were angry at first, but didn't care too much.

"Go!" Jin Xing said as he pointed his cane at the centipedes. The four fire orbs flew forward, splitting into two groups and setting the centipedes on fire.

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The centipedes writhed in agony for a while. Jin Xing began summoning fireballs, but he suddenly saw the burning silhouette of one of the centipedes rush forward.

Jin Xing immediately felt his senses going haywire despite not being an assassin and tried his best to dodge. The centipede, which was the size of two ladders but curled at the top, swung its sharp claw-like legs at Jin Xing.

Luckily, he dodged the attack just a second before it hit him. He sensed how dangerous the centipede was after witnessing the attack. He guessed that it would be able to take around 1/3rd of his total health in one attack.

Jin Xing immediately became alert as the centipede turned around after missing its attack and tried to attack Jin Xing again. This time, Jin Xing had already prepared his fireball and launched it at the centipede.

The centipede let out a loud screech and Jin Xing quickly turned his attention to the other centipede that had stopped writhing around. Just as turned his attention, the centipede was right in his face and he felt the hair on his body stand up.

Jin Xing immediately dodged but still felt an agonizing pain in his left arm and looked at the wound. It was a rather deep wound that blood leaked out of like a river.

He suddenly felt as if this was real life and took the game seriously. Jin Xing jumped backward, gaining distance, and then tapped the ground with his cane.

Suddenly, three fireballs were created and they fired at the centipedes with incredible speed. Jin Xing looked with a cold expression as the centipedes writhed again and fell on the floor, turning into charred meat after dying.

[You killed 2 Rock Centipedes! +200 EXP]

After they died, Jin Xing remained alert as he grabbed a piece of his robe, tore it, and wrapped it around his arm. He then recalled something Qing Lu mentioned before they received the equipment for the game.

'You can use the slime gel from slimes to make health potions...' Jin Xing recalled this but also realized that from all the mobs he had ever killed, he never obtained a single item drop.

And then he recalled earlier when he ran into the fool with the Wild Wolf armor.

'Why haven't I gotten any item drops yet?' Thinking hard and clearly, Jin Xing then realized something else that ruined his mood.

'Since I'm in Independent Mode, does that mean I have to harvest the body parts and materials from the mobs after they die?' Jin Xing didn't like this idea, but the more he thought about it the more he realized that it was true.

He was playing in Independent Mode after all. It made sense for him to have to gather his own resources. Jin Xing felt a little depressed when he thought about this, but then noticed that it wasn't as bad as it seemed.

'In Independent Mode, I should be able to collect more items and materials from mobs than in Assistive Mode, right? Then that gives me a clear advantage, I just have to learn how to do it.'

Jin Xing felt satisfied when he came to that conclusion and approached the dead Rock Centipedes. He observed their body, trying to figure out which parts were edible and which parts could be harvested.

But because of his severe lack of hunter knowledge and experience, he couldn't discern everything and gave up. He then patiently waiting for the other 2 Rock Centipedes to appear.

Ssss...Ssss...

It didn't take long for him to encounter the last 2 centipedes and he didn't even think about going easy on them. He sent 4 fire orbs at each centipede, completely obliterating them without giving them a chance for retaliation.

But, by the time he finished the quest, he felt an emptiness in his body, or rather his soul, and quickly left the abandoned mine with the help of his light orbs.