Sherlock and Black Market Challenge

Point out any errors I made in the chapters, as I'm very lazy and sometimes can't be bothered to reread them. Also give your opinions on something I should change or add

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Afterwards, Shi Feng and Blackie went to retrieve the trial virtual gaming helmets.

"Hey, Brother Feng." Blackie said as they walked, his expression thoughtful and slightly hesitant.

"What's up?" Shi Feng asked, though he had a good idea of what was on Blackie's mind.

"Is this the first time you reincarnated?" After hesitating for a moment, Blackie couldn't help but ask. After finding out that Shi Feng was capable of reincarnating, Blackie started thinking back to the past and noticed many weird things.

It started from this very day in their previous life. The sudden change Shi Feng had out of nowhere. He didn't think too much about it back then, but now, he finally realized what had happened. There was also the plenty of knowledge Shi Feng had possessed that he shouldn't have had any way of knowing, and how his skills suddenly increased.

Now it all made sense.

However, if dying had triggered it this time, what happened in the ones before that?

Blackie suddenly recalled Shi Feng's words from the previous timeline when he called him for Shadow's recruitment, "Blackie, stop joking around; I just got fired from Shadow."

He had originally written it off as a joke and quickly forgot about it, but thinking about it now, Shi Feng had probably said that before realizing that he had been reincarnated. He also remembered the sourness and resentment in Shi Feng's voice. 

Clearly, things hadn't been quite good.

"It's the second time." Shi Feng confirmed Blackie's thoughts. 

He had already prepared himself to explain the first life to Blackie and everyone to who he restored their memories. He wondered what they would think of him? After all, Shi Feng knew a lot of them treat him as their idol, so what would they think if they knew their idol was a cheat?

Thinking of that, a slight worry appeared in Shi Feng's mind, and he started doubting whether or not he should restore their memories.

What would they think... what would they do if they knew he had taken advantage of them and changed their fates? That because of him, they were dragged into constant battles and suffering?

Even if those who wouldn't have had good futures didn't hold it against them, what about the others who did have good futures? Like Aqua.

She should have stayed in Twilight Echo and enjoyed the life of a wealthy princess, but because of him, she got dragged into constant battles. Even worse, she spent 80 years of constant fighting and suffering in that Mysterious Space.

Would they forgive him if they knew? Would she forgive him if she knew?

"I see," Blackie's reply shook him out of his thoughts "Well I'm glad you brought me along on the journey, my life would have been boring otherwise." He continued "...I...I think the others would feel the same." He said, as if he had seen through Shi Feng's worries, and tried to reassure him.

It indeed worked as Shi Feng realized he was worrying too much. Whatever happens, happens. He'll cross that bridge when he gets to it.

"I hope so." Shi Feng muttered in reply.

'God I hope so.'

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On the 25th of April, at 9 pm Shi Feng laid on the bed and put on his trial helmet, before logging in and starting his journey in God's Domain, for the third time.

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Shi Feng passed through a multicolored tunnel before arriving at a solemn golden temple. 

A female angel the size of a palm with four pairs of wings flew towards Shi Feng.

"Hello Adventurer, welcome to God's Domain. I am the Navigation Angel, Gabriel. I will be introducing to you the four main categories and twelve main jobs. Please choose the job that you like most."

With a wave of Gabriel's small hand, an illustration introducing the twelve main jobs appeared in front of Shi Feng.

Shi Feng chose Swordsman without hesitation.

He had spent a total of 20 years fighting in God's Domain as a Swordsman during his two lives. He was even the first player of his God's Domain to become a Tier 6 God in his second life.

Hence, the Swordsman class had already become something inseparable from him.

Now that Shi Feng was starting another journey in God's Domain, he naturally wouldn't select any other class.

He had already determined himself to reach the apex of God's Domain as a Swordsman in this life. Shi Feng would make up for the regrets he had in this dream-like world and make sure to never end up in a situation like before.

To be powerless in saving himself and his close ones.

Never again!

This time, Shi Feng won't be settling for just very good like he had in his previous life due to the limited capabilities and knowledge he possessed. He would do everything to perfection and beyond that. He won't accept anything less. 

"Job selection complete. Please designate a name for your character."

"Ye Feng." Shi Feng went with the same name. 

"Naming successful. Do you wish to adjust your appearance? Adjustment rate limited to 15%."

Shi Feng chose to adjust his character's appearance by 15%, to the same one he had in his previous life.

"Please select a birthplace in the Star-Moon Kingdom."

A map that displayed tens of cities belonging to the Star-Moon Kingdom appeared in front of Shi Feng.

"White River City."

"City confirmed. Player will arrive in Red Leaf Town of White River City in three seconds. We wish you happy gaming."

The sight before Shi Feng immediately blurred as he was sent away.

Shi Feng arrived at the front of a church, he currently wore a gray Novice Leather Armor, and on his waist hung a Novice Sword.

"It looks like me and Red Leaf Town are fated." Shi Feng couldn't help but laugh at starting in the same town thrice. 

With a slight wave and touch of his finger, his Attribute Panel appeared before him.

Character: Ye Feng (Human)

Affiliated Kingdom: Star-Moon

Title: None

Job: Swordsman

Level: 0

HP: 100/100

Physical Attack Power: 13

Defense: 4

Attack Speed: 3

Movement Speed: 4

Attributes: Strength 5, Agility 3, Endurance 4, Intelligence 2, Vitality 2.

Free Attribute Points: 4

Weapon Mastery:

One-handed Sword Mastery +5 (Apprentice Rank - Increases One-handed Sword Damage by 5%)

Two-handed Sword Mastery + 5 (Apprentice Rank - Increases Two-handed Sword Damage by 5%)

Free Mastery Points: 0

Job Talent:

Swordsman Talent 1: Sword-related Mastery +5

Swordsman Talent 2: Obtain 8 Free Mastery Points every 5 Levels.

Swordsman Talent 3: Sword-related skills proficiency increased by 50%.

Skills:

Chop. Active skill. Requirement: Sword. Additional 8 points of damage. Cooldown: 5 seconds. Skill Level: 1 (Proficiency 0/300)

Equipment:

[Swordsman's Leather Shirt] (Gray Trash)

Level 0

Defense +2

Durability 10/10

[Novice Sword] (Gray Trash, One-handed Sword)

Level 0

Equipment Requirement: Strength 3

Attack Power +3

Durability 15/15

Inside his bag, there were ten pieces of Bread and ten pouches of Water. Shi Feng immediately placed all his Free Attribute Points into Agility. 

Di! Di! Di! 

Shi Feng's voice communication rang as Blackie called him.

"Brother Feng, I spawned in Falling Moon Town again. Should I head to Red Leaf Town?" Blackie asked, not sure if the timeline has changed.

"Yes, I spawned there so you should make your way here quickly." 

"Got it. I should arrive in five or so hours." He informed before cutting off the call. It had taken Blackie around seven hours to reach Red Leaf Town in his previous life, but with him reaching the Refinement Realm and cutting out all unnecessary movements from his actions, along with the movement techniques Blackie had learned, he could shorten the trip to less than five hours. 

Although Blackie was always working more in management and didn't have as much talent for fighting as the others, after ten years of constant fighting, he had managed to reach the Void Realm. Although such combat standards weren't that special in the Greater God's Domain, for the current players, Blackie was practically a god.

Following which, Shi Feng made his way to Sherlock.

After shooing off the beggars in the surroundings that were pestering him, Shi Feng walked to a corner where a vagrant middle-aged man was lying.

"Do you need any help, Sir?" Shi Feng formally asked the man.

"Can you give me some food? It's been five days since I've last eaten," The male beggar responded.

Shi Feng smiled faintly, seriously saying: "Unfortunately Sir, I cannot agree to your wish. However, if you are willing to pay an appropriate price, I can give you the food you need."

The beggar lifted his head and looked at Shi Feng, his eyes carrying a hint of anticipation as he said, "If I had the money, I would definitely be willing to pay this cost, but right now I have nothing. Although, if you are willing to help me, I will pay you a sufficient price. Are you willing to help me?"

"May I ask what you want me to do?" Shi Feng questioned.

The beggar said seriously, "Please help me kill the Mayor of Red Leaf Town, Cross."

"I agree." Shi Feng unhesitatingly agreed.

System: Unique Quest "Sherlock's Request" accepted.

Quest Details: Kill Cross, the Mayor of Red Leaf Town and bring the [Mayor's Insignia] back to Sherlock. Players must not exceed Level 10.

Shi Feng turned around and headed towards the Town Hall. When he arrived at the front of the two-storied Town Hall, he was met with a scene of hundreds of people, queuing up into a long line.

"Hey newcomer, queue up if you don't wanna cause a public outrage," from within the queue, a simple and honest-looking male Warrior looked at Shi Feng. The Warrior held up his hand, pointing towards the back of the line of people.

"I'm not here for a quest." Shi Feng replied.

The male Warrior cautiously looked at Shi Feng. Everybody was frantically trying to receive a Quest right now... but there was someone who actually said that he wasn't interested in it?

"I'm honestly not here to receive a Quest," Shi Feng said with a smile, "However, I advise you to receive a Quest somewhere else. You'll just be pointlessly waiting here."

"Why would it be pointless? There were already a few people who came out after receiving a Quest." The Warrior curiously asked.

Shi Feng smiled but did not elaborate. Instead, he said, "Seeing as you're not a bad person, I'll point you towards a brighter path. Kill mobs in the fields. You'll have a better future than remaining here."

"I'm not going. There are too many monsters in the wild and I can't compete with those other people. This place is still better" The male Warrior shook his head.

"That's because you went to the wrong place. If you go somewhere with few monsters, naturally, there wouldn't be anybody to compete with you. Compared to the areas packed with both players and monsters, the leveling efficiency there is several times better. Not only that, the respawn rate of the monsters there is slow, so a single person could easily handle themselves," Shi Feng said with a smile.

"Is there really such a place?"

The male Warrior was excited after listening to Shi Feng. He was extremely interested in such a location.

"Of course there is. I'll give you a preferential price of 20 Coppers if you want to go to such a treasured location. Don't mention EXP; after grinding for a day, the materials you could obtain would earn you more than 40 Coppers. If you're lucky, you could make a ton more if a piece of equipment drops," Shi Feng walked closer to the male Warrior, whispering into his ears.

"You're not tricking me, right?" The male Warrior looked at Shi Feng with hesitation in his eyes.

"If you don't believe me, you can pay 10 Coppers up front first. You'll know just from trying after you arrive at the spot. If it's true, you can then pay me the other 10 Coppers. I'm only telling you this because I see that you're a good person. Just forget it, if you don't believe me." Shi Feng turned and left after saying his piece.

Just after walking a few steps away, Shi Feng was stopped by the male Warrior.

"Expert, hold on a moment. Let's talk about it, alright? Isn't it just a deposit of 10 Coppers? Here, take it. I trust that an expert like you won't trick me." The male Warrior revealed an honest smile, resolutely trading 10 Coppers to Shi Feng.

"Seeing your performance, I'll give you a good location. Although this place is slightly far-off, there is only a single mage-type Level 0 Green Gnome. It has low defense and a quick respawn rate. Chances are also greater of money dropping. A Berserker would be great at killing there." Shi Feng gave him a good grinding location after receiving the ten Coppers.

"Brother Expert, do you know a location that drops skill books for Berserkers? It's really hard to fight against mobs with only a single skill." The male Warrior was more fond of Shi Feng now, even treating Shi Feng as his superior.

"It's fine if you want to know., but it'll cost you 2 Silvers," Shi Feng said indifferently. 

The male Warrior paled when he heard the price.

"Expert, let's add each other as friends. I'm Lonely Snow. I'll contact you again once I've saved up enough money." The male Warrior sent Shi Feng a friend request.

"Alright." Shi Feng accepted Lonely Snow's request.

"Then I'm off to fight mobs, Brother Expert. I'll mail you the 10 Copper immediately after I've saved up enough." Lonely Snow happily parted with Shi Feng, leaving the long queue and dashing towards the grinding location.

Shi Feng walked towards the fruit stall by the Town Hall and bought ten tomatoes for 20 coppers, before returning to the Town Hall and walking towards the mayor. 

"Hey newcomer, queue up. Can't you see others are queuing up as well?"

"Swordsman over there, what do you think you're trying to do? Do you know how many people are queuing up behind?"

The players in the line became enraged, but Shi Feng ignored them and looked at the mayor.

[Cross] (Elite, Friendly)

Level 15

HP 2400/2400

MP 1500/1500 

Subsequently, Shi Feng took out a ripe and red Tomato, taking a bite out of it.

"What is this person doing?"

"Hell! He's actually eating a Tomato! Each of those costs 2 Coppers! Such luxury!"

Halfway through his Tomato, Shi Feng suddenly threw it towards Town Mayor Cross' face.

The Tomato accurately landed on Cross' face, spreading bright red liquid all over.

System: Cross' favorability towards you has been decreased by 100 points.

Shi Feng took out another Tomato from his bag, throwing it at Cross. He continued to throw tomatoes and Cross' favorability kept decreasing.

As Shi Feng's last Tomato landed on Cross' face, Cross' favorability fell towards Hostile. Cross' Level became question marks and the yellow marker above him quickly turned a crimson red.

"Damnable insect! I'll send you down to hell!"

The bright red Cross roared loudly as he rushed at Shi Feng. With a high speed, Cross instantly arrived in front of Shi Feng, his fist stretching out towards Shi Feng.

However, Shi Feng had already predicted this and leaned out of the fist's trajectory before Cross had even swung it. He then backed away further.

"Die, insect!"

After failing his strike, Cross was further enraged. Suddenly, his clothes were ripped apart, revealing a body covered in pitch-black fur; Cross had turned into a Werewolf with sharp fangs.

Every player was shocked at this moment. Never would they have thought the mayor was an evil Werewolf.

Cross arrived at Shi Feng's back in an instant, raising his bright snowy claws and slashing them at Shi Feng's heart. However, Shi Feng didn't bother dodging.

Cross' claws suddenly stopped; they were only a few centimeters away from dealing with Shi Feng. Unfortunately, Cross was hit by a Level 25 Guard's [Charge], entering a Fainted state for 1 second.

Shi Feng took this chance to quickly move away.

Just when Cross was about to rush Shi Feng after awakening, he was interrupted once more by another Guard.

Both of the Guards were Level 25 Warriors. Although neither of them was an Elite, the damage they dished out was relatively high. A Charge, coupled with a normal attack, had quickly taken 300 HP away from Cross. Two Guards had taken away a total of 600 HP, causing Cross' HP to fall to 1700 in an instant.

As such, Cross was now being attacked by the two Guards. Although the damage dealt by the Guards was very high, Cross' target had never shifted away from Shi Feng. He continuously aimed to kill Shi Feng but, unfortunately for him, the two Guards stuck to him like glue. One of the Guards used [Bone Crusher], while the other used [Thundering Strike], causing Cross' Movement Speed to plummet.

Just like that, Cross' over 2000 HP was nearly depleted.

When the other players saw Cross dying, many of them started becoming restless; they wanted to land the last strike on the mayor. They did not understand why the Guards were attacking Cross instead of Shi Feng but a Town Mayor who was also a Level 15 Elite... if he died, he would definitely drop some great items.

When Cross only had 100 HP remaining, all the other players started moving. All of them simultaneously rushed towards Town Mayor Cross. All of them wanted to give the final strike, snatching away the dropped items.

Shi Feng got closer, but he didn't bother attacking. Not only was there a 15 level difference, but Shi Feng's equipment was literally trash. It'd be a miracle if he could even do damage to Cross, not to mention the Guards' damage was too high and they'd kill Cross before his HP even got within range of Shi Feng being able to kill him. Even if he could kill Cross, Shi Feng wouldn't get any EXP.

As expected, not a single one of the players was able to strike at Cross. After the mayor's death, Shi Feng immediately took away the [Mayor's Insignia] and disappeared into the crowd.

"Crap! The System's bugged! Why can't I attack the mayor?"

"I want to complain! Why didn't the mayor drop anything after death?"

Some of the rookie players resentfully complained.

"Moron. Don't you know you have a Friendly relationship with the NPC? Players can't attack an NPC with a Friendly relationship. If you don't even know such common knowledge, why bother playing God's Domain?"

After ridiculing the rookies, the competent players searched for traces of Shi Feng. A player who could kill the Town Mayor in such a way was definitely an expert, someone they should associate with. However, they could not spot Shi Feng, even after looking for a long time. They also did not know his name. They could not help but secretly feel pity.

Meanwhile, news of Town Mayor Cross' death spread throughout Red Leaf Village, creating a sensation amongst all the players.

Not even thirty minutes since God's Domain's opening, a news thread appeared on the official site's forums.

Mysterious Swordsman kills off Level 15 Elite, Red Leaf Town Mayor. The leader of a town was actually a Werewolf in disguise. Exactly what kind of game is God's Domain?

This news thread instantly caused a sensation amongst the players. It only took a moment for the number of clicks to the page to go past ten million. Everyone became interested in this mysterious Swordsman. Unfortunately, they could not contact the person since nobody knew his name.

Meanwhile, Shi Feng had already arrived at the dark alley.

"Mister Sherlock, this is the Mayor's Insignia that you requested." Shi Feng passed silver colored Mayor's Insignia to the Sherlock.

"Thank you. Thank you, so much. I have finally attained revenge for my friend. These things should be of help to you."

Sherlock passed Shi Feng a delicate little box. Subsequently, Sherlock took the Mayor's Insignia and left the dark alley.

System: Unique Quest "Sherlock's Request" completed. Rewarding 2000 EXP, 20 Free Mastery Points, 1 [Luxurious Ornament Box].

Shi Feng leveled up to Level 1, with only 1000 EXP away from Level 2. He placed all his Free Attribution Points into Agility before opening the Luxurious Ornament Box.

As the Luxurious Ornament Box slowly opened, a dazzling array of multicolored light burst out from within.

When the glowing brilliance faded, a simple silver necklace and a purple-gold ring could be seen lying inside the Luxurious Ornament Box. Carved on the ring's exterior were words resembling the ancient language of Elves and within them stored a tremendous magical power. The ring was the ring of gravity and the necklace was the same one he got in his previous life. 

[Ring of Gravity] (Mysterious-Iron Rank)

Equipment Level: 0

Strength +2, Agility +1, Endurance +1

Additional Skill: 'Gravity Liberation'. Greatly reduces the gravity acting upon the user. Duration 30 seconds. Cooldown 5 minutes.

Shi Feng's Agility rose to 12 points, his Attack Speed to 5 points, and his Movement Speed to 6 points.

Afterward, Shi Feng added 15 of the Free Mastery Points into his One-Handed Sword Mastery. With his One-Handed Sword Mastery now at a total of 20 points, Shi Feng advanced from Apprentice Swordsman to Basic Swordsman, and the additional damage dealt by using a one-handed sword increased to 10%.

Shi Feng then made his way to the Black Market Challenge

When he got there, Shi Feng saw that several players were standing in front of the field. They were receiving the Gnomes' challenge.

"Good luck! You have to succeed this time!"

"Good luck! Stomp those Gnomes!"

A few players were currently cheering with all their might for an Assassin player that stood on the field. Their reddened eyes made them look no different than crazed gamblers.

After a short while, the Assassin on the field was struck. His body lay at the 20-yard mark, still ten yards away from the final point.

"Despicable. Just a little bit more. Do you guys still have money? I'll definitely clear it the next time." The male Assassin said after reviving from the field.

A male Cleric shook his head saying, "Boss Stabbing Heart, the five of us have already given you all our money. We don't have anymore."

The Assassin named Stabbing Heart shifted his gaze onto Shi Feng. After sizing Shi Feng up, his eyes revealed a gaze as if they had just found prey. With a smile, he walked up to Shi Feng and said, "Nice to meet you, friend. I'm Stabbing Heart, Assassin Squad Leader of the [Assassin's Alliance]. Lend 5 Coppers to me and I'll return 20 Coppers to you tomorrow. How about it?"

"I can lend you the 5 Coppers, but you have to pay back 50 Coppers tomorrow." Shi Feng answered.

Stabbing Heart was surprised. He was Stabbing Heart, the Assassin's Alliance's famous Assassin Squad Leader. However, Shi Feng's uncourteous reaction was completely different than what he had imagined it would be. Could Shi Feng be a rookie gamer?

Seeing Stabbing Heart staying silent, Shi Feng asked, "Still borrowing?"

"I'll borrow." Stabbing Heart wanted to weep.

"Here's 5 Coppers. Let's add each other as friends. Don't forget to return 50 Coppers to me tomorrow." Shi Feng took 5 Coppers out of the 60 he obtained from selling the necklace, not forgetting to remind Stabbing Heart to return the 50 Coppers.

With tears flowing down his face, Stabbing Heart received the 5 Coppers and said, "Fine. I won't forget."

Not caring about what Stabbing Heart was thinking, Shi Feng walked away after the trade was completed. He headed towards the green-skinned Gnome who was the Challenge Race's administrator.

"Sir, time is money. What business do you have?" The Gnome administrator said so in a lofty tone.

"I want to enter the Copper Prize Challenge." Shi Feng said as he handed over 5 Coppers.

After flipping the Copper coins a few times, the Gnome nodded his head in approval. He opened the wooden door to the Challenge Race, allowing Shi Feng to enter.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new challenger on the field. Please let us welcome this brave Swordsman." The gnome loudly announced.

"Boss Stabbing Heart, the kid that lent you money is participating in the Challenge Race," the male Cleric pointed out.

The resting Stabbing Heart laughingly said, "That kid's just a rookie. Does he think the Challenge Race is so easy? Even though the distance is only 30 yards, the Gnomes' attack pattern will change after you get past 15 yards and their attack rates greatly increase. Not to mention, even I have difficulty facing them."

"That's for sure! Even an expert such as Boss Stabbing Heart could only reach 20 yards. I'm guessing that kid will, at most, reach five yards before being done in." The male Cleric nodded with a smile.

Inside the field, the three Gnomes standing at the finishing line readied their muskets, aiming them towards Shi Feng.

Above the challenge field, the timer started counting down.

3...

2...

1...

Challenge Start!

The instant the countdown ended Shi Feng's body leaned forward and his legs bent. He dashed away from the starting line with incredible speed.

Xiu!

By the time the muskets had started ringing and shooting towards the starting line, Shi Feng was already six yards away.

Subsequently, another volley of musket shots rang out; a total of six bullets shot towards Shi Feng's path. Several green lines indicating the trajectory of the bullets covered Shi Feng's body. 

Shi Feng calmly adjusted his body slightly, and the angle he was moving at changed by just a small margin. To the players spectating, it looked like he didn't move at all, however, the bullets that should have turned Shi Feng into a sieve harmlessly brushed past his body with merely millimeters to spare.

"Crap, that kid is lucky." One of the spectating players commented.

Bullet casings fell to the ground consistently as the three Gnomes continued to aim and shoot. However, the bullets continued to just barely miss Shi Feng, as if they were afraid of him.

"What kind of bullshit is this?"

"Is the system bugged?'

"It can't be. He's already at the 10-yard mark." Seeing Shi Feng taking less than three seconds to reach the 10-yard mark, the male Cleric couldn't help but be shocked; it was only a third of Stabbing Heart's time.

Stabbing Heart became speechless by the side. He silently watched Shi Feng's advance. He originally hadn't paid much attention and chalked the bullets missing up to luck, but as the spectacle continued, it couldn't possibly only be luck. However, as he continued to watch, Stabbing Heart felt like he was seeing something, but couldn't understand what it was.

Shi Feng's movements were just too subtle, with Stabbing Heart's current standards, there was no way he would notice them.

Stabbing Heart had the pride of an expert. He did not think that Shi Feng could be stronger than he was and decided that he might be overthinking things. He explained, "Even if he's lucky, the Gnomes will change their attack patterns after he goes past 15 yards. He won't be able to hold it, by that time."

"You're right, boss. He'll surely be shocked once he reaches 15 yards. Then, he'll turn into a beehive."

"Right. After 15 yards, the number of bullets fired will be twelve. The target would also no longer be focused on the player, himself. Instead, it'll cover a wide area, at that time he'll surely be hit."

The other members of Assassin's Alliance voiced their agreements. They, too, had already witnessed such a scene before; seven to eight times, at that.

Stabbing Heart passed 15 yards on his first challenge. In the subsequent challenges, however, his furthest distance was 20 yards. The difficulty after 15 yards was clear to behold.

"He went past 15 yards," an Assassin's Alliance member commented.

Stabbing Heart and the others quickly focused their gazes on Shi Feng, wanting to see if Shi Feng's luck would keep him safe.

On the field, the three Gnomes became enraged once Shi Feng stepped past the 15-yard line. They no longer aimed as they fired their muskets with wild abandon.

However, the same scene as before played out, as the bullets kept avoiding Shi Feng.

The players outside became speechless. Was this kid really going to pass the challenge without even changing directions once? 

"Boss, that Swordsman has run past 25 yards. He'll definitely pass the finish line at this rate." The male Cleric's heart became a chaotic mess as he watched Shi Feng run forward.

"I have eyes. I don't need you to remind me." Stabbing Heart said in annoyance.

The moment Shi Feng went past 25 yards...

"Die, challenger." One of the Gnomes at the finish line laughed. The Gnome took out an automatic musket, sending a wave of bullets towards Shi Feng.

Suddenly, the number of bullets increased to twenty-four. Not only that, their distance from Shi Feng was a mere 5 yards. It was an unavoidable distance for players.

"Hell! This is cheating!" Stabbing Heart unwillingly shouted.

The other players became extremely nervous when they saw the scene and they couldn't help but curse at the shamelessness of the Gnomes.

However, Shi Feng's face remained unchanged, as he calmly pulled out his Novice Sword. With him being at the Half-step Beyond Domain Realm, Shi Feng could easily sense the bullets' trajectories, so, at his fastest speed, he swung the sword in front of him multiple times, leaving behind many swordlights.

Meanwhile, the bullets that should have hit Shi Feng either bounced off or changed trajectories, creating a series of sparks.

After a few more series of sparks, Shi Feng's body passed through the storm of bullets, rushing past the finish line like a bolt of lightning.

Total time spent: 8 seconds. Estimated record time of 18 seconds for Copper Prize broken.

After passing through the finish line, Shi Feng's face was slightly pale. With his current body's constitution, making so many fast movements was a bit difficult, but this had served as the perfect test for Shi Feng to see what he was currently capable of.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, a round of applause! This Swordsman has passed the challenge!" The Gnome administrator announced loudly.

System: Player was the first to pass the Copper Challenge and break the record. Rewarding player with 1 Silver Coin and Swordsman Skill [Thundering Flash].

Shi Feng took out the Thundering Flash skill book from his bag and immediately learned it.

[Thundering Flash] (Action-type)

Requires: Sword

Rapidly send out three sword lights to 10- x 2-yards forward. Each hit will cause 130% damage and also give a Damage Amplification effect, amplifying the damage of your following attacks by 20% for 15 seconds.

Cooldown: 30 seconds

"You guys continue playing; I'll be leaving first. Don't forget my 50 Coppers." Shi Feng looked towards the dumbfounded Stabbing Heart, leaving the Black Market after calling out to them.

Stabbing Heart indifferently nodded his head. He couldn't believe what he had just seen. Seeing Shi Feng create so many swordlights, it was obvious that Shi Feng was an expert. Thinking back to when Shi Feng started the challenge, that clearly wasn't just luck, it must have been some kind of movement technique.

Now, Stabbing Heart slightly regretted not trying to befriend him. Thankfully, due to their meeting circumstances, he had added him as a friend.

"Boss, he's gone. He took away the prize, as well. Should we chase after him?" The male Cleric asked.

Stabbing Heart's shock gradually faded after Shi Feng left. He stared at the male Cleric, scolding, "Are you an idiot? We'll be lucky if we have time to even curry up to such an expert Swordsman. Making enemies of him? Are you courting death?"

"Not good. I have to tell this to the Guild Leader. Luckily, I added him as a friend. Is he called Ye Feng? I can't believe I've never heard of such an expert. Could he be some sword expert in disguise?"

At the Trade Area, Shi Feng spent 60 Coppers purchasing 10 [Exploding Berry], instantly shrinking his wealth down to 90 Coppers.

Shi Feng took the Exploding Berries and left Red Leaf Town, running westward.

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