Chapter 86 - William Castle

Chapter 86: William Castle
Translator: 
Atlas Studios 
 Editor: 
Atlas Studios

In The New Age, there were two types of maps.
Ordinary Map: It was displayed on the players’ map coordinates, and the respawned rate of monsters there was fixed. There were lesser Elite monsters, and the monsters would be refreshed indefinitely.
Unexplored Map: It was also more commonly known by players as the so-called ‘Hidden map.’ Such maps had accumulated a large number of creatures, treasures, missions, and plots, etc. due to the unique sedimentation mechanism of the game.
When an unexplored map had been explored for more than 70%, it could be reported to the Empire and then be converted into an ordinary map. Those who reported the map could be rewarded with honors, equipment, and even titles of nobility, depending on the rarity of the map.
Lin Jie’s destination this time round was called the William Castle, also known as the Vampire Castle!


This map was a gospel-like place for the Holy Priests and the Holy Paladins!
In The New Age, the jobs which had the slowest growth rate would be these two Treatment-type jobs. 80% of their skills belonged to Treatment-type skills, and thus they could only rely on their teammates for leveling up.
On this map, the Holy Priests and Holy Paladins could maximize their potentials to the fullest, especially when they were at Levels 20 – 25!
When a Holy Priest used the Holy Light or divine spells to heal themselves, it would cause the same amount of Damage to the nearby vampires and vampire bats. Strictly speaking, as long as this Priest or Paladin had enough Healing Power and Mana, they would be able to level up to numerous levels within this Vampire Castle!
In his previous life, Lin Jie had not participated in the exploration of this map, so now every step he took must be taken with caution!
Looking into the deep hole, Lin Jie took out a fire torch and threw it down. Sharp shrieks echoed out from the cave. Several Vampire Bats flapped their wings and shot out from the cave like shots of black lightning, but they evaporated into the air as soon as they came in contact with the light.
Aligning his position, Lin Jie activated the Feather Drop Gem and jumped down into the cave.
’You are now exploring the unexplored map, William Castle. (Note: When the exploration is more than 70%, you can report this map to the Empire in exchange for generous rewards.)’
Exploration of a map included discovering its map area, monsters, Elites, plots, and any hidden traps. It was hard to judge the extent to which a map had been explored, and it normally took three to five days, or even several months for a map to be completely explored.
The dark passageway was damp. Dripping sounds were heard and echoed in the passage. Lin Jie suddenly felt a cool touch on his nose, and before he realized it, blood-red liquid dripped down from his face.


‘It’s blood!’
Lin Jie looked up and saw that his face was just one cm away from a Vampire Bat, which was swooping down right at him! The fangs of the Vampire Bat curled up in a bloodthirsty arc, and its two claws held tightly onto Lin Jie’s shoulders. The bat’s pale yellow pupils gleamed in anticipation, and its fangs stretched out towards his neck…
Vampire Bat: Level 18, Health Points: 420.
Vampire Bats generally had very low health points, but they had two talents which rendered them almost invincible.
Vampire Guardian: When a Vampire Bat receives damage that does not kill it, 90% of the Damage received will be offset.
Vampiric Touch: Every attack by a Vampire Bat will be transformed into health points for itself.
Lin Jie’s right hand was holding onto the bat’s squirming body, and while he tried to push it away, its fangs tore through his neck, and blood oozed out of the wound.
-114!
-50! (Bleeding)
Lin Jie gritted his teeth and slammed the bat onto the wall. He made a cross with Broken Blade and Withered Leaf Sword and slashed them both down upon the soft body of the bat!


Weakness Exploit!
-31! (279 Attack resisted!)
-19! (171 Attack resisted!)
The Vampire Bat screeched loudly and swallowed the blood remaining at the corners of its mouth.
+164!
‘Lup’
The bat was flying towards him again at high speed. Ordinary people could hardly tell the difference between the bat and the dark surroundings!
The Wolf Soul Necklace flickered slightly, and Lin Jie’s pupils were covered with a layer of pale green light. His vision became clearer. Turning Broken Blade around in his hands, his health bar was filled up in the next instant!
Blood Soul Multi-Slash!
-490!


Before he dealt out his second strike, the vampire bat was shot down and fell onto the ground.
’You have killed the Vampire Bat, you gained 780 EXP (Over-level Kill).’
With the effect of the EXP Gem, coupled with the successful over-level kill, his EXP bar increased visibly.
Using the Night View skill attached by the Wolf Soul Necklace, Lin Jie finally managed to make out the passageway in front of him. There was a closed door at the far end of the passageway. However, the passageway was full of Vampire Bats which had their eyes closed, and they were 17 yards apart from each other.
Using the Aggro formula, Lin Jie was shocked to discover that the Aggro range of each of the Vampire Bat was 16 yards!
This meant that there was an extremely narrow path for him to tread on between the bats!
If he had not been equipped with the Night View skill, Lin Jie might have barged around the dark passageway rashly and ended up being killed by the Vampire Bats.
Lin Jie pondered for a while and started taking off his heavy armor and greaves… In the dark passageway, he stripped until he was left with thin underwear and a golden necklace hanging on his neck.
If anyone saw him now, they would be stunned at his gangster-like appearance.
‘Argh, for the sake of the Sub-Legendary fragment, I shall heck care about my personal image!’


Lin Jie lifted his right foot gingerly and put his foot down on a spot between the Vampire Bats. None of the bats were alerted when his sole and toes touched the ground.
Moving his whole body over, Lin Jie calculated his route inwards silently in his mind, while his hands prepared to… no, correction: his feet prepared to step on to the next landing spot in a light manner. He tried to minimize the sounds of his breathing as he maneuvered carefully around within the group of bats.
With the help of the Wolf Soul Necklace, Lin Jie managed to gain more insights into the situation inside the passageway. One step at a time, he slowly approached the door.
Creak—
The door made a slight noise, and Lin Jie’s heart tightened. Fortunately, the bats did not respond, and he rushed inside.
The Vampire Castle had the structure of an ancient European castle. In the middle of the castle, there was a huge staircase which led to four different directions.
Unlike modern castles, the residents here had fallen into a deep sleep.
Lin Jie looked around for a while, and saw that there were coffins placed all around in the castle! Those which were simpler in design belonged the servants, and those which were more elaborate should be the resting places of those who held supervisor jobs.
The crowded coffins made a shiver ran down one’s spine.
Lin Jie was now at the back door of the castle—that is, the small door that servant maids would use to dispose of their garbage. There was only one erected coffin here, and a broom was placed next to it. This was where servant Vampires were positioned at before they died. After death, they would still perform their duties faithfully.
Logically thinking, as a funerary item of the Vampire Count, the Kiara Beast King Enchanted Gem would be placed in the Count’s coffin. To get this gem, one would need to get to the place where the Vampire Count was resting, the master bedroom on the second level of the castle.
If one wanted to go in directly from the castle’s main hall, they would definitely arouse the wrath of more than 70 undead Vampires—it would just be courting death.
Lin Jie looked up and observed the ceiling above him. He realized that he was now standing just right below the Vampire Count’s secondary bedroom. ‘This room should be the Countess’ bedroom.’
Activating the Feather Drop Skill, Lin Jie took a leap, and he rose up by a few body’s lengths, but he still couldn’t reach the railings of the second level.
To make matters worse, the moment he landed on the ground, a knock was heard from the interior of the erected coffin. A servant maid Vampire floated out from the coffin. Although her skin had turned gray from all the years after her death, it still seemed supple. Vampires were known for taking great care of their appearances, after all. If not, why would film producers choose to produce the ‘Twilight Saga,’ but not the ‘Zombie Saga’?
William Castle Servant Maid: Level 20, Health Points: 3,500
Vampires’ health points were generally not high, but it was extremely difficult to take down vampires as all attacks by vampires had the additional effect of 100% Life-Steal.
The servant maid’s opened her mouth, revealing its fangs. The connecting blood vessels and gums were exposed too.
Hunter’s Forward Charge!
Lin Jie’s pupils constricted and put on his clothes and armor as fast as possible. He took the first move and tried to gain control of the servant maid. Stabbing Broken Blade at its eyes, he activated Army Obliteration!
-215!
-220!
-198!
The servant maid’s health bar decreased. She sucked at her lips, and blood was drawn from the Lin Jie’s meridians, shooting directly into its mouth. She sipped on it greedily.
-95!
+95!
Mana damage was fatal to Lin Jie, who was a Warrior with only high physical Defense capabilities!
The Withered Leaf Sword slit across the servant maid’s lips, and with a swift turn of its tip, it ripped off one of the vampire’s fangs. Lin Jie followed up on this small victory and hit hard at the back of the vampire’s head. The connecting blood vessels to the vampire’s teeth protruded out and was being crushed violently.
Weakness Exploit! Blood Soul Multi-Slash!
The thick blade of Broken Blade pierced through the servant maid’s body, and killed it swiftly!

Undead Dominance, get up!

A dim light flashed across Lin Jie’s palm, and the vampire servant maid stood up again. Its lifeless eyes stared at its master.
Commanding the maid to stand under the second level’s railings, Lin Jie used her as a stepping stone while he activated the Feather Drop skill again. This time round, he rose up to about five yards in the air!
‘It’s close now!’
Lin Jie gritted his teeth and activated the Rocket Launcher which he hung around his waist. A loud explosion was heard, following which a jet of fire sparks appeared at his abdomen area and spread outwards.
Lin Jie lost his balance and slammed onto the railings. He landed head down on the ground, and the diving-like posture made him twist his neck. It was lucky his neck did not break!

Goblin technology sucks great time!
Lin Jie couldn’t help but curse as he stood up. Fortunately, he had achieved his desired results—at least he had avoided a lot of vampires and came to the second floor.
There was another gain from this move, a treasure chest!
According to historical records, unexplored maps had not been visited by people for countless years. It would be strange if there were no treasure chests around!
‘Opening of the treasure chest… 1%… 2%… 3%… 2%…’
Lin Jie waited patiently, and the treasure chest finally opened.
—’You received four silver coins.’
—’You received a Skill Book: Vampiric Touch.’
—’You received the Dark Pupils.’
—’You received a Low-level Fading Potion’s recipe.’
Lin Jie checked through the treasure chest for a few more times and confirmed that there was nothing else.
Vampiric Touch was a continuous output skill for Dark Priests, and it could give them considerable Life-Steal abilities, allowing them to replenish their health points constantly. Furthermore, it could also trigger the effect of the Stealth Spell. In essence, this was quite a good skill.
The Low-level Fading Potion was one of the several life-saving potions players must have when they were in the wild. It could enable players to enter the Fading state for the next 3 seconds, reduce Movement Speed by 90%, reduce Aggro by 100%, and also reduce Damage received by 100%.
To a Potioneer, a recipe would mean lots of revenue.
The last item he got was a special item.
Dark Pupils: It can be used with necklaces and rings. Night View +5.
Lin Jie shook his head and couldn’t help but let out a little laugh.
At the rate things were going, the Wolf Soul Necklace would soon become a searchlight.