Chapter 119: The Voma Maze

After passing through two checkpoints guarded by archers, with only a brief pause, the system switched maps, and Lin Jia and his companions arrived at the entrance of Woma Forest. Running along the edge of a long cliff marked their official entry into the mysterious Woma Forest. The three Lin brothers sprinted wildly through the densely wooded forest for a while, but when they failed to find the expected Woma Temple, they came to a stop. The fourth brother cautiously asked, "Do you guys know where the Woma Temple is?"

The eldest brother replied bluntly, "No idea!" Lin Jia, being hopeless with directions, simply stared blankly at the fourth brother.

“...” The fourth brother was speechless. “Forget I asked!” Earlier, they had run a full circle through the forest, discovering nothing but a dilapidated village where supplies could be purchased and a few small wooden cabins built on an earthen platform in the forest’s center. There were no iconic structures like the Stone Tomb or the Woma Temple.

“Maybe... we should go back to the entrance? Lots of large player groups usually head to the Woma Temple to level up and fight bosses. How about we wait there and follow them?” Lin Jia suggested cautiously, knowing his reputation as a directionally challenged person left him little say.

The fourth and eldest brothers shot him angry looks. Lin Jia shrank his neck and said, “Alright, alright! Forget I said anything!”

“Damn! Why didn’t you say so earlier? We’ve been wandering around for ages!” The eldest grumbled as he led the charge back. Lin Jia and the fourth brother hurried after him. Along the way, they casually cleared out small monsters that kept respawning, thanks to the eldest and fourth brother’s effortless killing.

However, as Lin Jia ran around a tree, a half-orc suddenly swung a hammer from the shadows, knocking his little mage backward and instantly cutting his health by a quarter. Lin Jia was startled; with his defense, how could a half-orc deal so much damage?

When the half-orc emerged from the shadows, Lin Jia was shocked to realize it wasn’t just a half-orc but a half-orc warrior! The half-orc warrior resembled a half-orc or half-orc soldier but was more burly, heavily armored, and wielded a massive axe comparable to the mysterious giant axe the fourth brother and others had fought before but failed to pick up. No wonder it hit so hard.

The half-orc warrior was a mini-boss-level enemy, randomly spawning in Woma Forest, dropping around level 22 professional gear and some rare items. Its attack power was roughly equivalent to a top-tier red-black boar. Lin Jia might have been excited in the past, but after encountering the white boar brute, he no longer paid much attention to mini-bosses. He didn’t alert the eldest or fourth brothers but took a few steps away, grabbed his crescent blade, and swiftly dispatched the monster.

The fourth and eldest brothers heard thunder rumbling from Lin Jia’s speakers and turned to look. The eldest laughed, “Not bad! You run into a boss just by running around? Maybe when we get into the Woma Temple, you’ll run into the big boss, the Woma Lord, and then we’ll strike it rich!”

“No way it’s that easy. I heard the Woma Lord is on the third floor of the temple. It’s easy to find but hard to kill. Otherwise, someone would’ve already sounded the Woma Horn by now!” The fourth brother said as he grabbed his frost spear and joined Lin Jia in finishing off the half-orc warrior.

The half-orc warrior’s health wasn’t high. Lin Jia switched to his lucky +4 crescent blade, which dealt 1-4 damage, significantly boosting his attack power. Working with the fourth brother, they killed it in under 30 seconds, with the fourth brother, who was in close combat, not even losing any health. The monster dropped a big loot, mostly minor items and potions, but money was money, so the Lin brothers collected the sun potions and gold coins, examined the small equipment but discarded ordinary ones to save space for rare items. As soon as they left, a group of newbie players swarmed in and cleaned the ground bare.

Back at the entrance, Lin Jia and his companions observed players running around, trying to find a group heading to the Woma Temple to follow. Generally, they ignored players with light armor since the temple was a high-level map with tough monsters, and those in level 22 professional gear wouldn’t waste time leveling on minor forest monsters. So, following players in professional gear was the safest bet.

After several groups of light-armored players passed by with no sign of high-level players, the Lin brothers were about to follow a random group to ask for directions when a heavily armored warrior player led a dozen or so professional gear players rushing through the entrance. The first was none other than the warrior “Shrimp,” someone they had dealt with before.

Before Lin Jia could speak, Shrimp charged forward and slashed at Lin Jia with a single stroke, knocking him back and reducing his health by half! Lin Jia fled in shock, switching to attack mode ready to retaliate. Weren’t they on good terms before? Why attack on sight now?

The fourth and eldest brothers instinctively prepared to fight back. Just as they were about to respond, Shrimp, who stood still as if smoking a cigarette, said, “Crazy! What are you standing here for? Also here to fight for the horn? Didn’t expect you guys to switch to the Glory server too!?”

Lin Jia was stunned and replied confusedly, “Yeah! We don’t know how to find the Woma Temple, so we’re looking for someone to guide us. Why did you attack me for no reason? You nearly killed me! You scared me!”

“Heh! Just saying hello!” Shrimp swaggered, slashing his weapon through the air, sending out sharp sword glints. It resembled the “Assault Sword Technique” practiced by the fourth brother, but while his technique only occasionally produced sword glints, Shrimp’s attacks were constant, rapid, and sharp, clearly the “Assassination Sword Technique” learned at warrior level 25.

Lin Jia’s eyes widened as he looked at Shrimp’s massive weapon—it was the giant mysterious axe that the fourth brother’s group hadn’t picked up after killing the white boar in Pig Level 4! Quickly opening Shrimp’s equipment inventory, Lin Jia gasped. Every time he saw Shrimp, the warrior’s gear had leveled up. Besides the dragon-shaped “Dragon Ring” and a “Coral Ring” he had seen before, a pair of “Reaper Gloves” with 1-3 attack, and a crescent-shaped bronze “Ghost Necklace,” Shrimp now also wore a lush green “Prayer Helmet” and a heavy axe called “Purgatory,” level 26, with an attack power of 0-25! A true symbol of a warrior’s status!

“Damn! Damn!” The fourth brother muttered beside him, clearly impressed by Shrimp’s gear. Although he wore a pair of rings with 0-4 attack, compared to Shrimp’s, his were far inferior. His bracelets were a 0-3 attack small bracelet and a normal Reaper Glove with 1-2 attack. As for the necklace, the bronze crescent “Ghost Necklace” was something the three Lin brothers had never even seen, a level apart in quality.

Lin Jia spoke to Shrimp, “Does your buddy greet people like this? I’m just a little mage, and you almost killed me with that big axe! That axe you have was the one we dropped but didn’t pick up from the white boar in Pig Level 4. How did it end up with you? Haha! You’re wearing a green hat now? I lost my green hat last time during a PK match! What a pity!”

“...” Shrimp was somewhat triggered by the mention of the “green hat.” Although the helmet’s attributes were appealing, the color was far from ideal. Shrimp replied, “What green hat? That axe was dropped by you guys? Heh! There’s only one in the entire server. I paid 200 bucks to buy it from someone else. The green hat was bought too! By the way, you guys have such good luck dropping all these rare items? That green hat didn’t disappear because you died, right? The Prayer Helmet vanishes upon death, so you must have been killed by a monster. Players dying in PvP don’t lose it so easily. I’ve already lost two green hats! How high level are you guys now?”

“Ah? Prayer Helmet disappears? I didn’t know that! I thought it dropped when you died... I’m level 24! The other two are 25,” Lin Jia said, surprised. “What about you? What level? You guys here to fight bosses and get the horn to start a guild? We don’t know the way, mind taking us along?”

Shrimp was surprised. “You guys have decent levels for a while but are still only 24? I’m already level 28! I’m not too familiar with Woma either, just been here a few times to fight bosses. The Dragon Ring I have was dropped by a boss here! Warriors have a tough time leveling in Woma; Centipede Cave is better. Our group is here to get the Woma Horn. Once we have that, we can form a guild! Join us! We’re short on mages! If we get the horn, I’ll share the loot with you!”

Even Shrimp, at such a high level, needed a large group of veterans to come along. Given his frequent visits and familiarity with the area, it was clear they had tried multiple times to kill the Woma Lord but failed. Since even so many couldn’t take down the boss, the three Lin brothers alone stood no chance. They decided to join to learn the route and get a feel for it.

Swiftly forming a party with Shrimp and his group, they split into three squads and marched grandly toward the Woma Temple. In this game, a party, including the leader, could have up to 11 players. Shrimp’s group plus the Lin brothers totaled about 30 to 40 players, all wearing professional gear.

Trailing behind Shrimp’s group, Lin Jia and the others passed through the Woma Temple entrance and the first level of the Woma Labyrinth. A Taoist player led the way, probably accustomed to leveling here, and quickly guided them through the winding paths to the second floor.