The Boss King actually disguised himself as a novice village chief?!
Chapter 170 - 156 The Favorability of NPCs is Very Important

Chapter 170: Chapter 156 The Favorability of NPCs is Very Important

In the real world, I declined a drink with my colleagues, and my ring which "Never Loses" would not be bested. Yet in the game, I had to use the offer of a drink to achieve my own goals.

As players interacted more with the game’s NPCs, the Undead slowly discovered that NPCs were not of low intelligence; on the contrary, they were very smart, could be tempted, and sometimes spilled plenty of information when drunk.

They were virtually just like real people.

While they naturally resisted contact with the Undead, their mouths could still be pried open with the right incentives.

Understanding the preferences of each NPC essential to the core became a must for the Undead, and some even compiled the "NPC Preference Strategy Codex" on forums, gathering and organizing key NPCs’ likes to make it easier for the Undead to strategize their approach.

For instance, Miss Miko had a particular fondness for Magic Potion ingredients; shower her with them, and she would smile at you.

Then there was old Pete, who had a special interest in new recipes. Helping him learn new dishes could occasionally lead to unexpected gains, including small but cherished bits of information from the Lord Himself.

Unfortunately, Miss Brittany was tougher to deal with. Although she also accepted gifts of Magic Potion ingredients, she never reciprocated.

The Lord was the easiest to win favor with. Some of the Undead had already figured out through experience that, as the "Newbie Village Chief" and likely a "growth-type NPC," one of the main protagonists of the game’s storyline, he naturally had a friendly disposition toward the Undead.

Giving gifts and trinkets allowed one to chat with the Lord. Though he rarely divulged information, whenever he spoke, it often turned out to be a crucial hidden quest.

Previously, my ring "Never Loses" had obtained the quest to capture Prey Town from Lind.

The NPC swallowed: "I’ve heard of it, but its production is very low. It must first supply a few of the nobles, then goes to the various Great Knights."

My ring "Never Loses" chuckled, "You’ve forgotten, I am Undead, and one of us works at the tavern."

The NPC seemed tempted: "If you can... cough cough, I do indeed know some little insider news..."

"Please wait a moment!"

Confidently, my ring "Never Loses" departed; next, his task was simple—just call out for a piece of tofu.

Among the more than two hundred Undead, if someone definitely had gourmet food, there were two people.

One was "@我宣你欧皓辰"; he once dabbled in tavern cuisine, but recently he wasn’t logging in much, apparently due to work overtime, the hard life of a working grunt.

No matter how strong you are in the game, it’s not real.

The other was "@Romantic Bumbler," who loved to eat and could even die for food, yet most intriguing was her "eonian physique." Many liked to farm with her, always managing to harvest some precious materials.

Fortunately, he was on good terms with both of them having been among the first batch of Undead at Star Dragon Ridge, often cooperating and connecting with one another.

Soon, my ring "Never Loses" returned with full confidence, whispering to the NPC distributing the task, "Sir, you can head to the tavern and ask for the tofu from 我宣你欧皓辰, he also has a bottle of wine."

Players who were well acquainted with NPCs could gain quite a few privileges.

It was said that a player in the territory had a very good relationship with the jester dwarf Ludo, often obtaining key information from him.

"Cough cough," the NPC cleared his throat, "Actually, this isn’t much of a secret."

Seeing the NPC making an "I’m about to tell a secret now roar" expression and gesture, my ring "Never Loses" also turned serious.

Immersed in the game, it’s easy to become part of it.

"What I overheard last time was that the plague’s reach was very far. Previously, several of you Undead lost control and ventured into the green fields of Star Pasture." The NPC pointed at my ring "Never Loses," "At that time, Reed and the others were there too, ordered by the Lord to hunt down the Undead infected by that thing."

NPCs seemed reluctant to mention the "Abyss," as if simply uttering that name too often would cause them to be targeted by some unknown rifts that could appear out of nowhere.

"Then," he lowered his voice, despite there being no one close by, "that thing ran off to the north, to Starlet Mine."

"Mine?"

"We had a deal with the mine, we provided food, and in turn, they gave us ores."

"And then?"

"That thing burst in there; we have no idea what happened inside, but the Great Knights made a snap decision to destroy the mine, burying everything within it, which also cut off our connection with Starlet Mine," the NPC sighed, "We... are now in dire need of a large amount of ores."

"I get it!" I exclaimed with joy that My Ring Won’t Lose wouldn’t be outdone.

Ore could be used to submit tasks that would expedite the progress bar of Main City, yet the mine providing the ore was destroyed because of the Undead going mad, causing the construction tasks of Main City to be mysteriously stalled.

As long as the Undead took their place in mining, wouldn’t everything be fine?

I’m too clever!

He went to the stable post and summoned his Catastrophe Warhorse using the number on the Lion Badge.

The fierce warhorse only had the most basic equipment, like saddles, stirrups, and horseshoes, nothing compared to the lavishly armed Catastrophe Warhorse of the next-door nouveau riche.

My Ring Won’t Lose got on the horse, gave a gentle slap on the horse’s rear, "Giddy up!"

The milky-white sky was filled with unease, the lingering aftermath of the Calamity plague that had burst out from "Mother" Leon still hadn’t dissipated—rendering the already lifeless land even more desolate.

The dirty land induced a sense of panic; occasionally, one could see mutant weeds stubbornly growing along the roadsides, their distorted forms, as if irradiated by nuclear fallout, instinctively keeping people at a distance.

The cold wind shook the serrated grass leaves, twitching and shivering on the ground like the shadows of ghosts, emitting a creaking groan.

The whining wind, the howling weeds, the extremely grotesque environment—all made the Undead who rode hastily as if fleeing from a crisis, a single misstep away from having nowhere to bury themselves.

After crossing a small hill and rounding a little mountain, he finally saw the Faith Crossroad ahead, the newly rebuilt signs piercing the sky, allowing one to distinguish their location from afar.

Since the Undead had almost all acquired Catastrophe Warhorses, the horse hunting teams had reduced in number, and those who remained seemed more like they were maintaining the ecological balance of the Catastrophe Warhorses.

My Ring Won’t Lose rode northward, quickly arriving at the collapse site mentioned by the NPC.

The collapsed mine, with an unclear situation inside, didn’t make digging through it simple.

He dismounted and moved a few rocks, but behind them, there were only more rocks, with no gaps to be found.

"That means it’s thoroughly collapsed; at least one passageway is completely gone," he mused.

Monsters transformed by the Abyss can’t live for very long, so whatever was in the mine is certainly dead by now.

But how to mine was another problem.

My Ring Won’t Lose didn’t keep the information he had discovered to himself; though initially, he did want to check things out alone to see if he could gain any benefits, as soon as he realized it was impossible, he instantly posted his hidden task discovery for others to see.

[New! Hidden Construction Task for Main City: Collapsed Mine, can yield a large amount of ores, brothers who can mine come quickly!]