Chapter 25: Within That Range, It Stays Fast and Accurate

Sonya felt a bit skeptical and gave Ashe a doubtful look. "Let you handle it?"

For a sorcerer, exploring the Virtual World was undeniably one of the most, if not the most, crucial parts of their entire journey. Almost every rare encounter, breakthrough, or advancement happened inside that vast and unpredictable world. Many sorcerers even spent their whole lives exploring it.

Compared to the Virtual World, reality was merely a stage where sorcerers showed off their skills in their spare time.

Despite its importance, no one had ever produced a reliable guide to navigating it. Perhaps such guides had existed, but Sonya didn't yet have the status to access them.

She had even asked Professor Trosan during her afternoon class if he had any useful hints, but he merely shrugged and admitted he had none. Instead, he told her, "The reason sorcerers are equals is that in the Virtual World, we all start equally ignorant."

Sonya knew the professor cared about her, and she could also tell that, as a typical swordsman, he had no interest in lying to mislead someone as weak as her.

If even a Three-Winged Sacred Realm sorcerer had nothing to offer, she certainly didn't expect much from the Watcher.

"The Virtual World is dangerous," Sonya warned. "If I die here, it'll take three days for my mind to recover."

Sorcerers could, in fact, die here, with drowning being the most common cause. Anyone who tried to explore the deep sea or simply stayed still in the water would be overwhelmed by the Sea of Knowledge. That was why the sudden appearance of the little boat startled her so much. It meant they no longer needed to fear drowning.

A sorcerer who died in the Virtual World suffered severe trauma to the soul. The stronger the sorcerer, the heavier the trauma, and the longer the recovery. A novice like Sonya needed only three days, a formal Silver Rank sorcerer at least fifteen. Gold Rank sorcerers required months, while Sacred Realm or Legendary sorcerers could take years.

Without exploring the Virtual World, a sorcerer's growth efficiency would drop by ninety percent. Opinions on how to explore it varied widely. Some focused on steady, cautious growth, while others thrived on risks, betting on the chance that winning could bring them wealth and luxury, while losing would leave them at the mercy of those same rewards.

Sonya used to enjoy taking risks. At the time, she didn't think she had much to lose. But after discovering her talent for swordsmanship, she had grown more cautious. Professor Trosan believed she could reach Gold Rank in twenty years, with the hope of ascending to the Sacred Realm in forty.

A Two-Winged Gold sorcerer held respectable standing in the Starry Kingdom. Sonya's life goal was to become a minor noble, and for a Two-Winged Gold sorcerer, that would be no trouble. If she ever reached the Three-Winged Sacred Realm, she could even establish a family legacy.

It was therefore reasonable for her to be cautious. Sonya knew she had a bright future ahead, but her petty-bourgeois mindset made her more inclined to hold tightly to what she could be sure of, rather than gamble on the uncertain. People often said the world was beautiful and worth striving for, but for Sonya, only the first half felt true.

Even so, she couldn't avoid exploring the Virtual World. Staying still in both the real and Virtual World was simply not an option. Countless instructors, including Professor Trosan, had warned her never to remain stationary for too long.

No one knew exactly what happened to those who stayed still in the Virtual World, but those who did soon lost their heartbeat in reality. Their souls had effectively left their bodies, and even skilled sorcerers could not bring them back.

Hence, there was a saying that if a sorcerer stayed motionless in the Virtual World, their physical body would assume they were dead and die on the spot.

"I heard that for first-timers, the safest direction is toward the area with the shallowest white mist," Sonya said.

𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

It hardly counted as a strategy and was a little more than a tip compiled from the senior sorcerer alumni of the Sword and Roses University. Sixty percent of those who tried it succeeded, while the remaining forty still ran into danger. Nevertheless, in a world filled with so much uncertainty, a sixty percent success rate was already enough to justify the attempt.

Ashe pointed toward the densest part of the mist. "No. We're going there."

The mist there was so thick she couldn't see anything beyond it. Just looking at it sent a chill down her spine. She was about to protest when the little boat suddenly moved on its own. She turned her attention to it at once. "You can control the boat? Did you bring it here?!"

"Yeah."

"Then you tricked me into jumping into the sea just now?!"

Seeing Sonya grip her wooden sword, Ashe quickly explained, "I only realized I could control the boat just now. I meant it when I told you to jump!"

"Meant it... as in to see me make a fool of myself!?"

"No, meant it... as in to see you get wet... wait, calm down! We've already entered an unknown area! Danger could pop up at any moment!"

White fog rushed toward them. With the unknown lurking in every corner, Sonya could only sit down in frustration.

As they pushed through layer after layer of fog, Sonya suddenly felt something flowing into her body. Her thoughts cleared, her skin glimmered with a silver sheen, and an overwhelming surge of swordsmanship knowledge flooded her mind.

This was why sorcerers had to explore the Virtual World. As long as they kept moving in it, they would automatically absorb the knowledge within and condense it into Silver Mana.

Once enough Silver Mana had gathered, it would crystallize into the Silver Wing, signifying their ascension to the rank of Virtual Wing Sorcerer.

Sonya suddenly understood why sorcerers were so addicted to spending time in the Virtual World. The feeling of gaining knowledge every second and growing stronger with each moment was as comforting as the first lazy stretch of a morning.

While Sonya basked in the rush of knowledge, Ashe remained glued to the map on the screen like a truant student sneaking glances during class. At the center of the map was a small boat, surrounded by eight grids. The boat was now entering the top-left grid.

This was exactly the Virtual World Exploration mode the game provided. When Ashe moved the boat on the screen, the boat in the Virtual World moved along with it. Besides moving, Ashe could also check the information for each grid.

[A Waste of Effort], [Certain Death], [A Waste of Effort], [A Waste of Effort], [A Waste of Effort], [Worth a Visit], [A Bit Troublesome], [Best To Avoid]

The repeated A Waste of Effort clearly meant there was nothing in those areas. Certain Death indicated danger. Ashe couldn't figure out what Best To Avoid meant, while Worth a Visit was clearly a hint from the game.

After passing through the dense fog, a small island shrouded in mist appeared before them. Seeing it reminded Sonya of the island from the Watcher's dream trial.

That island from back then... It's completely identical to the Virtual World! It's no wonder the Watcher is so confident. If he could use the Virtual World for trials, it should be nothing for him to explore the world!

The boat slowly came to a halt. The moment they set foot on the island, the mist dispersed, and a hunter wearing a wide-brimmed hat and holding a long gun appeared before them.

"Seven steps out, the gun has the edge," the hunter said while lifting his weapon and aiming at both of them. "Within that range, it stays fast and accurate."