Everlasting Evolution: Permanent HP Gain Per Attack

Wang the blacksmith was visibly surprised.
He gave Lin Tianhao a meaningful look, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Very well," he said. "Give me the materials, and you can come back for the weapon in ten hours."
Lin Tianhao handed over all the required equipment.
Ding! You have completed Blacksmith Wang's quest. Experience +9085. Since you have not yet left the Novice Village, the experience gained is nullified.
Lin Tianhao wasn't bothered by this. He had known about this limitation from his previous life.
"Adventurer," Wang continued, "I see you have exceptional talent. If you can find three more items for me, I might be able to upgrade your gold-grade weapon to platinum grade."
Lin Tianhao was genuinely surprised. A gold-grade weapon was already far superior to anything other players currently possessed, let alone a platinum-grade one.
However, he had a good guess as to what the next task would be.
"May I know what these items are?" Lin Tianhao asked.
"My apprentice, Elfus, stole a valuable ore. I've already sent two other apprentices to retrieve it. If you can assist them in recovering the ore, I'm willing to use it to further enhance your weapon."
Ding! Blacksmith Wang has issued you the quest: Retrieve the Stolen Iceflame Demon Ore.
Quest Objective: Retrieve the Iceflame Demon Ore, or deal at least 20% damage to Elfus during the attempt to recapture him.
Quest Penalty: None.
Quest Reward: Unknown.
Lin Tianhao raised an eyebrow. As expected, the conflict between Wang and the Village Chief had begun.
This so-called apprentice's betrayal was actually orchestrated by the Village Chief. Elfus was a plant within Wang's workshop, who stole the ore and fled after being discovered.
Since Wang and the Village Chief hadn't openly broken ties yet, Elfus could only flee into the wilderness.
If other players were lucky, they might receive a quest from the Village Chief to protect Elfus.
"Alright, Blacksmith Wang, I'll do my best," Lin Tianhao replied. "Do you know where Elfus is?"
"My two apprentices tracked him to the mine in the east. That rat Elfus must be hiding somewhere in there."
Lin Tianhao's eyebrows twitched. The mine to the east…
That was the territory of the level eight Stone Beetles.
In his previous life, Lin Tianhao hadn't heard of any guides for this Stone Beetle mine.
Perhaps they existed, but they hadn't been widely publicized.
Dawn of Gods was filled with hidden maps, hidden bosses, secret realms, hidden grottos, and many other secrets.
While Lin Tianhao knew some of them, it was only a small fraction.
Most players kept their discoveries to themselves, unwilling to share their hard-earned knowledge.
The guides that Lin Tianhao knew were mostly released by guilds or government-backed corporations after they had fully exploited the content for their own benefit.
Or they were like the strategies for the Enraged Weasel and the Twisted Treant, which were discovered after the initial kills triggered server-wide announcements.
"Very well, I'll head to the mine and find Elfus."
Leaving the Novice Village, Lin Tianhao headed towards the mine.
Just then, a server-wide announcement rang out.
Server Announcement: Congratulations to player Dream Chaser Smokefall for achieving the first kill of the Aqua Turtle King! This announcement is hereby made to encourage all players to strive for greater heights.
Server Announcement: Congratulations to player Dream Chaser Smokefall for achieving the first kill of the Aqua Turtle King! This announcement is hereby made to encourage all players to strive for greater heights.
…
As soon as Dream Chaser Smokefall's announcement faded, another one appeared.
Server Announcement: Congratulations to player Berserker Blades for being the first player to obtain a Hidden Class! This announcement is hereby made to encourage all players to strive for greater heights.
Server Announcement: Congratulations to player Berserker Blades for being the first player to obtain a Hidden Class! This announcement is hereby made to encourage all players to strive for greater heights.
…
Lin Tianhao sighed. It seemed some things from his previous life hadn't changed.
Berserker Blades had still obtained a hidden class this quickly.
It was a pity.
Berserker Blades had decent talent, good game sense, and solid skills. It was just unfortunate that he made a hasty class choice, causing him to become unremarkable in the later stages of the game.
The Novice Village.
The mine.
It was an abandoned mine, neglected for years and now home to the Stone Beetles.
As soon as Lin Tianhao arrived, he saw dozens of Stone Beetles roaming outside the mine entrance.
Stone Beetle (Normal): Level 8.
Health: 1200/1200.
Attack: 52.
Skills: Armor Break, Stone Shield.
Two simple skills, yet they caused much grief for many ordinary players.
Armor Break reduced the durability of weapons. In the early game, when weapons were scarce, this skill was a major headache.
Thwip!
-1200!
With a single arrow, Lin Tianhao instantly killed a Stone Beetle.
After farming the Twisted Forest and collecting equipment, his health had already surpassed 50,000.
Combined with the over 10,000 health bonus from the Black Iron Treant set, his total health was now over 60,000.
Even without considering the Thunderclap Bow's attack power, the true damage from his health alone was enough to one-shot the Stone Beetles.
In less than twenty seconds, Lin Tianhao had eliminated all the dozens of Stone Beetles outside the mine.
He ignored the newly respawning beetles and entered the mine.
According to his calculations, there should be three NPCs inside, possibly even more.
"Is that you?"
A surprised voice sounded as soon as he entered.
Lin Tianhao turned to see who was speaking.
It was the assassin player, Shadow Kill!
"What are you doing here? Farming monsters?"
Due to his repeated deaths, Shadow Kill was now only level five.
With his stats and skills, fighting level eight Stone Beetles was manageable, albeit challenging.
"No, I accepted a quest."
"From the Village Chief?"
Lin Tianhao's eyes narrowed. "Did the Village Chief send you here to meet Elfus?"
Shadow Kill looked surprised. "You accepted this quest too?"
"No, I accepted a quest that's the opposite of yours. What's your objective?" Lin Tianhao asked.
"My objective is to retrieve the Iceflame Demon Ore from Elfus and, if possible, help Elfus defeat the two NPCs chasing him."
Lin Tianhao raised an eyebrow, a smile spreading across his face.
"My quest is to help those two NPCs defeat Elfus and retrieve the Iceflame Demon Ore."
Upon hearing this, Shadow Kill was taken aback. "Opposing quests?"
In most previous games, it was rare to have quests that directly pitted players against each other.
"They are opposing quests," Lin Tianhao agreed. "But I think there's a way we can both benefit." He already had an idea in mind.
"What do you mean?"
"We kill all three NPCs," Lin Tianhao said with a smile.
Shadow Kill was shocked.
"Wouldn't that be too risky?"
"With proper execution, it's entirely possible. And it's not a two-versus-three situation. We'll help Elfus kill the two NPCs first, then turn around and take care of Elfus."