Let Me Game in Peace Chapter 2 - Ant Nest

Translator: CKtalon Editor: CKtalon

From the instant he acquired that peculiar phone, Zhou Wen devoted nearly all his waking hours to grinding games on it. As a result, he obtained various dimensional crystals.

Previously, his Strength stood at 7, Speed at 4, Constitution at 7, and Primordial Energy at 1. Through the dimensional crystals gained from grinding, he elevated all these attributes in just over a month. Back in the day, such rapid progress might have required years of effort.

By absorbing vast quantities of dimensional crystals, Zhou Wen uncovered a key pattern. Regardless of the type, if a dimensional crystal's value exceeded his current stat, absorbing it would instantly boost that stat to match the crystal's level.

Yet, should the dimensional crystal's value be equal to or below his own, it merely restored some of his energy. Then, through practicing his Primordial Energy Art, he could gradually increase his stats rather than gaining an immediate surge.

This implied that higher-valued dimensional crystals were far superior. Their impact on Zhou Wen would be even more profound. Still, after slaying countless Vigor Ants in the Ant Nest, the top Strength Crystal he'd encountered was merely 9. The highest Constitution Crystal reached only 8. Speed Crystals tended to be quite low. And Primordial Energy Crystals were exceptionally scarce—the five he got today marked the best he'd seen so far.

Zhou Wen suspected this tied to the Vigor Ants' inherent traits. They excelled in Strength and Constitution but fell short in Speed. That explained the relatively high-value Strength Crystals he farmed, while Speed Crystals offered little.

That said, even the low-value dimensional crystals served as handy energy boosters, letting Zhou Wen swiftly advance his Ascetic Meditation practice. So they weren't entirely worthless.

His sole disappointment was that game-dropped crystals got absorbed instantly by the blood-colored avatar upon touch. They couldn't transfer to reality. Otherwise, selling off the low-value ones he couldn't use would have made him rich.

The Ant Nest teemed with ants, and spotting Zhou Wen's blood-colored avatar only drew more of them swarming in.

After eliminating over a hundred Vigor Ants, yet another dimensional crystal appeared. Sadly, it was a Strength Crystal 3, useful only for energy recovery.

Dimensional crystals didn't drop often, with most at 3 or less. Higher ones were rare drops, forcing Zhou Wen to grind endlessly to improve his odds.

This explained his habit of dozing in class and skipping cultivation—outside lessons, he poured every moment into grinding, even overnight, leaving no room for practice or focus.

Despite that, his growth rate far outpaced his old days. Relying solely on Ascetic Meditation as before would have dragged Primordial Energy to 5 over many times longer.

With Vigor Ant numbers surging, Zhou Wen started struggling to keep up. Soon, the blood-colored avatar drowned under the ant swarm, blacking out the screen.

Resigned, Zhou Wen dripped fresh blood on the screen to respawn. Each drop equaled a game life, just like a 1-Up.

Game reloaded, he resumed grinding, felling Vigor Ant after Vigor Ant. Luck evaded him this round—no crystals despite over a hundred kills.

Being calm and patient by nature, Zhou Wen persisted steadily in the Ant Nest.

All of a sudden, amid the masses, a distinctive Vigor Ant caught his eye.

This one gleamed blood-red, as if drenched in gore, stark against the black Vigor Ants. Its head looked larger too, making it stand out right away.

As the red Vigor Ant lunged forward, Zhou Wen tested it warily and discovered its Strength and Speed vastly outstripped the black ones. Yet it remained within his control.

After maneuvering the blood-colored avatar repeatedly, he finally struck the red Vigor Ant, inflicting light damage without finishing it off.

Progress showed clearly, though—the red Vigor Ant's health bar dwindled steadily. Likely, around a hundred hits would end it.

Fortunately, the red Vigor Ant moved just a bit quicker than average black ones. The blood-colored avatar could reposition and evade in time, so slaying it was inevitable.

But black Vigor Ants kept multiplying. This alarmed Zhou Wen, as the horde might overwhelm him before he downed the red one.

No better plan surfaced for now. Zhou Wen focused on maximizing the blood-colored avatar's strikes against the red Vigor Ant.

Right as the red Vigor Ant's health neared empty, surrounding ants thickened, blocking any room to maneuver around it.

The blood-colored avatar couldn't evade fast enough and got chomped by a black Vigor Ant. Its health plummeted by nearly half in a flash.

Zhou Wen realized doom loomed. He threw everything into one last desperate blow at the red Vigor Ant with the avatar.

The punch connected perfectly on its weak point. The final health sliver vanished, shattering the red carapace. Two crystals erupted from the remains.

Zhou Wen had no chance to inspect the crystals' types. The critically wounded blood-colored avatar scooped them up amid the chaos.

Seconds later, the Vigor Ant horde engulfed it, and the screen blackened soon after.

Gazing at the two on-screen alerts, Zhou Wen sighed in relief from past runs. Picking up a crystal before death ensured its effects took hold.

“Killed Mortal creature, Vigor Ant. Discovered Primordial Energy Crystal.”

“Killed Mortal creature, Vigor Ant. Discovered Vigor Ant Crystal.”

Staring at the alerts, Zhou Wen froze in surprise. Primordial Energy Crystals had dropped often, but a Vigor Ant-named crystal was entirely new.

After a moment's shock, realization dawned. Though he'd never encountered such crystals personally, tales abounded in textbooks and online videos. Others had used similar ones from different dimensional creatures, not Vigor Ants.

As excitement surged through Zhou Wen, a bizarre energy from the phone coursed into his body.