#i play too recklessly is the problem. i bump into anything that deals damage by complete accident

[pankomako]

dude i suck at kirby. if i ever start streaming remind me never to play kirby on stream it'd be so humiliating

[osmw1]

Dimension Wave   Chapter 11 — The Second City

—Ilphy, The Second City

“So, are you the brother of Tsugumi?”

After the hunt, we went to the second city as it was close by. Then, while I was in the middle of splitting up today’s bounty, Shouko interjected with a ‘Perhaps, are you…’ about me and Tsugumi. It’s obvious, eh? Our names, I mean.

“Ah, yeah. She wasn’t a bother or anything to you, was she?” “Not at all. She is a spirited and wonderful girl. We might not have been able to unlock the city without her help in the fight. I cannot thank her enough.” “Oh, I’m glad then. When Tsugumi games, she can get a little carried away. We might meet her some time again, so don’t take it to heart if she rubs you the wrong way.”

I thought they just had fought together as allies, but apparently, they’re acquaintances. Shouko had seen her hunting quite a few times before, so maybe Tsugumi might know of Shouko as well.

Anyway, back to the items. If there’s no need or greed system in an MMO, then obviously, someone has to distribute the wealth to the party. There are even some games that randomly gives the items to each party member. Dimension Wave uses a system that I’m familiar with. But unfortunately, we didn’t get any rare items, so I just send her half of the bounty through the trade window.

“I apologize for putting you through all this trouble.” “Whatcha talkin’ about? I was totally relying on you in combat. This ain’t nothin’ in comparison.” “Well, then, you have my gratitude. This small fortune is all thanks to you.” “It’s worth partying up just to hear that from you.”

Thank you, gutting weapons. Speaking of which, as promised earlier, we decided to never mention anything about how the gutting weapons work. You never know who’s listening in. Still, for any other MMO, there would be strategy guides for FAQs online, so I’m sure it’s available somewhere already. But, don’t forget the “second life” aspect of Dimension Wave.

“Whatcha gonna do now, Shouko?” “Let me see. It has been two hours since, so I shall allocate my Mana then go out again. Would you care to join me?”

I had forgotten about it until she mentioned it. I always forget to spend my Mana. Lemme take a good look at my status since I so rarely open it up. Not to mention, Energy and Mana are both so important to us Spirits.

“Hmm… the sun’s setting soon, so is there a particular reason why you’re going?” “There is a place that is only available from eight—rather, from 20:00 till the morning. It is tremendously efficient, Energy-wise.” “I see… if you’re alright with me holding you back, then I’ll take up your offer.” “It would be my pleasure to go together.”

After a short break, we headed out for another hunt. Before I forget, I open up my status screen. It’d be a pain if I forget to use my Mana.

Name/ Kizuna†Exceed Race/ Spirit Energy/ 19,740 Mana/ 1,650 Serin/ 109,230

Skills/ Energy Production VIII, Mana Production V, Fishing Mastery IV, Gutting Mastery III, Transmutation I

Unlocked Skills/ Energy Production IX, Mana Production VI, Fishing Mastery V, Night Vision I, Helmsmanship I, Naval Combat I, Cleaver I, Speed Gutting I

I’ve got seven skills that I haven’t acquired yet. Helmsmanship and Naval Combat isn’t even worth my time looking at it. Night Vision does exactly what it says on the tin. It would be useful for fighting in the dark. I needed to be active for more than 24 hours at night to unlock it. The remaining two weren’t there yesterday, which means I unlocked them today. Let’s see what they do…

Cleaver I The basic offensive skill for gutting-type weapons. Deal additional damage when severing bones or joints. Consumes 50 Energy per use. Costs 200 Mana to acquire. Unlock requirement: Defeat 100 or more enemies with gutting-type weapons. Upgrade requirement: Defeat 500 or more enemies with gutting-type weapons.

Speed Gutting I A self-buff to gutting-type weapons. For a set duration, grants a self-buff to shorten the required time for gutting. Consumes 100 Energy per use. Costs 300 Mana to acquire. Unlock requirement: Gut 100 or more enemies with gutting-type weapons. Upgrade requirement: Gut 500 or more enemies with gutting-type weapons.

Looks like they’re both skills to be used in combat or out in action. Cleaver is obviously a combat skill and I could even say it’s necessary for battle. It’s always been Shouko activating offensive skills and using her Energy up. Gotta thank her for that later.

Back on topic, I need Speed Gutting too, don’t I? The biggest problem of today’s hunt was the downtime when I’m gutting. Shouko has no choice but to just loiter around. I’ve got no choice to do it considering the money we make from the items, so this skill will help us out, even if only a little. Of course, it’d be useful for solo play too since it would suck to get attacked in the middle of gutting. Yeah, this is necessary.

I acquire the two skills without any hesitation. Luckily, I don’t need to worry about getting both skills since they expend Energy each time they’re activated instead of being a constant Energy drain. It costed me a bit of Mana, but I don’t have enough for any other skills that I want right now anyway. Still, having Energy taking on the role of MP—like it says so in the manual—is pretty great.

I can use my skills as long as I have enough Energy. Having that said though, the less Energy I have, the less effective I would be. It’d be best to avoid recklessly burn my skills. We Spirits really do have to be cautious when in combat. According to Shouko’s experiences, every bit adds up and quickly makes you weaker. Having a large amount of Energy means a lot of HP, so not only would it be natural that we’d be good at tanking bosses, but also be very versatile because of our endurance and attack. The bad part is that we can only expend so much of it. That’s the one bottleneck of the system. Should you be thrifty with your Energy? Should you be extravagant? Well, that’s really the question, isn’t it?

“Now then, since we’re here at the second city, let’s fish at the river until it’s time.

“Sorry I’m late.”

I bumped into an acquaintance along the way and lost track of time. Of course, I already let Shouko know I was going to be a little late, but late is late.

“Oh, no problem at all. Did you run into problems?” “Nah, I ran into an acquaintance is all. I got her use her cooking skills for me though.”

It’s the same girl who I met through Alto. She told me to hit her up when I go fishing. I gave her three fish in exchange for her time cooking.

“A cook, is she?” “Yeah. Here, as an apology for being late. I’ve got sweetfish and trout, both salt-grilled. Which will it be?” “I shall have… the trout.”

After a brief moment of contemplation, Shouko received her trout. Though, sweetfish and trout are in season at fairly different times. Since this is a game, I guess time of year doesn’t matter when catching your freshwater fish. Anyway, putting that aside, I asked around for advice since we were going for a night battle.

“I asked around a little earlier, but is there anything we have to prepare for this? I’ve mentioned it already, but I don’t have much experience in fights. That means that I don’t know much about rules and stuff at whatever hunting ground.” “Right… well, I have brought our light source with me, so we shall be fine on that front. Oh, do you have a coat of some kind, Kizuna? It gets a little chilly at night, so it would not hurt to bring one along.”

While she’s speaking to me, Shouko clasps her hand together to thank me for the trout.

“A coat? No, I don’t have one, I’m afraid.” “In that case, would you like to use one of my old ones? It is a little worn down however. It does confer bonus resistance to cold and, according to current findings, that means it keeps the wearer warmer for longer.” “Can I really?” “Of course. Since I no longer wear it, it has simply been taking up space.”

Then, Shouko sends over a large kimono-style jacket via the chat window. It’s named the “Powder Snow Haori”. It grants a slight cold resistance effect as well as provides defense. Though it looks light, it’s actually got some heft to it. The coat might make me a little sluggish wearing it. I’ll only equip it when it’s cold then.

“Does it look okay on me, even though I’m wearing rather Western-looking clothes underneath?”

I put on the haori and ask for her thoughts. As I mentioned, I’m wearing a black dress called a “Geist Dress”. I chose it because it the simplest thing I could make with the best stats, though it looks quite gothic lolita.

It seems to be exclusive equipment for Spirits as well. The bonus effect on it lowers Energy damage taken. You can’t get effects like this with anything other than clothing, so it makes gutting weapons all the worse. Looking around, you’ll see guys in light armor with a short sword strapped to their hip. I’m sure one of the reasons why not many people use gutting weapons is because they don’t grant much defense. Well, you’d also likely use gutting weapons for crafting, so there’s another reason why.

“If I dare be frank, it fits you better than I had thought it would have. You have quite a fantastical feel to your style.” “Better than you’d thought…? But, thanks. I’ll take good care of it.”

Even if I don’t look good in it, the stats are too good to pass up on. That much is common in an MMORPG.

“Where are we going anyway? Well, not like I’ve been there before, but we might have a better time fighting if we knew what we’re up against.” “You have a point. We shall be going to the Forest of Eternal Darkness, somewhere that can only be accessed at night. Our main target shall be Darkness Lizardmen in there—”

To summarize her explanation, we’re going to a Darkness Lizardmen hot spot where we’ll do well farming Energy. However, the bastard sword–wielding Darkness Lizardmen are both strong in physical and magical attacks, so they’re not exactly easy either. That’s a reason why rarely do people ever step foot in the forest unless they properly spec their skills for it.

Normally, you’d need someone proficient in shields, but we’ve got high enough Energy levels. As well, not only can her folding fan can attack and defend, but it’s very effective at destroying the Darkness Lizardmen’s weapons. That’s why Shouko has chosen the Forest of Eternal Darkness. It makes for a great spot to farm and it’s even doable solo for her.

“Are you okay with me and my gutting weapons? I’ve been told that they’re not all that useful. I’m afraid I’d just be leeching off of you.”

Well, pretty much leeching off her now already, but still. I like to think that I do pretty good damage with my gutting weapons though.

“You still have that going for you. There is no way you would not be useful, Kizuna.” “I see, that, huh?”

Of course, she’s talking about gutting. Seeing how we’re going to somewhere not many go, the drops from the monsters there should fatten up our wallets a bit. I could even use Transmutation on it, so it’s not like I’ve got no choices either.

“Then I’ll be counting on you from here on out.” “Likewise to you.”

And then right after, in this very conspicuous spot, she bows deeply to me.

contents: /prologue/ /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /ch007/ /ch008/ /ch009/ /ch010/ /ch011/ /next/

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[almighty-god-saved-me-blog]

Testimony of a Christian: How She Overcame the Temptation to Have an Affair (Part 2)

By Xiyue, Henan Province

Over the next few days, although Jingru had not fallen into Satan’s temptation and she knew that she could never be with Wang Wei, her meeting with Wang Wei that evening and his sincere confession replayed in her mind over and over like a scene in a movie …

When Wang Wei called her again, Jingru’s heart was a bit shaken, and she said to herself: “The two of us cannot get together, but we can still be ordinary friends. So long as I keep my feet so that I don’t do anything that goes too far, then it’ll be fine.” She then answered the call from Wang Wei and chatted with him. As time went on, Jingru often thought about whether or not Wang Wei would call, to the point where her heart began to look forward to it. Every time he called, Jingru would comfort herself before answering the phone very naturally…. As things progressed, the calls between Wang Wei and Jingru became more frequent. But after every call, Jingru would feel uneasy and pained, and she realized that her actions were not conforming to God’s will, and that her feelings of pain and unease were precisely God reminding her and reproaching her. She then immediately went before God and prayed: “O God! I know I shouldn’t keep in touch with Wang Wei, but I can’t control my own heart. I can’t help but indulge myself and slide down toward sin. O God! I don’t want my actions in this matter to displease You. O God! Please save me!”

Afterward, Jingru saw several passages of words, and she found the way to free herself from pain. God’s words say: “All of you live in a place of sin and licentiousness; you are all licentious and sinful people. Today you not only can see God, but more importantly, you have received chastisement and judgment, received such deepest salvation, that is, received God’s greatest love. … As you do not know how to lead a life or how to live, and you live in this licentious and sinful place and are licentious and filthy devils, He does not have the heart to let you become even more depraved; neither has He the heart to see you living in the filthy place like this, being trampled by Satan at will, or the heart to let you fall into Hades. He only wants to gain this group of you and thoroughly save you” (“The Inside Truth of the Conquering Work (4)”). It says in Sermons and Fellowship: “By now, you understand how all people who are trapped by lust finally end up, right? What is the final outcome for most of these people? Do they meet with curses? Are there any good outcomes? They do not attain peace all life long! This is the confusion and trouble to which lust leads; it is unbearable suffering! Of all those people who seek a marriage partner recklessly or abnormally, are there any who have a happy outcome? There are no good final results, and they ultimately meet with curses. That is not a thing to be toyed with” (“What Kind of Person Will Be Perfected by God” in Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life (VII)). “Think about when you see someone of the opposite sex and have some lewd thoughts, how do you deal with this problem? At the very least you must first respect marriage. If the person has a husband (or wife), then you need to respect this person’s marriage. You cannot interfere with someone’s marriage; to respect others is to respect yourself, if you do not respect others then you do not respect yourself. If you respect others then others will respect you. If in your heart you do not respect marriage then you do not have humanity. If you are able to respect marriage, if you are able to love others and respect others, then you will not do things that harm others. If you are able to refuse someone even when they throw themselves into your arms, then you are dealing with things properly. What must you be equipped with to be able to refuse these temptations and seductions? You must be equipped with the truth, then you will be able to see these things very clearly. After you are able to clearly see the substance of this issue, then you will know what kind of harm the actions on your part will bring to others, you will know what kind of injuries others suffer from in their hearts, you will know to what extent you’ve wrecked someone’s personality, and once you understand these things you will no longer act in ways that cause them; whenever these kinds of thoughts and ideas come into your mind you will be able to reject them, you will not be interested in them, you will not pay attention to them, because they will not sway your heart” (“Focusing on Solving Three Problems That Are Currently Widespread in the Church” in Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life (VI)).

As she carefully contemplated God’s words and the words of fellowship, Jingru knew that she had fallen into an inescapable whirlpool of emotions because she had not seen through Satan’s cunning scheme or the essence, damage, and consequences of playing around with lust. Only as she reflected on this did she realize that it was Satan who was indoctrinating her with the ideas of “Love is supreme,” “The lovers finally get married,” “Don’t ask for eternity, be happy with now,” and “Love is not a sin” making her fantasize about a beautiful love and thus not be restrained by morals or her conscience, making her always think about Wang Wei, always keeping in touch with him, being entangled with him, and living in sin and coveting the pleasures of sin whilst not believing it to be wrong. Jingru thought of the many people around her who engaged in extramarital affairs, and of the many men who kept mistresses. Although they satisfied their transient lust, they ended up causing family quarrels and broken marriages, and there were even some people who were killed because of becoming enmeshed in a love triangle. Now, the “me too” online movement had exploded onto university campuses and into circles of public welfare and public information, and into the media, and there were many famous people and intellectuals who had been caught having one-night stands, who had been utterly discredited and whose names had become bywords for promiscuity. Chinese government officials in particular have both wives and mistresses, and many of them have been exploited and conspired against by their political enemies for having had extramarital affairs, resulting in them being thrown into prison as felons. Jingru saw clearly that people engaged in extramarital affairs so as to satisfy their lusts, and that it was a negative, wicked thing that could only mire people in a quagmire of sin. Just like gamblers who want to gamble again when they lose, and who in the end bring their families to financial ruin and make their family members scattered far and wide, those who play with lust play once and then want to play again, they do it once and then want to do it again, and the more they play the emptier they become, until finally they sink into fornication and sin and cannot get back out. Ultimately, they ruin their own bodies and cause endless troubles for themselves in the future, and there are even some people who lose the will to live, and choose to end their own lives. So it seemed to Jingru that playing with lust was not a good thing to do; it was something sinful that would only bring punishment and the wrath of heaven down upon those who engaged in it, and that could only lead people along the path of destruction. Jingru then understood that satanic philosophy and logic were all delusional lies, untruths that deceived people, and tools by which Satan corrupted people, and that there was no true love between people who engaged in extramarital affairs. If someone had true love, then they would have humanity, they would respect the other person and respect the institution of marriage, and they would not do anything that would hurt another person. People who engaged in extramarital affairs were actually playing with each other’s lusts and using each other. As she came to this realization, Jingru then went before God and prayed: “O God! I now realize the harmful consequences of living by Satan’s poisons. I don’t want to live in physical lust relying on these satanic poisons any longer. Staying in touch with Wang Wei is a life lived without integrity or dignity, and much less do I want to do anything that may bring shame on Your name or make me lose the testimony of a Christian. I pray that You give me a God-fearing heart, make me able to persevere with the principles of the truth and forsake my flesh, be a wise person who avoids danger when seeing it, and be someone who lives out a true human likeness to the glory of God.”

One day, on her way to church, Jingru bumped into Wang Wei. He was driving along the road and he called to her, and Jingru very much wanted to respond, but she immediately thought of God’s words and the prayer she’d spoken before God. She knew she couldn’t go on that way, so she just looked at Wang Wei sitting in his car, and said nothing. She continued on her way, riding her electric scooter, and Wang Wei began to follow along behind her, beeping his horn. In her heart, Jingru prayed silently to God and asked Him to keep her so that she could see through Satan’s cunning scheme and stand witness as a Christian. After praying, Jingru’s heart was calmed, and she gave Wang Wei no response. She just kept trying to think of how she could shake him off. It just so happened that they then came to a fork in the road, and when she saw Wang Wei’s car turning, she immediately turned in the opposite direction and sped off …

Jingru saw Wang Wei on the road many times thereafter, and she always treated him this way every time, and God opened up ways out for her: Either Wang Wei would bump into lots of people he knew, or it would be a traffic jam, and so he never had the opportunity to get close to Jingru. So that she wouldn’t have any more contact with Wang Wei, Jingru changed her mobile number, and as time went on, the two of them never mixed with each other again.

Recalling this experience, Jingru came to truly appreciate this: Now, in this world filled with myriad temptations, we will encounter all kinds of temptations and seductions from Satan every day, and because we are without the truth and cannot distinguish these things, and because we live by Satan’s poisons, we will be unable to stop ourselves from following evil trends, will become mired in sins that we are unable to escape from, and will be deceived and harmed by Satan. If we want to see through all the various temptations and cunning schemes of Satan, then there is only one path, which is to come before God, arm ourselves more with God’s words, understand more truths, learn how to tell the difference between positive and negative things, understand thoroughly all of Satan’s cunning ploys, base our outlook on God’s words when we encounter all people, matters and things, practice in accordance with God’s words, and act with principle, and only then will we not fall into the temptations of Satan. Just as God’s words say: “The truth that man needs to possess is found in the word of God, a truth that is the most beneficial and helpful to mankind. It is the tonic and sustenance that your body needs, something that helps man restore his normal humanity, a truth that man should be equipped with. The more you practice God’s word, the more quickly your life will blossom; the more you practice God’s word, the clearer the truth becomes. As you grow in stature, you will see things of the spiritual world more clearly, and you will be more powerful to triumph over Satan” (“Practice the Truth Once You Understand It”).

Jingru sighed with emotion, and thought: “Had it not been for God saving and protecting me through His words, I would long ago have degenerated into someone without a human likeness, and I would have done things devoid of integrity or dignity, like those people who have extramarital affairs, who become the lovers of married people, and who become the other woman. I would also have been burdened with the bad name of a home-wrecker, and would have lived a degraded life, suffering the condemnation of my own conscience.” From the bottom of her heart, Jingru gave thanks and praise to God! Today, her life has regained its previous tranquility, she joyfully performs her duty in the church, she accepts the judgment and purification of God’s words, and she is striding toward a life of true happiness. All glory be to God!

Source: Testimony of a Christian: How She Overcame the Temptation to Have an Affair (Part 2)