Chapter Fifty-Six: Once Again, Killed by a Wild Beast (May the Recommendations and Bookmarks Pour In)
"Let's go level up!"
With Fox Softie still by his side in the Little White Rabbit area, Huang Yunshuo charged forward wielding his iron sword, bringing down a rabbit with three swift strikes.
-23! +1+1+1!
"This health regeneration buff scroll is really worth it, hahaha." Huang Yunshuo was pleased with himself. Previously, slaying these rabbits with his iron sword had cost him quite a few healing sprays, but now, with the scroll, he only needed to use a spray once in a while. Life was sweet.
Experience was split: Huang Yunshuo got 20%, Fox Softie 80%.
A glow enveloped him—he leveled up.
He allocated all five free attribute points to magic, raising his magic value to 185. He could now cast Soaring Dragon thirty-seven times, which was impressive.
"Softie, have you seen mana regeneration buff scrolls in town?" Huang Yunshuo asked.
"Yes, an hour-long single-user mana buff scroll is available for 1,000 copper coins each," Fox Softie replied instantly.
"..."
Huang Yunshuo was speechless. Not only was the buff reduced from group-wide to single-user, but the price jumped from 100 copper to 1,000 copper. He was genuinely worried about the future of mage players everywhere.
He casually unleashed a combo, killing a newly spawned white rabbit beside him. He wanted to see if the experience gained from killing rabbits remained unchanged after leveling up.
"As expected, I can't get any more experience..."
Before he finished speaking, a crisp "ding" sounded.
"Your skill [Combo] has risen to Lv2. Please check the details yourself."
Delighted, Huang Yunshuo hurriedly opened the skill interface.
Combo (Melee Universal), Level 10
Combo: After a normal attack, immediately triggers a second attack dealing 50% of the previous attack's damage. Cooldown: 110 seconds.
Current Level Lv2 (0/200): Next level effect—second attack deals 55% of previous damage; third attack deals 35% of first attack's damage and increases critical rate by 10%. Cooldown: 100 seconds.
Combo Lv3—two strikes become three!
The third attack's damage was considerable, but the key was the 10-point boost to critical rate!
What about at Lv4, Lv5, even Lv9 or Lv10? What would his combo skill become? How high would the critical rate rise for the final strike, and what would the cooldown be?
"Truly a divine skill. Epoch Reforged, this wretched game, is surprisingly generous to me."
Of course, leveling up Combo would be a daunting task. To get from Lv1 to Lv2, he'd used the skill well over a hundred times, barely scraping together 100 experience points. Reaching Lv3 wouldn't be easy.
"Let's go check out the level six monsters!"
Huang Yunshuo led Fox Softie out of the rabbit area and into the dense forest.
As soon as they entered, Huang Yunshuo stopped, alert, scanning their surroundings.
The trees here were thick and lush, their crowns meeting several meters above to form a dense canopy. Underneath, wildflowers and berries dotted the deep grass, and shallow streams wound gently through the landscape. It was a paradise.
"There's nothing here. Is this not a leveling zone?" Fox Softie said lightly. The scenery was so beautiful, a perfect place to relax.
"How naive," Huang Yunshuo muttered, a bit exasperated. Apparently, this girl hadn't been burned enough by the Stone Turtle area.
"Take a few steps forward?"
He swapped out his rocket launcher, held the barrel, and advanced.
Whoosh!
A sharp sound pierced the air.
A nut flew fiercely from above.
-38!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
-38! -76!
"Bloody hell!"
Seeing his health bar plummet, Huang Yunshuo stowed his rocket launcher and fled.
Whoosh! -38! -38!
Bang!
He dissolved into a flash of white light. His iron shield and chickling greaves dropped to the ground, along with three sets of rockets, over two hundred copper coins, and various materials.
He was utterly powerless, his death a spectacular loot explosion.
Fox Softie: "???"
Without hesitation, Fox Softie moved at lightning speed, scooping up everything that had dropped before retreating, dragging her handful of health out to the grassy clearing.
"What just happened?!"
She was stunned. Just moments ago she'd thought the forest was a perfect vacation spot, and Huang Yunshuo's caution seemed unnecessary. She never expected he'd be obliterated in an instant, utterly defenseless—a true one-shot kill.
"A ranged monster—and its attack is terrifying!"
"The worst part is, we never even saw its face. How are we supposed to play like this?"
Carrying Huang Yunshuo's loot, Fox Softie ran to the town. She finally spotted him at the system shop near the resurrection point.
"I picked up everything you dropped!"
She handed his items back, noticing he was now level fourteen.
"You should have just turned and run. Those items aren't worth much," Huang Yunshuo said, though he still shot her a look of admiration.
See, he thought, this girl has great character, and her personality is both gentle and fiery. She's the perfect candidate for a secretary or assistant.
"Not worth much? That was a lot of copper coins," Fox Softie was a bit dizzy. Clearly, he lived in a different world. The loot he'd lost could be exchanged for five hundred copper coins, which would fetch ten thousand credit points on the black market.
"Level six monster, the Sloth! Damn it! One day I'll wipe out this whole forest!"
As he searched the system shop shelves, Huang Yunshuo gritted his teeth in frustration.
Yes, the monster that had killed him without showing its face was a level six aggressive wild Sloth. These creatures lay motionless in the trees, but could hurl nuts dealing sixty-five points of damage.
Sixty-five! More than the Cockadoodle Rooster, and they're ranged attackers hiding in the canopy, impossible to spot. How is anyone supposed to play?
He refused to believe the system shop didn't have items to counter sloths.
If not, this trash game ought to be shut down—if he was insta-killed, ordinary players wouldn't stand a chance.
Sticky Net (Rough), Functional Item
Can absorb ten sloth nut attacks, completely negating damage for you and your team.
(Can be repaired using materials)
Durability: 10/10
Price: 20 copper coins
Sticky Net (Sturdy), Functional Item
Can absorb fifty sloth nut attacks, completely negating damage for you and your team.
(Can be repaired using materials)
Durability: 50/50
Price: 120 copper coins
Sticky Net (Essence), Functional Item
Can absorb two hundred fifty sloth nut attacks, completely negating damage for you and your team.
(Can be repaired using materials)
Durability: 250/250
Price: 800 copper coins
"So there is a way to counter sloths, but it's outrageously expensive," Huang Yunshuo nearly coughed up blood. Eight hundred copper coins for two hundred fifty attacks; given the rate at which those creatures assaulted him, it wouldn't last more than a few minutes.
He considered finding some teammates to form a party, but even with sticky nets to block sloth attacks, how would they deal with them afterward?