Chapter 49 - 49 46 As Fast as Lightning

49: Chapter 46: As Fast as Lightning 49: Chapter 46: As Fast as Lightning Everyone has their own aspirations, and Xiao Jie did not try to persuade further; they headed to the tavern and prepared to log off. Before logging off, Xiao Jie also took stock of today’s leveling gains. He gained a total of four pieces of junk and White Board Equipment, all of which he equipped. 355 copper coins. One cellar key. A total of 12 pieces of deer meat, mutton, and rabbit meat. Six pieces of deer hide, deer antlers, and sheepskin. Consumed six steamed buns, one blood bottle, one Power Pill, seventeen crude Feathered Arrows, and incurred 135 Wen in repair costs. Overall, the gains were quite good, much better than Chopping Wood or Sheep Herding, but the key benefit was leveling up, which was the most important aspect. Today was just a trial run; due to time constraints he only leveled up once, but tomorrow would be different. Xiao Jie felt that there definitely were valuable items inside the Tian Family Mansion—if only he could get in, he was sure to take off. He had originally planned to return and feed the dogs, but by this time it had gradually darkened outside, and it was soon to be unsafe, so he bid farewell to I Want to Be Immortal and each logged off. Eventually, the sky turned completely dark, and the serene little mountain village was shrouded in a starless darkness. All the villagers had hidden inside their houses, locked their doors and windows, and extinguished their candles. Even the night watchman Militia had retreated into the barracks. Only a night watchman dressed in black clothing, carrying an oil lamp, appeared in the village streets, wandering like a ghost in the night, clanging his watch bell. In this silent and ominous darkness, a figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the tavern. Ye Luo looked around at the surrounding darkness, feeling both excited and nervous. She took a deep breath, walked out of the tavern’s main gate, and it was time to start leveling up. With the Black Wood Sword in hand, Ye Luo walked into the darkness. ———————— Xiao Jie logged out of the game and looked at his computer’s desktop with a sigh of relief. But it wasn’t over yet. Although the game had ended, the debriefing was just beginning. It was time to organize the game data he had collected during this period. He first took out the prepared map papers, one of which was already half-drawn with the layout of Ginkgo Village, which he had sketched while looking for jobs in the village; the entire layout of Ginkgo Village was almost fully visible, with important NPCs also marked on it. Hanging the village map on the wall, Xiao Jie pulled out another new piece of map paper and started to draw. This time, he sketched a rough map of Ginkgo Valley. Since he had only explored a small part so far, the map was not yet complete, but given time, he would surely acquire a full topographic map. Having maps allows for more intuitive planning during layout, which is a habit for a professional player. Xiao Jie quickly sketched the rough terrain on the map paper. On the western hillside, Xiao Jie marked the spawning positions of a few isolated mountain bandits, as well as a suspected mountain bandit camp. In the middle of the map, he drew the path from the valley to the outside and the place where the Corpse Chaser had passed. After hesitating for a moment, he drew a skull there as a symbol of danger and thought about it before drawing another skull at the mountain bandit camp. Then he marked the Tian Family Mansion and the surrounding farmland on the east side of the map, which seemed relatively safer. Xiao Jie drew a question mark on the Tian Family Mansion. How to enter the Tian Family Mansion was an urgent mystery to be solved. Unfortunately, there were no official guides or player forums to consult; this meant he had to figure it out on his own. However, based on Xiao Jie’s decade of gaming experience, every puzzle in the game always left clues, allowing players a chance to solve them. Although this game was incredibly magical, its content design still clearly maintained the structural thinking of a gaming world, so Xiao Jie did not believe this puzzle was unsolvable. Since there must be someone in Ginkgo Village who knew the story of the Tian family, he remembered encountering an NPC surnamed Tian while he was job hunting. Maybe tomorrow he could go ask him. After planning his gaming strategy, Xiao Jie then started to make dinner; since he couldn’t log on at night, he had plenty of time. After a hearty dinner, Xiao Jie stepped out of his apartment once again. He was preparing to go for a night run in the park and take the opportunity to fully experience the physical changes brought about by the increase in attributes. Walking on the way to the park, he felt the change was not very significant, just that his footsteps had become much lighter. When he arrived at the park and started running along the mountain road, he immediately felt a very direct change. His body had become exceptionally light, and his speed had obviously increased quite a bit. He was naturally fast, but his endurance was poor. He was fine with sprinting, but long-distance running was a challenge. However, this time the sensation was exceptionally clear. Under full-speed Frenzy, Xiao Jie felt as if the scenery on either side was swiftly flashing past him, and his whole person seemed as fast as the wind beneath his feet. However, the burst of full power also led to more severe energy depletion, and after running for just over ten seconds, his lungs felt like they were about to explode. Staggering, he slowed down his speed and gradually stopped, jogging. Xiao Jie thought to himself that it was too enjoyable; his speed could probably reach around eleven seconds per hundred meters now, almost catching up to the level of ordinary athletes. This was still only 15 Agility. If he were to increase his Agility to 20, 30, or even 40, wouldn’t he become like the Flash? Even Bolt wouldn’t stand a chance. I wonder if game players are allowed to participate in athletic meets? The endurance is still too poor. Xiao Jie gasped heavily and thought that if he had spare attribute points in the future, he’d need to add some to endurance and Strength as well. Based on the changes brought by the two times he added attribute points and his own understanding, Xiao Jie speculated that the increase in Constitution should improve his overall physical quality, including blood circulation, immune system, wound healing speed, and resistance to diseases. The increase in Strength probably enhanced muscle strength and muscle power. If attribute points were high in this area, he guessed his muscles would become much more developed. Endurance, perhaps, was the muscle’s fatigue resistance and cardiopulmonary function. And Agility was probably nerve reaction speed, balance, coordination, and jumping ability. Now that his nerve reaction speed had increased, but his muscle fatigue resistance and cardiopulmonary function couldn’t keep up, naturally, he couldn’t maintain it for long. It appears that biased attributes aren’t very useful in reality. If considered from a lifestyle perspective alone, a balanced development of all aspects would be the most reasonable. However, considering the combat in the game, biased attributes are inevitable. Fortunately, the attributes of ordinary people are too poor. Just adding a few points can surpass the average person, so there’s no need to worry too much. As Xiao Jie was thinking, his lungs finally returned to normal. Just as he was about to run around the hill and head home, he suddenly looked up and saw a pair of green eyes watching him in the darkness. Hmm, it’s that black cat again. But this time, the way the black cat looked at him was filled with caution, totally different from the previous disdainful gaze. Could it be because it saw him running just now? Incidentally, since he had learned the Beast Language Skill, he hadn’t used it in reality yet. He might as well try it out on you. “Hey little guy, good evening,” Xiao Jie said. But the black cat showed no reaction. No, that’s not how this Skill is used. He still remembered the description of the Beast Language Skill. [Beast Language Skill (Mystical Skill) Use: Requires Concentration. Skill Description: An Abnormal Skill created by a half-demon with awakened Spiritual Wisdom. It allows for mental communication with humans or beasts, condensing the intended message in speech, creating an exchange of minds through what seems like a conversation.] Indeed, among wild animals, there are no languages as complex as human ones. They communicate through a relatively simplified manner using tone, inflection, and scent among others. But the Beast Language Skill goes a step further, directly affecting thoughts, somewhat like telepathy, with speech serving more like a medium, just like a Spell during casting. Xiao Jie closed his eyes, desperately searching through his memory for that feeling. It was not an easy task, but having mastered skills like Hawk Roll and One Cut, Two Pieces, he quickly found the feeling again. Xiao Jie abruptly opened his eyes and stared directly into the black cat’s eyes, “Hey little guy, good evening.” The black cat’s pupils noticeably widened. On its round furry face, a serious expression suddenly appeared. “Meow, so you finally came, huh? Are you here to challenge my king’s position, big dumb cat? Although you have some strength, I won’t give up my power easily.” PS: Thanks to book friend Wu Shang Zhongli for the reward of Alliance Hierarch. More to come; currently owe three more chapters.