[Tiger Fang Dagger (Fine)]

Su Ran felt reassured. This confirmed his theory.

He gave the two berserk skeletons a simple order: "Attack every living thing that comes near, and prioritize protecting me."

Then he deliberately released a trace of his own aura and walked deeper into the slope.

Soon, the first Lv. 2 Crouching Slope Tiger was alerted and sprang from the grass with a low growl!

The two Berserk Skeleton Warriors immediately charged to meet it! They knew no fear, and their movements were a shade faster than those of ordinary skeletons. Their bone swords swung and their battered shields blocked.

Although their efforts had limited effect, they fearlessly tied the tiger down.

The tiger had evidently never encountered opponents like these. Roaring, it swiped with its claws and snapped several of one Skeleton Warrior's ribs. The other skeleton's bone sword struck its thick hide, leaving only a shallow white mark.

But the skeletons felt no pain. They kept attacking, holding the tiger firmly in place and keeping its attention.

Now!

Su Ran had already put some distance between them, standing on a small rise more than fifteen meters away. His gaze was calm as he raised his right hand, purple light flowing around his fingertips.

No lengthy incantation, no complicated gestures.

Just 0.65 seconds to gather the energy...

"Whoosh!"

A deep-purple Energy Missile shot out. It was only the size of an egg, but trailed a distinct tail of light!

It was astonishingly fast. Almost as soon as the tiger sensed the threat and tried to turn its head, the missile struck precisely at the corner of its mouth, which had opened slightly as it roared!

"Bang!"

The energy exploded inside its relatively vulnerable mouth! The tiger let out a pained shriek, half its cheek torn to a bloody pulp and several teeth knocked flying! Its movements faltered at once.

Without pausing, Su Ran made a slight adjustment to his threads of mental power...

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Two more Energy Missiles tore through the air, almost in a single line!

One struck the tiger's soft belly, exposed when it reared up in pain. The other shot at an artful angle toward the joint of the foreleg supporting its body!

Three shots in succession, less than two seconds apart!

The tiger suffered one grievous blow after another. Blood gushed from the hole in its belly, and its foreleg gave way, nearly bringing it to its knees.

The two Berserk Skeleton Warriors seized the chance to pounce, stabbing their bone swords wildly at vital spots such as the tiger's neck and eye sockets!

The tiger struggled a few times, let out one last unwilling whimper, and crashed to the ground.

The battle was over.

The two Skeleton Warriors were also covered in damage. One had lost an arm, and the other's skull had cracked.

Under the continuous drain of Berserk and the damage sustained in battle, their remaining time was greatly shortened. They soon dissipated on their own, turning into bone fragments and gray mist.

Su Ran stepped forward, quickly processed the tiger's carcass, and removed the most valuable parts.

Though they were no longer worth much, even a mosquito's leg had meat on it. He checked his mana consumption and found he had used about a quarter.

Most of it had gone to the three consecutive Lv. 3 Energy Missiles.

"Not bad efficiency," Su Ran assessed. The skeletons drew fire while he delivered a precise burst from range; the tactic was viable.

He repeated the process, luring out two more tigers one after another and dealing with them in the same way.

After each battle, he meditated on the spot for a while or took a sip of [Small Mana Recovery Potion] to stay in condition.

When the third tiger fell, Su Ran knew the conditions for clearing the dungeon had been met.

A familiar pillar of teleportation light descended.

[Calculating battle results...]

[Scene: Crouching Tiger Slope (easy)]

[Contribution assessment: 100%] (solo clear, all contribution earned alone)

[Base experience reward: 18 points] (target monsters are one level below the challenger; experience gain efficiency reduced)

[Results finalized.]

Only 18 experience points. Even with full contribution from clearing it alone, the experience penalty from the level difference left him with a pitifully small amount.

His experience bar stood at [188/300].

A wooden treasure chest appeared before Su Ran.

He put the chest away and left the dungeon.

Standing in the dungeon wilderness, Su Ran reviewed the battle he had just fought.

The skeletons + Berserk + ranged precision shots tactic had been successfully tested, and the power and rapid-fire capability of the Lv. 3 Energy Missile were satisfying.

Grinding low-level dungeons alone yielded little experience, but it was safe and controllable, and he had complete control over the pace and the loot.

Back at his rented room, Su Ran immediately took out the wooden chest from [Crouching Tiger Slope].

Although the experience gain from a solo clear was dismal, the treasure chest was still tempting, especially because of the [Tiger Bone Wine], whose theoretical drop rate was extremely low.

"First opening."

The lid flipped open, revealing a meager sight: ten dull copper coins and a crudely made dagger whose edge seemed reasonably sharp, made with a tiger fang and a short piece of bone set into a wooden handle.

[Tiger Fang Dagger (Fine)]

Attack +2–3

(Slight) Damage to beasts +5%

It was a typical upgraded version of a basic weapon, with mediocre stats and a small bonus against beasts. The ten copper coins were better than nothing.

The first opening's haul was consistent with the overall downward trend in dungeon rewards following the current collapse in market prices, and also confirmed the forum's assessment that this dungeon's treasure chests were of average value.

Su Ran calmly put the copper coins and dagger aside. He had long grown accustomed to the mediocrity of the first opening.

The key was the second time.

He watched the wooden chest close and reset itself. This time, his mind was free of distractions, holding only a pure desire for the [Tiger Bone Wine] that could permanently raise his attributes and make up for his shortcomings in constitution and strength.

He had failed to obtain it when he was in a party before. Would challenging the dungeon alone bring a different karma?

"Second opening."

The lid slid open silently.

There were no weapons or coins inside.

There was only a palm-sized earthenware wine jar, sealed with rough yellow clay and looking quite old.

The jar was rustic in shape, even a little crooked. Its surface bore no decoration, only a few natural cracks.

Yet from the clay seal at its mouth came a faint but rich, mellow aroma of wine, mingled with a strange, scorching aura of qi and blood that seemed capable of seeping into the marrow.

Su Ran's heart suddenly began to race. He carefully lifted the wine jar out.

It felt slightly heavy in his hands, and the jar was ice-cold. There was no label on it, but that distinctive aura perfectly matched the descriptions on the forum.

[Tiger Bone Wine (rare)]

Brewed and aged using a special ancient method, with the essence-filled bones from a tiger's entire body as the main ingredient and various herbs as supplements. Its medicinal properties are fierce, and it contains abundant qi and blood.

Effect: Permanently increases strength by 1 and constitution by 1 when consumed. (Only effective on the first consumption.)

Warning: The wine is extremely potent, and its qi and blood surge fiercely. A strong constitution is required to withstand it. Those with less than 8 constitution should drink with caution; it may cause swelling pain in the meridians and disorder of qi and blood.

Strenuous exercise or cultivation is not advised for twelve hours after consumption.

It really was [Tiger Bone Wine]!

Su Ran's eyes lit up with delight. The rare item he had longed for had actually appeared on the second opening!

It seemed that clearing the dungeon alone, together with his own strong need to improve his attributes, had resonated favorably with the chest's karma.

He did not hesitate in the slightest. His constitution was currently 8, just meeting the minimum threshold for drinking it safely. His strength, at 7, was also in urgent need of improvement.

He walked to the open space in the center of the room and sat cross-legged. He placed the wine jar before him, then took a deep breath and exerted force with his five fingers, prying off the hard yellow clay seal.

"Pop..."

With a soft sound, an even richer, more overpowering aroma of wine, mixed with scorching qi and blood energy, rushed into his face like a sleeping tiger awakening!

Just smelling it made his qi and blood churn slightly.

Inside the jar was thick, amber-colored wine, light seeming to flow through it in the dim illumination.