"Night patrols might be dangerous, but usually, an evil spirit only entered the village once every ten days or half a month. A'Chen, nothing should have happened last night."
With that thought in mind, Witch Doctor Master questioned the two Barbarians.
Before long, alarmed voices rang out from there.
"What did you say? A'Chen actually went beyond the Totem Pillar to hunt evil spirits? Why didn't you stop him?"
Faced with such a reprimand, the two Barbarians could only look helpless.
"Witch Doctor Master, we wanted to stop him too, but A'Chen was too strong. We simply couldn't stop him!"
While Witch Doctor Master was horrified that Lu Chen had gone out to hunt evil spirits, Clan Chief Da Shi, standing nearby, was stunned that Lu Chen had slaughtered three evil spirits and one White Wanderer Level Evil Spirit in a single night.
"I remember that without the Totem Pillar's suppression, it was already difficult for a Barbarian Blood Warrior to deal with even one remnant soul. Yet A'Chen killed three remnant souls in one night and even took down a White Wanderer Level Evil Spirit. Such Blood Qi rivals mine as a Barbarian Body Realm warrior. Are warriors who awaken their bloodlines really this strong?!"
Da Shi was sighing in admiration, but his words made Witch Doctor Master even more alarmed.
"A'Chen is someone who has awakened his bloodline, of course he should be strong. But precisely because of that, we must not lose him. The Ancestral Land no longer cares about small villages like ours. A'Chen is our village's only hope."
The Clan Chief did not refute Witch Doctor Master's words. Clearly, after learning from the two Barbarians what Lu Chen had done the previous night, he had become completely convinced of Lu Chen's potential.
Yet at the same time, he had arrived at the same thought as Witch Doctor Master.
"At a time when things are becoming more and more dangerous, the village cannot lose A'Chen. He truly is the village's only hope."
"No, I need to find A'Chen. I can't let him keep taking risks."
Because of Lu Chen's potential, both the Clan Chief and Witch Doctor Master no longer dared let him continue taking risks.
Lu Chen knew nothing of this. At that moment, he had already returned home.
Upon arriving home, Lu Chen found that although his house was still rather simple, it had become much cleaner. Clearly, after he had left the night before, the girl named Xiao Wei had been busy the entire time.
Feeling no guilt whatsoever about using child labor, Lu Chen washed himself first after returning home, then had Xiao Wei prepare food.
As he cleaned himself, Lu Chen could not help but sigh.
"Sure enough, having someone wait on me is much more comfortable."
Once he had cleaned himself, Lu Chen did not go outside. Instead, he picked up the small drum in his hand.
"Ding. System notification: Does the host wish to spend fifty experience points to appraise this item?"
"No."
While the two Barbarians had patrolled the previous night, Lu Chen had not been idle either. He had already tested the basic abilities of the blood-red little drum before him.
"Just like that Small Drum Monster, this little drum's beat can connect to my heart. When the drum is shaken, my heart beats along with it."
Honestly, such a little drum was still somewhat useful. It could be used against enemies to control their heartbeats.
It could also strengthen himself, making his heart beat faster. Barbarians fought with their bodies, and a fierce heartbeat meant accelerated blood flow, which could make the body more powerful.
However, after thinking for a moment, Lu Chen directly chose to sacrifice it.
"System, absorb this little drum!"
"System notification: The host has sacrificed the little drum and obtained fifteen spirit crystals."
Watching the little drum vanish from his hand while fifteen spirit crystals appeared on the system interface, a smile bloomed across Lu Chen's face.
"The little drum may be powerful, but when facing enemies, my own strength is far more useful than it. As for speeding up my heartbeat, I won't have time to shake this drum in battle."
Compared with relying on external objects, Lu Chen trusted himself more. Thus, he chose sacrifice without the slightest hesitation.
"Besides, fifteen spirit crystals... I remember that changing a skill costs five spirit crystals. That gives me exactly three chances to reroll."
Thinking of the system's skills, Lu Chen's heart burned with excitement.
"Barbarians can only rely on Blood Qi to fight. I'm the same for now, but I won't remain that way in the future. There must be plenty of skills among the Swordsman's abilities that can harm the strange."
With that thought, the first thing Lu Chen thought of was Armament Haki.
Conqueror's Haki, Observation Haki, Armament Haki—the three types of Haki from the world of One Piece had also been copied by Lu Chen's studio. When they were categorized, all three types of Haki had been placed among the universal skills.
Universal skills were a classification distinct from profession skills.
Since skills were the selling point of Lu Chen's studio, they had put considerable effort into finding and categorizing their skill database.
And now, those skills had become the foundation upon which Lu Chen would gain a foothold in this world.
"Conqueror's Haki strengthens willpower, Observation Haki enhances detection, and Armament Haki improves the most basic attack and defense capabilities."
"Moreover, in the world of One Piece, Armament Haki can attack Devil Fruit users with Logia abilities. A trait like that can definitely harm evil spirits. If I obtain all three types of Haki, dealing with evil spirits will no longer be especially difficult."
Thinking of the skill database made Lu Chen even more determined to hunt the strange.
"Grrr..."
Just as Lu Chen's spirits were burning, his stomach sent out a direct signal of hunger.
Thinking of the ten-odd pounds of meat he had eaten only yesterday and feeling his now-empty stomach, Lu Chen gained a new understanding of the terrifying consumption of a Barbarian Blood Warrior.
Without saying anything, Lu Chen left the room and returned to the courtyard. By then, the food in the pot had already finished cooking.
Just like last time, he did not even use chopsticks. Lu Chen directly reached in, lifted more than twenty pounds of wild boar meat from the pot, and began tearing into it savagely.
As he chewed, Lu Chen also worried about food.
Actually, if a Barbarian Blood Warrior did not fight, then although he ate a great deal in one meal, he could go several days without feeling hungry.
But what Lu Chen had done yesterday went far beyond mere exertion. He had practically bled himself dry.
Whether dissolving the scarlet flames of the Human Head Fireball or fighting the Small Drum Monster, Lu Chen had expended tremendous effort and consumed a great deal of Blood Qi.
Granted, his powerful physique had given Lu Chen an exceptionally strong recovery ability.
The injuries and exhaustion from last night's battle had almost completely healed by that morning.
However, the nutrients consumed in restoring his body and the Blood Qi he had lost still needed to be replenished through eating.
That was why Lu Chen had eaten more than ten pounds of meat only yesterday, yet was already hungry again today.
Under normal conditions, more than ten pounds of meat would be enough to sustain Lu Chen for an entire day. If he reduced his activity, it could even support him for three days.
But once he fought, that consumption would soar in a straight line.
While Lu Chen worried about food, his hands did not stop moving. Very quickly, he tore apart and swallowed more than twenty pounds of meat, giving only a small piece to Xiao Wei.
After that, without paying Xiao Wei any mind, Lu Chen picked up his iron sword and headed out again.
He had no intention of resting. With his Constitution bonus reaching forty-four points, as long as he ate his fill, he could go several days without rest and suffer no ill effects whatsoever.
Of course, that was on the condition that he ate enough. And now, Lu Chen was heading out to find food.
Naturally, this time Lu Chen was not going to seek out the Clan Chief or Witch Doctor Master. A person had to know when to stop, and Lu Chen understood that much.
He intended to head into the wilderness himself and hunt Barbarian Beasts.
"Hunting evil spirits at night and Barbarian Beasts during the day. Looks like I'll be busy from now on!"
Before you continue