The Hunt

Xiao Jie stood at the village gate, looking out at the desolate wilderness beyond, the distant hills and forests, and the small path that wound off into the unknown. His heart was a mix of excitement and trepidation.

He was finally going out of the village once again to grind levels by killing monsters.

Unlike the last time he went to rescue I Want to Become Immortal, this time he had prepared for a long-term battle; he was going to give it his all.

Xiao Jie had truly broken the bank for this expedition.

Glancing at the balance of copper coins in his inventory, Xiao Jie couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. He had spent every last cent on this adventure.

His inventory was packed with supplies.

Steamed Buns ×20 = 100 copper coins.

Crude Feather Arrows ×20 = 100 copper coins. The 20 arrows gifted by the hunter were fine for hunting, but clearly insufficient for grinding monsters.

Torches ×2 = 100 copper coins. These were essential consumables for dungeon exploration, used for lighting after dark or inside caves and tombs. Each one burned for an hour.

Wound Medicine (Small) ×80 = 400 copper coins. Low-level healing items, indispensable for combat.

Strength Pills ×4 = 200 copper coins. Used for rapid stamina recovery. Since stamina could recover automatically through rest (albeit slowly), they weren't as critical as wound medicine, but it was best to carry a few just in case.

In addition, he had purchased two pieces of equipment: a leather armor for 300 copper coins and an iron-inlaid shield for 150 copper coins.

[Iron-Inlaid Shield (Medium Shield)
Defense +30 (upon successful block)
Durability 200/200.
Item Description: A shield inlaid with iron plates. It offers higher defense and durability than a standard wooden shield.]

[Leather Armor (Chestpiece)
Body Defense +10.
Item Description: Protective gear made of leather. Although its defensive capabilities are limited, it still provides a degree of protection to the wearer. It is the most common basic armor for non-regular soldiers like militiamen, bandits, and marauders.]

The leather armor's stats were a bit lackluster, but at least he wouldn't be running around naked anymore.

Xiao Jie's hard-earned stash of over 1,400 copper coins had been spent in one fell swoop.

I Want to Become Immortal walked up to Xiao Jie's side. He was even more prepared, fully equipped with a set of iron-inlaid leather armor, a serpent spine longbow, a fine steel longsword, a shield, and a battle axe—armed to the teeth.

"Brother Feng, I'm ready."

"Mm." Xiao Jie acknowledged, though he didn't rush to set off.

"Since we're teaming up to grind levels, there are some things I must clarify beforehand. I don't need to tell you how dangerous this game is; you know it well enough. Even when we're grinding, safety is our top priority.

Your gaming experience is too limited, so you must follow my lead! As long as you do as I say, I'll definitely help you soar, but I'll say this upfront: if you go out there and mess around without listening to orders, leading us into danger, I won't guarantee that I won't sell you out. Understand?"

Xiao Jie spoke with unusual seriousness. In the past, when he was a guild leader, he would often issue stern warnings to his studio members and shout and curse during raids.

But at the end of the day, it was just a game; no matter how serious he sounded, it was just a formality.

However, the gravity in his tone this time was unprecedented, because this time, he was truly taking someone out to risk their life.

I Want to Become Immortal sensed Xiao Jie's seriousness and replied solemnly, "Don't worry, Brother Feng. I know the stakes; I definitely won't make things difficult for you."

"Mm, that's good. Here's the plan: we'll start by wandering near the village, then slowly move into the dangerous areas of the map. Before entering each new area, we'll observe from a vantage point to ensure there are no high-level monsters or large groups nearby.

If I yell to run, don't hesitate—head straight back to the village.

Alright, enough talk—let's move!"

The two finally stepped out of the village gate.

It was just past noon, the time when the sun was at its brightest. Sunlight spilled across the wilderness, adding a touch of tranquility to the otherwise gloomy landscape.

Thanks to the regular patrols by the militia, there were no monster activities around the village.

To find monsters, they had to venture deeper, as different creatures had different spawn areas.

Since they were hunting, Xiao Jie chose a sparse woodland to the northeast.

Because it was sparse, the visibility was relatively good, making it harder for monsters to ambush them.

As they entered the woods, both men gripped their weapons, their focus sharpened to the extreme.

They hadn't walked far when a deer appeared in their line of sight, grazing leisurely.

Xiao Jie used Beast Identification to take a look.

[Wild Deer (Beast), Level 3, HP 40.
Taming Difficulty: Hard.
Skills: Antler Charge LV2, Wild Gallop LV1.]

This thing would be very difficult to kill in melee combat because it would run away the moment they got close, and with the Wild Gallop skill, they wouldn't be able to catch up on foot.

But now that they had bows, they could finally take it down.

The two crept forward slowly. Because their Archery levels were too low and their hit rate was limited, they prepared to get closer before firing. To their surprise, before they could even get near, the deer suddenly lifted its head, twitched its nose twice, and turned to bolt.

"Damn, what just happened?" I Want to Become Immortal muttered, speechless.

Xiao Jie watched the direction in which the surrounding leaves and wild grass were swaying and said in a low voice, "It's the wind direction!"

He found it hard to believe that the game had even taken wind direction into account, but that was clearly the case.

"We are upwind, so the prey will smell us. Let's flank them from the right and approach from downwind."

The two made a wide detour and soon spotted the deer again, but this time, they were positioned downwind.

Both of them pressed the Stealth key at the same time, crouched down, and moved forward slowly to avoid making any noise until they were about twenty or thirty meters away.

Draw your bows together!

"Release!" Xiao Jie said in a faint voice.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two arrows flew out one after the other.

The deer was struck in succession, one arrow in the abdomen and the other in the neck.

-

21!

-

23!

Because the Hunting Bow had increased damage and there were bonuses from archery weapon skills, the damage was quite substantial.

The deer let out a mournful cry and collapsed on the spot.

Killed Deer--Experience Points +3!

Xiao Jie thought to himself that this experience was truly meager, but at least it was a gain.

The two ran over and retrieved the arrows from the deer's carcass; these things cost five copper coins each, so it was best to reuse them whenever possible.

Xiao Jie looted the carcass and obtained Venison ×1 and Deer Antlers ×1. It was a pity that wild beasts didn't drop money.

"Let's continue."

The two searched the woods cautiously, looking for prey, and soon hunted 4 deer, 3 sheep, and 4 rabbits.

They took turns looting, and soon both had some spoils in their bags.

They had hunted quite a bit of prey, but their Experience Points hadn't increased much.

A deer only gave 5 Experience Points, a sheep 3, and a rabbit only 1, and then it had to be split between two people; it was pitifully low.

The upside was that these things had no attack power and would run away upon seeing people, posing absolutely no danger.

I Want to Become Immortal complained, "This experience is too little. At this rate, it'll take forever to level up. Brother Feng, let's head a bit further out."

Xiao Jie did not object this time. Although Safety First was important and a slow leveling speed was acceptable, this was just too slow.

When it came down to it, deer, sheep, and rabbits shouldn't even count as monsters; they were just prey, and using them to level up wasn't realistic.

It was less like fighting monsters and more like hunting.

"Fine, let's keep moving forward, but we must follow my previous requirements: ensure safety before attacking, and scout before acting."

The two first found a slightly higher mound, climbed up, and observed the surroundings.

On the hillside of a small mountain to the west, a few black dots could be vaguely seen; they were Lost Soul Bandits. Xiao Jie observed the distribution of these bandits and noted that they were spaced quite far apart.

Fine, let's start with them.

Xiao Jie still had a bit of psychological trauma regarding this type of monster, as that was how Han Luo had died back then.

However, back then, the two of them had nothing and could still beat one to death with Wooden Sticks. Now that they were fully equipped with skills and gear, there was nothing to fear!