Hand Trembled, Clicked Wrong

His head throbbed with dizziness, stars flashing before his eyes. Opening his eyes, a few scattered torches in the mine cast faint light, illuminating the surroundings.

He scrambled to his feet, looked up, and couldn't help but feel a wave of nausea. The ground was covered in Kobold corpses, their green blood turning the earth into a sticky, slimy mire. Most of the Kobolds had been killed by bites or claw attacks, with shredded flesh and entrails strewn everywhere—a bloody mess!

"Ugh," Li Shaolin couldn't help but vomit violently.

After a long while, having seemingly retched until his bile turned green and his stomach had nothing left, he forced himself to stand despite the dizziness. Disgusting as it was, his own life was more important. If he delayed any longer and a few Kobolds showed up, the consequences could be dire.

He had no idea how Hogger got mixed up with the Kobolds, or why that Death Knight had saved him. His mind was a tangled mess, but his hands moved without hesitation. He pointed at two corpses—smack, smack—and amid the spray of blood and flesh, two Skeleton Warriors rose. He then pointed at the blood-soaked earth, and with a squelch, a Clay Golem stood up. With all three summons out, Li Shaolin felt a bit more at ease.

He ordered the Golem to clear the path, then, enduring the headache, picked up a torch and stumbled toward the mine entrance. The Golem's slime aura continuously absorbed the Kobold corpses and blood along the way, its body flowing with green liquid, turning it into a green demon!

It seemed all the Kobolds in the mine had been killed. Along the way, he saw several corpses of professionals, apparently there to hunt for gold dust and candles, but they had fallen victim to this disaster. The Golem, indifferent to whether they were professionals or Kobolds, absorbed them all with its slime. Weapons and armor were left scattered on the ground, but Li Shaolin didn't know how to open his inventory, so he had to leave them behind.

Seeing a sudden brightness ahead, he squinted as he passed through a barrier of large wooden planks and exited the mine. Having spent an entire day inside, the sudden sunlight forced his eyes shut, and he couldn't open them for a long time. God, I'm finally out! Li Shaolin almost wept. One day in the mine felt like years, giving him a sense of rebirth.

Under the bright sunlight, a wide slope stretched downward, lined with Kobold corpses, blood flowing like a river! Li Shaolin's nerves were on the verge of breaking. With a roar, he started running!

His feet occasionally stepped on Kobold corpses, making a squelch, squelch sound. He didn't know how long he ran, with Elwynn Ancient Trees flashing by and thorns tearing his clothes, but none of that mattered. In his heart, there was only one word: run!

Finally, his stamina was depleted, and his legs gave out. Li Shaolin collapsed. Ahead, a vast, endless farm appeared faintly in view. Lying on the ground, looking up at the sky, the sun was already setting in the west. He had been running for four or five hours! Then, a roar rang out!

A Forest Bear, covered in brownish-yellow fur, appeared before him. Its mouth slightly open, its narrowed eyes locked onto Li Shaolin!

"Damn it, you're asking for it!" Li Shaolin erupted in fury, venting all his pent-up anger on this Forest Bear. Raising his hand, he commanded his minions forward. A white light gathered at his fingertip, forming two teeth. With a clatter, the two Skeleton Warriors, wielding Bone Axes, staggered toward the Forest Bear, axes raised to strike! Li Shaolin pointed, and the circling teeth shot out!

"Roar!" The Forest Bear bellowed, swiping its front paw, hitting a Skeleton Warrior's leg bone with a crack. The leg bone snapped cleanly, causing the warrior to stumble and fall. At the same time, the other Skeleton Warrior's axe came down, slashing deeply across the Forest Bear's back with a sizzle, leaving a gash! The two Bone Teeth struck—smack—one piercing the bear's back, the other hitting its left eye, causing the eyeball to burst!

Enraged by the attack, the Forest Bear charged at Li Shaolin!

"Damn, I wonder what level this stupid bear is. It's way tougher than those Kobolds," Li Shaolin muttered to himself. He didn't realize that Kobolds, being small, relied on numbers rather than individual strength, while the Forest Bear was all about power. A single paw strike could deliver hundreds of pounds of force, so the Skeleton Warriors couldn't withstand many hits.

Seeing the Forest Bear charging at him, Li Shaolin panicked for a moment and tried to call the Clay Golem to block, only to find it was gone—probably left behind during his frantic run. He sidestepped to avoid the bear's swiping claw, drew his sword, and swung it diagonally!

Before the sword could connect, he let out a yelp. The bear's claws extended, catching his leg and tearing through flesh, leaving it bloody and injured! But the short sword from Goldtooth was indeed sharp, cutting through the bear's skin and leaving a wound.

The Skeleton Warrior followed up, slashing the bear's back again, creating another large gash. The bear roared in fury, abandoning Li Shaolin to lunge at the Skeleton Warrior. By then, Li Shaolin's teeth were ready again. With a flash of white light, they shot out—thud, thud—this time hitting the bear's head squarely. One pierced its left ear, the other its nose.

The bear roared twice, then turned its head toward Li Shaolin, but didn't charge. Blood streamed down its face—it had been blinded!

Li Shaolin stepped lightly, planning to hide behind an Elwynn Ancient Tree, but the bear, sensing his location, opened its mouth wide and lunged!

"Swoosh, swoosh," two teeth shot accurately into the bear's mouth. He sidestepped slightly, dodging the lunge. The Forest Bear crashed to the ground, struggled a few times, and then lay still.

"What a beast, so tough!" Li Shaolin plopped down on the ground, gasping for air. The wound on his leg throbbed with pain. Then, a familiar white light enveloped him—he had leveled up! Instantly, the wounds from his fight with Goldtooth and the fresh gash from the Forest Bear healed, flesh knitting together as if bathed in divine dew. His depleted stamina was fully restored, and the Skeleton Warrior with the broken leg regenerated a new one with a crack. Leveling up felt great!

He used his Detection skill on the bear's corpse and found it was a level 9 animal—no wonder it was so strong. Li Shaolin himself had reached level 7, gaining another skill point. He pulled out the Book of the Dead, opened its pages, and black energy swirled around him. What skill should he learn? Looking at the wounds on his leg and hand, he thought: Learn a defensive spell. Otherwise, if this keeps happening, I'll end up dead. It seems magic scales with character level, so if I put points into Bone Shield, it shouldn't be too useless later, right?

Just as he was about to invest in Bone Shield, a commotion came from the farm. It seemed the people there had been drawn by the fight and were coming over! He quickly dismissed the two Skeleton Warriors—he didn't know how people would react to them—but in his haste, his finger accidentally pressed a skill. Black light flashed, and he had inadvertently added a point to Venomous Dagger! Li Shaolin almost cried. That precious point, wasted!

Figures moved, and a few servants emerged from the bushes. Seeing Li Shaolin and the Forest Bear on the ground, they let out exclamations of surprise! One young man stepped forward: "Noble professional, we are servants of Stonefield Farm. May I ask if you killed this Forest Bear? Do you need any help?" Li Shaolin nodded, closed the Book of the Dead, and said, "I'd like to find some food at your farm. I can trade this prey for it." He pointed at the bear carcass.

"We are honored to have you at our farm. It is our misfortune to serve you!" the young man said, gesturing for the others to lift the Forest Bear. He made a welcoming gesture and led the way.

With shouts, the others hoisted the bear carcass. Li Shaolin followed the young man, intending to put away the Book of the Dead, but he opened it to confirm. Sure enough, the skill points were now 0/0, and Venomous Dagger was lit up, ready to use. "Sigh," he sighed, then glanced at it and was shocked: Venomous Dagger, current level 1. Releases a toxic liquid on your weapon and your summons' weapons, causing poison damage to attacked targets. Duration: 1 hour. Mana cost: 30 points.

This... it adds poison damage to summons? The mana cost was a bit steep—after leveling up, he only had 109 mana—but seeing that it wasn't the useless skill from the game, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He put away the Book of the Dead and followed the young man to Stonefield Farm.

The view opened up, revealing a vast watermelon field. Further in, wheat fields and vegetable patches appeared, with rows of wooden houses lining the edge of the farm. Figures moved through the farm, and wheelbarrows and scarecrows were everywhere—a magnificent sight! As they approached, a large stable came into view, with the neighing of horses echoing out.

Li Shaolin had never seen such a large farm before. Compared to Goldshire, it lacked grandeur and luxury but had more peace and tranquility. It was dinner time, with wisps of smoke rising from chimneys—a beautiful scene!

Suddenly, he remembered the necklace he had taken from Goldtooth, which seemed to belong to some aunt from this farm. He said to the servant, "Wait, please. Did someone here lose a necklace in Fargodeep Mine? I happened to find it. Can you take me to the owner?"

"Oh, you must mean Auntie Bonis Stonefield. I heard she lost her necklace and even put out a bounty quest. Since you have it, let's go together. Auntie Bonis Stonefield is part of this farm family, and she can help arrange your lodging for the night," the young man said.