Gnolls and Carrion Birds

The two of them talked for a while.

Perhaps because of Li Shaolin's connection to Karnak, or for some other reason, Sulonna laid out everything without holding back—the Defias's influence in Westfall and Elwynn Forest, who the experts were, and so on. It turned out that Elwynn Forest was jointly managed by seven squad leaders: Frost Sulonna, Great Axe Erland (Sulonna's old flame, killed by him at Blackwell's Pumpkin Patch), Whisperer Morgan (the Receiver, killed by him at Blackwell's Pumpkin Patch), Twin Blades Soros, Worm Jack, Cunning Mogani (the commander with the largest territory in western Elwynn Forest), and the Defias Dock Supervisor (a goblin).

After hearing this, Li Shaolin clicked his tongue in disbelief. Six of the seven squad leaders had died at his hands—was fate against them? If VanCleef found out, he'd probably skin him alive. The thought sent a chill down his spine.

"After this, Elwynn Forest is bound to be in chaos for a good while," Sulonna said with a smile. "How about you come with me to the Deadmines and meet VanCleef?"

"That might not be a good idea," he replied, but in his heart he thought: I'm trying to avoid him right now, why would I dare go?

"Since you've got nothing to do, how about this—come with me to Fabron's Farm? The person in charge there now is Benny Blanco, one of the three big shots of Westfall. He was on good terms with Erland back in the day; they even planned to take over Sartin's Farm together." Mentioning Erland made Sulonna a little sad—after all, they'd been husband and wife, and there were still some feelings there.

"Fabron's Farm? Alright, I'll go with you. I need to pick up something from a friend there anyway." Remembering Fabron's Farm, Li Shaolin recalled that Farmer Fabron had mentioned his pocket watch was still left there. He could look for it and see what timekeeping tools looked like in this world. Besides, he felt a bit guilty toward Sulonna—after all, he was the one who killed her husband.

With that settled, they set out for Fabron's Farm while it was still early. As for that little house, there was no way they could stay there. The five vengeful spirits from the pentagram, without a fresh supply of blood, had turned into ghosts—who knew how strong they'd be now? Better to leave quickly.

Before leaving, Li Shaolin went down to the basement, led out the first-tier skeleton from the bronze coffin, and sent it back into the Book of the Dead. That soul-gathering formation was truly miraculous—the first-tier skeleton warrior had already advanced to second-tier in just one day, though it also had to do with the experience it had accumulated.

He put all three skeletons back into the Book of the Dead, keeping only the Clay Golem by his side. After a moment's thought, he strapped the Gemmed Dagger he'd taken from Mogani to his waist, then left with Sulonna.

"Look at you, all mismatched," Sulonna said, covering her mouth with a light laugh.

He shot her a glance and ignored her.

"This way. Cut diagonally down from here, and we'll reach Fabron's Farm without going around the Official Road," Sulonna said, pointing at the map in Li Shaolin's hand.

A vast expanse of withered yellow grass rose past their knees. A few bare-trunked birch trees dotted the landscape here and there. Under the blazing sun, two figures trudged slowly along.

Though the Clay Golem led the way, clearing most of the weeds, some thorny stems still snagged their robes, slowing their steps.

"This is really hard going," Li Shaolin said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. He looked up at the increasingly fierce sun, pulled out some water, handed a bottle to Sulonna, and took a big gulp himself.

"Come on, everyone out here in Westfall lives like this. Apart from the coast and the farms, it's all weeds everywhere," she replied.

A long, mournful cry rang out.

"Watch out!" Sulonna's face changed as she pulled out her staff.

"What's wrong?" Li Shaolin had heard the sound too, but it didn't seem like a beast—more like some kind of bird.

With a thump, Sulonna activated her warlock's shield skill: Demon Skin. At the same time, she warned him, "Look out above—that's a Carrion Bird's call. These raptors often appear in large flocks and will attack anything living. They're vicious."

As if to prove her point, another cry sounded. Ahead, on a large bare birch tree, four birds about a meter tall had landed. They had sharp, hooked beaks and brown feathers, but their most striking features were their featherless, reddish-brown heads and long necks. They glared viciously at the pair. The call came from the largest of them.

"Watch out for their claws and beaks—they can tear through cowhide easily," Sulonna warned.

"That strong?" Li Shaolin was genuinely surprised. These ugly, vulture-like things were that powerful? Not daring to take them lightly, he quickly summoned his Bone Shield and condensed two Bone Fangs.

But the four Carrion Birds just stared at them, making no move to attack.

Li Shaolin found it strange. "Isn't this a bit odd? Do you notice anything?"

"Not sure. These things are too disgusting—I've rarely fought them before," Sulonna replied. It was a woman's nature to avoid ugly things.

A sharp howl followed.

"Damn, Gnolls! So these birds were waiting for the Gnolls to fight us," Sulonna said, her expression shifting as she looked to the side.

Sure enough, behind the big tree, a small campfire had been lit. Three Gnolls were gathered around it, while a sentry had already spotted them and was howling excitedly.

Without a second thought, Li Shaolin pulled out the Book of the Dead and released the three skeletons in a flash of black light. No joke—survival came first, he couldn't afford to hold back.

At the scout's call, the other Gnolls noticed them too. With a chorus of howls, they stomped over, the scout who'd spotted them leading the charge, looking like it had already claimed its prize.

Zap! Crack! A Frostbolt shot out, cast by the prepared Sulonna. Right after, two Bone Fangs whistled through the air and struck the scout in the chest.

Oww! The Gnoll scout let out a sharp cry, badly wounded. Before it could move again, the Clay Golem charged forward, activating its Slow effect. Combined with the Frostbolt's slow and the slow aura, the creature's movements turned sluggish as a snail's. The Golem punched it square in the chest, knocking it to the ground. It whimpered and couldn't get back up.

In one exchange, they'd taken down a Gnoll. The ones behind were startled, but before they could react, Li Shaolin raised his hand again: Lesser Blindness. The middle Gnoll went blind on the spot, stumbling in circles, disoriented. A black skull appeared above the head of the one on the left—Sulonna's Fear Spell. That one bolted across the flat wasteland, driven to the side. In the blink of an eye, two of the three charging Gnolls were neutralized, leaving only the one on the right charging stupidly forward.

Li Shaolin and Sulonna exchanged a smile—they were really in sync.

Before the right-side Gnoll could reach them, the Bronze Skeleton moved to meet it. Its massive bronze shield blocked the Gnoll's claws with a screech as they scraped across the surface. Then, the bronze blade slashed diagonally, leaving a bloody gash on its shoulder.

The Gnoll howled in pain, but before it could recover, the bronze shield swept out again, sending it stumbling to the ground. Another stab pierced its heart.

The Gnoll that had been hit by Li Shaolin's Lesser Blindness just woke up when two black curved blades flashed across its neck, slicing and pulling in one motion. It fell silently—instant kill!

Sulonna watched, her heart pounding. These summoned Scourge skeletons of his were terrifyingly strong. Back in the room fight, she'd been half-conscious from exhaustion after Twin Blades Soros cut her down, so she hadn't seen the skeletons in action. Now, it made sense that six of Elwynn's squad leaders had fallen to him.

The Gnoll under the Fear Spell saw its companions killed, let out a howl, and fled.

"Forget it, don't chase," Sulonna said, stopping Li Shaolin from ordering the Bronze Skeleton to pursue.

Caw! The four Carrion Birds pounced on the Gnoll corpses, tearing into them with gusto. To them, as long as there was meat, it didn't matter whose it was.

"Let's go." Sulonna couldn't stand watching the birds rip at the flesh. She turned and tugged Li Shaolin away.

But their quick steps startled a nearby Carrion Bird. With a flap-flap, it took off and pecked straight at them!

Truly a vicious raptor!

As it lunged, Sulonna sidestepped and flicked her hand. With a crack, a ring of frost erupted, freezing the bird in place—Frost Nova!

"Nice one!" Li Shaolin praised. This woman truly deserved her title as Frost Sulonna of Elwynn Forest, wielding both frost and shadow magic with deadly skill.

The frozen bird couldn't even flap its wings. It squawked, but the Bronze Skeleton's blade came down, sending blood and feathers flying. At the same time, clang—its beak struck the bronze shield. The Clay Golem stepped in and punched, scattering more feathers, while the newly promoted second-tier skeleton followed up with its bone blade.

In a flurry of blows, they hacked the unlucky bird to the ground.

The other three Carrion Birds just kept tearing at the Gnoll corpses—three bodies, no competition. They paid no attention to Li Shaolin and Sulonna. Animals, after all.

They pushed through the weeds for another half hour until the golden-yellow pumpkin fields came into view. Fabron's Farm lay just ahead.