The group hurried toward the sound and saw flickering firelight ahead. More than thirty Kobolds had gathered there, tightly surrounding a five-man adventuring party in the middle of a chaotic melee. Two shield-bearing warriors held the front, keeping the Kobolds at bay, while the three classes behind them were hard to make out, though they were probably all ranged fighters. Wave after wave of Kobolds surged forward, some attacking barehanded, others wielding battered clubs and broken hoes. Jack raised his shield and shouted, "Friends over there, need a hand?" There was an unwritten rule among adventurers: once someone had engaged prey, others were not allowed to intervene halfway through, and the spoils could only belong to one party. Seeing that they were struggling, Jack asked. A rough, booming voice answered from the other side, "Damn it, there are a lot of these Kobolds! Brother, get in here!" Hearing their agreement, Jack charged in first with his shield raised. Rogue Mogaban's figure flashed as he entered Stealth. As for Li Shaolin, he naturally began casting magic alongside Moni.
Those Kobolds were a disorganized rabble. How could they understand tactics or formation? They were all focused on attacking the five adventurers and paid no attention at all to Li Shaolin's group appearing behind them. Jack went on a frenzy with his one-handed sword, cutting down three Kobolds from behind in only a few strikes. The Rogue wielded two daggers, repeatedly stabbing into the Kobolds' backs and slicing through their spines. Once their spines were cut, the Kobolds immediately collapsed limply. Their spinal nerves had been damaged, leaving them unable to stand. They might not die, but they could only lie paralyzed on the ground. Li Shaolin felt his scalp tingle as he watched. This guy's a freak. I'd better not offend him in the future.
That first barrage from the four of them took out six or seven Kobolds at once. The trapped party's pressure immediately eased. A warrior among them let out a roar, and Li Shaolin, some distance away, felt his body shudder. He suddenly felt much stronger and was seized by an urge to rush in and start slashing. He found it strange. Could that be Battle Shout? Even as he thought it, his hands did not stop. Fangs flew out one after another. There were plenty of Kobolds, so he simply locked onto one and attacked, sometimes catching others in the edge of the blast.
The Kobolds finally noticed something was wrong. A few howled, then turned and surrounded Jack and Mogaban. Two of them even leaped toward Li Shaolin and Moni in the distance!
Moni had locked her magic onto a distant Kobold. Her incantation was halfway complete, and she could no longer stop. Li Shaolin fired two Fangs in succession, shattering one Kobold's wrist, but the other had already reached him! Think I can't fight in close combat?! Li Shaolin cursed. With a swish, he drew the shortsword from his waist and stabbed it straight into the Kobold's chest! At that moment, a burst of light flashed over Li Shaolin's body, and a pure white shield enveloped him. Power Word: Shield! It was the Priest from that party lending a hand.
With a squelch, the shortsword pierced the Kobold's chest. The Kobold's claws also landed on Li Shaolin's waist, but apparently affected by the shield, its swipe was weak and powerless. It did not even tear his knitted casual clothes. Li Shaolin kicked the Kobold over and immediately felt incredibly impressive, as though he were invincible. He secretly glanced at Moni beside him, but she showed no reaction and was focused on casting Frostbolt. He immediately felt deflated. Casually firing another Fang, he blew apart the brain of the wrist-broken Kobold that had approached them. "Let's move closer so the melee fighters can support us," Li Shaolin suggested to Moni. After hesitating, Moni nodded.
The two moved forward several steps and took position behind Jack and Mogaban. With the pair protecting them, they unleashed another round of magic. Moni suddenly cried out, "Ah, I think I'm running out of mana!" Li Shaolin hurriedly checked his own status. Fortunately, he still had enough mana for seven or eight more Fangs, enough to deal with a few Kobolds. The rough voice of the warrior inside rang out again. "Push harder, everyone! These bastards are about to break! Hold the line!" He stomped the ground, and lightning-like arcs of electricity spread outward, jolting several nearby Kobolds. Their attacks immediately slowed considerably. It looked like the lightning's paralysis effect had taken hold. The Paladin's sword also flared with Holy Light, instantly killing a Kobold. Seeing everyone fighting desperately, Li Shaolin threw both hands forward repeatedly and fired five Fangs in a row, killing two Kobolds.
Under that fierce assault, the Kobolds finally began to retreat. Someone let out a loud howl, and the dozen or so remaining Kobolds scattered in all directions. Gunshots rang out. A dwarf held up a black musket and fired at the fleeing Kobolds. A dwarf? What was he doing here? Li Shaolin was puzzled, but his hands did not stop. He fired two more Fangs and killed another Kobold. The others no longer had the strength to pursue and all collapsed to the ground, gasping heavily. Only then did the two parties formally meet.
The bearded dwarf warrior was the one who had unleashed that thunderous strike earlier. He looked to be Level Six. Beside him stood a thin human warrior who was unexpectedly a dark-skinned girl. She wore a black ponytail. She was not particularly beautiful, but she had a distinctive charm. The dwarf Hunter with the gun looked exactly like the bearded warrior, clearly his brother. They also had a human male Priest who looked worn out from drink and debauchery, sprawled on the ground. A human Mage was drinking a Mana Potion to replenish his mana. Another human male Warlock was wiping down his staff while the imp beside him chattered away. Jack and Mogaban were also gasping for breath. Li Shaolin was probably the most relaxed one there.
After resting for a while, the dwarf warrior stood and extended a hand to Jack. "Hello. I'm Biter, a Level Six dwarf warrior. Thank you and your brave companions!" Jack shook his hand. "Jack, Level Five Paladin. Those Kobolds only ran away. They may bring back a large group, so let's search the battlefield and leave quickly!" The dwarf warrior nodded and turned back to order, "Quit playing dead, all of you! Get the hell up, clean up, and retreat!" He clearly had a fiery temper, but none of his teammates said anything. The facts were right in front of them. They busied themselves searching the Kobolds for gold dust and candles. Jack and Mogaban also began cleaning up. Li Shaolin was about to help when a strange sensation surged through him again. He was about to level up!
This won't do! I just leveled up outside. If that light appears again, won't Jack and the others get suspicious? Li Shaolin grew anxious. He had heard Jack say that even the fastest people needed one or two months to advance a level. After all, mastery of martial skills and magical application required real combat experience. Yet, perhaps because he was a transmigrator, Li Shaolin had the special trait of gaining experience from kills. Even when his teammates killed monsters, he could level up as well. He was truly an anomaly, and people would definitely become suspicious. As though responding to his request, a deep voice sounded in his consciousness. "Do you choose to hide the status restoration effect brought by leveling up?" He confirmed in his mind. Immediately, Li Shaolin felt his maximum stamina and mana increase a little, but his depleted mana did not recover. Seeing that no white light appeared, he let out a long breath. He had now reached Level Five!
Once they finished cleaning up, the others were somewhat dissatisfied that Li Shaolin had not helped. However, he had cast the most magic just now and dealt the most damage to the Kobolds. They assumed he was recovering mana and did not disturb him. After all, strength determined everything in this world. Jack and Biter discussed it and decided to head outside and rest first, restore their energy, then return to explore that night. It turned out Biter's group had also accepted a quest to hunt Goldtooth, though theirs had been issued by the town mayor. Their goal happened to match Jack's, so they hit it off immediately and led everyone back the way they had come.
When they passed the side tunnel, Li Shaolin vaguely heard the sounds of battle coming from within. He did not know whether his two skeletons were dead, but it was inconvenient to take out the Book of the Dead and check, so he had no choice but to leave it alone. They made their way out of the mine. Before they could even find a place to rest, the dark-skinned female warrior's face turned crimson. She whispered something to Moni, then stammered, "Um... you all go find somewhere first. She and I will be right back!" She grabbed Moni and ran off. "Hey! Watch out for Kobolds!" Jack shouted. Bearded Biter scratched his head in confusion. "What are they doing?" The human male Priest leaned slightly toward Jack's chest and said softly, "Women sure are troublesome. Don't you think so, handsome?" "You damned freak, quit flirting around!" Biter cursed. Hani traced a circle over Jack's chest with his finger and cursed back, "Say that again and see if I heal you next time." Jack got goosebumps but could not bring himself to lash out. He hurried away, saying, "I'll go find somewhere to rest!"
There were gay people here too! Li Shaolin suddenly felt very unsafe. However, Hani could not even be bothered to look at him. He apparently preferred tall, muscular, sturdy men like Jack. After walking a few steps outside, they happened to meet the female warrior and Moni returning. Moni said, "There's a little hill over there, and there are two abandoned wooden latrines below it. Let's settle down there!" "How did you know there were latrines?" Mogaban asked in confusion. The female warrior's face immediately reddened again. Everyone instantly understood. Even Moni blushed, while the female warrior's entire face turned bright red. So she had been in a hurry to use the toilet earlier.
The group arrived at the little hill. Jack took out a large felt mat from his backpack and spread it on the ground for everyone to sit and rest. Moni took out Mana Soda and distributed it among the spellcasting classes so they could meditate and recover. Li Shaolin accepted the magic drink Moni handed him and lightly brushed against her small hand. So smooth!
Jack said, "Rest up, everyone. It'll be dark soon. After we eat some rations, we'll head back in under cover of night!" Then he handed Li Shaolin a piece of tough dried meat. "Shaolin, I see you didn't bring any food. Here, take this!" Li Shaolin was deeply moved. So touching!
The sky gradually darkened.
Everyone recovered in their own way. Li Shaolin had nothing to recover and did not know how to do it, so he could only sit there foolishly and pretend to meditate. After drinking the Mana Soda, his mana began slowly restoring on its own. Before long, it was nearly full. Then that sensation of leveling up came again! What's going on? I haven't killed any monsters. It was strange. Suddenly, he remembered the two skeletons inside the mine. Could it be them?
Before you continue