Tears of a Tough Guy

Xu Nan accepted the quest. After all, the temptation of directly increasing a level was something most people couldn't refuse.

These Gnolls also looked relatively short. Due to their poor night vision, most of the Gnolls had candles on their heads, making them easy targets for the Innocent Staff.

But the problem was, even after eating a dragon meat feast, Xu Nan's physical condition was still a bit weak.

He had no foundation in close combat. Rushing into a crowd like this, trying to go on a rampage, was probably just asking for death.

After careful consideration, he decided to adopt a roundabout tactic to minimize risk.

Xu Nan ordered A Tang to lure the Gnolls into position, then continuously cast spells!

Grease!

Spiderweb Spell!

Magic Animated Rope!

One after another, control spells were cast by Xu Nan. The Gnolls were in a sorry state. Some Gnolls' candles fell to the ground and mixed with Xu Nan's Magic Grease, but they didn't cause a fire.

Because of Xu Nan's sudden appearance, the Gnolls were caught off guard. By the time they wanted to leave, it was already too late.

Under Xu Nan's command, A Tang stood guard like a single person holding off ten thousand, forcefully blocking the Gnolls' retreat path.

Over forty Gnolls were perfectly controlled by Xu Nan's control spells.

For this, he had consumed almost all of his magic power.

He had at least ten minutes to kill these monsters!

It was at this moment that Xu Nan finally understood how important the Pumpkin Field trial was!

The Gnolls in front of him, controlled by Grease and Spiderweb Spell, weren't they exactly the same as the pumpkins in the Pumpkin Field?

Under Gu Xiaomeng's adoring gaze, Xu Nan displayed great power, directly using Melf's Acid Arrow combined with Magic Missile, and under A Tang's cover, he killed the four Strong Gnolls!

It's worth mentioning that during this process, Xu Nan was surprised to find that killing monsters from another world could actually earn him something called Slaughter Points.

He had killed the Black Knife Warrior Wu Ke before and gained one Slaughter Point, but killing four Strong Gnolls only gave him 0.5 Slaughter Points. Xu Nan hadn't figured out what these Slaughter Points were for yet.

However, now was not the time to research such things.

Just as A Tang was about to leap high and sit on these controlled Gnolls to death, she was sternly stopped by Xu Nan:

"Let go of those Gnolls!"

"Let me do it!"

A Tang showed a confused expression. In her impression, Xu Nan should be more of a spellcaster.

What was going on today?

Perhaps to find an excuse for his strange behavior, Xu Nan thought for a moment: "These monsters dare to invade my territory, I will personally execute them!"

"You keep an eye on them, don't let them move, and protect me!"

The last two sentences were the key.

After saying this, Xu Nan cast Mage Armor and Shield Spell on himself, and then turned back to ask Gu Xiaomeng if she had any protective spells. After receiving a Divine Blessing (Constitution +1; Vital Protection), he felt relieved and went down from the observation deck, heading straight for where the Gnolls had fallen.

He equipped the Iron Gauntlets and the Innocent Staff, and under the Gnolls' terrified gaze, he softly shouted:

"I didn't mean to!"

Bang!

The Innocent Staff suddenly fell, directly exploding the Gnoll's head!

Blood and brains splattered all over Xu Nan's face.

He numbly discovered that his quest progress had not been completed. The system prompt said - The staff incantation was recited too softly!

Xu Nan gritted his teeth, rushed to the next Gnoll, raised the Innocent Staff high, and roared:

"I didn't mean to!"

The twenty percent headshot rate was actually for moving targets. For fixed targets like this, it was almost a guaranteed hit!

Bang!

With a muffled sound, another poor Gnoll was smashed into a headless corpse by Xu Nan!

"What the heck?" A Tang saw him muttering to himself, his expression stiff, and felt a little unbearable: "If you're not good at killing, I'll do it. I can kill several with one slap."

Xu Nan immediately stopped her malicious attempt to finish them off: "I'll do it."

"We can't always let the national treasure kill and rob. You rest."

A Tang sat down in the middle of the Gnolls, scratched her head, and looked at the bloody, bizarre, and even somewhat absurd atmosphere, completely failing to understand.

The Gnolls trembled, some trying to break free from Xu Nan's control, but Xu Nan's spells were still very effective. Grease and Spiderweb Spell entangled them together, and it would take at least several minutes for them to regain their ability to move.

Xu Nan swung the Innocent Staff, harvesting the lives of the Gnolls.

He repeatedly shouted "I didn't mean to!" If the onlookers weren't a clueless rookie priest and a national treasure, Xu Nan would have long wanted to find a hole to crawl into because of this incredibly embarrassing behavior.

However, as the killing progressed, Xu Nan gradually adapted to the rhythm of killing Gnolls.

Deep down, not only did he not feel the common nausea from killing in novels, but he even felt a little happy.

"It's over, it's over, I'm gradually becoming twisted..."

Xu Nan silently mourned in his heart, but his hands were merciless. After shouting ten slogans in one breath, the task was more than halfway complete.

The Gnolls were in agony, their eyes practically bulging out.

As the vanguard of the great demon Inoya, they had only intended to explore along the underground river, searching for the Gnoll Camp that had lost contact earlier. Who knew they would run headfirst into the Arcane Empire's Cloud Ascending Ship base?

They hadn't actually intended to fight. They were forced into battle when A Tang suddenly leaped out of the darkness, shouting loudly.

A Tang's combat power had already somewhat lowered their morale, and the appearance of a spellcaster was the final straw that broke their inner defenses.

It was precisely because of this that Xu Nan's spells seemed so powerful.

"Gotta hurry," Xu Nan silently scanned the Gnolls on the battlefield.

The ones he had just executed were actually Gnolls controlled by the Spiderweb Spell or isolated ones.

The remaining thirty Gnolls were mostly in groups of three to five, knocked down by Grease. At this moment, they could barely crawl.

However, A Tang was very dedicated, guarding the Gnolls and running around nimbly. Any Gnoll trying to escape the range of Grease was nudged back in by A Tang's rear end.

Xu Nan was very pleased. Although this guy was unreliable, he was quite efficient at getting things done.

Xu Nan cautiously approached an area covered in Grease.

A Gnoll suddenly jumped up and struggled. Xu Nan was startled, almost dropping the staff in his hand!

He swung wildly, but the Gnoll twisted and turned in the Grease, moving like a snake, and managed to dodge everything!

Xu Nan was annoyed.

He rushed forward with the staff, poking wildly. It took him a minute to finally smash the head of this uncooperative Gnoll.

Xu Nan's confidence greatly increased. Next, his actions became bolder.

He killed several Gnolls in succession, and the task was almost complete.

"No problem. I'm okay. Unconsciously, I'm no longer the weakling I used to be."

"I'm a tough guy now. Old Mr. Luo Mang's will is with me."

"These Gnolls are simply no match!"

Xu Nan became arrogant, his actions growing bolder. Gradually, he began to understand Old Mr. Luo Mang's painstaking efforts.

Melee combat was indeed addictive.

Especially headshots.

When you wield a staff and can easily take an enemy's life, you become lazy about casting spells; if you do it once, you'll do it a second and third time.

"This task is also a bit strange. It's embarrassing, those incantations are indeed quite embarrassing; but directly rewarding a level seems a bit exaggerated."

Xu Nan's attention was somewhat distracted.

In the Grease ahead, there were still three Gnolls. Knocking them out would complete the task.

However, as time passed, Grease, being a first-level spell, was starting to lose its effectiveness.

The three Gnolls had fierce looks in their eyes, attempting to resist stubbornly.

Xu Nan sneered and called out to A Tang: "Help me hold them down!"

"Expose their heads, don't let them move!"

At this time, Xu Nan certainly wouldn't make the mistake that villains often make – slacking off!

Although A Tang was a hundred times unwilling, he still came over to be an accomplice and held down the three Gnolls.

Xu Nan skillfully smashed the heads of two Gnolls in succession.

Only one was left, and the task would be complete.

A Tang sat dutifully on the Gnoll, yawning boredly. The Gnoll was being crushed and foaming at the mouth. It was estimated that if Xu Nan didn't act soon, it would be sat to death.

Xu Nan was in a good mood. He gripped the Innocent Staff tightly, aimed at the Gnoll's head, and swung down hard!

Who knew that this time, perhaps because the movement was too large or for some other reason, he actually sprained his back!

Xu Nan couldn't control his strength well. Under A Tang's dumbfounded gaze, this staff strike actually landed on A Tang's rear end!

A Tang yelped and jumped up. The Gnoll was also half-dead and slid out of the Grease. One paw unconsciously reached out!

The next second, Xu Nan's tragic scream echoed throughout the Dungeon for a long time!

This scream was incredibly mournful, making listeners sad and tearful!

"Heal me!" This was what Xu Nan roared with his last bit of strength.

Gu Xiaomeng stood on the observation deck, trembling. After a long while, she finally cast a Greater Heal.

And it landed on A Tang.

At this moment, Xu Nan felt as wronged as a child weighing over a hundred pounds.

"Alright, alright, calm down. Is it really that bad?"

While bandaging Xu Nan's wounds, Lü Junyi said disdainfully, "You still want to go into melee to get kills?"

"Don't try to be a hero next time, okay?"

Xu Nan tearfully agreed, "Will... will there be any after-effects?"

"I've never been so seriously injured in my life."

"And it's my waist. Will I become a Shawshank in the future?"

Lü Junyi glanced at the few band-aids on Xu Nan's waist and remained silent.

After a while.

"There's something I need to tell you."

Lü Junyi said softly, "I feel like I don't have the ability to turn people into Professionals."

"But that dead transvestite seems to really want to become a Professional. I'm a little scared. I've already had my appendix removed. If I keep cutting, it'll be my internal organs, large intestine, and small intestine..."

...!