Thank Gratitude to Sally

Before the fence near the back of the village, Lu Minghao's thumb-sized body carefully squeezed through, constantly observing his surroundings for any sneak attacks from hidden enemies.

"Good, safe for now. The infiltration is going smoothly."

A few minutes later, after cautiously probing a few times and finding no danger, Lu Minghao finally relaxed a little and began to survey the environment. Before him was a patch of ground overgrown with weeds. Not far away, at the base of a wall, several wooden barrels were piled up. Further in, under a large tree, was a pit emitting a foul, pungent odor.

A large number of flies buzzed incessantly over the pit, and the weeds around its edge had clearly been cleared. A dirt path, showing signs of frequent passage, also ran across the ground.

"This must be a villager's backyard. Don't they think it stinks to build an outdoor toilet so close to their house?"

After confirming his location, Lu Minghao hopped and skipped towards the dirt path, glancing at the pit under the tree. He couldn't understand the thought process of humans who would choose to relieve themselves so close to their homes.

Did they think their meals tasted better with a hint of excrement?

Before long, Lu Minghao followed the dirt path to the front of the house, where a main road about four meters wide appeared. Wooden houses were haphazardly built on both sides of the road, and children were playing with wooden sticks, their parents' shouts occasionally drifting from within the houses.

"It looks like a typical human village."

Lu Minghao hid in the shadows beneath a wooden house, observing everything. He then looked closely at each villager, noting that the magic elements they exuded were normal, perfectly fitting the appearance of ordinary villagers.

"How should I ask these humans about my current location? Should I grab one and interrogate them? Or should I find the information myself?"

From the shadows, Lu Minghao watched the villagers walk by, contemplating the best approach. Kidnapping a villager and threatening them for information would be quick, but afterward, for his own safety, Lu Minghao would have to eliminate the villager to prevent them from reporting him to adventurers for extermination.

He would definitely have to kill that villager. Then, considering that a villager's disappearance would alert everyone, he would have to wipe out the entire village.

In a way, Lu Minghao wouldn't mind doing that. He had initially planned to do just that: use a clone to scout the village, then use poison mist to envelop the entire village under the cover of night, and after gathering the necessary information, He would physically erase the entire village with the poison mist, just like those giant rats, ensuring not even a speck would remain.

As for whether such an act would be too cruel, that was none of Lu Minghao's concern. He was just a slime, after all. Could he openly visit and ask the villagers for the information he needed?

That would be ridiculous.

The villagers on the watchtower earlier had shown no hesitation in trying to kill Lu Minghao. Monsters and humans in this world were fundamentally antagonistic. Monsters killed humans, and humans killed monsters. This was a truth that had existed since the world's creation.

Didn't he see the outcome for another of his kind who had the idea of not harming humans?

Therefore, the moment he recognized his identity as a slime, Lu Minghao understood. He was a monster, an enemy in the eyes of the humans in this world. The most he could do was not attack them as long as they didn't show hostility. Once they showed hostility, Lu Minghao could only let them rest within his body.

"Although, having said that..."

The next second, Lu Minghao sighed. If he hadn't met Sally, Lu Minghao would have unhesitatingly carried out his previous plan. But now, this village was where Sally had lived, and it was the home of her father and Grandma Oran.

Moreover, although the villagers had driven Sally out of the village, they had at least allowed her to live nearby. And when Sally had stood in front of him earlier, the villagers on the watchtower had chosen to stop attacking.

So, even for Sally's sake, Lu Minghao had to adopt a gentler approach.

"Thank Sally for this."

Muttering to himself, Lu Minghao's body sank into the shadows and he quietly slipped into the wooden house beside him. From the shadow in the corner, Lu Minghao cautiously peeked out and surveyed the surroundings. The room was empty, furnished with a few slightly worn pieces of furniture, exuding a sense of everyday life. It was just a typical villager's home.

"Let's see, are there any books or maps?"

Inside the room, Lu Minghao moved along the shadows, searching everything in the wooden house. The firewood in the corner, a chipped wooden bowl, dirty and worn farming tools, and rough clothing. After searching the entire room, Lu Minghao found nothing he needed.

Looking at the pile of miscellaneous items before him, even two pieces of cured meat that Lu Minghao had found in the most hidden corner were on top.

"Did I lose my mind?"

The next second, Lu Minghao remembered something he had subconsciously overlooked: in this world, knowledge and maps were not something ordinary villagers possessed. It was completely different from his previous world.

"As expected, I'll go directly to the village chief's house. If I still can't find anything, I'll have to use Plan A!"

Saying this, Lu Minghao swallowed the two pieces of cured meat before him. Since he was here, he saw no reason to leave empty-handed. Lu Minghao decided to take the two pieces of cured meat back to nourish Sally that night.

Afterward, Lu Minghao once again merged into the shadows. This time, he headed directly towards the largest wooden house in the center of the village. Before long, Lu Minghao skillfully slipped into the village chief's house through the shadows.

Compared to the previous villager's dilapidated house, the village chief's house was clearly much better. The furniture was more complete, and various beast horns and furs were hung on the walls for decoration. A plate of bright red fruit was also placed on the table.

"Not bad, not bad. There should be a good harvest this time."

Satisfied, Lu Minghao surveyed the village chief's house and began searching for what he needed. Soon, on a table in one of the rooms, Lu Minghao found what he was looking for. However, a problem arose: he... seemed unable to read the script of this world.

"Who!"

Just as Lu Minghao was looking at the string of strange characters on the book before him, the door behind him was suddenly pushed open, and a man with graying hair, who looked to be in his fifties, rushed in.