Blooding the Blade

The Elf Blacksmith collapsed to the ground as soon as he finished speaking.

The others were startled; Soren thought he had collapsed from exhaustion, but soon a chorus of snores filled the air. He waved to the apprentices beside him, signaling them to move the Elf Blacksmith to the bed, and then left about ten Gold Daler by the Smelting Furnace. The apprentices were exhausted from the past three days; their eyes were bloodshot, and they looked extremely weary. Soren was satisfied with the forging results, so he didn't mind giving them a small tip as a reward.

"Dragon Slayer."

Soren stroked the blade lightly, then pursed his lips slightly and said, "This name is too unlucky. Let's call it [Laceration] instead."

There are many pieces of equipment in this world called Dragon Slayer.

For example, there's a Dragon-Slaying Sword in White Horse City. Any equipment bearing that name that has successfully Dragon Slayer seems to be cursed; their owners often die at the hands of Dragon. Strictly speaking, Soren doesn't have a strong fascination with Dragon Slayer. He only unhesitatingly wields his blade when certain necessary tasks involve Dragonkind. The Laceration was a Supernatural Weapon he once acquired; while not as powerful as the one before him, it was quite similar in many ways.

Although this Scimitar is Tier 1 Supernatural Weapon, its attributes have already reached Tier 2 level!

It doesn't deal any energy damage itself, but its added Sharpness and penetration are quite strong. Goria only gained 2 points with her ' Magic Weapon ', while this sword itself has 3 points of Sharpness and penetration. To put it simply, this sword can break through natural armor with a defense level of +3, the most notable creature being the Landwyrm.

The Landwyrm's natural defense, Dragon Hide, provides a +3 protection rating.

The last two attributes are crucial. Toughness is a characteristic of Elven Race- forged weapons, making them extremely difficult to break or damage. Armor Piercing is generally an additional attribute of Adamantine, making it very useful against Dragonkind, Demon, and Lich. Weapons with Armor Piercing penetration can basically pierce Dragon Scale and are also highly effective against heavily armored Warrior. It's estimated that, aside from Full Plate Armor which is very difficult to penetrate, other scale armor and chainmail can be dealt with in one or two strikes.

Now that the weapon is complete, there's no need for Soren to stay any longer.

His injuries had almost fully healed two days ago, and in the past two days he had also researched about 70% of the ' Charm Person ' Spell. Charm Spell are quite difficult to learn, much harder than other Spell. Rogue are people who can leave or stay as they please. After settling his bill at the Inn and giving a Gold Daler or two as a tip, Soren headed straight out of the village. His arrival didn't attract much attention, and his departure went unnoticed.

Adventurer are all just passing through; they only stop in one place when they are tired!

In the lush, verdant forest.

Upon entering the wilderness Soren's vigilance increased dramatically. He was now heading north along the Elven Forest, a journey that could stretch for thousands of kilometers. On the edge of the Land of Ice and Snow lay a Icewind Dale. Crossing this valley would lead into the Land of Ice and Snow, a place that had once been a vast battlefield, containing many sunken underground ruins. Separating the North from the Land of Ice and Snow was a Snow Mountains stretching for hundreds of miles, the two worlds becoming distinctly different due to their unique geography.

Soren moved forward very quickly on his own.

His Superhuman Constitution of 20 points allowed him to jog at a steady pace. As long as he didn't exceed his energy expenditure limits, his recovery rate was roughly the same as his energy expenditure. In just one morning, Soren had walked dozens of kilometers, and the surrounding scenery had changed dramatically. The trees in front of him were mostly as thick as three people could hug, and these trees had grown for at least a hundred years. This was characteristic of the Elf heartland; the deeper they went, the older the trees became, and there was a possibility of encountering the legendary beautiful Dryad.

It is the spiritual Avatar of nature!

Soren suddenly stopped in his tracks. He frowned, parted the bushes, and pulled out a tattered piece of cloth. The cloth felt very smooth and had traces of blood on it, indicating that a battle had taken place here, within the last three days. The footprints on the ground were already blurred, but he still managed to determine the direction in which the battle had occurred based on his intuition.

He followed the trail for a hundred or two meters. Then he saw obvious signs of a battle: broken tree branches that had been cut by swords and blades, and very dense footprints.

A battle definitely took place here!

Soren observed for a moment, then prepared to leave. His concern was whether there were any ambushes ahead; he had no interest in these chance encounters, as battles occurred far too frequently in this world.

In an instant!

Suo Ran suddenly paused, then turned around and went around to the back of a large tree. He seemed to have seen something for a moment. What appeared before him were marks on a towering tree, five claw marks an inch deep, showing that the attacker's strength was fierce. There was a patch of dried blood on the trunk.

Soren's expression instantly turned cold, his face contorted with rage, his killing intent palpable. He gestured with his hand towards the five claw marks on the tree, then slowly pressed it against his back. Five faint red marks remained on his back, wounds left by that brutal attack, even after the priest's healing Spell. Soren silently gripped his Scimitar, his figure gradually blurring until he vanished completely into the shadows.

Those hunters!

They did not abandon the Hunt Ritual; during those three days, they also hunted another target.

Soren would never mistake those five claw marks; that dark, High Gnoll had nearly killed him there. The killing intent within him made Soren crave blood. His injuries had largely healed, and all the special abilities he gained from Shadow Dancer were still present. Having just acquired his Supernatural Weapon, Soren was prepared to use the blood of these hunters to consecrate his blade!

When alone, Soren is not afraid of the number of enemies, because he is Rogue and the shadows and forests are his best cover.

His figure vanished from the spot, the power of the shadow concealing his trace.

A blurry, indistinct figure could only be seen when walking on bright ground. This was because his Stealth skill level was insufficient; Stealth level of 200 or higher was required to become invisible in shadowless areas. However, this didn't matter much to Soren. Not investing most of his Skill Point in Stealth meant he had focused on enhancing his other combat abilities. Wizard's Invisibility could completely replace Stealth when necessary.

"It looks like there are more than twenty people."

Soren stopped to examine the ground. The footprints were haphazard, but they formed a circular encirclement, unlike those left during an attack. They seemed more like the marks of someone retreating. He parted the grass in front of him, finding a piece of cloth torn by Thorn. The texture and material were similar to the previous ones, but the pattern seemed familiar. He murmured, "Where have I seen this pattern before?"

He checked his bearings on the spot, then continued to follow the trail.

Rogue are also skilled trackers; otherwise, they wouldn't have developed advanced professions like Bounty Hunter and Assassin. Soren walked about a kilometer or two before stopping in front of another large tree.

There were three claw marks on it, and nearby were broken branches and bushes. The sound of River Goddess could be heard in front of it.

"It looks like they've been fighting here for a while."

Soren reached out and scooped up some dark red soil. The area was quite large. Although the body was gone, someone must have fallen here, and judging from the bloodstains, they were probably killed on the spot. Ahead, someone had clearly used a sword to clear away the bushes blocking their path. It seemed that the people surrounding them were not skilled in combat, or were relatively weak, so much so that they needed someone to clear a path for them, cutting down the bushes that hindered their movement.

"Looks like they're doomed!"

Although Soren had only found traces of one death when he tracked them here, he estimated that the other person couldn't have escaped.

Protecting such a burden means you're basically unable to escape the hunters' pursuit.

They disappeared along the River Goddess.

There were no footprints on the other side, indicating that the fugitives had not crossed the river. Soren continued along the riverbank and soon discovered new clues.

He found a weapon and a Rake, exquisite suit of armor.

"Elven Rapier?"

Soren picked up the broken Rapier, looked around at the commotion, and muttered to himself, "Could it be that Elf Noble I encountered the other day? His guards seem to be equipped like this. No wonder he looked so familiar at first; ordinary Elf Patrol Guard couldn't afford such expensive fabrics. So, that guy encountered a hunter?"

It must have been three days ago.

Soren encountered an Elf Noble in front of the Temple of Hit Points in the village. This nobleman possessed some of the bloodline of the Elf Queen and appeared to be a descendant of divine bloodlines that had multiplied for many generations. They must have encountered hunters and, for some reason, become their new targets. What followed was a battle of escape, and his guards were certainly no match for a group of high-ranking hunters.

"The next thing we need to catch up with is just ahead."

Soren's pupils contracted, and his figure disappeared back into the shadows, then he stealthily made his Stealth the foot of the mountain ahead.

There are many mountains in the Elven Forest, but they are not very high. The terrain is hilly. According to Soren's estimate, the Elf Guard could only provide cover up to the foot of the mountain ahead before the hunters caught up with them.

The distance is gradually closing.

Soren suddenly stopped, then drew his scimitar with Scimitar, his steps immediately becoming much lighter.

There were still traces ahead.

The traces were quite obvious, indicating the activity of at least a dozen people, and they must have been left today. He could also vaguely hear some sounds, suggesting that there were people ahead, numbering in the double digits.

(P. S.: The second update will be a little later.) (To be continued~^~)