Side Quest?

"Eh? What's going on? We've seen several groups of Raiders on the road. What are they going to do?"

After Thin Dog and the other two came down from the small hill outside their base, they saw several Raider squads charging recklessly down the main road, seemingly with a clear purpose.

Lin Tang said, "Their route doesn't seem to be heading toward our home, so forget it. No need to worry about them. It's probably some game storyline that has nothing to do with us."

Thin Dog nodded. "True. A large-scale storyline like this really has nothing to do with us."

The three carefully detoured around the main Raider force, planning to go farther out and explore areas they had not explored yesterday.

They already knew that Raider Camps were highly likely to contain energy. What they needed to do now was find more Raider Camps and see whether they could figure out a way to wipe one out and obtain its Radiated Material. If that proved impossible, killing some Raiders along the way would still count as leveling up.

"Wait!"

They had only taken a few steps when Ghost Face Demon Fox stopped them. After a moment of thought, he said, "If so many Raiders have gone out, how many people can be left in their nest?"

The other two: (｀д′)(｀д′)

"Holy shit!?"

The three immediately turned around and headed back toward Raider Camp 2, which they had passed yesterday.

They also killed a blood deer along the way.

Not a single hunting Raider appeared on the road.

Half an hour later, they arrived.

The three hid behind a large tree and looked at the crude settlement ahead. Small groups of Raiders were eating inside. A pillar stood in the middle, with a human boy tied to it. He looked under eighteen and was still struggling.

"Huh? A side quest?"

The word occurred to all three of them at once.

Encountering a human NPC in the wilderness was most likely a side quest. Otherwise, why would the game developers create a human out of thin air?

Their eyes immediately lit up.

"Obviously, this is a classic NPC rescue quest. As long as we save him, he'll give us some rewards—items, skills, whatever. Let's do it!"

Lin Tang was a little excited, as if he were about to begin a slaughter.

Ghost Face Demon Fox calmly assessed the situation. "Don't act rashly. I took a rough look just now. This Raider Camp probably doesn't have terrain like a Cellar, so they tied the human captive up aboveground. There are six Raiders on the surface in total. Three have injuries on their arms, another two have bad legs, and only one is fully intact and looks the strongest. With our current setup, the three of us can deal with at most two Raiders at once. Six of them... If we fight them head-on, we'll die horribly. We aren't martial arts masters. How are we supposed to dodge six Wolf Tooth Clubs? Even if they just swing wildly, we're dead."

Thin Dog said, "Maybe we should outsmart them. For example, Lin Tang can find a way to lure away some of the Raiders, while Ghost Face Demon Fox and I deal with the rest. We have healing potions now. One bottle instantly restores 25%, then keeps healing us until we're fully recovered. That gives us a much greater margin for error. Theoretically, if Ghost Face Demon Fox and I perform well, we should each be able to kill one Raider. That means if you lure away four Raiders, Lin Tang, we'll have a chance to successfully steal this camp!"

Lin Tang said, "?"

"Guys, why is it me again?! I admit I underestimated the game's difficulty the first time, but you can't sell me out every time, can you? You've never been beaten to death by Raiders!"

Thin Dog said, "Because you have the best movement among us, Lin Tang! If you can't do it, the two of us definitely can't either. This is the most reasonable arrangement for now. Lin Tang, I believe you can make it back alive!"

Ghost Face Demon Fox added, "Even if you die, we can get one piece of energy. That's enough to revive your Clones. Don't worry!"

Once he heard he could be revived, Lin Tang relaxed.

"Fine, then... I'll leave it to you guys! It's time to show off my god-tier CSGO serpent-like movement!"

"Excuse my poor showing!"

Lin Tang stood up, looking as dashing as he had the first time, his face full of fearless determination.

Bang!

Bang!

Two gunshots rang out beside him, and Lin Tang was so startled that he immediately crouched back down.

"Holy shit!? Raiders are using guns now? Damn it... What's the difference between this and Ip Man fighting an AK?"

But the commotion in the nearby woods and the successive roars of the Raiders quickly made them realize that there were other people nearby.

The three poked their heads out from behind the tree and saw two men holding Double-barreled Shotguns, aiming at the Raiders and firing again.

Bang!

Bang!

The Raiders clearly had experience dealing with this kind of shotgun. They raised their hands to shield their faces and charged forward as they ran.

If shotgun pellets did not hit vital areas, they could not inflict fatal injuries on them.

The two men were clearly seasoned hunters as well. After firing two rounds each, they quickly retreated, reloading while circling around. Once they had reloaded, they fired another two shots.

Blood sprayed from the Raiders' bodies. Their thick skin kept the wounds from being fatal, but one Raider already had an injured leg. After the hunters repeatedly hit that leg, he dropped to one knee and lost the ability to move.

The other Raiders showed no fear at all. Instead, their roars became even fiercer.

Their large green feet pounded forward as they chased the two hunters, gradually closing the distance.

As long as they got close enough, one swing of a Wolf Tooth Club would crack the two humans' skulls open, then they could have an extra meal.

Thin Dog made a snap decision. "We have NPC helpers. Let's go! We'll flank the Raiders from behind!"

The three moved quickly.

Thin Dog took the spear he had just obtained from his back.

It was the dual-attribute spear Xiao Xiao had forged yesterday, and it had already been embedded with a Serrated Spike.

The weapon's attributes stretched down in a long list.

Piercing Radiation Stone Spear (Embedded Serrated Spike)

Quality: Fine

Physical Damage: 13–25

Physical to Pierce: 35%

Pierce Damage: 5–8

Radiation Damage: 2–7

15% of Physical Damage converted to Radiation Damage

3 Pierce Damage

9 Bleed Damage over 3 seconds

+12% Bleed Damage

Granted Skill: Armor Piercing Aura

Enhances your and your teammates' attacks, allowing them to pierce armor. Range: 10 meters. This skill must remain active to stay effective.

Activation lowers Energy Cap by 50 and consumes 1 Energy per second.

7 Pierce Damage

+25% Pierce Damage

As he picked up the weapon, an unfathomable Power Boost flowed into Thin Dog's body. He flicked the red bone spike embedded in the weapon's handle.

"Armor Piercing Aura!"

Thin Dog felt his mental energy being drawn into the weapon. Then, a pale yellow ripple flashed across it.

A faint glimmer of light covered the hands and weapons of all three of them.

At once, they felt an empowering force added to their hands.

"So this is what using a skill feels like?"

Under the aura's boost, the three of them's attack power surged sharply!

Thin Dog and Lin Tang each held a stone spear, while Ghost Face Demon Fox wielded a Wolf Tooth Club.

The three rushed toward the Raiders.

Their first target was the Raider whose leg had been crippled. He was kneeling on the ground and could not pursue anyone.

"Give us your life!"

The three attacked from behind. The injured Raider was slow to react and did not have time to block. All three weapons struck, blasting through his head and piercing his heart.

African Thin Dog landed a Golden Critical Hit! HP -322

Ghost Face Demon Fox landed a Golden Critical Hit! HP -261

Lin Tang landed a Critical Hit! HP -50

The Raider had already been at less than half health, with fewer than 500 HP remaining. The three killed him in a single strike.

Thin Dog and Ghost Face Demon Fox had especially aimed for the head, launching a pincer attack from both sides with piercing and blunt force.

Lin Tang had tried to pierce through the heart, but the stone spear's material was still lacking. It failed to penetrate and got stuck in the muscle, dealing only an ordinary critical hit.

You cooperatively killed a Raider. Experience +8.

The three had no time to check their experience. They pulled out their weapons and chased after the others again.

In fact, they could have used the chance while the hunters distracted the Raiders to rescue the captive in the camp, then search for items. There was no need to risk chasing five Raiders.

But!

They were players! There was no way they would fear ordinary monsters!

They should fight to their hearts' content!

Raiders?

Heh—just 1.5 portions of Biological Raw Materials.

"Kill!"