What Do You Mean, Stealing? This Is Called Robbery!

The battle had gone on for who knew how long.

The battle axe in Mad Axe's hand was no longer as fierce as before. Every swing was now clearly sluggish.

Sweat mixed with blood streamed down his scar-covered face, dripping onto the shattered bones littering the ground.

"Damn it! Why are there still so many?!"

He panted heavily, kicked away an Elite Skeleton that lunged at him, then barely dodged a Bone Arrow fired from the shadows.

Meanwhile, Su Li, the culprit behind it all, was hiding behind a Stone Pillar, leisurely watching the live show.

And that wasn't all. He had also done something utterly shameless.

Whenever Mad Axe struggled to bring a high-level Elite Skeleton down to critical health but had no time to finish it off, Su Li would dart out of the shadows like a ghost.

"Your experience is pretty good, but it'll be mine in the next second!"

"Pfft!" The Corrupted Iron Sword landed a precise finishing blow, taking away the last sliver of health.

[Defeated Lv7 Elite Heavy Armored Skeleton]

[Experience +50 (560/800)]

[Strength +1 (15 → 16)]

"Nice!" Su Li happily watched his experience bar and Strength stat soar.

"This is what real Game Boosting looks like! This is called teaming up with the enemy to beat up my teammate! Thanks for your hard work, Big Brother Mad Axe."

Although Mad Axe hadn't seen Su Li's little tricks, the feeling that something was wrong had grown stronger and stronger.

"No, the number of these skeletons is absurd! It feels like they can never be killed!"

His sharp instincts told him that if he didn't retreat now, he would really die here.

"Lainer! Stop playing dead! Stay close to me! Retreat!"

Mad Axe roared and squeezed out the last of his Battle Qi, forcibly tearing open a path through the dense sea of skeletons.

The two fought as they retreated, moving miserably toward the cave entrance.

Seeing this, Su Li did not rush to pursue them. Like a patient hunter, he trailed behind at an unhurried pace.

His gaze was locked firmly on the bulging Leather Backpack on Mad Axe's back.

"If I'm not mistaken, the Golden Dragon Claw should be in there. And as an experienced adventurer, he must have plenty of other good stuff in that bag."

[Mission Triggered: What Do You Mean, Stealing? This Is Called Robbery!]

[Description: As skeletons with principles, we do not steal. We merely help these poor adventurers lighten their loads.]

[Objective: Successfully obtain Mad Axe's backpack. Reward: Agility +1, Experience +50]

"Well, system, you really get me." Su Li grinned with his jawbone, letting out a silent laugh.

"Since you've already given me the mission, this is like a pillow arriving just as I got sleepy. This bag is mine!"

Soon, the two retreated near the cave entrance.

"Huff... huff..." Mad Axe gripped his battle axe and gasped for breath. It was obvious that his stamina was nearing its limit.

It had to be said, this Big Guy was truly tough. After being surrounded and attacked by so many skeletons, he only looked somewhat exhausted and had no fatal wounds on him.

"NPC Health Bars really are ridiculously thick." Su Li clicked his tongue inwardly.

Just then, Lainer, who had been cowering in the back, suddenly screamed:

"B-Big Brother! Look at the entrance!!" Mad Axe looked in the direction of his voice, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

The once-clean ground at the cave entrance was now covered in a layer of thick Dark Red liquid.

"Damn it! Why has this place been sealed off too?!" Mad Axe's heart sank.

There was a blockade ahead, pursuers behind them, his stamina was exhausted, and he had no potions on him...

In the face of despair, the ugliest side of human nature was exposed without restraint.

Mad Axe's vicious eyes glanced at the trembling Lainer beside him.

"If that's the case, then I'll have to sacrifice this trash. I can use his body to clear a path, or use him as bait to lure the monsters away..."

Just as he was figuring out how to make the most of Lainer's useless life.

As if sensing something, Lainer suddenly pointed toward a corner deep in the cave and shouted:

"B-Big Brother! Look at that skeleton!!"

"Which skeleton? They all look the same!" Mad Axe roared irritably.

"The especially short one! I feel like it looks familiar!"

Following Lainer's trembling finger, Mad Axe saw Su Li peeking out from behind a Stone Pillar.

Su Li's two red Soulfires were especially conspicuous in the darkness.

Su Li: "..."

"Damn it! You're the short one! Your whole family is short! That's concentrated essence, understand!"

Though he had been discovered, Su Li was not flustered in the slightest.

Mad Axe narrowed his eyes.

"Indeed, this skeleton feels very different. It's too lively, and those red Soulfires..."

Following the principle of killing by mistake rather than letting anything go, Mad Axe raised his last breath of strength and swung his battle axe, about to throw it at Su Li.

However, Su Li was even faster than him.

"Whoosh!" With a sliding tackle followed by a roll, Su Li's small figure instantly vanished into the densely packed skeleton crowd around him.

"Damn it! Slippery as an eel!"

His disappearance only made Mad Axe more certain that something was wrong. That undead creature was definitely not ordinary!

"We have to retreat first! We'll go back, find the captain, and bring people to flatten this place!"

Mad Axe roared as a dazzling layer of Battle Qi light erupted from his body.

"Whirlwind Slash!!"

"Boom—!!" The battle axe swept in a circle with a violent wave of force, instantly shattering more than a dozen skeletons that had surrounded him and forcibly clearing out an empty area.

But this was already the end of his strength. After using that move, Mad Axe's legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to his knees.

"Huff... huff... Go!" He staggered toward the cave entrance, just about to step into the Crimson Corruption.

"Lainer! Get over here! Carry me across!"

Mad Axe shouted without looking back, intending to use Lainer as a stepping stone at the last moment.

However, what answered him was not obedience, but a sharp whistle through the air.

"Bang!!" A dull, massive impact rang out.

Mad Axe only felt as though the back of his head had been smashed by a huge hammer. His vision instantly went black, and he crashed heavily into the Crimson Corruption.

"Sizzle, sizzle..." The sound of Crimson Corruption touching flesh made one's teeth ache.

"Urgh..." Mad Axe let out a pained groan.

Behind him, Lainer held a Rusty War Hammer he had picked up from a Skeleton Soldier, his face twisted with vicious delight.

"Haha! You bastard! I knew you had no strength left! You still wanted to use me as a stepping stone? Dream on!"

Lainer spat as he watched Mad Axe convulse in the poisonous liquid.

"I could overlook you bullying me before, but you still wanted to sell me out at a time like this? Go to hell!"

After saying that, he did not strike again. Instead, he took the chance to rip the backpack off Mad Axe's back.

"This belongs to me now! With this, I can definitely trade it for a fortune in the city!" Lainer slung the bag over his back and turned to run outside.

Su Li's eyes lit up in the shadows.

"What a chance! When dogs bite each other, both get covered in fur, but in the end Uncle Su still profits!"

The instant Lainer passed the cave entrance, Su Li sprang from the shadows at the side like a cheetah poised to strike.

The Corrupted Iron Sword in his hand turned into a flash of cold light.

"Slash!" The blade precisely cut through the backpack strap on Lainer's shoulder.

"Snap!" The strap broke.

Su Li reacted quickly and grabbed the falling backpack. With a thought, it vanished.

[Obtained Item: Adventurer Mad Axe's Backpack. Stored in System Space.]

Lainer suddenly felt his back grow lighter. When he turned around, he met Su Li's teasing red Soulfires.

"So it was you!! You damned little skeleton! Give me back the bag!!"

Lainer roared furiously, just about to charge over and fight for his life.

But from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of more and more Skeleton Soldiers gathering around them, as well as Mad Axe lying in the Corruption Pool. Then, something suddenly moved!

"Lainer...!!!" A roar rose like it had come from hell.

Mad Axe was not dead yet!

Red smoke rose from his entire body, and his skin had been corroded into rotting flesh, but overwhelming killing intent burned in his bloodshot eyes.

He staggered out of the Corruption Pool and lunged at Lainer like a vicious ghost.

"Mommy!!"

Lainer was scared out of his wits. How could he still care about any bag? He scrambled out of the cave and vanished into the forest.

"Lainer!! I'm going to kill you!!"

Mad Axe roared as he chased after him. His terrifying aura kept even the surrounding skeletons from approaching.

Watching this absurd scene, Su Li could not help but suck in a breath of cold air.

"He's still not dead? His vitality is way too tenacious, isn't it? He's practically an unkillable cockroach!"

He had originally wanted to go over and finish Mad Axe off for an easy gain, but seeing his murderous appearance, Su Li sensibly chose to avoid the edge for now.

"Forget it. Let those two love and kill each other first. Anyway, the bag is already mine."

[Congratulations, mission completed: What Do You Mean, Stealing? This Is Called Robbery!]

[Reward obtained: Agility +1 (9 → 10), Experience +50 (710/800)]

Su Li looked at the system prompt, feeling delighted.

"My Agility is over ten! And my experience bar is almost full too."

"Next, let's see what good stuff is inside this bag."

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