The Diamond Behemoth Boss chased Xiao Fan with its claws bared, but it couldn't even touch a hair on his head.
Garfield Without Fat gaped, unable to believe his eyes.
"Brother Chen is so fast!"
In the battles over the past few days, Xiao Fan had only given orders, activated skills, and scouted monsters. He had never joined the fight like he did today.
Only now did Garfield Without Fat and the others realize just how high his personal stats were.
"Brother Chen really is something else. So he didn't fight before because he didn't want to, not because he couldn't."
The same thought flashed through all their minds: He was unbelievably strong!
As soon as his skill's cooldown ended, Xiao Fan activated it again. Han the Person and the other three, who had been ready and waiting, immediately joined the fight.
When the skill effect ended, Xiao Fan drew the Boss's aggro. Once the skill was ready again, the four joined the fight.
Half an hour later, the Diamond Behemoth Boss's last bit of HP was depleted, and its massive body crashed to the ground.
"Phew!"
Everyone let out a sigh of relief.
Congratulations! Your team has defeated the level-four Wild Boss, the Diamond Behemoth. Each team member has received an additional 40 Core Power as a Boss reward.
Killing a level-four Fierce Beast Boss had been a close call, but the rewards were truly generous.
Forty Core Power—that was what they used to earn in a whole day on the outskirts of the Northwest Forest.
"Looks like killing Bosses is still the best way to earn Core Power."
Xiao Fan pondered.
The sky was growing dark, and none of them dared to stay out in the wild for long. After resting for a while, they headed back.
In Cloud Sea, the rewards for killing Fierce Beasts increased exponentially with their level.
Killing a level-four Diamond Behemoth gave them 16 Core Power, while the Diamond Behemoth Boss gave them 64.
Without counting the additional Core Power from the Boss, their team had earned a staggering 432 Core Power in a single day.
Each team member received 86, while Xiao Fan received 88. With the extra reward included, they had earned a total of 126 Core Power that day.
It was something they never would have dared to dream of before!
"Following Brother Chen was definitely the right choice!" Garfield Without Fat and the other three thought to themselves.
Xiao Fan glanced at his character page.
ID: Jiu Chen Level: 3 (0/1000) HP: 360/360 MP: 1890/2724 (+2379) Strength: 10 Intelligence: 14 Spirit: 14 Agility: 22 Constitution: 20 Trait: Saint Skills: Halo of the Saint, Gift of the Saint 3 Equipment: None Core Power: 596
Today, he had spent 100 Core Power to buy 10 Agility and 10 Constitution, then received 128 Core Power from his share.
"If nothing unexpected happens, I'll reach level four in another four days."
Xiao Fan calculated silently.
Over the next few days, Xiao Fan led his team into the inner reaches of the Southwest Forest every day.
Just as he had expected, Wild Bosses appeared in the forest around dusk.
Thanks to their previous experience, the team was no longer as afraid of the Diamond Behemoth Boss.
For several days in a row, they killed the Diamond Behemoth Boss with ease.
On the fourth day, Xiao Fan finally had enough Core Power to level up.
Without hesitation, he spent 1,000 Core Power to buy 1,000 experience.
ID: Jiu Chen Level: 4 (0/10000) HP: 460/460 MP: 3324/3324 (+2869) Strength: 10 Intelligence: 14 Spirit: 14 Agility: 22 Constitution: 20 Trait: Saint Skills: Halo of the Saint, Gift of the Saint 3 Equipment: None Core Power: 86
The system had also awarded him 5 Free Attribute Points for leveling up, but he hadn't used them yet.
Looking at the mere 86 Core Power he had left, Xiao Fan felt a pang of disappointment.
Since entering Cloud Sea, he had never had so little Core Power!
He felt only half as secure as before.
Reaching level five required a full 10,000 Core Power. At a rate of 100 a day, it would take him 100 days to save up enough.
Too slow. It was still far too slow!
"Besides hunting Bosses, is there no faster way to earn Core Power?"
Xiao Fan wondered to himself. He still knew far too little about Cloud Sea!
There was no helping it. His family circumstances meant he could only figure the game out on his own.
Fortunately, his imagination surpassed that of anyone else on this planet. He could create skills beyond people's wildest imaginings.
At the same time, he needed time to grow stronger.
It was Xiao Fan's turn to patrol that night. His partner had originally been Purple Charm, but after she met with disaster, he was left alone.
"Brother Chen, I'll patrol with you tonight."
"Me too."
"Brother Chen, we'll all keep you company."
Han the Person and the other three volunteered to stay.
Xiao Fan considered it for a moment. He was about to choose one of them to patrol with him when a voice came from behind.
"You should all go rest. I'll patrol with him tonight."
Han the Person and the others turned around, surprised to find that Wind Snow Traveler was the one who had spoken.
Wind Snow Traveler approached slowly, his White Great Axe resting across his shoulder.
"No need, Village Chief. We can't trouble you. We'll keep Brother Chen company," Han the Person said with a somewhat awkward smile.
Although Wind Snow Traveler was also in Novice Village, he was already level ten. In the eyes of level-three rookies like Han the Person and the others, he was practically a god.
"That's right, Village Chief. Surely you can't be bothered over something as trivial as patrolling?" Garfield Without Fat said, rubbing his hands.
Wind Snow Traveler ignored the two of them and looked straight at Xiao Fan.
Xiao Fan understood at once that Wind Snow Traveler had something to say to him.
"Go back and rest. We still have hunting to do tomorrow."
Since Xiao Fan had said so, Han the Person and the others had no choice but to leave.
"Village Chief, did you need something?"
Xiao Fan looked at Wind Snow Traveler. In truth, he had been waiting for Wind Snow Traveler to approach him.
As the Village Chief of Zone 18 in Novice Village, Wind Snow Traveler knew far more about Zone 18 and Cloud Sea than Xiao Fan did. Perhaps he could tell him something he didn't already know.
Besides, Xiao Fan had always felt that something about Zone 18 was strange.
He had always heard that Zone 18 had poor resources, but after arriving, he had found that wasn't the case. There were places to hunt Magic Beasts at every level, the monsters' stats were within a manageable range, and leveling up wasn't as difficult as he had imagined.
Apart from the village's poor facilities, Xiao Fan didn't think the place was as frightening as people made it out to be.
What was going on?
Wind Snow Traveler said nothing. He simply planted his axe in front of him, rested both hands on it, and gazed at Xiao Fan with admiration. Emotions Xiao Fan couldn't understand flickered in his eyes.
"Village Chief?" Xiao Fan asked, at a loss.
"Sit."
Wind Snow Traveler gestured toward the ground beneath the streetlamp at the village entrance.
When he had first noticed that Xiao Fan's entire team had reached level three, he had been shocked, but hadn't thought of telling them about Zone 18. That was until today, when he discovered that Xiao Fan had reached level four!
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