Andy asked Uncle Niwa to look after his dad, took the rations the neighbors had scraped together for him—mostly dried fish—and set off with conviction in his heart, heading for Darnassus!
How could someone as young as Andy be so confident? It was a question all the neighbors had asked themselves.
What did Andy have to back him up? His adult soul, of course, and his familiarity with World of Warcraft.
Only when he actually set out for Darnassus did he learn that there was always a bigger world beyond the one he knew—and just how much that damn World of Warcraft had simplified Azeroth!
In the game, there was only a purple portal between Rut'theran Village and the ridiculously huge World Tree, Teldrassil, followed by a little path leading to Darnassus.
But that was all bullshit! Every last bit of it! What portal? What little path? According to a neighbor who had once been to Darnassus, the journey from Rut'theran Village to the outskirts of Teldrassil would take someone with a little body like Andy's a full two days and two nights on foot!
Two days and two nights! Without food, water, or rest, for two whole days and nights! That was enough to kill him! But for his dad, Andy would keep going even if it took twenty days. The real problem wasn't the long journey. Traveling at night meant he could get lost or be attacked by nocturnal beasts!
All Andy had to rely on now was the experience from his previous life and that unreliable Monster Spirit.
"Spirit, which way should I go?" Andy asked inwardly, standing at a fork in the road.
"Straight ahead!" The Spirit's tone was always icy. "Can't you see that signpost?"
Andy looked up. A signpost that hadn't been maintained in who knew how long was tied to a tree at the crossroads. It hung crookedly, and the writing had been blurred by wind and rain.
"This counts as a signpost? You can't even read the writing!" Andy grumbled.
He could complain all he wanted, but Andy still obediently followed the Monster Spirit's directions. He knew this system, which seemed like a cheat, wouldn't let him down.
Andy walked for the entire morning. He had no idea how far he'd gone; the only thing he knew was that he could use the enormous canopy of Teldrassil as a guide, judging how much farther he had to go by how clearly he could see it.
After resting, Andy continued on his way. His useless passive skill, Beast Tracking, remained active the whole time. He knew that by the time he actually spotted a beast, it might be too late, but at least it gave him some peace of mind.
Whenever Andy got tired, he rested. Even during his breaks, he kept busy: besides eating, he practiced the Kick skill. By evening, he was still in the middle of nowhere. It looked like he'd have to spend the night in the wilderness. He just didn't know whether the beasts that hunted at night would be interested in a skinny little Elf like him.
While there was still some light, Andy hurried to gather dry branches. Once everything was ready, the sun had completely set and night had fallen. It was especially dark beneath the trees.
Andy quickly smeared fish oil on the branches and lit a bonfire. It would keep him warm and help ward off beasts. He roasted a few pieces of dried fish over the fire and began to enjoy his first dinner in the wilderness.
"I strongly recommend that the host spend the night in a tree!" The Monster Spirit offered its timely advice after Andy finished dinner.
"Up a tree?" Andy wondered. Why would he need to climb one?
The Monster Spirit seemed to read his mind. "Spending the night in a tree is just an extra precaution. Some beasts won't be afraid of your little fire, but fortunately, they can't climb trees."
After hearing that, Andy looked around at the trees. Every one of them was thick and sturdy. His little body couldn't even wrap its arms around a trunk, so how was he supposed to climb one? After looking around, he picked a suitable tree, spat into his palms twice, and began to struggle up.
Fortunately, Andy had been practicing that basic skill for the past few days, improving his coordination and agility. Even so, it took a tremendous effort to climb to the lowest branch. He tied himself to it with the grass rope he'd brought along. He didn't want to roll over in his sleep and fall to his death.
When the first ray of sunlight appeared on the horizon, Andy set off for Darnassus again. Since he traveled by day and rested at night, it would take him twice as long to get there. Fortunately, with the Monster Spirit's help, he'd made it through three nights without incident. If he walked a little faster, he could reach Darnassus by evening the next day. He could judge the distance by how much bigger and clearer Teldrassil's canopy looked.
In the morning, sunlight filtered through the branches and fell across Andy's face. He rubbed his eyes and woke up. Carefully, he climbed down the trunk. The fire on the ground had long since burned out, leaving only wisps of smoke.
Andy put out the fire completely and looked at Teldrassil's canopy in the distance. These past few days had been exhausting, but today he felt full of energy and confidence. After one more day of walking, he would reach Darnassus City and find the practitioners.
Andy gave himself a pep talk, turned toward Darnassus, and was about to set off. But the moment he turned around, a black shadow flashed before his eyes, accompanied by what sounded like a tiger or leopard's roar.
The sudden flash of the shadow dazzled Andy. He took a closer look—and nearly panicked. A beast with bared teeth and white stripes, looking like something between a tiger and a leopard, was growling at him.
"What is that?" Andy thought frantically. "Why didn't Beast Tracking sense it?"
"Sabers. Level-two beasts. They have the Shadowmeld skill, which lets them evade the host's Beast Tracking skill completely," the Monster Spirit explained in a flat tone.
"Save the explanation! Just tell me if I can take it!" Andy's face was slick with cold sweat as he roared inwardly.
"Given the host's current abilities, I'm afraid not," said the Monster Spirit. "And your chance of escaping is less than or equal to zero!"
"What the hell? Less than or equal to zero?" Andy began cursing inwardly. "You're basically telling me I'm going to die! You can't treat me like this!"
Andy cursed the creator old man's ancestors for eighteen generations, back and forth, over and over. He didn't care whether the old man even had ancestors. He hadn't even given Andy a powerful special move or some divine weapon.
"Then at least give me a suggestion! Am I really supposed to just stand here and wait to die?" Andy shouted inwardly.
The saber faced Andy and began circling him step by step, growling from time to time as though trying to intimidate him.
"Assessing. Calculating. Please wait patiently, host!" The Monster Spirit's words nearly drove Andy to suicide.
"Wait patiently? How am I supposed to wait? That beast is going to kill me!" As Andy spoke, the saber finally lost patience. It dug in with its hind legs, opened its mouth, and lunged at Andy's neck, its two enormous fangs bared.
"It's over! I'm doomed!" Andy cried, crouching down with his hands over his head.
"Roar!"
"Yow! Yow!"
"Huh?"
Andy didn't feel any pain. Instead, he heard two strange cries. He opened his eyes and nearly passed out. Good grief—wasn't the world trying to kill him? Across from the first saber stood another one. This one was even more muscular and fierce.
So the second saber had come to fight the first for its prey!
This—he might as well kill himself! Being fought over by two Sabers was a complete humiliation for Andy!
Before you continue