"Thanks. But speaking of which, did you come for something important this time? Why not stay a few more days? I've been working on a lot of new dishes lately..."
"There's no need to stay longer, but I did come to tell you something."
"Li Wei, ever since that cavalry squad was wiped out, the Orc King of the Misty Mountains has learned of your existence. He may very well seek revenge against you, so you'd best be careful when you act lately."
The Orc King...
The first person Li Wei thought of was Azog, but on second thought, that didn't seem right. He had never heard of Azog bearing the title of Orc King.
Then it had to be that guy. An enormous yet bloated, obese Orc appeared in Li Wei's mind.
The Orc King who lived in a cave?
"I understand. Thanks for the warning."
Rangers always came and went like the wind. Despite Li Wei's attempts to persuade him, he still couldn't keep him. In the end, Li Wei merely took him around the Territory and introduced the newly added things.
For instance, the Iron Golems.
Those hulking creatures stared expressionlessly at Falrodan, making his heart pound. Yet the Iron Golems merely scratched their heads, somehow conjured a little red flower, and handed it to Falrodan without showing any hostility.
It seemed the Iron Golems' friend-or-foe recognition function was fairly reliable.
"Thank you." Falrodan politely accepted the flower.
After making a round of the place, the Ranger did not linger and soon departed.
Not long afterward, Li Wei mounted his horse and galloped east along the main road.
It had to be said that traveling on horseback was in an entirely different league in terms of efficiency. Though this horse's top speed was only 11.5 m/s, it could keep running without stopping.
And it wasn't just the horse that could keep running. Li Wei did not need rest either.
Man and horse ran at full speed without pause for an entire day, reaching a landmark at an unbelievable pace: Last Bridge.
As he neared the river, Li Wei slowed his horse and crossed the stone bridge one step at a time, taking in the scenery on both sides.
The river reflected the setting sun, adding a vivid splash of color to the dusk.
This was the place.
"Troll Forest."
Li Wei unfolded his map.
A short distance northeast from here lay the dangerous Troll Forest.
It was called Troll Forest because it gathered a great many Trolls from the eastern Ettenmoors and the Misty Mountains.
There were far more than just three Trolls in this forest.
Li Wei did not know where the three Trolls who would capture Bilbo in the future lived, but that did not stop him from wanting to explore the place.
Finding them would be ideal—he could pad out his little treasury. If he failed, he could treat it as sightseeing.
Though the scenery here was truly nothing special.
Having made up his mind, Li Wei dug a large pit beside the bridge on the spot, temporarily stored his horse inside, and sealed the top.
Thanks to traveling by horse, Li Wei had barely consumed any food over the past two days. His supplies were now quite abundant.
After confirming that the horse would be reasonably safe here, Li Wei wasted no time and ran northeast.
The sunset vanished in an instant.
Night fell.
A faint breeze brushed past, unable to stir Li Wei in the slightest.
Rustle—
Li Wei pushed aside a patch of bushes and found a panicked wild rabbit inside. Once again, he left in disappointment.
He had been searching for half the night since entering the forest, yet he still had not found the slightest trace of a Troll.
If anyone saw him, they would surely think something was wrong with him.
Things normal passersby avoided at all costs were things Li Wei actively sought out—and he could not find them no matter what.
What, did they all hide because I came?
Suddenly, the bushes behind Li Wei stirred. A black shadow leaped out, raised the blade in its hand, and charged straight at Li Wei.
"Aha, look what I found—"
Swish—
In an instant, Li Wei drew his longsword, leaped up, and slashed backward.
Critical Hit!
"Gah—"
The sound abruptly stopped.
Li Wei looked at the corpse on the ground.
An Orc.
Li Wei immediately became vigilant. Those creatures were not the type to act alone. Orcs were like cockroaches—if one appeared, there had to be a whole swarm nearby.
Fortunately, this one had been cut down the instant it appeared. It presumably would not draw support from nearby.
However, once the smell of blood began to spread, this was destined to be an unsettled night.
"Awoo—"
The Wargs began howling. The sound was practically right beside his ears, making Li Wei's hair stand on end. He immediately opened his inventory and equipped his armor in an instant.
Rustle, rustle.
One Warg after another sprang out. The one at the front opened its blood-filled jaws and lunged directly at Li Wei.
One could imagine that if those jaws landed solidly, it would be no less powerful than taking a cleaver blow.
Bang!
Yet in the next moment, a wooden square shield reinforced with iron edges appeared. Caught off guard, the Warg that had charged hardest slammed headfirst into it. The shield did not budge, while the recoil left the Warg dizzy.
It was destined to have no time to recover. Seizing the opportunity, Li Wei brought his sword down hard on its head. The Warg let out a wail and collapsed, unable to rise again. That critical strike had cleaved away more than half its health bar.
The Wargs pounced one after another. Shield in hand, Li Wei fought as he retreated. While fending off the simultaneous attacks of seven or eight Wargs from all directions, he did not forget to finish off the Warg on the ground with another slash.
As long as the shield still had Unbreaking, these Wargs could barely harm Li Wei.
Clearly, their attacks lacked enough force to produce a "shield break" effect.
Bang!
Li Wei Blocked a Warg with his shield, then turned and slashed at another. He was so fast that even a nimble Warg could not evade him. But in that brief instant when he turned, a Warg immediately filled the opening behind him, opened its jaws, and viciously bit into his waist.
Li Wei felt as though his waist had been pricked by needles.
This attack had clearly been prepared for a long time, waiting for Li Wei to reveal an opening.
-1
But the damage was not high.
After all, it had bitten the thickest part of his armor.
However, Li Wei had nearly forgotten that Wargs were not his only enemies.
On a rock behind the Warg pack, an Orc quietly nocked an arrow and took aim.
Swish—
An arrow shot toward him.
Bang!
Li Wei felt his brain jolt.
The Orc archer revealed a savage, smug grin.
That arrow had struck Li Wei squarely in the head. It even seemed to have pierced through the silver-white iron helmet and embedded itself directly inside.
Headshot.
Yet what happened next frightened the Orc so badly that it nearly dropped its bow.
Li Wei calmly pulled the bloodied arrow from his head and gave the Orc archer's position a deep look.
-4
That arrow had dealt heavy damage. Without the protection of Iron Armor, it would have taken more than half of Li Wei's life.
But it was useless.
His hunger slowly decreased while his health rapidly rose. In practically the blink of an eye, his health bar was full again.
Ignoring the archer, Li Wei raised his longsword and charged into the Wargs once more. He fought as he advanced, blood spraying all the way. The Orc watched in shock as so many Wargs failed to handle a single human.
The Wargs had clearly bitten him, and he had clearly been injured—so why wouldn't he die?!
The archer tried to launch another sneak attack, but every arrow was blocked by that massive shield. Li Wei would rather take a bite from a Warg than leave himself open to the archer's arrows.
It did not take long.
Chewing on beef jerky and stepping over a ground full of Warg corpses, Li Wei charged toward the archer's position.
Swish!
One slash took its head.
Before you continue