Over in Junying Village.
With the complete video demonstrating Taijutsu: Eight Extremes Collapse, the players found learning much easier. In less than an hour, almost everyone had learned this military combat Taijutsu.
Their movements were still rough, but they had already grasped the essentials of several of its more lethal moves.
"I've got both Taijutsu: Eight Extremes Collapse and chakra now. I'm invincible!"
"Charge! Big Wolf, here I come!"
Before anyone could react, a figure shot past, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"What just flew past me?" Dai Xiaomei looked utterly baffled.
"Looked like a big black rat?"
"Wait... aren't we missing someone? What's his name again..."
One Sword Opens Heaven answered calmly, "I think his ID is Emperor of Sinking!"
"Right, right, him! The expert who was the first to complete a daily quest and get chakra!"
"Did he go off to kill monsters?"
"Come on, let's follow him and take a look. Maybe we can pick up some easy loot while the expert kills monsters."
Inside the forest.
Facing a pack of wolves nearly three meters tall, Emperor of Sinking's slight figure looked especially tiny.
Having just learned the military combat Taijutsu: Eight Extremes Collapse, he showed not a trace of fear. Instead, his eyes brimmed with excitement. "These are all walking fortunes! Eighty contribution points each means eight hundred for ten."
There are about twenty wolves in this pack. If I kill them all, I'll be one of the richest big shots among the Junying Ninja.
By now, Emperor of Sinking's eyes were shining. He gazed at the wolves with more passion than he would at his first love.
But after being brutally killed last time, he knew how dangerous the wolves were. He didn't dare rush up and provoke them, so he hid in the bushes and searched for the weakest member of the pack.
Soon, he found his target: a scrawny little wolf lingering at the edge.
"Big or small, they're all worth eighty contribution points. I'll kill you first, little guy!"
Once he had picked his target, he wasted no more time. He rapidly circulated the chakra inside his body, raised his fist, and slid straight toward the little wolf's feet.
Before coming, he had looked up some information and learned that a wolf's weak points were its waist and head.
Though this wolf was small, it was still over two meters tall. Reaching its head would be too difficult, so he aimed for its waist.
"I'll slide under its feet first, then run up its thigh while it's distracted. After that, I'll jump and hit it with everything I've got, smash its kidneys, and this little wolf will be done for!"
"Hehe, victory's right in front of me. Let's do this!"
Emperor of Sinking slid over and clung tightly to the little wolf's thigh. Gathering all his strength into his left hand, he used the agility of Eight Extremes Collapse to leap toward its waist and abdomen.
Bang!
A tremendous crash rang through the entire forest.
Following the movements he had planned, Emperor of Sinking successfully landed a hit on the little wolf.
Awooo!
Aah!
A scream and a howl rang out at the same time.
Although Emperor of Sinking had put all his strength into that punch, the wolf's hide was as hard as iron. His all-out strike hadn't hurt it in the slightest.
Instead, the impact shattered Emperor of Sinking's hand. Fortunately, pain in the game was set to only ten percent, or he would have died from the pain alone.
"Fuck! I'm not buying this bullshit! If other people can fight them, so can I!"
Emperor of Sinking spat out a mouthful of blood. Ignoring his shattered left hand, he rallied for another attack.
Awooo!
The little wolf gave a contemptuous howl and took a step back with its mountainlike body, making the entire forest tremble.
The commotion had already drawn the other wolves' attention. Someone was bullying one of their own, and the enraged pack raced toward him.
Emperor of Sinking hadn't expected the little wolf to move so suddenly. With his target abruptly gone, he instantly lost his balance and fell headfirst to the ground.
Bang!
His fall gouged a huge crater in the ground, sending clouds of dust billowing everywhere.
Watching the scene from behind the scenes through an energy orb, Ye Chen was amused by the ridiculous plight of this clown, Emperor of Sinking!
Fools really did have all the fun. These villagers brought him not just wealth, but laughter too!
"Ptooey!"
Emperor of Sinking finally struggled out of the bushes and spat out a mouthful of oddly flavored dirt, looking utterly bedraggled.
Yet rather than back down, he only grew more determined!
"Fuck! I'm not buying this bullshit today! There's no way I can't kill your ass!"
With a few blades of fresh green grass sticking out of his hair, he raised his fist and charged at the little wolf again.
Everyone had to admire his stubborn refusal to admit defeat.
But what happened the next second was truly gruesome...
Emperor of Sinking surged with fury and struck a perfect pose, ready to jump.
But before his feet could even leave the ground, the rapidly converging wolves seized his ankle. With a whip of a wolf's head, his body, just about to take flight, was slammed viciously into the ground again.
"Fuck, don't bite my underwear!!!"
Screams and howls pierced their ears.
The wolves swarmed him, and an intact person quickly vanished. Before long, only a pool of blood remained on the ground.
"Hah..."
The players who had just witnessed the scene all sucked in a sharp breath. Some of those with weaker constitutions were already clutching tree trunks and vomiting, hurriedly retreating to a safe distance.
Even the normally fearless Dai Xiaomei was stunned. "This... isn't this a little too bloody?"
"He was torn apart and eaten by wolves, and it looked so real!"
"That was too horrific. I can't watch. I can't watch..."
Even One Sword Opens Heaven, the expert who had remained calm throughout, spoke in a daze. "I've played so many games, but this is the first one that's truly shocked me!"
"If I hadn't been playing the game myself, I would've believed it even if someone told me that was real footage."
"Can scenes this realistic and this bloody even get approved?"
"Who knows?"
The players all shook their heads. Since it was a game, after all, they soon recovered.
"Who cares? It's only fun if it's realistic. But Emperor of Sinking's death was way too gruesome!"
"Amen. May you have a good next life and come back to fight again!"
The players pressed their palms together and observed a moment of silence for this brave soul.
At the same time, they sighed in despair:
"The expert taught us how, but we still can't do it!"
"If even a basic monster in the starting village is this hard to kill, how the hell are we supposed to play?"
"Let's just go back to grinding daily quests and buy more chakra. We can come back once we're stronger!"
"We've got plenty of time anyway, and we can't kill the monsters. Why don't we put up a gravestone for our brave Emperor of Sinking to pass the time?"
By the time Emperor of Sinking emerged from the Resurrection Hall, seething with anger, the players had already erected his gravestone.
Someone had even risked retrieving the clothes the wolves had torn off him, making a fairly convincing grave for his belongings.
The sight moved Emperor of Sinking to tears, though his expression looked rather strained no matter how they looked at it.
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