Dropped Items

Clear Peak Longsword · Spirit Artifact: A weapon passed down in Ancient Pool Village for over a hundred years. Though its surface was pitted and battered, it could grant its wielder an unending stream of strength. The longer the battle lasted, the greater the boost, up to a maximum of 20 Strength.

Lin Yi's eyes lit up. A Spirit Artifact?

And one that grew stronger the longer it fought.

What a great item!

Gu Man patted Lin Yi and urged, "Kid, stop dawdling. Hurry up and finish off this filthy thing!"

"I'm killing it?"

Perhaps knowing Lin Yi was new to the village, Gu Man explained further, "You kill it. You're a Newborn, and good stuff can drop after you kill it."

Understanding, Lin Yi nodded and looked at the Ghost Fiend lying on the ground and howling in pain.

This was the thing that had chased him relentlessly earlier and nearly eaten him.

"Roar!"

Sensing Lin Yi's killing intent, the Ghost Fiend snarled at him, baring its bloody fangs.

But now, the hunter and prey had switched places.

"Fuck you. You still dare glare at me?"

Lin Yi decisively gripped the Clear Peak Long Sword with both hands and viciously plunged it into the Ghost Fiend's mouth, shutting it up for good.

"Ding! You killed a level 8 Ghost Fiend and gained 60 Experience Points!"

Then, the Ghost Fiend's body transformed into light and vanished, leaving behind two items.

Ghost Demon Fang · Green: A rare material that could be crafted into a Spirit Artifact by a highly skilled craftsman.

Low-grade Demonic Blood · White: An item dropped by low-grade Monsters. It contained violent, chaotic demonic power and had a wide range of uses.

"Senior Gu, these two items..."

"Don't call me Senior. Call me Captain. You're not bad, kid. You acted decisively just now and have some guts."

Gu Man stepped forward and picked up the two Drops left by the Ghost Fiend.

"Your luck isn't bad. A Green Quality material dropped. Although you didn't contribute much, the rules say you get a share. Consider yourself lucky—the Monster Blood is yours."

After saying that, he nodded in satisfaction and casually tossed the Low-grade Demon Blood to Lin Yi.

"Thank you, Captain Gu."

Naturally, Lin Yi had no objections and quickly put away the Low-grade Demon Blood.

The Low-grade Demon Blood was a transparent red crystal about the size of an egg. When he brought it close to his nose, he could faintly smell a foul stench coming from it.

Lin Yi examined it briefly before placing it in his backpack.

He had no idea what it was used for, but since Gu Man had said he was getting a bargain, it probably was not complete junk.

Just then, a voice came from afar.

"Captain, I'm here! I came to help! Please don't kill it yet!"

A fat man in leather armor came running from the village. He was fairly quick and soon arrived before Lin Yi and the others.

Lin Yi narrowed his eyes. Judging from his appearance, this fat man seemed to be a player.

When the fat man saw the bloodstains left on the ground, disappointment immediately filled his face.

He looked at Gu Man, then swept a glance over Lin Yi. "Damn it, I was still too late. Captain, why didn't you wait for me?"

"Wait for my ass. I told you to come earlier, but you slack off every damn day. If our team didn't need a Newborn, I'd have kicked you out long ago."

Gu Man cursed at him, then said to Lin Yi, "Kid, work hard. Once you reach level 5, come find me. If you pass the test, I can take you in. You should know that in Ancient Pool Village, the Militia Team is the most suitable place for Newborns like you."

"Thank you, Captain!"

"Mm. I'm leaving!"

With that, Gu Man picked up his Clear Peak Long Sword, waved his hand, and departed.

The fat man, however, did not leave with Gu Man. Instead, he looked at Lin Yi and asked, "Brother, you're new, right? When did you enter the game? Also, what dropped just now?"

Lin Yi glanced at the fat man without answering.

The fat man persisted reluctantly. "Brother, don't be like that. We're both players—we should help each other out. Tell me what dropped just now, and I'll tell you some information you want to know."

Lin Yi still shook his head. "Not interested."

"Come on, that's no fun. There aren't many players in Ancient Pool Village. Keep acting like this, and be careful you don't get isolated."

The fat man wanted to continue threatening him, but Lin Yi had no intention of paying him any attention. His figure flickered, and he logged off and left.

"Fuck, he left so decisively..."

The fat man cursed. Remembering that today's patrol was not yet complete, he could only leave as well.

Lin Yi's figure appeared in his apartment room in the real world.

He clenched his fist, and his brows rose.

Just as he had guessed, his strength had increased by several points.

Clearly, it was related to the talent he had solidified.

It seemed that abilities gained in the game could be brought into reality.

However, items from the game apparently could not be brought out.

But thinking of the fat player he had met earlier, Lin Yi frowned.

If this game could grant supernatural power, then even players from Earth were in a competitive relationship.

Perhaps in the game, he would need to be wary not only of monsters, but of other players as well.

"This game doesn't let you alter your face. Looks like I need to get a mask in the game. It'd be bad if someone remembered my face and found out who I am in real life."

At that moment, Lin Yi thought of many things.

After a long while, Lin Yi logged in again and arrived at Ancient Pool Village.

There was no trace of the fat player nearby. Lin Yi looked around, and there were not many villagers in the area either.

Perhaps news of the Ghost Fiend attack earlier had spread.

After thinking it over, Lin Yi decided to first head to the west side of the village and find the woodcutter who knew external martial arts, the one Village Elder Gu He had mentioned.

Other than a small piece of Wild Boar meat and the Low-grade Demon Blood, he had nothing else on him.

If he wanted to survive in the village, he truly needed a job and needed to learn more about this world.

Quite a few villagers lived on the western side of Ancient Pool Village. Although it was afternoon, many villagers were still coming and going, busy at work.

After asking around, Lin Yi quickly found the woodcutter Gu He had mentioned.

There were many woodcutters in Ancient Pool Village, but only one was the strongest and knew external martial arts. His name was Gu Yongqiang.

It was said that this woodcutter had once competed for the position of captain of the Militia Team. However, because his right leg was injured, he could no longer fight and could only make a living by chopping wood.

After learning why Lin Yi had come, Gu Yongqiang did not test him like Butcher Li had. Instead, he directly selected a rusty woodcutting knife from the back room and tossed it to Lin Yi.

"There's a small grove three hundred meters behind the house. Chop me a bundle of deadwood, and I'll give you ten Copper Coins. I only need three bundles today."

At that moment, the System issued a notification. "Ding! Gu Yongqiang of Ancient Pool Village has issued you a daily quest. Submit deadwood to receive a Silver Coin Reward."

Lin Yi nodded. This world finally felt like a game, with quests he could accept.

But this quest only offered a coin reward and no experience reward?

With that question in mind, Lin Yi said, "Thank you, Brother Gu. Other than deadwood, do you need anything else?"

Gu Yongqiang shook his head. "You can't get what I need. Go on. It's getting late, and chopping wood isn't easy for a Newborn."

"Alright."

Lin Yi did not ask further. He picked up the rusty woodcutting knife and headed toward the small grove behind the house.

It was called a small grove, but it was actually a dark little hillside thick with vegetation.

Honestly, if he had not seen other villagers chopping wood there, Lin Yi would not have dared enter the dense woods alone.

After all, the Ghost Fiend attack from not long ago was still fresh in his mind.

If there were similar monsters in these woods, he would truly be courting death.

Although there were many trees on the slope, there was not much deadwood suitable for firewood. Lin Yi began searching for dry branches, using the woodcutting knife to chop down dead trees whenever he encountered them.

Time passed quickly. After about an hour, Lin Yi, drenched in sweat, had barely managed to gather one bundle of deadwood.

After carrying the bundle back to Gu Yongqiang's home, Lin Yi finally received ten Copper Coins.

The Copper Coins in this world resembled those of ancient China: round bronze coins with square holes in the center.

Seeing that his Satiety had fallen below 60, Lin Yi did not rush back to chop more wood. Instead, he took out the Wild Boar meat from his backpack and ate it.

As he ate, Lin Yi spoke with Gu Yongqiang.

From his inquiries, he learned that Copper Coins had limited purchasing power in Ancient Pool Village. An ordinary flatbread cost three Copper Coins. Well Water was free, but he had to fetch it himself from the village entrance.

Lin Yi could not help shaking his head. Although he had earned ten Copper Coins, his Satiety was dropping quickly too.

After accounting for food and drink, the Copper Coins he earned would probably only be enough to keep himself fed.

After finishing all the Wild Boar meat and resting for quite a while, Lin Yi prepared to chop wood again.

At that moment, Gu Yongqiang reminded him, "Don't go chop wood. It's almost dusk, and the woods aren't safe. If you want to chop wood next time, come earlier."

"Not safe? Brother Gu, could there be monsters in the woods?"

Gu Yongqiang shook his head. "I don't know. Any kind of monster could appear. The later it gets, the easier it is to encounter demons, fiends, and ghosts."

"Brother Gu, then what places in the village are safe?"

Hearing this, Gu Yongqiang gave a cold laugh. "Safe? There are no safe places in this world. Perhaps one morning, when we wake up, Ancient Pool Village will have been razed to the ground by some monster..."