Volume One, Chapter 20: The Three-Headed Owl

After finishing the harvest tally, Lin Xuan led everyone back to Lin Family Village without encountering any danger along the way.

When Lin Xuan and his group arrived at the village entrance, Huang Sheng was patrolling with a villager. This arrangement had been made by Lin Xuan before setting out, as Huang Sheng was the strongest warrior among the villagers, so he entrusted him with the patrol duty, feeling quite reassured.

After greeting Huang Sheng, Lin Xuan took out the blueprint for the city wall and immediately erected a wall at the village entrance.

Then, holding two blueprints for the basic iron ore veins, he went to a vacant spot behind the village chief’s hall.

“I wonder how many units of iron ore these two basic veins can produce daily,” he mused.

[Basic Iron Ore Vein Blueprint]: Costs five units of metal to construct. Once built, a randomly generated iron vein will appear within the territory, producing 100 to 200 units of iron ore daily.

After reviewing the information, Lin Xuan placed the two blueprints on the vacant ground.

A few minutes later, as the light faded, two entrances leading deep underground appeared on the spot. Lin Xuan stepped forward to inspect and found that the openings were not very large, each with a ladder descending below.

Wanting to see what lay beneath, he peered down but it was pitch dark, and he could see nothing.

Lin Xuan then checked the new data that appeared on his virtual panel.

[Basic Iron Ore Vein]: Can accommodate up to three villagers mining simultaneously, yielding 196 units of iron ore daily.

...

[Basic Iron Ore Vein]: Can accommodate up to three villagers mining simultaneously, yielding 192 units of iron ore daily.

Together, these two veins could produce over three hundred, nearly four hundred units of iron ore per day, which greatly pleased Lin Xuan.

He then gathered six villagers, divided them into two groups of three, and sent them down the mines.

Afterward, Lin Xuan went to the blacksmith’s shop and handed Wang Yan the forging blueprints for the common-grade iron sword and longbow.

Having finished these tasks, Lin Xuan returned to the village chief’s hall and lay down on a bed. After some thought, he opened the regional chat channel, casually chatting to pass the time.

With over five million copper coins in hand, Lin Xuan was now simply waiting for the wandering merchant to arrive the next day.

However, unknown to Lin Xuan, the mysterious being who had transported them to this otherworld had no intention of letting the lords pass a peaceful night.

The moon rose above the starry sea as night fell, countless stars twinkling in the sky. Lin Xuan gazed at the bright moonlight streaming into the village chief’s hall and sat up on the bed.

Leaving the hall, he headed straight toward the village’s “canteen” to have dinner.

But just as he was about to reach the canteen, a sudden chill swept over his back, accompanied by a sharp slicing sound, causing the hairs on Lin Xuan’s body to stand on end.

“Danger!”

Instinctively, Lin Xuan dove to the right as silver-white feather blades shot toward where he had just been standing.

Turning back, Lin Xuan gasped in shock.

If he had been a second later, he would have been struck!

Damn it! Who’s there!?

Steadying himself, Lin Xuan looked up at the night sky.

Under the dim moonlight, a massive silver-white figure came into view. It was a giant silver bird, flapping its enormous wings with a swaying motion in the air.

The bird’s truck-sized bulk did not astonish Lin Xuan, but he widened his eyes in disbelief.

For this giant bird bore three heads—three cat-like heads! Though each head was distinct, all three exuded a fierce and malevolent aura.

[Three-Headed Cat Owl]: Spirit-grade Beast

[Combat Power]: 104

[Talent]: Three Heads, Three Lives (Each head represents one life; as long as one head remains, the Three-Headed Cat Owl cannot die.)

[Skill 1]: Meteor Blades (Increases combat power by 2 for ten minutes after activation and summons eighteen feather blades, each dealing damage equal to 10% of combat power. Cooldown: 30 minutes)

[Skill 2]: Sky-Rending Claw (Next three claw strikes gain +1 combat power after activation. Cooldown: 3 hours)

[Skill 3]: Triple Spirit Protection (Summons three beast souls upon activation; each soul consumed permanently increases combat power by 1. One-time skill)

As Lin Xuan saw the giant bird, its details also appeared before his eyes.

A beast... a spirit beast!

Lin Xuan was puzzled. What was a spirit beast? Seeing this creature reminded him of the pet egg he possessed.

But there was no time to ponder now. The Three-Headed Cat Owl, having its attack dodged by Lin Xuan, immediately dived toward him.

Lin Xuan quickly retreated several steps, but how could his speed surpass that of this spirit-grade beast? After all, its combat power was a formidable 104!

“Boom!”

A thunderous sound.

Just as the sky-tearing claw was about to land on Lin Xuan’s head, Jiang Feishang stepped in time to block the blow.

With a single slash, he forced the Three-Headed Cat Owl back.

“Beast fiend, do not harm our village chief!” Jiang Feishang’s words rang out as Liu Jie arrived with a squad of soldiers, forming layers of defense around Lin Xuan.

Soon after, Huang Sheng also arrived. Liu Jie and Huang Sheng stood at the forefront of the soldiers, with Jiang Feishang further ahead.

The three formed a triangular formation, bracing for the beast’s assault.

Yet, as a spirit beast, the Three-Headed Cat Owl was intelligent.

Surveying the people below, it sensed that Jiang Feishang’s aura was the strongest among them, likely not much weaker than itself.

Relying on its flying advantage, the beast circled around Lin Xuan, then, when Jiang Feishang’s attention wavered, charged directly at the soldiers guarding Lin Xuan.

With a combat power difference of over sixty, a single strike from the Three-Headed Cat Owl claimed the life of a Lin Family Village soldier.

After the blow, the beast saw Jiang Feishang charging on horseback and swiftly flew back into the sky.

It was cautious!

This scene not only shocked Lin Xuan but also instilled in him an unprecedented sense of crisis.

One hundred and four combat power points.

Plus three skills and a talent. Most importantly, it could fly!

Lin Xuan knew Jiang Feishang might not be able to handle this creature alone.

“No, we can’t just drag this out! If Feishang can’t hit it, then I need to find someone who can—after all, it can fly!”

As one soldier after another fell, Lin Xuan frowned deeply at the beast’s provocative gaze.

Finally, his eyes landed on the virtual panel, and he recalled the common-grade longbows and recurved bows stored within.

Previously, the novice archers hadn’t been unlocked, so no one could equip the recurved bows crafted by Wang Yan and Chu Ran. But now, things were different!