Chapter 27: One Must Use Their Mind in Everything

A level 7 player dealing with level 3 beasts is hardly anything worth boasting about.

What’s more, I’m currently equipped with the best leather armor available to a level 5 civilian—the Snow Wolf Leather Armor—and a level 5 Bronze Shortsword. Facing beasts of this caliber, it’s nothing short of overwhelming force against the weak.

As I confronted the hefty Kodo Beast, slashing quickly with my sword and then letting my wrist bear the brunt of its counterattack, I noticed the expressions on Poet Sage and his two companions—they seemed both bewildered and dismissive.

Even Fox Girl, Xiaoi, was aware that my straightforward attack-and-defend style was the most common—and, in their words, the most ‘foolish’—approach among newcomers.

This kind of battle, based purely on attrition… was this really the leveling method recommended by White Day and Red Tea?

Poet Sage shot White Day and Red Tea a scornful glance, a mocking smile tugging at his lips. No wonder, he thought, these two have been in the game for a month and still haven’t reached the third tier…

White Day and Red Tea seemed to sense the three’s cold indifference and mockery. One stood firm, continuing to tank the monster, while the other held the magical fire candle, unfazed, a smile playing in his heart:

“You’ll understand soon enough…”

It was then that something unexpected happened.

At the very moment the fat Kodo Beast bit my wrist, the bronze shortsword drove forcefully into the deep wound already carved into its forehead—a wound from my previous strike, which had only dealt standard damage, but was meant precisely for this moment!

With a sickening squelch, the bronze shortsword plunged deep into the gash. With no outer hide to hinder it, flesh and blood offered no resistance to the sword’s edge.

Blood spurted from either side of the blade—

A bloodcurdling howl erupted!

The three were instantly stunned by the beast’s anguished cry, a scream laced with pain and fury that was as harrowing as it was fierce.

But I didn’t stop. Swiftly pulling my hand free from the monster’s fanged jaws, I drove the shortsword upward, tearing open a horrifying rift along the original wound on the Kodo’s skull.

The scream, filled with terror and despair, was abruptly silenced.

As torrents of blood spilled forth and its life ebbed away, the fat Kodo Beast collapsed like a discarded sack of hide, lifeless upon the ground. The valley returned to silence…

The three were shaken to their core, faces full of shock. If they had been dismissive of the Scavenging Kirin’s earlier fighting methods, this seamless, lightning-fast maneuver had truly left them astounded.

The entire battle had taken less than three seconds.

Such flawless judgment! Such decisive, economical movements! It was as smooth as a scene from a movie…

And to think—dealing 7 to 10 points of damage, I had dispatched a 60 HP Kodo Beast in just three seconds! Was this the power of compounded damage?

Now they finally understood what White Day and Red Tea had felt… and at last realized why their leveling speed was so astonishing.

Bear stared at Scavenging Kirin in awe—waiting had not been in vain!

Poet Sage, however, quickly regained his composure. He was a clever man, well aware of the value of compounded damage, and recognized the difficulty of executing such fluid movements as a level 6 civilian.

But he wasn’t one to admit defeat easily. In his mind: if someone else could do it, so could he!

Still, this was not the best place for practice, and his purpose here was to protect another, ensuring her safety and smooth leveling.

Fox Girl—Xiaoi.

At that moment, Xiaoi was also deeply shaken by Scavenging Kirin’s move, gripping her bronze sword—a little longer than my shortsword—and frowning in contemplation.

She replayed his actions in her mind, over and over…

Until the second pained cry of another Kodo Beast rang out, making her realize that Scavenging Kirin had dispatched a second beast without pause. She quickly held her breath, focusing intently on his every move.

Beside her, Bear and Poet Sage did the same, watching closely, their thoughts racing…

Several minutes later, over a dozen fat Kodo Beasts lay dead.

Poet Sage and Bear had withdrawn their gazes, but Xiaoi was still engrossed—after all, she was only one level above Scavenging Kirin but less agile, making it hard for her to keep up with his movements. Poet Sage and Bear were different—their stats far surpassed his, and after a few rounds, they had grasped the essence of his technique.

It was a pity there weren’t suitable targets around, or they would have eagerly tested their newfound skills.

The three conferred for a moment, then stood in the glow of the magical fire candle and began to imitate the moves in earnest…

While White Day was off luring monsters, Red Tea and I observed the process, and what we saw made us both want to laugh.

It seemed Poet Sage had decided to compete with us; his speed entering and leaving the valley was impressive! In terms of numbers and efficiency, he clearly outperformed White Day…

But as for quality… it was almost too painful to watch!

After circling outside the candle’s light, his imposing figure—shouldering a massive sword—became a bit clumsy. He darted left and right among the Kodo Beasts, finally using a charge to knock two smaller ones aside, managing at last to bring a herd of Kodo Beasts to Bear and Xiaoi.

The result: Bear and Xiaoi were thrown into chaos.

Perhaps it was Poet Sage’s first time luring monsters, or at least his first time in the Kodo Beast Valley. He had no idea how things worked here, and all the Kodo Beasts he brought out were level 1 younglings and level 2 juveniles.

For level 7 civilians, these offered no experience at all!

After all, monster experience is scaled by level: level 1 monsters give 10 experience, level 2 give 20, and so on. But once a player exceeds the monster’s level, the experience decreases by the square of the level gap. A level 7 player fighting a level 2 Kodo has a five-level gap—squared, that’s 25 points. Subtracting from 20 leaves nothing.

And Poet Sage had underestimated his own allure: because he hadn’t timed his pauses well, a horde of Kodo Beasts followed, and when he stopped, they surged forward, engulfing both Bear and Xiaoi.

Surrounded by the swarm, Poet Sage’s proud and ‘valiant’ face turned as red as a monkey’s backside…

As the three flailed about, slaughtering scores of Kodo Beasts, Red Tea and I could barely suppress our laughter, exchanging a silent truth: whatever you do, you need both heart and mind!

When the clearing was finally over, Poet Sage’s arrogance was gone. Blushing, he sought advice from White Day, who had returned with another fat Kodo Beast. After a few more tries, he finally succeeded in luring out the right monsters.

Ah—it wasn’t easy!