Chapter Fourteen: The Secret Art of Leveling Up Through Monster Hunting (Part One)

Facing the onslaught of at least a hundred zombies from all directions, Li Ren, with fifty thousand HP, appeared utterly at ease. These zombies had no ranged skills whatsoever and could only claw at him close up, surrounding him at most ten at a time due to the limited space. Li Ren leisurely dispatched them, two slashes per zombie, occasionally unleashing Triple Slash to clear out the zombies ahead, and his monster-clearing speed was far from slow.

However, with ten zombies attacking each second, and each attack coming at roughly two-second intervals, he was losing more than three thousand HP every interval. Without the support of blood crystals, he might not have been able to withstand it. In this situation, hacking away one by one was simply inefficient. Li Ren raised his shield, angled his blade, and swept it in a horizontal slash, damaging several zombies at once. Although the damage per zombie was less than a single strike, the greater number made the overall damage higher; despite not being able to use Triple Slash, his efficiency was unexpectedly good.

He didn’t know how long he had been swinging his blade like this, only that the longer he went, the more natural it felt. Consuming blood crystals became instinctive—he would grab one and instantly absorb it. His experience never stopped rising, though the coveted attribute points remained elusive.

“Congratulations! You have unlocked the skill: Crescent Slash.” As Li Ren was endlessly swinging his blade, a system prompt suddenly sounded in his ear. He checked his skill list and found a brand-new ability: Crescent Slash (deals 60% of normal physical damage to surrounding enemies, consumes 100 MP per attack).

“What?! Such an overpowered skill, just like that?” Li Ren had long been annoyed at his MP, which matched his HP and was always full. Now, at last, a skill that used MP—grinding monsters would be much more powerful.

Activating Crescent Slash, Li Ren swung his broadsword, cleaving the green-skinned zombie before him. A blade of light swept out, cutting through a three-by-three-meter area, and a flood of crimson numbers erupted before his eyes. Li Ren felt exhilarated. Combined with Triple Slash, entire swathes of monsters vanished in an instant. Without waiting for the zombies to regroup, Li Ren turned and hacked away at another side.

The zombies died rapidly, and when the last one fell, Li Ren breathed a satisfied sigh. After merging all his blood crystals into his body, his HP was fully restored. Li Ren glanced at his attributes in puzzlement; despite consuming so many blood crystals, not a single point had been added. It was truly remarkable.

But seeing his experience surge by nearly half, he was still quite satisfied. Now, he was only a step away from leveling up. At this rate, he would soon reach level forty, and after advancing, gain another 500 points to all attributes—a prospect that filled him with excitement.

He moved to another location, swung his blade, and within a thirty-meter radius, over a hundred zombie names turned blood-red, rushing toward him madly.

This time, it was even easier. He didn’t even need to absorb blood crystals at the outset to maintain HP. He simply kept hacking and hacking, and as the zombies approached, they collapsed in swathes. Another direction, another sweep—within moments, all one hundred zombies were slaughtered.

Within Corrosion Canyon, the purple-green mist began to ripple irregularly, emitting a stifling atmosphere, yet it remained unstable.

Li Ren continued his massacre within the smoky haze, his experience rising rapidly.

———————————————

“Boss, should we continue leveling or start the guild quest?”

“How many times do I have to tell you—don’t call me ‘Boss’, call me ‘Guild Leader’!”

“Yes, Guild Leader.”

“Good. Gather our main force. We’ll start the guild quest. Personal levels are easy enough, but guild levels are much harder to raise. We must keep the guild in the lead and secure the first base, develop it into a town as quickly as possible, and thereby ensure we gain the greatest benefits!”

“Understood!”

In a lavishly decorated room, the aged sandalwood furniture radiated a sense of deep history. Several bold calligraphy scrolls, their strokes resembling dragons and serpents, imbued the scene with an extraordinary aura. Standing alone by the window, Soron, currently ranked first in level, exuded an immense, commanding presence—an air of one who could command nations, brimming with confidence.

The middle-aged man who had just left the room made a few contacts outside, and soon eight elite-looking players gathered at the door. The nine of them stood respectfully outside, silent.

Not long after, Soron emerged from the room. He glanced at the nine, a look of satisfaction in his eyes.

After adding them all to his party, Soron shared the guild quest with everyone.

“Let’s go. The first step should be fairly straightforward, though the numbers are large. We’ll need to clear at least ten thousand skeleton soldiers in the Bone Wastes. There, undead creatures like skeletons receive bonuses. You all should be careful—bring plenty of holy items, and everyone carry a random teleport scroll. Lately, a lot of people have been watching us. Though I don’t fear them, it’s best to be cautious.”

With instructions given, Soron waved them off.

He gazed toward the Bone Wastes from afar. In the end, who would seize the beginning of this new chapter?

———————————————

After absorbing the last blood crystal, Li Ren watched as his experience finally broke through the threshold, ushering in a new beginning. He breathed a sigh of relief—level forty at last!

Now that he was level forty, what rewards awaited him? Aside from the expected five hundred points to all attributes, what else lay ahead? Li Ren couldn’t help but anticipate.

He opened the familiar, joyful advancement button, and a branching advancement tree appeared. He was currently on the third tier, at the Sword-and-Shield Skeleton Soldier node.

On the fourth tier, he could choose any profession. He glanced over the fourth-tier options—he had already decided his advancement path before reaching level forty. He scanned the list merely out of curiosity.

After a brief review, nothing stood out—just the usual advanced professions like Archer, Mage, and so on.

Without hesitation, he chose to further advance along his original sword-and-shield skeleton path—to Skeleton Decurion.

If not for the Crescent Slash skill he’d just unlocked, he might have chosen Archer or Mage to quickly level up. But with this skill, he could grind experience rapidly while ensuring his safety—why not?

He was already used to the white light that accompanied advancement. His entire form began to change slightly.

His once-sturdy bones grew even larger, and the bone armor at his joints thickened. With one more advancement, he would look as though clad in an imposing suit of bone armor.

His broadsword and shield vanished naturally, and new weapons appeared in his inventory.

Beacon Broadsword

Equipment Grade: Purple

Attack Power: 240–260

(Untradeable, cannot be dropped, soul-bound)

Beacon Shield

Equipment Grade: Purple

Defense Power: 25–35 (50% chance to block frontal attacks, take 50% damage; 10% chance to fully block frontal attacks, take 20% damage)

(Untradeable, cannot be dropped, soul-bound)

The thrill of seeing two ready-made purple-grade weapons in his inventory was incomparable. He remembered the old days, when he would agonize over monsters’ weapons—those days were gone. Now, he enjoyed these perks, wielding top-tier gear and attributes, farming experience-rich, clueless monsters that no one else bothered to fight!

The expected five hundred attribute points did not disappoint him. After such a massive boost, his strength reached a terrifying level. With a thousand extra agility points, the associated attack speed, evasion rate, and the slight increase in movement speed fully demonstrated the monstrous effects of his stats.

Now, his every movement could be described as fluid as flowing water.

Yes, when you face a skeleton warrior wielding a massive shield and blade, moving more gracefully than even hunters or rogues famed for their agility, you will be left utterly stunned.

What a world!

Li Ren took full stock of his attribute gains and laughed in delight.

Now, if he encountered those ranged players—the ones who sneakily fired arrows and skills from afar, making it impossible to catch them—Li Ren would simply smile quietly. With even faster and more agile movements, he would chase them down without hesitation, and cut them down with a single strike!

“Let them show off now! You think you’re special? I’ll smash you so hard your own mother won’t recognize you—go ahead and try to call yourself my kin again!” Li Ren’s mind surged with countless bold fantasies.