19: Chapter 19 Spinning, jumping, I closed my eyes. Because opening them would make me really dizzy!

It was time for the weekly cycling trip around Crystal Lake again. The closer they got to Crystal Lake, the stronger the fishy smell in the air became.

The trio pedaled along the forest trail, wheels crushing dew-covered grass blades, leaving three shallow tracks on the meadow by the edge of Crystal Lake.

A layer of milky morning mist floated on the lake surface. The deep-water area was ink-green, while the shallows were filled with dense, swaying, dark green shadows—these were the patrolling Murloc Warriors and the Murloc Scouts acting as cannon fodder.

"Standard procedure, the three-piece set."

Lin Rui jumped off his bike and pulled the enchanted entrenching tool from his backpack; the crude runes on the blade shimmered faintly.

"Pit, tripwire, fire—none can be missing."

Hu Jinsi propped his bicycle behind a cluster of reeds and checked the chain to ensure the treasure, which had cost him six hundred credits, hadn't dropped its chain.

Only then did he look up and smile. "We need to dig the pit wider today, and add some slope to the sides. My new skill involves spinning in place; if the space is too small, it's easy to kick the walls."

"You know that, do you?"

Su Wan was pulling nylon rope out of her backpack and rolled her eyes at his words. "When you said on the road that you wanted to be a human spinning top, I was worried you'd fly off into the sky."

"I won't ascend to the heavens, at most I'll spin a pit into the ground."

Hu Jinsi crouched down to help her secure the wooden stakes, the rope leaving a red mark on his fingers. "Just watch the show from the edge of the pit in a moment. You'll see what an AOE revolution is, and what a human meat grinder looks like."

Lin Rui didn't reply, just buried his head in digging.

The enchanted entrenching tool cut into the soil like butter. After activating [Tactical Fortifications (Simple)], a circular pit five meters in diameter and about one meter deep took shape in less than three minutes.

Sharpened wooden stakes were driven diagonally into the bottom of the pit, and the edge was camouflaged with withered leaves.

Su Wan set a tripwire twenty centimeters off the ground in front of the pit and piled two second-hand tower shields on both sides as flow-guiding walls to prevent the Murlocs from scattering.

Finally, three bonfires were lit in a fan shape behind the trap, and dried pumpkin vines were thrown into the fire, crackling and popping, with the heat waves pushing back the morning mist by several feet.

"Perfect."

Hu Jinsi put his hands on his hips, surveying this killing field, and patted his bike seat. "I'm off then. Lin Rui, Su Wan, please prepare to enjoy my performance."

"Lure about twenty."

Lin Rui held his spear, hiding in the bunker behind the tower shields. "Let's test it for the first round."

"Copy that."

Hu Jinsi hopped onto his mountain bike, gripped the handlebars with his left hand, and pulled three throwing knives from his waist with his right.

He began patrolling along the lakeshore, wheels crushing a few unlucky clams. Seeing the first wave of Murlocs washing their faces in the shallows, he flicked his wrist, and the throwing knives flew out.

"Whoosh!"

The throwing knife stuck into the ground beside the lead Murloc, splashing up a spray of muddy water.

The Murloc froze for half a second, its dead-gray fishy eyes widening suddenly, and it let out a shrill howl.

"Walla walla!!!"

It was like poking a hornet's nest. Twenty or so Murlocs lifted their heads simultaneously, their greenish scales shimmering with a wet, greasy luster in the morning light.

They raised their bone harpoons and charged onto the shore with their short, stubby legs, mucus dragging out several shiny trails on the meadow.

"Come and chase me."

Hu Jinsi pedaled to accelerate, looked back, and threw another knife, which precisely stuck into the second Murloc's butt. "Today, I'll let you experience a tumble dryer. There is only one truth."

The Murloc crowd was completely enraged, chasing after the bike while howling weirdly.

Hu Jinsi controlled his speed, not too fast, not too slow, just right so they could see him but couldn't catch him.

Approaching the trap zone, he slammed on the brakes, the bike swung, and he popped up from the seat. The bicycle was flung into the reeds to the side, crashing into the grass with a clang.

"My bike—"

Hu Jinsi felt a twinge of heartbreak for half a second, but his feet didn't stop. He took a long stride over the tripwire and landed steadily on the edge of the pit, balancing on one foot, striking a pose he thought was cool.

The first Murloc followed closely, its front legs tripped by the nylon rope, and it tumbled head-first into the bottom of the pit. Sharpened wooden stakes pierced its shoulders, and green blood sprayed out.

The Murlocs behind couldn't stop in time, jumping into the pit one after another like dumplings into a pot. Their greenish bodies squeezed together in the narrow space, harpoons colliding with a clattering noise.

"Now!"

Lin Rui shouted low from behind the bunker.

Hu Jinsi took a deep breath, focusing his energy on his dantian, and the warm flow of Qi within his body surged instantly toward his right leg.

He stood on one leg, lifting his left leg like a crane stretching its neck, his arms in a defensive stance in front of his chest. Using his supporting leg as an axis, he began to spin violently—

[Spinning Crane Kick, activate!]

First circle.

The Murloc that had fallen in first had just climbed up when it was struck in the face by a shadow of a leg.

The tip of Hu Jinsi's foot was wrapped in Qi, and the whirlwind generated by the force swept across its chin, shattering the scales.

[- 12]

Second circle.

The Murlocs that had fallen in subsequently had already piled up into a small hill. Hu Jinsi's spinning speed remained stable, his leg shadows turning into a blurred arc.

But the effect was immediate—any Murloc within a two-meter radius of him was engulfed by the continuous kicking force.

[- 6] [- 11] [- 13] [- 12]

Red damage numbers danced frantically before Hu Jinsi's eyes, like some kind of bloody revolving lantern.

The Murlocs' screams and the sound of breaking bones mixed together, only to be torn apart by the wind generated by his spinning.

Third circle.

The first Murloc to fall into the pit finally couldn't hold on, dissolving into points of light under Lin Rui's spear thrusting from the edge of the pit and Su Wan's crossbow bolts.

But more Murlocs kept falling in, smashing onto their companions, pinning those not yet dead underneath. The entire bottom of the pit had turned into a writhing, greenish-blue mountain of meat.

Fourth circle.

The world before Hu Jinsi's eyes had begun to blur. The centrifugal force from the spinning caused blood to rush to his head.

The Murlocs at the bottom of the pit, the wooden stakes, the green blood, the soil—all the colors mixed together, as if thrown into a high-speed blender.

He caught a glimpse of Lin Rui poking his head out from the pit edge, seemingly hesitating whether to jump down and help.

"Don't come down!"

Hu Jinsi yelled through gritted teeth, his voice broken by the spinning. "I can do it... two more circles!"

Fifth circle.

The Murlocs at the bottom of the pit began to die in large numbers.

The sustained effect of the Spinning Crane Kick demonstrated terrifying harvesting efficiency at this moment—one circle per second, triggering a melee strike against all enemies within range for each circle.

Although subsequent damage was halved, it added up. The Murlocs squeezed together didn't even have room to dodge and could only take every kick head-on.

[- 5] [- 7] [- 6] [- 10] [- 8]

Sixth circle.

When the last circle swept across the bottom of the pit, only three Murlocs remained, gasping for breath.

Their scales were shattered, green blood gushing out, and they didn't even have the strength to raise their harpoons.

Hu Jinsi suddenly retracted his leg, stopping the rotation.

The world suddenly went still.

No, the world hadn't stopped; it was his brain that was still spinning.

Hu Jinsi stumbled a step, reaching out to steady himself against the pit wall, but grabbed at thin air.

The breakfast in his stomach—two pieces of fried boar meat and half a piece of compressed biscuit—felt like it had been flung up to his throat by a centrifuge.

His face turned green, and he bent over, dry-heaving at the soil at the bottom of the pit.

"Ugh..."

"Jinsi!"

Su Wan was so startled at the edge of the pit that her lyre went crooked, her fingers already pressing on the strings to cast a spell. "What's wrong? Poisoned? Or internal injury?"

"Don't... don't come over..."

Hu Jinsi supported his knee with one hand and waved the other, his voice hoarse. "Don't waste spell slots... I'm just... dizzy..."

"Dizzy?"

Su Wan froze in place, blinking. "You spun yourself dizzy?"

Hu Jinsi straightened his back, nodding with a pale face, physiological tears still welling in his eyes.

"By the third circle, everything in front of me was just static. I figured I couldn't kill these stinking fish in three circles, so I gritted my teeth, closed my eyes, and spun three more. Once I stopped at the sixth circle, oh boy, the whole world was floating on the ocean. I couldn't stand steady; I really couldn't stand steady."

After he finished speaking, he supported himself against the pit wall and dry-heaved again.

Lin Rui and Su Wan looked at each other, the corners of both their mouths starting to twitch simultaneously.

Su Wan was the first to lose control, letting out a snort of laughter, then quickly covering her mouth, her shoulders shaking.

Lin Rui turned his face away, pressing his fist against his mouth and coughing twice, but his Adam's apple bobbed rapidly.

"If you want to laugh, just laugh."

Hu Jinsi straightened up irritably and wiped his mouth. "Don't hold it in until you get an internal injury; then I'll have to waste Qi to treat you."

As soon as these words came out, Su Wan couldn't hold it anymore, clutching her lyre and squatting down from laughter. "Hahahaha! Human spinning top! AOE revolution! Hu Jinsi, you have days like this too!"

Lin Rui's shoulders were also shaking. He took two deep breaths, trying to maintain his composed persona, but failed, and low laughter leaked out from between his fingers.

"Watching competition recordings before, those Warriors would spin with Whirlwind, and I never saw anyone unable to stand after spinning."

Hu Jinsi kicked the wooden stake at the bottom of the pit gloomily. "Why am I the only one who's so embarrassing?"

Su Wan wiped away the tears of laughter and gasped as she replied: "I actually heard about this problem when I was learning dance as a child. Our teacher said that there are many types of spins. The Warriors' Whirlwind uses waist and hip power, with the center of gravity pressed very low. The body isn't actually fully off the ground, so the visual error is large, but the burden on the balance system is small."

"Your kind... standing on one leg, full body straight, relying on one leg to support all the centrifugal force—in dance, this is a variation of the 'fouetté turn,' which is an extremely dizzying method. Professional dancers have to practice for years to not vomit."

"Is there any way to avoid it?"

Hu Jinsi asked like he was grabbing at a straw. "Besides nonsense like 'you'll get used to it after vomiting a few more times.'"

"Yes."

Su Wan held up a finger. "Long-term practice to let the body get used to the stimulation of the vestibular system."

"I know that, what's next?"

"Next," Su Wan's mouth curled into a sly smile, "you can learn the 'spotting' technique from dance. That is, when spinning, the head follows the body, but the eyes are fixed on a fixed point directly in front. When the body turns to the limit and the head is about to be unable to turn anymore, you use explosive power to whip your head in the direction of the rotation, instantly re-locking onto the same point when the next circle begins. The professional term is spotting. Once you master this, dancers can spin for hours without getting dizzy."

Hu Jinsi looked ashen: "You mean, if I want to not get dizzy, I have to learn to dance first?"

"Bingo."

Su Wan snapped her fingers.

"..."

Hu Jinsi felt his future life was pitch black. He, a man like the wind, a Monk, a future Force Master, actually had to practice ballet?

Lin Rui, who had been eavesdropping on the side, couldn't hold it in anymore upon hearing this. He leaned directly against the edge of the pit, sliding down as he laughed.

Hu Jinsi had sharp eyes and grabbed his arm. "Come, come, General Lin, why don't you try a few circles too? You were fine after so many Tactical Rolls last week, so surely this is a piece of cake."

Lin Rui shook off his hand, straightened his back, and looked disdainful. "Fine, bring it on. It's just spinning in place six times. I can do it even with heavy armor during a Tactical Roll, what's this?"

He stood in the center of the pit, spread his arms, took a deep breath, and began to spin in place.

One circle. Two circles. Three circles. Four circles. Five circles. Six circles. Stop.

Lin Rui's figure swayed, trying to stand steady, but the soil under his feet seemed to have turned into cotton.

He stumbled two steps and collapsed to the ground, the back of his head almost hitting a wooden stake. He lay at the bottom of the pit, looking at the sky, his lips moving.

"..."

"Team Leader Lin, what are your thoughts?"

Hu Jinsi crouched on the edge of the pit, peering down with a smile.

Lin Rui was silent for three seconds, then stiffly squeezed out a sentence: "I'm better than you. I didn't dry-heave."

"Hahahaha!" Su Wan and Hu Jinsi burst into earth-shaking laughter simultaneously, their laughter echoing over Crystal Lake and startling a flock of waterbirds.

...

Five minutes later, the three sat by the pit for a short rest. Su Wan plucked the strings of her lyre, playing a soothing [Resting Tune], the melody flowing through the air like a cool towel applied to tense nerves. Hu Jinsi sat cross-legged, his Qi slowly recovering in his meridians, the sense of dizziness finally receding.

"Again." He stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants. "This time I'll control the rotation speed, stopping after three turns, and leave the cleanup to you both."

"A wise choice." Lin Rui laid his spear across his knees. "Don't push yourself; we're a team."

During the second lure, Hu Jinsi was clearly much more restrained. He still rode his bike to aggro them, still jumped off, and still activated Spinning Crane Kick, but he kept the rotation speed to three turns. After three turns, he immediately retreated, leaned against the pit wall to catch his breath, and watched Lin Rui and Su Wan pick off the low-health murlocs one by one. Although the efficiency was half that of six turns, at least he didn't have to perform the "Monk Vomiting" performance art anymore.

The third time, the fourth time...

Their coordination became increasingly fluid. Hu Jinsi spun in the pit, Lin Rui thrust his spear from the pit edge, and Su Wan used her light crossbow to snipe any that slipped through.

One hour and seventeen minutes later, the murlocs on the banks of Crystal Lake were finally cleared out. Only a few lonely shadows remained on the lake surface, hiding in the deep water, not daring to come ashore. The three slumped on the meadow, looking at the empty lakeshore, feeling a sense of unreality.

"That's... it?" Su Wan glanced at her pocket watch; the hand had just passed ten o'clock. "Last week we spent most of the day just clearing the west bank, and today we finished in an hour?"

"A qualitative change at level six." Lin Rui checked the edge of his spear. Although tired, his eyes were bright. "Jinsi's AOE, my Charge, your fifth spell slot. Stacked together, the efficiency is multiplicative, not additive."

Hu Jinsi lay on the grass, watching the white clouds drift across the sky. His Qi pool was bottomed out, but he was in a great mood. "It's a pity about those in the lake who don't dare to come up; otherwise, we could have farmed until lunch."

"Be content." Su Wan slung her lyre on her back. "It's not even ten yet; it's too early to call it a day. Where are we going? Stone Cairn Lake?"

"That group of murloc mages at Stone Cairn Lake is too disgusting." Hu Jinsi sat up and waved his hand. "The bonfire tactic has reduced effectiveness against them, and someone has to get close to disrupt them. Let's go to the farm instead and find those 'old friends' of the Defias. They have good drops, decent experience, and the key is—humanoid monsters are much cuter than stinky fish; at least they don't drop slime."

"Agreed." Lin Rui put his entrenching tool back into his backpack. "Plus, we still haven't figured out the deal with the three elites in that small cabin. Let's clear the perimeter first and focus on dealing with them tomorrow."

"Then it's settled." Su Wan got on her bicycle. "Let's ride; let's try to arrive before lunch."

Three mountain bikes rolled over the meadow again, speeding south along the forest path. The wind whistled past their ears, leaving the fishy smell of Crystal Lake far behind.

...

On the outer ridges of Blackwell Farm, the pumpkin vines had begun to turn yellow, and a few wooden cabins were scattered along the edge of the fields, as quiet as an oil painting—if you ignored the figures patrolling the fields, carrying short swords and wearing red masks.

"Time to change." Lin Rui jumped off his bike and pulled that familiar second-hand heavy armor from the depths of his backpack. The scratches on the armor plates shone with a weathered light in the autumn sun, and the hinges at the joints made clicking sounds with his movements. He pulled the red linen mask over his head, revealing only a pair of steady eyes, looking just like a villain who had just run out of a low-budget rural film crew.

"Every time I see you wearing that, I want to call the police." Su Wan said sincerely.

"As long as it's practical." Lin Rui's voice came muffled from behind the mask. He slammed the N-hand tower shield, which was over a person tall, onto the ground, kicking up dust, and then reached out to Hu Jinsi. "Short sword, take it."

Hu Jinsi took [rixats elegy] from Lin Rui's hand; the deep blue sword light illuminated Hu Jinsi's palm the moment it was handed over. "I'm still the cleanup role today, and you're still the main tank. Same old method, safe and reliable."

Lin Rui lifted his near-retirement tower shield. "Let's go, time to work."

The ensuing battle was both boring and efficient. Lone Defias bandits patrolled the ridges, and Lin Rui walked out swaggering, his heavy armor making heavy footsteps on the soil. As soon as the opponent saw his "accomplice" look, they would often freeze for half a second, and in that half-second, Lin Rui had already launched [Charge]!

Soil exploded, and the eighteen-meter distance was instantly closed. The tower shield slammed into the face, leaving the enemy stunned, and immediately after, Lin Rui discarded the shield and tackled them by the waist, using the inertia of the Charge to crash to the ground, pinning the opponent firmly beneath him. Hu Jinsi flashed out from the side, and the deep blue short sword precisely pierced the throat under the bandit's mask. Blue light surged, the special effect triggered, and the health bar plummeted.

[-14] [Special Effect Triggered: -25% Current HP] [-12]

The light points dissipated, leaving behind a red mask and linen cloth.

Occasionally, when they encountered groups of two, Su Wan would stand three meters away, [Tashas Hideous Laughter] precisely cutting in, controlling one, while Lin Rui pinned the other, and Hu Jinsi harvested them one by one. The tactic was simple and crude, but terrifyingly effective.

At 2:15 PM, the last Defias bandit on the farm perimeter turned into light points under Lin Rui's tackle. The three retreated behind the ridges and sat down to rest against a pile of pumpkins. Su Wan pulled three pieces of chocolate from her backpack and gave one to each person.

"The perimeter is cleared." Lin Rui bit into the chocolate, his voice muffled. "There are two choices next: one is to go clear the herd of wild boars roaming the fields, and two is to go probe the three elites in that small cabin on the east side."

"I vote for the wild boars." Su Wan raised her hand and licked the chocolate stain from the corner of her mouth. "We've already fought so many battles today, and our stamina and focus aren't at their peak. We're familiar with the wild boars, so even if we make a mistake, there's room for error. More importantly."

She pointed to the east cabin in the distance with its doors and windows tightly closed, and then pointed to the brown figures in twos and threes in the fields. "If we clear out all the wild boars, when we deal with the cabin trio tomorrow, we'll have more room to choose our battlefield. We won't have to worry about being disrupted by a group of charging pigs while fighting."

Lin Rui pondered for a moment, his gaze shifting between the cabin and the wild boars. He really wanted to figure out the bottom line of those three elites; after all, it was already the third week, and no one in the whole First High School had brought back information about those three humanoid monsters. Unknown enemies were the most troublesome. But Su Wan's concerns were correct; everyone's fatigue levels were maxed out today.

"Including the biggest one?" Lin Rui asked.

"Including it." Su Wan nodded, her expression serious. "And we have to kill it separately first. Otherwise, if it Charges over with the other wild boars, how are we going to deal with it? That thing is bigger than a brown bear; if it gets mixed in with the herd, our tripwires and traps won't be able to stop it at all."

Hu Jinsi stuffed the last bite of chocolate into his mouth and made the final decision. "I agree with Big Sister Su's proposal. Clear the field first, then attack the tough targets. Safe and sound."

"Then let's do it." Lin Rui stood up, crumpled the chocolate wrapper into a ball, and stuffed it back into his backpack. "Let's kill the biggest one first."

"What did you call it just now?" Su Wan looked up sharply.

"The biggest wild boar." Lin Rui corrected himself without changing his expression. "Get ready, we need to dig a big pit this time."

...

For the giant wild boar, the three made the most thorough preparations. Lin Rui took out his entrenching tool and dug a pit on the edge of the field five times larger than usual, ten meters in diameter and one and a half meters deep, with the wooden stakes at the bottom sharpened to be thicker and pointier, pointing diagonally into the sky. Su Wan and Hu Jinsi set up three tripwires in front of the pit, each two meters apart, for layer-by-layer obstruction. But even so, the three still prepared Plan B—if all the tripwires failed, Hu Jinsi would lure the boar into the pit to engage in close combat at the bottom, never letting it Charge on flat ground.

"The beast is coming." Hu Jinsi got on his bicycle, holding a throwing knife in his hand.

At the end of the distant ridge, a giant beast was rooting in the soil. Its shoulder height was nearly two meters, its body length over three meters, its brown-black fur covered with a thick crust of mud, and its tusks turned outward like two curved daggers. Most terrifying was its size; it was more than a circle larger than a normal wild boar, and with every step it took, the pumpkin vines on the ground trembled.

Hu Jinsi took a deep breath, rode closer, and the throwing knife left his hand.

"Whoosh!"

The throwing knife stuck into the giant wild boar's butt, splashing up a bit of mud.

"Grrr..."

The giant wild boar suddenly raised its head, a violent red light erupting from its small eyes. It pawed the ground with its hind hooves, soil splashing, and the next second, its entire body, like a brown heavy tank, rumbled towards Hu Jinsi.

"It's coming!" Hu Jinsi squeezed the brakes and jumped off the bike, rushing towards the pit with the bike. The bicycle was jolted into the air at the edge of the pit, crashing into a pile of pumpkins nearby with a clatter, while he himself rolled into the bottom of the pit.

The giant wild boar's speed was astonishing. The first tripwire was snapped instantly when it struggled with its front legs! The second tripwire delayed it for half a second, but was also torn apart by brute force!

"Plan B! Plan B!" Su Wan shouted from the edge of the pit.

Hu Jinsi had just climbed up from the bottom of the pit when he saw a huge black shadow pressing down, blotting out the sky. He didn't hesitate and performed a [Roll] to Roll out to the back-side, barely avoiding the boar's landing spot. Almost simultaneously, a figure clad in heavy armor crashed into the pit—Lin Rui!

The moment Lin Rui landed, he inserted three N-hand tower shields one by one into the mud at the bottom of the pit with both hands, arranging them into a row of inclined shield walls. The giant wild boar charged into the pit, lowering its head and slamming into them. The first tower shield shattered into pieces with a "crack," wood chips flying everywhere! But its tusks were also stuck in the metal edge of the second tower shield, unable to advance or retreat.

Lin Rui pressed his entire weight onto that tower shield, the hinges of his heavy armor making a teeth-grinding friction sound. His feet plowed two deep trenches into the soil, and he actually managed to stop the giant wild boar's Charge with his own strength!

"Control!" Lin Rui squeezed the word out through his teeth.

Su Wan at the edge of the pit was already prepared, plucking her lyre rapidly, [Tashas Hideous Laughter]!

The mocking melody turned into invisible ripples, precisely pouring into the giant wild boar's mind. The beast's muscles stiffened, its violent eyes became unfocused, its mouth twitched uncontrollably, and its massive body could no longer exert force steadily due to the uncontrollable laughter.

"Now!" Hu Jinsi flipped up from the bottom of the pit, clutching [rixats elegy]. The deep blue sword light drew a cold arc in the narrow pit bottom, piercing straight into the gap between the giant wild boar's hindquarters!

[-14]

The blade entered the flesh, but the special effect didn't trigger. Hu Jinsi didn't have time to be disappointed and immediately activated [Flurry of Blows], consuming 1 point of Qi. His left leg was like a whip, his right leg like a hammer, and he consecutively struck the giant wild boar's vital crotch area with two fierce kicks!

[-8] [-9]

"Awooo—!"

Even in the state of uncontrollable laughter, the giant wild boar let out a miserable, off-key howl. Its hind legs trembled violently, its massive body crashed down, and it actually knelt at the bottom of the pit. Lin Rui suddenly felt the pressure on the shield decrease sharply, and he pushed forward half a step.

Hu Jinsi didn't retreat; he backhanded another sword thrust into the previous wound, twisting it fiercely sideways!

[-12]

"Awoo!"

The excruciating pain forced the giant wild boar to break free from the laughter, and it entered a state of complete rage. Its front legs were raised high, muscles tensed, and it looked like it was about to slam them hard onto the ground—that was an Area of Effect shockwave!

"Area of effect attack! Dodge!" Su Wan screamed from the edge of the pit.

Hu Jinsi didn't even think; he activated [Roll] again, his body bouncing toward the back of the pit wall like a rubber ball.

Lin Rui also decisively discarded his shield, activating [Tactical Roll]. His heavy armor rumbled as he rolled three meters away, hiding on the other side of the pit floor.

"Boom!"

The giant boar's front hooves slammed down, and the bottom of the pit seemed to experience a minor earthquake; soil and wooden stake fragments were sent flying into the sky.

The shockwave echoed within the narrow pit; if the two had stayed in their original positions, their internal organs would likely have been displaced.

The stomp missed, and the giant boar's small, blood-red eyes locked onto Hu Jinsi.

It turned abruptly, tusks aimed at the monk at the bottom of the pit, its hind legs pushing off the ground as it attempted to Charge again—but the space at the bottom was cramped, and its massive body made turning difficult, giving Lin Rui a perfect opportunity.

Lin Rui rose from his Roll, a spear already in his hand, though it was unclear when he had switched weapons.

He held the spear with one hand, the tip aimed at the wound on the giant boar's hindquarters that was still oozing black-red flesh, and thrust forward—

[Charge]!

"Whoosh!"

Lin Rui's figure turned into a blur, and the spear precisely struck the conspicuous bullseye.

The spearhead pierced deep into the wound. The "Chief Stabber" form descended once again!

[-16]

The giant boar's wail no longer sounded like something a living creature could produce.

It thrashed wildly, but with the spear stuck in its body, every step was accompanied by tearing, excruciating pain.

Hu Jinsi did not waste this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

He activated [Parkour], consuming 1 point of Qi, doubling his movement speed and doubling the distance of his next jump.

He kicked off the pit wall, his entire body leaping three meters high like an arrow off a bowstring, [rixats elegy] in hand, stabbing directly at the giant boar's right eye!

[-13]

The blade entered the eye socket, but no special effect was triggered.

Hu Jinsi used the momentum from [Parkour], forcing his body to twist in mid-air, activating [Flurry of Blows], discarding his sword for his fists, and slamming them repeatedly into the giant boar's left eye!

[-7] [-8]

After two punches, the left eye socket was a bloody mess.

The giant boar completely lost its vision; its two small, blood-red eyes had become two lumps of rotten flesh.

It shook its head frantically, but could no longer find the direction of its enemies.

After landing, Hu Jinsi immediately pulled his sword back and retreated; the remaining momentum from [Parkour] allowed him to slide back several meters, creating a safe distance.

Lin Rui had also long since crawled out of the pit, kneeling on one knee at the edge, raising his standard-issue rifle, the scope aimed at the boar's head, which was flailing wildly due to its blindness.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Several gunshots rang out. The final bullet penetrated through the right eye wound, piercing the brain.

[-15] [-20] [-19] [-20] [-22]

The giant boar's massive body stiffened for a moment, then collapsed with a crash, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Its body began to turn into points of light, like a sandcastle scattered by the wind, dissipating bit by bit at the bottom of the pit.

The three of them collapsed on the edge of the pit, gasping for air.

Lin Rui's gun barrel was still smoking, Hu Jinsi's wrist was numb from the recoil, and Su Wan's throat was sore from screaming.

"...Is it dead?" Su Wan leaned over to look into the pit.

"Dead," Lin Rui said, lowering his rifle, his voice hoarse. "Harder to deal with than I imagined."

Hu Jinsi lay on the grass at the edge of the pit, gazing at the sky, feeling that his Qi pool was bottoming out. "If we hadn't dodged that stomp, we would have had to use at least one Forced Teleportation Talisman."

"That's why I said clearing the area first was the right move," Su Wan let out a long sigh, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

Just then, among the points of light that hadn't yet dissipated at the bottom of the pit, a blurry figure gradually solidified.

It was a middle-aged farm woman wearing a coarse cloth apron, clutching a handful of pumpkin seeds. Her hair was gray, and her face was etched with the lines of weathering.

She walked to the edge of the pit, looking at the spot where the giant boar had dissipated, her eyes slowly reddening.

"Thank you..." Her voice seemed to come from very far away, carrying the illusory echo unique to World Shards. "Finally... Princess is dead..."

Hu Jinsi sat up abruptly, his face full of astonishment.

Princess? Mama Stonefield?!

A wave of memories surged within him. He was far too familiar with this quest—in the game from his past life, it was a classic quest in Elwynn Forest: "Princess Must Die"!

That giant boar was called Princess, and this NPC was none other than the quest-giver, Mama Stonefield!

"This beast... ruined my family's fields." The farm woman's voice was intermittent, as if she were reminiscing. "It ate the pumpkins my husband planted, overturned the fences, and scared away all the hired hands. I asked passing adventurers for help, but it was too fierce; no one dared to take the job... I waited a long time, a very long time..."

She turned and bowed deeply to the three of them.

Her body began to glow, turning into countless tiny specks of light, like fireflies on a summer night, slowly drifting toward the three of them and merging into their bodies.

In Hu Jinsi's consciousness, his interface gently flickered:

[Completed Mama Stonefield's final wish—Princess Must Die.]

[Received Class Experience: 780 points.]

Lin Rui and Su Wan had clearly received the notification too; the two exchanged glances, filled with pleasant surprise.

"780 points..." Su Wan muttered. "That's a full day's haul from the last dungeon."

The farm woman's figure dissipated completely into the air, leaving only two handfuls of pumpkin seeds on the edge of the pit, which soon turned into points of light and vanished as well.

At the bottom of the pit, the giant boar's loot lay quietly.

Besides a dozen [Large Boar Meat], there were two pieces of equipment emitting a faint glow.

Hu Jinsi jumped into the pit and picked up the first item.

It was a gold-plated collar, but it had been stretched out of shape, with a line of small, crooked characters carved into it.

Hu Jinsi shared the equipment's attributes:

[Princess's Gold-Plated Collar]

[Type: Accessory/Necklace]

[Level Requirement: 6]

[Glutton's Might: After equipping, your Charge/Intercept-type skills have a chance to knock back small enemies in your path and leave behind a muddy trail.]

[Description: This collar was originally proof of having "won an award," but it was stretched out of shape by Princess's increasingly chubby neck. It is crookedly carved with the words "Blackwell's Best Sow".]

Hu Jinsi's mouth twitched: "...Best Sow?"

He picked up the second item.

It was a pair of leather greaves, covered in black mud that could never be washed off, emitting a unique "fragrance" that was a mix of pigsty and pumpkin; as soon as he picked it up, the stench almost brought tears to his eyes.

[Mud-Stained Greaves]

[Type: Leg Armor/Light Armor]

[Level Requirement: 5]

[Muddy Defense: Your chance of being knocked down/knocked back is reduced. When you are knocked down, there is a chance to splash mud at the attacker, briefly lowering their accuracy.]

[Boar's Favor: When you equip these greaves, the initial aggro from boar-type monsters toward you is reduced (they mistake you for one of their own).]

[Description: These leather greaves are covered in Goldshire black mud that can never be washed off, emitting a unique "fragrance" that is a mix of pigsty and pumpkin.]

——————I am a dividing line——————

[String Master]

[Core Class Role: Melody Crowd Control and Internal Energy Buffer. You are not a warrior charging into the fray on the battlefield, but a "strategist" who sits in the center of the army, commanding the battle with the sound of your instrument. Your weapon is the Huqin in your hand, your ammunition is the Internal Energy infused into it, and your battlefield is the minds of all who listen.]

[Class Introduction: One string, one bridge, telling of all human joys and sorrows; one bow, one draw, pulling at the killing intent of the battlefield. His music wails like weeping, capable of making iron-willed men shed tears and making all ghosts grieve together. When Internal Energy is infused into the silk strings, invisible sound waves become the sharpest blade, the sturdiest shield, and the most inescapable net. He is the soul of the opera troupe, the key to elevating martial arts performances into art.]

[Class Traits: You must enter the "Pitch" state by playing the Huqin before you can unleash melodic martial arts. Your performance can grant allies a "Boost" effect or apply an "Interference" state to enemies. Your power stems from the precise control of Internal Energy and deep insight into emotions.

Pitch: Start playing with a standard action to enter the "Pitch" state. In this state, you can unleash active melodic skills and gain basic Internal Energy recovery. Moving will interrupt the performance, but at higher levels, you can gain the ability to perform while moving.

Boost: Takes effect on a single friendly target, lasting for several rounds. The basic effect is a small increase to a certain attribute (Attack/Defense/Accuracy) or providing temporary HP. Different "Musical Scores" (skills) correspond to different Boost effects.

Interference: Takes effect on enemies in a small area (cone or designated area). The basic effect is applying "Sluggish" (reduced movement speed), "Sorrow" (reduced attack), or "Auditory Hallucination" (interfering with spellcasting/concentration). Successful interference requires the target to make a Will save.

Internal Energy Pool: Unleashing melodic martial arts requires consuming "Internal Energy". Internal Energy can be slowly recovered through "Pitch" or replenished through special skills/items. If Internal Energy is exhausted, you cannot perform.]

[Class Skill Lv1—Basic Technique · Tuning: Master basic performance, unlock the Pitch state. Unlock the Boost Musical Score "General's Order" (slightly increases a single ally's attack power).]

[Class Skill: Sorrowful Wind: Unlock the Interference Musical Score "Crying to Heaven" (cone area, causes enemies to fall into "Sorrow", attack power reduced).]

[Class Skill Lv11—Artistry · Shift: Moving while performing no longer automatically interrupts "Pitch", but the effect is halved. Unlock the Boost Musical Score "Deep Night" (increases a single ally's dodge or AC).]

[Class Skill Lv1: Sudden Change: Unlock the Interference Musical Score "Ghosts Crying at Night" (small area, chance to cause enemies to fall into "Fear", fleeing from you for 1 round).]

[Class Skill Lv21—Specialty · Soul Severing (Ultimate): Unlock the powerful Interference Musical Score "Soul Severing Tune" (requires channeling, continuously pressures a single target, requires a Will check each round; if failed, actions are restricted or skills cannot be used).]

Other potentially unlockable Musical Scores: "Liu Qingniang" (Speed/Initiative), "Sheep on the Mountain Slope" (Auditory Hallucination - interfere with spellcasting), "Energy Recovery Tune" (slowly recover own Internal Energy), "Transfer Energy" (sacrifice own Internal Energy to urgently recover teammate's Internal Energy/HP).

Key Attributes: Perception (WIS, Internal Energy strength, Interference save DC), Charisma (CHA, Boost effect strength, Performance), Constitution (CON, Internal Energy pool, Survival)

Class Disadvantages:

Extremely Fragile: Can only wear light armor at most. Low personal defense, extremely dependent on teammate protection and positioning.

Fears Interruption: The "Pitch" state is easily interrupted by attacks or silence effects.

Resource Limitation: Internal Energy is limited; requires careful management.