6: Chapter 6 Zero-Loss Hunting and Leveling Up

Xu Qin stopped in his tracks and began to formulate a tactic.

He looked at the two Skeleton Warthogs in front of him.

Attack power 8, Charge initial hit +50%, that's 12 points of damage per head.

With both charging at the same time...

He counted on his fingers.

This time, his army didn't need to flank.

He could just have the five Skeleton Soldiers block the retreat.

"All units, attention."

The purple eye-fire of the two Skeleton Warthogs flickered.

The five Skeleton Soldiers turned their heads in unison.

"Charge head-on."

The last tactic of splitting forces, maneuvering, and blocking on both flanks was because he only had five squishy Skeleton Soldiers; if he hadn't been careful, he would have ended up under the pig's snout.

Now?

The tables had turned!

"Skeleton Warthog One and Two, lead the Charge." He issued the command through the command panel.

"Five Skeleton Soldiers follow behind, surround it, and hack at close range."

"Acolyte, stand by in the back row and heal the Skeleton Warthogs."

"I will bring up the rear and deal the finishing blow."

Xu Qin gripped his stone axe and pointed toward the direction of the bushes.

"Army, listen up!"

"Target, Warthog!"

"Attack!"

The two Skeleton Warthogs lowered their heads, tusks forward, purple eye-fire jumping wildly.

Then...

Boom!

They charged out directly.

Bone hooves slammed into the sandy ground, dull and rapid, like a beating drum.

In the bushes, the living Warthog that was rooting in the dirt suddenly raised its head.

It hadn't even clearly seen what was rushing over...

Bang!!

The tusks of Skeleton Warthog One crashed into the Warthog's chest and belly.

Charge!

Initial hit damage +50%!

-8!

Oink!

The entire body of the Warthog was knocked sideways by half a step, and a short squeal squeezed out of its mouth.

Immediately after...

Skeleton Warthog Two crashed in from the side.

Bang!!

-8!

Two Charges.

16 points of damage.

The Warthog's health points dropped directly to 24.

Just as it wanted to turn and fight, the five Skeleton Soldiers were already pressing in.

Rusted blades slashed into its thick hide.

-1! -1! -1! -1! -1!

19.

The Warthog saw it was surrounded, finally reacted, roared as it turned, and swept its tusks toward the nearest Skeleton Warthog One...

Crash!

-9!

A crack appeared on Skeleton Warthog One's ribs.

Health points dropped to 16.

But it didn't even sway.

Without pain or fear, Skeleton Warthog One re-aimed its tusks at the prey and continued to push.

-4!

Skeleton Warthog Two crashed in from the other side.

-4!

The five Skeleton Soldiers continued to slash.

-1! -1! -1! -1! -1!

11.

Under two rounds of attacks, the Warthog's hind legs started to go weak.

It wanted to run, but there were bones in every direction.

Skeleton Warthog One pushed again.

-4!

7.

The Skeleton Soldiers attacked for another round.

-1! -1! -1! -1! -1!

2.

The Warthog barely managed to slip out, stumbling as it tried to burrow into the depths of the bushes.

But Skeleton Warthog Two intercepted it in one step, its tusks skewing diagonally, lifting from bottom to top.

-4!

The Warthog's front legs went weak, and its whole body collapsed onto the roots of the bushes, its tusks stuck in the mud.

It twitched twice and stopped moving.

[Battle Victory!]

[Loot is being calculated...]

Xu Qin, who was bringing up the rear, had only raised his stone axe halfway when he suddenly realized the battle was over.

Was the battle that fast?

The whole thing... less than ten seconds?

Last time, he traded his life for victory.

This time, he didn't even swing his axe.

Xu Qin suppressed the joy in his heart, walked over, squatted down, and inspected the area.

Skeleton Warthog One had a crack in its ribs, health points 16/25.

Skeleton Warthog Two was unscathed.

The five Skeleton Soldiers were unscathed.

Not to mention the Acolyte, who followed behind him the whole time and didn't even have time to cast a spell.

The only loss in the entire battle was Warthog One taking a hit.

Xu Qin waved his hand, signaling the Acolyte to come forward.

A dark purple light shrouded the ribs of Skeleton Warthog One.

Bone Healing.

The lost 9 health points would be fully restored in forty-five seconds.

At this moment, the panel popped up.

[Battle Settlement]

Lord gained XP +18

Target killed: Desert Warthog Level 1 x 1

Basic drops:

Warthog Skeleton x 1

Soul Energy +5

Meat x 10

Animal Hide x 1

Talent [War Gift Level 1] triggered! All loot quantities x 2!

Final gain:

Lord gained XP +36

Warthog Skeleton x 2

Soul Energy +10

Meat x 20

Animal Hide x 2

Battle Evaluation: B (Zero casualties)

Level-up progress: 2/10

Xu Qin looked at this string of numbers and couldn't help but chuckle.

The evaluation went from C to B.

Two skeletons, ten points of soul energy.

Raw materials for two more Skeleton Warthogs.

But his gaze didn't linger here.

Because at the bottom of the panel, a line of golden text was flickering.

[Experience points full! Lord level increased!]

[Level 1 → Level 2!]

[Attribute increase: Attack +2, Defense +1, Health +10]

Current attributes:

Xu Qin

Level: 2 (22/100)

Attack: 12 (Physical - Hack/Slash)

Defense: 4

Health: 40/40

As the golden text disappeared, a warm current spread from his chest to his limbs.

Xu Qin could clearly feel the muscles all over his body tightening.

The weight of the stone axe in his hand felt much lighter than it had a minute ago.

Xu Qin clenched his fist, feeling the extra strength in his knuckles.

"Very good, very good."

Now the base attack power is 10 points, plus the +2 from the stone axe, for a total of 12.

It's on par with the living Warthog's attack power!

"That hit wasn't taken in vain." Xu Qin stretched his shoulders, "Finally on the right track."

This sense of fullness as power poured into his muscles was indescribable.

In any case, it was much more real than clicking "Confirm" in a game.

He observed his surroundings and suppressed the urge to continue exploring.

The priority was not exploration, but expanding the army.

After converting these two skeletons, he would have four Skeleton Warthogs, five Skeleton Soldiers, and one Acolyte.

Four skeleton pigs surrounding one live pig?

That's not a battle; that's an execution.

The novice protection period still had seventy-some hours left.

No rush!

"All units, return to camp."

His army turned in unison and retraced their steps.

On the way, Xu Qin cut down every dead tree he saw.

This time, having gotten the hang of it, he specifically chose those whose roots were completely dry and couldn't even stand steadily.

With one swing of the axe, the whole tree crashed down.

The efficiency was much faster than the first trip.

The durability of the stone axe still had over thirty points, enough for a while.

When the team walked back to the range of the territory's light shield, Xu Qin checked his inventory.

Wood: 23.

"Not bad, now I have the capital to eat cooked food."

Building a bonfire takes 6 pieces, more than enough.

However, Xu Qin was just saying that.

He wasn't hungry now, so he'd save it for later.

Wood is something that will only be more scarce later, not more abundant.

The team passed through the light shield and returned to the front of the Primary Crypt.

Two fresh Warthog skeletons were taken out of the inventory and thrown into the entrance of the passage.

Dark purple light surged up and swallowed the skeletons.

Crackle, crackle.

He had already heard the sound of bones being eroded by dark energy once before.

Ten seconds later.

Two Skeleton Warthogs walked out from the depths of the passage, one after the other.