29: Chapter 29: As long as your health bar is long enough, I'll even kill a god!

Under the gaze of countless terrified and despairing eyes, Qin Ji's figure completely vanished into the portal that emitted a strange purple glow.

The weightless sensation of spatial distortion lasted only for a moment.

When his vision refocused, the original clamor of voices had been replaced by a deathly silent, dark forest. The air was thick with the mixed scent of rotting leaves and toxic miasma, and the surrounding twisted trunks were like the claws of malicious spirits, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws in the dim light.

[System Notification: You have entered the dungeon "Twisted Jungle" (Nightmare Level)]

[Current Dungeon Characteristics: Monster attributes increased by 300%, health recovery speed +500%, possesses the "Venomous" affix.]

"Nightmare level? This is what you call a nightmare?"

Qin Ji casually waved away the System panel before him, a playful arc curling at the corner of his mouth. For ordinary players, every minor mob here was an insurmountable mountain, but for him, this was nothing more than a giant, enclosed "attribute ATM."

"Time to work."

With his command, the soul fire in the eye sockets of the ten Skeleton Warriors behind him surged violently, and they crashed into the dense forest like ten heavy tanks.

"Roar—!!"

A Corrupted Great Bear (LV.12 Elite) covered in toxic tumors roared as it pounced, its bear paw, capable of shattering rocks, whistling down with a foul wind. However, it was met by a pale, giant bone shield.

BANG!

The bear's claws slammed hard against the shield, the counter-shock causing its massive body to stiffen. In the next second, several heavy swords slashed down in a cross pattern, and black sword light tore it to pieces like cutting through tofu.

[Killed Corrupted Great Bear (Elite), triggered "Greedy Grasp"!]

[Obtained: Physique +5, Strength +3!]

Golden numbers danced in Qin Ji's eyes, like the most wonderful musical notes in the world.

"Too slow."

Qin Ji shook his head. With a flash of light in his hand, the Divine Artifact Army Breaker - dragon slaying sword he had just extorted from Li Daoyi instantly switched into a primitive-looking staff.

"Since I'm grinding a dungeon, I should have the proper mindset for it."

He raised the staff and pointed toward the depths of the jungle, the sky-filling firelight reflected in his purple-gold pupils.

"Meteor Fire Rain, clear the field."

BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!

Crimson meteors, carrying destructive high temperatures, indiscriminately covered a 500-meter fan-shaped area ahead. The originally dark and damp jungle was instantly transformed into a hellish sea of fire. Countless shrill screams rose one after another, only to stop abruptly an instant later.

Dense golden numbers scrolled frantically across the screen. On Qin Ji's personal panel, the health bar was soaring upward at a heart-pounding speed.

Five hours later.

When Qin Ji stood at the dungeon exit once more, the Twisted Jungle behind him had become a scorched wasteland still emitting green smoke. The originally lush vegetation had been razed to the ground, and even the topsoil had been scraped down three feet.

He opened his panel.

[Health: 208,000 / 208,000]

[Passive skill "Withered Wood Meets Spring" has advanced -> "Abyssal Resurgence"]

[Abyssal Resurgence (LV.MAX): Forcibly restores 1% of maximum health every second. If lethal damage is received, health is forcibly locked for 1 second (Cooldown: 30 minutes).]

"Two hundred thousand health, regenerating two thousand per second."

Qin Ji felt the surging Blood Qi within him and clenched his fist in satisfaction. Currently, even if he stood still and let every player on the server focus fire on him, they probably couldn't out-damage his health regeneration.

...

Returning to Newbie Village No. 10086.

Qin Ji ignored the gazes of the surrounding players, who were looking at him as if he were a monster, and walked straight toward the blacksmith shop at the east end of the village.

As soon as he entered, a wave of scorching heat hit his face. Blacksmith Wang was bare-chested, swinging a hammer to strike a red-hot ingot. Seeing Qin Ji enter, a meaningful smile appeared on his weathered face.

"You're here?"

Blacksmith Wang put down his hammer. Without even asking about the dungeon situation, he directly pulled out a long, narrow black wooden box from under the counter behind him.

"Your item. The Old Drunkard already gave me a heads-up."

Qin Ji's brow twitched slightly.

That old fellow Li Daoyi—his skills at escaping weren't great, but his messaging speed was quite fast.

Opening the box, a longbow with a ferocious design and a dark golden light flowing through it lay quietly inside. The bow's body seemed to be crafted from the spine of some unknown giant beast, emitting a heart-palpitating aura of malevolentevil spirits.

[nine harmonies-evil slaying bow (Gold Grade - Custom)]

[Equip Requirement: None (Universal for all classes)]

[Attack Power: +850]

[Trait 1: Attack Speed +30%]

[Trait 2: Arrows carry a "Mana Break" effect, ignoring 30% of the target's defense.]

[Trait 3: Critical Hit Rate +25%]

[Trait 4: Automatically restores 100 health points per second.]

"Good bow."

A flash of light passed through Qin Ji's eyes. The attributes of this bow could be called perfect, especially that "ignore defense" affix. Combined with his high attribute panel, it was a true Sharp Weapon for picking off targets.

"Since you've received the goods, I won't beat around the bush anymore."

Blacksmith Wang wiped the oil and grime from his hands and said in a low voice, "The Old Drunkard said you're capable and wants to use your hand to get rid of the Old Village Chief."

"Oh?"

Qin Ji toyed with the longbow in his hand, his face showing no sign of surprise. "Reason?"

"The Old Village Chief has taken over the village's Secret Base, which hides the 'ice flame demon ore' that can allow the Old Drunkard to reconstruct his Physical Body." A hint of greed flashed in Blacksmith Wang's eyes. "You help us kill the guards; the Ore goes to us, and the equipment and skill books dropped by the guards belong to you. Additionally... the Old Drunkard promises that once the deed is done, he'll give you an S-rank skill book."

[Ding! Blacksmith Wang has issued a hidden quest: Cleaning Out the Guards.]

[Quest Objective: Go to the Secret Base under the cliff and kill the Old Village Chief's personal guard unit.]

[Quest Reward: S-rank Skill Book x1, Unknown Reward x1.]

[Failure Penalty: Favorability with Blacksmith Wang and Li Daoyi will drop to "Deadly Enemies."]

"Accepted."

Qin Ji didn't hesitate. There was no reason to refuse experience packs and skill books delivered to his door. As for the dog-eat-dog conflict between these two NPCs, he was only responsible for handing over the knife—and while he was at it, he'd crush the bones of both sides to suck the marrow.

"Excellent!"

Blacksmith Wang laughed loudly. "Go, then. The Old Drunkard is waiting for you at the southern cliff; he will take you into the base."

Qin Ji stowed the longbow and turned to leave. However, the moment he stepped out of the blacksmith shop's door, a cold, mocking sneer curled onto his lips.

The fact that Li Daoyi dared to proactively cooperate after being extorted by him was abnormal in itself.

This bow was likely hush money, but also bait.

...

South of the Newbie Village, Soul-Severing Cliff.

This place was shrouded in mist year-round and was bottomless. In his past life, many players looking to try their luck had attempted to jump off the cliff to find treasure, but without exception, they all ended up as meat paste. Over time, this place became a Forbidden Ground that no one visited.

The mountain wind howled, causing the robes on Qin Ji's body to flutter loudly.

He stopped his pace, his gaze piercing through the thick mist to land on a giant rock at the edge of the cliff.

Someone was standing there.

But it wasn't Li Daoyi with his wine gourd; it was an old man leaning on a cane with a hunched back.

The Village Chief of Newbie Village No. 10086.

The moment he saw the Old Village Chief, the purple light in the depths of Qin Ji's eyes flashed slightly. He wasn't surprised at all, as if he had anticipated this scene long ago.

"Snow Emperor... oh no, I should call you Qin Ji now."

The Old Village Chief slowly turned around, his cloudy old eyes sparkling with shrewd light. "I heard you beat that waste of an Old Drunkard until he only had half a life left? Truly, the younger generation is to be feared."

Qin Ji looked at him expressionlessly, his finger lightly stroking the edge of his storage ring. "Where is Li Daoyi? He asked me to come here, yet he doesn't dare show his face?"

"Him? He's probably hiding in some rat hole right now, shivering in fear."

The Old Village Chief sneered, his cane tapping lightly on the ground. "Young man, you've been deceived. The Old Drunkard and Blacksmith Wang are in cahoots. They want to use you to draw my attention so they can steal the thing Seal beneath the mine."

"Seal?" Qin Ji showed a timely hint of "confusion."

"Exactly."

The Old Village Chief sighed, putting on a look of compassion. "Beneath this cliff, an Ancient Vicious Beast is sealed. I am the Gravekeeper here. That ice flame demon ore isn't some material for reconstructing a Physical Body at all; it's the core that reinforces the Seal! Once they dig it away and the Vicious Beast emerges, the entire Newbie Village... no, the entire God Domain will be devastated!"

At this point, the Old Village Chief stared intently at Qin Ji, his tone sincere: "Qin Ji, I see you have an extraordinary skeletal structure; you are a talent worth cultivating. As long as you are willing to help me guard the mine and stop those two thieves, I can make an exception and recommend you to the main city, allowing you to directly obtain the rank of 'Baron'!"

A title.

This was an extremely precious resource in the Late Stage of the game. Only by holding a title could one purchase real estate in the main city and form a private army.

If it were an ordinary player, they would have probably bowed down in submission the moment they heard this condition.

But Qin Ji only smiled faintly.

"Sounds like a decent story."

He took a step forward, staring down the Old Village Chief. "So, you want me to go to the mine?"

"Yes! Only you can stop them!" The Old Village Chief's expression was agitated.

"Fine, I'll go."

Qin Ji agreed decisively and turned to leave.

Watching Qin Ji's departing back, an imperceptible, sinister smile appeared on the Old Village Chief's face. But he didn't see that Qin Ji, with his back turned, had an expression even colder than his own.

Luring the tiger away from the mountain?

No.

This was a Chain Scheme.

Blacksmith Wang had sent him to the cliff to get him out of the way so Li Daoyi would have a chance to infiltrate the mine.

And the Old Village Chief appearing here to trick him back to the mine was to make him and Li Daoyi fight to the death in the narrow tunnels, while he himself could reap the benefits as the third party, or even... that so-called "sealed monster" was probably just the Old Village Chief's own pet, wasn't it?

"Since you all want to play..."

Qin Ji's fingers lightly rested on the newly acquired nine harmonies-evil slaying bow, black lightning dancing at his fingertips. "Then let's see whose bones are actually harder."

The setting sun was as red as blood, staining Soul-Severing Cliff a crimson hue. Qin Ji's figure gradually blurred in the lengthening shadows, just like a hunter who had bared his fangs, walking with silent steps toward the trap that had long since been spread wide.