80: Chapter 80: You can even boost your stats while eating?! This dungeon is practically a bug-filled paradise!

Twilight completely swallowed this deathly silent snowy plain, with only Qin Ji's purple-gold pupils cutting two cold streaks of light through the darkness.

The moment the giant beast's head beneath his feet lost its life signs, it became like a mass of wax melting under high heat, rapidly collapsing and decomposing, finally turning into a puddle of white snow and merging back into the thick layer of ice.

"The ninth one."

Qin Ji landed lightly, the epic-grade greatsword in his hand performing a flourish in the air, shaking off non-existent bloodstains from the blade's spine.

[Killed Ice Snow Werewolf, triggered talent "Greedy Grasp".]

[Obtained Attribute: Max HP +100.]

Golden notification boxes pulsed across his retina, but this was only the beginning.

Almost simultaneously, the sound of tooth-gritting friction came from the snow ahead again. This time, it wasn't a single sound, but two overlapping roars!

Boom! Boom!

Two white afterimages formed a pincer attack, instantly tearing through the barrier of wind and snow, lunging at Qin Ji's left and right flanks with a foul-smelling gale.

"The difficulty has scaled up?"

The corners of Qin Ji's mouth curled slightly; not only was there no panic in his eyes, but a surge of excitement akin to seeing a new dish at a buffet.

What was originally a one-on-one duel had turned into dual-core processing.

For ordinary players, this might be the final straw that breaks the camel's back; after all, a single monster with an "infinite resurrection" mechanism and damage that carries a true bleeding effect is enough of a headache, let alone two coordinating for a seamless control chain.

But in Qin Ji's eyes, this merely meant the efficiency of grinding stats had doubled.

"Spatial Blink."

His figure vanished into thin air from the spot, and the two werewolves' claws slammed into each other, erupting in a shower of sparks.

A second later, Qin Ji appeared above the werewolf on the left, his greatsword carrying the weight of ten thousand tons, crashing down with the force of gravitational potential energy.

"Get down!"

Bang—!

The dull sound of bones fracturing exploded in the night.

The next half hour became Qin Ji's solo performance. Like a tireless precision instrument, he used aerial combo techniques to play the two werewolves like fiddles.

Kill, resurrect, kill again.

The slowly rising Max HP now began to soar at an astonishing speed.

17,000... 22,000...

Combined with the percentage bonuses from his god-tier gear, the health he ground in this short time had already exceeded the total of all kinds of stats for a full-tank Shield Warrior of the same Rank.

"Whew..."

After Qin Ji once again decapitated two wolf heads with a single swing, the surroundings suddenly fell into an eerie silence.

The expected third wave of attacks did not arrive immediately.

The wind and snow seemed to have lessened slightly.

Qin Ji sheathed his sword and stood still, his sharp gaze turning toward the dilapidated thatched hut at the village entrance.

The window that had been tightly shut before was now pushed open a crack. Then, the rickety wooden door let out a soft "creak" and slowly opened.

The woman who had been fearfully peeking earlier was now holding a dim oil lamp, standing at the door and cautiously beckoning to Qin Ji.

"Brave adventurer... it's too cold outside, please come in."

A plot trigger?

Qin Ji raised an eyebrow. According to the usual tropes, NPCs in these death-locked dungeons were usually traps issuing suicide missions or triggers for some mechanism.

He without hesitation strode over.

[Eye of Insight] activated.

[Villager Auntie Chen (Special NPC)]

Rank: LV.50

HP: 1,000,000 / 1,000,000

Attack Power: 985

Status: Friendly

Seeing the name "Auntie Chen," a flicker of surprise crossed Qin Ji's otherwise calm eyes.

In this Western fantasy-themed world of "God's Domain," especially in this Western-style dungeon called "Snow Corpse Footprints," the appearance of a name with such strong Eastern rural flavor was a massive dissonance in itself.

Yet, this dissonance gave Qin Ji a strange sense of familiarity.

"Thanks." Qin Ji withdrew his Killing Intent and stepped into the house.

The furnishings inside were simple, even crude. However, several strings of smoked bacon hanging on the wall emitted an appetizing aroma of cooking. Their golden, translucent color and balanced fat-to-lean ratio were in the authentic style of old Sichuan-Shu cured meat.

"Thank you so much. If you hadn't blocked those monsters, we probably wouldn't have made it through this winter."

Auntie Chen spoke while briskly clearing the table. "To show my gratitude, please let me prepare a dinner for you. It's nothing fancy, but it'll fill you up."

"Then I'll trouble you."

Qin Ji didn't stand on ceremony either, directly pulling out a stool and sitting down.

He wanted to see what other tricks this bug-filled dungeon could pull off.

Auntie Chen ducked into the kitchen to get busy.

Qin Ji sat at the table, his fingertips lightly tapping the surface. The patience gained from living two lives meant he didn't show the slightest impatience; even as the sound of the wind and snow outside grew louder, he remained as steady as a mountain.

About half an hour later.

A rich aroma wafted out from the kitchen.

Three dishes and one soup.

Stir-fried cured meat with garlic sprouts, hot and sour shredded potatoes, Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs, and a large basin of steaming tomato and egg soup.

Looking at these familiar dishes, Qin Ji felt a bit dazed. This didn't seem like a Hell-grade dungeon at all; it was as if he had returned to the family table back home during the New Year.

"Try some? My skills are mediocre, don't mind it." Auntie Chen wiped her hands and gave a constrained smile.

"Looks good."

Qin Ji picked up his chopsticks, lifted a slice of translucent cured meat, and put it in his mouth.

Fatty but not greasy, with the smoked flavor just right.

However, the moment he swallowed, a crisp System notification tone exploded in his mind.

[Ding! Consumed "Auntie Chen's Secret Cured Meat", Attack Power +5 (Permanent).]

Qin Ji's hand holding the chopsticks suddenly froze in mid-air.

What the Hell?

A bite of meat adds 5 points of permanent Attack Power?

You should know, ordinary players only get 5 free attribute points for leveling up once! One bite of meat is equivalent to someone else leveling up?

Qin Ji's gaze changed instantly.

He quickly took another chopstick-full of hot and sour shredded potatoes.

[Ding! Consumed "Refreshing Shredded Potatoes", Attack Speed +0.02 (Permanent).]

Then he took a sip of the egg soup.

[Ding! Consumed "Heart-Warming Egg Soup", Movement Speed +0.1 (Permanent).]

Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs!

[Ding! Consumed "Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs", Critical Hit Rate +1% (Permanent).]

"Holy crap..."

Even a cheater like Qin Ji, who had seen his share of grand scenes, couldn't help but curse inwardly.

This isn't eating; this is clearly devouring shards of a Godhead!

Critical Hit Rate, Attack Speed, and Movement Speed—these three attributes are the golden trinity dreamed of by all physical-type classes. Usually, increasing them even a little is as difficult as climbing to heaven, and now they were laid out on the table for him to eat as he pleased?

The brains of this dungeon's designers are definitely not filled with water; they're filled with gold mines!

The indifference in Qin Ji's eyes vanished completely, replaced by a green light like that of a hungry wolf.

"Auntie Chen, then I won't be polite."

He began to devour the food like a whirlwind sweeping through clouds.

The chopsticks became afterimages in the air, precisely delivering every piece of meat and every strand of potato into his mouth.

Attack Power +5... +5... +5...

Attack Speed +0.02... +0.02...

As the amount of food consumed increased, Qin Ji could clearly feel waves of warmth exploding within his body; it was the pleasure of data being frantically reorganized and strengthened.

But soon, a practical problem presented itself.

Satiety.

Although this was a game world, "God's Domain" had a realism rating as high as 99%, and the stomach's capacity had its limits.

By the time the plate of shredded potatoes that boosted Attack Speed was completely wiped out, Qin Ji felt the food was already up to his throat.

Burp—

Qin Ji let out a belch, and looking at the remaining half-basin of egg soup, a trace of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

This soup added Movement Speed, which for someone like him who needed to kite, was the most critical attribute after Attack Speed.

It must not be wasted!

"Drink!"

Qin Ji took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed the discomfort in his stomach, picked up the soup basin, and began to chug.

His digitized body was protesting, but his greedy Soul was cheering.

With every gulp, his body felt a fraction lighter.

Until finally, not a single drop more could be forced in, Qin Ji had no choice but to put down the soup basin and slump into his chair, feeling like a stuffed turkey.

[Eating Summary: Attack Power +150, Attack Speed +0.8, Critical Hit Rate +15%, Movement Speed +3.5.]

Looking at this luxurious stat boost, Qin Ji felt that even eating himself to death would have been worth it.

Especially that 15% Critical Hit Rate; combined with his already high attributes, he could now practically deal explosive damage with every strike.

"Oh, you child, eat slower, no one is competing with you."

Auntie Chen saw the empty plates, and her face blossomed with a smile. For a cook, an empty plate is the greatest praise.

She turned and went into the inner room, rustling around for a while.

A moment later, she came out holding a token that emitted a chilling aura.

"Young man, you are very capable, and you have a good appetite."

Auntie Chen handed the token to Qin Ji, her tone becoming somewhat solemn. "This is something left behind by a powerful adventurer I once took in. He said if I met someone destined, I should hand it over. I think you are that person."

Qin Ji took the token, his fingertips touching the cold metal surface.

[Frost Token (Special Accessory)]

Quality: Epic (Unique)

Effect: When equipped, all your attacks will carry an "Extreme Cold" effect, reducing the target's Attack Speed and Movement Speed by 20% for 5 seconds. This effect can stack up to 3 times (60% slow).

Durability: 100/100

Qin Ji's eyes lit up.

Good stuff!

Although this thing doesn't directly increase damage, in battles requiring high-intensity kiting and positioning, a 60% slow is simply a god-tier skill.

Just imagine: those originally extremely fast Ice Snow Werewolves, once slowed, would move as slowly as if they were practicing Tai Chi, while the well-fed Qin Ji would be as fast as lightning.

Just thinking about that scene felt cruel.

"Thank you, Auntie Chen."

Qin Ji solemnly put away the token and stood up.

Although his stomach was still a bit stuffed, the sound of the wind and snow outside seemed even more shrill.

He could feel that the locked-on Killing Intent was increasing manifold.

"It seems it's time for some post-meal exercise."

Qin Ji pushed open the door. The biting cold wind mixed with snowflakes hit him in the face, but it couldn't disperse the heat he had just accumulated through overeating.

Outside, the previously empty snow was now packed with dark shadows that had appeared at some unknown time.

No longer just two.

But a full ten Ice Snow Werewolves, spread out in a fan shape, twenty crimson eyes staring fixedly at Qin Ji as he stepped out of the house, low growls emanating from their throats.

"Ten of them?"

Qin Ji cracked his neck, producing a series of popping sounds.

He slowly drew his greatsword, the tip trailing on the ground, carving a deep furrow in the snow.

That meal just now had not only filled his stomach but also his thirst for power.

"Just right, I'll use you to help digest my food."

Boom!

Before his voice had even faded, Qin Ji's figure had already vanished from the spot.

This time, his speed was a full twice as fast as before!

Only a torn afterimage remained in the air. By the time the ten werewolves reacted, Qin Ji had already appeared above the head of the one in the center.

No fancy techniques.

Only pure speed and ultimate violence.

The greatsword, with a wind-breaking shriek, smashed into the center of the wolf pack like a black meteor.

Snow waves exploded; blood and ice shards flew together.

Amidst this flying chaos, Qin Ji's purple-gold pupils were like two ghost fires, coldly watching the prey that were about to contribute their HP, the corner of his mouth curling into a heart-stopping arc.

The slaughter feast had begun once again.