Chapter 29: Are You Afraid or Not? [New Book Seeking Support]

With a metallic clang, the finely wrought steel sword was unsheathed in a flash! In one swift motion, accompanied by the arc of a blade, the turkey's head fell to the ground.

The movement was clean and sharp, without the slightest hesitation.

[Ding~ Hunted a level 2 fierce beast, received 2 experience points]
[Ding~ Player leveled up to 2, gained four free attribute points]

Hearing the system notification, a satisfied smile appeared on Tang Shen's handsome face. It hadn't been easy, but at last, he had leveled up again.

Thud!

He staggered, nearly losing his balance, and hurriedly thrust the steel sword into the ground to steady himself. Forcing himself to focus, he cast a gathering skill.

[Ding~ Collected a piece of exquisite turkey meat]
[Ding~ Collected a turkey feather]
[Ding~ Collected 500 Beli]

With the system messages chiming in, Tang Shen opened his attribute panel.

Player: Monkey D. Roger
Age: 18
Starting Point: Frostmoon Novice Village
Level: 2, 3.3333%
Achievement Points: 1
Swordsmanship Talent: +20
Unassigned Attribute Points: 4
Health: 100
Constitution: 0 (14)
Strength: 1
Agility: 1.7
Spirit: 0 (1)
Skills: Intermediate Quick-draw, Basic Swordsmanship (Novice), Reconnaissance, Gathering
System Backpack: Novice Wooden Sword x1, Adjustable Hand & Leg Load

His constitution and spirit were both depleted to zero. Tang Shen was utterly exhausted, sweat soaking his entire body, yet a look of satisfaction lingered on his face.

Plop!

He flopped down onto the ground in complete disregard for appearances. Tang Shen realized that after burning through all his stamina, his resilience seemed to have improved. He remembered that the first time he had run out of energy yesterday, he had nearly passed out. Now, even with his spirit completely spent and his head throbbing as if it might explode, he still felt he could endure it.

Well, though he was too tired to move even a finger.

Gazing at the unassigned attribute points, Tang Shen racked his brain, but the severe mental exhaustion made thinking agonizing, as if a nerve in his head had been stretched taut, making him intensely uncomfortable.

"Spirit +1!"

He immediately chose to add a point to Spirit. After all, if he never increased his Spirit, his monster-grinding time would remain strictly limited, only able to recover by resting. Adding a point here would allow him much more time to hunt.

His Spirit value immediately became 1.

At the same time, he felt a wave of comfort so intense it made him want to groan sweep through his brain, and the overwhelming mental fatigue vanished in an instant. His mind suddenly cleared.

His thoughts, previously sluggish and blocked, now flowed with effortless clarity—like a dam suddenly giving way to a torrent, or as if a Nokia phone had been fitted with Apple hardware.

His eyes snapped open, a sharp glint flashing through them.

Tang Shen had never felt so awake, even though his body had no strength left. The sensation was almost addictive, like the rush of a narcotic.

He was tempted to experience it again.

Meanwhile, in the real world.

Invisible special ions in the air of Tang Shen's room gathered into a thin, imperceptible thread. Unlike the previous constitution enhancement, this thread entered Tang Shen's brain. From the pores on his scalp, a faint layer of white impurities was expelled.

Without hesitation, Tang Shen allocated the remaining three attribute points to Constitution and Strength—one to Constitution, two to Strength.

Player: Monkey D. Roger
Age: 18
Starting Point: Frostmoon Novice Village
Level: 2, 3.3333%
Achievement Points: 1
Swordsmanship Talent: +20
Health: 100
Constitution: 1 (15)
Strength: 3
Agility: 1.7
Spirit: 1 (2)
Skills: Intermediate Quick-draw, Basic Swordsmanship (Novice), Reconnaissance, Gathering
System Backpack: Novice Wooden Sword x1, Adjustable Hand & Leg Load

With exactly 15 points of stamina, he could now perform three quick-draw slashes. He had chosen to boost Strength after feeling a certain resistance when killing a level 2 beast—something not related to the steel sword, but rather his own lack of power.

Agility was sufficient for now, especially since the exquisite turkey meat still granted him a bonus.

Once the points were assigned, Tang Shen immediately felt the deep fatigue melt away, and his body brimmed with a strength far beyond what he had known.

He clenched his fist, joints cracking audibly—now, let’s see who dares stand in his way!

With a nimble kip-up, he leapt to his feet.

Guina, who was watching him, felt a wave of confusion. Just moments before, he had been too tired to even move; how could he suddenly be so full of energy?

"Teacher has an incredible constitution and astonishing willpower!" Guina thought to herself, filled with admiration and awe. For some reason, as she looked at Tang Shen, she sensed that he had changed yet again—he seemed much stronger than before.

His progress was astonishingly fast. It had only been two days.

Of course, she was still confident she could defeat him in a fight.

"Come on, Guina, get the fire going!" Tang Shen paid no mind to her thoughts. All he wanted was to recover his strength and continue hunting.

"Yes, Teacher!"

After eating, his stamina was restored, and his Agility increased by another 0.1. Tang Shen’s heart swelled with delight.

Grabbing the steel sword, he strode boldly back toward the forest.

With increased strength, the steel sword felt feather-light in his hand.

With increased Spirit, even walking felt effortless.

He was in the best shape he’d ever been.

Eyes sharp, he scanned for turkeys, calling out excitedly, "Come on, you trash turkeys! Now I can take on ten of you!"

Though Guina was slowly getting used to Tang Shen’s outrageous remarks, she still felt exasperated, unconsciously widening the distance between them.

Tang Shen was a bit too excited right now—it made her uneasy.

Stronger, faster, and able to quick-draw even more rapidly.

Now, when a trash turkey ran up, he could leisurely draw his sword and, before the bird even realized, slice it in two.

Although, he found it a bit hard to control.

"So this is the problem with increasing Strength too fast!" Tang Shen instantly realized that his power had doubled, but his control had nearly reset, and he would need to adapt all over again.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

With his rising strength, the weak turkeys could not withstand him.

He had learned to have Guina roast extra meat to carry with them—when he ran low on stamina, he’d simply eat some to recover, hunting as he walked, eating and searching for turkeys all at once. His days felt more fulfilling than ever.

His efficiency had soared.

By three in the afternoon, he had only killed eight turkeys and five fang rabbits, but before six o'clock, he had already taken down six more turkeys, feeling exhilarated and utterly satisfied.

His blade flashed, severing one turkey head after another; many turkeys never even registered their fate—the sword was simply too fast.

Once, he had dreamed of roaming the world with his sword, to behold the world’s splendor.

For now, Tang Shen had accomplished the first five words of that dream.