Charge was no doubt a preemptive trump card. Being a melee fighter without Charge was a total handicap!

I locked onto a nearby Crystal Crab and used Charge!

Whoosh!

As if four engines had been revved, I turned into a streak of lightning and shot out, instantly appearing before the Crystal Crab. Without the poor creature even realizing what was happening, a mark appeared above its head, signifying stunned state.

Pardon! Desperate Gambit!

Both skills were instantly cast and when I turned to disengage, I saw the Crystal Crab waving its huge pincers at the air, rippling out four gorgeous MISS messages.

Tsk tsk. A one-second stun was just too amazing. It would let me kill mobs without getting damaged at all!

I finished the crab, calmed down, then ran to the edge of the forest to set up a tent. Time to log out!

……

The other four were already waiting inside the workshop’s living room. Like before, Gui Guzi looked like he was going to an interview, Du Thirteen dressed like a hooligan, Beiming Xue was in a T-shirt and short skirt while I and Mamate just looked unremarkable, one wearing Jeanswest and the other, Semir.

“Where should we go for dinner?” I asked.

“Anywhere, going to a bar is more important tonight!”

“Okay.”

And so we had dinner in a small roadside restaurant. When the sun set, and it was 7:30 pm in the evening, our group arrived at the only bar in the area: Hot Club. It was a bar with a youthful concept. Those who would come there were either students or people like us.

The inside lighting was dreamy and we saw a few charming girls sitting near the counter the moment we went in.

We found a table and took our seats. A waitress walked over and asked for our order.

Beiming Xue’s beautiful eyes swept over and she suddenly smiled. “Beauty, we’re not ordering anything yet. Can you come back in ten minutes?”

The waitress nodded. “Alright~”

“Lil Beiming, what are you planning?” I asked.

Beiming Xue immediately stood up and moved her seat to side beside me. She reached out and pointed with a finger. “Gui Guzi, Brother Thirteen, Mamate, go sit on the sofa in front of us. Let’s play a game!”

Du Thirteen asked, “What game?”

“Brain teasers. I’ll be with Lu Chen and you three will be another team. Each team will ask the other questions. Best of three. Whichever team loses will foot the bill. How about it? You up for it?”

Du Thirteen laughed. “Haha, Lil Beiming you’re seriously asking for it. Brain teasers are a cinch for someone who reads a ton of books like me!”

“Okay, let’s begin!”

Beiming Xue took out her cellphone and lightly slapped the table. Smiling with crafty eyes, she said, “First question. Please listen carefully. What is a man who is trusted to guard a woman's chastity without fail?”

Du Thirteen was shocked. His face turned grim.

Mamate said, “Is it someone homosexual or asexual?”

Gui Guzi nodded continuously. “Mamate’s smart!”

Beiming Xue indifferently answered, “No, an eunuch!”

“Damn…”

Du Thirteen was angry. “My turn. Please listen carefully. A bear without a tail is called a tailless bear. What is a bear without a dick called?”

Beiming Xue calmly answered, “Mother bear!”

“Damn…”

1:0!

Beiming Xue beamed and continued. “Second question. Please listen carefully. Brother Thirteen transmigrated to the North Pole and encountered a polar bear. How can he handle the polar bear without a weapon?”

Du Thirteen, Gui Guzi, and Mamate stared blankly.

Beiming Xue gently smiled. “He can pee out a sword…”

“Damn…”

They were about to go mad. Since it was their last chance, Du Thirteen stifled his anger and said with a clear voice. “Second question. Please listen carefully. After going to the toilet, do you use your left hand or your right hand to wipe your peepee?

Beiming Xue was immediately stunned and her face flushed red.

I smiled. “It’s better to use toilet paper…”

“Oh~no…”

They had been totally destroyed. Du Thirteen’s party suffered a 2:0 defeat.

We began to order. Beiming Xue wanted two glasses of fruit juice. I ordered two bottles of beer and some snacks. All this was billed to Du Thirteen. He was in charge of our workshop’s finances anyway so he should have quite a bit of money in his pockets.

Du Thirteen couldn’t accept his loss and wanted a rematch with Beiming Xue. I spoke out, “Your brain teasers are too vulgar, it’s better to chat about some pure things!”

Mamate nodded repeatedly. “Right, pure things!”

The three of them looked at me but I was also at a loss. I glanced at Beiming Xue and said a bit helplessly, “It seems like aside from Beiming, we don’t have anything beautiful and pure…”

……

As a result, the five of us played cards all the way until 9 pm.

My phone suddenly rang with my jingling ringtone. I checked the throbbing screen and found a familiar name on the screen, Wind Fantasy. It was Lin Yixin.

“What’s up, Beauty Yi?”

“Lu Chen, why didn’t I see you online tonight?”

“Oh, I went out with everyone to relax…”

“You’re taking a bath?”

“Fuck, where the hell did your mind wander off to? We’re at a bar! What’s up?”

“Nothing.” Lin Yixin giggled. “I just wanted to remind you that you should quickly level up. Dominating Heaven Blade’s leveling really fast. If you let him get to Level 60 and the third promotion first, you’ll regret it…”

“Mn, I’ll be back soon!”

I hung up and discovered four pairs of eyes that were up to no good staring at me.

“Fuck, why are you looking at me like that for?”

Beiming Xue smiled. “Lin Yixin?”

“Mn.”

“You guys have a good relationship…”

“What’re you trying to say?”

Mamate rubbed his round belly and smiled like a deputy military adviser. “Your Highness, I saw a ton of people on the forums praising Wind Fantasy, Lin Yixin, saying that this girl had both brains and beauty. They also said something like ‘Whoever gets this girl will get the world’. How about you work hard to get her so our plan of Bloody Mercenaries revitalizing Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls can move up in schedule… In short, go get ‘em!”

I shot him a glance. “Do you really think a girl like Lin Yixin can be wooed that easily?”

Mamate shook his head.

I spread my hands and smiled. “That’s why you shouldn’t even think about it. It’s unrealistic, so we should be thinking about our future goals and objectives.”

Mamate said, “I need to reach Rank 6 Armorsmithing as soon as possible. You’re also pushing Rank 6 Cooking, right Lu Chen? Once both are Rank 6, our workshop’s funds won’t be a problem.”

I nodded. “Then work hard. Let’s buy our workshop a dedicated car first. What do you think?”

Beiming Xue smiled happily. “Of course that’s great. If our workshop has its own car, we don’t need to squeeze in public transport and get taken advantage of by weird uncles…”

“...” We all turned into stone.

……

By the time we returned to the workshop, it was already 10 pm, but none of us were sleepy, so we all logged on and got ready to grind.

Swhoosh!

I appeared at Silverscale Coast and made my way out of the tent. My waist was sore and my back hurt. Not sleeping in a grave really made me feel unwell!

Let’s not rush to kill mobs. I’ll go head over to the NPC Scout Captain. He had a hesitant expression yesterday, as though he wanted to say something. He definitely still had a quest to give me, else he wouldn’t have worn that expression..

As expected, the moment I arrived, Dakara spread his hands and let out a loud laugh. “You’re here, young warrior! A few Savage Hyenas have recently appeared in Silverscale Coast’s forest area. Unlike your average hyenas, they have the power to tear through armor. These hyenas are a huge hindrance to our patrols and I hope you can help me out. Kill 500 Savage Hyenas and I will generously reward you!”

Ding~!

System Notice: Do you want to accept the quest [Savage Hyena]? (Current Quest Difficulty: B)

I accepted the quest and it appeared in my active quest list.

I opened the map and a dense expanse of red appeared in the nearby forest area. It was precisely the hyena territory. As long as I went there and killed 500 of them, reaching Level 60 shouldn’t be much of an issue by the time I turned in my quest.

The Ghost Ice Soul was suffused with a dim red color. This was the passive effect of the Undead Energy skill. Even though Lin Yixin had Killer Wind Swordplay to boost her grinding speed, my Undead Energy gave me a boost in many places, whether it be crab, spearfish, or hyena. Undead Energy V offered an increase of 25%, it was nothing to scoff at!

I looked in my bag. There were 37 stacks of Fish Meat and then some, for a total of over 3700, easily enough to make a ton of Rank 6 Magic Consumables. The only thing left for me to do was to rush to Level 60!

I passed through the forest filled with early morning mist. Distinct sounds of low yelps traveled to my ears. I had already entered hyena territory.

An agile feature suddenly pounced over before I had even taken a few steps. As I had predicted, it was a red-eyed dog covered in red and yellow spots. Its teeth were unusual, like steel knives hanging by its lips. Thick saliva dripped down its fangs—

Savage Hyena

Level: 65

Attack: 415~450

Defense: 340

HP: 6200

Skills: Rend

Introduction: Silverscale Coast’s mutated species, possesses strong attack power and fast recovery.

……

It’s still a Level 65 monster, no pressure!

I quickly moved out of the hyena’s attack range and struck it on the head!

“Awoo…”

With the appearance of a 765 damage number, the hyena no longer dared to underestimate me but my next move gave me an even bigger ecstasy. Ice Ray + Slayer Slash smashed into its head, causing even higher damage numbers to float—

894!

912!

My Dark Wasp followed up with a 3-hit Flurry. After my 6-second cooldown was over, I swiftly lashed out with Pardon and Desperate Gambit to end the Savage Hyena’s life!

Ding~!

System Notice: Congratulations, your skill Desperate Gambit has reached Rank 5!

……

“Haha, finally Rank 5!”

I opened the skill details. Desperate Gambit V increased attack damage by 50% and lowered the target’s Defense by 25%. Coupled with Pardon, it was the ultimate tool of murder!

I looked at the Savage Hyena on the floor. Death Plunder!

Pop!

A dog pelt appeared in my bag. It was a Rank 5 pelt. Very nice, I’ll give it to Mamate when I’m back.

I cruised through the forest area of Silverscale Forest and killed all the way to 3 am, when I finally reached Level 60, a pillar of golden light washing over me.

When I turned in my quest, I was Level 60 with 17% experience. Time to head back to the city and go to Frost Mound to receive my third-promotion quest!