2025-04-08 19:40:49The spirit shot forward. He ducked and rolled, stabbing upward. The blade passed through but disrupted the spirit’s form.
[Soul Damage Inflicted. Wisp Integrity: 72%] “Okay, I can hurt it!” The spirit countered with a psychic shriek. Leo clenched his teeth, blood trickling from his ears. “Not again—damn it!” He triggered Quick Strike, blinking behind the Wisp, then jabbed his dagger into the base of its form. [Soul Damage Inflicted. Wisp Integrity: 21%] The Wisp convulsed, then surged toward the shrine, trying to absorb its energy. “Nope!” Leo hurled a chunk of stone at the base of the shrine. The pulse stuttered. The Wisp screamed. Leo lunged in, stabbing once more. With a final keening wail, the ghost exploded into wisps of silver light. [Mission Complete: Echoing Shrine Activated. Rewards granted. Skill Obtained: Spirit Link (Passive) – Enables detection of spiritual entities within 10 meters. Intelligence +1. Luck +1.] Leo collapsed beside the shrine, gasping. “So that’s what a spiritual beatdown feels like...” He looked down at the defeated beast, then back at the dark woods. One challenge down. A thousand more to go. And the clock was still ticking. Just as Leo leaned against a tree to catch his breath, the system interface flared to life again—this time tinted orange. [Sub-Mission Chain Unlocked – Hunter's Trial I] Leo groaned. "Now what?" [Optional Sub-Mission Available: Collect 3 Spiketail Howler Fangs. Use: Upgrade Starter Weapon, Unlock Basic Crafting.] [Time Limit: 1 Hour. Warning: Failure to complete optional mission will forfeit crafting ability for 24 hours.] Leo glanced at the fallen beast. Its mouth hung open slightly, revealing long yellowish fangs stained with blood and rot. He wasn’t thrilled by the idea of touching that thing again—but the idea of crafting weapons instead of picking up sticks sounded like a major win. "Optional, huh?" he muttered. "But not really optional if I want to stop fighting with tree branches." With a resigned sigh, Leo kneeled beside the beast. He wrapped part of his torn shirt around his hand and gripped one of the fangs. It was lodged deep in the jaw. He braced his foot against the creature’s side and pulled. Nothing. "Of course it’s not going to be easy." He shifted his stance and yanked harder. There was a disgusting pop, followed by a squelch as the fang came free, dripping blood and some unidentifiable slime. Leo gagged. "God, that’s nasty." [Item Obtained: Spiketail Howler Fang (1/3)] Two more to go. The second fang came out slightly easier—maybe his technique had improved, or maybe the body was just starting to loosen. But just as he moved to extract the third, a sharp rustling to his left made him freeze. Another Howler padded into view, its yellow eyes locked on Leo. It sniffed the air, then let out a low growl as it recognized the scent of its dead kin. Leo swore under his breath and grabbed the splintered branch again, though it now looked more like firewood than a weapon. "Hey, buddy. I already killed one of you. Let’s not make this worse." The Howler screeched and charged. Leo ducked, rolled to the side, and narrowly missed being gored by a swipe of claws. His fingers scrambled through the grass until they landed on something hard and cold—his reward dagger from earlier. The Snarltwist dagger glinted dully in the fading light. He gripped it tight. [Skill Available: Quick Strike – Cooldown: 3 hours, 42 minutes remaining.] "Right. No Quick Strike. Gotta do this the old-fashioned way." The Howler came again. This one was faster, angrier. Leo sidestepped its lunge and slashed at its leg. The dagger bit in, and the creature yelped, turning to retaliate. Leo ducked under a swing and stabbed upward, the blade sliding between the beast’s ribs. It howled in agony. "Got you!" But it didn’t fall. It twisted, whipping its spiked tail toward him. Leo barely blocked it with his forearm. The tail’s jagged edge ripped across his skin, drawing blood and sending a jolt of pain up his arm. [HP Reduced – 85% Remaining.] "Son of a—!" Leo gritted his teeth and rushed in again, feinting left before diving right. His dagger plunged into the beast’s throat, and this time, it collapsed for good. He fell back on the grass, chest heaving. The system chimed again. [Enemy Defeated – Spiketail Howler (2nd Kill).] [Optional Sub-Mission Progress: 2/3 Fangs Obtained.] Leo didn’t even wait to recover. He crawled forward, extracted the third fang from the first corpse, and then yanked one from the second. [Optional Sub-Mission Complete.] [Crafting Function: Basic Weapon Crafting Unlocked.] [Blueprints Available: Fang Dagger, Bone Knuckles, Spiketail Shiv.] Leo sighed in relief. “Okay. That’s better.” The interface now displayed a new menu filled with icons and materials. He selected Fang Dagger, and the system chimed as it auto-assembled the weapon using the materials he’d collected. The resulting dagger appeared in a small flash of blue light, its design sleek and deadly, carved with runes along the blade’s base. [Weapon Acquired: Fang Dagger – Damage +10%, Speed +5%.] "Now we’re talking," Leo muttered, gripping the weapon.Leo trudged through the forest, each step crunching over dried leaves and twigs, the fading light casting long shadows through the tall trees. His stomach growled in protest, and his throat burned with thirst. A dry laugh escaped his lips as he thought about the old man—Chef Chu—and his scooter, now probably a wreck thanks to their last confrontation.
"Bet the old geezer’s crying over that thing," Leo muttered. Then his lips curled into a bitter grin. "Or maybe he's relieved I’m gone. Whatever. Fuck him."
As if summoned by his cynicism, a sudden pulse of energy surged through the air. The birds scattered, the breeze stilled, and then—a jagged crack shimmered into existence about twenty meters ahead. A swirling rift, a warped portal in space, burst open with a deafening hum.
The rift rippled with colors—deep violet with streaks of electric blue—and a sinister, pulsing aura oozed from it like invisible smoke. The hairs on Leo’s arms stood on end as the chill settled in his bones.
System Notification:
[Mission Reminder: Investigate the Rift in Darkvale Forest.]
Leo narrowed his eyes at the vortex, his hand instinctively moving toward the stick he'd been carrying.
"No way the system wants me to stroll into that for a casual look-see. There’s gotta be something valuable in there… or something that wants to eat me for lunch."
System Alert:
[Rift will close in 10… 9… 8…]
"Shit, now you want to start a countdown?! I don’t even have time for a last will!"
[7… 6… 5…]
"I knew this was a bad Isekai setup! This is why I never skipped side quests in RPGs!"
[4… 3… 2…]
"FUCK IT!" he roared and sprinted forward, diving headfirst into the vortex just as it began to shrink.
For a moment, everything went black. His stomach lurched violently as he felt himself falling, weightless, into a bottomless pit. The sensation was terrifying and endless.
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" he screamed in English, then flipped into Cantonese. "你老母的，這什麼鬼東西！我要死啦！(Your mother! What the hell is this! I'm gonna die!)"
After what felt like hours, he crashed down with a painful thud into a dune of soft, coarse sand.
"Oww… oww… fuck…" Leo groaned, spitting grit from his mouth, "my butt!"
His body ached as he rolled onto his back, staring up at the swirling void that began to shrink and seal above him until it vanished completely. The only illumination came from strange glowing stones embedded in the cavern walls. He sat up, brushing off the sand, and took in his surroundings.
He was in an underground expanse—massive, hollow, and echoing. The walls were lined with old, crumbling stone pillars and statues of humanoid figures holding swords and staffs. Carvings in a language he didn’t understand glowed faintly.
System Notification:
[Mission Active: Investigate the Rift.] [Objective: Discover the origin of the Rift’s energy signature. Secondary Objective: Survive.]
Leo laughed without humor. "Oh, that’s reassuring. Just casually toss in 'survive' like it's a tutorial."
He dusted himself off and limped forward, noting the odd lack of wind or smell. The place was dead quiet, but that quiet had weight—a presence.
Suddenly, the temperature dropped further. A ripple passed through the ground beneath his feet. He paused.
System Alert:
[Anomaly Detected. Energy Signature Approaching.]
A low, guttural growl echoed from the shadows ahead.
Leo spun, raising his stick. From behind a collapsed archway, a creature slithered forward. It resembled a cross between a lizard and a centipede, its long segmented body covered in reflective black scales that shimmered with red veins. Eight clawed limbs clicked against the ground as it hissed.
System Notification:
[Monster Identified: Nightscale Crawler - F-Class Beast] [Weakness: Light Exposure] [Reward for Elimination: +1 Skill Orb, +100 XP, Basic Weapon: Light-Dagger (Bound)]
Leo’s breath caught. "This is what I get for skipping the gym."
The beast lunged.
He rolled sideways, barely dodging the snapping maw. Scrambling to his feet, he swung his stick, hitting it across the face. It barely flinched. It snapped at him again, slashing across his arm. Blood trickled down his sleeve.
"Fuck! I’m gonna die here! I should’ve taken the goddamn tutorial! What tutorial? There was no fuvking tutorial!"
Then a faint memory hit him. Weakness: Light Exposure.
He looked around, frantically searching for any light source. One of the glowing stones was loose in the wall.
Leo dashed toward it, leaping over debris. The beast roared behind him. He reached the stone and yanked it free, its warm glow intensifying in his hands.
"COME ON, UGLY! LET’S SEE IF YOU LIKE THIS!"
He turned and hurled the glowing stone directly at the Nightscale’s face. It struck the creature, and the moment light touched its scales, it screeched and thrashed, smoke rising from its skin.
Leo didn’t hesitate. He lunged, smashing the stone into its head again and again.
With one last cry, the creature collapsed, its body twitching before disintegrating into ash.
Panting, Leo dropped the stone and staggered back.
System Notification:
[Target Eliminated.] [+1 Skill Orb Acquired.] [+100 XP.] [Level Up! Current Level: 2. Basic Stats Increased.] [Inventory Updated: Light-Dagger (Bound to Host)]
A glowing orb floated from the ash pile. Leo reached out and absorbed it. A warm light surged through his body.
"Woah… that felt—kinda amazing."
He checked his inventory. The Light-Dagger was there, sleek and shaped like a curved fang with a silver edge that shimmered even in the dim light.
He gripped the handle. It felt perfectly balanced.
"Okay… maybe this world is like a game. And maybe I just unlocked my first damn weapon."
Then the system popped up again.
System Alert:
[Rift Investigation Incomplete. Deeper Energy Signatures Detected Below. Descend to Complete Mission.]
Leo groaned. "Of course there’s a second floor. There’s always a second floor."
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The spirit shot forward. He ducked and rolled, stabbing upward. The blade passed through but disrupted the spirit’s form.[Soul Damage Inflicted. Wisp Integrity: 72%]“Okay, I can hurt it!”The spirit countered with a psychic shriek. Leo clenched his teeth, blood trickling from his ears.“Not again—damn it!”He triggered Quick Strike, blinking behind the Wisp, then jabbed his dagger into the base of its form.[Soul Damage Inflicted. Wisp Integrity: 21%]The Wisp convulsed, then surged toward the shrine, trying to absorb its energy.“Nope!” Leo hurled a chunk of stone at the base of the shrine. The pulse stuttered.The Wisp screamed. Leo lunged in, stabbing once more.With a final keening wail, the ghost exploded into wisps of silver light.[Mission Complete: Echoing Shrine Activated. Rewards granted. Skill Obtained: Spirit Link (Passive) – Enables detection of spiritual entities within 10 meters. Intelligence +1. Luck +1.]Leo collapsed beside the shrine, gasping.“So that’s what a sp
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