Reborn and Returned

Chapter 2: A Tough FightⅡ

The goat, with its agility still marginally higher than mine but a larger target, became the focus of my new battle strategy. I wasted no time and immediately stabbed the goat with my wooden spear. As expected, the goat lowered its head and charged straight at me. Swiftly, I braced the spear against it, waiting patiently for it to relax and retreat before launching another attack. This method proved effective, yet my attack power was so feeble that even when I struck the goat's vital areas such as its head, throat, or abdomen, I could only inflict 1 point of damage. It took me over a minute to fell a single goat, and in return, I received 10 experience points. Considering that I needed 100 experience points to level up, the grind was arduous.

I continued my search for goats, but they were often accompanied by monsters that would actively assail players. So, I gathered some rocks from the ground and hurled them at the goats. Alas, despite my reputation as a 100% accurate thrower in other games, my current low - sensitivity and weak mental state due to my abysmal starting attributes led to a dismal performance. I accidentally injured two wildcats and was promptly killed once. However, practice makes perfect. Slowly but surely, I calibrated my aim, and the number of times I hit the goats increased. Half an hour later, after factoring in the experience points deducted for my death, I finally reached level 2.

The system chimed in with a prompt: “Because ‘Contend with the sky’ is a ‘special growth type’ player, the points obtained for each level - up are not fixed and are determined according to the player's performance at this level. ‘Contend with the sky’ has gained 1 point of strength, 1 point of agility, 1 point of mental strength, and +2 HP.”

I consulted the help section and learned that in this game, ordinary players have a chance to gain 1 - 3 points in strength, constitution, agility, and spirit for each level - up. The luckiest ones could amass a total of 12 points, while the least fortunate would get 4 points. I, with my so - called “special growth type” label, only received 3 attribute points, which was slower than the average player.

I took a moment to reflect calmly. The system had mentioned “according to the player's performance,” so perhaps I simply hadn't exerted enough effort. After all, killing goats was relatively easy.

While engaged in monster - slaying, I didn't neglect the opportunity to earn some money. I skillfully butchered the goat carcasses and obtained goat meat as materials. The vendor was willing to purchase them at a price of 1 coin each. Eventually, I earned over ten coins and used them to buy two bottles of health potions.

Armed with the health pills, I felt ready to take on “higher - difficulty” challenges. I gripped a wooden spear in one hand and a wooden sword in the other. First, I used a stone to attract wild dogs. Then, I swept or stabbed at the wild dogs with the wooden spear. When they tried to dodge the spear and get close to me, I blocked with the spear shaft and counter - attacked with the wooden sword.

By the time I reached the sixth wild dog, I had already consumed two health pills. Wild dog carcasses had no value for selling, so I had to return to killing goats for their meat to sell and then buy more health potions.

It was an incredibly tough battle! But finally, as I grew more proficient in my movements, the wild dogs found it increasingly difficult to strike my vital areas, and my blood loss gradually decreased. When I reached level 3, the system bestowed upon me bonus points: 1 in strength, 1 in constitution, 2 in agility, and 2 in spirit, a total of 6 points.

Now, I had finally weathered the most challenging period. With my current attributes, dealing with wild cats and wild dogs was no longer a struggle. However, I was eager to push the difficulty a notch higher.

Remembering that the village chief had mentioned a quest for me at level 3, I hastened to find him. To my dismay, the quest was actually “kill 10 wolves.” I was stunned. Given my meager 13 - point HP, which was barely enough for the wolves to scratch me twice, and the uncertainty of whether my current attack power could even penetrate the wolves' defenses, this seemed like an insurmountable task.

But I refused to be discouraged. I was determined to find an alternative way to claim the reward for this level - 3 quest. Soon, I recalled the hunter's “Trap” skill from a previous game. Although I didn't possess this skill in this game, the high - level simulation should allow players to modify the terrain to vanquish monsters.

I scanned the area for tools and noticed villager A's family working the land. I quickly approached them and, after some negotiation, agreed to pay them 2 coins to rent a hoe (with 0 attack power).

I spent two hours digging a 1 - meter - deep pit and inserted wooden spikes at the bottom. On top of the pit, I placed a straw mat I'd retrieved from a broken house and covered it with soil. Suddenly, the system prompt appeared: “You have successfully created a trap. Due to the lack of the ‘Trap’ skill bonus, the trap itself has a damage of 1 and a beast - trapping ability of 1.” I was amazed at the system's high level of intelligence; it could recognize such a primitive pit as a trap. With newfound hope, I began using stones to lure the wolves.

The first coyote fell into the trap but immediately fought to leap out and managed to kill me with two strikes. I didn't have time to be disheartened. Fortunately, during the newbie protection period, the experience loss from death was minimal. I promptly resurrected and returned to deepen the pit by half a meter. The system then indicated that the trap's beast - trapping ability had increased to 2, which should be sufficient to hold the wolves. If this didn't work, I'd have to abandon this plan, as digging deeper would drive me insane.

I lured another wolf over, and thankfully, this time the wolf was unable to jump out. I lugged a boulder over and dropped it into the pit to kill the wolf (the stone itself had a small amount of damage; this kind of boulder, without being a proper weapon, had a hidden damage attribute). Then, with great effort, I retrieved the stone.

Drawing on my past experience and skills from the hunter profession, within an hour, I managed to lure another 9 wolves into the trap and smash them to death. I then skinned the wolf carcasses and obtained ten wolf skins.

Back in the village, I handed in the task. The village chief rewarded me with a copper short sword, which added 3 to my attack power. But I was even more elated to finally have a sharp weapon. In the future, it would save me a great deal of effort when making tools.

In this game, equipment was classified as follows: wood - stone - copper - iron - silver - gold - platinum - treasure - jade - star - moon - sun - god - earth - heaven. Currently, a simple copper weapon had already significantly boosted my fighting spirit.

Equipped with the copper short sword, I sold nine wolf skins to buy medicine and nailed the remaining one to a wooden board. The system prompt informed me: “You have successfully created a leather shield. Due to the lack of the ‘Leatherworker’ skill, the leather shield has a defense of 1 point with no bonus attributes.” It seemed that my high - IQ - inspired creativity of 10 was indeed proving useful.

With my new weapon and shield, my confidence soared. I no longer relied on that makeshift trap. Armed with a few health pills, I charged head - on into battles with the wolves. After expending several health pills, I finally killed three wolves and reached level 4. I received 3 points in strength, 1 in constitution, 2 in agility, and 1 in spirit, a total of 7 points. Through my prolonged and desperate battles, I also accidentally gained 1 point of explosive power. Now, my attributes stood as follows: life 17, MP 1, strength 6, constitution 3, agility 6, spirit 5, five - senses sensitivity 1, physiological consumption 1, explosive power 2.

At this moment, the system announced: “Congratulations to player ‘Holy Demon King’ for being the first to reach level 20. Awarded 500 prestige!” And “Player ‘Holy Demon King’ has won the game's first silver - grade item, awarded 300 prestige!”

Since the highest - level equipment available so far was only silver - grade, it seemed that the game had just been launched recently. I smiled faintly. As a professional player, I had always been concerned about my standing in the game. If this game had been around for a few years, I probably wouldn't have had much interest in playing. But now, I had no choice.

However, the game featured a hunger level and a fatigue level setting. Yet, after playing for so long, I felt no trace of sleepiness or hunger. Was this an advantage of being in a vegetative state? I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. On the other hand, a glimmer of hope suddenly emerged in my heart. Since my real - world body determined my in - game attributes, could the increasing attributes in the game, in turn, affect my real body and spirit? The answer should be yes. Since the evolved intelligent program could lock my nerves, perhaps the game program could also unlock the “seal” that had been placed on me.

Filled with hope and a clear purpose, my strength and confidence surged. Without further hesitation, I plunged into a frenzy of leveling up.