novelraw Chapter 127: Pete Returns
Chapter 127: Pete Returns
"Splash!"
A bucket of water was poured from head to toe.
Li Wei, shirtless, stood by the water vat and casually picked up an ugly piece of Chinese honey locust to scrub vigorously.
This thing was Fila's contribution. She had created it in this world, and it hadn't caused any negative effects; instead, it earned her 10 Contribution points.
Ever since they had this, the family's hygiene level immediately went up a notch.
So even though Li Wei was very busy every day, he would still spend a few minutes washing up at noon and in the evening. After all, a clean and comfortable state was also conducive to restoring Stamina and better ensured sleep quality.
In this regard, the other Senior Players were role models. No matter how tired everyone was when they came back, they would maintain their body hygiene and keep their food clean.
They had absolutely zero tolerance for flies and insects.
Undoubtedly, surviving in a world where Plague raged as the background, not practicing hygiene basically meant you had an affinity for the Plague.
After washing up and washing his work clothes once more, Li Wei returned to his room and started preparing to level up.Actually, this upgrade was very simple: 500 woodcutting experience points + 1 Standard Gold Coin, it only took a single thought.
But for Li Wei himself, some sense of ritual was still needed.
This was also a bit of joy in life, giving himself a little space for enjoyment. Otherwise, just like a wooden puppet, monotonous and boring, only knowing to charge, work, and kill. It might feel good for a short time, but over a long period, wouldn't one become numb?
People have to learn how to adjust themselves and moderately lower their threshold for happiness. Sometimes, it doesn't necessarily have to be something grand to be happy. Perhaps a nice day, a cool breeze, an unnamed small flower, or a stubborn blade of grass could be a source of happiness.
At this moment, a thought stirred in Li Wei's mind, and one Standard Gold Coin was deducted. Following that, the Woodcutter Card emerged, seemingly possessing an additional texture and a bizarre brilliance.
It circled once, then sank into the space between Li Wei's eyebrows like a star. Instantly, a strange energy flowed through his whole body. After a few circulations, it quickly stabilized, and then the Destiny Grid emerged, binding successfully.
[Successfully bound the Two-Star Woodcutter Card.]
[Successfully changed profession to Professional Woodcutter. You have obtained 5 Free Attribute Points.]
[The woodcutter Destiny Grid has increased, currently at 26.]
[You have acquired the professional talent: the weapons you use will deal an additional 20% damage to all woody plants and their corresponding creations. Your efficiency in cutting trees has increased. You have a chance to discover precious timber, and during processes such as logging, pruning, and cutting, you can clearly feel the breathing of the trees. This allows you to increase the quality of semi-finished or finished wooden products by 40% when making them. Furthermore, this profession also possesses gathering advantages: a slight increase in the efficiency of gathering mountain products and medicinal herbs, and a 16% increase in the chance of discovering precious mountain products and herbs.]
[Friendly Reminder: Because this is your third Profession Card, its upgrade conditions are slightly higher than those of the second Profession Card. Upgrading the Three-Star Woodcutter Card requires 1,500 woodcutting experience points or 2,000 gathering experience points + a Bronze Quality Clearance Token + 20 units of standard world materials or 20 Standard Gold Coins.]
——
Not bad, not bad!
Li Wei was very happy. He had newly obtained five Free Attribute Points and could upgrade again.
But in which direction should he invest them?
Li Wei pondered for a bit and did some calculations. Next month, it was possible for him to gain another Free Attribute Point from his diet. After all, two meals of white bread a day—such high-quality food was very effective.
"Perhaps I should increase Life. If next month's Free Attribute Point is also invested in Life, I might be able to trigger a Level 2 Awakening for Life."
Others didn't know, but Li Wei knew that the first stage of the Blood Plague infection was already that severe, who knows there might be a second stage. So adding to Life was very important.
However, just as he was about to add the points, a scene inevitably flashed through his mind: it was the scene of him fighting the mutated Blood Wolf.
No matter how high his Life value was, it was passive. But if his Strength had been higher and his Agility higher back then, wouldn't the tainted blood have completely failed to splash into his eyes?
As the plot changed, there would be fewer and fewer opportunities to farm and develop in the future, and combat situations would become more and more frequent. Therefore, he had to choose attributes that increased his combat power.
Thinking of this, Li Wei decisively added points to bring his Strength to 17 points (including the title), and added the remaining three attribute points to Agility. If counting the title and shoes, his Agility would be 15 points.
In this way, whether in melee or ranged combat, he could obtain quite a large improvement.
Tsk tsk, how comfortable!
Next, after eating lunch, Li Wei went back to his room, collapsed onto his bed, and slept for the entire afternoon.
It wasn't until dusk that the aroma of food woke Li Wei up. Looking outside, the setting sun was like fire, the evening glow stretched for thousands of miles, and the landscape was like a painting!
Thinking this way, Li Wei still scribbled on his slate, recording the relevant information such as weather, solar terms, temperature, and humidity, putting it aside as a reference for the future, just in case.
Walking out of his room, he happened to see Sophie, Penny, and Old John coming back, all of them covered in dirt and drenched in sweat. The two beauties, Penny and Sophie, didn't hold onto their images at all. They worked vigorously and powerfully, comparable to maxed-out little steel cannons!
Their Main Task this month was also incredibly heavy. Thirty units each, which was 1,500 kilograms of iron ore, transported out from deep in the mountains over ten miles away. It was mind-blowing.
In addition, they had to clear a road out from deep in the mountains and also clear out waterways. Coupled with the hot weather, losing five kilograms on average this month was the lightest scenario for each person.
This was even under the condition of having two meals of white bread and two meals of mushroom meat soup a day.
Of course, everyone was the same. For example, Clyde and Leon worked an unshakeable fifteen hours every day.
Their level of madness caught up to Thomas'.
Visibly, the originally sunny, handsome Leon had turned into a wandering tramp.
Clyde, this robust guy, also had deeply sunken eye sockets.
When it came to work, no one slacked off.
These were all lessons. The more work they did, and the wider the scope involved, even if they got no Contribution, they would still accumulate Plunder Points.
Thinking this way, Li Wei was just about to sit down and eat when he suddenly heard the metallic clanging sound of "Clang! Clang! Clang!" coming from the Arrow Tower.
Three strikes meant safe, friendly forces.
So Braised Egg Pete had returned!
At this moment, Li Wei heard Old John sigh very lightly; he seemed a bit regretful.
Regretful?
Regretful that the Braised Egg hadn't died, hadn't gone missing?
Hehe, even if the Braised Egg died, Li Wei, as the Head of Household, wouldn't face any punishment.
However, Li Wei felt some anxiety in his heart. Braised Egg Pete had taken a whole month to return this time. Who knows what he had experienced, and whether he had attracted the attention of the two major factions.
While thinking this in his heart, Li Wei's movements weren't slow. While rapidly getting up, he drank a bowl of mushroom meat soup clean in one gulp, simultaneously stuffed a piece of white bread into his mouth, held a golden-fried piece of dried salted fish in one hand, grabbed his Iron Spear with the other, and naturally slung on his bow and quiver.
Eating rapidly while going out with the crowd to welcome him, he was as quick as the wind the whole time. Watching him, Penny stared wide-eyed on the side. Are you rescue reinforcements sent by a tornado!
But this was Li Wei's consistent philosophy. Unless absolute safety could be guaranteed, no one knew whether what appeared next would be an accident or a pleasant surprise, so there was no need for pretentiousness, and no wasting of a single second or a single piece of food.
What if the next thing was an encounter battle, or a protracted war?
Right.
At this moment, even Leon and Clyde dropped the work in their hands and came out to welcome him.
After all, on the surface, they were a family that loved one another. As a vassal and retainer, Braised Egg Pete had traveled far for a month and now returned whole; wasn't that worth a welcome?
Of course, everyone tacitly brought along their daggers, short knives, and Iron Spears. Li Wei and Old John both brought bows and arrows, just in case.
The oversights that newcomers easily made didn't exist among old players.
Walking out of the city gates, they saw Braised Egg Pete walking back rapidly under the light of the orange setting sun, in the still bright daylight. He was a bit hurried!
After nearly a month apart, the braised egg on his head was still smooth and shiny.
However, something wasn't quite right.
Even from a distance of three to four hundred meters, Li Wei could just feel it.
At this moment, he finished off the white bread in a couple of bites and turned his head to look at the three-star hunter, Old John. Sure enough, he saw the expression on Old John's face also suddenly turn solemn.
So the Hunter Profession Card came with this kind of alertness effect?
Looking back at Fila, Penny, and Sophie, there wasn't anything unusual.
Li Wei looked further away again, but didn't discover anything. Although Braised Egg Pete was walking very hurriedly, it wasn't the kind of hurry when one is being chased. It just felt like his footsteps were floating and unsteady.
He was sick.
The Plague!
Fuck, what did he go and do?
How could he get infected with the Plague! Didn't he have Level 1 Life Awakening?
Almost simultaneously, Old John also said in a low voice, "Fila, you need to go boil some herbs immediately, the kind that resist the Plague. Pete might need them."
"What?"
Fila's original smile on her face, along with the emotions she had carefully brewed, instantly collapsed.
From the perspective of the plot, as Fila's old lover, Pete right now could truly be considered Fila's greatest reliance. Comparable to an alternate-world version of Dorgon!
Therefore, others could follow the crowd and act as background boards, but Fila couldn't have NG bloopers.
But the Plague, fuck!
At this moment, Fila probably wanted to curse. She hated the George played by Li Wei to death.
Last month, a recently graduated elementary school student was able to return safely from Kakh City, which made her think that Braised Egg Pete, as a veteran, shouldn't perform worse than an elementary school student, right?
Therefore, over the past two days, there hadn't been any preparation at all.
Now this was great. The Plague, a Plague that could infect a Senior Player—did it mean the previous Plague had mutated again?
Not daring to slack off, Fila hurriedly turned back, while Penny and Sophie subconsciously took a few steps back.
"I'll go help Mother start the fire!" Penny quickly thought of an excuse.
Sophie shot her a disdainful look but did not engage in verbal sparring.
At this time, Leon and Clyde also rushed over from the Industrial Zone, and they also noticed that something was wrong with Braised Egg Pete.
This guy didn't have pursuers behind him; rather, he was sick and very weak. Returning so anxiously, he knew that Fila could brew medicinal soup—
"Uncle Pete! Are you alright?"
At this time, from over a hundred meters away, Li Wei asked loudly, frowning tightly. Yes, the problem had become somewhat serious.
He had underestimated this Plague. Obviously, he was able to withstand it.
Yet unexpectedly, it had actually brought down a Senior Player.
Braised Egg, did you not read any of the information I sold you?
(End of this chapter)