novelraw Chapter 227: Promoted to Level-7 Warrior, Memories Carried by a Burger
Chapter 227: Promoted to Level-7 Warrior, Memories Carried by a Burger
"Are you sure there are no issues with the mission information?"
Facing the counter lady's inquiry, Lin Mo nodded: "No problem, please help me register it."
"Okay, please wait a moment..."
Being able to work at the Adventurers' Association in Fargard City meant her professional skills were undoubtedly competent. In just a short while, she completed the registration process.
"Alright, the mission information has been entered. Please return to this counter for handover once it's completed."
Lin Mo nodded and left with a wave.
The group arrived at the city gate but didn't exit directly. Instead, they headed straight for the carriage storage and maintenance shop near the gate.
The distance between Fargard City and Silent Forest wasn't short, about thirty to forty kilometers. Walking there would waste too much time, and since there happened to be an official road leading to Silent Forest, they could completely travel by carriage.
"Are you guests planning to go to Silent Forest?"
Seeing Lin Mo's group's attire, the shop assistant couldn't help but ask."That's right, why do you ask?"
This assistant seemed to have something to say. Lin Mo wouldn't look down on him just because he was an ordinary person. After all, this assistant was a native of Fargard City and an employee of a carriage storage shop. This kind of job was like a tavern server—very well-informed, often unintentionally hearing many unknown things.
"I just wanted to remind you that our shop has a branch over there too. Guests just need to follow the official road to the end, then head west to see a relay station. Carriages stored at our shop can also stay there for free, and someone will be responsible for taking care of them."
"So that's how it is."
Lin Mo nodded. Thinking about it this way, the 3 gold coins per month fee for this shop was actually quite worthwhile.
"Additionally..."
The assistant continued speaking, glancing at Lin Mo meaningfully.
Lin Mo immediately understood, took out a silver coin, and tossed it over.
The other person caught the silver coin, beaming with joy: "Also, I heard that just yesterday, some conflicts occurred between the magical creatures in areas 10 and 11, fighting over the intermediate buffer zone territory. So the situation in these two areas is currently somewhat unstable. If you have tasks going to these two areas, please be very careful. Of course, it's not necessarily all danger;
there might be opportunities to pick up gains... Also, the magical creatures in areas 17, 19, and 24 have reproduced excessively this year. Resources within their territories are very tight, and with the season entering autumn, they all need to stockpile food for winter. So members of the same species are forced into fierce competition, and some with insufficient strength have been pushed into the buffer zones or even other magical creatures' territories, which has triggered even more disputes."
"Understood."
Lin Mo nodded and tossed him another silver coin.
The assistant's eyes immediately lit up: "Thank you, big brother! May good deeds bring you good rewards!"
Lin Mo led everyone onto the carriage and set off towards Silent Forest.
On the way, Lin Mo pondered the intelligence he had just obtained.
His intuition was indeed correct;
these employees were truly well-informed. Something that happened just yesterday was already known to them now.
This information didn't surprise Lin Mo either. In areas like Silent Forest where large numbers of magical creatures gathered, even after long-term contention had formed relatively fixed territories for each, it didn't mean they could coexist peacefully. Conflicts like this could never be completely resolved.
And the area 11 mentioned by the other party was precisely the area where Ellie's mission [Kill Petrified Lizards] was located.
Unlike the other areas, the dispute between areas 10 and 11 had only just begun yesterday. So when the analysis personnel of the Lion Adventuring Company helped him create the mission list, they didn't know about this information and thus didn't exclude missions from these two areas.
As for missions in areas 17, 19, and 24, they weren't included in the mission list at all.
Although, as the shop assistant said, such conflict-ridden areas might also have opportunities to pick up gains, they were ultimately quite unstable. For newcomers who had just arrived in Fargard City, such unstable, risky missions were definitely not as good as other safer missions.
Of course, Lin Mo didn't plan to give up either. After all, the missions were already accepted, and turning back now to reselect would be troublesome.
Moreover, the missions he chose were all far above his current ability level. Taking it a step further, even if they encountered any unexpected situations, like running into a giant Petrified Lizard, with Lin Mo and Sherfilia present, they could completely handle it.
The carriage traveled quickly, and before long, they arrived at the end of the official road.
Turning at the end of the official road and heading west, they indeed saw the relay station the shop assistant mentioned shortly after.
Arriving at the relay station, Lin Mo showed the contract signed at the main city shop and stored the carriage for free.
Next, the adventure journey would officially begin.
Lin Mo took out the map purchased yesterday. This map cost him a full 5 silver coins and was currently the most detailed, accurate, and information-rich map concerning Silent Forest.
It was said to have been revised and updated less than a week ago.
Compared to those older maps, it was undoubtedly much superior.
After all, the magical creature areas within the forest weren't fixed. They could change at any time depending on the growth or decline of populations, or the outcomes of conflicts.
Following the route on the map, Lin Mo led the group towards area 8.
Since area 11 was temporarily unstable, they could set it aside for now. Besides, area 8 was originally closer, so it made sense to deal with the goblins first.
Silent Forest was indeed very large. Even divided into over a hundred areas, each area averaged close to one-fifth the size of Roland Forest, roughly equivalent to the size of Roland Forest's core area.
Between areas, there were basically buffer zones, commonly known as boundary lands.
Members of both sides could move within the boundary lands, but once one side became slightly stronger, they were likely to have expansionist thoughts, subsequently occupying the boundary lands and redrawing the boundary line into the other's territory.
The most important part of the map updates was precisely here.
Because compared to directly entering magical creature territories, operating within the boundary lands was considerably safer.
After all, intruding into a magical creature's territory was equivalent to invasion and provocation. Apart from missions that genuinely needed to be done, adventurers generally chose to avoid these troubles and not stir up trouble.
Of course, this didn't mean they wouldn't encounter magical creatures in the boundary zones. After all, the total number of magical creatures in Silent Forest was still astonishingly high.
Especially during autumn and winter each year, after the magical creatures completed their reproduction and their population numbers further increased, the Hunting Competition was organized precisely for this reason.
After traveling in Silent Forest for about ten minutes, Lin Mo encountered magical creatures in this forest for the first time.
It was a very common forest wolf, belonging to a relatively low-level magical creature. Even in Roland Forest, it would probably only be active in the deep areas.
Nothing much to say—seeing magical creatures meant grinding. Lin Mo immediately stepped forward, delivered a Whip Kick to this forest wolf's waist, instantly kicking it flying. It lost all movement upon landing.
[Whip Kick] proficiency +13
Not bad.
Although not very high, the Whip Kick skill was, after all, only an excellent-grade skill. The proficiency required to max it out wasn't that much.
During the subsequent journey, they encountered several more magical creatures one after another, their levels roughly between 1 and 3.
Ellie and Finnie also engaged in some practical combat. Finnie's current [Light's Assistance] could now increase attributes by 4 points in Strength, 4 points in Agility, and 4 points in Constitution. While the individual increases weren't much, combined, it was a 12-point attribute boost.
Ellie's own strength had already reached level 3 warrior, and she wasn't just newly level 3—her attributes were quite comprehensive. Coupled with Finnie's assistance, even dealing with magical creatures of the same level was relatively easy.
"Rushing Punch!"
The little wolf-girl shouted, punching the magical creature in front of her and sending it flying. Lin Mo conveniently followed up with a sword, [Consecutive Thrusts], collecting the proficiency.
[Consecutive Thrusts] proficiency +20
That's right, what Ellie had just used was his warrior profession's white common-grade skill—[Rushing Punch].
Originally, Ellie certainly didn't know this skill.
She acquired it through the effect of the [Shared Cultivation] skill, obtained from Lin Mo's side.
And it was a direct acquisition, skipping those tedious learning processes. She just suddenly knew it after one sleep and could use it directly.
The effect of this skill was quite miraculous for most people... or rather, for everyone except Lin Mo.
Ellie was also very surprised by this. Although she had gained many attributes through Joint Cultivation with Lin Mo, allowing her strength to advance rapidly, her skill repertoire wasn't rich, and she didn't know many skills.
Now, using the same method, she could not only strengthen her body but also learn skills. This was much better than painstakingly studying and practicing!
The pity was that Lin Mo hadn't acquired any skills from Ellie or Sherfilia yet.
But since Ellie had already shown results, as long as they continued working hard, gains would inevitably come eventually.
After a series of battles, it was soon noon.
They still had some distance to area 8, about an hour's walk away.
This made Lin Mo sigh again—Silent Forest truly lived up to being a medium-to-large-sized forest.
During adventures, maintaining condition was always very important. Lin Mo wasn't in a hurry to complete the missions either, so they stopped to rest and regroup.
At noon, there was no need to specifically set up a tent. Lin Mo took out a large piece of high-quality fabric from his Spatial Ring, spread it on the ground to use as a resting mat.
Then he took out the food from the ring. Now that he had the Spatial Ring, the conditions were much better than before. They no longer needed to bring dry rations but could carry proper dishes.
"Lin Mo..."
Ellie looked at the exquisite dishes before her, her eyes lighting up momentarily. She picked up a piece of roasted meat but quickly put it down.
It wasn't that these things were bad, but some things carried irreplaceable memories.
Lin Mo looked up and met her gaze, froze for a moment, then suddenly seemed to remember something and smiled slightly: "Okay, I'll make it for you now."
He took out soft bread, placed roasted meat and vegetables inside, added a cheese slice, lit a campfire nearby with magic, and lightly grilled it for a while.
"Want to try it?"
Ellie didn't mind the heat, directly took the freshly grilled little burger from Lin Mo's hand, and stuffed it into her mouth.
"Mmm~ Delicious!"
"Mr. Lin Mo...."
Finnie also looked over eagerly. Lin Mo had no choice but to continue, making another one.
Since he had already made two, he might as well make two more, handing one to Sherfilia as well.
Sherfilia took the burger in her hand and was momentarily stunned.
She remembered the scene when Lin Mo first made a burger for her.
Back then, she never would have imagined that she would now become the other's maid...
Unusually, Sherfilia didn't refuse Lin Mo's service to her. She took the burger and slowly brought it to her mouth.
The atmosphere on-site became exceptionally quiet for a while.
After the meal, Lin Mo lay on Sherfilia's lap and took a short nap, not for very long.
After all, they still had some distance to area 8 and needed to get there quickly.
Today, they needed to complete at least one mission.
Hmm, it was absolutely not because Sherfilia was too slender and her thighs weren't very comfortable to use as a pillow.
After another period of travel, dealing with a few more magical creatures along the way, they finally smoothly arrived at area 8.
Entering this area, before long, Lin Mo smelled the stinky odor characteristic of goblins.
Ellie beside him had already wrinkled her nose much earlier.
Without any need for concealment, Lin Mo directly led everyone, following the scent.
As expected, a group of goblins was lying on the grass, fast asleep. The outermost circle of goblins still held weapons, patrolling pretentiously.
In the middle of the goblin group, many miscellaneous grasses, fungi, wild fruits, and prey of various sizes could be seen.
It seemed this was a group of goblins out foraging.
Although they each had their own territories, there were still significant differences between most magical creatures and goblins.
Many magical creatures, while temporarily uniting against external threats to resist enemies and protect their territory, usually didn't have much communication in daily life and lived separately.
But for the goblin race, once their numbers increased, they could form basic organizational structures similar to humanoid societies. Although far less complex and developed than races like humans, elves, and dwarves, they genuinely formed communities.
And their structural nature was completely incomparable even to a few magical creatures like wolves that had pack concepts.
That's why these detestable green-skinned shorties became such a headache when their numbers increased.
The number of goblins before them was roughly a hundred.
Ordinary goblins accounted for over 80%, then about a dozen Goblin Guards, plus four Adult Mutated Goblins, and finally two Quasi-Bronze Level Goblins.
This configuration was quite good. Placed in Roland Forest before the goblin disaster, it would already be considered a relatively troublesome goblin community.
But in Silent Forest, even just for the goblin communities in area 8, this was at most just a small squad.
Lin Mo exchanged glances with the others nearby and immediately made a gesture.
Attack!
The next moment, he charged out directly, using a [Jumping Slash] towards the area where the goblins were concentrated.
Those goblins had no time to react before Lin Mo landed. His powerful force caused the surrounding ground to dent and crack with numerous fissures.
The powerful impact instantly sent the surrounding goblins flying into the air, their internal organs directly shattered. Those closer even had their bodies directly shattered.
A simple, common-grade skill could still exert a terrifying effect in Lin Mo's current hands.
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +23!
With this one skill, he eliminated 23 goblins.
Lin Mo didn't stop, immediately following up with a [Whip Kick], instantly kicking several goblins to pieces.
Mangled bodies flew everywhere, the powerful force on them smashing many unlucky ones to death.
[Whip Kick] proficiency +15
Satisfying!
Using these low-level skills to grind on goblins was just too satisfying!
Lin Mo used another Jumping Slash, harvesting another twenty-plus goblin lives.
This skill also subsequently leveled up to 4.
"Skill [Jumping Slash] Lv3 (40/40) leveled up!"
"Current skill [Jumping Slash] Lv4 (4/100)"
As a common-grade skill, it only needed one more level to max out and evolve.
Lin Mo planned to max out this skill in this wave, so he didn't use other skills and continued with [Jumping Slash].
By now, those sleepily dozing Mutated Goblins and Quasi-Bronze Goblins had woken up one after another. Seeing their clansmen being slaughtered like this, they immediately charged over ferociously.
Lin Mo targeted one Mutated Goblin and went for a [Jumping Slash].
The Frost Dragon Scale Sword split that Mutated Goblin in half from head to toe without any suspense. The tall body fell in two halves, immediately startling the remaining Mutated Goblins.
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +8
Those two Quasi-Bronze Level Goblins weren't fools either. Seeing this scene, they naturally knew the opponent before them was definitely not something they could contend with. They immediately let out a strange cry and directly fled separately.
But how could they possibly escape under Lin Mo's watchful eyes?
Lin Mo chased after them in a few steps, using one [Jumping Slash] to directly kill one. The other one ran some distance, thinking it was safe, when suddenly another "Lin Mo" appeared before it, pinning it down like handling a chick.
Lin Mo's main body subsequently arrived, continuing to use [Jumping Slash] to harvest "kills."
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +18
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +17
This skill's proficiency was still continuously rising.
Meanwhile, Ellie was also brandishing the Steel-Cleaving Sword in her hand, wreaking havoc.
This heavy sword Lin Mo gave her was thick, durable, and very satisfying for chopping goblins.
Finnie, on the other hand, applied [Light's Assistance] to all team members, then held her staff, releasing one light orb after another to smash toward the goblins before her.
Although the priest profession's offensive capability could be said to be the weakest among the mainstream six professions, and Light Orb wasn't a highly damaging skill, her profession level had, after all, reached level 3, and her base Mana attribute was high. These light orbs could one-shot kill goblins, even Mutated Goblins, upon hitting them.
But the number of goblins was, after all, still too large. After they started scattering and fleeing, light orbs alone weren't quite enough. So...
So Finnie picked up her "old trade" again, brandishing the Mithril staff worth two to three thousand gold coins, and delivered a head-on blow to the goblins.
Ordinary goblins were actually very fragile themselves;
their defensive capability was even inferior to human children of similar height. This blow immediately knocked the goblin senseless. Its eyes rolled back, and it was gone.
Sherfilia, meanwhile, moved on the battlefield's flanks, specifically targeting those goblins that had run farther away, stepping forward to finish them off.
The battle ended quickly.
Not a single goblin escaped;
all were annihilated!
Lin Mo glanced at the message floating before him and nodded with satisfaction.
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +14
[Jumping Slash] proficiency +8
.......
"Skill [Jumping Slash] Lv4 (100/100) leveled up!"
"Current skill [Jumping Slash] Lv5 (Max)"
"Gained attribute points Strength+2!"
"Automatically evolved into new skill—Furious Leap Cleave!"
"Comprehended skill [Furious Leap Cleave]! Gained attribute points Strength+2!"
[Furious Leap Cleave]: Channel Qi and Blood to launch a furious strike, leaping to the target location, dealing area damage to enemies around the landing point.
4 points of Strength obtained, comfortable!
As for this newly acquired excellent-grade skill called [Furious Leap Cleave], it sounded somewhat like a skill from the warrior profession's specialization path "Berserker."
If an ordinary Professional learned this skill and diligently practiced and developed it, it might slightly increase the probability of specializing as a Berserker?
But Lin Mo didn't plan to specialize into an ordinary profession like "Berserker." His goal had always only been specializations!
After obtaining those 4 Strength attribute points just now, Lin Mo's base Strength attribute also reached 71 points. He finally leveled up.
"Promotion conditions met. Profession Warrior (lv6) promoted—Current profession Warrior (lv7)"
"Gained profession attribute bonuses: Strength+3, Constitution+2, Agility+1!"
From level 6 to level 7 warrior, only 6 attribute points in bonuses, but better than nothing.
Continue, continue!
Lin Mo and the others cleaned up the battlefield together, cut off the goblin ears, collected all the loot, then continued advancing, searching within this area.
They were still far from completing the mission. If they were all goblin groups of this scale, they'd need to fight at least four or five more batches, and even that might not be enough to meet the mission requirement.
The remaining time today would all be dedicated to the goblins.
While searching for goblin traces, Lin Mo also checked his warrior-type skill progress.
Apart from the easiest to level up, successfully maxed and evolved Jumping Slash, the remaining skills were all excellent-grade and above, none of them easy to level up.
Well, strictly speaking, the one with the fastest current progress was the [Consecutive Thrusts] skill, which wasn't far from leveling up.
This skill was quite senior here with Lin Mo. A long time had passed since he acquired it, and it still hadn't evolved. Mainly because this skill was still too single-target oriented. Thrusts, unlike slashes, focused more on concentrated lethality, so they didn't have those large-area Sword Energy effects. One sword thrust could at most kill a few goblins;
the efficiency really wasn't very high.