[You don't rashly move forward, but retreat back into the monster crowd.]
Lin Xun opened his skill bar and selected Backstab.
[Bold as brass Apostle, you attempt to ambush the monster.]
[You used 'Backstab,' plunging your dagger into the heart of the monster from behind...]
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points have slightly increased.]
[You obtained Stinky Feces Stone (Junk)]
[Monsters nearby hear the noise, one by one they turn to look at you, their crimson eyes emit a dangerous light. What will you do now?]
[1. Flee the scene, perhaps as long as you run fast enough, the monster won't catch up to you. If they do, hehehe...]
[2. Let out a loud roar and fight back, this might not leave much of you intact, but at least it's more dignified.]
[3. Praise the sun.]
Is that even a question? Two long ones and a short one, of course choose the short one!
It was an easy question, Lin Xun selected the option.
[You raised your hand, looking towards the Blood Sun, intermittently uttering sounds of praise.]
[Seeing this, the monsters also praised the sun with you...then they turned their heads back, as if nothing happened.]
"It worked!" Lin Xun enthusiastically shouted, "Doesn't this mean I can repeatedly farm monsters now!"
Having discovered a BUG, Lin Xun begins a frenzy of backstabbing...
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points have slightly increased.]
[The power within the Shell begins to boil, the Shell level of the 'Fallen Blood Sun Cultist' has increased, current Shell level: 2]
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points have slightly increased.]
[You obtained Shattered Cloth (Junk)]
...
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points slightly increased.]
[The power within the Shell begins to boil, the Shell level of the 'Fallen Blood Sun Cultist' has increased, current Shell level: 3]
[You obtained the Fading Feeble Spirit (Item)]
...
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points have slightly increased.]
[The power within the Shell begins to boil, the Shell level of the 'Fallen Blood Sun Cultist' has increased, current Shell level: 5]
[You have obtained a Poisoned Throwing Knife*1 (Throwing Item)]
...
[You have defeated the "Fallen Blood Sun Cultist," and your experience points have slightly increased.]
[The power within the Shell begins to boil, the Shell level of the 'Fallen Blood Sun Cultist' has increased, current Shell level: 7]
[All of the monsters around you have been slaughtered, you no longer need to ostentatiously praise the sun.]
That's it? Lin Xun was having such a great time, indulging in the joy of grinding, he couldn't snap out of it for quite a while.
Then, it occurred to him, as long as the Shell dies once, the monsters would respawn and he could continue grinding, so he felt relieved.
Lin Xun noticed that during his constant farming, the game text displayed [You feel a bit tired].
However, it seems that after the Shell levels up, the state of the Shell would refresh, and it wouldn't faint from exhaustion like the nun.
He clicked on the item bar and checked the recently obtained items.
[Stinky Feces Stone (Junk)*3]
[Shattered Cloth (Junk)*2]
[Fading Feeble Spirit (Item): Remnants on the Shell, a dwindling spirit about to fade. Upon use, you can gain 5 spirit points.]
[Poisoned Throwing Knife (Throwing Item): Dagger soaked in potent poison, the blade shines with a faint blue glow. Not recommended for those accustomed to tasting blood from a blade.]
The throwing knife is clearly a one-time attack item, dropped by small monsters, so its power probably isn't too high. As for the "Fading Feeble Spirit", it piqued Lin Xun's interest.
He clicked to use it.
[You have gained 5 spirit points.]
After the text appears, there's no further change.
He looked around, but he didn't find any related information in the Shell panel. Instead, he saw "Spirit Points: 5" at the bottom right corner of the item bar.
"This must be the in-game currency." As a veteran Fourth Calamity player, Lin Xun figured it out easily.
The item bar seems to have unlimited capacity, so Lin Xun didn't throw away the junk dropped by small monsters. This habit arose from his experience playing survival games.
"The joy of picking up trash." Lin Xun grinned, "Besides, knowing how this game works, even a bottle of holy water could be used as a key to decrypt something. Who knows, these pieces of rubbish might turn into treasures one day."
[Ahead is a four-story tower shrouded in crimson aura. Do you want to proceed?]
[You've embarked on your journey ahead.]
[The stone-built high tower is permeated with a crimson aura and a spreading power of corruption. The tower is built on a gigantic platform and has four floors. The crescent sculpture at the top floor has been transformed into a Blood Sun.]
[You push the heavy door of the tower, and a wide and empty hall appears before you.]
[The hall is filled with blood-soaked limbs and severed arms piled into a small mountain, with a foul odor filling the room. You infer from the damaged armor and weapons on the bodies that these corpses were once the town's permanent soldiers.]
[In the depths of the hall, a spiral staircase stretches to the second floor of the tower.]
[Do you proceed, or do you stay to search for valuable items?]
Lin Xun's eyes lit up-it was time for treasure hunting.
[Greedy apostle, you decide to leave no stone unturned.]
[You've obtained half a shield (junk).]
[You've obtained a broken longsword (junk).]
...
Seeing the constant junk appearing before him, Lin Xun could only comfort himself-it was fine to pick up trash.
[You've obtained the Black Spiked Collar (item).]
He finally got something! He hurriedly opened the item bar.
[Black Spiked Collar (item): A black collar made of leather, filled with closely arranged spikes. Once used, it can provide a strong stimulus to certain submissive creatures, causing them to faint with a small probability. If the effect is not triggered, the item won't be consumed.]
????
He didn't understand what kind of SM item this was, but Lin Xun was greatly shocked.
After scavenging the entire hall, he clicked to move forward.
[You move forward, getting closer to the spiral staircase.]
[You have encountered a wolfhound the size of a calf at the entrance of the stairs!]
[It's lying on the scattered soldier corpses, its body rotting crimson. In its sleep, it occasionally bares its teeth and snorts, drooling foul slaver.]
[What will you do?]
[1. Silently sneak past it, praying you don't make a sound and climb the stairs. Hurdle past the sleeping wolfhound without waking it up.]
[2. Raise your dagger, put it out of its misery, making sure it stays asleep forever.]
[3. Put the collar on it. Perhaps the strong stimulus will distract it from your presence.]
After some thought, considering the sinister nature of this game, options 1 and 2 were likely death choices. Only option 3 seemed reasonable in respect of the game process.
But Lin Xun noticed the item description of the collar. The words, "success, small probability", made him wary.
"Is this a gamble? If you succeed, you move up a level. If you fail, you become the dog's food?"
Skipping classes would come at the cost of his life-this left Lin Xun speechless.
"Wait, I'm already at level 7. According to the normal game process, without the talent of Thousand Faces and Million Forms, it's impossible to possess the shell of Blood Sun's followers, let alone to level up by exploiting BUGs."
"Which is to say, I'm now above the standard level..."
Lin Xun was no longer hesitant, and decisively chose option 2.
[Fearless apostle, you've chosen the bravest action.]
[You hold your dagger near the calf-sized wolfhound, suddenly stab it in the head...]
[The wolfhound wakes up abruptly, biting you...]
[Huh? It's dead??]
[You've defeated the "Corrupted Wolfhound", experiencing a slight increase in experience points.]
[You've obtained a Fading Large Chunk of Spirit (item).]
[You've obtained the wolfhound's tusk (material).]
[You've obtained the wolfhound's fur (material).]
As expected, brute force works wonders. Hardcore players never skip classes.
Lin Xun checked the items he just received. The tusk and fur are materials for crafting weapons and armor, requiring relevant crafting skills to use. 'Fading Large Chunk of Spirit' could give 20 Spirit if used, so he directly consumed it.
[You look at the dead wolfhound in front of you.]
[The shell of the Corrupted Wolfhound...]