The news of the elf's escape spread like wildfire through the sinful town early the next morning.
The slave merchant's roar echoed throughout the town, almost capable of shattering windows.
People were talking about how the elf's companions had saved her.
Since the severity of the elf's injuries was well-known to everyone, it was impossible for her to have fled alone.
Therefore, although the slave merchant was unwilling, he had no choice but to stay in the sinful town, even fearing the revenge of the elf's companions.
Naturally, no one suspected Li Fan.
...
Li Fan himself, after his dreams of overnight success were shattered, had to start working again to make a living.
He picked up his old job—chopping wood.
But this time, with the bonus of[Natural Affinity], he immediately felt the change in himself.
Not only did his strength increase, but he also noticed improvements in speed, stamina, and recovery, all thanks to[Natural Affinity'].
Since entering the Sinful Forest, he had felt a surge of energy coursing through his veins.
Therefore, this time, he was able to chop a load of firewood in just half a day.
And it was a full load, even sold for six copper coins.
It seemed that life was finally starting to improve.
...
"If I could become stronger, perhaps I could hunt some low-level monsters. After all, the rewards for hunting monsters are much greater than cutting wood," Li Fan thought, feeling the boost in his strength.
In the Sinful Town, the two most profitable activities were selling slaves and hunting monsters.
The fur and meat of monsters are excellent goods, and their magical cores are even more valuable than gold.
Not to mention, if Li Fan could hunt a weak first-level monster, he could live a comfortable life in the Sinful Town for a month.
But unfortunately, even the weakest first-level monster would require a first-level martial artist to defeat.
And a first-level martial artist needs attributes that are all above ten.
With Li Fan's current base values mostly at one, he doubted he could even withstand a slap from a monster.
Li Fan pondered and abandoned the idea, buying a hard black bread that was even harder than a brick, which he slowly softened with water and ate bit by bit.
"I really miss meat!"
After days of eating nothing but black bread, Li Fan's taste buds were drying up, and his body was craving nutrition.
He bit his lip and decided that tomorrow, at the very least, he would hunt some wild game to satisfy his craving.
...
Without any dreams that night, Li Fan set out early the next morning with an axe in hand, heading deeper into the Sinful Forest.
The Sinful Forest was divided into four regions: the outer edge, the outer region, the inner region, and the central region.
The closer one got to the central region, the higher the chance of encountering monsters.
Usually, Li Fan only dared to search for dry wood in the outer edge.
However, in the outer edge, there were too many people, making it difficult to spot wild animals.
Li Fan hesitated and decided to move closer to the outer region today.
In the outer region, the probability of encountering monsters was relatively low, and as long as he was cautious, there wasn't much danger.As soon as Li Fan stepped into the outer region, he noticed the changes in the surroundings.
The trees here were ancient giants that required several people to embrace, and large trees were everywhere, surrounding the area with an extraordinary density of vegetation that made it difficult to find a foothold and continue forward.
Li Fan could only cautiously use his axe to clear a path.
After walking for about ten minutes, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, his gaze fixed on the dense foliage ahead, a hint of joy flickering across his face.
He had found a game trail.
And this game trail was not wide, indicating that it was made by a small animal.
Small animals were just right for him; he could only handle prey of this size, and the outcome of a confrontation with a large beast was anyone's guess.
Li Fan was overjoyed, thinking that with a trap set, he might be able to improve his meal today.
He decided to act on his idea immediately.
Fortunately, Li Fan had watched many survival videos in the past and had learned how to set a few simple traps.
After some fuss, a simple stone plate trap was completed.
Li Fan didn't actually expect much from this trap; after setting it up, he went back to chopping wood in the edge region, planning to check on it in the evening.
The trap was just a token effort for him.
Obviously, Li Fan was not a professional, as the trap was crude and flimsy; if he wanted to succeed, he should have set up several traps instead.
Moreover, Li Fan had left his own scent when setting the trap, which humans couldn't detect but animals could.
Unless he was lucky, Li Fan probably wouldn't have any catches today.
...
However, something strange happened.
As dusk fell, after Li Fan had chopped a load of firewood, he couldn't help but take a look at the stone plate trap. To his astonishment, the trap had been triggered.
He saw that the stone plate of the trap had been activated, and not far away, a rabbit with a broken hind leg was standing there, dazed.
It seemed that the rabbit had accidentally triggered the trap and been crushed by the stone plate, breaking its leg.
But for some reason, this plump rabbit didn't run away immediately.
Even Li Fan himself found it hard to believe; however, his mind was now filled with the image of roasted rabbit, and he no longer cared why.
"Great, this is a very plump rabbit, it looks adorable, but too bad it seems to be getting overheated, I should go save it," Li Fan muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the rabbit.
Catching a rabbit by hand was no easy task for an average person; you couldn't imagine how agile these little creatures could be.
But this unlucky rabbit had lost one of its legs.
Li Fan caught it without much effort and lifted it by the ears.
"At least seven or eight pounds, enough to make some jerky to last a few days, but too much might lead to a sore throat," Li Fan licked his lips and was about to take the rabbit to the riverbank to "cool off."
Just as he took a step, a sharp "swoosh" sound made him freeze in place.
An arrow had flown past his nose and embedded itself in the trunk of a tree just to his left, its tail still quivering, as if it were "slapping" his nose.
Li Fan's face went stiff, and he slowly turned his gaze towards the direction from which the arrow had come.
He saw a small figure standing on the trunk of a towering tree, some fifteen meters high, holding a bow aimed right at him.