Chapter 23: Footsteps (4k)

The Mist Forest lies in the heart of the Alfara continent. Its ancient, hidden remnants and unique natural topography have gifted this land with a concentration of magic that distinguishes it from all other regions.

Inevitably, this has given rise to dangerous magical beasts born from the pale, thin mists.

Having lived for a long time in an environment saturated with high-density mana and nourished by its abundance, these creatures possess bodies far more robust than ordinary animals, or are born with the inherent ability to manipulate the laws of nature. They occupy the highest ecological niche in the entire forest.

Yet, they stand at the pinnacle of the pyramid only because of the massive base that supports them. In this forest, perpetually shrouded in a light haze, there exists a vast multitude of ordinary creatures not listed in any bestiary.

"Rustle."

A light breeze brushed by, causing leaves to drift and fall. The brownish-grey bark looked like a dried-up watercourse, rough and covered in cracks and fissures. From a distance, it appeared to be nothing more than the most ordinary oak branch in the forest.

But if you were a bit more patient, if you observed a bit more carefully, you would gradually notice the scarlet snake tongue flickering in the air, and the slender, subtly protruding outline on the surface of the trunk.

It was a Rosalind pit viper.

The mottled, light-brown patterns on its fine scales, combined with the patience and sluggishness typical of cold-blooded animals, allowed it to blend almost perfectly into its surroundings. Its inverted triangle-shaped, elongated head served as a natural warning of the potent venom this snake possessed.

It waited silently.

The Mist Forest never lacked prey. With a unique body structure capable of swallowing creatures several times its own size, a length of nearly five feet, and two sharp fangs beneath its skull ready to inject venom at any moment, its menu was not limited to frogs and lizards; it even included small-to-medium-sized mammals. As for those creatures too large for it to handle, the survival instinct deep within its bloodline ensured that they stayed far away from this creature armed with lethal toxins.

"Squeak."

A long-eared mouse, covered in fluffy fur, moved cautiously through the fallen leaves. Its clear, foolish eyes seemed to herald its fate.

It crept closer.

There was no emotion in the pit viper’s icy, slit pupils. Its neck retracted, muscles tensing. The explosive power beneath its scales meant that in just a fraction of a second, it could inject its venom into its target, followed by constriction, waiting quietly for the prey to die.

The small brown scales trembled slightly as the muscles expanded. This was the precursor to its strike.

Then,

*Hum—*

A flash of iron-grey, razor-sharp light flickered through the air.

Accompanied by wood chips spraying from the trunk, the long-eared mouse scurried away in a panic into the depths of the bushes. The pit viper’s body remained in the tense, coiled state it held just before the strike, but its head had already been severed by a cold, sharp blade.

"Damn it! You scared the hell out of me!"

With lingering fear, Xia Nan exerted force with his right hand, pulling the decapitation longsword out of the tree trunk.

This was his second day back in the Mist Forest. Contrary to his expectations, the complex environment of the forest, filled with fog and countless identical-looking trees, made it difficult to discern his position, even with the professional compass and crude map he had bought from the general store. Adding to this the fact that he was alone, every slight movement in his surroundings made Xia Nan alert and cautious. Consequently, his progress was significantly slower than even the motley crew he had been with previously. He hadn't realized it at the time, but now he suspected that Marge must have possessed some kind of professional skill for navigation.

Fortunately, the location of the Firefly Garlic Vines from his memory was not too far from River Valley Town; after an afternoon and half a morning of wandering, he was almost there.

Digging a small hole in the ground, Xia Nan looked on with disdain as he used the tip of his sword to flick the snake's head into it. A piece of trivia from his past life—he couldn't remember where he'd learned it—told him that even after being decapitated, snakes could still use muscle memory to open their jaws and inject venom. To be safe, it was better to bury the head to avoid getting bitten.

In Xia Nan’s view, the most dangerous things in the Mist Forest were, naturally, the strange magical beasts; but if one were to talk about what was disgusting, the various snakes and insects found everywhere were at the top of the list. Even though he carried antidotes and insect repellent, being bitten by one of these little things was no laughing matter.

He stood in place, scanning his surroundings carefully. Confirming there was nothing unusual, Xia Nan relaxed slightly, took off his backpack, and rummaged through it for a piece of gauze.

While resting to recover his strength, he also diligently maintained his newly purchased longsword. According to Barn, the owner of the "Rock Hammer" shop, he only needed to maintain the sword every three days unless he experienced a major battle. However, since he had just received it, even knowing that in time the blade would inevitably bear many permanent scars from use, he couldn't help but want to keep it in a "factory-fresh" state.

The soft gauze wiped gently, and the few smudges on the surface of the blade were removed. Feeling the firm, cool texture of the hilt in his hand, Xia Nan’s thoughts drifted.

As an adventurer who often faced various battles, a suitable weapon was essentially his second life. Therefore, when choosing a weapon, one had to carefully confirm whether its balance and weight distribution suited one's own fighting style. At the time, Xia Nan hadn't considered much, merely buying the sword with the mindset of picking up a bargain. Now, it seemed that while he hadn't made a mistake, he should have been more meticulous.

Fortunately, after a day and a half of getting used to it, Xia Nan could confirm that this decapitation longsword was a great fit. It was heavier than an ordinary two-handed sword, but still within the range his current strength could handle. The four-foot, double-edged blade allowed his [Spinning Slash] to be perfectly executed, and even the low-key, iron-grey color of the blade suited his aesthetic.

Now, Xia Nan was even itching for a few more skirmishes, to cut down a few goblins to prove the sharpness of his blade.

"Uh... well, maybe not ogres," he joked to himself.

He stood up and hoisted the slightly heavy pack back onto his shoulders. Just as he was about to leave, his peripheral vision caught the snake carcass in the leaves. Remembering something, he pulled the somewhat wrinkled [Adventurer's Handbook] from his tunic.

...
21. [An adventurer's hands should be stained with blood]
Hey! What’s there to be disgusted about? Those are fragrant, shiny gold coins!

—21.3 [Regarding those crawlers]
...Remember to remove their gallbladders; these can usually be sold for a good price at herb shops and alchemy stores (the price depends on their size and species). Some special types, such as the single horn on an Ice-Trace Horned Snake or the shed skin of a Barrel Python, can also fetch a price. Of course, this only applies to ordinary creatures; for magical beasts...
...

"Sure enough, I almost missed out on a few more gold coins."

Xia Nan pulled a dagger from his waist and, following the diagrams in the manual, clumsily sliced open the scale-covered body of the viper.

"Got it!"

In his hand, covered in slime and blood, was an ink-black, sac-like organ.

"A viper's gallbladder of this size in the Mist Forest... can probably sell for 3 gold?" he guessed, recalling the price list he had seen at the pharmacy.

In his previous life, Xia Nan had heard an interesting question: if the monthly income is the same, why is the experience of living in the countryside versus the city like night and day? The cost of living is different, of course, but in his view, the temptations of the environment were also a major reason.

When he had first transmigrated to this world, his mind was filled only with the simple memories of his predecessor’s eighteen years spent with wheat stalks; 100 gold and 10 gold seemed to make no difference to him—both were huge sums. But after he had carried over a hundred gold coins in loot and toured River Valley Town, seeing potions that cost 500 gold and four-digit armor prices, his understanding of this world changed clearly.

At the very least, as he pressed down on the twitching snake body and extracted the gallbladder from the slime and blood, while he still felt disgusted, he felt even more joy at the prospect of selling it for a few more gold coins back in the city. Especially considering that he had only 24 gold, 2 silver, and 7 copper coins left to his name.

Yes, Xia Nan, who had once possessed over 130 gold coins, was now left with less than a fraction of that. The 35-gold longsword and the 10-gold leather armor were only part of the bill. The culprit behind his shrunken savings was currently lying deep in the safest and most accessible pocket of his waist bag.

50 gold.

A full, unopened bottle—shimmering with a faint fluorescence when shaken—of Healing Potion.

Xia Nan hadn't been able to resist. After completing all the necessary preparations before heading out, he had used his remaining savings to add one more trump card to his adventure.

But he didn't regret it. Because he knew exactly what kind of effect this bottle of healing potion could have.

The unique luster of metal flickered before his eyes, and the iron-grey blade reflected his image. His gaze intensified, and translucent text appeared before him:

...
[Name]: Xia Nan
[Attributes]:
Strength: 6
Agility: 6
Constitution: 5
Intelligence: 5
Perception: 5
Charisma: 5
[Specialty]: Master of Cleaving
[Skills]: Spinning Slash lv5 (Max)
[Equipment/Items]: Dead-Line, Sturdy Decapitation Longsword, Healing Potion *1...
...

This was Xia Nan's second adventure. But without a doubt, compared to the version of himself that had just arrived in this world, he had undergone tremendous changes, both mentally and physically. If he were to return to that dark, bloody goblin cave now, he wouldn't say he’d achieve a total victory, but at the very least, by the time he dealt with those four goblin minions, Gagu probably wouldn't have completely lost his ability to fight.

Tossing the still-twitching snake carcass to the ground, Xia Nan remained calm and pulled out his compass and map.

"Hmm... this direction."

As he drew closer to his destination, his memories, which had been as foggy as the forest air, gradually began to clear.

His pace quickened. About two hours later, as Xia Nan pushed aside the dense bushes, an open space appeared before him.

To be honest, this clearing wasn't actually that big—even including the overgrown vegetation at the edges, it was only about a quarter of the size of a basketball court. But in the Mist Forest, filled with towering trees, it stood out starkly.

In the center of the clearing stood a dark oak tree, about as thick as two men could reach around. It wasn't tall, nor was it particularly majestic or thick. From the outside, the only thing that distinguished it from the trees around the clearing were the clusters of pale white vines hanging from its branches.

Xia Nan’s eyes lit up. His memory of passing by a few days ago told him that these strangely colored vines would emit a glow like fireflies at night.

"Firefly Garlic Vines!" he thought excitedly.

However, he did not rush forward. A clearing appearing in the middle of a dense forest, strange glowing plants, and the potential for a huge reward... Any adventurer with even a little common sense would not rush forward rashly. As a novice adventurer constantly alert to everything around him, Xia Nan was even more cautious.

He gripped his longsword tightly, his half-crouched body leaning slightly forward in a stance optimized for a quick burst of power. Moving with minimal sound, he spent a full ten minutes circling the edge of the clearing.

The grass, the canopy...

Only after a thorough search to ensure there were no ambushes did he turn his gaze back to the oak tree in the clearing. He hesitated for a moment. The forest had many trees; although they often blocked his view and made it hard to spot potential dangers in time, they could also serve as cover if necessary. If there were a hidden enemy, walking into the clearing meant exposing all his positions to the opponent.

After a moment of deliberation, Xia Nan finally made a decision. There was no point in waiting; he had to take the initiative!

Gritting his teeth, he took a step with his right foot and charged out. He stopped abruptly as he approached the vines. He held his longsword horizontally, a flash of iron-grey cold light dancing on the edge of the blade.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

A light breeze blew, and the branches swayed with a "rustling" sound.

Confirming that he had just been playing a battle of wits against thin air, Xia Nan decisively sheathed his sword—after all, no one else was watching, so there was nothing to be embarrassed about. Then, he pulled out his dagger as fast as he could and began cutting down the clusters of Firefly Garlic Vines. Since he was the only one who knew of this location, even though he wasn't sure how this vine-like plant grew, he left behind some immature branches and leaves, adhering to the principle of sustainable utilization.

In just five minutes, 32 clusters of Firefly Garlic Vines were carefully and quickly stuffed into his specially prepared backpack.

"Perfect!"

Tightening the heavy pack on his back, he was just about to leave when he heard two rapid sets of footsteps coming from the woods on his right.

"Huh!?"