Xing Luo looked at Candice the archer’s powerful legs, devoid of any excess fat, with sunlight reflecting off the sweat beads, giving them a crystal-clear luster, as a drop of sweat trickled down her neck.
Xing Luo couldn’t help but swallow, while Pandora glanced sideways at the flustered fatty, who was startled by the loud sound.
With a look of disdain, she adjusted her hat and asked, “Where are you going? Why are you here alone?”
Hearing the question, the fatty casually replied, “I’m going to Luoshen City to sell a batch of goods, but I got separated from my parents not long after setting out, and when I woke up, I met you all.”
The cautious Xing Luo did not tell the truth, making up the best excuse he could think of at his current stage, and with his control over mental power, he spoke without blushing or a racing heart.
Pandora had only asked casually, so she didn’t say anything more and continued to fuss with her tall hat.
A sharp shriek suddenly rang out, and a “Water Arrow” shot towards Xing Luo, whose chubby body instinctively lunged forward, dodging the sudden attack; although his posture was undignified, he was ultimately unharmed, as two years of training had left some mark on him.
At this moment, a large, snow-white wolf entered everyone’s sight, its cold, crimson eyes fixed on them.
The Iron Blood Mercenary Group quickly adjusted their formation, encircling the fatty and the Apprentice Magician.
Having missed its first strike, the giant wolf opened its maw again, water-elemental energy condensing within its mouth.
Before the large wolf could attack again, a blazing fireball struck it, its scorching temperature instantly engulfing the giant wolf’s body, followed by a mournful howl.
The once mighty giant wolf turned into a pile of ashes in an instant. Looking at the strangely powerful fireball, the chubby boy’s eye twitched as he thought, “Who exactly is she? A child who looks about my age is actually so powerful.”
An ordinary fireball could at most severely wound a Forest Snow Wolf; clearly, Pandora had not used an ordinary fireball just now. Just looking at the huge ruby embedded in her staff, one could tell she must come from a top noble family in Loshen Country, not to mention the numerous colorful magic rings on her hands, which further amplified her magic scrolls.
Clearly, everyone was already accustomed to this ‘compressed fireball’ that, with the help of a magic scroll, almost rivaled a High-level Mages, showing no excessive surprise.
“The Forest Snow Wolf—one of the magical beasts living in the Monster Forest, a dual-attribute magical beast of water and dark elements, skilled at concealing itself.”
“However, its attack methods are relatively simple, only possessing Water Arrow and sharp claws.”
“If this somewhat arrogant Forest Snow Wolf hadn’t abandoned its advantage of stealth just now, dealing with it wouldn’t have been so easy.”
“Magical beasts are divided into Junior, Intermediate, High-level, and Super Magical Beasts. The Forest Snow Wolf just now was an Intermediate Magical Beast, which would have been the undisputed uncrowned king in this small area. Unfortunately for it, it encountered the wealthy Pandora, and that fireball scroll, with its High-level Magic power, directly ended its long life. Generally, magical beasts have longer lifespans than humans: Junior Magical Beasts live for 200 years, Intermediate for 400 years, and the lifespan of each level of magical beast doubles. As for whether there are immortal magical beasts comparable to gods, that remains unknown.”
The brief battle did not cause much commotion, and the team continued to advance unhurriedly.
Xing Luo’s agility just now made Candice look at him a few more times. Although his posture while dodging the “Water Arrow” was as ugly as could be, in the eyes of these experienced Mercenaries, saving one’s life was the most important thing.
Xing Luo, who was secretly peeking at Candice, found that this sexy big sister was also looking at him, thinking he had been caught peeking.
He quickly turned his head, pretending to casually look at a nearby tree, but didn’t see a stone on the ground and tripped, his chubby face making intimate contact with the ground.
Candice, who was about to question the fatty, instantly lost interest. “Perhaps he just accidentally fell and dodged the ‘Water Arrow’.” Thinking this, she no longer looked back and continued to patrol around the team. Her failure to detect the stealthy Forest Snow Wolf immediately was her dereliction of duty, so she now focused with all her might.
Actually, it couldn’t be entirely her fault; dark-elemental magical beasts were inherently rare, and a Forest Snow Wolf intent on hiding was very difficult to detect.
Watching the fatty struggle to get up from the ground, everyone couldn’t help but laugh; his comical and amusing appearance brought a lot of joy to the team.
The advancing team did not encounter any further obstacles. Endless trees blocked out the sky, and sunlight filtered through the lush leaves onto the path, forming patches of light. The scorching summer sun was blocked by the leaves, a benefit only found in dense forests.
Of course, dangers still existed, but the outer reaches of the Monster Forest did not have overly powerful magical beasts. The Intermediate Magical Beast just now was already quite rare, and the Junior Magical Beasts in the outer areas would not come to their demise against this clearly not weak team. Compared to delicious food, magical beasts valued their own lives more.
The adventurers present were clearly not satisfied with this outcome, especially our “Magician” Lady Pandora. This tsundere little princess finally lost interest in her hat; after all, she was still just a child, and even with talent far surpassing her peers, her abundant curiosity and almost infinite energy were unchangeable.
A month passed in a blink of an eye, and everyone in the Iron Blood Mercenary Group had gained some experience. Although there were no particularly powerful magical beasts in the outer areas, some special existences still posed a certain threat to everyone.
Especially with a fatty who couldn’t provide any combat power. Probably having undergone about two years of wilderness survival training when he was 12, Xing Luo didn’t suffer any injuries this time, apart from his clothes being a bit dirty, and his gaze still occasionally drifted towards Candice.
In fact, the fatty also made some progress; at least in future battles, he understood the combat styles of Mages and archers, and also gained some understanding of magical beasts. All of this was thanks to the kind Uncle William’s patient explanations. He was particularly curious about swords and magic, so he often went to ask Uncle William.
During the journey, whenever they encountered a magical beast, Uncle William would give the fatty a scientific explanation. Xing Luo’s mental power was like a sponge, desperately absorbing all kinds of knowledge.
What captivated Xing Luo the most were the magnificent and shocking magic attacks, which made him look forward to this world full of magic and battle aura, and also diluted some of his sadness, making his determination to become stronger even more resolute.
This past month, everyone not only honed their combat skills but also earned a considerable income. Each magical beast would condense a magic core of the corresponding level. A magic core is the essence condensed at the moment of a magical beast’s death due to intense emotional fluctuations.
Pandora wore a beautiful, antique ring on her adorable little finger, and every magic core she obtained disappeared into her small hand.
This was a storage magic item created by a Space Magician, a ring connected to a stable space.
The storage space of an Apprentice Magician’s ring like hers was 50 square meters, which was a considerable space, generally only accessible to Mages above level 16.
Xing Luo looked at the ring, an uncontrollable envy showing in his eyes. When would he also be able to own a storage ring, even if it wasn’t pretty, even if the storage space was only 1 square meter? Xing Luo fell into an uncontrollable yearning.
After a month of training, everyone was very tired and decided to return to Luoshen Town to rest and recuperate. Additionally, the Apprentice Magician Pandora was going to attend the annual Luo Shen Academy enrollment, so everyone did not continue to stay in the Monster Forest.
When he heard that the Apprentice Magician would also go to Luo Shen Academy, Xing Luo suddenly felt a pang of guilt. After all, his own strength didn’t even qualify him as an Apprentice Magician, and as for battle aura, he had none. Of course, how could a fatty who feared death charge at the front of the team like a knight?
For Xing Luo, that was something only someone with a problem in their head would do, so he automatically dismissed the idea of becoming a knight.
“But it really is cool,” a scene flashed in his mind: himself in knight armor, a bunch of little girls screaming for him. Thinking of this, Xing Luo couldn’t help but drool.
Pandora looked at Xing Luo’s behavior and couldn’t help but show an expression of disdain. “What is this fatty thinking again!” she muttered indignantly, then turned her head away, continuing to fiddle with the magic core from the Forest Snow Wolf in her hand.
“This is an Intermediate Magic Core, and it’s my first trophy,” she, still a child, held her arm high. Sunlight shone on the magic core, making it crystal clear, slightly brighter than crystal, and full of alluring magic, making the Apprentice Magician unable to put it down.
Xing Luo still didn’t know he had just been harshly scorned again, and continued to immerse himself in his fantasy.