"It's finally enough."
Luo Lin's throat was dry.
Conversing with Little Hei ten thousand times completed the first condition for unlocking the Telepathy talent.
He then took out two silver coins and placed them into the copper skin book's groove.
As the coins disappeared, the "Telepathy" below the dog's head portrait on the inner page lit up, and a faint glow rising from the text once again drifted out and empowered Little Hei.
At the same time.
New small print entries appeared below.
--Intermediate stage. Telepathy (Lit up)
--High-level. Killing Intent Perception: The dog can keenly perceive the killing intent towards its master within a hundred meters through scent, warning by wagging its tail and striking, and indicating the number of killing intents by the times it licks the back of the hand. Requires raising two dogs + 4 silver coins to unlock and light up.
--??
"Killing Intent Perception!"
Luo Lin was delighted.
This talent was incredibly useful; it was a danger warning.
Most dogs have a wide range of smell, but it can be interfered with in special circumstances, such as wind.
However, being able to perceive killing intent through smell was already a definite evolutionary ability.
Currently, he also somewhat understood the pattern of dog talents: two elementary levels are followed by an Intermediate stage, and similarly, two Intermediate stages are followed by a high level.
But it required raising two dogs and 4 silver coins.
He was extremely short on money right now.
After going out during the day to buy four black breads and some nuts and other dry food, he only had 40 copper coins left.
Alas, only when one needs money does one realize that poverty is endless.
"Let's try it first."
The lit-up Telepathy talent allowed for deep spiritual communication with the dog.
Since that was the case, he needed to quickly form a tacit understanding with Little Hei.
Thinking of this.
Luo Lin rubbed Little Hei's head and met its gaze.
Then he mentally issued the command: turn in a circle on the spot.
Woof.
Little Hei stared at its master, hesitating slightly.
It turned a circle on the spot with some hesitation.
It then looked at its master with a confused gaze, as a dog could understand human expressions.
This indeed caused a great mental shock to the dog.
Perhaps it was also wondering, am I still a dog?
Is my master definitely human?
"Not bad, you're so smart."
Luo Lin stared at Little Hei, delighted.
Under the effect of the Telepathy talent, he could communicate with it just by eye contact and thought.
This eliminated the need to speak aloud to convey commands.
This undoubtedly increased stealth by a large margin.
Since they could communicate like this, could he ask Little Hei to perform more difficult commands?
Thinking of this, he again sent a mental command with his eyes: do a spiral take-off followed by a backflip.
"..."
Little Hei stared at its master, its eyes incredibly clear.
Luo Lin looked at its small eyes and also felt that his command was a bit inhumane.
But with Telepathy, it could be practiced slowly; if not proficient once, it would surely be proficient after three tries.
The next day.
"Laotie,"
Just as dawn broke, Fen Shao came to find Luo Lin, carrying two radishes and a small bag of hazelnuts, saying, "These are for you to eat on the road. I can only get this much from home."
"Thank you, my best friend."
Luo Lin took the radishes and hazelnuts, deeply moved.
Serfs could not truly fill their stomachs by farming alone, as they had to pay taxes, so during the off-season, they relied on foraging in the wild to supplement their food.
The precious food in his hands must have been stolen by Fen Shao from his home.
This kind of friendship, risking a beating from his father to help a friend.
It was so simple and profound.
"Where's Little Hei?"
Fen Shao searched around the single-room thatched hut, asking, "Why don't I see it? It didn't run away, did it?"
"Look there,"
Luo Lin led his friend to the yard and pointed to the low forest on the hill beside the road, saying, "It's already waiting for me there."
He had already taken Little Hei there to wait before dawn.
Last night's practice of following from a distance continued until late, and it was finally successful.
This was also thanks to the Telepathy talent.
It greatly improved Little Hei's comprehension ability.
"It's really good; it will definitely become a good hunting dog in the future,"
Fen Shao stared into the distance with admiration, then turned back to his friend and said, "Laotie, you must pay attention to safety. If possible, always walk in the middle of the team. If you encounter an ambush, find a place to hide immediately, seize the opportunity to run, and don't try to be a hero. Don't forget that we are farmers; we are not good at fighting."
"I know, don't worry."
Luo Lin nodded solemnly.
To be honest, he had already made plans last night.
Since he had obtained the secret of the copper skin book, doing nothing on this expedition would be a wasted opportunity.
The first priority of this trip was to ensure his own survival.
Secondly, he wanted to actively seek opportunities to gain some merits, striving to become a freeman through the Landlord's special permit.
Only then could he become a hunter.
With the copper skin book, being a hunter was currently the best way to accumulate primitive capital.
Of course.
The battlefield situation was constantly changing.
Seizing the right moment and adapting was the real key.
"Fen Shao, if I don't come back, my two chickens are yours."
"You will definitely come back. I will pray to the gods every day to keep you safe, and I will take good care of your two chickens."
"Thank you."
Luo Lin packed his belongings and followed the small path to the Land Knight's manor.
Upon arriving, he began to move the expedition supplies.
On this trip, besides Dorn Knight and his squire.
There was also another freeman attendant, Bill, who was compensated.
As for Luo Lin, he was putting in labor and effort, and might even risk his life, with very little compensation.
This further strengthened his resolve to escape his current status.
"Laotie, your first long journey is to go to war; your luck is indeed a bit bad."
Bill, who had a full beard but was only twenty-two years old, carried tent poles and tied them to the mule responsible for carrying the load.
He continued to say to Luo Lin, "But you are also very lucky. Just follow me, and I guarantee you'll be fine. You should know that I have followed Master Dorn on several campaigns and returned safely every time."
"That's great, my friend."
Luo Lin held the tent fabric and fixed it to the other side of the mule.
Bill, who was four years older than him, also farmed and had to pay fixed taxes.
If one were to distinguish between freemen and serfs, the former were free cattle and horses, while the latter were bottom-tier cattle and horses.
Therefore, there was no contempt chain between cattle and horses.
Slaves in this world were at the bottom.
"Hey, you two, be careful when moving things,"
Pemon, Dorn Knight's squire, shouted from a distance towards the two.
His eyes held a hint of disdain as he said, "Stay away from the armor and weapons. If you get them dirty, I'll have to wipe them again, so don't be foolish."
"Yes."
Bill lowered his head slightly and pulled Luo Lin to move other supplies.
At the same time, he whispered, "Don't pay attention to that coward. The last time he fought the Barbarians, he peed his pants several times. He only became a squire because Master Dorn is his uncle."
Luo Lin nodded, not saying anything.
Instead, he glanced at Little Hei in the distance; that fellow was truly sensible.
"Speaking of which, Master Dorn is a good man,"
Bill put the whetstone into the cloth bag on the mule, saying, "Besides giving wages, after obtaining spoils of war, he won't divide them 1:9 with his attendants like other Knight masters; he will give us a 2:8 split. What noble character that is."
"Then he's truly generous."
Luo Lin said casually.
He had very little contact with Dorn Knight normally.
Their conversations were limited to 'Yes, my lord' or 'As you command,' and there was no other meaningful communication.
After all, their classes were different; he couldn't possibly discuss sow postpartum care with a Knight master, could he?
"You two, move faster."
Squire Pemon, holding a breastplate, walked closer and commanded, "Quickly arrange the things on the mule so I have room for the armor."
"Pemon, are we ready to depart?"
At this moment, a man wearing a long-sleeved shirt, an outer sleeveless leather vest, with brown, naturally curly shoulder-length hair and an exquisite beard, arrived on a black horse.
It was Vik. Dawn Knight, the master of this Land.
He did not wear full knight armor for the journey, as it was quite heavy, and he would be exhausted before even reaching the assembly point (Note 1).
Even if a person could endure it, the horse beneath him would suffer.
Luo Lin was also quite curious; this Knight was not short on money, yet he had not married even though he was already in his thirties.
However, this was not his concern.
"Everything is in order,"
Pemon quickly bowed, respectfully lowering his head, "We can depart at any time."
"Hmm,"
Dorn Knight glanced at the prepared horses and mules, his gaze sweeping over the few accompanying people, then turned to look forward, "Depart."
---
Note 1: The author's note explains why they don't wear armor during marches.