Chapter 110: Encounter with the Fang of Light

Watching the motorcycle speed away, I let out a sigh of relief, though I realized my days ahead might not be easy. I turned to Long Zhan and asked, "Long Zhan, is it done?"

Long Zhan replied, "It is finished, Master."

I was puzzled. Since the boss had been defeated, we should have gained experience points, yet my progress bar hadn't budged. I asked Xiao Xi, "Xiao Xi, did you receive any experience?"

"Of course not," Xiao Xi replied.

"Why?"

Xiao Xi explained, "Because we moved outside the experience zone."

"Experience zone?" I asked, confused.

Xiao Xi elaborated, "An experience zone is the area within a certain range of a monster during combat. Killing a monster within this area grants experience, but if you kill it from outside that range, you gain nothing. The size of the zone depends on the monster's size and strength. We were about three hundred meters away from that boss, and judging by its size, its experience zone likely only extended about a hundred meters from its center. We were triple that distance away; how could we possibly gain experience? By the way, this was mentioned in the latest system update. Didn't you read it?"

"I..."

Well, if there’s no experience, there’s no experience. We went back to collect the loot dropped by the boss. The guy was stingy; he only dropped three pieces of equipment and a few dozen gold coins. He barely felt like a boss—more like a mere elite mob.

I took the gear back to be appraised, which only made me despise the boss even more. Out of the three items, two were white-tier and one was blue-tier. In this day and age, aside from complete novices, who still wears "blue sky and white clouds" gear? I tossed them into the system shop for a few silver coins and headed to the task hall to turn in my quests.

After turning in the quests, I picked up seven or eight more. Xiao Xi and I parted ways to complete our respective tasks, but before leaving, I sternly instructed her not to mention today’s events. Xiao Xi, ever obedient, nodded vigorously; her lips were sealed tight.

I went about completing my tasks one by one. Looking up, the sun was setting, the sky stained like blood. I moved through a grove of withered trees in the Blood-Stained Wasteland, light and agile as a darting civet cat. With my full-agility build, my movement speed had reached a new peak, something even a high-agility archer might not be able to match.

Since I kept heading back to town every time I finished a batch of quests, I had run out of return scrolls. I hadn't realized I’d forgotten to buy more before heading out this last time—what a mistake! Time slipped by, the sun vanished below the horizon, and a bright moon and stars appeared overhead. It was 7:00 PM game time, and nocturnal creatures began to emerge, while most players on the road started their journey back.

I saw several player squads along the way. No one dared to be careless at night; a single slip could draw a swarm of monsters or make one a target for enemies lurking in the dark.

Regardless of squad size, most players used return scrolls to head back to town at night. Those without them retreated to the system’s safe zones. Few teams dared to challenge the nocturnal creatures, and even finding a spot to log off felt risky—who knew if a circle of enemies would be waiting when you logged back in the next day?

I walked back, checking on my three summoned beasts. They were all in deep slumber; it seemed even they needed rest and couldn't fight twenty-four hours a day.

Suddenly, a crisp voice came from behind me: "Hey, you there. Don't be in such a rush to get back to town. Why not play with me for a bit first?"

I turned to see a female player standing a few meters away. She wore purple-red armor that accentuated her figure, and her delicate face and waterfall of long hair fluttered in the breeze. She was watching me with a smile.

"Are you talking to me?" I asked.

"Is there anyone else around besides us?" she retorted.

"No."

"Exactly. Let's have a duel," the female player said.

"Why?" I asked.

"No reason," she replied. Before I could respond, she flashed toward me. I instinctively leaned back, but a blade left a mark on my armor. Fortunately, I didn't lose any health. I could see her weapon clearly now—a strange blade with two separate blades attached to a single hilt.

It was clear I couldn't avoid this fight. I abandoned the idea of disengaging and prepared to give it my all. She swung again; I jumped to dodge and countered with a strike from my Ruyi Staff. She blocked with her blades, and I used the momentum to vault behind her and land a blow, but she simply shifted her arms behind her back to parry it, glancing back at me with a smile. I immediately retreated.

I extended my Ruyi Staff to strike, but she manifested a rectangular shield on her left forearm to block the attack, then used her saber to deflect the staff. "Is that all you've got?" she asked. She traced a circle in front of her with her blade, which transformed into a blood-red crescent moon. The moon shattered, and countless red lights pierced through my body. A flurry of damage numbers erupted above my head, and my health dropped by more than half.

I rolled away to use a healing item, then launched a Cloud-Leaping Assault followed by a Crushing Blow, Energy Explosion, and a heavy strike. The female player defended perfectly with her rectangular shield, though she lost some health.

I activated my Fiery Eyes: Level 46, Beast Knight. Equipment: Blade of the War Wolf (Silver), Amethyst Set (Purple). Other details unknown.

Wait... a Beast Knight? Is this person the "Tooth of Light" from the Heavenly Rankings?! No... this can't be happening. I fought with the Guardian just this afternoon, and now at night, I have to fight the Tooth of Light? How unlucky can I be? To run into two super-experts in a single day—does this mean my luck is great, or that I’m cursed?

Something even more shocking happened: a white shadow appeared on her shield, looking like a turtle. I asked, "What is that?"

Tooth of Light glanced at her shield and said, "Oh, this? It’s my good partner. I call him Turtle Baby. By the way, let me introduce you to my other friends. Come out, Sister Snake!" Following her sharp command, a snake-like white shadow emerged from her blade and lunged at me like lightning. I side-stepped just in time.

I charged forward, bringing my staff down heavily, but she blocked it with that shield again. I spun in place and struck again, but Tooth of Light jumped high into the air. To my surprise, she didn't fall back down; I looked up to see a pair of pure white wings sprouted from her back, keeping her afloat.

"Haha, scared now, kid? With us around, we won't let you lay a finger on our lady!" A bird's head suddenly appeared on Tooth of Light's shoulder, mocking me.

Tooth of Light said, "Alright, that's enough, Mr. Bird. Let's finish this together!" She dove down from the sky at high speed. I dodged urgently. "Please, Wolf Warrior!" With a low shout, a wolf-head-shaped greave appeared on her left leg, and she kicked at me with incredible speed. I triggered a feint without thinking to evade the strike.

"Leopard Boss, grant me the speed of lightning!" Tooth of Light shouted again. A leopard-head-shaped greave appeared on her right leg, and with a single dash, she was instantly in front of me. I swung my staff, but she took to the air. The bird head on her shoulder appeared once more, sneering, "Kid, you have no chance. A common summoner can never beat us. You don't even have a summoned beast of your own; winning is impossible. Understand? If you do, just concede, wash your face, and go to bed! Hahahahaha!"

It wasn't just the bird head; animal heads had emerged on all four of her limbs, all of them laughing hysterically.

These guys are truly annoying. Tooth of Light said, "Alright everyone, stop laughing. Let’s take him down together!"