Chapter Forty-Seven: A Small Trouble Leilin twisted his head away with effort, and a jolt of searing pain shot through his shoulder.
"Host has been struck by an arrow! Warning! Warning! The arrowhead carries a high concentration of bacteria. Recommend immediate cleansing!"
"Damn it!!!" Leilin hastily yanked the arrow out, then drew a silver dagger from inside his coat, gritted his teeth, and carved away the ring of flesh around the wound.
He quickly pulled a tube of green potion from his waist pouch, pouring half onto the wound and swallowing the other half. Only when he heard the Chip's voice announce "Contaminant neutralized!" did he finally let out a long breath of relief.
At the moment Leilin was struck by the arrow,
Doris was now charred black from head to toe, most of her wings shattered, one hand missing entirely, the Shadow Hand still clamped around her ankle. Her vitality had already dropped to a critical level — she could die at any moment.
"Revenge!! Revenge!!!" Doris mumbled unconsciously, then suddenly a cold glint flashed in her eyes and she bit through her own right leg.
Snap!! A thigh went flying, and the Shadow Hand that had been coiled around her ankle rapidly dissolved.
"Let's die together!!!"
Doris's entire body swelled up, the fleshy growths on her face trembling violently, her speed suddenly tripling as she charged toward Leilin.
"Damn it!!!" Leilin clutched his shoulder and retreated swiftly, hurling his last vial of Explosive Potion at the same time.
BOOM!!! A tremendous explosion erupted.
Red flames and green pus churned together, casting an eerie green glow.
Leilin hit the ground and rolled several times, finally clearing the blast radius.
The surrounding earth was now strewn with a ring of green bones and flesh, a thoroughly revolting sight.
"Huh?" When Leilin watched the green severed limbs fall to the ground, a ring of yellowish fluid quickly spread outward, continuously corroding the earth around it. His face turned grim and he hurriedly checked his own body.
Several drops of yellowish pus had at some point corroded through his leather armor, opening several gashes in his skin. The area around the wounds had turned pale yellow, and he had already begun to lose sensation.
"Host has been subjected to secondary contamination by an unknown bacterium. Rapid cellular division and mutation has begun. Take immediate measures!!"
"Chip! Scan the damage! List treatment options!!"
"Task established! Scanning…"
"Beep! According to database cross-referencing, treatment for this injury requires thirty grams of Human-headed Bird feathers, five hundred milliliters of Pink Ink Oil, fifty grams of Green Coconut Stone…"
The Chip rattled off a long list of materials.
"I don't have time to go buy all of this. Chip, list emergency suppression measures!" Leilin's expression was grim.
"Burning with open flame can effectively slow the bacterial mutation and contamination!" the Chip offered.
"Open flame?" Leilin tore open his clothes, casually lit a branch, and pressed the bright yellow flame against his wound.
Ssssss!!! The sizzle of searing flesh rang out, accompanied by the stench of charring. Leilin's face twisted in agony.
Several minutes later, the Chip delivered a confirmation prompt. Leilin tossed the torch aside and collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath, cold sweat dripping steadily.
"This enemy was extremely dangerous!!! High resistance to physical and fire attacks, incredible speed, and poison on top of that. It looks like this was designed specifically to take me out. If not for the Chip, I probably…"
Doris's bodily fluids had combined with the earlier arrow bacteria to cause secondary contamination — something even the Chip hadn't accounted for, turning what should have been a minor injury into a pyrrhic victory.
"Besides, all the Explosive Potions I brought are spent! I need to restock on ingredients!"
Leilin's recent battles had all relied on potions to overwhelm his enemies, but the cost was enormous — at least several hundred Magic Stones thrown away in one go.
Fortunately, he could still brew Explosive Potions himself, or the cost would have been even higher.
"The flame only temporarily halted the spread. To truly cure it, I'll need to buy the proper materials!" Leilin looked at his charred wound, frowned, downed a Stamina Potion, and set off toward Grey Stone City.
Such a massive commotion here — the city lord's manor had surely noticed something was wrong by now. It wouldn't be long before a large contingent showed up.
Leilin endured the pain and snuck back into Grey Stone City, quietly retrieving his chest. He didn't even bother with the two horses. Instead, he stole a chestnut-brown steed from outside the city and fled through the night, heading toward a
As for any summons from the city lord or what have you — that was entirely thrown out the window.
…
Over ten days later, on the roads of Walkerlan Province, a chestnut-brown horse carried two large chests on its back. Atop the saddle sat a figure in a black robe, the horse's nostrils flaring with heavy breath as it galloped along the main road.
"Chip! Display my current status!" Leilin Farell's body rose and fell with the horse's gait as he silently commanded.
"Leilin Farell, Second-rank Apprentice, Official Knight. Strength: 1.3 (2.5). Agility: 1.5 (2.7). Constitution: 1.0 (3.0). Spiritual Power: 4.1 (4.4). Mana: 4.0. Status: Infected by unknown pathogen — weakened!"
"Although I suppressed the bacteria quickly, over ten days have already weakened my body. Only my Spiritual Power ceiling has increased a little — probably from all the meditation!"
Leilin studied his stats with a bitter smile.
He had already changed his face — from the cold-faced mercenary he once was, he now wore the appearance of a golden-haired, blue-eyed Westerner. He looked quite handsome, but his complexion was pale from blood loss.
"Chip! Pull up the map!" Leilin studied the map, which had become extremely detailed after consolidating several pieces of intelligence.
"According to Biji's information, there's a Wizard gathering point nearby. I should be able to buy materials to cure the infection!"
Based on over half a month of probing and speculation, Leilin could now confirm that only Doris had been sent after him. After that, the war with Black Bone Forest had likely escalated, and no one could be bothered with a minor Second-rank Apprentice anymore. That was good news.
"I can also ask about the recent situation at Black Bone Forest!" Leilin made up his mind, turned off the main road, and found a suitable spot to unpack the tent and wooden frame from the chest, setting up camp.
"The area around here is pretty desolate! But that's normal — Wizards always try to avoid ordinary people, and the radiation they carry isn't something ordinary humans can withstand!"
Leilin sprinkled a ring of white powder around the tent — the kind that repelled common insects and wild beasts — set up an iron pot, ladled in some stream water, and lit a fire.
Once the water came to a boil, Leilin emerged from the treeline with pine mushrooms and various other fungi, tossing them into the pot.
After a moment, he added seasoning and a few strips of dried meat, and soon the aroma of food spread through the air.
Leilin ladled out a bowl for himself. The broth was milky white, and drinking it warm was wonderfully soothing.
Leilin sighed contentedly, "Hot food really is the best. I'm about ready to throw up at the sight of flatbread and salted jerky."
Wild flowers bloomed all around, and unknown birds sang — their calls sounding much like larks.
"If only I weren't injured, this would be perfect!" Leilin finished the meat broth and lifted his collar.
Underneath the fabric, a patch of blackened flesh had been scorched to charcoal, and fine black hairs had grown around it, resembling hair — enough to make one's scalp tingle.
"Over there — kill him!!"
Rustling erupted from the undergrowth, making Leilin frown. As the shouts drew closer, he had the unmistakable feeling that trouble had come knocking.
The bushes parted on both sides as a burly man protecting a noble-dressed girl burst through.
The big man was visibly startled upon seeing Leilin, clearly not expecting anyone to be camping here. He immediately gave a bitter smile: "I'm afraid we're going to drag you into this!"
"Over there — don't let him get away!" A group of soldiers wearing leather armor and carrying swords, spears, and other weapons rushed in from behind. Their leader wore armor made of interlocking silver rings, which looked quite impressive.
"That outfit doesn't look like mercenaries or adventurers — they're probably private soldiers of some noble. Even more trouble!" Leilin frowned.
According to the Chip's detection, the big man was clearly injured, but still possessed Preliminary Knight-level strength.
As for the pursuers, their leader was clearly at Knight level, while the ordinary soldiers behind him were just slightly stronger than average people.
"Who are you?" The leader looked at Leilin.
"I'm just an innocent traveler. You all carry on — pay me no mind. I didn't see anything today!" Leilin continued sipping his meat broth.
His composed demeanor clearly gave the private soldiers' leader some pause, while the burly man and the girl stood off to one side.
"Please, you have to help us! I am the heir to Viscount Borot. If you would lend us your aid, I will forever remember your kindness, and you will have the eternal friendship of the Borot domain!"
The girl had a pair of captivating blue eyes, her face now filled with a pleading expression — enough to make most noble-born young men's blood rush hot, swearing to fight for justice.
"Miss Lanling, the Lord is only asking you to return. Please don't resist!" The leader addressed the girl.
"That despicable, vile worm — he poisoned my father to death and covets my family's lands. I'd rather die than go back!"
The girl blurted everything out in one breath, sneaking occasional glances at Leilin. Though her movements were subtle, Leilin still noticed.
"So she's a noble heir who lost her power struggle, deliberately exposing the conflict to drag me into it?" Leilin shook his head.
"The Lord has done nothing of what you speak. As for inheriting the viscountcy, it was decided through the Noble Council!"
The leader declared loudly.
"I have proof on me!" the girl roared.
"Get the young lady back — now!" The leader was done with explanations.
Several militia charged forward, brandishing their swords and blades. The burly man let out a furious roar and stepped in front of the noble girl.
The burly man was clearly quite formidable. Despite his injuries, he still managed to inflict five casualties among the militia.
After several militiamen stepped forward to sever the burly man's head and tie up the screaming noble girl, suspicion finally flickered in the eyes of the militia leader, who had been warily watching for any move from Leilin Farell.
"Looks like I've intruded! Let's go!"
With that, the leader turned to leave.