Chapter 127: Agility 1

Unlike the Green-skinned Goblins, whose bodies are driven solely by desire and instinct, and who can hardly be called "intelligent beings."

The Gnolls are superior in both individual average combat power and intelligence.

Though similarly wild and hostile toward Humans due to demonic bloodline influence, they are clearly far more agile in combat.

At least they know to let their ranged attackers hide in the woods after battle begins, rather than rushing forward openly like the Goblins.

But… that's all.

The Gnolls know how to avoid traps and launch ambushes while Adventurers rest at night; they can also employ some simple yet effective basic tactics.

Yet once real combat begins, faced with the "weak" prey clearly outnumbered by their own side, these simple-minded savage hyenas cast all plans and preparations aside.

Including the elite individual, the Flesh Eater, whose body is several times larger than its kin, charging toward the Green Blood Squad with swift, reckless fury, all four limbs pounding the ground.

This gave Xia Nan the chance to circle around and strike from behind.

Both hands gripped the hilt, blade tilted slightly upward and backward, maintaining the optimal posture for movement and power generation.

One step forward, and he broke away from the squad's original formation, arriving at the battlefield's flank.

The open ground offered no cover; his movements were naturally exposed to the Gnolls' eyes.

Perhaps thinking he meant to flee, five Gnolls rapidly approaching let one break off from the main group.

Xia Nan did not slow his pace.

Keeping his body taut, ready to dodge hidden arrows from the woods, he prepared to use his technique and weapon advantage to eliminate one of the pursuing Gnolls mid-route.

But suddenly, a sharp "whoosh" echoed from behind.

A wooden arrow spun through the air, slicing past him, straight into the wolf pack.

It pierced the thigh of the Gnoll that had changed targets and was chasing Xia Nan.

It came from Berg, at the rear of the squad.

He was retreating toward the battlefield's rear, shooting while moving—this arrow lacked full power, aiming only for precision.

Yet it perfectly achieved its goal.

——Attracting aggro.

The Gnoll that had already broken from the main group and neared Xia Nan instantly redirected its attention back.

It no longer cared for Xia Nan on the flank; instead, it locked onto Berg, who was retreating from the battlefield, "apparently fleeing."

"Good shot!"

Though his performance on the road these past two days had been lackluster, when he regained his form, Berg's decades of experience as a veteran Adventurer shone through—his combat literacy and judgment were sharp.

He didn't even need Xia Nan to speak; merely from observing his movements, he guessed his intent and fired the arrow to relieve him.

Xia Nan did not waste the opportunity his teammate had bought him.

As Xia Nan moved at high speed, he carefully observed the dense forest ahead.

The shadowy, blurred figure that had been lurking moments ago had vanished.

It seemed to have sensed his intent and moved away deliberately.

He felt no panic.

His mind sharply focused; the slow-growing perception ability from days of mental training activated.

"Shasha…"

A faint, clear rustling came from the thick shrubbery just to his left.

His head turned instinctively; the corner of his eye caught a fleeting flash of yellow-brown fur.

"Found you."

His body froze instantly, using momentum to surge muscle power—his previously light right leg now descended slowly, deliberately, onto the ground.

Boom—

Mud and dirt exploded upward, leaving a deep footprint on the earth.

Yet the figure above it had vanished in an instant.

In its place: a howling, compressed-air roar, and a whirl of shredded leaves and uprooted grass.

【Tooth Hunt】!

The air around him suddenly thickened like water; the scenery on both sides snapped backward.

The shrubbery, once at a distance, closed in within a blink.

Charged in.

Before his eyes appeared a thin Gnoll, its fur dirty and matted, clutching a crude crossbow.

Unprepared for Xia Nan's swift detection, the Gnoll's beastly eyes—glowing faint green in the dark—contracted sharply.

Then, a flicker of ferocity ignited deep within its pupils.

It had barely begun to burn—barely a tiny flame.

The next second, it was mercilessly extinguished by a streak of iron-gray swordlight.

【Spinning Slash】!

The Zhan Shou Chang Jian screamed through the forest, carving a perfect, razor-sharp arc.

It cut through nearby shrubs and Thorns, slashed flesh and bone; the blade's edge dripped with thick, red-and-white fluid.

His body half-turned, sword tip touching the ground.

The headless corpse of the Gnoll collapsed behind him.

After only a brief breath, Xia Nan—having swiftly dispatched the Gnoll archer—wasted not a single second.

He smoothly sheathed the sword at his side, shifted his stance, and burst out of the woods.

His gaze swept the battlefield.

Xia Nan moved fast.

To avoid unnecessary complications, he had unleashed his full strength on his first strike, and by the time the battle ended, the five Gnolls on the field had only just engaged the Green Blood Squad.

Without stopping, he closed in rapidly, his gaze sweeping across as he quickly analyzed the situation on the battlefield:

The formation had been completely shattered.

Captain Adeline stood at the very front, holding off the "Flesh Eater" and another Gnoll by herself.

Several obvious dents marred the surface of the wooden shield in her left hand, yet her body bore only a few scrapes.

The iron hammer, gleaming with a metallic luster, was gripped tightly in her hand, hanging slightly downward; she did not initiate attacks, but every swing forced the enemy before her to retreat, buying her a moment to catch her breath.

An unnatural red glow emanated from her skin, and her already sturdy muscles swelled by two sizes.

Her body's flexibility decreased, but her strength and endurance increased accordingly.

"It should be some kind of state-type combat technique she has mastered?"

Xia Nan guessed subconsciously in his mind.

Her overall condition was still good; maintaining this kind of defensive counterattack should allow her to hold on for some time.

His gaze shifted backward.

Berg continued to move, but his direction was no longer a simple retreat as before; instead, he darted left and right, unpredictable and elusive.

As his feet shifted, the air around his heels could be vaguely seen blurring, leaving afterimages.

His overall speed had increased significantly compared to before.

It must also be some kind of combat technique.

Dragging the two Gnolls behind him, he occasionally drew his bow and loosed a few cold arrows, kiting them; he appeared even more relaxed than Adeline.

Clearly, he still had reserves of strength.

Then, there was Abi.

Compared to the other two in the squad, this rookie Adventurer, who had only slain a few Goblins since joining the profession, faced a Gnoll with a Challenge Rating as high as "0.5"; even facing just one, he looked particularly wretched.

He was almost being chased in a one-sided pursuit.

Using both hands and feet,

he rolled, jumped, and sprinted wildly.

His original wooden shield had been lent to Adeline; although he held a Single-handed Sword, he had no opportunity to strike.

If he had not been somewhat quick-witted, tumbling and crawling to dodge several heavy blows, he would have already suffered a crushing blow.

Yet even so, the situation was already perilous.

A single stumble while dodging, or a graze from the Gnoll's iron club that affected his speed, would be the end of him.

His gaze swept across the battlefield.

A moment of contemplation flashed in his eyes, and a decision was already made in his heart.

Xia Nan's footsteps immediately quickened.

"Bang!"

The iron club suddenly crashed down; the cheek was stung by the wind carrying blood and violence.

His whole body lay on the ground, hard gravel pressing against his spine, sending sharp pain through his back.

He instinctively opened his mouth to cry out in pain, yet his body dared not stop for a moment.

Black mud was packed into the cracks of his fingernails; Abi rolled, planted his hands on the ground, and rose in a wretched state.

He dared only to glance with his peripheral vision at the lean, ferocious Gnoll behind him before crouching low and fleeing in panic.

Before this, he had never fought monsters of such intensity, having only heard scattered rumors of them from tavern patrons.

He had thought that since they were merely low-level monsters, even if he was no match, he could at least last a few more rounds.

Therefore, when facing the Gnoll charging toward him, his first reaction was not to dodge, but to advance and meet it head-on.

As for the result...

The still-aching and numb right arm, and the dull pain faintly emanating from his chest and abdomen, were enough to prove the gap in strength between the two.

The Gnoll's body, which did not appear particularly bulky, possessed the powerful strength and explosiveness of a wild beast.

A single strike had nearly made his weapon fly from his grip.

If Berg on the other side of the battlefield had not loosed an arrow at the right moment, delaying the opponent's movement, he would likely have been crushed to death on the ground by now.

"Run! Run fast!"

"If you don't want to die..."

The immense pressure of life and death had caused Abi to lose the ability to think.

Sweat trickled down his mud-stained face; his eyes were hollow, following only his instincts to dodge the attacks coming from behind.

But the gap in strength between them meant that Abi, who did nothing but flee, had an error margin of almost zero.

"Thump."

A single small stone, the most common kind, hidden in the grass, caused his sprinting body to lose balance, and he fell forward onto the ground.

A terrifying, hair-raising shriek came from behind, and the footsteps that had been hauntingly following him suddenly stopped.

Abi could even imagine the scene: that Gnoll, wearing ill-fitting armor and covered in blood, excitedly raising the iron club in its hand and roaring as it smashed down.

He instinctively closed his eyes...

But the imagined pain never arrived.

Zing—

Accompanied by a gale, a sound like a wolf's howl, and the muffled sound of a blade entering flesh.

The Gnoll's sharp shriek cut off abruptly; boiling blood splashed onto Abi, soaking his clothes.

"Hah..."

His chest heaved as Xia Nan gasped for air.

He glanced at Abi, lying motionless on the ground with eyes closed, waiting to die.

He frowned.

He lifted his leg and gave the other a light kick.

"Wake up."

"Stay to the side."

Immediately, disregarding Abina's look of utter confusion.

He turned and ran toward Adeline's direction.

Abi's strength was average; while useful against ordinary goblins, he was far inferior when facing gnolls.

Self-preservation was already a stretch, let alone intervening in actual combat.

At this moment, having him stay aside to guard against other dangers was already all this newcomer could do.

Berg maintained his previous speed; although his stamina had waned, leaving him no strength to draw his bow and nock an arrow, he should still be able to keep those two gnolls running for a while longer.

Adeline, however, was showing slight signs of decline in close-quarters melee.

Those treacherous and cunning hyenas, through repeated clashes and probes, seemed to gradually realize that the Human before them was not as powerful as imagined.

And had intensified their aggression during attacks.

For this reason, while hardening against the "Flesh Eater" in front, Adeline was forced to frequently swing her iron hammer, which she had previously held back, to drive away the other gnoll assisting and circling nearby.

The red glow on her body became increasingly conspicuous, yet her face showed obvious exhaustion, clearly indicating she was already drawing upon the few remaining strength within her.

Support was urgently needed!

Xia Nan hesitated not a bit; holding the Zhan Shou Chang Jian with both hands, he stepped forward quickly.

Only then did he have the chance to carefully observe this "Chailangren Shirouzhe," whose name he had seen on the Association's quest board many days ago.

Seven feet tall, almost as tall as a Bugbear, yet its build was not as bloated as the other's, appearing more agile; its brown, hard bristles were congealed together by mud and scabs, as if wearing a layer of natural armor; its anti-jointed, powerful hind legs showed muscle swelling beneath the fur with every push off the ground.

It was not in its prime state.

Black burn marks covered its entire body, seemingly having severely affected its movement.

Even though it still possessed combat abilities far exceeding those of ordinary gnolls, it was not equal to a normal adult Bugbear.

And this was precisely why Adeline had been able to hold out against it for so long.

Xia Nan's gaze swept over the three figures before him.

He pondered battle strategies in his mind.

Adeline's strength was good, but he had only ever dealt with Goblins alongside her, never enemies of such a level.

Intervening rashly to seek cooperation, if the timing was inappropriate, could instead lead to a "1+1 less than 2" effect.

"It must be simple."

Xia Nan shifted his gaze to the ordinary gnoll circling beside her.

His right foot stomped forward violently.

The next second, his body had vanished from the spot.

【Tooth Hunt】!

The blade cut into flesh and blood.

A combat technique personally taught by a powerful expert from the distant Beijing, approaching the Legendary tier, was certainly not something a low-level monster like this could react to easily.

He merely estimated the distance and used his body's momentum to drive the blade.

The gnoll's body was cleanly split in two as if it were tofu.

Flesh, blood, and entrails spilled all over the ground.

Through training plus actual combat, 【Tooth Hunt】 had been used countless times.

But for some reason, Xia Nan's feeling this time was subtly different.

Semi-transparent characters flashed before his eyes.

There was no time to look closely, but his mind already understood.

Without waiting to retract his force, and even without fully pulling back the gray sword in his hand.

He pushed off the ground and executed another 【Tooth Hunt】.

It was still the sharp whine of compressed air, but compared to before, the sound was more condensed and prolonged, vaguely resembling the style previously demonstrated by the Barbarian "Fugang."

And accompanying Xia Nan's high-speed movement, he felt the already sticky air around his body seemed even heavier.

Using the sword as teeth, the air currents squeezed and converging on both sides, like some swaying hair, tugged at Wuwu and grass debris, condensing into a shape.

In an instant, enveloping his body, a roaring wolf-head phantom appeared in the air.

Boom—

It vanished in the blink of an eye.

Blood splashing from the wound was scattered by the violent airflow.

Adeline, caught off guard, was knocked over by the force, falling to a seated position on the ground, her eyes still retaining the determination to fight to the death.

The "Chailangren Shirouzhe" before her was now nothing but a corpse riddled with holes, cut by a sharp blade.

Xia Nan stood in place, his body surface stained with a few strands of shredded meat.

He focused slightly.

The panel prompt before him then became clear:

"Proficiency +1"

"【Tooth Hunt】 lv2 (100/100) — 【Tooth Hunt】 lv3 (0/100)"

"Agility +1"

(Chapter End)