Chapter 203: Indeed

I have to admit, when Xia Nan followed the several people in the squad, following those broken sheep corpses discovered on the plain, and arrived near the Mist Forest.

What appeared in his mind was the scene of scattering rice grains on the ground to lead the chicks in his previous life.

These broken sheep corpses seemed to be specially left by that Beast-kin for everyone to find, with the purpose of attracting the Sea Thorn Squad into the Mist Forest.

Xia Nan couldn't help but feel suspicious.

But in fact, if the Sea Thorn Squad hadn't had the encounter last night, they originally planned to go deep into the forest to explore according to the rough orientation provided by the association after investigating in Green Wheat Village.

Right now, it was just returning the

One step inside.

Accompanied by the greyish-white mist quietly permeating the air, the cold, biting wind whistling across the plains suddenly ceased, and the warm, bright sunlight dissolved into the depths of the lush, dense branches overhead.

It was as if they had entered another world; only the chirping of insects and the soft rustle of the forest breeze remained in their ears.

Dangerous, serene.

Nearly a year of adventuring had already ingrained muscle memory into Xia Nan.

As the first wisp of mist touched his skin, his entire being became instantly alert.

His body, which had relaxed slightly due to the wide, open view of the plains, suddenly tensed; his focus sharpened, guarding against potential dangers in the surroundings.

At the same time, without needing any commands from Kashi as the leader, the members of the squad had already fallen into formation.

Kashi took the lead to clear the path, Weiruisi patrolled the flanks, Bo He was protected in the center as always, and Xia Nan brought up the rear.

Time passed quietly.

With highly concentrated attention and the special environment of the Mist Forest—low visibility and dense canopy—it was difficult to notice the time spent within unless one paid special attention.

Many novice adventurers might walk into the forest in the morning, only to find in a daze that an entire day had passed.

Fortunately, the Sea Thorn Squad consisted of adventurers who had properly earned their professional levels and would not make such mistakes.

Regarding time, even without distinguishing it by the sunlight leaking through the canopy, they all had a rough judgment in their hearts as to what time it was.

"Stop, let's rest nearby first. Once we find a relatively safe place, we'll prepare to set up camp for the night."

At the front of the squad, Kashi suddenly stopped, looked up at the sunlight between the dense leaves overhead, and gave the order.

It gets dark quickly in the forest, so preparations needed for the night must be arranged in advance.

If they waited until it was completely dark to act, the danger would increase significantly.

Hearing this, Xia Nan did not feel particularly relaxed; he simply stood his ground while remaining vigilant of his surroundings.

Compared to when they had just entered the Mist Forest, his plate-chain composite armor showed no obvious damage, but the surface of the decapitation longsword in his hand now bore several blood-red marks.

—These came from a leopard that had just reached adulthood, three blue-furred baboons that looked as if they had been starving for days, and a venomous lizard the length of an adult's arm that had been hiding deep in the bushes, intending to launch a surprise attack on him, all encountered along the way.

And these were just the beasts he had encountered while guarding the rear.

If one added Kashi and Weiruisi at the front, the number of attacks the Sea Thorn Squad had faced was even more exaggerated.

Although it hadn't caused any direct casualties to the squad, the number of enemies encountered on this journey was undoubtedly the highest in over a month.

Even Kashi, who appeared to have quite extensive adventure experience, found this somewhat strange.

But he simply attributed it to the recent influence of beast riots in the forest and did not think too deeply about it.

It is worth mentioning that the animal carcasses that had led them into the forest were no longer to be found once they had truly entered.

It was unclear whether they had been cleaned up by scavengers in the forest overnight, or if the beastmen simply hadn't taken this path.

Pondering this, as if sensing some possible suspicious points.

He asked Weiruisi beside him:

"The corpses we encountered along the way earlier, they must have been left behind last night, right?"

"Of course, why?"

"Can you determine the exact time of their death?"

"Little brother Xia Nan, what do you take me for?" This dark-skinned, hot-bodied Drow half-elf immediately showed a look of helplessness on her face.

"It's true that I lived in the Underdark for a while, but that doesn't mean I can control corpses and summon souls like those necromancers."

"If your sister here had that kind of ability, I wouldn't be following you all to this godforsaken place where you can't even take a bath for ten days or half a month."

Hearing this, Xia Nan could only offer an awkward smile and stopped asking.

In his past life, he had watched some mystery works where the detective protagonist could determine the precise time of death of the deceased through some details on the corpse.

He didn't have detailed knowledge in this area, so he just wondered if anyone in the squad possessed relevant knowledge.

As it turned out, at least for Weiruisi, there was no hope.

And judging by their performance along the way, Kashi and Bo He probably didn't know any more than he did.

As for why he asked this question... it was just a fleeting suspicion in his heart; it wasn't particularly important, and if it couldn't be figured out, it didn't matter if he just let it go.

Setting traps, building the camp.

The sky overhead had only just begun to show signs of dimming when the hot, bright campfire was already burning.

Xia Nan leaned against a tree trunk nearby, holding a piece of gauze in his hand, carefully wiping his decapitation longsword.

Clearing away the bloodstains that he hadn't had time to clean during the day's travel, bit by bit, meticulously.

Suddenly, a voice came to his ears.

"You're quite diligent with your maintenance." Kashi sat by the campfire, his eyes on Xia Nan, a kind smile on his face. "When I first became a professional, I earned quite a bit of money, but I couldn't wait to change into a new set of equipment after every mission."

Xia Nan smiled without a word, but inwardly scoffed.

Although the "decapitation longsword" was only a white-tier item, its stats were excellent; not only did it have an exaggerated 50% durability bonus, but it also added 5% decapitation damage.

Sharp and durable.

Even for an ordinary professional, it could be called very good equipment, not something one could buy easily.

Although his equipment scrap rate was indeed a bit high, it didn't mean he didn't cherish it; he never skimped on the effort required for maintenance.

Look at the plate-chain composite armor he was wearing now; it looked as new as when he had just bought it, with only a few scratches left unintentionally during combat, completely free of any flaws caused by improper maintenance.

"Speaking of which, your nickname 'Grey Sword' comes from this longsword, right?"

Hearing this, Xia Nan became vigilant.

Sensing that the other party seemed to be intentionally probing for his information, his expression remained unchanged, and he flexibly changed the subject:

"Nicknames, they're all just rumors spread by those people in the taverns; basically, anyone with a bit of fame has been given one or two, right?"

"Don't you have one?" Kashi just laughed and waved his hand at Xia Nan.

"I've spent most of my life on the sea, catching fish, occasionally catching a couple of unlucky pirates; what kind of fame could I have?"

Does he not have one, or does he not want to say?

Xia Nan naturally didn't believe the man's words, but he didn't point it out either, keeping his head down and silently wiping his longsword.

Ahead, Kashi continued to chat:

"If I really had to say, it's actually similar to you; rather than recognizing me as a person, it's more like they recognize this old guy in my hand."

Oh?

Xia Nan raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze following.

What came into view was the grey-blue stone spear in Kashi's hand.

On the surface, it looked dusty, with nothing particularly eye-catching.

Even at the tip of the spearhead, one couldn't see any sharp, cold light that an ordinary weapon should have.

The only thing worth noting was the almost non-existent wave-pattern carving on the surface of the spear shaft, and its smooth, entirely stone-crafted exterior with not a single trace of splicing.

At first glance, it looked less like a weapon and more like a ritual implement used for sacrifices in a seaside church.

Having been in the Sea Thorn Squad for so many days, Xia Nan was, of course, familiar with Kashi's main weapon.

He knew it was far from as simple as it looked, but the other party usually only brought it out during missions, and he hadn't had the chance to get close enough to hold it in his hands and concentrate his spirit to identify its attributes using the panel.

Now that he heard the other party intended to mention relevant information, he couldn't help but feel some interest.

"I mentioned to you before that I'm a fisherman by trade, remember?"

Xia Nan nodded.

"Looking back now, even though decades have passed, those days are still vivid in my mind."

"I remember when I was a child, the family wasn't wealthy; all five of us were squeezed into a dilapidated house by the sea. Every fish we caught had to be sold, and we could only fill our stomachs with black bread mixed with bean paste every day; we rarely had enough to eat."

"Often before dawn, my father would rig his small wooden boat and take my older brother out to sea to fish, returning very late; my mother would stay home with my older sister to spin thread, mend nets, and handle chores."

"I was young and mischievous, couldn't sit still at home, occasionally helping them dry some fish, or going to the beach to pick up some shells or small crabs, but I couldn't stick with anything for long."

"Until that day." The voice suddenly paused.

It gets dark quickly in the forest; just a moment ago there was only a hint of twilight, but now the forest floor was completely dark.

With mist drifting about, the pitch-black, thick shadows mixed with the orange-red firelight, reflecting on the middle-aged man's face, making his expression blurry, leaving only the wave-shaped tattoo on his profile.

"I remember very clearly, the waves were very big that day, crashing against the rocks on the shore as if they were going to shatter; my father and brother didn't go out to sea for safety, and the whole family huddled in the small house."

"I actually quite liked this feeling; I didn't have to go out, I just sat on the bed, watching my brother and sister bickering, my parents chatting over there; it was good."

"Then, he came."

"A passerby, just like an adventurer like us."

"Although there was only one of them, and he didn't look particularly strong, he was an adventurer after all, so my family treated him warmly and fearfully."

"As for what happened later..."

Kashi suddenly grinned, revealing his stark white teeth.

"Yes, just as you thought."

"Because I was small, my sister protected me and blocked for me, and I ran out alone."

"I didn't return home until I was so cold at night that I couldn't take it anymore."

"Everyone was dead."

"Not a single person survived."

"Oh, that adventurer's corpse was also inside—pierced through the neck by my father using the adventurer's own weapon."

As he spoke, Kashi raised the stone spear in his hand.

"It's this one."

"That night, I was so tired I couldn't take it anymore, so I slept in the house for one night and didn't get up to clean up until the next day."

"I've kept this stone spear with me ever since."

"Don't say, it's actually quite useful."

Just as he finished speaking, before Xia Nan could say anything, a sneer came from the shadows nearby.

"Listen to him bragging to you."

Weiruisi's face was full of playful expression, the two daggers in her hands already coated with poison, the edges refracting dangerous, deadly iridescent light.

"The origin of this broken stone spear in his hand, just from what I've heard, there are at least three versions, oh, plus the one just now, that's four."

"This old guy just wants to trick someone into taking this thing off his hands so he can change to a new one; don't you fall for it."

On the other side, hearing Weiruisi say this, Kashi didn't look annoyed or ashamed; he just grinned again as if he had been exposed.

"Letting you talk too much, if you didn't say that nonsense, maybe this time it would have worked!"

"It's just a broken stone spear, not some magic equipment; even if I didn't say it, as long as it's a normal person, who would buy it?"

"What did that collector say last time? The price was almost negotiated, if it weren't for..."

The two argued, and Xia Nan didn't participate, just wiped his sword earnestly.

Suddenly hearing a key term pop out of their mouths, he couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart, and pretended to be casual:

"This magic equipment, I've seen a few in the exchange catalog on the second floor of the association, the prices vary; is there... any trick to it?"

"Of course there is!" Weiruisi glared at Kashi, too lazy to tangle with him anymore, and explained to Xia Nan.

"Naturally, different grades go without saying, but even if the quality is similar, the price of equipment often varies significantly due to its type."

"The most expensive ones are, of course, the 'accessories' category, like those rings, necklaces, etc. They are highly concealable, convenient to carry, and the experts who can enchant such small items often produce finished products with effects that are not too bad."

"Even those senior adventurers on the second floor of the association might not necessarily have such an accessory-type magic equipment."

"They are rarely seen on the outside market; they are often consumed internally."

Speaking of this, Weiruisi couldn't help but sigh.

"Sigh, I've digressed."

"For low-level professionals like us, a single piece of magic equipment would already bankrupt us and require years of struggle; there's no need to think so much."

"Indeed." Xia Nan nodded heavily.

His right hand, wearing an inconspicuous silver ring, gripped the hilt, pulled the decapitation longsword resting on the bone armor of his thigh backward, sheathed it, and stacked it together with the other wooden sword beside it.

(End of chapter)