Chapter 28: The Pig-Farming Strategy!
The Old Drunkard had already seen through Lin Tianhao's intentions. He had actually maneuvered himself behind the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent, hoping to use it to disrupt Lin Tianhao's attack rhythm.
As long as he got the chance to unleash his skills, he was confident he could finish Lin Tianhao off in the next exchange.
But how could Lin Tianhao possibly give him that chance?
He unleashed the Twisted String Shot in combination with his rapid-fire arrow technique.
The Twisted String Shot wasn't just powerful in attack and penetration — it had one other critically important advantage.
It could curve around obstacles!
Whoosh!
The Old Drunkard, hiding behind the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent, was struck by Lin Tianhao's arrow.
His face was filled with utter disbelief.
Lin Tianhao's combat methods had already surpassed anything he could have imagined.
The Blue-Patterned Great Serpent swayed its body and lunged toward Lin Tianhao.
Lin Tianhao knew it was trying to activate its Coil skill.
If he got caught in the serpent's Coil and lost control of his movement, the outcome of the fight would no longer be in question.
So Lin Tianhao absolutely could not give the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent that opening.
He continued with his rapid-fire arrow technique, but this time Lin Tianhao's targets were the eyes of both the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent and the Old Drunkard.
This kind of weak-point strike demanded an extremely high level of precision from an Archer.
And Lin Tianhao was doing it with dual simultaneous shots combined with rapid-fire — the requirements were even more demanding.
Without the Eye of Purity, this would have been genuinely difficult for Lin Tianhao.
But now, relying on the Eye of Purity, achieving this was far easier.
He fired two arrows simultaneously at the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent's two eyes, then immediately followed up with the Twisted String Shot, pushing his attack to a level that defied all reason.
The Old Drunkard's plan to attack from behind the serpent fell apart completely, as Lin Tianhao's relentless, fluid assault suppressed him at every turn.
"Is this guy even human?"
The Old Drunkard's expression turned dark and vicious.
He slapped his waist, and a talisman appeared in his hand.
Lin Tianhao was startled — at this stage of the game, there were already NPCs who possessed something like that?
Almost in an instant, Lin Tianhao fired an arrow straight at the talisman in the Old Drunkard's hand.
But the Old Drunkard had already activated it. A golden light burst outward and spread.
A golden radiance appeared over both the Old Drunkard and the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent.
Lin Tianhao's arrow landed on the Old Drunkard.
-1420.
When that damage number appeared, the Old Drunkard was dumbstruck.
"How is this possible?! Your attacks… they're true damage!!"
The talisman he had just used could massively boost his defense.
Yet the damage Lin Tianhao dealt was still this absurd — which meant his attacks were true damage, bypassing all defenses.
Lin Tianhao had originally worried the talisman might be an offensive type or a binding type.
He hadn't expected it to be a defensive one.
That meant its impact on him was negligible.
Under Lin Tianhao's total suppression, the HP of both the Old Drunkard and the Blue-Patterned Great Serpent quickly dropped to ten percent.
The Old Drunkard's eyes were wide with fury, and by his expression, it seemed he was preparing for a desperate last-ditch counterattack.
But at that very moment, Lin Tianhao stopped.
"Senior, I don't want to kill you. How about we make a deal?" Lin Tianhao said with a smile.
The Old Drunkard narrowed his eyes. "What kind of deal?"
"I won't kill you, and you give me fifty free attribute points."
Hearing this, the Old Drunkard looked at Lin Tianhao with some suspicion.
"Just for fifty free attribute points? You're even willing to drop the Old Village Chief's quest?"
Lin Tianhao smiled and nodded. "I won't hide it from you — I also think the Old Village Chief doesn't deserve his position. The novice village chief's seat should belong to Wang the Blacksmith."
"But I'm an adventurer, and I have to look out for myself. So, just fifty free attribute points, and I'll let you walk away."
The Old Drunkard was silent for a moment, then said, "Fine. Deal."
"Ding — the Old Drunkard has issued you a quest."
"Quest Objective: Let him leave."
"Quest Penalty: None."
"Quest Reward: Fifty free attribute points."
The corners of Lin Tianhao's mouth curved upward as he accepted the quest without hesitation.
He wasn't killing the Old Drunkard — just not killing him right now.
The Old Village Chief's quest was still something he could consider; it might just be better to wait for a later opportunity.
Beyond that, Lin Tianhao had another consideration.
What he wanted was for the Old Village Chief and Wang the Blacksmith to tear each other apart until both sides were crippled.
The Old Drunkard was clearly one of Wang the Blacksmith's most capable lieutenants. If he were killed, Wang the Blacksmith — already the weaker side — would be put in an even more disadvantageous position.
The mutually destructive outcome he was aiming for would then be very difficult to achieve.
This way, he pocketed fifty free attribute points without upsetting the balance between Wang the Blacksmith and the Old Village Chief, allowing their conflict to continue.
After seeing the Old Drunkard off, Lin Tianhao gained another fifty free attribute points.
He opened his stats page.
Nickname: Snow Emperor.
Level: 10 (0/133,100).
Class: Archer.
HP: 71,450/71,450.
MP: 100/100.
Attack: 309. Spell Power: 58.
Armor: 368. Magic Resistance: 295.
Attack Speed: 3.63. Move Speed: 5.7.
Physical Penetration: 0%. Magic Penetration: 0%.
Special Attributes: Crit Rate 15%, Damage Reflection 10%.
Free Attribute Points: 50.
Luck: Hidden.
Talent: Hand of Divine Punishment (God-Transcending Grade).
Skills: Rapid Shot (2-Star), Basic Attack Amplification (3-Star), Lightning Leap (2-Star), Dead Wood Blooms Again (2-Star), Rejuvenation (3-Star), Invincible Golden Body (1-Star).
Equipment: Thunderstrike Bow (Silver), Treant Set (Iron-Grade), Eye of Purity (Special).
For a Level 10 player, Lin Tianhao's stats could only be described as monstrous.
His skills in particular — aside from the basic Rapid Shot, every other skill he currently possessed could be considered extraordinarily powerful for this stage of the game.
And because Lin Tianhao had always chosen selectively, every skill he now had provided him with a clear and significant advantage.
On top of that, he still had fifty free attribute points in hand.
Right now he could choose to invest in Attack Speed or Move Speed.
Travel time in the novice village hadn't been much of an issue, but once he reached the Main City, getting around could sometimes waste a considerable amount of time.
Especially during the period before mounts became available.
Moreover, higher Move Speed would also make him significantly more effective at kiting in combat.
After a brief moment of thought, Lin Tianhao decided not to spend the points in a hurry. He held onto them, planning to allocate based on whatever battles he might face next.
For now, he would let the storyline play out a little longer. In the meantime, he needed to boost his HP as much as possible before Wang the Blacksmith finished forging the Gold-grade longbow.
He wanted to bring himself to peak condition.
Beyond that, there was also the Dead Wood Blooms Again skill.
Lin Tianhao could continue earning more Skill Books through the battles ahead.
Players were gradually departing, and Novice Village #10086 was starting to feel noticeably quiet.
Newer players coming in would fill the void, but Novice Village #10086 was in an awkward spot — the influx of new players tended to go to the earlier-numbered novice villages.
As a result, even here at the Level 10 Twisted Jungle dungeon, Lin Tianhao could only spot two or three scattered parties.
"Hey buddy, want to party up? We've got a super-strong Warrior with an Elite-Grade Treant Set — guaranteed dungeon clear!"