"Cunning creature."
Zong Shen had already seen through the intentions of this Grassland Wolf.
The Grassland Wolf was luring him, away from the Courtyard.
Without the protection of the "Newbie Protection State" of the Courtyard, the Grassland Wolf could comfortably launch an attack on Zong Shen.
Although this world possessed some game-like traits, it was evident from the Grassland Wolf and his three foolish farmers that creatures in this world also had their own thoughts and emotions.
This gave Zong Shen a deeper understanding of this magical world.
The nature of a wolf is defiant, vengeful for any slight.
Since this Grassland Wolf had set its sights on him and his followers, it wouldn't leave easily.
With this in mind, he didn't choose to chase; instead, he stepped back into the Lord's Courtyard one step at a time.
Sure enough, the Grassland Wolf stopped its retreat, stood still, and fixed its gaze on Zong Shen.
As if it wanted to devour Zong Shen with its eyes.
However, Zong Shen was unfazed. He put down his Shield and One-Handed Sword, and flashed a taunting smile at the Grassland Wolf.
Sure enough, the Grassland Wolf lunged again, but this time, it seemed to have learned something and didn't overstep the boundary.
It just paced back and forth three meters away on the grass outside the Courtyard.
Wolves are like this; when you are weak, they are strong, and when you are strong, they are weak.
If Zong Shen retreated, it advanced.
Trying to encircle Zong Shen, causing him psychological distress.
Just then, Zong Shen grinned and took down the Hunting Crossbow slung on his back.
He took a Crossbow Arrow from the Crossbow Quiver at his waist and pulled back the Crossbow String.
Even though Zong Shen's strength had obviously been enhanced, he could still feel the powerful tension when pulling back the Crossbow String.
This Hunting Crossbow's power was definitely not ordinary!
Though the attributes noted that the Hunting Crossbow had 33 points of Piercing Damage, Zong Shen didn't yet understand the concepts behind these numbers.
He slotted the Crossbow Arrow into the Hunting Crossbow's shooting slot.
Aimed at the Grassland Wolf.
A few meters away, the Grassland Wolf cautiously eyed the Hunting Crossbow in Zong Shen's hand.
It wasn't yet a mature Grassland Wolf.
Still in its Growth Stage.
A mature Grassland Wolf would be much larger than it was.
Not to mention the existence of the Wolf King or similar.
This particular Grassland Wolf seemed to have been separated from its pack and was now alone.
So, being still in its Growth Stage, it had never seen a Hunting Crossbow before and simply sensed instinctively that the object was somewhat dangerous.
When Zong Shen lifted the Hunting Crossbow.
He discovered another favorable situation.
A golden crosshair unexpectedly appeared before his eyes.
Simultaneously, weak spots such as the wolf's waist, nose, and eyes were marked with golden circles.
Alongside, a golden guide module was pulsating.
(Align your crosshair with the circles on the wolf pup's body. At this range, unless you're blind, you can't miss.)
Seeing the prompt, Zong Shen understood, aligning the crosshair with the golden circle marked on the Grassland Wolf's eye.
Then, without hesitation, he pulled the trigger switch on the Hunting Crossbow!
"Zheng!"
"Whoosh!"
A sound of the Crossbow String rebounding resonated.
Followed by a sharp, piercing sound whizzing through the air.
"Awooo!"
The anguished howl of the Grassland Wolf followed next.
The Crossbow Arrow accurately hit the Grassland Wolf's eye, burying itself halfway, with the arrow's tail still quivering incessantly.
Upon the Grassland Wolf's head, bright and conspicuous red damage numbers floated up.
[-50]
[-9]
[-5]
[-4]
The Hunting Crossbow itself had a Piercing Damage of 33, combined with the Curved Crossbow Arrow's additional 8 points of Piercing Damage, possibly even with some attribute bonuses.
This indicated that the eyes indeed were an unprotected weak point, so this strike of the Hunting Crossbow dealt full damage.
As for the subsequent damage numbers, they were likely continuous damage caused by the lodged Crossbow Arrow.
Zong Shen observed everything in silence, gaining some understanding of this world's attacks and damage calculations.
There was no other way; in this completely unfamiliar world, everything needed to be constantly explored and concluded.
At least he had the guide module, while others probably could only rely on gaming experience to make blind guesses.
After the Arrow struck the Grassland Wolf.
Zong Shen placed the Hunting Crossbow at his feet.
Grabbing the Kite Shield and One-Handed Sword again, he rushed out.
At this moment, the Grassland Wolf's Blood Volume remained at [62/145], less than half.
Now, injured and in pain, it dared not remain here any longer.
Stumbling, it turned around and tucked its tail ready to make its escape.
Zong Shen wasn't about to let it slip away right under his nose; with Shield in one hand and Sword in the other, he dashed forward briskly.
The Grassland Wolf's movements had slowed significantly after being injured.
Zong Shen's speed was swift, and given the circumstances, he quickly caught up to the Grassland Wolf from behind.
Resolutely, with the rusted One-Handed Sword in his right hand, he slashed towards the wolf's waist.
Blood spurted out immediately, splattering over the surrounding grassland.
A scent of blood quickly began to permeate.
The seemingly rust-riddled One-Handed Sword in his hand efficiently slashed through the Grassland Wolf's fur, accompanied by its agonized cries and the appearance of fresh red damage numbers.
[-22]
This damage was indeed less than that of the Hunting Crossbow!
The area had fur protection, though marked as a weak point, it was different from the eyes, as it still had some Armor.
(You overlooked the impact of your Strength Attribute on damage assessment; you'll gain more power once you finish allocating points in Personal.)
When he felt puzzled, the guide prompt appeared once more.
Reading this guide, Zong Shen's confusion eased significantly, allowing him to focus on the fight.
Now, both the Grassland Wolf's waist and eyes had been critically hit, leaving it with only 42 Life Value, its form becoming increasingly unstable and weak.
"This is my first prey since arriving in this world!"
"Kill!"
Zong Shen gritted his teeth and executed two more slashes to the wolf's body!
[-22]
[-20]
The Grassland Wolf's Life Value instantly depleted to zero.
All signs of vitality vanished.
A system prompt appeared at the bottom of the view, and with a thought, Zong Shen had it appear before him.
[Defeated LV3 Grassland Wolf]
[Acquired 55 Experience Value]
[Wolf Cavalry Recruitment Scroll ×1]
[Grassland Wolf Corpse ×1 (Click to Disassemble)]
Then, a flash of white light.
Light dots emerged from the wolf's corpse and entered Zong Shen's body.
These were the Experience Values materializing.
Aside from the wolf's corpse, there was also a Scroll, inscribed with peculiar Inscriptions.
As expected, it was a setting akin to wild creatures!
Equipment could drop!
Behind him, the three foolish farmers hiding in the Courtyard watched as their Lord displayed tremendous Divine Power and killed the Grassland Wolf.
Cheering, they ran out with excitement.
"Long live the Lord!"
"Following the Lord's footsteps, we can definitely become Nobles!"
"We'll die for the Lord!"
These flattery experts shouted slogans, joyfully running to Zong Shen's side.
They gazed at the Grassland Wolf's corpse with drooling anticipation.
In their eyes, it wasn't a wolf corpse.
It was meat! Fresh meat!
Just put it over a bonfire, and it would sizzle with juices!