Seeing its path blocked, the Fire Fox's pupils slightly widened.
Immediately, it turned around at an extremely fast speed, easily dodging the Entanglement Dou Qi.
But because of this, it had to face the encirclement of the remaining mercenaries.
The wind-attributed mercenary, holding a curved saber, leaped behind the Fire Fox and fiercely chopped down.
Unfortunately, the Fire Fox's speed was too fast. With a push of its four legs, it dodged sideways.
"Hey, take this!"
Seeing the Fire Fox forced towards him, Wang Meng was overjoyed. His metal-attributed Dou Qi flowed, covering his long saber, making it look even sharper.
The other three metal-attributed mercenaries were also quick to react. Without any communication, they displayed astonishing tacit understanding. At the same time, they swung their sabers from different angles, attacking.
Facing this inescapable encirclement, even though the Fire Fox's speed was astonishing, it could no longer retreat unscathed.
"Chirp!"
The Fire Fox shrieked, its body suddenly leaping up, its hind legs pushing off a long saber.
Although it left a bloody wound, it temporarily escaped the threat of death.
"Entanglement!"
"Wind Vortex Kill!"
One wave had not settled, and another rose.
Two voices sounded simultaneously, causing the Fire Fox to retreat, yet it once again fell into the encirclement of the four most lethal individuals.
Already injured, the Fire Fox's speed was greatly restricted. Although it still escaped the heavy encirclement this time, a shocking fatal wound was left on its back.
"Chirp chirp!"
Feeling the aura of death, the Fire Fox shrieked a few times. Immediately, it suddenly burst out with an even more astonishing speed than when it was at its peak.
The group of mercenaries could only see a fiery red shadow darting towards the exit of the valley. They wanted to stop it again, but it was already too late.
Chen Xiao, who had witnessed the entire process, had been waiting for a long time. Seeing the crimson shadow flying towards him, he immediately assumed a stance without hesitation, and the Dou Qi within his body suddenly circulated.
"Yan Return Strike!"
"Bang!"
A muffled sound fell. Chen Xiao only felt a great force coming from his arm, impacting him and causing him to retreat several steps before stopping.
Looking at the Fire Fox again, where was there any sign of life? It lay stiffly on the ground, with a clear depression on its head.
Disordered quick footsteps came, and six mercenaries arrived at the valley entrance one after another.
Looking at the Fire Fox on the ground that had completely stopped breathing, and then at the fatal wound on its head, they all looked at Chen Xiao in surprise, as if saying, Is this what you meant by being best at defense?
"Do you believe me if I say it hit itself to death?"
Chen Xiao rubbed his reddened arm, his expression very helpless.
His current body was indeed a bit fragile.
Although the Yan Return Strike was useful, the physical limitations could not be ignored.
Well, another loophole that required spending money to change had appeared...
"Believe it! Definitely believe it! Brother Chen, my name is Wang Xiong. I've been around Green Mountain Town for many years. If Brother Chen has anything you don't understand in the future, you can ask me anytime."
The wood-attributed mercenary was the first to recover. A hearty smile appeared on his rough face, and his enthusiasm doubled.
The others were also quick to react, greeting him one after another.
"Little Brother Chen, my name is Jiang Yang."
"Zhang Huaqiang."
"Liu Rushan."
"..."
Soon, the group of mercenaries all reported their names, officially getting to know Chen Xiao.
Having been at the bottom for a long time, their strength might be average, but their discernment was not bad.
Chen Xiao, at such a young age, already possessed strength stronger than theirs. It was conceivable that he would be even more powerful in the future, and perhaps had a background that they could not even hope to reach.
Under this premise, making friends was definitely not a bad thing. What if there were unexpected rewards?
Therefore, seeing that the time was right, the few of them stepped forward to greet him.
Chen Xiao repeatedly clasped his fists in response, but smiled helplessly in his heart.
He was currently more strapped for cash than these mercenaries. How could he have the qualifications to help others?
"Brother Wang Meng, you handle this Fire Fox."
The other party nodded slightly and, using the long saber in his hand, processed it with extremely skilled movements. In less than three minutes, the fur was completely peeled off.
"The finished product is good, only two cuts. You don't know, those nobles in the big cities like this kind of fur the most. As long as you can hunt one, you don't have to worry about selling it."
Wang Meng happily put the fur into his bag and did not forget to tell everyone about its use.
"It's a shame our luck is average; we didn't get any magic crystals."
Magic crystals are essentially magic cores.
However, for low-level Magical Beasts, magic cores are not a guaranteed drop; it's largely dependent on luck.
With good luck, you might get a magic core from hunting a first-tier Magical Beast, but with bad luck, even a third-tier Magical Beast might yield nothing.
Only Magical Beasts that reach the Dou Ling level, which is fourth-tier, can consistently produce magic cores.
"If you really manage to dig out a magic core, we'll definitely have to slaughter you for a meal tonight when we get back," a few mercenaries teased, hearing Wang Meng's muttering.
It's not an exaggeration to say that a magic core is the essence of a Magical Beast, and its value is usually the highest part of the beast.
For a second-tier Fire Fox like this, if it produced a magic core, its value would be several times greater than the sum of its flesh, blood, and fur.
Moreover, the marketability of magic cores is absolutely far beyond that of this beautiful fur.
This is due to the wide range of uses for magic cores. They are not only essential for Alchemists to refine pills but can also be imbued into weapons.
Weapons imbued with magic cores not only have greater destructive power but also possess the attractive special effect of amplifying Dou Qi, making them highly sought after by the Dou Zhe class on the Dou Qi Continent.
"Haha, as long as I have that luck, anything is possible. Let's rest for a bit. I'll go into the valley and sprinkle some bait, then wait in the valley for the foxes."
Wang Meng laughed heartily and headed into the valley.
Since he had set the goal of hunting four Fire Foxes, he was naturally prepared.
Perhaps his bait was remarkably effective, or perhaps everyone was luckier today, but it only took half a day for the group to successfully complete their predetermined goal.
It's worth mentioning that none of the four Fire Foxes yielded a magic core.
During the subsequent hunts for the other three Fire Foxes, Chen Xiao also intervened and blocked them once more.
Then, his left arm turned red again.
One on the left, one on the right, perfectly symmetrical.
"Little Brother Chen, you'd best go to the Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion later, otherwise it's bound to swell up. Although it's not a serious injury, it will inevitably hurt for a couple of days. This is also common for newcomers entering the Magical Beast Mountain Range. The more you get injured, the tougher your skin will become, like us."
On the way back to Green Mountain Town, Wang Meng, in a good mood, kindly reminded him.
Chen Xiao nodded slightly. Using pills to heal his injuries was too extravagant for him at the moment, and he couldn't afford it.
Given this, the Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, which was good and inexpensive, was a decent option.
The journey back was still smooth.
It was only the Shen Hour when the seven of them returned to Green Mountain Town.
After a brief greeting, the seven dispersed.
Chen Xiao simply filled his stomach in town and then headed straight for the Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion.
Likely because the mercenaries who were busy making a living hadn't returned in large numbers yet, the spacious Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion seemed quite empty, with only a few scattered people visible.
Chen Xiao's gaze swept around and finally settled on the white-dressed girl standing on the wooden box, just like yesterday.
Seeing Chen Xiao walk up and recognizing his clear and youthful face, a hint of surprise flashed in the Little Fairy Doctor's eyes, then quickly vanished, replaced by her signature smile.
"Where are you injured?"
Her voice was very soft, like moonlight spilling onto a calm lake, gentle and soothing, carrying a dreamlike tenderness that instantly calmed the mind upon hearing it.
Chen Xiao returned a polite smile, then rolled up his sleeves, revealing the redness and swelling on both arms.
The girl glanced at them, and under Chen Xiao's gaze, extended a fair and delicate finger to gently poke them.
"Does it hurt?"
"A little, and it's a bit hot."
"Mm, I feel it. It's not a big problem. Take a packet of medicinal powder back and apply it. The swelling will go down overnight. However, your body is still very fragile, and intense collisions can easily cause injury. Avoid them as much as possible. Three gold coins, or you can substitute with medicinal herbs or miscellaneous items like medical books."
"I'll remember that, thank you."
Taking the packet of medicine the girl handed him, Chen Xiao took out three gold coins to pay.
This was the difference between a physician and an Alchemist.
If it were an Alchemist, even the most ordinary first-grade pill wouldn't be this cheap.
However, the girl's words did remind Chen Xiao that his fragile body couldn't withstand high-intensity combat yet.
Perhaps, it was time to get a weapon to buffer things!
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