In the living room, as Chen Xinhe was confirming his family's heirloom equipment, he noticed a wooden box on the coffee table.
Wasn't this the item Viscount Amber's daughter, Anna, brought from her father when she came looking for him this morning?
He was so busy figuring out his own identity at the time that he didn't pay it any mind.
Now, Chen Xinhe picked up the small, exquisitely carved box and silently opened it.
"Congratulations, you have obtained one 'Lucian's Turquoise Liquid'."
Inside the box was a small glass vial of reagent, deep green in color, with no odor before the wooden stopper was removed.
After all, this was the second expansion pack, where items were mostly solutions and reagents, unlike the first expansion pack's novice village, which was dominated by medicinal pills.
[Lucian's Turquoise Liquid]
[Quality: C-Grade (Rare)]
[Effect: Permanently increases all stats by 1 point after consumption]
[Note: Stats cannot exceed level restrictions, and it cannot be consumed repeatedly]
What a great item!
A one-point increase to all stats was equivalent to a total of 4 free attribute points, which was the same amount he would get from leveling up four times.
Of course, these were just free attribute points within the limits, unable to surpass the level restrictions.
Only the passive skills from breathing techniques could increase personal base stats, and some passive skills even provided extra damage.
"Gulp~!"
Chen Xinhe didn't hesitate and drank it in one go.
Although he didn't know why Viscount Amber would give him this, he was currently accepting all high-grade magic potions like this that could directly enhance his own stats.
As for the price to be paid, that could wait until after his duel!
"Congratulations player, all stats +1."
[Current Stats: Strength 14 (13+1), Stamina 13 (12+1), Intelligence 14 (13+1), Agility 12 (11+1)]
[Health: 732/762 (732+30) (Recovering)]
[Stamina: 431/451 (431+20) (Recovering)]
Instantly, Chen Xinhe felt a tingling numbness spread throughout his body, and a coolness penetrated deep into his brain. This coolness didn't cause any harm, but instead gave his brain a pleasant sensation, like inhaling mint.
This feeling didn't last long. When he came to his senses again, he felt his arms brimming with power.
At the same time, his mind felt much clearer, and his whole body felt a lot lighter.
He had never experienced such a sensation when allocating points to his character in the game. Now that he was truly in this game world, he didn't expect a mere +1 to his stats to feel so significant.
...
Three hours later, Chen Xinhe rode his horse out of the inner city and arrived at the border of the outer city.
"Baron, please proceed!"
As the massive city gate was opened by the guards, Chen Xinhe truly left the main city of the Duchy of Will.
Although the surrounding area was still the territory of the Duchy of Will, some demonic beasts would start to appear.
Chen Xinhe didn't linger nearby, but instead headed towards a leveling spot from his memory of his past life.
Another hour later, Chen Xinhe ventured deep into a hilly area.
He also found his target for this trip, the Cerberus Knight's lair.
In a cave visible to the naked eye, several Cerberus Knights were standing guard outside, and the flicker of firelight could be seen from within.
At the same time, a faint smell of blood wafted out from the cave.
Chen Xinhe had already dismounted and was quickly approaching the cave.
[Target Found: Cerberus Knight]
[Analyzing relative strength... Analysis complete...]
[Level: Lv15]
[Health: 1519/1556]
[Stamina: 989/1009]
[Stats: Strength 13, Stamina 16, Intelligence 3, Agility 6]
[Skills: Charge (E-Grade, Common) LV2, (Insufficient reconnaissance data) ???]
[Overall Evaluation: F (Common)]
The system's detection was based on a comparison of the enemy's and his own level and strength, and it couldn't accurately determine most of the skills in the skill bar.
However, to Chen Xinhe, these Cerberus Knights were just experience packs for leveling up.
Although with their Charge skill, he couldn't withstand two direct hits, he was a veteran player of "Apocalypse."
The enemies in the later expansion packs were the real deal. For these demonic beasts from the first few expansion packs with their underdeveloped intelligence, there were plenty of ways to harvest them.
Inside the cave, it seemed to have smelled the unfamiliar scent of a human.
The outermost Cerberus Knight on guard duty quickly stood up, its gaze fixed in the direction of the scent.
At the same time, the eyes on its three heads immediately turned cold, and a low, trembling growl escaped its mouths.
Suddenly, it seemed to have pinpointed the enemy's direction.
The Cerberus Knight immediately broke into a sprint, charging forward. Although its Agility stat wasn't high, its actual speed was not slow at all due to its Charge skill.
And the target of the impending charge, Chen Xinhe, stood his ground, waiting for the approaching Cerberus.
The faint, foul stench from the Cerberus grew closer and closer.
The sharp, long mouths of its three heads were already open, and a look of delight flashed across its three canine faces, as if it were about to taste a delicious meal.
However, in the next moment, the Cerberus saw the human in front of it half-crouch, slamming the saber in their hand onto the ground.
The person leaped into the air, performing a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree flip.
"Swish~!"
In mid-air, Chen Xinhe instantly drew his saber and slashed at the back of the Cerberus Knight's neck.
"Crack~!"
It was as if the blade had directly struck the Cerberus Knight's spinal joint. The three heads flew off together, spraying a shower of hot blood forward through the air.
"Critical damage dealt 2173!"
"You have killed the Cerberus Knight, gained 641 experience points."
After landing, Chen Xinhe turned to look at the now-decapitated Cerberus, his expression turning grave.
The Cerberus's fatal weakness was indeed at the back of its neck, just as he remembered.
But after killing it, it didn't drop any items at all, only experience points.
This was a bit off. Logically, it should have at least dropped the most basic gold coins, right?
But the reality was, apart from experience points, there was nothing.
Chen Xinhe patiently continued towards the cave.
The deeper he went, the stronger the smell of blood became, and the foul, rank odor in the cave also grew more intense.
In the game, he could reduce his five senses, but now this function, along with the system's "logout" function, had all disappeared.
Enduring the nauseating smell, another Cerberus Knight had already launched a charge at him.
[Target Found: Cerberus Knight]
[Analyzing relative strength... Analysis complete...]
[Level: Lv19]
...
Due to the narrow space inside the cave, the Cerberus Knight's charge became much more powerful and difficult to dodge.
If it were an ordinary class, apart from the Esper-types, most would have to take a hit head-on in the early stages.
If it were a squishy class like a mage, they would probably be sent back to their spawn point in one hit.
However, its opponent was Chen Xinhe, who possessed combat experience from the mid to late stages of the game.
He was seen pushing off the cave wall with one foot, instantly dodging the impact.
Then, seizing the opening after the opponent used its Charge skill, he quickly drew his saber. With the system's prompt of critical damage, this Cerberus Knight also fell to the ground.
It was only because this one was of a higher level and had stronger defense that its head and body were not severed.