"Bleeding: 23 minutes and 45 seconds."
A new notification appeared on the status bar. Lin Feng wiped the blood from his eyelids, slowed his pace, took off his hospital gown, and quickly wrapped the wound on his arm several times.
"Bleeding: 35 minutes and 12 seconds."
The bleeding time slowed down.
Fortunately, data can be influenced... Lin Feng exhaled a breath of stale air, moved his arms, and was relieved that he hadn't gone to the wrong place.
In a short while, the trees in front of him turned into common trees three or four meters tall, with warm rays of sunlight filtering through the treetops, and the faint pungent smell in the air was gone.
He continued walking for a while, then a dizzying sensation began to rise in his head, and the aching from overuse of his muscles crept in. His eyes, which had just been splashed with blood, gradually started to sting...
Blood loss: Moderate
'When negative states accumulate to a certain level, they can have new negative effects on the digitized body.'
As Lin Feng pondered his situation, he quickened his pace.
'The digitized body is merely an aid in combat...'
'I can't fall here...'
Dragging his weakened body forward with gritted teeth, he wanted to get as far away from the area as possible before collapsing and find a new chance of survival.
Passing through a few trees, a rocky path came into view.
Large swaths of trees had been felled around the path, and some stone arches with magical runes carved into them could be vaguely seen leaning among the bushes. Horse tracks were also visible along the path.
Lin Feng strode over and quickly determined a direction based on the footprints.
'Hopefully it's the Elven Line...'
With a sliver of benevolent hope, Lin Feng followed the hoofprints onto the rocky path, heading towards a more open area.
Elwyn Line is where the game's story begins and is also the closest survival point to the dense forest. Although I'm not sure if I've found the right direction, this is all I can do for now.
One step, two steps, three steps... A cold wind blew by, causing a ringing in his ears. Lin Feng paused slightly, his hazy consciousness enveloping the blur before his eyes, and mechanically took another step.
The hospital gown on his arm was stained red. Although the wound left by the cat demon was small, it was constantly oozing blood, drawing warmth from his body.
As visibility grew even darker, all he could see was a crimson countdown.
"Bleeding: 9 minutes and 21 seconds."
Just as Lin Feng was filled with despair, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly rang out on the edge of his sinking consciousness.
Da da da!
A hand suddenly grabbed him, shaking Lin Feng's last vestiges of consciousness away.
When he regained consciousness, a mouthful of water was placed right next to his mouth. It flowed slowly down his slightly parted lips and throat into his limbs and bones, awakening his five senses.
Lin Feng opened his eyes and vaguely saw a burly figure with long hair.
The long-haired figure withdrew his arm, and seeing Lin Feng awake, spoke in a deep and caring voice: "How are you feeling?"
"I...cough cough..."
He choked on some water, but it didn't matter. Lin Feng swallowed the strange sensation in his throat and focused his gaze to see the other person clearly.
A gentle-looking middle-aged man with flowing long hair... his muscles bulged all over, and a huge cross pattern was painted on his chest. He was a priest. This really is a game world.
"Your wound has healed. Although you lost a lot of blood, it no longer affects your mobility." The priest Jeda Axpar reached out and helped Lin Feng lean against the pillow, casually casting a purification spell on him and patting Lin Feng's shoulder.
"Thanks..."
The skill flowed into his body like a clear spring, and Lin Feng's cloudy eyes brightened. He felt much clearer-headed and no longer felt drowsy.
"Haha, it's nothing, but you're really amazing. Walking out of the dense forest all by yourself, most people can't do that..." Jeda laughed, put the water glass on the small table and stool next to him, and touched his forehead: "Alright, alright, you rest first, I'll come see you again later."
After saying that, Jeda pushed open the tent and went outside.
Lin Feng watched the other person leave, and only after the footsteps outside the tent had faded into the distance did he raise his arm and look at the location of the wound.
'The injury has healed, and there are no scars left!'
'It's a healing skill; if I could learn some techniques...'
As he was thinking, Lin Feng eagerly opened his personal attributes. The bleeding status had disappeared, the cancer torment remained unchanged, and everything else was the same as before.
'Healing techniques are ineffective against cancer...'
After a silent sigh, Lin Feng glanced at the mission countdown again. He had been unconscious for about 12 hours. Then he noticed an extra column under his personal attributes: 1 Nightmare Point.
'This should be the reward for killing the cat demon cub. I wonder how much the reward will be for killing the goblins and zombies required for the quest... Nightmare Points, as a reward for completing the quest, will definitely function as currency. Their specific value will only be known after returning to the Nightmare Space...'
'But isn't there a penalty for failing the mission...?'
The doubt in his mind lasted only a few seconds. Without any reference, he was unable to make a definite judgment.
Lin Feng picked up the cup on the small table and stool, took a sip of water, and moved his legs slightly. He did not feel any discomfort.
This is a clean and tidy tent, with only him inside. There are several beds and some small tables and stools on the left and right sides of the tent, and a small lamp hangs overhead. After sitting down, you can smell a faint aroma of oil.
I'm a little hungry...
Lin Feng's stomach rumbled a few times. He looked down at the coarse cloth clothes he had been given, got out of bed, put on a pair of worn-out sneakers, and walked out of the tent.
This is probably the only valuable thing he has left.
It was getting late outside, the sun was about to set, and in the twilight, there were scattered tents and treehouses, with only a few torches burning brightly on the streets. After looking around, Lin Feng's gaze settled on a large stone furnace and anvil not far away.
The stone furnace was not lit, rusty tools were scattered around the anvil, and the surrounding treehouses were dark and without any lights. At a glance, only the area around his tent was illuminated.
Most importantly, there was no one else here!
Lin Feng hesitated for a moment, then picked up a torch from the side and walked toward the stone furnace that had been extinguished for who knows how long.
'Perhaps this isn't Elwynn Line at all... A stone hearth that resembles the one in the game doesn't necessarily mean anything.'
He didn't dwell on the worst-case scenario. After observing for a moment, he heard footsteps behind him.
The priest Jeda carried a wild deer on his shoulder. His tall body paused for a few seconds in the firelight as he looked towards Lin Feng before turning towards the campfire next to the tent.
Lin Feng hesitated before walking over, but before he could ask anything, the other person took the initiative to speak.
"This is the Elwyn Line." The wild deer was like a bubble in Jeda's hands. Its thick fur was easily punctured, its foul-smelling internal organs were dug out, and pieces of deer meat were cut off.
The venison smelled fishy, and the torn pieces of meat made Lin Feng's eyelids twitch. If he could do this, the cat demon's threat level would drop sharply. But soon, the other party's next words made Lin Feng's breathing quicken: "You don't have much time left. If you don't complete the mission, you may not survive even if you leave."
"you..."
Jeda waved the knife in his hand, interrupting Lin Feng's question. He calmly made a cross on the deer's body, cut off a few more pieces of venison, and said in an extremely gentle tone, "I can teach you skills. What can you give me?"
In an instant, Lin Feng's heart trembled wildly along with the flames on the torch in his hand, and chills crept into his warm body.
"In your words, there's no such thing as a free lunch." Jeda tossed aside the deer hide, cut off a leg with a knife, gestured towards the dying campfire, and snorted, "Go get some firewood."
Lin Feng finally nodded and walked towards the camp.
The area was littered with broken branches. After picking up a few, he noticed something: the priest had been speaking Chinese the whole time, and even his lip movements matched perfectly.
After gathering firewood for more than ten minutes, Lin Feng returned for the third time carrying several thick pieces. Jeda then skewered the venison onto the branches and placed them by the campfire.
On the other side of the campfire were two piles of firewood, which Lin Feng had painstakingly gathered from the surrounding area.
"Have you thought it through?" Jeda stretched his arms and casually cast a skill on himself, then put on his harmless smile and sat down opposite Lin Feng across the campfire.
"Now?"
"tonight."
Lin Feng gritted his teeth and asked again, "What can I give you?"
Upon hearing the question, Jeda turned the venison on the branch but did not answer immediately. He already knew perfectly well what Lin Feng was wearing; even that tattered hospital gown was worse than the straw chain woven by that old woman, Seria.
Moreover, what he wanted wasn't something that could be easily presented.
Lin Feng, who had fallen silent after asking the questions, was well aware of this. He knew very well that this was the moment the other party had been waiting for. In this world, apart from material exchanges, there were only magical transactions.
At this moment, Jeda re-secured the venison, threw a few branches into the campfire, and a wicked glint suddenly flashed in his gentle eyes as he slowly turned his gaze toward Lin Feng.
"I need your name."
"In exchange, you can choose one of these four skills."
"Air Slash, Tiger Strike, Slow Healing, Demon Hand."
After saying that, Jeda clapped his hands, sat up straight, and squinted in the flickering firelight.
The branches crackled and popped as they burned, the intense flames turning Lin Feng's face bright red: "What will happen without a name?"
“Nothing will change. You are still you.” Jeda chuckled softly.
After a long while, the aroma of venison wafted from the campfire. Lin Feng's gaze shifted from the flickering flames to Jeda, and he pursed his dry lips, saying, "Devil's Hand!"
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