The strength enhancement effect is pretty much useless now.
Jiang Lin was certain that a certain part of him was already strong enough and didn't need any strengthening.
“Sigh…”
Sighing, Jiang Lin felt a bit regretful.
He opened his personal panel.
“Name: Jiang Lin”
“Talent: Alienation Art (Unique)”
“Skill: Phantom Step (Tier 3)”
“Physique: 13”
“Sanity: 18”
“Stamina: 100 / 100”
“Spirit Energy: 0 / 50”
“Overall Rating: Tier 1”
The system's rating finally reached Tier 1. Jiang Lin guessed it was because his physique broke through 10.
Because when he previously mastered the Mystic Step skill, his overall rating did not change.
Or perhaps it required meeting all conditions simultaneously?
Closing the panel, Jiang Lin felt there was no need to dwell on it.
The rating was just data; the true situation still depended on an individual's actual circumstances.
Even an idiot with immense strength could be easily manipulated.
Everything was ready.
Jiang Lin called Xiao Fu and Xiao Gao.
The two half-human-tall little ones quickly stood up, reminding Jiang Lin of the puppies he once raised.
Xiao Fu's tentacles had already grown out, looking no different from before, showing no signs of injury.
Good, no need to worry about affecting work efficiency.
Xiao Fu and Xiao Gao were both diligent workers, which put Jiang Lin at ease.
Just like yesterday, he sent Xiao Fu to chop trees, and Xiao Fu pattered off with his tentacles.
He, on the other hand, searched the surroundings with Xiao Gao.
The system said it had prepared a surprise, so Jiang Lin decided to find it before starting work.
One person and one pickaxe walked side by side.
“Be careful and protect me.”
Taking out the thorn wooden stick, Jiang Lin didn't forget to instruct Xiao Gao.
Xiao Gao nodded his spider leg.
He guarded Jiang Lin's side with his spider leg, looking like a loyal bodyguard.
Jiang Lin smiled and nodded at this.
He decided to start a circular search from the front of the Wooden house.
First, a radius of 20 meters.
Then 30 meters, but there was nothing but trees.
Jiang Lin didn't get discouraged and continued outwards.
Visibility was only 6 meters, so the progress was very slow.
Rounding a tree, Jiang Lin suddenly stopped.
Something was happening!
A figure vaguely appeared in the Mist ahead.
Before Jiang Lin could react, a strange hiss came.
Ying!
Accompanying the sharp cry was a rapidly charging humanoid creature.
It was incredibly fast, reaching within a meter of Jiang Lin in the blink of an eye.
In an instant.
Jiang Lin suddenly reacted!
He saw a row of ferocious mouthparts already blocking his front.
He could clearly see the blood-red cavity walls and disgusting mucus in the creature's Vertical Teeth.
Thoughts raced!
Mystic Step!
Jiang Lin flashed and appeared four meters to the side.
He heard a 'thud'.
Only then did he see the full appearance of the monster.
It had human legs, but its upper body was only ferocious Vertical Teeth, opening and closing like a clam.
Jiang Lin had no doubt that if he hadn't dodged just now, he would have been instantly gnawed into pieces.
But this clearly wouldn't happen, because Xiao Gao's spider legs were already firmly embedded in both sides of the monster.
The sound just now was the monster being pierced.
Just as Xiao Gao was about to use his other spider legs to finish off the monster.
“Let me do it.”
Jiang Lin grabbed the thorn wooden stick and performed a Mystic Step.
Pfft!
The wooden stick smashed heavily onto the monster's 'head', and the thorns deeply embedded themselves.
Immediately, mucus mixed with blood splattered.
It wasn't over yet!
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
...Jiang Lin struck again and again, pulling it out each time.
After more than twenty continuous brutal blows, the monster was riddled with holes, collapsed on the ground, and stopped moving.
Four crystal stones rolled onto the ground.
Whew!
That felt great!
After the battle just now, Jiang Lin confirmed that he now had the strength to fight Tier 1 creatures.
Jiang Lin rubbed the blood off the wooden stick in the dirt, then flicked it, and reached out to touch the crystal stones.
crystal stone + 4
He opened the system to investigate.
“Vertical Teeth Person's Corpse: The corpse of a Tier 1 mutated humanoid monster, of little value. Perhaps it could be used for exhibition?”
This monster was the most worthless one Jiang Lin had encountered; it didn't even have forging materials.
Giving up on the idea of collecting the corpse, Jiang Lin decided to let the Mist deal with this disgusting thing.
Xiao Gao was very perceptive; he didn't disturb Jiang Lin just now, quietly retreating to the side.
Now he silently returned to his side, subtly protecting him.
Jiang Lin raised his hand and stroked his pickaxe head.
Xiao Gao's spider legs lifted slightly, as if he enjoyed it.
This made him want to laugh a little.
He had never had family or friends, but after coming to the Mist World, he felt a sense of security he had never experienced before.
He decided that even if he got higher-tier creatures in the future, he would not abandon Xiao Fu and Xiao Gao.
They were his most important companions in the early stages.
He perked up.
Jiang Lin walked in the direction where the Vertical Teeth Person had just appeared; there were treasure chests around monsters, which was common game knowledge.
Although this wasn't a game, Jiang Lin always felt there were similar settings, which should be arranged by the survival system.
Sure enough, after walking a dozen meters, he saw a treasure chest.
“Surprise Treasure Chest: Items are fixed. Don't doubt it, this is your reward. Open it with confidence.”
Jiang Lin was speechless.
If the monster just now was a surprise, then he thought it would be a fright for most people.
“I wonder how many people will die…”
Jiang Lin grumbled, then stepped forward and opened the treasure chest.
There was no white light; there were three items inside.
A compass, an iron pickaxe, and a short sword.
“Permanent Shelter Pointer: It will always point in the direction of your Shelter. You will never have to worry about getting lost in the Mist again.”
“Inferior Iron Pickaxe: You, being experienced, should understand!”
“crude short sword: Tier 1. It's definitely enough for peeling fruit. As for combat… if you have to use this, why fight? Just wait to die!”
...Besides the pointer, the other two items were probably meant to supplement the Newbie Gift Pack .
The system was really stingy, giving out newbie items in two batches and even setting a monster to guard them.
He put the pointer and iron pickaxe into his system space, and the short sword was placed in the treasure chest and held in his hand.
It wasn't entirely without gain; at least the Permanent Shelter Pointer could solve the problem of getting lost.
Returning to the Wooden house, he placed the short sword on the table and threw the empty treasure chest under the wooden table.
Before leaving the house, Jiang Lin checked the delicious meatball seeds and found that purple vines had already grown from them.
At this rate, he should be able to eat its fruit before dark.
Finding the right direction, Jiang Lin, carrying the iron pickaxe, went with Xiao Gao to the Crystal Stone Mine from yesterday to mine… Time flew by.
It was soon 4:30 PM.
After a day of hard work by Jiang Lin and Xiao Gao, they had collected 166 units of stone and 57 crystal stones.
Now his backpack contained a total of 208 units of stone and 90 crystal stones.
According to Xiao Fu's speed, it would probably be impossible to upgrade the Shelter today.
Only half an hour was left; it was almost time to go back.
Jiang Lin was not an adventurous person, nor would he wait until the last few minutes to rush home; that would be too tight for him.
No accidents happened on the way; it should be said that nothing major happened except for the system's surprise in the morning.
Back at the Wooden house.
The delicious meatball seeds had undergone a huge change.
Purple vines basically covered half of the Wooden house wall, and a dozen 'fruits' had grown on them.
Jiang Lin no longer had the energy to complain about its appearance.
It looked like white mold growing on a purple tumor, with green mucus clinging to its surface.
“Delicious rouqiu fruit: Perhaps a fruit that doesn't look great, but it's rich in nutrients, containing various trace elements the human body needs. You'll miss its deliciousness after eating it.”
Jiang Lin picked one up; palm-sized, it would definitely be filling.
It was just sticky… Suppressing the nausea, Jiang Lin took a bite.
It burst with juice…