Equipped and Ready

 Stepping out of the novice village, Jiang Han carefully stowed away the scroll of the Wrath of the Fire God, feeling a peculiar sensation. "In this day and age, there are so many treasures in the novice village?"

Contemplating the fact that the old man not only possessed forbidden scrolls but also held the key to unlocking hidden professions for players, Jiang Han couldn't help but marvel at the extraordinary opportunities hidden within this seemingly humble village.

Without wasting any time, he hastened towards the buffalo territory, unhesitatingly raising his iron sword to strike fiercely at a buffalo's abdomen.

"-21!"

Not bad. Although it required more than twenty strikes, at least he could now handle them.

"Moo!"

The buffalo, upon being attacked, emitted a painful bellow and immediately lowered its head in anger, using its sharp horns to charge at Jiang Han. Yet, the latter agilely evaded the buffalo's onslaught.

"Having adapted to the game, dodging buffalo attacks isn't difficult," Jiang Han chuckled, confident in his in-game positioning and movements.

However, in the next moment, his confidence was shattered.

"Moo, moo, moo..."

To his surprise, the buffalo's cries seemed to have a summoning effect. Two other buffaloes, initially leisurely grazing nearby, were drawn towards the commotion, charging angrily at Jiang Han.

"Do you have to bring reinforcements?" Jiang Han sucked in a cold breath. He never imagined that monsters in the novice village could actively attack players. After all, when attacking slimes earlier, he was completely ignored by nearby slimes. Yet, buffaloes, slightly stronger than slimes, had a significantly increased difficulty level!

Before the other buffaloes arrived, Jiang Han swiftly dealt two blows to the loudly bellowing buffalo.

"-15!"

"-16!"

Simultaneously, the two buffaloes approached from the sides. Jiang Han quickly turned and dodged just in time, then surveyed his surroundings. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He picked up a stone from the ground and accurately hurled it at one of the buffaloes, hitting its hindquarters.

"-25!"

"Ding!~"

System prompt: You used a stone throw, dealing 25 points of damage to the buffalo!

"Is throwing stones more painful than using my iron sword?" Jiang Han couldn't help but lament. He glanced at his iron sword, then stabbed the charging buffalo in the eyes without a second thought. Simultaneously, he was hit head-on, feeling a chest pain as he was sent flying.

"-55!"

"-50!"

The eyes were evidently a vulnerable area, resulting in a critical hit that surpassed the damage caused by the buffalo. However, with Jiang Han's health at a substantial 400 points, even losing a tenth of it wasn't too distressing.

"Moo!"

The buffalo writhed in pain.

At this moment, the other two buffaloes didn't stand idly by, charging at Jiang Han.

Fortunately, their attack patterns were simplistic, lacking significant intelligence. Jiang Han skillfully repeated his tactics, swiftly evading their approaches just before they could inflict harm, effectively avoiding damage.

For an ordinary player, this would be a challenging situation, but Jiang Han, considering himself a gaming veteran, had a reasonable level of confidence in his positioning.

After ten minutes of using stones and his iron sword, Jiang Han managed to grind down three buffaloes.

"Ding!~"

System prompt: Congratulations on killing [Buffalo], gaining 50 experience points!

After checking the system information, Jiang Han was in high spirits. He picked up the three copper coins dropped on the ground, rested briefly, and prepared to seek out the next troublesome buffalo.

Ignoring the expeditious pace at which he was leveling up, which might seem slow to some players, Jiang Han found comfort in the fact that spending about two hours to gain a level was far more enjoyable than idling in the novice village.

A few minutes later, Jiang Han located two solitary buffaloes. Observing the absence of a buffalo herd nearby, he cautiously approached, brandishing his iron sword. In the wary eyes of the buffalo, he wore a harmless smile and said, "Good, I mean no harm."

With that, he aimed a thrust at the buffalo's eyes, expediting his leveling process through critical hits on weak points.

"Moo!"

Accompanied by the buffalo's roar, a man and two buffaloes engaged in playful pursuit beneath the radiant sunlight.

After more than ten minutes, panting, Jiang Han picked up two copper coins, discovering that one of the buffaloes had dropped some items.

Thank the heavens! Finally, equipment drops!

Overjoyed, Jiang Han hurriedly picked them up and examined them.

[Buffalo Leather Armor] (White-grade)

Defense: 4-5

Introduction: Armor crafted from buffalo hide, more resilient than ordinary clothing.

Although both were white-grade items, the buffalo leather armor's attributes surpassed those of the soldier's leather armor he was wearing. Jiang Han promptly switched equipment, increasing his defense cap by 3 points, significantly enhancing his tolerance against buffalo attacks.

However, he couldn't just discard the soldier's leather armor. After all, it was still an item that could be sold to novice village players struggling even against slimes, fetching a good price.

Subsequently, after spending two hours, Jiang Han filled his experience bar, golden light showering upon him as he reached level 5.

Checking the system time, it was already 8 PM. The game had started at 1 PM, and he had been continuously online for seven hours.

Although Jiang Han wished to capitalize on his momentum and distance himself from ordinary players, a pack of instant noodles for lunch proved insufficient. Now, with a growling stomach, he decided it was time to satiate his hunger.

Finding a relatively safe place, where buffaloes wouldn't surround him upon logging out, Jiang Han summoned the system interface and exited the game.

...

Removing the game helmet, Jiang Han skillfully retrieved his phone to order takeout.

"Ding dong!"

In no time, the doorbell rang.

Opening the door, a delivery person clad in yellow held up the delivery and gestured, "Hello, are you... the National Level 1 Food Taster? Here's your chicken cutlet rice."

Glancing at the order details on the bag and reciting Jiang Han's online alias, the delivery person suppressed a smile with visible effort.

"Yes, thank you."

Accepting the delivery, Jiang Han closed the door, seated himself at his computer desk, perused the game forum while relishing his meal.

"It seems like most players can't even step out of the novice village." Judging by the numerous grateful voices on the forum, Jiang Han inferred that the current situation had not changed much.

What did this indicate?

It indicated that the soldier's leather armor he had taken off would surely fetch a good price!

After a few minutes of browsing, Jiang Han stumbled upon a post that piqued his interest – "Regarding the Acquisition Method of Hidden Professions."

"Players have already discovered the method to obtain hidden professions?" Jiang Han was surprised and hastily clicked to read.

What was the deal with the acquisition method for hidden professions? Hidden professions, a concept well-known to everyone, were even mentioned on the Eternal official website. However, how players could obtain these hidden professions was a mystery.

...

Oh, it was just a marketing ploy!

J

iang Han couldn't help but curse inwardly. He promptly closed the post, finished his chicken cutlet rice, and put on his game helmet.