“Speaking of which, kidnapping Lutt actually didn’t even give me any Achievements. This person is even a lord. What an embarrassment.”
Zhou Jing cursed inwardly.
He thought for a moment and chose a [Aptitude Advancement – Physical Fitness (Small)] for Jason to use.
[Usage complete]
[Physical Aptitude has increased slightly.]
Zhou Jing looked at Jason’s [Dark Green] Physical Fitness aptitude and couldn’t help but blink.
Did this… improve?
It was still in the green tier.
He tested with another before a familiar notification popped up.
[Physical Fitness Aptitude Change: [Dark Green] → [Light Blue]!]
It seemed that in the blue tier, he needed two [Aptitude Enhancement (Small)] to increase it by a minor tier… Zhou Jing noted this.
He looked at the remaining Aptitude Upgrade Reward. It seemed like it could increase his resistance aptitude by another tier… He did not hesitate and directly spent two portions of [Aptitude Upgrade – Resistance (Small)]
[Resistance [Light Blue] → [Blue] ]
Zhou Jing took a deep breath. He thought his body seemed different, but he could not tell what had changed. For some reason, he felt like he had been “linked up.”
As for the remaining Aptitude Enhancement rewards, there were also Physical Fitness (Small) and Comprehensive (Small). Although it could also increase his Physical Fitness by another minor tier, Zhou Jing did not plan to use it.
The reward for a comprehensive increase in aptitude came from the unique achievement of [Entering Transcendence]. It was even more precious since it didn’t have a high drop rate.
He did not intend to use it just to increase his Physical Fitness Aptitude. He felt that the use of this thing was to increase some unique aptitude that was difficult to obtain targeted rewards for. For example, some systems with cultivation knowledge or supernatural systems with various rich routes. It would be a waste to give it to muscular people who purely relied on their bodies.
There were also two [Attributes Enhancement – Physical Fitness (Slight)] rewards.
“I wonder if I can break through the limit of having First Order attributes…”
(TL Note: Changing attribute from Level to Order. Hopefully, it will sound better than having just repeating level for everything.)
Zhou Jing muttered to himself and activated one of the rewards.
[Usage complete]
[+1 Physical Fitness Attribute]
[Current Physical Fitness: 40 (+4) (Rank 1 Max)]
[Level Surplus has reached 10% of current attributes.]
[Physical Fitness can be broken through to Second Order]
“I see.” Zhou Jing’s eyes lit up as he understood the mechanism.
When a certain attribute reached a bottleneck, the subsequent increase would not officially be added to the attributes. Instead, it would become a “Level Surplus”—the “+” in parentheses.
It reflected the accumulation progress during the bottleneck period, recording the increase in attributes that were not included in the official attributes… This part only counted the Attributes obtained through the increase in skills or in one’s superpower system. The Level Surplus would not increase even if he added Attribute points to it through the character template model.
If the Level Surplus exceeded a certain percentage of the current attributes, one could advance… From an ordinary person’s point of view, this meant that one would be able to break through the bottleneck with years of training.
And to break through a level, the Level Surplus had to reach 10% of the attributes, which was a (+4) progress.
When Zhou Jing saw the “Advanceable” option appear behind his Physical Fitness attribute, he immediately clicked on it.
[(+4) Level Surplus has been consumed]
[Physical Fitness increased to Second Order]
[Please select a new trait from the following three options.]
[Note: Trait will mean that you are better at one of the directions of this attribute. It has given a special advantage.]
1
1
1
“So advancement is not only about breaking through the upper limit, but also obtaining additional bonuses…”
Zhou Jing perked up.
The attributes were a summary of one’s overall nature, which included a lot of qualities. There were also differences when two people with the same Physical Fitness were compared. Some were stronger, while others were faster.
Jason took the agile route. He did not hesitate for long before choosing the second option.
On paper, strength and speed seemed to be separated, but according to his actual experience… Speed was strength, and it was more advantageous in battle.
[Selection complete. Trait generated.]
[Current Physical Fitness Attribute: 40 (Second Order)]
[Physical Fitness Trait: Nimble Disposition]
Zhou Jing’s entire body trembled as if he had broken through some physical boundary. His blood flowed quickly, bringing with it a sense of fulfillment.
His body suddenly became lighter, as though so long as his feet left the ground, he could float into the air like a balloon.
He made a few feints on the spot, leaving behind afterimages as his speed increased.
Although his physical fitness was still at 40 points, the increase brought by his special trait was quite obvious. He roughly estimated that he was currently about 10% to 20% faster than before… In reality, it was quite astonishing.
“According to this range, the limit of Second Order should be 80 attribute points… Hmm, Jason’s resistance is already at 31 points. I can prioritize breaking through First Order for that as well.”
Zhou Jing was in a good mood.
His main body had yet to advance, so this period was the perfect time for Jason to test the effects of the special trait. When the time came for his main body to select, he would know which route would be better for him.
He casually used another attribute enhancement reward to raise his Physical Fitness to 41 points before closing the interface.
Zhou Jing commanded Ross to deal with Lutt’s body while he looked in the direction of Frostwood Village.
“I’m afraid I won’t be coming back after I leave this time. Before I set off, I should go to the village to take a look…”
…
Early in the morning, Frostwood Village.
A group of villagers stood at the entrance of the village. They were divided into two groups and were bidding farewell to each other.
Today, a few more villagers planned to move into White Plains Town. The village chief and the other villagers came to send them off.
The villagers bid farewell to everyone one by one. They led the ox cart and dragged their families onto the dirt road that led them out of the village.
“Someone else has left once again…”
Griff took Reiner’s hand and stood in the crowd to see them off, sighing softly.
Compared to half a year ago, the already remote Frostwood Village was even more deserted now. Although they had not encountered any mutated beasts recently, more and more villagers had decided to move and hide in White Plains Town.
One of the reasons was that the town had no manpower to spare to protect the surrounding villages.
However, the real reason was that Barong had left Frostwood Village.
A few months ago, the Imperial Investigation Group had declared Lutt not guilty and had not removed him from his position as Lord. Barong had been furious and had wanted to attack the Lord but was, in the end, persuaded otherwise by Weber and the rest.
However, because he could not accept this matter, Barong did not want to stay in the White Plains Town area. He simply left with Weiss.
From being a stationed hunter, he had returned to being a freelance hunter.
Just as he had once said, only by experiencing a journey would one have a home… He had once thought that he had found a home, but in the end, he realized that home was only part of his journey.
Before leaving, Barong gathered all the villagers and announced his decision. No matter how the villagers tried to persuade him to stay, or even if some villagers tried to employ moral coercion on him, he did not waver.
After guarding Frostwood Village for several years, the villagers were used to Barong’s existence. However, Barong did not owe the village anything and would not let anyone down by leaving. When it was time to leave, he would not be soft-hearted. He would not feel that he was tied to this place for the rest of his life just because he had protected the village for a few years.
However, Barong was still concerned about the safety of the villagers. Before he left, he suggested that the villagers move to White Plains Town.
Without the mutant beast hunter stationed there, Frostwood Village no longer had any protection. Many villagers accepted this suggestion and moved to live in the safer town.
Even Griff himself was planning to move to White Plains Town soon with his family.
After sending off this group of people, Griff brought Reiner to the cemetery. Out of habit, he wiped Will and Jason’s graves clean. Then, he took two steps back and stared at the tombstones of the Wood brothers for a long time.
After a long while, he sighed deeply.
“Sigh… I wonder when I’ll be back.”
Beside him, Reiner turned to look at him and blinked. “Are we moving?”
“Yeah, we’ll leave in a few days.” Griff patted his head.
Reiner bowed his head to hide his excitement.
This guy had yearned for the outside world for a long time and was no longer willing to stay in the village.
At the same time, on the hill not far from the village, in the forest of the pharmacist’s hut where Gamma once lived…
Zhou Jing stood on the small hill and looked at the village from afar.
He had rushed back through the night to get to the village. Without the villagers knowing, he had already probed the area and discovered that Barong had left.
However, even if Barong did not leave, Zhou Jing did not intend to appear in front of everyone.
As long as the villagers were fine, it would not be a problem where they lived.
He had killed Lutt. The situation in White Plains would slowly improve. The area would return to its former safety after a while.
After a long time, Zhou Jing retracted his gaze and patted Ross, who was standing guard beside him.
“Let’s go.”
He turned and left, walking away.
