Wang Xian's face darkened.
"What do you mean, 'why trouble a man for a man'?"
He clearly stabbed the Goblin BOSS where it counted because it was efficient—not personal. He wasn't targeting the poor green bastard's dignity. At least… not intentionally.
Then again, that was the first time he'd ever seen a string of consecutive fatal injuries triggered like that. In his last life, goblin-type monsters weren't ones he fought often, especially not ones dumb enough to leave their vital bits swinging around like a damage multiplier.
Frankly?
It deserved what it got.
"Waaaah! Uncle! I'm level 10 now!!" Cheng Yao squealed from behind him.
Still hyped from the fight, she checked her system log and realized she'd just jumped from level 7 to 10 in a single boss kill. "What's [Compassion]?! Is it your skill? It gave me full boss XP!"
Wang Xian ignored her shouts for the moment and pulled up his own battle log. He'd silenced system pop-ups during the fight, and now they were flooding in:
[Ding!] You killed Level 15 Goblin BOSS. Triggered team experience bonus: +10%. Triggered BOSS-level bonus: +5%. [Compassion] and [Sage] activated. Final EXP gained: 4050.
[Ding!] You've leveled up! +5 free attribute points.
[Ding!] You've reached Level 11. Talent [Growth] grants +11 free attribute points.
[Ding!] You've leveled up! +5 free attribute points.
[Ding!] You've reached Level 12. Talent [Growth] grants +12 free attribute points.
[Ding!] Title [BOSS Natural Enemy] triggered. Soul Draw: 0 attribute points gained.
[Ding!] Title [BOSS Natural Enemy] evolution +1.
[Ding!] Congratulations! Your level now ranks #1 in the Dragon Kingdom.
[Ding!] Congratulations! You are now #1 on the World Leaderboard.
"Oh, come on…"Wang Xian dragged a hand down his face.He just wanted to keep a low profile. Was that so hard?
Then he saw it—another new talent unlocked for hitting Level 10. He opened his character panel to investigate:
Talent: [Sage] (Mythic)Effect: Any experience gained, from any source, is increased by 10%. This percentage increases with level.
He nearly whistled.
[Sage] + [Compassion] + [Growth] = Leaderboard domination.
It wasn't just that he would level faster than anyone else—every time he leveled, [Growth] handed him even more free attribute points, which made him stronger, which made it easier to kill things faster, which gave him more XP...It was a feedback loop from hell.
"Uncle! Look! A green weapon dropped!" Cheng Yao shouted from nearby, dragging a massive two-meter-long mace through the dirt like a determined scavenger.
Wang Xian took it from her with some difficulty. It was heavier than it looked.
[Giant Mace (Green)]Type: Blunt WeaponAttack: +50Strength: +7Effect – Brute Strength: Extra Strength +3Requirement: Level 15
Not bad.Top-tier for green gear. But it was too oversized for his style, and with the level requirement, it could wait.
He stuffed it in his inventory.
"Anything else?" he asked.
"Yeah, but…" Cheng Yao wrinkled her nose and held out a bundle of animal skin on the end of a stick, like it was radioactive.
Wang Xian narrowed his eyes and inspected it.
[Goblin's Beloved Leather Pants (Green)]Type: Armor – Lower BodyPhysical Defense: +60Magic Defense: +40Requirement: Level 15
He went quiet.
Of course. The Goblin's... beloved pants.
Just looking at them made his knees twitch in phantom pain.
Nope. Not wearing those.He threw them into his inventory like they were cursed and immediately marked them for consignment or auction.
"That's all the equipment," Cheng Yao said. "Only some money left. Here—"
She held out her hand with a small pile of shimmering coins.
Wang Xian counted quickly.
7 gold, 44 silver.Not bad at all for an early-game BOSS.
"You keeping none?" he asked, brows raised.
"I didn't do anything but watch and leech XP," Cheng Yao said honestly. "It's yours."
Wang Xian raised a brow, then smiled. "Three views aligned. That's rare these days."
He rubbed her head—earning a muffled yelp—then flicked her two gold coins.
"Save those. Buy some potions."
"Thanks, Uncle!" Cheng Yao grinned.She knew two gold coins were worth at least 20,000 Dragon Coins in real currency.
She liked this uncle. Thick thighs. Big wallet. Lethal aura.A girl could do worse.
"You're level 10 now," Wang Xian said. "Hold off on leveling more until you transfer. Otherwise, you'll waste attribute points."
"Got it!" Cheng Yao nodded quickly.Uncle said it, so it must be right.
And anyway, she wasn't letting this walking EXP multiplier out of her sight.Not after seeing what [Compassion] did.
Level 7 to 10 in a single kill.That's just... broken.
"Hey," Wang Xian called. "Come try this."
He was already seated by the BOSS's campfire, poking at the half-cooked meat still sizzling over the flame. He sliced off a strip with his blade, tasted it, and nodded.
"Not bad. Little greasy."
Cheng Yao blinked. "You're eating the BOSS's dinner?"
He shrugged. "It was gonna go to waste."
She giggled, sat down beside him, and reached for a piece.
The fire crackled.The night deepened.Somewhere far above, the world buzzed over the new #1 on the leaderboard.But in the quiet of the forest, Wang Xian chewed slowly, eyes calm.
He'd made his move.Now the world would come to him.