Now that I had mapped out the enemy's intelligence, the rest was naturally a full-scale slaughter. I took a deep breath, gripped the Hundred Battles Blade, and slowly advanced into the depths of the cavern.

Whoosh! The familiar blade shadow swept out again. I barely paused, closing the distance immediately, and with a lightning-fast strike, I cleaved the head off the Skeleton Warlord.

Phew! One-shot kill! I felt a surge of satisfaction at this perfectly executed instant kill. Looks like I’ll get a good session of practice in here today. I didn't linger, quickening my pace as I pushed deeper into the cave.

Almost as soon as I spotted a Skeleton Warlord, I instinctively struck at its neck. Due to my astonishing speed, the Skeleton Warlords didn't even have a chance to launch an attack. Even when they were packed densely together, it was one strike per skeleton; with their speed, they stood no chance of harming me. To me, they were practically indistinguishable from unmoving wooden stakes.

Moving forward, I merely repeated a single, simple action: cleaving, always cleaving. With every downward stroke, a skull tumbled to the ground. When I felt tired, I would lean against the wall to rest for a moment.

I didn't know how long I had been fighting when my stomach finally rumbled with hunger. I had no choice but to unbuckle my pack and pull out some steamed buns and dried meat. Despite being surrounded by the skeletal remains of the fallen, this hardly affected my appetite.

Over on the other side!

“Looks like someone got here before us!” The blonde man, Long Qi, stared at the headless skeletons littering the floor.

“Strange, these footprints are too small!” The meticulous redhead, Long Xin, crouched down to examine the ground closely: “The tracks are messy, seems like they went through a tough fight!”

“Could it be that kid?” The big bald man’s mind involuntarily conjured the image of the cool-looking little boy from the inn.

“Don’t joke around!” Long Qi snapped back, annoyed. “How could that brat possibly manage that!”

“But how do you explain these small footprints!” Long Xin continued to fixate on the chaotic tracks: “Besides these, there are no other footprints!”

“Who cares who it is! We’ll find out by going in!” Long Qi said.

“En!” Long Xin nodded.

The three of them, weapons drawn, cautiously pressed deeper into the cavern.

Yet, the deeper they went, the more unnerved they became.

“Why are they all headless skeletons!” Staring at the piles of skeletal wreckage, the trio felt an inexpressible sense of gloom and terror.

“The footprints are completely uniform! They almost walked straight through!” Long Xin studied the tracks on the ground. “It’s the same person as the prints outside!”

“One slice, one decapitation!” Long Zhan, uncharacteristically, showed a grave expression. “For these headless skeletons, there are absolutely no other cuts on their bodies! That means every single one was finished with a single blow to the neck!”

“And these skeletons must have attacked him in swarms, look at all these messy footprints—they all belong to Skeleton Warlords!” Long Xin’s face darkened further. “But he cut off their heads with such ease!”

“How can the display in here be so different from what we saw outside!” Long Zhan wondered aloud.

“I think there’s only one possibility!” Long Xin’s expression grew solemn.

“That Skeleton Warlord outside was just a warm-up for him!” Long Qi concluded. “This person is a complete novice in the Skeleton Cave, unaware of the Warlords’ weaknesses and other attack patterns! That’s why he spent so long studying the Warlord at the entrance.”

“And he discovered the Skeleton Warlord’s weak spot is the neck!” Long Xin explained slowly. “So, what we are seeing from here on are Warlords who were taken down with a single strike to the head!”

“Targeting the enemy’s weakness exclusively?” Long Zhan still looked filled with disbelief. “But that blade work is just too fast!”

“En!” Long Xin continued, “Look, he only kills the Skeleton Warlords and hasn't collected any Skull Eyes. He must be here to train!” Long Xin hesitated. “What do you think we should do! Should we press on and take a look!”

“We go in!” Long Zhan stated firmly. “It’s rare to run into such a skilled swordsman. We should at least meet him, especially since I still don’t understand that small footprint!”

“Fine!” Long Qi agreed. “But as we go in, let’s collect the Skull Eyes. It’s a waste not to pick them up, don't you think!”

“You rascal!” Long Xin had no objections.

The three of them collected Skull Eyes at a decent pace. Although they hadn't met him yet, their admiration for the mysterious expert grew. An hour passed without seeing him. Even though they had to constantly stop to collect Skull Eyes, their speed was undeniably fast. This only emphasized how astonishing the mysterious expert's monster-killing speed and efficiency must be.

“Clang! Hmph! Ordinary.”

“Movement up ahead!” Long Xin’s expression turned serious. “It looks like we are close to finding him!”

“En!” Long Qi and Long Zhan nodded unconsciously. They would soon see this mysterious master. A hint of tension lingered in the air; a killing technique that decapitated with a single strike was something none of them had ever heard of. Humanity has an inherent curiosity mixed with fear for the unknown, and the three of them were experiencing just that at this moment.

They exchanged glances and silently fell into a defensive formation. Long Zhan, the Warrior, took the lead. The Mage, Long Xin, stood two steps behind and to the left of Long Zhan. The Taoist, Long Qi, took a position two steps behind and to the right of Long Zhan. Their positions formed an isosceles triangle, ensuring that if a sudden situation arose, the strong and robust Long Zhan could hold the front line, protecting his companions behind him, while Long Xin and Long Qi could attack or retreat as the situation dictated.

Finally, as the trio cautiously rounded a corner, they witnessed a bizarre scene of lethal combat.

Directly ahead, a small, blue figure flashed rapidly. With every leap and maneuver, a strange arc of light shot out, immediately followed by the sound of a skull hitting the floor. Over a dozen Skeleton Warlords had their heads cleaved off in the blink of an eye, as if, to this diminutive figure, they were nothing more than motionless wooden stakes. The figure didn't even make any evasive maneuvers—or perhaps, the figure had no need to evade, as his blade was too fast. He had already severed the Warlords’ heads long before they could initiate an attack.

Witnessing such eerily swift swordsmanship, the three sucked in a cold breath.

“So fast, such accurate blade work!” Long Zhan exclaimed in shock.

“It’s that little sprout!” When Long Xin finally recognized the face of the figure, she could hardly believe her eyes.

“Someone’s here!” I instinctively turned toward the sound, only to see three people standing dumbfounded at the corner, staring at me.

What a coincidence—it was those three from the inn. Though, I probably should have expected to run into them. Once they saw me, the trio acted composed and walked directly up to me.

“Little brother! We meet again!” The beautiful female Mage chuckled lightly.

“I told you, my name is Man, not little brother!” I retorted curtly. “What are you all doing here!”

“Did you kill all these Skeleton Warlords!” The big bald man stared at me in disbelief, mumbling.

“Do you think there’s someone else here!” Is this guy an idiot? I eyed the bald man skeptically.

“Uh, hehe!” The bald man sheepishly scratched his scalp.

Simple mind, strong limbs. I mentally labeled the bald man, while the blonde man behind him stared at me silently, his expression grave, as if guarding against something.

Damn, a sneaky one, I thought inwardly. Still, I was curious about their presence here. “What are you guys doing here!”

“Training! Doing a quest!” The sneaky man spoke up. “But we never expected to run into you here!”

“Heh, this is quite a surprise!” The red-haired girl exclaimed. “I didn't realize someone so small could be so capable!”

“Just passable,” I replied casually. Truthfully, I was quite curious about the quests available in the Skeleton Cave. Earlier, unsure of my own strength, I hadn't checked the notice board for missions. Now that I ran into them, it was the perfect opportunity to ask about their current tasks. “What quests are you doing here!”

“Collecting Skull Eyes!” The red-haired girl said.

“Skull Eyes! What are those things!” Curious, I picked up a skull from the ground and examined it closely. I noticed that inside the empty eye sockets, aside from those two thumb-sized, green-glowing oddities, there was nothing else. “Could these two glowing things be the Skull Eyes?” I’d actually felt those two glowing objects were peculiar when fighting the first skeleton, but hadn't paid them much mind then.

“That’s right, those are the things,” the red-haired girl confirmed.

“What good are collecting these things for?” I truly couldn’t see any use for these two glowing eyeballs. Were they similar to magic cores? Instantly, my mind flashed to the crystal cores of magical beasts mentioned in fantasy novels.

“Skull Eyes contain a certain amount of magical power! This energy has many uses, and many people purchase them in bulk through the notice board,” the red-haired girl didn't hide anything. Naturally, there was no need to conceal something so widely known, except to a greenhorn like me who was just starting out.

“Damn, so this world runs on batteries!” I finally understood.

“Batteries?” The two men and one woman looked utterly bewildered.

“Ah, hehe! Never mind,” I said with a forced smile. Still, I was very interested in the quest rewards. “So how is the payment calculated for the quest?”

“Ten copper coins per eye!” The red-haired girl revealed without hesitation. Of course, there was no reason to hide it, as this was common knowledge, except perhaps to a newbie adventurer like me.

“Ten copper coins an eye!” I was slightly shocked. “Does that mean I earn twenty copper coins for every swing I take!” I stared at the Hundred Battles Blade in my hand in disbelief. Then, I noticed the blonde and bald men both staring intently at the blade in my hands.

“You could say that!” The red-haired girl admitted. “We originally planned to come here to earn a little money while also training our skills, but we didn't expect you to get here first!”

“Heh heh,” I muttered, feeling a bit sheepish.

“These are the Skull Eyes we collected along the way!” The girl shook a large bag she was carrying. “I’ll give you half; the rest will count as our labor fee. How about that!”

I had to admit, this girl was quite straightforward. I liked her personality. Still, I shook my head. “Forget it, I don’t want those. Anyway, I wasn’t planning on doing quests today. Since you picked them up, they’re yours!”

“That won’t do!” The girl shook her head. “When we turn in the quest, we’ll split the money with you. We can’t just take what we picked up for nothing; it’s settled.” It seemed this young woman was determined not to take advantage of others.

“Alright,” I conceded, knowing that with people like this, refusing too strongly might make them think I was being affected or pretentious, which would be worse.

“Um, what kind of blade is that?” The big bald man finally managed to ask, having clearly hesitated for a long time while he and the blonde man kept glancing at my weapon. “We’ve never seen a blade like that before.”

“Heh heh, I don’t know what this blade is called, but it feels quite natural in use,” I said, not wanting to elaborate. Naturally, I didn't want them to know the secret of the Hundred Battles Blade. Even though they had witnessed my swordplay, I was confident I hadn't revealed too much. After all, the Hundred Battles Blade is complemented by a set of Hundred Battles Blade Techniques (a culmination of Mo-scholar Swordplay, Mo-style Adaptation, and great Japanese Tōyō sword arts—the creation painstakingly crafted by Master Huang Yi). I had only used the most basic ‘Cleave’ technique earlier. Even if they saw it, there was no need to worry about them learning too much.

“Its shape is very similar to a Dragon Pattern blade, but it’s longer and thicker. I can’t believe a blade like this would have such terrifying destructive power!” The blonde man murmured. “Incredible!”

“En! Hngh,” I scratched my scalp awkwardly, deciding to change the subject. I couldn’t let them keep focusing on the Hundred Battles Blade! “So, are you continuing with your quest!”

“Of course!” The red-haired girl replied. “This Skeleton Cave is huge. No matter how powerful you are, you can’t possibly kill every monster in here.”

“I see!” I was beginning to understand. Since arriving in this world, I hadn’t encountered a Mage or a Taoist. Now that I had this rare opportunity, I naturally wanted to see how they fought. “This is my first time here, and I’m not very familiar with the layout. Can you show me around!”

“Alright,” the red-haired girl nodded. “Actually, with your strength, there’s little to worry about here, but getting lost could certainly be a hassle.” Although the red-haired girl appeared calm, I caught a fleeting, meaningful smile in her eyes. The bald man and the blonde man shared similar expressions, which puzzled me. Still, I figured these three probably weren't malicious. Besides, I didn't carry anything that would tempt them to act wickedly, did I? To hell with it, I’ll just stay cautious.

“Alright, from now on, you’re one of us,” the red-haired girl said, looking at me with a serious expression. “If I’m not mistaken, you haven’t obtained your Ranger Certificate yet, have you?”

“Ranger Certificate!” I blinked slightly. “I haven’t gone for the test yet!”