Absolute Death Game

Chapter 38 Disease-Expelling Skills

Another morning, another day in the game began. As Li Baocheng walked along the road to the newbie zone, he pondered how he would evade his hunter master today. He was very wary of the hunter master he had not spent many days with. Not only was the master far stronger in combat, but his tracking ability was also first-rate.

Yesterday afternoon, Li Baocheng spent hours moving in the direction opposite the village, leaving behind many false trails, hoping to confuse the other party.

However, Li Baocheng woke up this morning feeling that what he had done was somewhat absurd. After all, the other party was an NPC. He figured the system would probably pinpoint his location and then head straight for him. His own arrangements probably wouldn’t work.

Maybe he was too invested, or maybe the game’s details were made too realistically that he subconsciously used real-life strategies against his in-game opponent.

But from some of the game’s detailed settings, it might not be entirely useless. Maybe NPCs would fall for this ploy?

As he contemplated the contradiction, suddenly he noticed Xiao Buli standing at the door wearing a wool hat and a down jacket, looking somewhat wilted.

Li Baocheng was startled. Xiao Buli was always very particular about his image, usually donning a suit and leather shoes. Why was he so casual today?

"Old Xiao, what’s wrong with you!?"

Xiao Buli turned around, glanced at Li Baocheng with a faint smile on his sickly face, "Nothing much. Just a bit of a cold, that’s all."

So that was it, Li Baocheng thought. He exchanged a few apparently concerned words with Xiao, and as the doors to the newbie zone opened, he walked in.

Xiao Buli followed Li Baocheng inside and sat down at his computer, his face regaining its seriousness. He obviously hadn’t just caught a cold. As soon as he got home yesterday, he started experimenting with the skills he had learned in the game, trying to confirm the connection between reality and the game.

Oddly enough, no matter how he experimented, Taming Skills, Emergency Dodge, and Chain Sword Strike wouldn’t work, as if the abilities he had displayed inadvertently before were just some false memories.

The only technique he could perform convincingly was Basic Swordsmanship, but he couldn’t be sure whether this was due to the game or something he learned from Gu Shaobang’s grandfather.

In the end, out of options, he switched to reverse thinking. If the changes from the game couldn’t be smoothly brought into reality, then changes from reality to the game should work. Hence, after taking a cold shower and being exposed to the cold wind for a while, Xiao Buli indeed succeeded in catching a cold.

Looking at his computer screen, Xiao Buli took a deep breath. Whether his speculation could become reality would depend on this attempt.

As he opened his computer and entered the game, with the appearance of his game character, he immediately opened the status bar. Next to the haunting DEBUFF, another DEBUFF over his character’s head made him blink in surprise, followed by a mix of shock and elation that flooded his body.

Weakness: Due to the affliction of the disease, you are in a weakened state, under which your five basic attributes are reduced by 25%.

The so-called basic attributes were Strength, stamina, physique, speed, and agility.

He didn’t know why intelligence, spiritual power, charm, and luck were not included in the basic attributes, but none of that mattered now. Xiao Buli now had confirmed something – the game indeed reflected changes in himself from reality, and conversely, his enhancements and weakenings in the game should also manifest in reality.

Despite having speculated this, discovering that it actually happened still left him speechless with astonishment. How could this be possible? What was the operating principle? Do all changes manifest?

His mind in chaos, he hesitated for a while but then decided to proceed with the next test. He went to the village’s medical hall to see Doctor Ji and chose to seek treatment.

Doctor Ji: "Ah, your illness seems quite severe. How could you be so careless? But with me here, it’s not much. Take this medicine home, boil three bowls of water down to one, and stew it once a day. You should recover in three days."

System prompt: Physician Ji recommends you purchase Qingre Powder. Do you accept?

Qingre Powder*3: A combination pack of herbal medicine for treating the common cold. Requires Cooking LV1 to use. Price/30 copper coins.

Xiao Buli hesitated, then chose to refuse. Three days was too long for experimentation.

"I was wondering if Physician Ji has a faster treatment method. I plan to leave the village soon and don’t have so much time to treat the illness," Xiao Buli typed and asked.

After pondering, Doctor Ji replied, "A faster method isn’t out of the question, but it requires me to expend a great deal of energy. If you need it, you’ll have to pay a higher fee."

System prompt: Physician Ji offers you the Qigong Disease-Curing Technique at a cost of 3 silver coins. Do you accept, yes/no?

The fee had suddenly increased tenfold. Three silver coins were equivalent to 300 copper coins, the same price as learning Basic Sword Skills. But to obtain the information he wanted, it was worth it.

Xiao Buli chose to accept the treatment. Physician Ji immediately began to gather his energy. As a soft green glow emerged around him, Physician Ji’s expression grew intense; it seemed somewhat like a casting animation. Xiao Buli clicked on Physician Ji, and the casting time showed as 10 seconds, quite a lengthy process indeed.

The green light gradually concentrated in Physician Ji’s hands and, with a firm push, the green light enveloped Xiao Buli. As the light faded, the DEBUFF above Xiao Buli’s character vanished and his attributes returned to normal.

It was truly miraculous. Xiao Buli thought as he shook his head; his head still ached. Why hadn’t it worked? Might it take some time to become effective? Lu Jiang seemed to have died the evening after he was killed in the game. Xiao Buli estimated that the effect should take somewhere between 3 to 10 hours to manifest.

"Physician Ji, you have such amazing skills. I’m very interested in medical treatment. I wonder if I could have the honor of learning this technique?"

Physician Ji shook his head and said, "To learn the Disease-Expelling Skills, one first needs to master Primary Qigong, which I also acquired only after expending a great deal of effort and enduring many hardships. It won’t be easy for you to learn it."

Xiao Buli was slightly disappointed, but he didn’t get discouraged. He understood that such things were bound to have restrictions.

"May I know what are the prerequisite conditions for Primary Qigong?" he asked.

Doctor Ji replied, "One needs a physique and willpower that surpasses that of normal people."

Physique probably refers to physical strength, and willpower must mean spiritual power.

Xiao Buli’s spiritual power was at 13 points. He wasn’t sure if that was enough, "Then, where can one learn Primary Qigong?" he continued to inquire.

Doctor Ji replied, "You can learn it at the martial arts schools in Nine Dragons City, but you need to pay a hefty tuition fee."

So that was the case. Xiao Buli understood somewhat. Previously, when he had asked the militia captain where he could learn more advanced Swordsmanship, the captain had said the same thing—it seemed that one really only had the opportunity to learn truly high-level skills in the big cities. This village merely provided some clues related to skills.

In the morning, Xiao Buli continued to learn Grazing. By noon, he had finally raised his Grazing Skill to LV10 and successfully comprehended level 4 Taming Skills. His Wild Beast Knowledge also advanced to a new level, reaching LV2, and he improved by 1 point in both physique and Movement Speed attributes. Looking at his Attributes, they seemed quite impressive.

After the first phase ended—

Character Name: Xiao Buli.

Occupation: Herdsman/Swordsmanship Apprentice.

Intelligence: 13.—You have relatively high comprehension, extremely strong analytical ability, and average memory.

Strength: 11.—Optimal carrying capacity 55 pounds, maximum carrying capacity 110 pounds, base attack power 11. (One point of Strength corresponds to a carrying capacity of five pounds and one point of attack power.)

Speed: 13—Thanks to long-term training, your running speed is quite fast. (Speed determines Movement Speed and attack speed.)

Agility: 14—You have a pair of very dexterous hands. (Agility determines hit rate and evasion probability.)

Stamina: 13.—Stamina Points 130 (1 point of Stamina corresponds to 10 Stamina Points).

Physique: 12.—Health Points 120. (1 point of Physique corresponds to 10 Health Points).

Charm: 12.—You’re quite good-looking.

Spirit: 13.—You possess spirituality that surpasses ordinary people.

Luck: 7 (?2).—Your luck is terrible.

Skills—

Life Skills: Breeding LV10, Grazing LV10, Harvesting LV10.

Knowledge Skills: Wild Beast Knowledge LV2.

Combat Skills: One-handed Sword Specialization LV3 (Passive), Chain Sword Strike LV2, Basic Swordsmanship LV3, Emergency Dodge LV1.

The bell for the lunch break suddenly rang.

Xiao Buli stood up from his chair, surprisingly without feeling dizzy. Could his illness have already healed? He shook his head and felt no discomfort. After walking around, he didn’t experience any unusual sensations.

It seemed his cold had indeed been cured, which was something that couldn’t be explained by human immunity alone, especially considering he hadn’t taken any medicine from start to finish.

It looked like this game could indeed directly remodel one’s own body. The thought struck him with both shock and joy. Although he still didn’t understand the underlying principle, he knew he had discovered an earth-shattering secret.

Now was the time to proceed with the next step of his plan!

PS: There will be another chapter tonight.