Alone and Infinite

Li Xia pulled the entire black arrow out of the lake. Even after being submerged in water for decades, there was still no trace of rust on the black arrow.

The arrowhead is a flat rhombus shape with two strands twisted together, and the arrow shaft is very long, about 1.8 meters.

The tail feathers are also metallic, gleaming coldly, inexplicably reminding one of a wire brush.

The Black Arrow Li Xia is actually quite familiar. In the original story, Bard used the Black Arrow to accomplish the feat of killing Smaug, and was given the title 'Bard the Dragon Slayer'.

This also laid the foundation for his later coronation as king.

Great equipment! Aside from the slightly high cooldown time, it has almost no drawbacks. It's a pity I can't use it right now.

Li Xia stroked the black arrow. The requirements were really high. A strength requirement of 14 points was one thing, but a bow with a weight of over 300 pounds was just outrageous.

A normal person can only draw a bow weighing around 30-40 pounds. In ancient times, being able to draw a bow with a weight of one stone was considered quite brave.

A hard bow with a weight of one stone is approximately 100 pounds, and 300 pounds is equivalent to 3 stones.

My own yew bow weighs only about 70 pounds, so I can't use black arrows at all.

Li Xia suspected that the purple greatbow in Bard's possession weighed only about 300 pounds, barely meeting the minimum standard for using black arrows.

The real weapon that could unleash the power of the Black Arrow was something like a ballista, but unfortunately, such a weapon was completely unsuitable for carrying around.

It seems we'll need to find a strong bow.

After storing the black arrow in his personal space, Li Xia loosened the small stone anchor tied to his waist and began to swim upwards.

With a "splash," the sound of water breaking filled the air, instantly invigorating the spirit.

Number 1 and Number 2 were very perceptive and pulled him up. Li Xia didn't know if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the two archers were a little smarter than before.

After drying off, I picked up the small hand warmer, and its warm heat instantly enveloped my entire body.

Li Xia suppressed his excitement and said in a low voice, "Let's go back!"

Nothing in the night

Perhaps due to the intense stimulation of the previous day, Li Xia slowly opened her eyes and woke up only when the sun shone through the window onto her face.

He opened his mouth and yawned, stretching and making crackling sounds from his body.

Just as he was about to call a few of his followers to go out for a bite to eat, he discovered that the archers he had summoned were gathered in a group.

Li Xia squeezed through out of curiosity and saw Number 1 and Number 2 standing tall and laughing, chuckling to themselves, while one hand kept fiddling with the small cloth bag hanging from their waist.

Numbers 3 through 6 stood in a row, their faces completely covered by masks, with only their eyes showing.

But the only pair of eyes that were visible held an unusually obvious envy.

Seeing this scene, Li Xia couldn't help but smile, but as she smiled, she felt something was off.

Aren't these two, Number 1 and Number 2, a little too agile?

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1. Monthly pass 2. Recommendation vote

Chapter 46 The Dragon Strikes

I quickly brought up the attribute panels for numbers 1 and 2, and upon closer inspection, they were indeed slightly different from the initial ones.

[Name: No. 1 (No. 2)]

[Category: Summoning - Followers]

[Status: In progress of level promotion]

[Attribute: Standard Template - Long Lake Town Guard]

Strength: 8 (Under Improvement)

Dexterity: 6 (Under Improvement)

Intelligence: 4 (Under Development)

[Spirit: 4 (Under Improvement)]

Physique: 6 (Under Improvement)

[Skills: Basic Archery LV3 (Slightly Proficient), Curved Shot LV2 (Beginner), Rapid Fire LV2 (Beginner)]

[Feature: Profit Sharing (You will receive 50% of the contribution points from follower kills)]

[You cannot leave this world]

[Evaluation: Even summoned creatures with only basic intelligence will gradually awaken their dormant souls after experiencing battle.]

After the explanation in the hall, Li Xia realized that this basic unit was very similar to the units in Red Alert. If they survived a battle, they could gain something similar to 'experience points'.

They are all invisible, but once enough are accumulated, they will undergo an 'awakening,' which means leveling up.

The maximum upgrade level is three, and currently, No. 1 and No. 2 are transforming from ordinary archers to elite archers.

This wasn't just the case for the human faction; it was the same for other factions as well, only Li Xia, who hadn't bought the data, didn't know it.

When Li Xia arrived at the guard's quarters with his six followers, he found that there were actually a few more people in the human camp, and he wondered if they had been provoked by him.

They accepted quite a few faction missions, but they were all solo missions that Li Xia no longer considered worthwhile. They even exchanged several recruitment tokens that cost 100 contribution points each.

Upon seeing Li Xia arrive, Old Joel waved warmly in greeting.

"Good day, Xia. I don't know why, but the Changhu Town Guard has never been this popular. Even the security guard has gained several members."

"It's not a bad thing, old Joel. Do you have any missions that would suit me?"

"Of course, I've got everything prepared for you, buddy!"

Li Xia glanced at the task panel and accepted all the tasks suitable for the team in one go; there weren't many in total.

Silently calculating in his mind, it seemed that even so, the contribution points would barely be enough to exchange for the second tier, but still far from enough to exchange for the most valuable Enlightenment Potion.

Even if you include all the contribution points from the recruitment order, it's not enough.

Li Xia believed that the Hall of Light would not be so bored as to put unredeemable items into the reward pool.

Therefore, there should be public open tasks as a channel for contributing points in the future?

With the next phase of the main quest opening in just 3 days, perhaps another source of contribution points will be found within the main quest.

"Whoosh-"

Arrows flew, piercing deep into the beast's body. The wolf, as small as a calf, let out a painful howl and collapsed, trembling.

Six archers stood in a row, like six rifles, keeping the wolf pack at a distance and preventing them from advancing an inch.

Occasionally, a few arrows would cross the line, at which point Number 1 and Number 2 would suddenly increase their speed, and the arrows would fly out as if they were connected end to end.

Li Xia can simply stay in the back and collect contribution points without lifting a finger, which highlights the importance of early-stage investment.

Sometimes, spending contribution points is more efficient than holding onto them tightly.

However, he wasn't just slacking off; he also took out his purple bow and began consciously practicing archery.

Basic archery is not the same as basic shooting. Li Xia had previously thought that the two skills could be combined with what he learned in martial arts.

But this is destined to remain just wishful thinking, or perhaps there are some hidden conditions that haven't been met.

The five arrows that come with the Purple Robe Bow are contributed one by five points, so of course they are not used. The arrows for the six followers are also bought from the market in Changhu Town.

Although its power is reduced by one level, it is cheap and comes in large quantities; a bundle of fifty costs only one gold coin.

With the purple bow drawn, Li Xia's arm holding the bow and the arm drawing the bow were in the same horizontal line, and his feet were spread to the side. At this moment, Li Xia's posture was just as perfect as that of a beginner who had just started learning archery.

"whoosh"

The arrow flew out and hit the wolf squarely in the rump. The wolf howled and jumped around in place like a madman.

The other wolves were startled and even whimpered softly, showing an urge to retreat.

"Hehehehe"

Number 1 and Number 2 put down their bows and arrows and made some strange gestures towards Li Xia, seemingly expressing their amazement. They couldn't speak, but only used those strange 'hehe' sounds to express themselves.

Those two "hehe"s were envied by the other four archers, because they couldn't even utter such a "hehe".

Li Xia awkwardly lowered his bow and arrow, nodding slightly as if he were very satisfied with the shot.

He was actually aiming for the other wolf's head.

Next, Li Xia's arrows seemed to have their own thoughts, soaring freely and unpredictably.

The two generals' "hehe" sounds echoed throughout the venue, while the other four, who were not good with words, also mumbled quite energetically.

In short, the atmosphere was very entertaining.

Over the next two days, Li Xia led his six generals on missions for the camp.

The power of the six archers should not be underestimated. Even if some of them are difficult to kill with arrows alone, they can be easily wiped out by Li Xia taking out his spear to block them.

If it weren't for the excessive travel time, Li Xia could have completed all these team tasks in a single day.

However, these missions no longer feature enemies like Porphyrus; most are now filled with beasts, ogres, and the like.

Aside from some materials, there weren't many treasure chests, but considering the contribution points, it wasn't too bad.

As the sun gradually set, Li Xia returned to Changhu Town once again.

When he arrived at the garrison to hand over the mission, he discovered that the apostles who had joined the human camp were also there, seemingly as a small team.

The five apostles were both men and women, and each of them had two guards standing behind them, though they were noticeably more rigid than Li Xia's.

Perhaps it's because these people joined the security guard, while Li Xia joined the archer guard.

Their entourage carried spears, not bows and arrows.

Li Xia withdrew her gaze and walked towards the notice board.

But a figure suddenly blocked her way. Li Xia looked up and saw a woman from that small team; she was quite good-looking.

But her pretty face was icy cold as she said:

"What do you mean? You cleared all the faction quests. Isn't that a bit selfish?"

Li Xia acted as if she didn't see her at all, walking right past her and handing over all the tasks.

Your contribution points have now reached 1100, and your reputation level has reached Revered.

"What, feeling guilty? Enjoying clearing out the faction quests, huh?"

Li Xia paused, looking at her with an expression as if she were an idiot:

"If you had joined before me, would you have left the tasks to me?"

"you!"

The woman wanted to say something, but Li Xia glanced at her indifferently, and then it seemed as if the words were stuck in her throat, and she couldn't say them no matter what.

My sixth sense was screaming warnings, as if the man would kill me if I spoke.

At that moment, a notification from the Temple of Light suddenly appeared before all the apostles.

The Dwarven faction has completed all faction quests, and Thorin Oakenshield has arrived at Lonely Mountain ahead of schedule.

Smaug, the last dragon of the Third Age, was awakened.

[Second phase of main quest begins ahead of schedule]

Main Quest: The Battle of Smaug

[Mission Objective: Survive to the end]

[Warning: Smaug is coming soon!]

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1. Monthly pass 2. Recommendation vote

Chapter 47 The Seed of Determined Life

Smaug?

All the apostles stared in astonishment at the white-glowing text before them, but the hall's notifications continued to refresh like a flowing stream.

[Second Phase Main Quest: The Battle of Smaug]