The team continued their westward journey through the Stone Forest.

The terrain became increasingly rugged; the paths between the stone pillars were sometimes as wide as a plaza and sometimes so narrow that one had to squeeze through sideways.

The sulfurous smell in the air gradually faded, replaced by an old scent—a mixture of dust and decay.

After walking for about half an hour, Jian Yan, who was scouting ahead, suddenly made a warning gesture.

Everyone stopped immediately and took cover behind the stone pillars.

"Three o'clock direction, two Hard-Shelled Beasts," Jian Yan whispered, observing through a gap in the pillars. "They're gnawing on the skeleton of some unknown creature."

【Hard-Shelled Beast (Lv6)】

【Traits: High defense, slow movement, sharp beak piercing attack】

These were the exact monsters Zhao Hu's team had encountered before, the ones that caused Lao Liu's death!

They looked like pangolins magnified several times, their bodies covered in thick, grayish-brown bone plates. They were skilled at burrowing and ramming, possessing extremely high defense but relatively sluggish movements.

Zhao Hu looked at Lin Feng: "Want to try the new spear?"

Lin Feng nodded and unslung the Wildfire Spear from his back. Its dark red shaft still shimmered faintly in the dim light.

"Tie Dun, pin them down from the left flank; Shadow Snake, harass them from the right; Jian Yan, prepare to shoot at the joint gaps."

Zhao Hu quickly issued orders. "Lin Feng, you're the main attacker. Target the eyes and the connection to the belly—those are the few weak points in a Hard-Shelled Beast's defense."

The team deployed quietly.

The two Hard-Shelled Beasts were nearly two meters long. They were buried in their meal, gnawing on the skeletal remains of a long-decayed deer-like creature, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

Tie Dun was the first to charge out, his heavy footsteps immediately alerting the Hard-Shelled Beasts.

They raised their heads, revealing small eyes and mouths filled with sharp teeth.

"Roar!" The Hard-Shelled Beast on the left let out a low, threatening growl, its limbs pawing the ground before it charged at Tie Dun.

But Tie Dun suddenly turned ten meters away, circling to the side.

At the same time, Shadow Snake darted out from the right flank like a ghost, her short blade slashing across the hind leg joint of the other Hard-Shelled Beast with a piercing screech.

-14!

The damage was low, but it successfully drew its attention.

Now!

Lin Feng advanced from the front, the Wildfire Spear transforming into a streak of dark red light that stabbed directly toward the right Hard-Shelled Beast's eye!

With his General instincts combined with 10.5 Agility, this thrust was as fast as lightning.

The spear tip dipped slightly at the last moment, accurately piercing three inches below the eye—the gap connecting the skull and the neck armor!

【Attack Calculation: Total Attack Power 62.5】

【Target Defense: Joint Defense 6】

【Damage Dealt: 56.5】

-57!

The spear tip sank half a foot deep! Dark red blood sprayed out!

The Hard-Shelled Beast let out a pained roar, thrashing its head wildly in an attempt to break free.

But Lin Feng's hand on the spear was as steady as a rock; instead, he used the momentum of the thrashing to twist and churn the spear shaft!

-44! -51! -52!

Secondary damage!

The Hard-Shelled Beast's health bar was instantly emptied.

【Participated in killing Lv6 Hard-Shelled Beast, Damage Contribution 80%, gained 48 experience points】

Experience reached (283/300).

Seeing this, the other Hard-Shelled Beast abandoned Tie Dun and lowered its head to charge fiercely—this was their signature skill, 'Savage Charge.' If hit head-on, even someone with Lin Feng's physique would be sent flying.

But Lin Feng was prepared.

When the Hard-Shelled Beast was five meters away, he abruptly pulled back his spear and retreated, while simultaneously stepping out to the front-left.

His 10.5 Agility allowed him to sidestep like the wind. The Hard-Shelled Beast brushed past his leather armor and slammed heavily into the stone pillar behind him.

Boom!

The stone pillar shook, and rubble rained down.

The Hard-Shelled Beast fell into a brief state of dizziness.

A perfect opportunity!

Lin Feng stepped back and turned, the Wildfire Spear sweeping upward diagonally. The tip slashed across the Hard-Shelled Beast's relatively soft belly—the connection between the back armor and the belly plates.

-49! -52!

Two thrusts, accurately hitting the same spot!

At this moment, Jian Yan's Armor-Piercing Arrows arrived as well; three arrows in a triangular formation struck the hind leg joint gaps of the first Hard-Shelled Beast.

-14! -15! -13!

Shadow Snake moved like a venomous serpent, her twin blades focusing on weak points like joints and eye sockets.

When its health bar dropped to 10%, a sudden change occurred!

The Hard-Shelled Beast suddenly reared up on its hind legs and slammed its forelimbs heavily onto the ground!

Rumble!

The ground shook, and spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the floor within a five-meter radius of the Hard-Shelled Beast!

This was its deathbed skill, 'Earth-Cracking Shock,' which would cause all enemies within range to fall into a brief state of imbalance.

Lin Feng felt the ground sway beneath him, and his stance immediately became unstable.

The Hard-Shelled Beast seized the opportunity, opened its toothy maw, and lunged!

The speed of this pounce far exceeded its previous movements; /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ it was clearly using every last bit of its strength.

He couldn't dodge!

A fierce glint flashed in Lin Feng's eyes. He simply stopped trying to dodge, gripped the spear with both hands, sank into a firm stance, and funneled all his strength into the shaft for a plain, direct thrust!

Trading injury for a life!

The tip of the Wildfire Spear collided with the Hard-Shelled Beast's sharp teeth in mid-air.

Crack!

Two of the Hard-Shelled Beast's front teeth shattered, but its momentum remained unchecked as it bit toward Lin Feng's shoulder.

Simultaneously, the Wildfire Spear plunged into the Hard-Shelled Beast's wide-open mouth, piercing through its throat!

【Participated in killing Lv6 Hard-Shelled Beast, Damage Contribution 60%, gained 36 experience points】

【Experience bar is full】

【Level Up: 3 → 4】

【Gained Free Attribute Point: 1】

Experience reached (19/350).

A warm current surged through his body, and the pain from his wound noticeably lessened.

Lin Feng leaned on his spear, panting. The wound on his left shoulder was still seeping blood, but it was no longer a major issue.

"The spear is good, and the man using it isn't bad either." Tie Dun walked over, grinning. "That clash just now was ruthless! I like it!"

Shadow Snake silently handed over a roll of clean bandages. Jian Yan had already begun inspecting the Hard-Shelled Beast's corpse.

"Are you alright?" Zhao Hu walked over quickly.

"Just a flesh wound." Lin Feng shook his head, looking at the Hard-Shelled Beast's corpse on the ground, then at the Wildfire Spear in his hand.

In that clash just now, the Wildfire Spear had displayed staggering piercing power. If he had been using that previous white-grade long saber, it would likely have been difficult to pierce through the Hard-Shelled Beast's mouth and throat in one hit. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

More importantly, he had leveled up!

Lin Feng thought to himself that since he had already revealed part of his strength, there was no need to hide it anymore.

What he needed now was even higher attack power to deal with more dangerous enemies in the upcoming exploration.

Without any hesitation, he directly allocated it in his mind: "Put it all into Strength."

The attribute panel updated instantly:

【Name: Lin Feng】

【Level: 4 (19/350)】

【Class: General (Junior)】

【HP: 170/175】

【Attributes:】

Constitution: 7.5 (Base 5 + Generals Majesty 50% bonus)

Strength: 9 (Base 6 + Generals Majesty 50% bonus)

Agility: 10.5 (Base 7 + Generals Majesty 50% bonus)

【Free Attribute Points: 0】

【Skills: Generals Majesty (Passive)】

【Leadership: 0/100】

His Strength reached 9! His base attack power increased to 45, and combined with the 25 attack points from the Wildfire Spear, his total attack power reached a staggering 70!

If he encountered that Hard-Shelled Beast again, a single thrust would deal over 60 points of damage!

The team continued deeper to the west.

Over the next two hours, they encountered several more waves of monsters: Poisonous Rock Scorpions (Lv5) crawling out of stone crevices, Shadow Bats (Lv4) lurking in the shadows, and a small group of Hard-Shelled Beasts (Lv6).

With Lin Feng acting as a spearhead with explosive attack power, the battles became much easier.

In his hands, the Wildfire Spear truly lived up to its name, sweeping through the enemies like a prairie fire.

Against the Poisonous Rock Scorpions, the length of the spear allowed him to pierce them from outside the reach of their venomous tails;

Against the Shadow Bats, the reaction speed provided by his 10.5 Agility allowed him to accurately strike the high-speed flying targets;

Against the Hard-Shelled Beasts, the 70 attack power made the thick bone armor as flimsy as paper, often allowing him to finish one off in two or three thrusts.

【Assisted in killing Lv5 Poisonous Rock Scorpion, gained 30 experience points】

【Independently killed Lv4 Shadow Bat x3, gained 60 experience points】

【Assisted in killing Lv6 Hard-Shelled Beast x2, gained 70 experience points】

His experience points steadily grew to (179/350).

The team's pace increased as a result. Uncle Wu marked monster distribution points, safe passages, and danger zones on the map as they walked.

After another half hour or so, the light ahead suddenly became brighter.

The density of the stone pillars began to decrease, the path gradually widened, and the rock crevices overhead expanded, allowing more daylight to shine through.

"We're almost out!" Jian Yan climbed up the last tall stone pillar and looked into the distance, his voice filled with excitement. "There's a plain ahead! We've made it through the Stone Forest!"

The team's spirits lifted, and they quickened their pace.

In the final few dozen meters, the stone pillars became sparse and eventually disappeared entirely.

As Lin Feng stepped out of the last patch of stone shadows and stood at the edge of the Stone Forest, the sight before him took his breath away.

It was a vast, boundless plain.