Chapter Sixty-Six: Massive Attribute Boost (Please Follow)

Eleven days later, at dusk.

The autumn wind swept through, dispersing the heavy scent of blood that hung over the tribe. Standing at the center of the vast encampment, Chu Cheng surveyed the ground littered with orc corpses and couldn’t help clicking his tongue in astonishment.

This was a large orc tribe with nearly two thousand inhabitants; it had taken him a full two hours to annihilate it.

Thanks to the conscription efforts of the Orc King's Horde, the main fighting force and chieftain of this sizable tribe—whose population once exceeded three thousand—had all departed, leaving behind only ordinary orcs and the remaining leaders, none of whom were his match.

There wasn’t even a level-40 leader left behind. How could they possibly withstand him?

With a single strike, he wiped out the entire tribe, earning a hefty eight hundred reputation points.

If the main force had been present, it would have been at least 1,500 reputation points.

Over the course of eleven days, Chu Cheng had accumulated a total of 4,600 reputation points; with the 1,200 left from before, he now had 5,800, enough to exchange for many valuable items.

In addition, he had taken down several elite bosses over level thirty, each worth a single point. Little by little, his points had grown to a total of seventeen.

As for authority, he had none.

“It’s time to head back!”

By the current timeline, the orc coalition had already assembled and could clash with the human army at any moment.

He couldn’t afford to miss this major event—after all, it meant a wealth of points, authority, and an enormous amount of reputation.

Getting back was easy; he simply crossed the wastelands.

It took him two days, with two course corrections along the way. Eventually, he glimpsed the broad, dark waters of the Blackwater River. Following the river downstream, it took only half a day to reach the great orc coalition camp built on the western banks.

Once the numbers surpassed ten thousand, the horde seemed endless—the orc coalition boasted far more than ten thousand troops.

Even after their countless massacres and destruction of foreign tribes, they still numbered over twenty thousand.

Most came from the Orc King’s Horde and the Centaur King’s Horde, as well as the powerful tribes situated near them. Proximity and strength meant that, aside from someone as extraordinary as Chu Cheng, no other team dared attack these massive tribes of over a thousand.

In other words, those missing from the orc coalition were essentially from smaller, less organized tribes—the rabble. The true elites from the great tribes were all present, and their strength remained undiminished.

When Chu Cheng returned to the northern outpost, he found the former watchpost had been transformed into a massive military camp.

Reinforcements from the Cross Fortress had already arrived, and the once-small outpost was now overflowing with soldiers; there was no longer any room for civilians.

Chu Cheng discovered that all civilian facilities and merchants had relocated outside the outpost, where many tents had been erected.

He could still enter the outpost, though he couldn’t stay there overnight.

Without hesitation, he contacted his homeroom teacher and obtained the latest intelligence report from Duan Yuqin.

The report indicated there were now four thousand soldiers stationed at the outpost. Though greatly outnumbered by the orc coalition, the human army was far better trained and equipped.

Moreover, the human forces had the support of mages. Although the archmage Erin from the Mage Tower hadn’t come in person, a team of mages led by Erin’s students accompanied the army—few in number, perhaps, but formidable.

In the standard course of events, the human army’s overall strength was not inferior to the orc coalition, despite being outnumbered several times over—indeed, it was somewhat superior.

This was the chief reason the human commander chose to engage the orcs in open battle.

The defeat, however, was due to the Orc King's Horde producing a second extraordinary-level champion.

According to the story, with the Orc King, the Centaur King, and this new extraordinary champion joining forces, they executed a decapitation tactic on the battlefield, killing the human commander and causing the human army to collapse in utter defeat.

To alter the course of the story and exert a crucial influence, one could either help the commander survive the orcs’ decapitation strike, or change the tide of battle before the commander was killed.

If the human army could rout the orcs early, putting them at a disadvantage, even if the orcs attempted the decapitation tactic, the humans could spare more forces to counter it.

The decapitation would occur two hours into the battle; thus, to change the outcome, everything would have to be accomplished within that window.

Of course, if one had the ability to stabilize the situation even after the commander’s death and the human army’s morale had collapsed, perhaps even turning defeat into victory, that would be more than a crucial influence—it would be a core reversal of the story. Such a feat would earn 200 points and 10 authority from the academy.

Along with at least ten thousand reputation points, a five-star story rating, and the chance to receive an epic-grade treasure chest, as well as a massive reward in reputation, skill points, and attribute points.

“How tempting!”

Chu Cheng was intrigued, but after careful thought, he realized it was beyond his reach.

He simply wasn’t strong enough to reverse the tide once the human army had collapsed.

A total rout would leave him to face everything alone. Any one of those three extraordinary champions could defeat him with ease.

After much deliberation, he decided to aim for a limited impact—making a key difference in the story, earning the fifty points, three authority, and a few thousand reputation.

Still, a key story influence would also earn a five-star rating and considerable rewards, though an epic-grade treasure chest was uncertain.

There might be one, or there might not.

“What a pity!”

“If only I could get my hands on an epic-grade piece of equipment, that would be incredible.”

The equipment from the reward chests always matched the recipient’s level. He was now level twenty-six, so the prize would be a level twenty-five epic item, with undeniably powerful stats.

“The decisive battle is in the next day or two. I can finally spend the attribute points I’ve saved up.”

At a thought, his attribute panel appeared.

He looked at the fifty-five free attribute points he had accumulated, then glanced over his panel, pausing in contemplation before focusing on his Constitution.

With a thought, his Constitution soared as he allocated thirty points in one go.

Next was Strength, to which he added fifteen points.

Finally, ten points went into Agility.

With the points distributed, his stats changed accordingly—

Name: Chu Cheng
Race: Human
Level: 26
Talent: Spatial Refraction LV2
Traits: Extraordinary Constitution (Epic), Extraordinary Agility (Epic)
Primary Attributes: Constitution 36+64+39 (139), Strength 36+41+36 (113), Agility 36+20+21 (77), Perception 36+2+2 (40), Intelligence 36 (36), Spirit 36 (36)
Secondary Attributes: Toughness 13+5, Reflex 11+5+2, Will 3, Health Regeneration +1+15/sec
Health: 1390+500 (1890)
Stamina: 1380
Mana: 360
Melee Attack: 113+21 (slash), 113+20 (stab)
Ranged Attack: 77+58 (pierce)
Physical Defense: 10%+13+5+12
Magic Defense: 33%
Skill Resistance: 10%
Movement Speed: 167+50

Basic Skills: Dagger Mastery, One-Handed Sword Mastery, One-Handed Axe Mastery, Gauntlet Mastery, Firearm Mastery, Bow Novice, Throwing Mastery, Dual-Wielding Expert.

Class Skills: Swiftness LV5 (Intermediate), Frenzy LV5 (Intermediate), Mighty Blow LV5 (Intermediate), Blade Storm LV2 (Advanced), Thunderous Strike LV5 (Advanced), Rising Tides LV1 (Advanced), Blood God's Body LV1 (Supreme).

Life Skills: Advanced Fishing, Basic First Aid, Basic Cooking.

For each attribute, the first number was his base stat.

The second reflected points from allocation, including those granted by the academy, earned through story quests, or gained from skills and specialties.

The third came from equipment bonuses.