Chapter 326 The "Perfect Organism" and Fog Lamp Grass

Rivervale Town, the second floor of the White Chickadee Tavern.

Xia Nan had never considered himself a narcissist.

This was true whether as a wage earner in his past life or now, after transmigrating.

He did, however, have to admit that humanity's instinctive pursuit of a survival advantage was deeply engraved into his bloodline, quietly influencing his views and actions in daily life.

He crafted rigorous training regimens and executed them with unwavering resolve. Clear, phased goals ensured that the positive feedback of completing them provided a constant driving force to keep pushing forward.

Every swing of his sword, every page of knowledge, and even every point of proficiency brought an intense sense of control over his body and life. Through sweat and growing stronger, he gradually eased the pressure and anxiety brought by this strange, otherworldly realm.

The morning sun refracted through the glass, casting water-like ripples of light across the bed, while fine dust motes danced and drifted in the air.

Returning from his morning exercise, Xia Nan had just taken a cold bath in the stream on the town's outskirts. His short, dark hair was still slightly damp, swaying gently in the breeze coming through the window.

The mirror was mottled and faintly blurred, its edges lined with copper rust, yet it still fully reflected the thoroughly tempered body standing before it:

Nearly 1.9 meters tall, his muscular frame far exceeded the human average. Standing tall and straight, he exuded a faint, oppressive aura just by being there.

His shoulders and back were broad and thick. His trapezius muscles looked like two solid bridges extending naturally from the base of his neck to his shoulders, connecting to his well-developed, full deltoids.

Prolonged swinging of his longsword had made his shoulders round and sturdy, the contraction and extension of his arm muscles putting the aesthetic beauty of raw strength on full display. His chest, thick as plate armor, carried distinct, angular contours—the result of wearing heavy armor long-term—acting as the core of his body's weight-bearing and power generation.

Further down, the distinct abdominal muscles in his core looked like overlapping, interlocking rocks. Their clear definition sank deep beneath his skin, tight enough to seemingly withstand massive blows. Running, jumping, slashing—this was the central hub where all his bodily Strength transferred.

In his past life, Xia Nan was not enthusiastic about working out. Or rather, he hadn't had the time and energy to sweat it out on gym equipment.

Perhaps back in his student days he had known what a healthy, vibrant body felt like, but a few short years after graduation, toiling day and night in a busy job had buried his somewhat defined muscle contours under a thick layer of fat, rendering his original shape unrecognizable.

Now, it had been over a year since he transmigrated to the Aifala Continent.

His daily, grueling training, his gradually improving physical constitution, and even the elevated life tier brought by the Ember energy currently flowing through his body were all driving his form toward becoming a "perfect organism."

He stood quietly before the mirror, gazing at his muscular, shirtless upper body, carefully sensing the lean, powerful frame he had honed through day after day of training and slaughter.

An inexplicable sense of accomplishment welled up from the depths of Xia Nan's heart.

His chest rose and fell with long, steady breaths.

Perhaps reminded by the gradually rising bustle from the street outside the window, Xia Nan turned around, picked up the dry shirt folded neatly on his bed, gave it a couple of shakes, and pulled it on.

The slightly loose, soft, dark fabric draped over his skin, hiding the tight muscles beneath from view and leaving only faint contours shifting under the folds of the cloth.

He lifted his metallic, gleaming Fine Chainmail with both hands and let it weigh heavily down on him amid the clinking of links. It fell like a waterfall of steel cascading over his head, its weight distributing evenly across his chest and shoulders, pressing tightly against his inner shirt.

Bending down, he strapped the finely textured, light-gray greaves tightly around his legs one by one, feeling the distinct, snug wrap of the hard leather.

His right hand reached for the Pitch-Black Arm Shield on the desk nearby. He slipped his left arm through the inner straps, and with a crisp snap of the buckle, it clung tightly to the muscles and bones of his forearm.

He rubbed and adjusted the two Silver Rings on his right index and ring fingers, then gently lifted the necklace resting outside his chainmail. He carefully tucked its crystal-clear, emerald teardrop pendant inside his shirt, leaving only a subtle metal chain faintly visible through the gap between his chainmail and collar, pressing against the skin of his neck.

Finally, Xia Nan reached for the two longswords leaning against his bed. The straight sword was cold and dark, the wooden sword flexible and resilient. Both were already sheathed. He skillfully crossed them left and right, and with a soft clack, he fastened the scabbard straps, turning the two blades into an X on his back.

When he looked into the mirror again, the reflection was no longer that "perfect organism" displaying the bare beauty of strength. Instead, it was an entity armed to the teeth, steady and deadly—a cold construct of steel and flesh, like a killing machine.

Checking one last time to ensure nothing was left behind, Xia Nan grabbed the supply pack he had readied by the door, pushed it open, and headed downstairs.

It had been seven days since he returned to the town with the Blackwood Squad.

Both Association quests had been fully settled.

Just as he had expected, they totaled 703 gold.

Combined with the profits from selling miscellaneous loot and devil-related materials, his total earnings for the trip reached an astonishing 901 gold, 6 silver, and 2 copper.

However, before this money could even warm his hands, it was transferred straight into the bank account of the Rockhammer Smithy.

He had previously paid a 1,000-gold deposit. The moment his quest rewards arrived, Xia Nan immediately paid off the remaining 2,000-gold balance for the [Ember Fall] straight sword.

His savings plummeted accordingly, dropping from four digits to a mere 430 gold, 2 silver, and 1 copper—which also accounted for the 50 gold deducted to buy his chainmail.

It seemed like quite a bit, enough to live comfortably in town for a while.

But in reality, Xia Nan was still in debt.

After all, the new custom armor, primarily crafted from the Barbed Devil Longblade, was still in the forging process.

According to Barn's estimates, the finished piece would cost between 500 and 600 gold, roughly the same tier as the [Bone-Binding Iron Shell] greaves he was currently wearing.

Compared to his arm shield and straight sword, it wasn't overly expensive, but it still far exceeded his current savings.

Fortunately, as an old customer who had just completed such a massive transaction, Barn had started the forging process without even collecting a deposit. This left Xia Nan with ample financial breathing room to purchase supplies for his adventures.

Compared to the exaggerated debt pressure from his [Blazing Fall] straight sword, Xia Nan's current deficit was only about one or two hundred gold. With a bit of luck, he could earn it back in a month.

His stress plummeted.

And for this, he had already made the appropriate plans.

"Creak, creak."

Accompanied by the faint grinding of metal, the wooden stairs let out dull creaks beneath his heavy footsteps.

Xia Nan walked down from the second floor, his gaze sweeping briefly across the tavern hall.

Immediately, a familiar figure caught his eye.

Not noticeably different from when they last met a few days ago, "Greenblood" Adeline was still in her usual messy getup. Her once roughly-shorn short hair had grown out slightly, but it remained shorter than Xia Nan's. Seeing how unkempt it looked, she clearly hadn't grown it out on purpose; she was just too lazy to manage it.

As if she had just returned from a quest, bloodstains lingered on the surface of her armor.

He didn't even need to look closely. Just the lingering scent on her and the color of the dried blood on her armor were enough to tell him it belonged to those green-skinned goblins.

He greeted the tavern owner, Chapton, behind the counter and ordered a classic Set Meal No. 3 with cream mushroom soup.

Xia Nan walked straight over and sat across from Adeline.

"You've already finished your Advancement Quest, and you're still giving those green-skins a hard time?" he casually joked.

Both were Class Holders, making them highly observant. The moment Xia Nan sat down, Adeline noticed his aura had grown denser, to the point she couldn't read it.

They hadn't seen each other in a little over ten days, and it seemed... he had grown stronger again?

Though a bit surprised inwardly, she didn't show much on her face. She just curled her lip and replied, "As if you'd let those green-skins off the hook. I bet you've even memorized the exact locations of every Goblin Lair near the town."

They were old teammates who often dined together during their downtime between quests, knowing each other well. Naturally, Adeline was well aware of the dark-haired young man's seemingly eccentric hobbies.

"What have you been busy with lately? Still the same old stuff?"

Playing with the Silver Ring on his index finger, Xia Nan sat in his seat waiting for his breakfast.

With nothing to hide, Adeline spooned some broth into her mouth and gave a slight nod.

"Even though I've attained a Class Level now, those boys in my party are still far from it. I'm the one who brought them into this line of work, so I can't just abandon them—I wouldn't feel right about it."

"I plan to lead them for a while longer. I'm not in a hurry for money anyway. Goblin-related quests might not pay much for a Class Holder, but it's enough for me."

"We'll see how things go once they can stand on their own two feet in town. When that time comes, whether they keep following me or make other plans, I'll be fine with it."

Hearing this, Xia Nan fell noticeably silent.

Even his fingers, which had been tracing the surface of his ring, slowed to a stop.

At this moment, he wasn't thinking about any goblins.

Instead, he thought of that green rookie who used to stubbornly stiffen his neck, terrified yet still standing on the front lines of battle; the grizzled veteran who gradually succumbed to the corrupting temptations of the trade and lost his original drive; and the bottom-rung adventurer who ultimately pressed his thumbprint onto a devil's contract right in front of him.

If Abi hadn't chosen to leave the party back then and had stayed with the "Greenblood" squad instead, would his fate have been completely different? Might there even be one more person sitting across the table right now?

But he was already completely dead, rendering all hypotheses meaningless.

"What's wrong? Under a lot of pressure lately?" Adeline asked with a hint of confusion, seeming to notice Xia Nan's abrupt silence.

Pondering for a moment, he decided he shouldn't keep the matter a secret.

Xia Nan paused briefly to organize his thoughts, then recounted the encounters of his last quest, telling her about the Blackwood Squad, the devil, and Abi.

Immediately, Adeline's expression visibly froze.

She didn't rush to question the truth of the story, nor did she eagerly press for the specific details of what had happened.

Instead, she just stared at Xia Nan in silence, an incredibly serious look in her somewhat cloudy eyes.

It was only when she saw the absolute sincerity and candor in his gaze that she abruptly lowered her head again.

The spoon in her hand stirred ripples across the surface of her soup.

After a long while, accompanied by a forlorn sigh, Adeline's somewhat hoarse voice drifted across the table.

"What a shame..."

It wasn't as if Adeline hadn't paid attention to how Abi changed after leaving the team.

In fact, she had discussed it during her earlier casual chats with Xia Nan.

She knew that this once-rookie adventurer had already been stained by the murky colors of the industry's massive melting pot.

She just hadn't expected things to happen so fast, so suddenly.

For a time, the atmosphere at the table grew solemn and cold.

Partings and death were things adventurers had long grown used to, and that went double for "Greenblood" Adeline, who had worked in the trade for years.

Knowing she just needed a little time to accept the death of a former comrade, Xia Nan didn't press the matter.

He finished the mushroom soup the tavern waiter had brought over, bid her farewell, and walked out of the White Chickadee Tavern.

For the current Xia Nan, the road ahead was very clear.

Short-term goals: 1. Earn money to pay off his debts; 2. Wait for his armor to be forged.

Mid-term goals: 1. Learn a suitable new combat technique and raise his Class Level; 2. Search for intelligence regarding the encryption key for the [Dream Weaving Corridor]; 3. Find a Secret Realm to recharge the [Dream Weaving Corridor].

Long-term goal: Improve his strength as much as possible, amass wealth, and then retire comfortably.

Given his current fully armed state, having even prepared all his supplies, he was naturally heading out on a "long trip."

Of course, this so-called long trip would only take about ten days round-trip.

And considering his new armor wasn't finished forging yet, this specific quest he had chosen wouldn't present any severe danger along the way or at the destination itself.

It was essentially just running an errand for someone else.

[Quest Number]: F-30623

[Type]: Gathering [Reward]: 15-150 gold / 1-5 Points [Quest Summary]:

Lady Edwina of the Green Grass Crucible requires a reliable adventurer or party to travel to a remote canyon on the outer southwest edge of the Misty Forest to gather a special crop known as "fog lamp grass."

[Time Limit]: 15 days;

[Extra Information]: For quest details, please accept the quest at the Association's front desk, then proceed to the Verdant Crucible to consult Lady Edwina further.

Xia Nan had thought this through very carefully.

In his current state, he actually didn't want to stray too far from Rivervale Town.

After all, he was only wearing a suit of Fine Chainmail, which was slightly lacking in defense. Killing a few goblins was fine, but his margin for error in high-intensity combat had decreased.

That was until a few days ago, when he flipped through the Association's quest list after paying off the balance on his straight sword and found this quest.

To some extent, its mere "F" quest rank already indicated its actual difficulty.

Out of an abundance of caution, Xia Nan had even specifically consulted his dedicated receptionist, Molly.

He learned that Lady Edwina posted this "fog lamp grass" gathering quest almost every year, and there had never been a single adventurer casualty.

The route was clear, and even the potentially dangerous segments along the way had already been thoroughly scouted by adventurers who had taken the commission in the past.

Only then did he feel at ease accepting it.

While he was at it, he had accepted two extra goblin extermination commissions he could handle along the way.

This way, in just ten days, even if he didn't bring back any loot at all, the combined gold rewards from these commissions alone would be enough to pay off his debts and then some.

Of course, right before heading out, he still needed to make a trip to the Verdant Crucible to ask that gentle lady for some specific intelligence regarding the quest.