Chapter 22 - Iron Antler Deer

Seeing that the bear is not conscious anymore, Xue Yang takes a closer look at the bear. And he found that the bear has stopped breathing.

"It is dead," muttered Xue Yang.

Xue Yang breathes a sigh of relief and lay his body down on the ground. His body is drenched with sweat. He also feels pain in numerous parts of his body.

The most painful part is around his right chest. It received a full attack from the bear's arm.

Xue Yang inspect the bruised part of his chest. It is starting to become reddish. That means some of his blood cells were destroyed because of the impact.

Using Spiritual Energy, he checked if his bone or inner organ was also damaged. Luckily it looks like no bones are damaged.

Light injuries like this are easy to get healed. One needs to pour Spiritual Energy and guide the body to repair the damaged part. Of course, the healing process will not be instant, but it is still faster than letting it heal naturally.

Xue Yang's injury will need a day or two to get fully healed. Faster than if he let it heal naturally, which will take around a week. The process can be cut even more if he has some medicinal pills.

"How long was the fight? How much time I have left for the quest?"

[Golden Scaled Catfish (Quest Active)

Objective: Catch 30 Golden Scaled Catfish (28/30)

Time limit: 1 hour (0 hour 17 minutes)

Reward: 200 system points

Penalty: A magical beast with the strength of a level 4 Cultivator will be summoned to this location]

"5 minutes? That fast? I was overthinking it, huh…."

Before he fought the bear, Xue Yang estimated that he would need at least ten minutes to finish it. He didn't think he could finish it in less than half his estimation.

"While I overestimated the time needed, I still underestimated how much energy I need."

Xue Yang then sits down in a lotus position. He cycles his remaining Spiritual Energy around his body. That Spiritual Energy also stimulates the healing of his injured chest.

Xue Yang then does it for a few minutes until the soreness and pain in his body lessened a little.

…

"Okay, I still have 14 minutes to search for that fish," said Xue Yang.

He pours Spiritual Energy into his eyes and sees the world in more detail.

Looking at the pond, there is still no Golden Scaled Catfish in sight. Xue Yang decided to look at crevices and move some medium-sized rocks. Only after doing that for three minutes, he sighted one Golden Scaled Catfish.

Xue Yang quickly catches it and throws it to the land.

"Last one!" shouted Xue Yang. He pumped up himself so that he can endure looking for the last fish.

***

[Quest Completed]

[200 System Point has been sent]

Along with the sound, the scattered 30 bodies of Golden Scaled Catfish are starting to disappear.

Xue Yang didn't care about the 200 System Points. His objective in finishing the quest is to prevent the summoning of the magical beast. He is sure that he has no chance of winning against that.

Xue Yang looked at the body of Jadeclaw Black Bear.

"What should I do with this?"

He knows that many body parts of the Jadeclaw Black Bear are valuable. But he didn't have any means to bring it along. Especially as he still needs to finish his quest, searching for the Iron Antler Deer.

Xue Yang suddenly gets enlightenment. "If I remember it right, there is a Dimensional Ring in the system store?"

A Dimensional Ring is an item that can store other items using another space. It is usually shaped like a ring. But there are many other shapes used, and a bag is another standard shape.

Xue Yang found a few Dimensional Rings that were sold. They were pricey, and the cheapest Dimensional Ring cost around 50 Grade 3 Spirit Stones.

"There is no way I can buy it now," said Xue Yang.

As of now, Xue Yang has around 300 Grade 2 Spirit Stones. Combined with the 200 System Points he just got, he has about 500 Grade 2 Spirit Stones. A very small amount if compared to 50 Grade 3 Spirit Stones.

"I also need to save these to buy the Spirit Essence Lotus Flower."

Xue Yang has not forgotten why he is here right now. He should finish the quest and get money to fix the problem of Guo's brother and sister.

"It is sad, but I can only leave that bear's body here."

Xue Yang then left again to search for the Iron Antler Deer.

***

Xue Yang finally finds an Iron Antler Deer when the day is almost over. The orange glow brings the last warmth of the day. From now on, the forest will be dark and cold until the sun comes over again the next day.

Just like its name, an Iron Antler Deer has its antler made of iron-like material. It can even reflect light like some metal. Of course, it got its name from its appearance. But that is not all that it has. Its antler is as strong as an iron. If they wanted, their strong antler could easily fell some trees down.

"Finally!" said Xue Yang when he detected a lone Iron Antler Deer walking through the trees.

He quickly prepares himself. Holding his cheap sword in his right hand, he is creeping toward the deer. He tried to make no sound before making a surprise attack, killing it in one slash.

Unlike the Jadeclaw Black Bear, this deer didn't have thick fur. A powerful slash from Xue Yang should be able to end the deer.

Xue Yang walks very carefully. He didn't forget to erase his presence. When he thought that the distance is small enough, Xue Yang lurched and slashed toward the neck of the deer. And as he had expected, the sword went through its neck, ending the deer in a single step.

[Quest requirement fulfilled]

[Penalty has been lifted]

[Quest will remain active until the time limit end]

[Appraising Iron Antler Deer]

[779 System Points have been transferred]

***

[Iron Antler Deer (Active Quest) (No Penalty)

Objective: Catch an Iron Antler Deer. Maximum 10 Iron Antler Deer. (1 out of 10)

Time limit: 6 days 10 hours 23 minutes

Reward: Approximately 800 system points. The reward may vary depending on quality.

Penalty: Penalty lifted]