Chapter 11: “Good Stuff!”
????“Are you hurt?”
??Chen Fan glanced at Crippled Monkey, who stood at his side, gripping his spear so tightly his knuckles showed white.
??“No, I’m fine.”
??Crippled Monkey shook his head, still panting, his face pale with lingering fear. “Young Master, that Ghostbeast just now was at least Level 3. If it hadn’t been for those two Arrow Towers, we’d never have survived the night.”
??“Let’s get to work.”
??Chen Fan didn’t waste words. With a quick gesture, he signaled for Crippled Monkey to toss the Beast Traps into the darkness. The hunt would go on—no sense letting one monster ruin their plans.
??Now that the hulking brute had been driven off, it was back to business as usual.
??The Arrow Towers could only strike at Ghostbeasts within the Ghostfire’s range. Excellent for defense, but not much use for hunting beyond the safe zone.
??...
??An hour passed.
??Chen Fan frowned, pausing as he surveyed the empty darkness. “Looks like tonight’s a bust. Let’s head inside and get so rest. We’ll see what the morning brings.”
??Not a single Beast Trap had sprung.
??Not one Monkey-Head Ghoul had appeared.
??Sothing wasn’t right. Had the local ghouls been wiped out, or had that monstrous Ghostbeast from earlier called them away?
??He realized just how little he understood about Eternal Night.
??Especially the way things worked in this world. He desperately needed a guide—soone who could explain the rules. Here, knowledge was survival.
??He’d only just finished crafting five new Beast Traps. Now, there were no Ghostbeasts to catch.
??But wasn’t Eternal Night supposed to be crawling with monsters? Even if the Monkey-Head Ghouls had vanished, there should have been others. Why had the night suddenly turned so silent?
??Fatigue crept in. Chen Fan collapsed onto his cot and drifted into uneasy sleep.
??Three Ghoststones left.
??If he didn’t find a way to earn more soon, the Ghostfire would go out before long.
??Crippled Monkey curled up on a straw mat on the cabin floor.
??...
??“Young Master!”
??“Young Master!”
??Chen Fan was shaken from muddled dreams by Crippled Monkey’s urgent shout.
??“What is it?”
??He rolled off the bed, rubbing his eyes as he stumbled outside. Why was it that Crippled Monkey always woke before him? The man looked frail, but his stamina was sothing else.
??And then—
??The mont Chen Fan stepped out of the cabin, a grin broke across his face.
??Just a dozen ters from camp, last night’s Monkey-Head Ghoul lay sprawled in the grass, dead. Clearly, it had dragged itself into the darkness, mortally wounded, and collapsed after only a few steps.
??A few faintly glowing objects lay scattered beside its corpse.
??No surprise there—those had to be the Unique Treasures dropped by the slain Ghoul.
??Crippled Monkey was practically dancing with excitent outside the cabin. The sky was only just beginning to lighten, the darkness still clinging to the land. At this hour, there was no chance anyone else would be passing through.
??“I’m coming!”
??Chen Fan’s lips curled upward as he strode over and scooped up the two glowing items, tucking them quickly into his shirt. Good thing Crippled Monkey was an early riser—otherwise, soone might have beaten them to it.
??Of course...
??That was unlikely. Few people wandered through this patch of wilderness.
??“I’ll dig out the Ghoststones.”
??Crippled Monkey’s hands shook with excitent. He slipped his knife from its stick and began to carve into the Ghoul’s skull.
??Usually, a low-level Ghostbeast would only yield a single Ghoststone. But this Monkey-Head Ghoul was no ordinary creature. Crippled Monkey sliced open the skull and, one by one, extracted Ghoststones from the bloody cavity.
??The process was strangely reminiscent of picking out tonsil stones—each one popping out, oddly satisfying.
??Soon, all the Ghoststones were lined up neatly on the ground.
??Seventeen in total!
??With the three Ghoststones he already had, that made twenty.
??“Not bad at all.”
??Chen Fan nodded with satisfaction. “Take the Ghoul’s carcass and stash it behind the cabin with the others. We never know when it might co in handy.”
??Even if the corpse was useless, it was safer to hide it. If any passerby saw the remains of this unusual Monkey-Head Ghoul, they’d assu sothing valuable had dropped and start snooping around. That could only spell trouble.
??Most Ghostbeasts didn’t consu the flesh of their own kind.
??And humans couldn’t eat them, either.
??Aside from a few organs that could be used as Ghost Material, the rest of the corpse was usually burned on the spot.
??Only after disposing of the body did Chen Fan turn his attention to the two Unique Treasures glowing white in his hands.
??A Unique Treasure...
??Couldn’t be crafted by hand, which made it inherently valuable. Last ti, he’d killed that mother and daughter pair and obtained the Building Duplication Stone; now, he could only hope these two would be just as useful.
??“If only one of them could expand my territory—or help
generate Ghoststones on its own...”
??Chen Fan pressed his palms together, murmuring a quiet prayer.
??He was running out of space.
??A Level 1 Ghostfire only provided a safe zone ten ters across. With the Arrow Tower, cabin, and Ghostfire already inside, there was barely any room left for farmland. And if farmland wasn’t protected by the Ghostfire’s safe zone, it would be wiped out as soon as Eternal Night fell.
??He’d planned to keep farming Ghoststones by hunting with Beast Traps.
??But with the Monkey-Head Ghouls absent last night, that source of inco had dried up. Even with today’s windfall, it wouldn’t last. He needed a sustainable supply of Ghoststones.
??The first Unique Treasure was a seed, much like the Monkey-Head Mushroom Seed he’d found before.
??It was wrapped in a thin, translucent mbrane.
??—
??Unique Treasure Na: Ghoststone Vein Seed
??Treasure Grade: White
??Treasure Effect: Must be planted in ‘Farmland’. Matures in three days. Once mature, it produces Ghoststones. Requires Ghostbeast corpses as fertilizer.
??—
??“Now that’s good stuff!”
??Chen Fan’s grin widened. Even if the other Unique Treasure was worthless, this one alone made the night worthwhile. Farmland would have to be his top priority today.
??Who knew how many Ghoststones it might yield?
??Good thing he’d kept all those Monkey-Head Ghoul corpses—they’d make perfect fertilizer.
??He examined the other Unique Treasure.
??—
??Unique Treasure Na: Godslayer Spear
??Treasure Grade: White
??Treasure Effect: Deals significant damage to low-level Ghostbeasts. Can change size at will, from full-length to compact.
??—
??“Not bad.”
??With a thought, the small spear in Chen Fan’s hand instantly lengthened, transforming into a gleaming weapon fit for battle. “Size at will,” huh? In reality, it just switched between normal and pocket-sized—not like it could turn into a hundred-foot colossus.
??Still, even a “fake” size-shifting spear was a solid weapon.
??Far superior to the makeshift spears they’d crafted from sticks and knives.
??“It’s yours.”
??Chen Fan tossed the spear to Crippled Monkey, then strode back toward the Ghostfire. Crippled Monkey might have a limp, but his strength and skill in combat were leagues ahead of Chen Fan’s. The spear would be much more useful in his hands.
??Back at camp, Chen Fan took a deep breath and laid out all twenty Ghoststones before him. He slowly closed his eyes, ready to plan his next move.
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