…
With this in mind, Naoh eagerly stepped forward, squatting by the bank and stirring the water with his hand. A cool sensation instantly washed over his entire body.
After more than two hours of hurried travel, he was genuinely exhausted—his body drenched in sweat and his fluids severely depleted. Staring at the clear pool before him, Naoh subconsciously swallowed.
Yet, he ultimately held himself back.
As much as he wanted to plunge into the water and drink without restraint, Naoh, ever cautious and fearful of death, managed to resist the temptation.
Though the pool appeared harmless, he knew better than to trust appearances.
Just then, on the opposite bank, a dense cluster of green stalks resembling bamboo grew from the sandy soil near the water's edge.
"Sugarcane! Hah! Told ya we were lucky~"
Exhaling a breath of stale air, Naoh rushed forward, bounding toward the tender green plants. He grabbed the straight stalks with both hands and kicked forcefully.
With a crisp "snap," the sugarcane broke cleanly.
He sat directly on the ground, peeled it with practiced ease, and began chewing in large, eager bites.
"Mmm~ Delicious!"
The flavor was sweet, refreshing, and deeply satisfying. Though it was just ordinary sugarcane, Naoh devoured it with unmatched enthusiasm, completely immersed in the moment.
Sweet juice trickled down his throat, revitalizing his body. A warm sensation quickly spread from his stomach through the rest of him.
His earlier fatigue and weariness swiftly began to fade.
Roughly fifteen minutes later, a four-meter-long sugarcane stalk had been entirely consumed, leaving his once-shriveled stomach comfortably full.
Satisfied, Naoh stood, snapped off three more stalks from the nearby patch, chopped them into sections using a sharp-edged rock by the pool, and stored them in his leather bag.
"No worries about food for now. These sugarcanes should last me a full day at least. What's important now is finding a place to stay—then hunt monsters and complete the task!"
With that thought, Naoh glanced up at the sky. The sun had already begun its descent, nudging a sense of urgency into his heart.
After getting his bearings, he dove into the forest ahead and resumed his journey.
In truth, his earlier travels had already yielded some progress. Whenever he heard suspicious sounds along the way, he'd stop and carefully investigate.
And so...
…
Zombies: 8 / 10
Spiders: 2 / 10
…
Without actively seeking danger by exploring caves, Naoh had managed to tally up some numbers toward the side quest requiring him to defeat ten of each of five monster types.
"But~ how have I not seen a single Little White? Skeleton archers aren't rare monsters, are they?"
In a clearing between dense forest banks, a rocky hill suddenly came into view.
It wasn't particularly tall—the gentle slope measured no more than five or six meters. But in its center lay a deep rift valley that cleaved through the hill like a scar.
By Naoh's visual estimate, the rift stretched thirty to forty meters wide, with sheer walls stretching seemingly without end to either side—and plummeting nearly a hundred meters straight down!
Just looking made him dizzy.
Gusts of upward wind howled from the depths with a haunting resonance.
Nearby, a narrow stream just two or three meters wide poured into the canyon from a ledge, forming a small waterfall as it tumbled into the abyss.
Even more astonishing, not far from the waterfall on the opposite cliff, a stream of molten lava oozed downward in a glowing, crimson cascade!
The bubbling, slightly viscous lava emitted waves of heat, bathing the surroundings in flickering light.
In the real world, water and fire rarely coexisted so dramatically. Yet here, in this surreal Minecraft realm, it created a spectacle of rare wonder~
As the sun continued to dip, shadows crept along one side of the canyon wall.
Thanks to the lava's glow, Naoh could make out several figures wandering at the canyon's base.
Zombies, creepers, skeleton archers—there were plenty~
"Though~ my crossbow's effective range is only about ten meters on flat ground, that's just horizontal data, right? From this height, if I account for gravity…"
The idea excited him.
Lying at the cliff's edge, Naoh subconsciously adjusted his grip, ready to begin targeting enemies below.
But he paused and pulled back.
The sky was darkening fast. The sun near the horizon had turned a fiery red, and in the forest's shade, the dimness was even more pronounced.
Given the situation, Naoh realized the top priority was finding shelter.
"There's a shallow cave over there, looks about three or four meters deep."
From his vantage, Naoh spotted a stone cavity in the cliff wall near the canyon's floor.
Thanks to the slanting sunlight, he could see almost everything inside.
More importantly, the cave was positioned close to the lava flow, promising warmth.
"Damn... It's on the opposite bank, though. No way I'm reaching that from here—no footholds either."
Defeated, Naoh scratched his head. He scanned the cliff again, but still found no route down.
After a moment of regret, he stood, looked left and right, and set off along the canyon's edge in a chosen direction.
Dusk soon gave way to night.
When a crescent moon finally rose over the horizon, Naoh still hadn't found a suitable shelter.
With no better option, he settled for a tall, free-standing tree and quickly climbed to the top.
Luckily, trees in this Minecraft world didn't match the perfectly straight trunks of the game.
Though only oak trees filled this forest, their shapes varied widely, their irregular forms perfect for climbing.
Naoh, who prided himself on his climbing skills, had discovered an unexpected advantage.
"Too bad... In-game, tree canopies are so solid you can walk on them. These oak branches are dense, but nowhere near that level."
Lost in thought, Naoh widened his eyes as the dark deepened. His body instinctively curled into the hollow at the branch fork, trying to vanish into the shadows.
"Looks like~ I won't be sleeping tonight. Who knows how many monsters will show up…"
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