The wooden stick struck the goblin's head several times in a row. It immediately let out a wail and slowly collapsed to the ground, with a few copper coins gleaming on the ground!

　　"Ding!"

　　Battle prompt: You have killed a small goblin and gained 10 experience points!

　　I immediately crouched down and picked up the copper coins—three in total—and put them all into my bag!

　　However, after fighting this goblin, my HP had dropped below half. If I fought another goblin now, it would be dangerous!

　　I quickly checked my personal stats, and only then did I suddenly realize that when I created my account and entered the game, the 5 attribute points given by the system hadn't been allocated yet!

　　Damn! And I thought I was a veteran?!

　　Ashamed, I immediately put all five points into Strength. In the early stages, you can't level up without attack power, and besides, the class I'm going to choose will definitely be a combat class!

　　After adding 5 points to Strength, my attack instantly changed from 0-3 to 0-8. With this, dealing with a small goblin should be much easier!

　　So, I quickly targeted a nearby wandering goblin and attacked. With one swing, a damage number immediately floated above its head—

　　"34!"

　　I was slightly stunned, not expecting to be this powerful!

　　Swinging twice more, the poor goblin let out a wail and fell down, and with a "plop," a rusty axe and a few copper coins dropped to the ground.

　　[Goblin Battle Axe] (Quest Item)

　　……

　　I picked it up and saw that it had no stats, which was a bit disappointing. I immediately tossed the battle axe into my bag and continued killing monsters!

　　The drop rate for the axe wasn't high. On average, I had to kill about five goblins to get one axe. Worse yet, more and more players were showing up. By the time I had collected nine axes, the open fields were filled with all kinds of players, and almost every goblin was being whacked on the head by several short sticks the moment it respawned!

　　Looks like I can't keep grinding here, or else I won't be able to outlevel these regular players!

　　Just then, a small goblin respawned right next to me, looking around sneakily.

　　I immediately swung my stick at it, and at the same time, four other people around me also swung their short sticks!

　　"Pa! Pa! Pa!"

　　With three quick smacks, the small goblin, freshly respawned, fulfilled its destiny and dropped an axe before dying at the edge of the woods!

　　Confident, I knew my strike was lightning-fast—no way anyone else hit the monster before me!

　　I quickly picked up the battle axe and tossed it into my bag. With that, I had collected all 10 axes!

　　The other players who had tried to steal the kill looked at me dumbfounded, as if they wanted to ask something, but I didn't have time to bother with them. I just turned and went back to Little Lily's side.

　　I took out the 10 axes, and Little Lily's face immediately lit up with a smile. She said, "Thank you! You helped me find my grandfather's axes. Here is your reward!"

　　"Ding~!"

　　System prompt: Congratulations on completing the quest [Goblin Battle Axe]. You have gained 500 experience points, 2 silver coins, +1 reputation, and the quest reward item [Rough Iron Sword]!

　　"Ding~!"

　　System prompt: You have leveled up!

　　"Huh? I got equipment!"

　　Overjoyed, I immediately opened my bag and saw an iron sword lying quietly inside!

　　[Rough Iron Sword] (Rough Quality)

　　Attack: 1-4

　　Required Level: 2

　　……

　　Haha, turns out it's level 2 equipment. Although it's still the lowest grade, its attack power is much stronger than the stick the system gave me! (In Ling Tong, equipment grades are: Rough, White, Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Dark Gold, Ghost, Earth, Divine. Of course, it's said that there are even super divine items above that, but who knows if I'll ever see one in my lifetime.)

　　I quickly equipped the iron sword, instantly becoming the only expert in the newbie village wielding an iron sword!

　　Many players cast envious glances my way. In their eyes, I was undoubtedly the most awesome person in the newbie village so far!

　　Now that I'm level 3, small goblins are no longer enough for me. Besides, I have a new weapon, and after putting all 5 new level-up points into Strength, my attack soared to a formidable 1-17. With such a powerful attack, if I don't go fight some tougher monsters, it would be a total waste!

　　So, I quickly returned to the village and bought 10 small potions from the pharmacy owner—each one restores 100 HP, but they're ridiculously expensive at 20 copper coins each! Fortunately, I just completed a quest and got two silver coins from the system, so I bought all the potions!

　　High investment brings high returns—this simple truth I still understand!

　　Just as I was leaving the village, I noticed a soldier in armor at the entrance, holding a steel sword and looking around.

　　I walked over, and as expected, this NPC was the village militia captain. He glanced at me and said, "Brave young man, you are strong enough now. Would you be willing to help me with a small favor?"