CHAPTER 103: The Fruit Of Dagmar

"Hello friend, are you adventuring alone in the Dark Forest?" The swordsman called out quietly when he was quite some distance away from Han Shuo.

Han Shuo had long since discovered these six and had summoned the little skeleton back to it's realm, not wanting to reveal his status as a necromancer. He lifted his head when he heard the other's voice and nodded at the swordsman. "That's right."

The cross-legged harpy swooped overhead, but didn't dare test Han Shuo's patience any further when she saw the six adventurers meet him. She flew to a higher vantage point to observe the events from above.

The six adventurers were a team of three warriors, two mages and an archer. The archer was a female elf, and the three male warriors consisted of a senior swordswoman and two journeymen swordsmen. There was also a male journeyman mage and a female adept mage.

Now that Han Shuo had taken the test given by the Academy, he knew some of the level distinctions and symbols used by the Mage Association and the Knight Association.

Mages would have an exquisite, small staff embroidered on the shoulder of their mage robes according to their strength. Beginning mages would have the image of a staff , and each successive level would add another staff. Swordsmen and knights had similar ways of distinguishing themselves, with swordsmen using swords as emblems and knights using battle steeds.

The robes of the mages and swordsmen looked like they'd been verified by the Magic Association and the Knights Association, so emblems representing their strengths were attached to the clothes they wore. Han Shuo could easily determine their strength at a glance.

The six of them weren't weak, but they were a little too weak to venture into the depths of the Dark Forest. That was why the harpy dared to follow them when she spotted these six. If one of them was an Archmage who could fly, the Harpy would have run as far away as possible, not daring to look for an opportunity to attack them.

"My name is Odysseus. These are my companions. I believe you've noticed the Harpy's disturbance earlier. I'm very sorry to say that the harpy targeted us and shifted her attention to you when she discovered that you were walking alone".

"As a level three magical creature, it was really difficult to fight a harpy since it can fly in the air. If you don't mind, you can go with us. The Harpy shouldn't dare come down and cause trouble when the seven of us are together. The senior swordsman, Odysseus, spoke sincerely to Han Shuo.

Han Shuo shook his head and said with a smile, "That's fine. I think you want to go further into the Dark Forest, but I'd like to go back to the outskirts. We're not going the same way, so I won't bother you."

"How can that be? If you go on alone, the Harpy will never give up on you. I think you should stay with us, or you'll get into more trouble or even die! One of the adept mages, Aphrodite, said quietly.

The others also protested when they heard Aphrodite's words, but Han Shuo didn't agree to leave with them. Even though the six of them weren't that weak, only the arrows of the archer had the ability to cause trouble for the harpy. Once the flying harpy was in the air, the swordsmen would be no threat to her, and the magic might not be effective because of the distance.

However, Han Shuo was armed with the Demonslayer's Edge and the crossbow, not to mention the fact that the little skeleton could also fly into the air using its bone spurs, if the harpy was so oblivious as to dare to attack him, then painful blows from Han Shuo and the little skeleton would await her. That was why Han Shuo wasn't so afraid of the harpy. That's why he had refused the invitation from the six adventurers and decided to go on his own.

"Hehehe, thanks for your concern, but I don't think it would be that easy for the Harpy to catch me." Han Shuo replied with a smile and picked up his two fried fish. He didn't answer the six young adventurers again and walked back alone in the direction they had come from.

The six young adventurers were startled when they saw Han Shuo walking leisurely away. The senior swordsman Odysseus opened his mouth to say, "Let's watch from a distance. If he really has a method to deal with the Harpy, then we'll decide to leave. Otherwise, we'll help him to prevent him from being eaten."

"Captain, this person has already rejected us, do we have to do this?" Journeyman Swordsman Gordon was rather reluctant as he spoke sullenly.

"The Harpy's original target was us, and she only troubled others because we started heading in that direction. I think we should face up to that responsibility." Odysseus lectured Gordon and instructed the others to follow him, trailing far behind Han Shuo.

After walking for about five minutes, the harpy that had been circling above Han Shuo finally made another move. It swooped down from the sky and soared back up into the clouds with a screeching whistle as it almost landed on his head, baiting Han Shuo with extreme patience.

However, Han Shuo was even more patient than she was. Although both of his hands looked empty, the Demonslayer's Edge was ready to burst into the air at any moment, and his crossbow was already ready to fire within his space ring. As soon as the harpy dared to come within range, Han Shuo wouldn't mind killing this level three magical creature with a single shot.

As for the six adventurers following at a distance, Han Shuo could see everything clearly. He didn't pay much attention to their good-heartedness and continued walking at a leisurely pace towards the Cemetery.

Finally, after testing him repeatedly, the harpy couldn't hold back any longer and once again lunged directly at Han Shuo with her sharp, curved claws, rapidly approaching Han Shuo's skull.

A disgusting stench assaulted his nostrils and immediately wafted around Han Shuo's being. Most people would become temporarily dizzy and disoriented after catching a whiff of this stench, but Han Shuo's body had been trained to an unknown level of indomitable spirit and was not affected by it at all. He still faked swaying in accordance with the Harpy's intentions, as if he was about to fall to the ground at any moment.

"Oh no! He's been disoriented by the stench of the Harpy's body, he's in danger! We should go save him!" Aphrodite the mage suddenly shouted as the six adventurers no longer bothered to hide and emerged from the bushes behind him. The archer frantically shot arrows at the harpy.

At that moment, the harpy, who'd been afraid to commit to a full descent, seemed to finally decide that the time was right. It had maintained a distance of seven or eight metres from the ground when it suddenly shot down at Han Shuo like lightning, a pair of iron claws locking onto Han Shuo's head as if it was going to tear Han Shuo's bones apart.

A cold smile flashed from the corners of his mouth, and Han Shuo's body swayed even more, stiffening just before the Harpy's iron claws landed on his head. He quickly fell backwards so that the claws that had been reaching for Han Shuo's head landed in empty air.

Just as the Harpy was about to make another move with a strange cry, the red light-emitting Demonslayer's Edge suddenly sliced through the air, bringing with it a fierce, flaming wave of power that flooded into the Harpy's body.

A desperate, low cry rang out as the Harpy flapped her wings and wobbled in a hasty attempt to get off the ground. The crossbow was already in Han Shuo's hand at that moment, firing mercilessly as it locked onto the harpy's slender neck.

Red light erupted from her body as the harpy screamed in constant pain. She was completely unable to stabilise her body at that moment, and of course she didn't notice that an even more deadly attack was approaching. The crossbow bolt pierced her neck and sent her body flying backwards. Her neck remained in the position of looking back to the sky as she suddenly fell to the ground.

"Oh my God, he shot the Harpy!" Swordsman Odysseus arrived quickly after closing the distance and suddenly discovered that the Harpy's body had fallen to the ground. He exclaimed in surprise and could hardly believe what he saw.

The other adventurers who had planned to cast spells or shoot the Harpy also stopped their hand movements and looked at the Harpy fluttering weakly in the distance, their faces also filled with astonishment.

Under Han Shuo's thoughts, the Demonslayer's Edge had used the magical flames of the Mystical Glacial Spellfire after entering the Harpy's body to incinerate her internal organs. No smoke appeared, but the Harpy's body quickly turned into a charred mess and the thick scent travelled further.

Standing up and dabbing the dust off his body, Han Shuo walked over to the thoroughly fried Harpy, held his breath and pulled out the Demonslayer Edge. He excavated the core of a level three magical creature from its body, then chopped off its two iron claws and stored them in his space ring.

A level three magical creature wasn't that easy to deal with, otherwise the six adventurers wouldn't have had such a headache. The Harpy had always relied on the overwhelming stench in her body and her position in the air to succeed in any endeavour.

It was a pity that her two advantages were completely ineffective against Han Shuo, and she finally became a target for Han Shuo to exploit. Add to that the incomparable sharpness of the Demonslayer's Edge and the fact that it could strike at will according to Han Shuo's wishes, and that was what caused her to die so quickly and horribly.

"Hello friend, you are indeed quite strong. It looks like our worries were indeed unfounded." Odysseus had finally made it to Han Shuo from the distance, and was happily facing him.

Although these people hadn't been of any help, Han Shuo had gained an understanding of their conversation and methods through the original demons. He felt that these people were quite decent, and now that their captain Odysseus was speaking like this, Han Shuo nodded with a faint smile, "I was just lucky, my real strength isn't even close to your level."

"Hehehe, you're too humble." Odysseus obviously didn't believe Han Shuo's words as he replied politely.

"Captain, since he's in no danger, I think we should go deeper into the southern parts of the Dark Forest to continue searching for the Fruit of Dagmar." Gordon came over from the distance and rushed towards Odysseus.

"Ai, I wonder if the 'Fruit of Dagmar' we're looking for really exists. A fruit that looks like a human brain, I've never heard of such a thing!" Adept Mage Aphrodite sighed.

Han Shuo was about to leave when he heard Aphrodite's words and didn't leave right away. Instead, he looked at Aphrodite in confusion and asked, "What kind of item is this 'Fruit of Dagmar'? Why is it shaped like a human brain? This is really a bit unbelievable, can you tell me about it?"

"I have heard all about the 'Fruit of Dagmar' from our captain, Odysseus. He knows more about it." Aphrodite gave Han Shuo a friendly smile and pointed at Odysseus.

Odysseus smiled faintly, "Are you also interested in the 'Fruit of Dagmar'? Hehehe, the legends say that Dagmar was a demon who liked to eat human brains. It's possible that a very strange fruit grows where he's buried. The fruit is fist-sized and has dark brown veins running through it. It looks very much like a human brain.

"It is said that the 'Fruit of Dagmar' has magical properties. Ordinary people will become confused and go mad if they eat it, but it's said that if the 'Fruit of Dagmar' is crushed by a pharmacist, it can be made into a very valuable medicine. I've recently received a request from someone and decided to try my luck in the Dark Forest to see if I can find the 'Fruit of Dagmar'.

Han Shuo was suddenly bizarrely happy after hearing Odysseus' words. In Chu Cang Lan's memories, there was a fruit called the 'Divine Brain Fruit'. It had the effect of greatly expanding the human brain. It could turn an ordinary person into a madman, but if a demon practitioner at the 'Moulded Spirit' Realm like Han Shuo consumed this 'Divine Brain Fruit', he could use the effects to greatly increase his training level.

Han Shuo hadn't thought in this direction at first because he thought it was impossible for the 'Divine Brain Fruit' to exist in this world, but Odysseus' description of the 'Fruit of Dagmar' was the exact same shape as the 'Divine Brain Fruit'.

He could not resist the temptation to acquire a fruit that could greatly improve his current level of training. Han Shuo didn't think any more about it when he asked immediately after Odysseus had finished explaining, "If you don't mind, I'd like to go with you in search of this 'Fruit of Dagmar'?"

Odysseus and the six adventurers suddenly looked at each other after Han Shuo spoke. They were all extremely surprised, as they hadn't expected Han Shuo to make such a suggestion.