As the beast charged, Xiao Rou was almost in despair.

Her petite body couldn't help but tremble, and she resignedly closed her eyes.

Is this how I die... Would it hurt a lot to be killed by those claws?

...Hmm?

So light... Is this what death feels like? No, that's not right..

In her confusion, Xiao Rou opened her tightly shut eyes.

Between the slits of his eyes, a thin figure appeared in front of him at some unknown moment, draped in that familiar tattered quilt, and astonishingly managed to block the massive beast's claw.

Xiao Rou was stunned!

This... how is this possible?

He actually managed to fend off such a large beast, even though he was still injured..

In an instant, a scene flashed in Xiao Rou's mind of the first time she saw Xu Que on the mountain yesterday, covered in blood and in a miserable state. And now, he was risking his life to come out and save her.

Xiao Rou's nose suddenly tingled, and tears welled up in her eyes.

The villagers watching from the sidelines were already dumbfounded. When Xu Que rushed out, almost no one reacted.

But when they saw his thin figure forcibly blocking the beast, the villagers were deeply shocked.

How could a person with an injury possibly fend off such a ferocious beast? How did they do it?

"Roar!"

At this moment, the beast let out a furious roar, instantly pulling everyone back from their daze.

A massive beast claw rose high, accompanied by a whistling wind, and suddenly struck down from the sky.

Many villagers' expressions changed dramatically, and they shouted:

"Not good, back up quickly."

"Little one, get out of the way!"

"Be careful..."

Xiao Rou was also terrified, her face drained of color. She reached out her small hand to pull Xu Que back, but found that she couldn't move him at all.

Xu Que's frail and emaciated body stood before the massive and robust beast, the contrast between strength and weakness was truly striking.

Even though he managed to fend off one attack, no one believed he could face the beast alone.

However, at that moment, Xu Que, who had been completely still, suddenly lifted his right foot and fiercely kicked towards the beast.

"Bang!"

With a dull thud, a scene that left everyone dumbfounded unfolded.

The massive and ferocious beast was actually kicked into the air, crashing heavily to the ground and sliding several meters away.

The villagers were instantly petrified with fear.

One kick... one kick sent the beast flying? What kind of technique is this? What kind of strength is that?

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for successfully showing off invisibly, earning three show-off points."

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"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for successfully showing off invisibly, earning five points of show-off value."

The system emitted two consecutive notification sounds. Xu Que didn't care about how he had shown off twice; he rushed out with only one goal in mind: to save Xiao Rou.

So, with that kick just now, he utilized the spiritual energy of five different attributes within his body, gathering them together to unleash a powerful burst.

But the next moment, he felt a vague numbness in his legs.

It was clear that the beast before him was not weak; its hide was thick, and a single kick was not enough to kill it.

"Fellow villagers, rest assured, I'll take care of this beast!"

Xu Que shouted loudly and lunged at the beast, pressing its head to the ground and following up with a flurry of punches and kicks.

Every punch and every kick carried a hidden spiritual energy, causing the beast to wail in pain.

The villagers were utterly bewildered, their eyes vacant as they stared at the scene, still struggling to process what had just happened.

Such a ferocious and gigantic beast was actually beaten to the point of having no strength to fight back.

This feeling was like a strong, robust man being pinned to the ground and beaten by a babbling toddler; anyone would be dumbfounded.

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for killing the Tiger Bull Beast, successfully showing off, and earning six points of show-off value."

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for killing the Tiger Bull Beast, earning twelve hundred experience points."

"Whoosh!"

As the system prompt sounded, Xu Que finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He lay down on the motionless beast, and a surge of power suddenly shot through his body. Instantly, his pores opened wide, and spiritual energy from all directions rushed in, flooding his being.

He felt that he had become stronger again.

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for leveling up. Current realm: Foundation Establishment Stage, Level One."

"Ding, congratulations to the host 'Xu Que' for stepping into the Foundation Establishment stage. You are awarded a 'Growth Gift Pack.' Each time you advance a realm, you can open it once. Would you like to check it?"

"Ding, reminding host 'Xu Que', your technique 'Ancient Five Elements Art' has reached the peak of the initial stage and cannot be further cultivated. The remaining two hundred experience points have been stored in the experience pool. Please supplement with the intermediate stage as soon as possible."

Xu Que was instantly astonished. Just one wild beast gave over a thousand experience points?

Damn, this is way more cost-effective than consuming experience pills! Looks like I'll have to go up the mountain and fight monsters to level up more often from now on.

While contemplating, Xu Que was about to open the growth package rewarded by the system to take a look, when he suddenly felt his body being emptied... no, that wasn't right, he felt his body suddenly being lifted up by someone.

Once he returned, he was unexpectedly lifted up by the villagers. Besides surprise, every face was also brimming with joyful smiles.

They began to cheer, tossing Xu Que into the air, catching him, and tossing him up again, celebrating the subjugation of the beast.

An old man trembled as he shouted, "Good, good, good, a hero emerges from the young."

"Little brother, you have a natural strength! You will definitely achieve great things in the future."

"That's right, the village chief is correct. The young man is a hero, a blessing sent to our village by the heavens."

Everyone shouted loudly, and their way of addressing Xu Que changed from "little kid" to "little brother."

Xu Que shamelessly boasted, "You're too kind, everyone, too kind. I won't say much, but as for these beasts, no matter how many come, I'll take them all down."

Bang!

Xu Que was once again tossed into the air by the crowd, but this time he felt a chill on his body. The blanket he had wrapped around himself had disappeared without a trace. Turning his head, he saw that it was the handiwork of a few mischievous children.

He hurriedly covered his chest and shouted, "Everyone, close your eyes quickly."

Everyone was stunned, staring at the suddenly naked Xu Que. Several village women blushed and turned their heads away.

Xiao Rou was also startled and was about to cover her eyes, but when she inadvertently saw the red cloth tied between Xu Que's legs, she was stunned on the spot.

That red cloth, why does it look so familiar?

The embroidery on the red cloth, how could it be so similar to theirs...?

Ah..

Xiao Rou reacted, covering her mouth, her face turning bright red, blushing all the way to her ears. Embarrassed and flustered, she ran away.

Xu Que was also let down by the villagers.

A burly man snatched the blanket from the mischievous child, helped him drape it over himself, and reminded him to be careful and not catch a cold.

The old village chief, leaning on his cane, instructed someone to quickly fetch the clothes.

In the end, Xiao Rou ran back again, holding a set of light blue coarse linen clothes. With her head lowered and her face flushed, she shoved them into Xu Que's hands without saying a word, then turned and ran off again.

Xu Que took the clothes but felt puzzled by Xiao Rou's shy demeanor.

Could it be that my impressive display just now has stirred the young girl's heart? Oh dear! This... this is so embarrassing!

It seems I'll have to keep pretending to be cool from now on.

Just as he was secretly rejoicing in his heart, an old lady suddenly pointed to the red cloth under Xu Que's crotch and exclaimed, "This... isn't this the bellyband I embroidered for Xiao Rou? Young man, why are you wearing it?"