Chapter 624 Winter Wolf Fanny

The Obsidian Handaxe hanging at his waist swayed gently. The fur of his wolf-skin cloak rose and fell with the forest breeze, reflecting a silvery-white icy gleam.

Over two meters tall, his robust, marble-like muscles stood out in stark relief beneath the shade of the trees.

Deep within the shadows of his prominent brow, his icy blue eyes shifted slightly, gleaming like snow-flames. His gaze passed the bushes, the hanging branches, and the winter wolf that had already leaped from the tall grass, landing on a figure standing in the clearing by the cave exit. He hadn't seen this person in over a year; the drastic changes made them somewhat unfamiliar, yet inexplicably recognizable.

Filled with unspeakable doubt, a hoarse, deep male voice rang out from the forest. It carried a thick Northlands accent that seemed blurred by the cold wind: "Xia Nan?"

"Crackle."

The campfire sent sparks flying with a series of crisp pops.

The barbarian Forgan sat leaning against the trunk of a towering oak tree in the camp, calmly maintaining his Obsidian Handaxe as always. Xia Nan sat on the other side of the fire.

Of course, there was no touching reunion.

If the halfling Alton had been in either of their places, he would probably be running excited laps around the other right now, recounting his recent experiences in high spirits and enthusiastically throwing out topics to liven the mood.

But both Forgan and Xia Nan were the relatively reserved type.

Even if their emotions were truly fluctuating inside, it was hard to say how they would show it.

Just sitting quietly on either side of the campfire—just as they had when one was learning [Fang Hunt] from the other—was enough to show where they stood.

Of course, compared to over a year ago, there were indeed some changes.

"Awoo!"

After staring blankly for a long moment, she finally dug the memory of this inexplicably familiar young adventurer out of her mental scent repository. Confirming he was an acquaintance she had met during her cubhood, combined with Forgan's unconsciously friendly attitude, made the winter wolf named Fanny act exceptionally affectionate.

One moment, she leaned her furry head close, wagging her tail and rubbing her head into Xia Nan's arms; the next, she nibbled lightly at his pant leg, pressing her front paws down and lowering her upper body, hopping eagerly in an invitation to play.

She didn't look at all like the powerful monster that had just wiped out a medium-sized goblin community with crushing, irresistible force. Judging from the glances Forgan occasionally threw across the campfire, this winter wolf—whose growth rate far exceeded the norm, maturing from a cub to near-adulthood in just over a year—did not normally act this way.

To be honest, Xia Nan had only interacted with her when she was an ignorant cub, and he had nearly been bitten in the process. They weren't exactly close.

Thinking carefully, she was likely reacting this way because of his special experience transforming into a wolf in the Algae Scale Secret Realm.

Hmm... perhaps it also had something to do with the [Fang Hunt] dreamscape he had experienced in the [Dream Weaving Corridor]?

After all, he had witnessed the birth and rise of the Legendary winter wolf Kalosh, the source of [Fang Hunt]. Sharing the same origin, it made sense that the winter wolf Fanny would treat him differently.

Unable to withstand her affection, Xia Nan reached out and stroked Fanny's furry, refreshingly cool head, making the winter wolf narrow her eyes in comfort.

After some thought, he finally took the initiative to speak. "The name Fanny... it means 'Frost's Memory,' right?"

Reading always paid off.

After parting ways with the barbarian Forgan, Xia Nan had frantically crammed a massive amount of knowledge regarding barbarians and the Northern Reach Tundra. He had even gone out of his way to find books on the Association Second Floor to study their writing and language.

Even though his long journey to find the [Dream Weaving Corridor] had delayed his studies and slowed his progress, he had still mastered quite a few practical words.

Clearly not expecting Xia Nan to have learned the barbarian language, Forgan involuntarily paused his weapon maintenance. He lifted his head and looked at Fanny.

"If you just look at the literal meaning, you could understand it that way."

"But in our tribe's usage, 'uncooled hatred' is actually more fitting."

Hearing this, Xia Nan's gaze swept over the still-empty iron necklace around the man's neck. He then glanced at Forgan's left pinky finger, which still hadn't healed, its severed stump sealed only by ice.

A thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

Winter wolf Fanny, uncooled hatred.

At the same time, the barbarian Forgan was carefully observing the incredibly familiar yet strikingly foreign figure across the campfire. Having not seen him for over a year, Xia Nan's transformation felt a bit too drastic—even to someone like Forgan, who had immensely rich adventuring experience and had traveled across more than half of the Aifala Continent.

His features were sharp and his face still young, but the greenness typical of a rookie adventurer—present during their first meeting—had completely vanished. It was replaced by a condensed, honed aura that could only be forged by countless high-intensity battles, life-and-death crises, and day after grueling day of training.

Clearly, this kid hadn't wasted his talent since they parted ways.

This was obvious just from Forgan sensing Xia Nan's class level.

As someone approaching the Legendary rank and holding the Transcendent Tier class [Mourning-Frost Oathbound]—a class specializing in tracking and oaths—the barbarian's perception went without saying.

The very second Forgan laid eyes on Xia Nan, he had clearly detected his class level.

He guessed the kid had probably reached lv4 or lv5.

Just over a year ago, the kid had been a greenhorn rookie adventurer. Let alone obtaining a class level, even the second combat technique of his life had been taught by Forgan himself.

In just a few hundred days, he had leaped from a bottom-tier adventurer who hadn't yet stepped onto the professional path to a professional-grade core force that couldn't be underestimated even in major adventuring hubs with Adventurers' Association branches.

'Tsk...'

Wasn't this progression speed a bit too fast?

Naturally, he wouldn't attribute Xia Nan's rapid growth entirely to talent.

To some extent, Forgan himself could be said to have come from the bottom.

His extremely rich life experience made him well aware that even for noble scions with vast resources and potential, raising their class level so quickly was almost impossible unless they pushed some aspect to the absolute extreme.

Much less a bottom-tier adventurer like Xia Nan, who had absolutely no background to speak of.

To reach this point, talent and hard work were both indispensable.

He wasn't the type to actively ask about someone else's past, but even so, Forgan could guess the arduous encounters Xia Nan had gone through recently.

What drew the barbarian's attention even more were the various pieces of Fine equipment Xia Nan was wearing. With perception as strong as Forgan's, he naturally didn't overlook them.

The Gray-Black Straight Sword in his hand when they first met, the metal armor reflecting a faint crimson light on his torso, the iron chain with strange pendants on his right wrist, and even the necklace whose end was hidden deep beneath his shirt...

From a distance, with just a casual glance, Forgan spotted at least six pieces of enchanted equipment on him. 'This kid seems to have been doing pretty well lately.'

"[Fang Hunt] should be trained to Mastery by now, right?"

Forgan suddenly spoke.

Xia Nan's growth rate had far exceeded the barbarian's expectations.

Judging by the contents of his letter, in the worst-case scenario Forgan had envisioned, over a year had passed and Xia Nan might not have even obtained the final combat technique required for a class level.

He had still been thinking about giving him some pointers, sharing some experience on using [Fang Hunt] to help the kid train the combat technique to Mastery sooner.

But now that Xia Nan's class level was already lv4 or lv5, [Fang Hunt]—the second combat technique he had learned—should have long been trained to perfection, no longer needing Forgan's interference.

As expected, Xia Nan nodded and gave a positive answer.

As the core of his current combat system, [Fang Hunt] wasn't just trained to max lv5.

Recalling how the barbarian had used it in the Goblin Lair, Xia Nan—who had experienced the combat technique's creation process through the [Dream Weaving Corridor]—now likely used a [Fang Hunt] that was distinctly different from Forgan's understanding of it.

But saying so right now would inevitably look like showing off. Xia Nan opened his mouth but ultimately swallowed his words, deciding to bring it up later.

Noticing the black-haired youth's expression, Forgan didn't overthink it. Assuming Xia Nan was just feeling awkward about asking for help, he took the initiative to speak.

"Don't worry, the favor I owe you is still valid. Whenever you want to use it, just say the word."

"Besides, this meeting was our agreement back in Rivervale Town."

"If we really have to get into it, it's my fault the agreed time and location got delayed until now."

"If there's anything you want to know, just ask."

"As long as I know it, I'll answer."

On the way here, and even earlier when he first received Forgan's letter in Barracuda Bay, Xia Nan had already clarified the bottleneck he was currently facing.

With [Gravity Control] and [Ember Echoes] being the only two combat techniques he had left that could still gain proficiency—both of which were exceptionally difficult to level up and would take forever to max out without a Secret Realm—Xia Nan urgently needed another combat technique to push his class level to lv5.

Furthermore, this combat technique had to simultaneously fit his personal combat style and allow for efficient proficiency gain. If possible, it also needed to synergize with his new [Hunting Arc] battle posture, effectively combining and weaving with [Fang Hunt] and [Spinning Slash]. It wasn't that Xia Nan's demands were too high.

This concerned his own development potential and the solidity of his foundation. This wasn't some roguelike game where a build relied on gambling to take shape; Xia Nan naturally hoped every step he took was on the right path.

This was precisely why he had traveled thousands of miles, taking a ship all the way up from Barracuda Bay at the southern tip of the continent—even enduring a marine survival episode in the middle—to rush here.

"Wait, did you say... battle posture?"

As if hearing a completely unexpected term, Forgan straightened his back against the trunk. His tone carried obvious surprise.

Xia Nan had already learned about battle postures from Lorraine of the Blade of Vengeance, knowing that for a normal Class Holder, it was a concept one only had a chance to touch upon when approaching the Transcendent Tier.

Before speaking, Xia Nan was already prepared to be questioned.

After all, at least on the surface, his class level hadn't even reached lv5.

Under these circumstances, insisting he had already mastered a battle posture really would seem shocking to a knowledgeable adventurer. However, Forgan was, to some extent, the guide on his adventurer path, and completely trustworthy.

Thus, Xia Nan gave him a complete account of his actual situation and the problems he was facing.

"It's the [Spinning Slash] from when I first met you, and the [Fang Hunt] you taught me."

"Maybe it's because I've used them together too many times. A few months ago, while fighting a powerful enemy in Barracuda Bay, I found that releasing these two combat techniques in combination suddenly triggered a linked effect."

"Not only was the execution smoother, but the rhythm could be changed and adjusted at any time."

"At first, I didn't know what was causing it. Later, I asked an adventurer I knew, and learned that this was likely the formation of a battle posture."

Omitting the role his Attribute Panel had played, Xia Nan recounted the complete process of how he had mastered the [Hunting Arc] battle posture without holding anything back.

The combined use of combat techniques, the experience of repeatedly executing them in real combat, and the sudden change at the end that felt like a quantitative shift triggering a qualitative leap...

Forgan, who hadn't doubted him much to begin with, found his belief that Xia Nan had mastered a battle posture below lv5 rising to ninety percent after hearing the recounted experience.

After pondering for a moment, the barbarian stood up and hooked the Obsidian Handaxe back onto his belt.

Having grown up in a tribe, all of his skills had been honed in battles against enemies and monsters.

Forgan was an absolute pragmatist of real combat.

By finding some enemies roughly equal to Xia Nan's overall strength for a real battle, Forgan would be able to figure out exactly what kind of problem he was facing and what sort of bottleneck he had hit.

And as it happened, Xia Nan had arrived at the perfect time.

Regarding targets for real combat, he really did have a few candidates in mind.