Chapter 5: New Characters

Haoqi stopped and tapped on the nearby tree. The system provided no prompts, but after equipping the hatchet from the inventory, when he tapped the tree again, his character began to chop it down

Following a path that could hardly be called a road, Haoqi arrived at the nearest household. An elderly woman, with completely white hair and dressed in a worn gray cotton coat, was feeding chickens at the door. Although her movements were quite natural, one could tell at a glance that her appearance resembled that of an NPC from a video game

The uncle picked up two packages wrapped in paper from a nearby shelf and said, "Here, these are two packages of medicinal ointment! They can be used for general bruises and injuries!"

In a typical online game, the system would usually prompt with a message like "New task: Help the neighbor, Wang Dama, chop two loads of firewood; Reward: 2 copper coins. Accept / Decline?" However, in this game, the system does not display such a message box.

The elderly woman paused her work and said kindly, "Oh, it's Chang Long! Have you had lunch yet?"

Although the NPC was still far away, Haoqi remained focused on the small fallen tree in front of him. He swung the axe with all his might, determined to chop the trunk into sections.

When Haoqi went to look again, the man had already walked a few steps away. He was wearing a relatively traditional coarse cloth garment and had a large bamboo basket on his back, which seemed to contain quite a few flowers and plants.

The man turned to tend to his herbs, and it was only then that Haoqi remembered his two loads of firewood were still on the mountain. If he were to give them to the neighbor lady, what might he receive in return?

"Chopping firewood? Where have you seen someone chop firewood like this!" The medicine gatherer, hands on his hips, stood firmly in front of Haoqi, "With the way you're chopping, how long will it take to gather a load of firewood?"

After nearly an hour, Haoqi finally separated the branches from the trunk. The branches were neatly bundled and weighed about two small loads, while the trunk was smooth from top to bottom, measuring over two meters in length. He attempted to carry both the shoulder pole and the wood together, but realized that he was unable to perform this action. Thus, he had no choice but to set the shoulder pole and the firewood aside and carry only the single piece of wood down the mountain.

Haoqi took a brief rest, and naturally, the system would not automatically provide answers to his doubts. Once his fatigue subsided, he resumed wielding the axe. Before long, amidst the sound of cracking, a tree fell—initially not completely to the ground, but leaning against a nearby large tree.

Haoqi opened the attributes panel, and the first line displayed: Character Attributes - Commoner, Strength 15, Stamina 15, Agility 10, Intelligence 10, Spirit 10, Allocatable Points 5

There are treasures both on the mountain and below...

Looking around, Haoqi quickly discovered that this was a typical small village in Northeast China. Scattered near the stream were about twenty to thirty households, most of which were small wooden houses like his own, but there were also two prominent large houses made of earth and wood on higher ground

Isn't this Chang Long? What are you doing?

The village is not large, and he quickly found the herbalist uncle in front of a wooden house to the south

49...... 46 ...... 43...

The uncle glanced at the tree on the ground, "Ah, I see this wood is quite good. Can I keep it to build a grass shed?"

Indeed, it is a destitute commoner

Hehe! The old man laughed twice without knowing why, carrying his large bamboo basket as he walked towards the village, and continued to sing:

When the surroundings became bright again, Haoqi found himself in an unfamiliar room. Looking around, it appeared to be a very simple mud-brick house, containing a bed, a jar, a wooden cabinet, and a pot hanging over the stove. On the wall hung a raincoat and a bamboo hat, and there was nothing else.

Do not forget to take the carrying pole

Listening to this tone, it seems that the corn cake is indeed a good thing

After reviewing the character's basic status, Haoqi switched to first-person mode. Most modern online games feature both a panoramic view and a first-person perspective, allowing players to switch freely between the two modes. The former is suitable for walking and combat, while the latter provides players with a more realistic visual experience

Gulu gulu

Haoqi commented to himself.

Chopping wood!" Haoqi replied naturally

The following line lists national merit, professional contributions, personal reputation, and titles, with the first three items being mere zeros, while the reputation section is inscribed in standard regular script with the two characters "Bai Ding".

Haoqi finally set down the wood and opened the attributes panel. To his surprise, the fatigue level had already reached 80, while the hunger and thirst levels had risen to 49 and 61 respectively

A quarter of an hour later, Haoqi received the answer: the NPC elder trembled as she took out two pieces of coarse cloth-wrapped rice cakes from the house

Hao Qi was speechless; having grown up in the city, he truly had no experience of chopping wood.

Come, take it!

Next, Haoqi flipped through the control options. On the minimap, apart from a small illuminated area, the rest was pitch black; the taskbar was completely empty, and it was not unusual for a game without initial tasks, as it required players to actively seek out missions.

Further down, there are four categories: hunger level, thirst level, fatigue level, and physical condition. Currently, both hunger and thirst levels display 10, while the fatigue level shows 0. There is also a green humanoid icon; clicking on it enlarges it into a rotatable 3D figure, with a label stating "In good health".

The path into the mountains is not difficult to traverse; however, compared to typical online games, "World War" requires a more meticulous handling of details at https://m.hetushu.com. After walking for a while, fatigue set in, and the pace of movement slowed down

When the mouse pointer is moved over, the carrying pole disappears, and a pattern of the carrying pole appears in the inventory. Looking at the taskbar, there is also a note stating "Chop two loads of firewood for the neighbor lady"

According to discussions on the forum, while "traps" are considered a life skill and can be effective in combat, a unique aspect of the setting in "World War" is that player attacks do not distinguish between friend and foe; thus, traps set can also pose a threat to allied players.

Uncle, I have brought the wood you requested! Haoqi walked heavily to the front of the house, where there were several racks, each displaying numerous herbs on round or funnel-shaped sieves.

Following the direction of the elderly woman's gaze, Haoqi deduced that the Zhang family resided in that earthen structure, which belonged to the prominent families in this area

I forgot to ask the NPC whether reaching a hunger and thirst level of 100 would result in death. If one were to die of hunger or thirst, would each attribute also decrease slightly until it returns to the initial setting

The old woman turned to look at the pile of firewood in the corner and said, "Changlong, the firewood at my home is almost used up. Could you help me chop two loads of firewood?"

At that moment, a simple song reached his ears. Haoqi looked around and saw a man approaching from the direction of the mountain top. The game had just begun its public testing, so there shouldn't be any players appearing in such attire singing a song!

Just put it there! The uncle pointed to the nearby grass shed, indicating that when the weather is bad, the herbal rack will be moved into the shed

Interesting yet realistic details, hopefully they will not become a cumbersome burden for the players, Hao Qi thought. He then glanced at the time; the timer indicated that he had been in the game for an hour and a half. However, why was the current date not displayed for hetushu.com?

Haoqi does not like to hesitate, "Done!"

The level of hunger is rapidly declining

"Come, have a drink!" The uncle enthusiastically brought over a bowl of water. Haoqi took the bowl and gulped it down. At this moment, looking at the attribute panel, the thirst level quickly dropped to 12, and the hunger level also decreased to 42

At the very bottom of the panel, in the character description, Haoqi saw a simple passage: "Chang Long, male, date of birth unknown, a commoner living at the foot of Changbai Mountain, without relatives or friends, of strong build, earning a living by chopping wood, with unclear ambitions"

Just as he was about to leave, the old lady suddenly pointed at the corner of the wall and said

Opening the equipment panel, it displays "a two-inch long knife," "a rusty chopping knife," and "two flint stones." As for the skill panel, there is already one entry: "Trap - Beginner," which should be the random skill mentioned by the Republic-era young lady.

With this question in mind, Haoqi went to the neighbor's house. The neighbor's response left him somewhat disappointed: "Poor families do not know what day it is; they work when the sun rises and sleep when the sun sets. If the Zhang family sets off firecrackers, then it is New Year!"

Haoqi pulled back on the trunk, and the character naturally made the corresponding movements, finally bringing it completely down.

The machete struck the tree, producing a sound of "de ... ... de ... ..." With each swing, the branches above the small tree trembled, and the bark and splinters realistically splattered from the point of impact. Such an effect finally made Haoqi appreciate the value of a grand gesture

Hello, madam

Old wine in new bottles, same medicine in a different soup

"Well, I've eaten! Auntie, is there anything I can help you with?" Haoqi glanced at the chicks on the ground and recalled a famous dish from Northeast China

Thank you! Haoqi took the medicine pouch and, in the inventory, he saw the description of such an item: a medicine pouch made using traditional techniques by rural apothecaries and scholars, possessing initial effects such as hemostasis and the resolution of bruising

Haoqi was somewhat surprised, but still casually replied, "Sure"

Haoqi took the initiative to greet, glancing at the small bamboo basket in the other person's hand, which contained some fresh vegetable leaves—this detail enhanced his recognition of the game. Imagine if it contained rice or bran instead; that would not align with the authentic historical conditions

Changbai Mountain, oh... sixteen peaks, oh...

Upon inspection, Haoqi found that what is referred to as a carrying pole is essentially a roughly processed wooden stick, with a piece of hemp rope tied to each end, likely intended for the purpose of carrying firewood.

You can cut off the branches above to use as firewood, and Muzi will help you carry them down. I will give you two packs of medicine, how about that? The uncle had a simple expression that conveyed honesty and sincerity.

Haoqi looked at this strange fellow, momentarily unsure whether to give or not.

Based on appearance to determine age, Haoqi felt he could be referred to as an uncle, the herbalist uncle

His stomach unexpectedly growled. He opened the attribute panel and saw that the quest icon had disappeared, and the character's hunger level had reached 50. Moreover, the rate at which the value was increasing seemed to have accelerated. With a mindset of testing, he took a piece of bran cake from the cloth bag, broke off half, and put it in his mouth, only to find that he couldn't swallow it in one bite.

The decayed and dilapidated wooden door opened with a push. In front of the house lies a large patch of muddy grassland, approximately thirty meters away from a gently flowing stream. Perhaps due to the season, the withered yellow grass and trees on both banks appear lifeless, while the distant snow-capped mountains exude a majestic presence

After bidding farewell to the elderly woman, Haoqi returned to his room, which remained bare and desolate. He could only sit down heavily on the bed.

As the smoke from a cigarette wafted away, Haoqi noticed that the tree was about to be cut down, and he felt his movements becoming increasingly sluggish. Opening the attribute panel, he saw that his fatigue level had risen to 71, while his hunger and thirst levels had increased from the previous 10 to 29 and 36 respectively