My Computer Leads to an Instance Dungeon-Chapter 58: Knight’s Squire

Fang Zhen was quite satisfied with his current equipment and full of anticipation.

’My gear is basically all set,’ Fang Zhen thought. ’And with my method to bypass the weight and lack of defense, I’m 80 or 90 percent confident I can push the clear progress of the Redstone Town Mine past the three-quarters mark.’

By three-quarters progress, he meant eliminating three-quarters of the Kobolds’ effective forces.

’Alright, preparations are about done,’ he thought. ’Time to rest and build up my strength. Tomorrow, I’ll ride the off-road motorcycle to the Redstone Town Mine.’

He took off the thermal imaging helmet, washed up, and went to sleep.

「The next day.」

Fang Zhen woke up very early.

After a breakfast of beef braised in red wine with rice and a side of purple sweet potato, Fang Zhen was fully geared up and ready to go.

The Light Gate was already open in the living room. Fang Zhen put on all the gear he could wear, reloaded the Dragon Gall Crossbow and put it in his backpack, and packed the four Molotov Cocktails into a foam wine box he’d bought for a small price from a liquor store. One box held exactly four bottles. He then placed the box inside a spare hiking bag.

The Night Vision Goggles and infrared imaging helmet also went into this bag, along with a new high-powered flashlight he had bought yesterday, for a total of two flashlights.

Fang Zhen had a special use for this extra high-powered flashlight.

Moreover, Fang Zhen also brought along the police Explosive-Proof Shield.

This Explosive-Proof Shield was of excellent quality; the battle had left no marks on it, and it was still very sturdy.

Fang Zhen knew an Anti-Riot Shield couldn’t necessarily stop a crossbow arrow at close range, but the wooden crossbows the Kobolds used were quite weak, with an effective range of only about ten or twenty meters. Even if an arrow managed to pierce the Explosive-Proof Shield, only the tip would get through, at which point Fang Zhen’s riot suit could block the piercing damage.

Neither the Anti-Riot Shield nor the riot suit could stop a crossbow arrow on its own, but together, they could.

Fang Zhen brought another bag of steel balls, ten 8008 Crossbow Arrows, the Nepalese Curved Saber, and his long spear. All the equipment added up probably weighed thirty to forty pounds.

With Fang Zhen’s stamina, he normally wouldn’t be able to hike or fight while carrying such a heavy load.

However, adding a multi-terrain vehicle solved this problem.

Fang Zhen, feeling a little excited, pushed the KTM 450 EXC-F to the front of the Light Gate.

This off-road motorcycle had been modified according to Fang Zhen’s plan.

After the modifications, the motorcycle had a small crossbar above the rear wheel’s mudguard, with metal frames on both sides. These frames contained springs and industrial components, giving them some elasticity without taking up much space.

These two metal frames could perfectly secure two travel backpacks, one on each side, for balance.

A metal rack had also been added to the front of the bike. It was adjustable, able to be fixed horizontally or vertically, somewhat resembling the metal hooks on an ancient general’s warhorse used to hold long weapons.

That was, in fact, where Fang Zhen had gotten his inspiration.

The modification plan he provided was to treat the off-road motorcycle as a warhorse, adding a weapon-hanging metal rack to the front.

The metal rack on the back was modified based on the design of a road-touring motorcycle.

By all normal standards, this modification was a strange mishmash. If you really wanted to go on a road trip, you would just buy a touring motorcycle. An off-road bike with two metal racks like these just looked wrong; they would be a burden in the woods or on a motocross track.

But for Fang Zhen, it couldn’t be more practical.

Fang Zhen’s modification method would seem incredible to both motorcycle enthusiasts and dirt bikers, yet it perfectly met his real need for both mobility and load-bearing capacity within the instance.

It all just came down to analyzing the specific situation.

Fang Zhen placed both backpacks on the metal rack at the back of the off-road motorcycle, hung the Anti-Riot Shield on the right side, and then hung the long spear on the weapon rack.

After placing everything, Fang Zhen looked it over and felt quite satisfied.

’The more I look at you, the more you resemble a warhorse. Calling you by your original name, KTM 450 EXC-F, is a pain. I’ll call you Jue Ying instead.’

Fang Zhen gently patted the motorcycle’s seat with his left hand, renaming the vehicle after one of the ten famous horses of Xia Country, the legendary mount of Cao Cao.

Fang Zhen put all the heavy items on the off-road motorcycle, leaving himself feeling light and unburdened.

After taking a deep breath and composing himself, Fang Zhen pushed the Jue Ying motorcycle and walked into the Light Gate.

After a moment of slight dizziness, Fang Zhen came to his senses. He had already entered the instance world.

He appeared at the end of the Dark Path, on the hilltop south of Redstone Town.

Fang Zhen checked the weather.

It was a rare nice day in the instance. It wasn’t raining, nor was it overcast. Instead, it was like the dim light of early morning before the sun rises.

’Good weather. A good omen,’ Fang Zhen chuckled.

He had never encountered weather here that wasn’t overcast or raining, which made the current weather feel quite nice.

Fang Zhen swung his leg over and got on the Jue Ying motorcycle.

The motorcycle was keyless, started by remote. Fang Zhen got on, ready to head down the mountain.

Fang Zhen had never ridden an off-road motorcycle before. He’d only ridden a road bike a few times. His motorcycle skills were learned on the fly from watching online videos.

He was confident in his ability to learn, especially when it came to hands-on skills, and decided to learn by doing.

’Right for gas, left for clutch, foot for gears, start in neutral, brake with the foot,’ Fang Zhen recalled the little mnemonic he’d come up with after watching the motorcycle tutorial videos.

Neutral, power on, check the brakes, start the engine, warm-up, operate the clutch.

Fang Zhen went through the sequence, and despite it being his first time, he did it all in one smooth motion, successfully starting the bike.

Fang Zhen gently twisted the throttle with his right hand, shifted into a low gear with his left foot, and started the motorcycle, heading down the mountain.

The road down the mountain was quite steep, with a significant gradient, but steepness wasn’t the danger; despite the sharp incline, the road was very smooth.

Fang Zhen was cautious at first, but after riding for a while, he felt it wasn’t so bad—much simpler than things like downhill mountain biking.

The hands-on feedback was excellent. Fang Zhen felt his sense of balance and control were superb; a road like this descent was completely within his grasp.

Fang Zhen let out a joyous laugh and gently twisted the throttle again. The Jue Ying motorcycle sped up, sometimes even catching air over bumps, but Fang Zhen didn’t feel any turbulence at all. In fact, there was a springy sensation. The foot brake was sensitive, and the handling and terrain adaptability felt fantastic.

"WHOO~ Awesome!"

Fang Zhen’s mood lifted. He controlled his speed at the very edge of his comfort zone, treating it like a downhill mountain run as he piloted the Jue Ying motorcycle all the way down the slope.

Walking down the slope would have taken quite some time, but on the off-road motorcycle, Fang Zhen made it to the bottom in just a short while.

Fang Zhen didn’t stop. He rode the Jue Ying motorcycle into Redstone Town.

There were still people on the streets of Redstone Town. When they saw Fang Zhen riding in on his motorcycle, many cried out in alarm and scrambled to get out of the way.

Fang Zhen was driving safely and didn’t come close to hitting any of the townspeople, but they were still utterly shocked.

After yesterday’s events, many of Redstone Town’s residents had seen Fang Zhen. They weren’t afraid of him as a person, but they had never seen a motorcycle before. Seeing one for the first time likely filled them with a mix of shock, fear, and curiosity.

Fang Zhen rode all the way to the small plaza in the center of town.

Fang Zhen eased off the throttle, hit the foot brake, and the Jue Ying motorcycle came to a stop with a stylish fishtail.

After he stopped the bike, everyone still on the streets ran over. About forty or fifty people formed a circle, watching Fang Zhen and his motorcycle from a distance, with constant murmurs of amazement coming from the crowd.

Fang Zhen stopped the bike and was about to ask someone to fetch Mayor Ande, but before he could, Ande had already pushed through the crowd and scurried over to him.

Ande looked at Fang Zhen, then his gaze fixed on the Jue Ying motorcycle, his eyes filled with shock.

"Sir, you... you didn’t leave?" Ande asked.

"I haven’t helped Redstone Town retake the mine yet. Why would I leave?" Fang Zhen retorted.

"Ah! So that’s how it is. Yesterday, someone saw you pass through town and head back toward the Dark Forest. I thought... I thought you had failed and left town," Ande said.

Fang Zhen shook his head. This Ande fellow really was an honest man, saying whatever was on his mind.

"I killed over a dozen Kobolds yesterday and was a bit drained, so I went to rest," Fang Zhen said.

"What?" Ande was stunned. He craned his head forward, his eyes widening until they seemed a size larger as he stared at Fang Zhen in disbelief.

Fang Zhen didn’t explain further, just nodded.

A wave of gasps erupted from the crowd of onlookers.

Ande didn’t continue the topic of the Kobolds, it was unclear if he believed him or not. His gaze remained glued to the Jue Ying motorcycle. It was a long moment before he finally tore his eyes away and asked, "Sir, what is this thing?"

"This is my mount, a steel steed blessed by the God of Industry and Mechanics. Only a Warrior like me, blessed by the God of Industry and Mechanics since childhood, can ride it. If an ordinary person touches it, they will be met with misfortune," Fang Zhen said.

He wasn’t intentionally trying to spin a tall tale, but he didn’t want the townspeople messing with his motorcycle, so he used a god’s name to scare them a little.

When Fang Zhen spoke of the God of Industry and Mechanics, he said it in Chinese. Who knew what concept the mystical power of language and symbols had translated those words into for the people of Redstone Town to understand.

Upon hearing the name of a god, many in the crowd of onlookers, including Mayor Ande, immediately made a regular triangle symbol over their chests with their hands and closed their eyes to murmur something.

Fang Zhen observed these actions.

’Looks like this world has faith, but it’s probably not monotheistic. Otherwise, most of the townspeople would be making this obvious prayer gesture together.’

Sure enough, after closing his eyes and making the triangle sign, Ande didn’t have any more extreme reactions, but the look he gave Fang Zhen was now filled with even more reverence.

Many of the townspeople in the crowd also looked at Fang Zhen with reverence.

Their gazes toward the Jue Ying motorcycle, however, were tinged with fear.

Fang Zhen guessed that these townspeople, including Ande, had no idea who the God of Industry and Machinery was, but in this era, few would dare to lie about a god.

Therefore, the townspeople were unlikely to doubt Fang Zhen.

Fang Zhen surmised that the townspeople had probably pegged him as some kind of Divine Favored.

"Mayor Ande, you’re just in time. I need you for something," Fang Zhen said, looking at Ande. "On a normal day in Redstone Town, how do you summon the townspeople for important matters?"

"Sir, I use that old bell in this plaza to gather people," Ande’s attitude grew even more respectful. "It’s that bell behind you. One loud strike summons anyone in town who is free. Two strikes summon the men of the town, mainly the miners and craftsmen. Three strikes summon everyone in the entire town."

"Good," Fang Zhen nodded. "I want you to strike it twice and gather the men of the town."

"This... Sir, what is it you want to do?" Ande asked curiously, not immediately agreeing.

"I want to recruit brave men from Redstone Town to be my Attendants," Fang Zhen said.