The team set out once again, and this time the number of people had decreased again to only twenty-two, with fifteen left in the Dumping Area to mine and clear out monsters.
Xiao Jie suddenly realized a problem: if they wanted to make sure the route back wouldn’t be blocked by monsters and kept clear at all times, it meant that they would have to leave a group behind to clear out monsters every time they advanced. But how many people would it take to explore this mine to the end?
If the mine were a bit shallower, it might be manageable, but what if it was bottomless...
The only other option would be to push through in one go and then push back on the return journey.
However, such an approach would require a high level of strength from the player team, and if strong enemies were encountered on the way forward and the way back was blocked, it would be very easy to get trapped.
Of course, there’s a riskier method, which is to bypass the monsters. Since zombies move slowly and couldn’t possibly block the entire cave, as long as they move quickly, they could parkour all the way down and back, avoiding damage as long as they dodged well. Naturally, this method is only viable when there are fewer people.
Yet to do so would be extremely risky; it might work in a regular game, but in a game where death is at stake, it would be too reckless.
If they ran out of energy halfway or were caught by monsters, that would spell death.
While pondering this, Xiao Jie’s team had already chosen a passage and started moving forward.
Hidden Dragon Do Not Use chose the widest one.
The five men at the front each held a torch, lighting up the mine brightly.
Out of the twenty-two people, ten had lit torches, and then there was Dida La, who summoned a floating fireball to light the way.
Since they had calculated the monsters’ respawn time, they no longer needed a rear guard and split into two teams directly.
Hidden Dragon Do Not Use led the main force to pave the way, while Xiao Jie followed with the Discover more novels on NovelHub - your gateway to endless stories.
For safety, Xiao Jie summoned Xiong Da.
With such a large meat shield by their side, they were much safer. The narrow cave offered a retreat behind Xiong Da in case of an overpowering fight.
Seeing Xiao Jie summon his creature, Dongfang Sheng also waved his iron spear—"Hear my command, come forth—Militia with long spear!" Following his call, a militiaman wielding a long spear and wearing leather armor was summoned by Dongfang Sheng.
He had successfully obtained the Military General profession and hence gained the ability to recruit soldiers. But it was a pity his merits were too low, only allowing him to recruit the weakest Militia.
Ye Luo also summoned his zombie. Xiao Jie glanced at the significantly expanded team and thought it wouldn’t be bad to let these summoned creatures take the forefront if the fight proved too difficult.
The team cautiously searched the mine as they progressed, with Xiao Jie simultaneously keeping track of the time.
They hadn’t gone far before a warning was heard from up ahead.
"Stop, stop, stop, there seems to be a monster ahead."
Xiao Jie had everyone stay on alert while he moved closer.
Suddenly, a pair of crimson eyes emerged from the darkness ahead, and something seemed to be moving.
"Little White Dragon, shoot an arrow over there."
Without a word, Little White Dragon shot an arrow. Although he was a General, he specialized in bows and arrows, with precise shooting technique. Even with limited visibility, he hit the target dead-on, the darkness emitting a monster’s cry as a giant rat the size of a wild boar charged out.
This rat was clearly not normal, with patches of corpse spots on its fur and even exposed putrefying wounds.
Xiao Jie recognized it immediately; he had seen similar creatures before in the Sick Village beneath Bixia Mountain.
Corpse Giant Rat: Level 12, Life Value 360.
Seeing such a large group of people, the Corpse Giant Rat showed no fear and charged straight at them.
A General prepared to test its strength and moved to thrust with his spear, but the giant rat suddenly soared like it was spring-loaded, pouncing and landing squarely on the General.
With a sharp bite, the General hastily retreated
"Shit, I’ve been infected with Corpse Poison."
The others lashed out with their spears in panic, and after several thrusts, the Corpse Giant Rat was killed. Looking at the bitten General, his body turned a grayish-green color as his health bar rapidly dropped.
"Quick, eat the glutinous rice cake."
Thankfully, they were well-prepared for this operation, equipped with all kinds of supplies.
Watching the General’s Corpse Poison being cured and him eating the golden sore medicine to restore his health, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Don’t celebrate too early, look ahead!" Ye Luo’s voice came through.
Xiao Jie instantly scrutinized the darkness, and could faintly make out a large number of crimson points emerging ahead.
"Dida La, throw a fireball over there."
As Dida La launched a fireball, it revealed a large swarm of Corpse Giant Rats in the light, apparently gnawing on something, a dark mass crowding together.
Spurred by the firelight, the giant rats suddenly swarmed.
Squeaking furiously, they charged en masse.
The scene was somewhat frightening.
Yet Hidden Dragon Do Not Use decisively commanded, "Retreat—fire arrows!"
Such a large number of monsters carrying Corpse Poison could easily cause fatalities if it came to close combat, and even if no one died, a lot of supplies would be lost—not simple shield-bearing Mining Zombies after all.
Better to deal with them from a distance.
In an instant, the front line switched to archers, retreating and shooting frantically. While mining zombies were immune to remote weapons, these giant rats were a different matter.
Combat Skills—Continuous Arrow!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, instantly dealing over seventy damage.
Ha, it’s easier to bully these beast-type monsters.
However, despite the downpour of arrows and a litter of dead rats, they swiftly closed in.