Chapter 209 Indeed
I have to admit that when Xia Nan followed the team and came to the Misty Forest along the corpses found on the plain,
he recalled the scene of scattering rice grains on the ground in his previous life to guide the chickens.
These fragmented sheep corpses seemed to be left by the beastman for everyone to find, with the purpose of attracting the Seathorn Squad to enter the Misty Forest.
Xia Nan couldn't help but have some doubts in his heart.
But in fact, if the Seathorn Squad hadn't encountered last night, they originally planned to go deep into the forest according to the approximate direction provided by the association after completing the investigation in Qingmai Village.
At present, it is just to return the plan to the previous one, but it has gone around the plain one more time, and there is no obvious difference.
One step in.
With the gray-white mist quietly spreading in the air, the whistling cold wind on the plain suddenly stopped, and the warm and bright sunlight also melted into the depths of the lush branches and leaves above the head.
It seems to have entered another world, with only the sound of insects and the breeze blowing in the ears.
Dangerous and quiet.
After nearly a year of adventuring, Xia Nan has developed muscle memory.
When the first wisp of mist touched his skin, he was instantly alert.
His body, which had been slightly relaxed due to the wide field of vision on the plain, suddenly tensed up, focusing his attention and alerting to possible dangers around him.
At the same time, the team had already arranged their formations without the need for the captain, Cash, to command.
Cash led the way, Veris walked on the flank, Mint was protected in the middle as always, and Xia Nan was the rear guard.
Time passed quietly.
With highly concentrated attention and the special environment of low visibility and lush treetops in the misty forest, it is difficult to notice the time spent in it unless you pay special attention.
Many new adventurers may walk into the forest in the morning, and when they come back to their senses in a trance, a day has passed.
Fortunately, the adventurers in the Seathorn team have all obtained professional levels and will not make mistakes in this regard.
As for time, even if you don't use the sunlight leaking through the treetops to distinguish, you can have a rough judgment of what time it is.
"Stop, rest nearby first, and when we find a relatively safe place, we will prepare to camp for the night."
Cash, who was at the front of the team, suddenly stopped, looked up at the sunlight between the dense leaves above his head, and gave orders.
It gets dark very quickly in the forest, and some preparations needed for the night must be arranged in advance.
If we wait until it is completely dark before taking action, the danger will be greatly increased.
Hearing this, Xia Nan was not very relaxed in his heart, but just stood there while being alert to the surroundings.
Compared with when he just entered the misty forest, there were no obvious scars on the plate chain composite armor on his body, but there were a few more blood-red marks on the surface of the beheading long sword in his hand.
——From the leopard that had just grown up, three blue-haired baboons that looked like they had been hungry for many days, and a poisonous lizard that was as long as an adult's arm and was hiding in the depths of the bushes, intending to launch a surprise attack on him.
This was just the beasts he encountered as the rear guard of the team.
If Cash and Veris in front were added, the number of attacks encountered by the Seathorn team would be even more exaggerated.
Although the team did not suffer direct casualties, the number of enemies along the way has undoubtedly become the largest in more than a month.
Even Cash, who seems to have rich adventure experience, found it a bit strange.
But he just thought it was the impact of the recent wild beast riots in the forest, and did not think deeply about it.
It is worth mentioning that the animal corpses that led everyone into the forest were no longer found after the few people actually entered.
It is not known whether they were cleaned up by the scavengers in the forest in one night, or the beastmen did not take this road.
Thinking in his heart, he seemed to have noticed some possible doubts.
He asked Veris beside him:
"The corpses we encountered along the way should have been left last night, right?"
"Of course, what's wrong?"
"Can you determine the specific time of their death?"
"Brother Shanan, what do you think of me?" The dark-skinned and hot drow half-elf suddenly showed a helpless look on his face.
"It is true that I have lived in the Underdark for a period of time, but that does not mean that I can control corpses and call back the dead like those necromancers."
"If your sister and I had this ability, we would not follow you to this ghost place where you can't take a bath for ten days or half a month."
Hearing this, Xia Nan only smiled awkwardly and stopped asking.
In his previous life, he had read some mystery works, in which the detective protagonists in the plots could judge the exact time of death of the deceased through some details on the corpse.
He did not have a detailed understanding of this aspect, so he wondered if anyone in the team had relevant knowledge.
At present, at least Veris is out of the game.
And from the performance of Cash and Mint along the way, they should not know more than himself.
As for why he asked this question... it was just a slight suspicion that flashed through his mind. It was not particularly important. He could not figure it out, so it didn't matter if he just let it go.
Set up traps and build camps.
The sky above was just a little dim, and the hot and bright bonfire had already risen.
Shanan sat on a tree trunk nearby, holding a piece of gauze in his hand, carefully wiping his beheading sword. He
carefully cleaned the blood stains that he had not had time to clean up during the day because he was in a hurry.
Suddenly, a voice came to his ear.
"You are quite serious about maintenance." Cash sat by the campfire, looking at Shanan with a kind smile on his face. "When I just became a professional, I made a lot of money. I wish I could change my equipment for every mission."
Shanan smiled but didn't say anything, but secretly complained.
Although the "Beheading Sword" is just a white outfit, its entries are very good. Not only does it have an exaggerated 50% durability bonus, but it also adds 5% beheading damage.
Sharp and durable.
Even for ordinary professionals, it can be regarded as very good equipment, and it is not something that can be bought casually.
Although the scrap rate of his own equipment is indeed a little high, it does not mean that he does not cherish it in normal times. He will not save any effort on the maintenance that should be maintained.
Didn't you see the plate-chain composite armor he's wearing now? It's as new as when he bought it, with only a few scratches left accidentally during the battle, and no flaws at all due to improper maintenance.
"Come to think of it, your nickname 'Gray Sword' comes from this long sword, right?"
Hearing this, Xia Nan suddenly became alert.
Noticing that the other party seemed to be trying to find out his information, he remained calm and flexibly changed the subject:
"Nicknames are all spread by those people in the tavern. Basically, anyone with a little fame has been given two nicknames."
"Don't you have any?"
Cash just laughed and waved his hand at Shanan.
"I've spent most of my life at sea, fishing and occasionally catching two unlucky pirates. How can I be famous?"
No, or don't want to say it?
Shanan naturally didn't believe the man's words, but he didn't point it out. He lowered his head and wiped the sword silently.
In front, Cash continued to chat:
"To be honest, it's actually the same as you. Rather than saying that you know me, it's better to say that you recognize this old thing in my hand."
Oh?
Shanan raised his eyebrows and looked over. What
came into view was the blue-gray stone spear in Cash's hand.
It looked dusty and there was nothing particularly eye-catching.
Even the tip of the spear head didn't show any sharp cold light that ordinary weapons should have.
The only thing worth noting was that there was almost no wave-like engraving on the surface of the spear shaft, and there was no trace of splicing with it, and the smooth appearance of the whole body was made of stone.
At first glance, it looked more like a ritual vessel used in seaside churches than a weapon.
After so many days in the Seathorn Squad, Shanan was certainly familiar with Cash's main weapon.
He knew it was not as simple as it looked, but usually the other party only brought it out during missions, so he had no chance to get close to it and concentrate on using the panel to identify its properties.
Now that he heard the other party mention the relevant information, he couldn't help but become interested.
"I mentioned to you before that I was a fisherman, remember?"
Shanan nodded.
"Looking back now, even though decades have passed, those days are still vivid in my mind."
"I remember when I was a child, my family was not rich. The five of us lived in a shabby house by the sea. We had to sell all the fish we caught, and we could only fill our stomachs with porridge made of black bread and beans every day. We rarely had a full stomach."
"Often before dawn, my father would set up his small wooden boat and take my brother out to sea to fish, and would come back very late; my mother would stay at home with my sister to spin thread, mend nets, and do some chores."
"I was young and naughty, and I couldn't sit still at home. Occasionally, I helped them dry some fish and pick up some shells and small crabs on the beach, but I couldn't do it for long."
"Until that day." The voice suddenly paused.
It got dark quickly in the forest. Just now, there was only a little twilight, but now it was completely dark in the woods.
The mist was drifting, and the dark and thick shadows mixed with the orange-red firelight were reflected on the face of this middle-aged man, making his expression blurred, leaving only the wave-shaped tattoo on the side of his face.
"I remember it very clearly. The waves were so big that day that the rocks seemed to break apart when they hit the shore. My father and brother didn't go out to sea for safety reasons. The whole family huddled in the small house."
"I actually like this feeling. I don't have to go out. I can just sit on the bed and watch my brother and sister bickering while my parents chat about something. It's great.
" "Then, he came.
" "A passerby, an adventurer like us."
"Although there was only one person and he didn't look very strong, he was an adventurer after all, so the family entertained him warmly and fearfully."
"As for what happened later..."
Cash suddenly grinned, revealing his white teeth.
"Yes, it's what you think."
"Because I was small, my sister protected me and I ran out alone."
"I didn't go home until I couldn't stand the cold at night."
"All died."
"No one survived."
"Oh, the body of the adventurer was also in there - my father stabbed his neck with the adventurer's own weapon."
Cash raised the stone spear in his hand.
"That's it."
"That night, I was so tired that I slept in the house all night and got up the next day to clean up."
"I have been carrying this stone spear with me ever since."
"Don't mention it, it's really useful."
As soon as the voice fell, before Xia Nan had time to speak, a sneer came from the shadows beside him.
"Listen to his bragging."
Veris's face was full of a playful expression, and the two daggers in her hands had been tempered with poison, and the edges of the blades reflected dangerous and deadly colored light.
"The origin of this broken stone spear in his hand, from what I heard myself, there are no less than three kinds of stories, oh, including the one just now, it's four."
"This old guy is now thinking of fooling someone, quickly get rid of this thing in your hand so that you can use a new one, don't be fooled."
On the other side, after hearing Veris say this, Cash's face did not have any expression of shame and anger, but just grinned again as if he was exposed.
"I told you not to talk too much. If you don't say that nonsense, maybe this time it will work!"
"It's just a broken stone spear, not a magic equipment. Even if I don't say it, who would buy it as long as it's a normal person?"
"What did the collector say last time? The price was almost settled. If it weren't for..."
The two quarreled, and Xia Nan didn't participate. He just polished the sword seriously.
Suddenly, he heard a certain keyword from the other party's mouth, and his heart moved. He pretended to be casual:
"I have seen a few pieces of this magic equipment in the exchange catalog on the second floor of the association. The prices are high and low. Is there any explanation in it?"
"Of course!" Veris glared at Cash, too lazy to argue with him, and explained to Xia Nan.
"Of course, there are different grades. Even if the quality is similar, the price of the equipment will often vary greatly depending on the type of equipment itself."
"The most expensive ones are of course the 'accessories', such as rings and necklaces. They are highly concealed and convenient to carry. And the experts who can enchant such small things often make the finished products not too bad."
"Even the senior adventurers on the second floor of the association may not have such a piece of magic equipment."
"It is rare to see similar ones in the market outside. They are often consumed internally."
Speaking of this, Veris couldn't help but sigh.
"Oh, I've gone too far."
"For low-level professionals like us, a piece of magic equipment will already bankrupt us and take many years to fight for it. There is no need to think too much."
"Indeed." Xia Nan nodded heavily.
The right hand with the inconspicuous silver ring grasped the hilt of the sword, holding the beheading sword across the thigh bone armor, and sheathed it, stacking it with the other wooden sword next to it.
Chapter 210 Prepare for Battle!!!
Before becoming a professional, Shanan had some understanding of how rare and expensive magic equipment with special effects was through the bragging and gossip of adventurers in the tavern.
But he really realized its value after the trip to Nium. After providing the main materials for forging and using part of them to offset the corresponding labor costs, he still spent most of his wealth, a huge sum of 500 gold, to barely make a piece of excellent (green) quality equipment.
There is no doubt that even the most ordinary enchanted equipment will easily reach a four-digit price in the market.
If the enchantment effect is better and the quality is improved by a few levels, there will definitely be five-digit and six-digit prices.
However, this level of equipment will obviously not be circulated in the market.
Shanan sometimes thinks that when he first crossed into this world, he didn't even understand the concepts of "professional" and "adventurer". He was in such an ordinary goblin nest, facing such a bugbear that had not grown up for a long time.
I actually got a green ornament with defensive spells, automatic charging, and a serious green ornament - the [Deadline] ring.
Was I too lucky?
But thinking about it, time travel itself is an event with a probability of almost zero, and I have encountered it, so it is understandable that I am a little lucky.
In addition, with the [Coin of Destiny] in my arms, the goddess of luck may be looking at me. There is no need to think so much, just move forward step by step.
At the same time, the discussion about magic equipment seemed to have aroused the interest of Veris and Cash. At present, they are having a heated discussion about whether to buy enchanted weapons first or equip a set of advanced armor after saving money.
I don't intend to participate in their topic.
Xia Nan's eyes turned slightly and looked at the other side of the campfire.
I saw Mint sitting alone in the corner, with her knees bent and her eyes empty.
Her left hand gently stroked her light green teardrop-shaped earrings.
Noticing Xia Nan's gaze, she came back to her senses immediately, and her left hand naturally dropped from her ear to her knees.
"What's wrong?" She asked with some doubt in her tone.
"Nothing." Xia Nan shook his head, but his eyes were still fixed on the girl's left ear. "The earring is very beautiful. Was it given to you by your mentor?"
As if she didn't expect him to ask such a question, Bohe's expression was obviously stunned for a moment, and she was silent for a moment.
Then she forced a smile on her face again:
"No, it came from a very good friend of mine."
"An adventurer too?"
"Yeah." Bohe's left hand reached up again, gently pinching the earring between his fingers, "I'll go see her after this mission is over."
"That's good."
It was just a casual question. After the mission is over, I will say goodbye to everyone. I have no intention of finding out more, so I didn't take it seriously and ended the topic.
The night gradually became darker.
Although they encountered an unusual number of wild beasts along the way, after setting up camp, it seemed to have returned to its original appearance in the outer area of the Misty Forest.
Xia Nan slept soundly throughout the first half of the night.
He was awakened to keep watch until the early morning, but he did not encounter a single attack.
The night was long, especially in this environment where there was no entertainment and he needed to be alert to the dangers around him.
Not to mention a few hours of sleep, which had restored his physical strength and spirit to him.
He could not even fall asleep.
He just sat by the campfire, staring at the flames in front of him, his mind wandering. On
the other side, Veris accompanied Shanan to keep watch for the second half of the night.
——Since the Night Wolf mission, Shanan had not kept watch alone for a long time because of his secret fear of his strength.
At this moment, this woman with both drow and human blood flowing in her body was standing at the edge of the camp not far away, with an interesting smile on her face, staring at something.
It was a delicate and small spider web woven between two branches.
When Shanan realized what the other party was looking at, he instantly retracted his gaze.
Darkness, drow, spider webs...
But these elements together are enough to make any creature on this continent who knows something about gods be wary.
[Spider Queen], [Chaos Weaver], [Lord of Greed], [Drow Mother of Darkness]...
The spider goddess from the bottomless abyss:
- "Rose".
Even though it can be seen that the drow half-blood in front of him is definitely not a god-favored person, nor is he a priest-related profession, it is basically impossible for a few low-level adventurers like him to attract the attention of the goddess.
But out of caution, Shanan was very rational and did not disturb Veris who was boredly observing the spider web at the moment.
After all, he knew clearly that being noticed by this goddess who loves conspiracy, likes to weave fate like a spider web, and is cruel and fickle... To some extent, it should not be a good thing for him now.
"Have you been to the Underdark?"
Shanan, who was forcibly looking away and forcing himself to divert his attention, suddenly heard Veris's voice.
Even though he was a little reluctant about the possibility of being noticed by the goddess, after hesitating for a moment, he pursed his dry lips and replied,
"Not yet."
The Underdark is not a specific place name like Riverdale Town, Nyum City, and the Kingdom of Servia.
It is a general term for an ecosystem that covers the entire continent and consists of tunnels, water veins, karst caves, and countless underground creatures under the surface.
From a certain perspective, perhaps there is a connection with the Underdark deep underground under the Misty Forest, but no adventurer has yet discovered a stable entrance to this underground world.
And most of the drow elves in this world also live in the Underdark.
"Haha, it's really not a good place for you."
Without looking back, Veris's chuckle was heard in his ears.
"There is air to breathe and food is sufficient, but people living underground will never see the sky in their entire lives."
"Many groups, including my clan, naturally hate creatures from above and regard people on the surface as slaves and consumable materials."
"They are not as easy to talk to as your sister Veris."
She stared at the spider web in front of her. Her eyes, emitting a faint glow in the night, vaguely reflected the white spider silk and the small spider waiting in the corner for its prey.
"The spiders living in the Underdark are much larger than those above."
"They are cold and cruel, and the spider webs they weave are difficult for even the strongest orcs to break free from."
Buzz -
perhaps attracted by the campfire not far away, a small flying insect fluttered its wings and crashed straight into it.
The spider web trembled slightly.
"And once the prey falls into the trap, those big, furry guys lurking in the shadows will slowly climb up and use their sharp and deadly fangs to inject venom into the prey's body."
The chelicerae with tiny bristles moved lightly on the spider web, and the spider, which was only half the size of a palm, moved its body and gradually approached its prey.
"Not only can the venom paralyze your body and make you lose the ability to resist, it is also highly corrosive, turning your internal organs and flesh into a pool of thick water."
On the spider web, the tips of the small fly's wings twitched, but the amplitude of its body's struggle gradually slowed down.
"It won't take long, maybe a few dozen minutes later, you may still look like a human figure on the outside, but under the skin and bones, it is empty, only an empty shell remains."
"At this time, the spider will suck the blood food that has turned into pus like drinking soup."
As soon as the voice fell, Veris turned back suddenly, her eyes fixed on Shanan beside the fire.
It seemed that she wanted to find some fear on his face.
But the only thing that responded to Verice was the puzzled expression on Shanan's face due to his teammates' strange behavior.
He couldn't help but feel disappointed.
"Aren't you afraid?" She curled her lips. "I've explained it in such detail, and it's in the night of the Misty Forest. Any normal person will have some reaction, right?"
Shanan smiled and shook his head.
Of course, he wouldn't tell Verice that when he heard the word "food", his thoughts had already diverged outward.
He wondered if the mushrooms grown in the environment of the Underdark would be more delicious than those above.
I heard that there seemed to be strange creatures such as mushroom people (mushroom people), but I didn't know if they could be eaten.
As for what Verice said later, he only vaguely heard the general idea.
He opened his mouth and was about to say a few words casually.
"Ding Bang!"
A sharp and piercing noise suddenly came from the forest not far away.
It was the sound of the warning trap being triggered.
Cash and Mint were awakened by the noise not long after they fell asleep, without Shanan and the others reminding them. They got up suddenly and became alert immediately.
Quickly and silently, they formed a formation and gathered in the brightly lit camp.
While keeping their eyes on the direction of the sound, they were also careful of the bushes and grass in other directions.
Of course, they would not leave the range illuminated by the fire and enter the dimly lit forest, as that would only make the situation more dangerous.
They would wait in place first, and make plans if the attacker did not appear.
Shasha -
accompanied by a burst of hurried footsteps, the bushes trembled in the mist.
Everyone's hearts also tensed up.
"Bang!"
The broken leaves and broken branches suddenly exploded.
What came into view was a horned deer with four slender hooves at the height of an adult's chest.
Perhaps it was startled by the sudden appearance of the fire in front of it, and it unconsciously took two steps back.
Then, a small knife that was not poisoned and used to decompose corpses emerged from the shadow beside it.
It pierced the heart accurately and neatly.
A fatal blow.
The force of the impact caused the whole body of the horned deer to fall to the side, without time to struggle, let alone escape.
With just a few kicks of its hooves, it turned into a warm corpse.
Holding a small knife, he rubbed the fur of the horned deer a few times to wipe off the blood on its surface.
Veris crossed her two long legs and stepped hard on the head of the corpse with her pointed leather boots.
"I thought we were attacked again."
"Damn, you scared me!"
Seeing this, Cash, who was holding his blue-gray stone spear tightly with both hands in the front of the team, was obviously relieved.
He stretched out his hand to greet and was about to say something.
But a short and sharp voice came from behind.
"Come back."
With a serious expression, the iron-gray blade of the beheading long sword reflected the orange-red firelight, and Xia Nan spoke.
Even though he was confused, he did not ask or hesitate.
Veris, who was at the edge of the camp just now, flashed her tall figure and returned to the team.
"There is more than one."
Xia Nan explained briefly.
As soon as the voice fell, the three people around, including Mint, became alert instantly.
His perception ability is outstanding. After more than a month of team building, it has become a recognized fact in the Seathorn Squad.
Although he looks like a melee profession like "warrior", his perception is more acute than that of Mint, who is a sub-job of the "druid" category.
Therefore, at this moment, no one doubted Xia Nan's judgment.
Even though time passed by, the surroundings became quieter and there was no other sound.
Everyone still maintained the formation and remained vigilant.
The patience of wild beasts is always limited.
The Seathorn Squad did not wait too long.
A few minutes, or maybe dozens of seconds.
Shasha -
a much louder movement than the previous horned deer came from the forest in front, behind, left, right, and all directions.
It was not until then that the other people in the team realized what was hidden around them.
"Ang!"
The first one to rush out of the forest was a long-haired wild boar with thick skin and flesh, wrapped in mud armor, and emitting a strong stench.
Like a small tank, it crushed the bushes and grass on the road and rushed straight towards the direction where everyone was.
Its size was actually slightly smaller than the one that Shanan had killed before, but its movements were not much more flexible, and Shanan's fighting style naturally restrained it.
He could easily deal with it alone, without even teamwork.
It wouldn't take long, and the battle could be resolved in a few seconds.
But at this moment, neither Shanan nor Cash and Veris in the team dared to act rashly.
Because as the wild boar rushed out of the forest, pairs of cunning, cruel, or cold eyes quietly emerged in the deep and dark night.
They may be of different sizes and shapes, but what is the same is the violent animal nature contained in them.
Just like a radar map, in Shanan's perception, with the camp as the center, countless small dots are densely distributed in the dimly lit forest around, approaching rapidly!
The warning traps were triggered one after another, but they had long lost their meaning.
He could feel the countless gazes on his body, especially on his heart and neck, that regarded him as prey and contained murderous intent.
His extremely sharp perception gave him goose bumps all over his body.
In front of him was a long-haired wild boar that was moving its four short, thick legs and roaring towards everyone.
And the eardrum-vibrating roar from Kash:
"Get ready for battle!!!"
Chapter 211 The Beast Hiding in the Shadows
Biting and roaring.
Killing and blood filled every second of the Misty Forest.
Today was no exception.
"Sizzle."
Blood gushed out, and a jackal head that was neatly cut off from the neck with a smooth cut rolled to the ground.
It seemed that the attack was too fierce and it didn't have time to react. Its furry face even maintained the fierce look of baring teeth at the last moment before death.
The slightly narrowed eyes of the beast and the scarlet blood spurting from the throat showed the tragic situation of its body being separated from its head.
Tick-tock -
a small drop of blood fell gently at the end of the tender green leaf like morning dew.
But it did not seep into the soil like the blood that almost dyed the entire forest red before, but fell on a black, furry paw.
It was only then that the sudden impact from the outside world made the deep shadows wandering on the edge of the field and blending into the night reveal a hint of disharmony.
This was a huge black panther, nearly three meters long, crawling deep in the bushes.
Its dark and flawless fur was as smooth as silk, as if covered with a layer of flowing shadows, making it difficult to detect; its golden eyes were like fireflies swaying in the night, gathering its murderous intent and desire for meat under every inch of its fur. It
paced silently.
Its gait was extremely slow, but every step it took made people feel palpitations.
Its protruding shoulder blades moved slightly with its steps, and you could vaguely see the tight muscles on its back squirming and expanding; its soles lightly tapped on the rotten leaves, and its thick meat pads greedily swallowed all possible sounds, and only the occasional flash of its white claws in the gaps between the shadows revealed its murderous intent.
Growing up in a misty forest full of dangers, this predator bred by nature has amazing patience that ordinary beasts do not have after thousands of hunts.
Even though the rich and delicious smell of blood has already flowed into the nose through the breath, it still crouches and buries its body in the mist and darkness, slowly approaching as it did at the beginning.
Unlike before, it lurks in the depths of the shadows like an assassin, hunting alone.
The invisible attraction from the origin of blood makes it ignore the noisy beasts around at this moment, and focus all its attention on the humans in the forest ahead.
The target has been selected long ago.
Living in an environment with a high concentration of magic particles for many years, the intelligence of the black panther is much higher than that of its peers in other places.
It can even understand the concept of the "adventurer team" composed of these four humans.
Perhaps it is not clear about the division of labor among the few people, nor does it know the purpose of their entry into the forest.
But the rich hunting experience and fairly good IQ make it almost instinctively choose the prey as the petite and thin figure under the protection of everyone.
Crawling forward, it carefully stretched its forelimbs, the smooth lines under the black hair were vividly reflected against the muscles, and the tendons were like steel cables tightened to accumulate strength.
Closer, closer...
until the figure in the plain robe really entered its attack range, and between the conical canine teeth like bone porcelain daggers, it let out the first beast roar since it came to the sidelines. The
long-accumulated power suddenly burst out, and the huge body that was crouching on the ground turned into a deadly black shadow, and pounced on the prey at a speed far beyond the reaction of ordinary humans.
The white and paper-like fragile skin had no defense against the claws that were enough to tear the thick and tough bark; the slender neck did not even need to exert force, the upper and lower jaws closed naturally, and it would break like dead wood falling in the forest.
In mid-air, countless previous experiences allowed the black panther to even imagine the wonderful experience of swallowing the meat mixed with warm and sweet blood.
But the next second, the inexplicably high wolf howl beside his ear brought him back to reality.
The beast's instinct for survival made it keenly aware of the terrifying danger contained in it, and the cat's agile body made it rely on its strong core strength to try to twist its body and avoid the attack even in mid-air.
However, it was obviously the wolf howl that was faster.
Swish -
the iron-gray wolf's fangs drew a perfect arc in the air, and the proud dark fur was instantly cut.
The mane, muscles, tendons, and sharp blades wrapped in strong inertia penetrated into the flesh and blood with exquisite skills honed thousands of times.
The stagnant sound was fleeting.
The dark headless body still maintained its forward posture and fell powerlessly.
The black panther's head, with its eyes shrunken and its canine teeth sharp, still maintained its hunting posture, had already spun away from the body.
Wrapped in scarlet blood, it rolled to the ground.
Just like a billiard ball, it gently collided with the first jackal head and stopped.
The ferocious wolf head made of grass, fog, blood and flesh floated vaguely in the air.
He did not put away his sword, and did not have time to remind Mint beside him to be careful of sneak attacks.
Amid the howling wind, he had already fallen back to his original position in the team formation.
"Ding!"
The sharp fangs that were sizzling and emitting steam were easily blocked by the snake-scale arm shield with "300% corrosion damage resistance", leaving no trace on the surface.
With a pull of his left hand, the sharp edge of the arm shield had already cut the neck of the colorful poisonous lizard and carried it flying.
At the same time, his right arm suddenly exerted force, and the iron-gray sword light flashed by. Under the [Spin Slash], he cut another wolverine that tried to take advantage of the chaos to attack in half.
His chest rose and fell, and Xia Nan was panting.
"Where did all these beasts come from? It's not over yet, is it?"
Although he didn't have any obvious scars on his body, the surface of the sword, the plate chain composite armor and the leg armor were all covered with blood and broken pieces of meat.
It had been dozens of minutes since they discovered the horned deer that broke into the camp.
The beasts that surrounded the camp had already launched a siege on the Seathorn Squad.
He didn't know what exactly prompted these crazy beasts to ignore their fear of other beasts and their cautious instincts and rush towards the crowd like moths to a flame.
He didn't know why, even though the corpses on the meadow were almost piled up, these beasts still showed no signs of retreating and continued to attack the team fearlessly.
But he knew in his heart that if this continued, the collapse of the Seathorn Squad was inevitable.
To some extent, the team was already on the verge of being completely disrupted and broken up.
Because both Kash and Veris were now under the siege of the beasts and gradually deviated from their original positions.
This allowed more and more beasts to break into the gaps between the formations, attack from the side and rear, or directly attack the core caster Mint like just now.
It was because of his quick reaction and the strong mobility gained by [Fang Hunting] that he was able to maintain a short and fragile balance.
During the battle, Xia Nan couldn't help but glance at the field, and his mind flashed with thoughts.
As expected, Kash and Veris were quite hidden, and their strength was definitely not what they showed in the battle with the Night Wolf.
The beasts that kept emerging like a tide were forcing the two to use their full strength and release combat skills that they had never shown before to repel the beasts around them.
Kash gripped the stone spear tightly with both hands, the muscles in his arms swelled, and with a loud bang, the tip of the spear fell like raindrops, rolling up mist and blood, leaving a blood-red shadow in the air.
The half-human-high jungle tiger in front of him was instantly turned into a corpse under the stabbing of the stone spear.
This kind of power is undoubtedly a "combat skill".
As a wanderer, Verice still wielded her two daggers full of poison, leaving fatal scars on the beasts.
However, in just a few dozen minutes, many beasts were lying on the ground with foam at the mouth and twitching bodies.
It can be clearly seen that Verice had a layer of unclear shadow behind her during her actions, and her figure suddenly became much more agile and swift, shuttling among the beasts.
It should also be some kind of combat skill that can improve agility.
"These two old foxes are usually silent, but they are quite hidden."
Xia Nan couldn't help but complain in his heart.
Of course, he didn't use his full strength.
With the combat system that Xia Nan has built now, abundant physical strength, extremely high mobility and instantaneous explosive power, if there is no other restraint, facing an enemy with far less strength than him, the sheer number is already difficult to cause effective damage to him.
Just like the beast siege he faced now, the reason why he seemed to be struggling was that, on the one hand, he did not use his full strength, including [Gravity Control], [Gravity Etching] and other combat skills.
On the other hand, it was also because he needed to maintain the formation, protect the sides of other teammates, and occasionally even need to rush out to support.
This, to a certain extent, greatly limited Shanan's performance and made him give up his advantage of high mobility.
If he was the only one on the field at the moment, not to mention being able to kill all these beasts, it would be extremely easy to break out of the encirclement and retreat safely.
If Shanan really needs to formally form or join an adventurer team one day in the future, his role in the team is actually more like Veris as a wanderer.
Wandering on the side and providing support for teammates.
It's just that the defense ability is higher, the burst mobility is stronger, and there is a little spellcasting ability.
"Swish!"
The dagger with a flashing cold light and a green-purple sheen on the edge accurately pierced into the back of a hyena's head, like a bee sting, stinging and returning, a neat harvest.
The silver-white hair inherited from the drow elves was dyed scarlet by blood, and the surface of the slightly dark skin was a mixture of sweat and minced meat.
Although his posture still maintained the agility and swiftness of a wanderer, his bloody appearance now made him look more like a berserker who had experienced a bloody battle.
"Kash!" Veris screamed, "These beasts are not right! Should we retreat?"
In the past, for these two veteran adventurers, let alone fighting to this extent, they would have evacuated the moment they found themselves surrounded by beasts.
They would never put themselves in too dangerous a situation.
But now, the traces found after the Qingmai Village raid allowed the two to confirm the identity of the target they were chasing all the way, which was the beastman in Shanan's investigation mission.
And the rich experience of adventurers has also allowed them to connect the strange incident of suddenly encountering so many beasts with the beastman.
The long-sought target is right in front of them, so naturally they are unwilling to retreat like this.
But...
Cash held the stone spear tightly in both hands, and the place where his palms pressed turned slightly white due to excessive force. He nailed the leopard under him to death.
At the same time, he stepped back suddenly, causing a claw that stretched out from the side and stretched to his neck to miss, leaving only three deep claw marks on the surface of the scales.
The shouts of the drow half-elf from the other side of the venue came into his ears.
He raised his head suddenly and swept his eyes over the team members.
The long and intense battle made Veris's speed gradually slow down compared to the beginning.
Although both of them knew that there were still trump cards that had not been revealed, it was obviously not the right time.
Mint was in the middle of the team and was in poor condition.
Even though several people had tried their best to maintain the formation, there were still a few fish that slipped through the net.
And she herself needed to concentrate on casting spells to support her teammates, so it was inevitable that she would miss something.
At the moment, she was slightly injured, and her face became even paler due to excessive mental exhaustion.
Xia Nan was far away and the angle was not good, so she couldn't see clearly.
But he knew that many beasts that slipped past him were killed by the other side, and their physical strength consumption doubled.
In the corner of his eye, the other side was covered in blood, and it should not last too long.
Make a prompt decision.
Cash gritted his teeth and shouted loudly:
"Shrink the formation and prepare to retreat!"
The corresponding retreat plan had been formulated long ago, and the few people in the team did not panic after hearing this.
They just exerted their strength suddenly to clear the surrounding beasts, and then quickly gathered around Mint.
Cash waved the stone spear in his hand vigorously, not seeking to kill or injure, but just trying to clear a small space in front of him.
At the same time, he took out a few kerosene bombs from his waist bag and threw them suddenly towards the dense forest in front.
Boom -
grease and dust suddenly exploded with a spark, and the surging flames seemed to arouse the fear from the depths of the beasts' blood in a hurry, and they retreated with cries.
"Now!"
Under Cash's command, the Seathorn Squad seized the opportunity and rushed quickly along the gap cleared by the fire from the beasts.
Even at this time, as senior adventurers, their professional qualities still allowed them to maintain the most basic formation.
Cash was at the front, Veris was walking, Mint was in the middle, and Shanan was behind.
Cash made no mistakes in the decision to retreat temporarily and the corresponding operations after making the decision.
However, he overlooked a more critical factor.
Misty Forest, a famous gathering place for monsters in the Kingdom of Servia.
With such a big commotion, how could there be only these ordinary beasts on the field? The one
who suffered the most was Shanan, who was the first to notice the abnormality and the first to take a defensive posture.
In his hasty movement, he only had time to raise his left arm shield.
The next second, the tremendous force lifted his entire body and fell into the forest beside.
Under the light of the fire, although there was still thick fog in the dark forest, the visibility was obviously much higher.
That is why, in the midst of severe pain and dizziness, he caught a glimpse of the burly figure with an owl's head and a giant bear's body.