Chapter Sixty: How the Cat Died!
Just like the Evil Cave, to prevent an ambush at the Cave Entrance, I first used Werewolf Transformation, letting the Poison Creeper and Raven stand guard carefully, before slowly stepping inside.
There was no ambush, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Compared to the Evil Cave, this Cave was clearly much more comfortable. The reason the Evil Cave was called evil was because it was filled with a cold and dark atmosphere, whereas this Cave was just a bit darker. It also inherited the cold and dryness of the Cold Plains. The moment I stepped inside, I felt a bone-chilling cold rush into my heart.
Perhaps because the environment in the Cave was better, there were also relatively more Monsters here. See? I had only walked a few steps when a "clack-clack" sound came from not far away. When I got closer to look, I nearly jumped in fright. Damn, it turned out to be several completely pale Skeletons.
This was the first time I had seen the Skeleton type of Monster. They were probably close relatives of Zombies, but after their rotten flesh fell off, their bodies were more agile, though their Defense was slightly lower. They held a Flail in their hands, and their Attack was relatively high. Also, every time they moved, their bones would rattle, which honestly made me worry if they could even make it safely in front of me. To prevent this easy prey from getting away, I quickly went up to meet them. How could I dare make the old folks walk any further?
After smashing these brittle-boned Skeletons into pieces, I felt a little depressed. These Skeletons actually had a certain resistance to the Poison Attack of the Poison Creeper, and they didn't give much Experience, only 12 points. I immediately put this type of Skeleton on my list of most unwelcome Monsters. From now on, I'll avoid them if possible.
There was also a new type of Monster called the Hungry Dead. These were quite something! In a true sense, they were an evolved Type of Zombie. Although they were both dead, at least these guys died of starvation, unlike Zombies, which looked like they'd been run over by a truck. Although their appearance was shriveled, their Bodies were relatively intact. Naturally, their Defense and Life were also a bit higher, which made sense. However, they still inherited the characteristic slow Movement of Zombies. Their Experience points were quite high, and they looked much better than Zombies. Alright, the Best Monster Award goes to you.
Besides these, there were also Fallen, Sorceresses, Giant Beasts, Dark Hunters, Dark Stalkers, Ice Worms, and Quill Rats – all old acquaintances from the Cold Plains. Of course, the Cave Spiders that used to scare me so much were also present. Heh heh, now I have a Raven patrolling in the air, so it's useless for you damn spiders to hide on the Cave ceiling.
Just like the Evil Cave, there was no distinction between day and night in the Cave. When I was tired, I slept, and when I woke up, I continued my Trial. When I was lonely, I'd chat a bit with the Poison Creeper, think about Lars, think about the Barbarian Brothers, think about my Little Shara and Lin Ya. I could manage to bear it. But sometimes, inexplicably, tears would stream down my face, which left me very puzzled. What are you crying for? Don't be so disappointing.
I don't know how many days I'd spent in this boring Cave. All that was left in my mind was mechanical killing. I didn't even spare the more troublesome Skeletons anymore. For Fallen Camps with over a hundred enemies, I'd activate Frozen Armor, endure the chaotic blades while casting Firestorm, then use Werewolf Transformation, and wipe them out without fail. The Durability of my original blue Short Sword had long been used up. The Saber I had now only had half its Durability left. The Durability of my Armor had all dropped to single digits. My Dry Rations and Clean Water were also running low. It seemed I would have to go back soon. I wondered if I could find Cave Level 2 in the remaining time. I heard there were not only Elite Level Monsters inside, but also a Golden Chest. If I could find it, I believed the rewards wouldn't disappoint me.
However, just as I began to venture deeper into the Cave, I finally encountered an Enemy that gave me a massive headache.
Black Wanderers. These damn pseudo-thug Archers. Although their Attack wasn't very high, the most troublesome thing was their relatively fast movement speed. They always gathered in groups of four or five, hiding in Corners, ambushing anyone they saw. After being discovered, they would even play guerrilla tactics, shooting while running. They were incredibly annoying. If I didn't use Werewolf Transformation, I couldn't catch up to them at all. Fortunately, their Defense and Life were very low. After catching up, I could take them out one by one and wipe them all out in just a few moves. Uh, of course, "one by one" refers to the Poison Creeper. Although I had transformed, I wasn't interested in attacking with my mouth if it wasn't necessary.
Ever since the Black Wanderers appeared, the swishing arrow rain hadn't stopped for a single day. With my current Defense, although it didn't hurt much, the Durability of my Armor decreased even faster. Damn it, were they the legendary Equipment Durability Terminators?
I had no good Method for dealing with these Dark Wanderers. They were fast and had sharp hearing. If they didn't ambush me, I'd have to sigh loudly and say, "God, you're too good a friend!" Could I still hope to ambush them? Well, a few days ago, after taking down a Skeleton Chieftain, a Normal Short Bow dropped, and I also got some Arrows, a "friendly gift" from a Fallen Shaman. But considering my pathetic Archery, I wisely gave up on the idea of wasting Arrows like that. Of course, I also thought of other Methods, such as luring them into a narrow Cave to defeat them. But these guys were very disciplined. If you ran away, they'd chase for a few steps and then stop. Damn!
That day, with my creeper and raven in tow, I turned through over a dozen Openings consecutively before finally cornering a group of Black Wanderers into a dead end.
"Heh heh heh..."
Amidst my exasperated angry laughter, they were sent down to Hell one by one. If their Appearance wasn't so hideous, I would have even had the heart to rape first then kill them. Why? Look at the large group of Monsters following me! To chase this group of Junk, I attracted all the nearby Monsters.
After learning Firestorm, I truly dared to walk sideways in the Cave. I no longer had to worry about my safety. Unless I was ganged up on by over a dozen Elites, even if I accidentally attracted a large group of Monsters, like now, I could rely on my Speed to find a place with narrow terrain, then wipe out a large group with a single Firestorm. It was incredibly satisfying.
But satisfying as it was, I couldn't keep doing this. The mode of luring monsters + AoEing monsters did indeed give a lot more Experience, but my Durability dropped even faster! I wasn't a Sorceress; Firestorm was my only AoE Skill. Firestorm also had a Cooldown. During that time, if Monsters surrounded me, my Durability would drop rapidly. For Armor whose Durability was already in single digits, every point lost was enough to make my eyelid twitch for a good while.
After dealing with the Monsters behind me, ignoring the ground full of Corpses and Blood, I found a dry spot to sit down and prepare for a Rest. Looking at the Golden Leather Armor whose Durability had dropped another point, I was instantly filled with grief and indignation...
"Sigh..."
Sitting and Resting was boring too. I picked up the Saber in my hand and looked at my reflection on the pure white Saber, stroking my Chin. It seemed my beard had grown a lot again!
The reflection on the Saber was a young face. It was a bit dirty, with a few spots of dried blood. Perhaps because of the cold, or because I hadn't seen sunlight for too long, I looked very thin and pale. My Chin was covered in stubble, giving off a bit of the charm of Brother Xing's melancholic stubble. And this Saber in my hand, if I went back to my original world to sell pork, I could barely earn a reputation for miraculous skill, hoho...
However, seeing the cold Gaze in my eyes, I couldn't smile anymore. Since when had that pair of eyes, originally harmless, become so cold that even I would shudder upon seeing them? I suddenly had a feeling of strangeness towards myself. I felt that my eyes seemed to increasingly overlap with those of the Class Changers, especially the Necromancers. Was it because I had been staying in cold and gloomy Caves all this time? Thinking about it, during both Trials, I spent most of my time inside Caves. Oh no, this wasn't what I wanted!
My Gaze left the pair of cold eyes on the Saber. I flipped the blade around and held it horizontally, making the classic action of slitting my throat. Uh, don't misunderstand, I just wanted to shave...
After a moment of Effort, I stroked my smooth Chin, secretly pleased. It seemed my Skill had improved again.
But, speaking of which, where was this place? Although there were Caves everywhere in the Cave system, the Feeling here was a bit different. As for what was different, I couldn't quite say. Maybe it was the Atmosphere; it felt a bit oppressive. Especially the gloomy Cave ahead, it gave me a very special Feeling, just like the Feeling I had when I was targeted by Corpsefire back then.
Could there be a Minor Boss Level Monster inside? My heart skipped a beat. Killing Bishibosh a few days ago relied entirely on trickery, plus Bishibosh's own Strength wasn't that great. If I had to face them in a face-to-face duel, besides Bishibosh, I was completely no match for the others right now.
However, driven by Curiosity, I still slowly walked inside. It wouldn't hurt to broaden my horizons anyway. Since I had Werewolf Transformation, escaping wouldn't be a big problem. Maybe I'd even encounter something I could counter, heh heh...
I slowly crept towards the Cave ahead. The light inside seemed darker than anywhere else. I felt the Pressure growing stronger. I swallowed a gulp. My Footsteps became even slower.
This Passage was very long. Although I wasn't walking fast, it had already been several minutes, and I still hadn't reached the end. Hey, it seemed I could already see the exit ahead. I thanked this Leather Armor with +2 Light Radius again. It was damn too useful.
Just then, a series of muffled and rapid Footsteps suddenly came from ahead, making my expression freeze.
Generally speaking, Skeleton Footsteps were quite crisp, always making a clack-clack sound. Fallen were lighter, so their Footsteps were light and couldn't make this kind of sound at all. Hungry Dead, come on, look at their Appearance, could they even run?
So, what was left were only Dark Hunters, female gunners, and Black Wanderers. And the ones who could sense my Existence from this far away could be none other than the Black Wanderers.
A Minor Boss Level Black Wanderer?
I almost burst into tears. Why was I so unlucky?!
In an instant, my Instinct kicked in. I transformed, turned around, and ran, all in one smooth motion.
But the Black Wanderer opposite had already appeared behind me. One of the dark blue Black Wanderers shot an Arrow over, which just happened to hit me right after I finished transforming.
Instantly, I felt as if I had fallen into an ice cave. My body was a bit unresponsive, and my Movement slowed down by at least a quarter.