Chapter 57

Su Jing stood up from under the old locust tree, tapped her fingertip on the system panel, and summoned two small reconnaissance robots—

This was something she had specially taken out from the "tool area" of her space. The device was only the size of a palm, all black, with silent casters at the bottom, and a miniature camera on top that could rotate 360 ​​degrees. It also had an "aura detection" function that could identify the spiritual energy fluctuations of cultivators.

She pressed the "start" button on the remote control, and the two robots, like two nimble beetles, slid out along the edge of the bluestone slab. One explored the bamboo forest on the left side of the valley entrance, while the other moved towards the gravel slope on the right. The wheels made almost no sound as they rolled across the ground, with only a faint "hum" as the miniature camera rotated.

"50 meters to the left, there is no spiritual energy fluctuation and no trace of human activity was found."

"A faint animal scent (not a blue wolf/red flame tiger) was detected 30 meters to the right, posing no threat."

The robot's electronic prompts came through the panel in real time. Su Jing stared at the real-time image on the panel—in the bamboo forest on the left, there were only bamboo leaves swaying in the wind, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of dead leaves. There were no footprints or traces of hoes.

On the right-hand gravel slope, several gray-brown rocks were scattered, and a few drought-resistant wild grasses grew in the crevices of the rocks. There was no figure wearing the blue short jacket that Qingyun Sect disciples usually wore, nor was there the "Foundation Establishment stage spiritual energy fluctuation" (a threat signal marked in advance by the system) that was unique to elders.

She then had the robot probe 100 meters into the valley to confirm that there were no pursuers on Qinghe's route before putting away the remote control and recalling the robot back into space.

"Follow the 'hidden path' Qinghe mentioned, go around to the teleportation point through the side gate of the bamboo forest, and avoid the patrolling disciples on the main road." Su Jing planned the route in her mind, her fingertips tracing the "Cultivation Map" on the panel.

On the previously activated map, the hidden path marked by Qinghe was marked with a dotted line, extending from the bamboo forest at the valley entrance to the teleportation point (an abandoned post station located 3 miles outside the valley). The entire path avoided the patrol routes of the Qingyun Sect, passing only a patch of low bushes and a dried-up stream. The map also marked "Safety Level: High, No Monster Activity".

She adjusted the laser gun at her waist, making sure the fire-resistant ointment on the gun was still there (even though she was out of the Crimson Tiger area, it was just in case), and then took out a small piece of dried candied fruit from her spatial storage and popped it into her mouth—

The sweet taste can quickly replenish energy and relieve the fatigue of walking for a long time. After getting ready, Su Jing walked quickly into the bamboo forest on the left and moved forward in the direction indicated by the map. The dead leaves under her feet made a slight "rustling" sound. The bamboo leaves above blocked the sunlight, and only a few spots of light fell on her shoulders. The cool breeze passed through the bamboo forest and carried a faint minty scent.

After walking for about 20 minutes, a faint "howling" sound suddenly came from ahead—the howl of a blue wolf, mixed with human curses and the clanging of weapons. Su Jing immediately stopped, hid behind a thick bamboo stalk, took out a telescope from her spatial storage (an emergency tool she had stockpiled), and looked towards the source of the sound—

About 100 meters ahead, near the bushes, Jack was leading four teammates in a fierce battle against five blue wolves. Jack was holding a laser gun (which he had bought from Su Jing at a high price).

The red laser beam pierced the belly of a blue wolf, but instead of killing it immediately, it enraged the wolf. The wolf lunged at Jack's teammate, its sharp claws tearing three deep, bone-revealing wounds into the man's arm, instantly staining his gray coat with blood.

"Jack! Use the Molotov cocktail! Wolves are afraid of fire!" the injured teammate roared, pulling a glass bottle from his backpack. But before he could throw it, another wolf pounced on him, scattering energy crystals from his backpack across the ground. The pale blue crystals rolled conspicuously on the fallen leaves. Jack tried to help, but was entangled by the two wolves. The energy indicator on his laser gun was flashing (it was almost out of power). Veins bulged on his forehead as he scanned his surroundings.

Suddenly spotting Su Jing hiding behind the bamboo, his eyes lit up instantly, and he shouted at her, "'I'm the God of Wealth'! Help us! I'll give you 100 points! No, 200 points!"

Su Jing did not respond, but observed through the binoculars—of the five members of Jack's team, three were injured, one of whom was pounced on by the Blue Wolf and his fate was unknown.

The remaining two barely managed to hold off the enemy, their supplies scattered all over the ground, clearly having been caught by the Blue Wolf while fleeing. She remembered that on the global channel, Jack had repeatedly stolen supplies from other participants and even used his teammates as cannon fodder; his current predicament was simply "reaping what he sowed."

Moreover, her goal was to reach the teleportation point as soon as possible. There was no need to waste time on irrelevant people, and even less need to expose her location (in case she attracted more Qinglang or Qingyun Sect disciples).

Su Jing quietly took two steps back, circled around to behind another bamboo grove, and continued along the path at the edge of the bamboo forest. She walked very lightly, avoiding the dry branches on the ground, trying not to make a sound. The roars and curses behind her gradually faded away, with only the occasional howl of a blue wolf still faintly audible. She didn't turn back, and continued until she reached the dried-up stream. After confirming that there were no pursuers behind her, she quickened her pace and headed towards the abandoned post station—the streambed was covered with pebbles, which were more stable than dry leaves and wouldn't leave obvious footprints.

Just as Su Jing reached the middle of the stream, a notification popped up on her system panel: "Global Channel New Message." A message from "Hunter (USA)" Jack, displayed in red, instantly flooded the screen, filled with obvious anger and resentment: "'I am the God of Wealth'! You clearly saw us being attacked by the Blue Wolves, why didn't you help? Were you doing this on purpose?! Just because I asked you for 10 times the price to buy a laser gun, you're holding a grudge?" His message was followed by a series of angry emojis, clearly still harboring resentment over their earlier encounter.

No sooner had he sent the message than Emily, the golden "Nightingale (EU)," replied, her words laced with undisguised sarcasm: "Jack, how dare you say that? Last time in the Cyber ​​Dungeon, you stole the Asian team's top-tier core and pushed your teammates out to block the robots; this time you stole three Qi Gathering Pills from the African team, and now you're being besieged by the Blue Wolves. You deserve it. 'I am the God of Wealth' has no obligation to save you. If it were me, I wouldn't save you either."

Someone in the channel immediately echoed Emily's sentiments:

"Yes! Jack deserved it! I saw him snatch a little girl's healing pill in Monster Valley last time, and he still had the nerve to yell for help?"

"'I am the God of Wealth' did the right thing! Ignore such selfish people, lest they turn around and bite you!"

"Jack seems to have lost two teammates, now there are only three left. He brought it on himself!"

Jack was speechless after being rebuked. A few minutes later, he sent another message, his tone aggrieved: "I did that for the team! Without the core and the pills, we simply can't survive! What do you know!"

But this time no one paid any attention to him. The conversation in the channel quickly shifted to "remaining time in the dungeon" and "are the teleportation points safe?" Occasionally, someone would mention Su Jing, but it was always a kind comment like "I hope she can teleport smoothly" or "Waiting for her to share her cultivation experience."

Su Jing turned off the channel, walked to the other side of the stream, and could already see the outline of the abandoned post station in the distance.

The post station was a low adobe house with yellowed thatch roof and several cracks in the walls; it was the teleportation point marked on the map.

She quickened her pace and walked to the entrance of the inn. She first sent the robot in to scout around and confirmed that there were only a few old wooden tables in the inn and no trace of humans or monsters. Only then did she push open the door and enter the inn, ready to wait for the dungeon teleportation.

In the center of the station, there is a light blue circular teleportation array. The core of the array glows faintly. A system panel pops up a prompt: [Instance teleportation point detected. There is no threat at present. You can wait to teleport (Instance time remaining: 1 hour and 35 minutes)].