Chapter 97 Returning the Way Back
After waiting all day, Gu Tiangang and his companions still hadn't returned, but Jiang Baiyue decided not to wait any longer.
She put on a fluorescent hat and night vision goggles, which made the underground environment much clearer; she never imagined that the two could be used together.
There was no movement from the cave above, so Jiang Baiyue decided to go up through the cave entrance.
According to Gu Tiangang and Wang Leran, they had explored all the caves in the vicinity, but there was no exit, not even a place that seemed like an exit.
She also looked at their map; it was a large area, and Jiang Baiyue didn't want to waste any more time exploring the cave.
They decided to go up and return the way they came, exiting through the spatial rift.
Jiang Baiyue sprayed herself and the two mid-level mercenaries with a spider-scented simulated potion.
To mimic the scent of a certain monster, this potion must be made using the bodily fluids or body parts of the corresponding monster at level 4 or higher, which is quite difficult.
After all, killing monsters is easy, but getting things from them is difficult, so she didn't have much spider scent simulation potion. She only sprayed the potion on herself and the two mercenaries who were going to lead the charge.
Jiang Baiyue climbed up the steps that Gu Tian had carved, and put the items on them into her backpack one by one.
The spider monster that had been blocking the entrance approached the cave entrance, hissing. It did not attack Jiang Baiyue; it was just hissing as if communicating or trying to drive away Jiang Baiyue, the fake spider.
Jiang Baiyue stepped aside, and two mid-level mercenaries took out their guns and fired continuously.
Dark green liquid spurted out, and he used one hand to hold up his shield to block it.
The disturbance at the cave entrance lasted for more than 20 minutes before it quieted down.
Perhaps the spider monsters didn't smell anything strange and were attacked by their own kind, so they retreated.
After peering out to observe, the two mercenaries were the first to climb up.
Wang Leran was overjoyed and turned to call out to his companions: "Those who want to leave, stand up. Before I leave, I can still take you up!"
Xia Wenjing was the first to respond and climbed up without hesitation.
Seeing a glimmer of hope, she ate all the pancakes she had saved up, replenished her strength, and nimbly climbed upwards.
Jiang Baiyue pulled Xia Wenjing up and helped her up, then climbed up herself, followed closely by the other mercenaries.
The cave entrance was empty, with some broken stones scattered on the ground, probably from the spider monsters crowding and jostling each other.
Jiang Baiyue casually picked up a grayish-white stone, which turned out to be saltpeter.
She's bad at geography; saltpeter grows underground... This is a game world—that makes sense.
Jiang Baiyue took out a pickaxe and started knocking on the stone wall, one piece at a time. She also directed the junior mercenaries to help her, and they collected a total of 203 pieces of saltpeter.
This underground area is probably a mining area, which is different from the underground city.
"Not up yet?"
Half an hour has passed, and Wang Leran and Gu Tiangang still haven't come up.
Xia Wenjing instinctively knelt down on the ground to ask the two what was going on.
“Our teammates who went out to scout ahead have returned. The situation is a bit bad. Wait another 10 minutes, and we'll be up soon.”
Ten minutes later, 12 people came up one after another, far more than the number of people in the cave, and there were also a few unfamiliar faces.
The group's clothes were black, covered in blood and some kind of monster's fluid, suggesting they had been through a battle before running back.
Wang Leran frowned, her eyes slightly red. "Many people don't have the strength to walk anymore."
She couldn't draw any more cakes to feed those people, and now that she was leaving, she dared not exhaust her source energy.
In 46 days, their spirits and courage, which had been united and helpful, have been completely worn down, and now they only want to take care of themselves first.
Jiang Baiyue didn't say much. She gave a shout and led the mercenaries, maintaining their formation, to the front.
With a map, returning along the original route isn't difficult; the only challenge is the monsters encountered along the way.
However, having learned from the first time I came in, I wasn't too panicked and made a rash decision.
As they approached the area where the one-eyed insect monster was located, Jiang Baiyue instructed the people following behind to retreat a short distance, ready to withdraw at any time.
"What if you leave us behind?"
"yes……"
Wang Leran slapped him across the face, and there was a crisp cracking sound.
Jiang Baiyue: "They paid a deposit, but it seems you haven't? Then I really can't guarantee it."
"Hurry up and give me the deposit, it's too late..."
Wang Leran slapped the speaker twice and then urged the two to pay the deposit.
The two looked grim, but Wang Leran was, after all, the deputy leader of the group, and had accumulated some resentment over time.
Wang Leran smiled awkwardly and handed a bunch of things to Jiang Baiyue.
Jiang Baiyue silently put it away.
Xia Wenjing scoffed: "A few people who are taking a free ride are still nagging. If they don't want to, they can go back by themselves. It's not far from here anyway."
Team leader Liang Feiwen sighed: "What is she after? What do you have to gain? If you want to get out, shut up. Those who can't speak properly, shut up too."
Several teammates died during this scouting mission, which made Liang Feiwen feel very sad and he couldn't muster any energy.
He was disheartened to find that these two troublemakers were causing trouble. Moreover, he felt exhausted, and his teammate's death was also partly due to these two.
If it weren't for his previous experience as a grassroots worker and his strong sense of responsibility, he would have really wanted to abandon these two people.
The one-eyed insect monster hid in tiny holes in the ground and rock walls. When Jiang Baiyue first entered, she didn't see those tiny holes, which were only the size of a little finger, and had no idea what was going on.
She had protected herself from spiders, zombies, and scorpions, but she never expected that such a plump, one-eyed insect monster could squeeze out of this narrow hole.
Jiang Baiyue and a mercenary threw several pieces of spider legs in different directions.
Tiny red eyes instantly filled the entire area—the top of our heads, the ground, and the surrounding stone walls.
The white, layered insects were elastic like rubber; the little finger-thick insects swelled up rapidly after squeezing out of the hole.
The chubby worm, over 50 centimeters tall, blinked its single eye, which was covered in sharp teeth, and surged toward the group of people at the entrance of the passage.
The spider's legs on the ground were devoured by the one-eyed worm monster in just a few seconds.
Jiang Baiyue immediately threw Molotov cocktails into the dense horde of monsters, scattering them.
Five mercenaries rushed forward, wielding iron axes and hacking, while the other mercenaries provided cover fire with crossbows.
The crossbow bolt flew out and accurately struck the Cyclops. The first bolt failed to break through its defenses and bounced back. It wasn't until the third bolt that it pierced through the Cyclops and caused damage.
Liang Feiwen, Wang Leran, Xia Wenjing, and Gu Tiangang wanted to help, but they were also afraid that their other teammates would cause trouble.
These people are already under a lot of pressure, and there's a risk they might go crazy if they're not careful.
Wang Leran was really worried, so she tore her coat to shreds and used them to gag the people with high stress levels.
Eeya—!
A shrill, eerie scream rang out, startling Wang Leran and the others, who looked up in surprise.
A one-eyed insect monster emerged. Since the group didn't have night vision goggles and relied solely on the light from the fluorescent fruit, they felt as if the monster had grown out of nowhere from a crack in the rock.
Bang bang bang—!
Gunshots rang out, followed by a splattering sound as white liquid dripped down, splashing onto the faces of the stunned men. The foul smell contorted their expressions.
Xia Wenjing quickly wiped it off with her sleeve, feeling that her nose, which was already almost degenerated, had been irritated again.
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