Countless lustrous white pearls, each the size of an adult's fist, were brought to the surface by the mermaids who were unable to participate in the ceremony. They were strung together and wrapped by what appeared to be bluish-golden grass leaves, then infused with magic and placed in recesses carved into the rocks.
The spreading black blood stopped at the front of the water barrier that had been maintained, then returned along the same path, slapping against the bluish-black, ferocious scales.
"However, I really didn't expect that the thirtieth mission would be to work with the merfolk to fight against a giant dragon that has suddenly taken over the near-sea area."
Xiaoxi, who had been familiar with Sheng's hair, which had grown to her ankles, suddenly appeared behind us, gazing at the transparent water curtain in the distance: "If we hadn't happened to intercept a temporary pirate ship because of a hidden mission, this battle would have been much more difficult."
"The fact is, it's very difficult to fight."
The newly joined [Shadow Butterfly] monitored his equipment, while [Mountain], who had been silently wiping his shield, nodded silently.
I remember I just smiled and didn't say anything more.
Undoubtedly, choosing to take a detour and acquire hidden rewards that might be helpful later is precisely the advantage that comes from being familiar with many quest chains.
Although he repeatedly mentioned things like, "It's just because the later the game goes, the less I can contribute to the team's battles, and I hope to show my value in advance so that I won't be easily abandoned later," "It's just good luck," and "My intuition tells me there might be something good over there," I knew that those were just self-deprecating excuses to shirk the task that only he could do. After talking to him privately a few times and confirming that I couldn't change his overly humble and self-deprecating mentality, I stopped trying to persuade him.
In contrast, I began to take on another aspect, namely combat-related work.
Sword Demon disappeared during the eleventh mission. I guess he probably went to a location a little further away from us to get the hidden item necessary to complete the mission. There's no need to worry about him. He'll come back on his own later to complete the mission.
The library, which served as a safe zone, was mostly destroyed during the fight against the Doomsday Cult. Starting from the second floor, it was completely vaporized by the violent magical fluctuations, almost touching the many branches supporting the second floor from below.
This not only terrified the survivors under Sheng's protection, but also gave Sheng a fright.
Survivors who worried that the days to come would be just as dangerous, survivors whose relatives and friends were cursed and had to transfer their consciousness into plants, and those who blindly followed rumors... Most of the guys who used to follow us around all day have left, leaving only a few, some hesitant, some determined, standing beside me and Sheng.
But thankfully, this at least greatly reduced our management pressure.
This is the only piece of news that can give us a sigh of relief when Duheng is missing, Juncheng is barely recovering from an acute illness, and is therefore severely lacking in management talent.
At least Xiaoxi and Shan, who had previously explored the hidden dungeon with us, were still on our side, as were [Shadow Butterfly], who joined us along with the other students who came to the safe zone.
If we consider the three of them together, their roles might even surpass those of the Sword Demon—I'm referring to their functions and division of labor.
As an assassin, [Shadow Butterfly] is not only exceptionally agile, but also possesses an extraordinary sensitivity to hidden positions and traps that I could not have detected, as if she were born for the profession of a rogue.
She even possessed an ability similar to An's—the ability to subtly blend into the shadows. So much so that every time I saw her, I had to scrutinize her several times to make sure that this female student really didn't resemble An much before I could finally relax a little.
Perhaps it's because the creators knew about [Dawn] and the others, which makes perfect sense.
"Although we've completed the quest, this black blood doesn't look good. Even the water curtain can't hold it off for long. Should we just leave it like this?"
"We can leave it there indefinitely, but in the long run, the marine ecosystem will be damaged, and our drinking water resources will also be polluted."
Sheng spread his hands: "This is one of the hidden dead spots that will only be triggered later in the game. Therefore, we must obtain a crystal that can purify water in a later open dungeon and use it to purify the water resources."
"There's actually something like that?"
"Who knows. Anyway, it has everything, it has everything." Sheng lowered his voice, "Just like those strange and unusual races and magical beasts, they all seem to have appeared out of nowhere."
Perhaps it's magic.
I held back, and only then did I manage not to utter the words that were already lingering between my teeth.
"But so far, we've only been doing quests unrelated to dungeons. How long is 'after that' you mentioned?"
"After the forty-fifth mission."
Sheng replied without hesitation: "Because it is a large dungeon, entering it is like stepping into a series of small worlds that are completely different from here. There are even storylines and side quests that must be completed, so it is possible to complete them in a different order or simply skip them."
"However, usually, there should be a group of five to ten tasks, plus many side quests that can be completed or not. As long as the last designated task is successfully completed, anyone can leave."
"It sounds like a multiplayer free-for-all competition with a competitive mechanism."
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