I'm happy now, but the pressure isn't any less than before. I only have five gold-grab shot left, and twelve slugs.
We don't know what kind of unknown creatures we might encounter ahead, and with this level of firepower, we're still not confident about our capabilities.
If I encounter a large, ferocious beast, I should still use a poison needle to deal with it, since my bullets are too precious right now, and I can't fire my gun unless absolutely necessary.
We continued to carefully walk up the cliff face, forming a triangle shape and standing close to the cliff as we went.
We divided our gaze into three directions to monitor the surroundings without any blind spots, so that we could react immediately to any unusual activity from any direction.
Just as I expected, less than ten minutes after we started walking, the birdsong in the woods became more frequent.
The rustling sound that followed lingered not far from us, and it seemed to be some kind of beast in the sinkhole, but the grass was so thick that we didn't know what it was.
We became even more tense, because the closer we got to the road we came from, the greater the chance of encountering wild beasts along the way.
I noticed that although the rustling sounds continued, they only lingered about ten meters away from us and did not take any initiative to attack.
This surprised me a bit. Could it be that these wild animals have never been near humans and are therefore timid?
But I quickly dismissed the idea, feeling it was unlikely. The animals here consume food much faster than in other places; they wouldn't leave food uneaten.
I couldn't figure out the reason right away, so I stopped thinking about it. Now, as long as they don't bother me, I won't go looking for trouble.
Our attention remained focused on our surroundings, completely unaware that changes were beginning to occur beneath our feet.
At this moment, a kind of red weed was growing at our feet. Apart from its color, it looked no different from the other weeds.
But as we walked, the red ribbon-like weeds under our feet began to secrete more colorless liquid along the way.
We don't know what these liquids are made of, but they become increasingly viscous when they come into contact with air, making our feet feel like they're stuck on with superglue.
When we discovered it, those ribbon-like red weeds, whether by choice or by force, had already stuck most of their bodies firmly to our feet, quickly becoming firmly attached to the ground.
I tried to tear the red weeds apart with force, but they were not as fragile as they appeared.
They are not weak at all; in fact, they are incredibly resilient. I tried with all my might, but I couldn't even break one of their leaves.
This thing has not only evolved to produce very strong mucus, but it also contains a lot of super-strong plant coarse fiber.
If an ordinary wild animal were trapped inside, it would probably have no chance to resist and would only be able to watch itself slowly starve to death, becoming nourishment for these carnivorous plants.
I never expected the threat to come from the plants beneath my feet. However, these carnivorous plants are clearly only effective against wild beasts that have no chance of fighting back. They are completely helpless against advanced humans like us.
Because we can use tools, that alone is enough to terrify most wild beasts.
Since I can't pry them open with my hands, I'll use the Nepalese machete in my young, uneducated hands to cut them. I refuse to believe that even a sharp blade can't do anything about them.
Just as we were about to use our machetes to cut the strips of red weeds, the figure that had been rustling around us slowly emerged from the woods.
When I saw those things, a chill ran down my spine. My hands moved even faster, cutting more frequently; I couldn't quite manage to slice those tough plants in one go.
It felt like cutting palm tree hairs, or a large wad of dry flax thread; you could only cut it slowly.
Normally, it wouldn't be a problem; we would just need to spend a little more time dealing with this aggressive plant.
We clearly don't have much time now; several predators hidden in the grass have appeared before us.
Those creatures weren't beasts, but rather a type of insect we're all familiar with: centipedes!
How big can a centipede be, right?
In reality, even in this world, most of the centipedes I've encountered are of normal size.
But this place is different. The almost enclosed environment inside the sinkhole has brought the oxygen content to an alarming level.
These normally-looking creatures have been transformed into monsters I don't recognize.
Now, five giant centipedes, each about three meters long, have appeared in front of us. They are different from the usual red-headed, blue-bodied centipedes.
Instead, it is a giant centipede with a metallic sheen and vibrant colors.
I've never seen this kind of centipede in any book before. In our world, its appearance would definitely be top-tier among pet reptiles.
But now I think it's better to think about how to kill these creatures that aren't animals. They've been lurking around us for so long, I don't think they just wanted to say hello.
Moreover, judging from the mottled colors on these creatures, they look like the kind of highly poisonous species from martial arts novels. If one of them were to bite us here, even ten lives wouldn't be enough to save us.
It's obvious they haven't made a move not out of respect for me, but because they're wary of this powerful leech that's stuck to us. That's why they haven't attacked us from the shadows.
They're probably in the same situation as the sugarcane we encountered before; they desperately need to eat and can't care about anything else.
At this moment, creatures blinded by hunger are the most terrifying. I had already nocked an arrow into my crossbow, and facing the giant centipede that was sliding towards us on its belly legs, I aimed and released the Xuan Blade in my hand.
"Whoosh!"
A single arrow pinned the head of one of the centipedes firmly to the ground, and green blood immediately flowed from the centipede's writhing body.
When the other centipedes saw that I attacked them first, they immediately scattered and attacked us from four different directions.
One of the centipedes saw that Top was the smallest among us, and immediately crawled towards it.
"Squeak squeak squeak!"
Top had never seen such a large centipede before, and he was immediately terrified, squeaking and trying to run to me for protection as he always did.
But now we're like a few large rats strapped to a rat trap, and Top's limbs are all glued on, so he can't move an inch.
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