Chapter 22 : Chapter 22
Chapter 22 : The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind
Chenxi flicked the green slime off his dagger and watched as the last Bone-Eroding Venom Spider twitched before collapsing limply onto the ground.
The passage was filled with a thick acidic stench mixed with the smell of scorched carapace.
The battle had ended more smoothly than expected. The power of the new equipment had far exceeded his predictions.
What a windfall.
Chenxi had not expected that just two pieces of purple equipment would elevate both him and Hongxu to a level where they could rampage through the seventh floor.
“All done! That is every last one of them!”
Hongxu kicked aside a fragment of carapace near her feet, the massive double-bladed axe resting on her shoulder. Her face was full of pride.
She walked over to Chenxi, excitement in her voice.
“Boss, that weapon of yours is insane!
And this armor too! I cannot feel their attacks at all!”
She could not resist patting the dark red wolf-headed breastplate on her chest again, producing a dull metallic thud.
“Mm. It is indeed impressive.”
Chenxi responded briefly while scanning the surroundings.
The entrance to the spiderweb nest had been exposed. Layers of gray-white silk hung everywhere.
“Let us go in and take a look. The target is inside.”
He stepped forward first. Just as he was about to enter, Chenxi turned his head.
“Be careful. There might be small spiders inside.”
“Got it!”
Hongxu grinned and suddenly slapped Chenxi on the back.
SLAP!
“Damn…”
That slap had penetrated the armor.
…
As they entered the nest, the damp and chilling atmosphere grew even heavier.
Sticky spiderwebs covered the rock walls. The ground was scattered with the remains of small monsters and adventurers, most of them corroded beyond recognition.
Chenxi stabbed his dagger to the side.
A Bone-Eroding Venom Spider the size of a fist instantly lost its head.
There were juvenile spiders present, but far fewer than expected.
“Boss, is that thing over there…?”
Hongxu, walking at the front with her axe, suddenly stopped.
She stared at the scene ahead. A cluster of strange oval objects clung tightly to the rock wall, emitting a faint glow. At a glance, there were at least twenty or thirty of them.
They were identical to the eggs they had seen before.
“That is correct. Hongxu, keep watch around us. I will collect them.”
“These things are worth fifty gold coins?”
Hongxu leaned closer to inspect them and wrinkled her nose.
“They smell strange.”
“Stop sniffing everything. What if they are poisonous?”
“It does not matter. I can withstand it! I am Oni!”
Chenxi’s mouth twitched slightly. He decided not to waste any more words arguing with this idiot.
He took out several specially made thick leather pouches and began carefully separating the spider eggs from the rock wall, trying not to damage them.
The shells of the eggs were unusually tough, with a slick and cold texture.
“No matter how I look at them, they do not seem like something worth fifty gold coins.”
Chenxi pushed Hongxu’s face aside with one hand.
“How much they are worth has nothing to do with us. Go keep watch.”
“Fine, fine. Boss, you really nag too much. You are just like the old grandmothers in our Oni tribe.”
“…”
Deep breath. Deep breath.
“Boss, Boss, why are you being so rude? Now that we are familiar with each other, you will not even respond when I speak?
That is so unfair!”
“Shut up.”
…
Ten eggs would be enough to complete the commission. The rest could either be sold directly through the Adventurers’ Guild or through other channels.
Either way, it would be a considerable fortune.
Although this expedition had been dangerous, the rewards were indeed astonishing.
Chenxi calculated silently in his mind. He was no longer someone who only had to worry about feeding himself.
Though…
He raised his head and glanced at Hongxu, who was standing casually at the cave entrance.
Sigh.
After some effort, he finally packed all the intact spider eggs into the leather pouches and attached them to the outside of his backpack.
Next came dealing with the corpses of the Bone-Eroding Venom Spiders.
The valuable materials were mainly their hardened legs, certain venom gland organs, and relatively intact carapace sections.
Chenxi flexed his wrist.
To be precise, these materials were the true treasure!
A pile of precious materials waiting to be collected.
Unfortunately, their team did not have a designated collector. If they had one, they could definitely harvest everything.
“Back to work!”
Seeing that the eggs had been collected, Hongxu immediately regained her energy. She pulled out the skinning knife from her waist and walked toward the nearest spider corpse.
“These annoying little spiders have become adorable little coins…”
She began cutting skillfully, muttering to herself again. Chenxi had never imagined before that Hongxu might be such a chatterbox.
Chenxi also crouched down and began processing another corpse.
Compared to Hongxu, his movements were far more practiced.
The passage was filled only with the sound of blades cutting through carapace and muscle, along with Hongxu’s occasional muttering.
Almost finished…
When we leave later, we should be careful. The seventh floor is not exactly a safe place.
Just as Chenxi removed a thick spider leg, the situation suddenly changed.
Clap… clap… clap…
Sudden applause echoed from the shadowed entrance of the passage, breaking the brief calm.
Chenxi and Hongxu froze instantly.
Four figures slowly stepped out of the shadows.
At the front was a muscular man with a vicious scar across his face. He wore half-body leather armor, with a longsword and dagger hanging from his waist.
Behind him followed two men and one woman.
A tall, thin man carrying a longbow.
A short, sturdy man wielding a spiked mace.
And a young woman holding a staff, her expression tense.
Their equipment looked decent. Except for the nervous-looking woman, the others all wore greedy expressions.
Chenxi’s eyes narrowed slightly. His gaze settled on the man’s waist, where his Adventurer’s Badge hung.
Rank: Silver.
The same level as his own.
Silver-ranked adventurers could easily complete tasks on floors below the seventh.
The scar-faced man wore a false smile, his gaze burning as he stared at Chenxi’s bulging backpack.
“You two are truly impressive.
Such a large nest of Bone-Eroding Venom Spiders, and you cleared it just like that?
Impressive. Truly impressive.”
Chenxi slowly stood up, positioning himself between Hongxu and the backpack.
His right hand hung casually at his side, close to the dagger hilt at his waist.
Hongxu also stopped what she was doing. The relaxed expression on her face vanished instantly, replaced by a fierce glare.
“Take your hand off your weapon.”
The tall man had already drawn his bow.
A faint green glow gathered around the arrow, while a pale blue light appeared over his eyes.
Double Shot and Eagle Eye.
Chenxi recognized both skills immediately.
The scar-faced man smiled and said, “Your weapon is certainly powerful.
But at close range, it probably is not so effective, right?
We have already walked this close, and you are still planning to use that strange weapon.
Are you not underestimating us a little too much?
Do we really look like complete fools to you?”
At this distance and position, the archer in their team could unleash his full strength while suppressing the opponent’s ranged unit.
If that Oni charged forward, they could simply kite her to death.
The scar-faced man’s lips curled upward.
No one who could become a Silver-ranked adventurer was a fool.