Chapter 022 – Ancient Tiger
...
"Here, this is for you."
Ella flew in front of Matthew, holding a badge the size of a bottle cap.
Matthew reached out and took it.
He found that it was a badge of the Moon Goddess's follower!
"Can I use it too?"
Matthew asked in surprise.
Ella's tone was somewhat embarrassed:
"The Goddess is merciful, so even casual believers can use it."
Matthew sensed the bitterness in her words: She gave you the badge in advance, so you should believe a little!
He lowered his head and looked at the badge.
The front side depicted a bright moon breaking through the clouds.
The back side showed a forest under the moonlight, with the outlines of many small animals.
A very conventional badge design.
...
"Asiya's Smile (Divine Art Badge): Increases the wearer's movement speed by 30% under moonlight.
Description: Can use 'Moonlight Art' five times a day. Even in a space without light, this badge can bring you a touch of moonlight."
...
If there was only one Moonlight Art, it would undoubtedly be somewhat mediocre.
But the attribute of increased movement speed was still very valuable.
With Matthew's current agility and the effect of the Divine Art Badge, he wondered how fast he could run!
"Praise the moonlight!"
Matthew quickly wore the badge on his chest and sang loudly from the bottom of his heart.
Seeing this, Ella's originally low spirits suddenly rose.
"Thank you, Matthew. Um, there are a few things that must be explained before we enter the cave."
Miss Owl spoke seriously:
...
"First, as your guide, I will accompany you from beginning to end when dealing with the Frenzy Swarm. But I hope you can protect me... because I'm not good at fighting, sob sob, I don't want to enter the cave at all! But the Goddess doesn't allow it, please, Matthew, please don't let me die!"
...
"Where did I stop just now? Oh, secondly, this underground cave is extremely complex. It not only belongs to the Moonlit Grove, but also connects to the main material plane and some unknown planes. There may be extremely terrifying monsters hidden in its depths, especially below the 10th floor!
So we must be careful when exploring. Although the Frenzy Swarm mostly appears in the first 10 floors, sometimes we may accidentally go too deep. I hope you are prepared."
...
"Third, there are several other Druids in the cave doing the same job as you. The Goddess does not want any conflicts between you, so She gave the Divine Art Badge in advance. This is what those Druids look like—"
"They are all very good people, especially Samantha, who is also a Moonshadow Walker like you. Remember their appearances."
...
As she spoke, several magical portraits of Druids appeared in front of Matthew.
He glanced at them.
His gaze lingered on the last female Druid for a while.
"I remember, but whether or not unpleasant things happen does not depend on me. You should understand that."
Matthew lightly laughed and glanced at Ella.
The latter lowered her head in embarrassment.
Then she solemnly said:
"I will explain it to them! These Druids all like me, so as long as I'm there, they won't bother you!"
"So you must protect me!"
Matthew calmly replied:
"I'll do my best."
Ella still seemed a little uneasy. She carefully landed on Matthew's shoulder and asked:
"So, shall we enter the cave?"
Matthew shook his head and said, "It's not possible like this. I have to go home first."
Ella immediately became anxious:
"You don't mean...?"
Matthew calmly said:
"As you can see, I am a Necromancer."
"No, absolutely not! I can't let undead creatures defile the Moonlit Grove! Even if they take one more step in the forest, it is a blasphemy against nature and the Goddess!"
Ella anxiously fluttered on Matthew's shoulder.
Matthew had long anticipated this scene.
After her excitement subsided.
He calmly asked:
"If I don't summon undead creatures, how about you help me in the front lines?"
Ella fell silent immediately.
"In any case, it's not allowed!"
"It's not allowed, Matthew!"
"Um, well... Sigh... I hate you, Matthew!"
...
"We're going in."
Half an hour later.
In the dim underground cave.
A column of Skeleton Soldiers was exploring the dark area ahead in an orderly manner.
Matthew walked in the middle.
Ella had a resentful expression on his shoulder.
The visibility in the cave was poor.
Fortunately, Matthew had prepared torches in advance. Two Skeleton Soldiers, one in the front and one in the back, held them, illuminating the surroundings.
The terrain here was somewhat similar to underground caves, with interconnected tunnels and dark corridors.
The difference was that the climate here was more humid, as if the entire cave had been soaked in water for a long time.
As Matthew walked, the sound of dripping water and footsteps continued.
However, the underground plants here mostly appeared withered and decayed.
It was as if a force had taken away their vitality.
"Is this the Frenzy Swarm?"
In a corner ahead.
A Skeleton Soldier was mechanically digging into a purple shell shaped like a seashell with its small arm.
The shell was filled with yellow-green slime and pus.
Vague remnants of insect-like creatures could still be seen.
"This is a destroyed nest."
Ella explained with a suppressed disgust, "Do you see the mark on the wall over there? It's the crescent moon mark, with a checkmark above it, which means that the nearby Frenzy Swarm has been cleared, including the nest."
Matthew nodded.
He had already seen that mark, which was obviously left by other Druids.
"We need to pay more attention to this kind of mark."
Ella entered her role as a guide:
..."If there's an exclamation mark on the crescent moon, it means there are a lot of bugs nearby, and there might even be Frenzy guards lurking! Frenzy guards are a terrifying type of monster, they are the elites among the Frenzy infected."
The two of them continued on their way.
Their journey was smooth.
Along the way, apart from withered underground plants, destroyed hives, and a few traces of burning, they hardly encountered anything new.
Soon.
A 'Y' shaped intersection appeared ahead.
The terrain on both sides of the road was continuously sinking.
……
"Alert: You have found the entrance to the second level of the 'Frenzy Hive'."
……
Both caves lead to the second level.
But Matthew didn't rush to move.
Because from the cave on the left, faint footsteps and voices could be heard.
……
"This place is too narrow, Samantha, my wilderness form is restricted, and we have to be on guard against infection at all times. I have to admit, this is one of the more challenging tasks I've ever undertaken."
It was a deep male voice, his voice was very magnetic, with a hint of authority.
"So you understand how I felt before, right? You are the Ancient Tiger, Eli! If you find it challenging, it's only natural that I need to put in more effort."
The female voice chuckled:
"But your transformation just now was really cool, it's a pity that the Frenzy guard got away."
"Haha, you think so too, I... huh? Someone's here!"
The male voice's pride abruptly ended.
Before long.
A man and a woman walked out of the cave on the left.
They were dressed in simple linen clothes. The man was tall and muscular, his chest bare, revealing well-developed muscles and thick chest hair; the woman was tall and curvaceous, her eyes were long, and her face had a wild beauty.
"Hello, Samantha!"
As soon as they met.
Ella took the initiative to greet:
"Did you just come up from below? How's the situation down there? My lackey and I are about to go down and take a look."
Samantha didn't speak.
She just stared intently at Matthew.
Instead, the tall man beside her spoke indifferently:
"The Moonlight Society is only supported by Samantha alone, so of course the situation below is a mess. The number of Frenzy guards is increasing, and what's worse is that they are very good at escaping. I just severely injured one, but it managed to escape."
Ella looked at him in surprise:
"You, you are the Ancient Tiger of the Earth Society? The legendary Eli?"
Eli smiled warmly:
"I'm just a third-tier shapeshifter, not yet worthy of the title of Ancient Tiger. You should wait until I complete my final hunting task - pulling that damned evil dragon out of the glacier and tearing it to pieces, then it would be appropriate to call me that."
As he spoke, his gaze, like Samantha's, turned to Matthew.
"Necromancer?"
Samantha asked.
Matthew nodded.
Ella hurriedly said: "It's not what you think! Samantha, Matthew is a good person! He's here to help us! You have to believe me, I would never compromise with evil."
Matthew found her reaction both heart-wrenching and amusing.
He simply spoke up to help explain:
"Not every Necromancer is evil, on the contrary, I came here to drive out the evil in this place."
"What a revelation."
Eli sneered, his gaze sweeping over the Skeleton Soldiers.
He seemed to want to do something, but Samantha stopped him.
"Let's go!"
Ella urged Matthew into the cave.
Matthew shrugged, ordered a few Skeleton Soldiers to scout ahead, and then followed.
Watching the line of figures disappear into the cave.
Eli frowned:
"You should have let me take action, at least dismantle those Skeleton Soldiers, how can the sacred land of nature allow undead to defile it?"
Samantha shook her head:
"There's no need, Eli, the situation in the Moonlit Grove is indeed bad."
Eli retorted: "So that's their reason for colluding with the Necromancer?"
Samantha's face was pained:
"You're right, Eli, I will consider your previous proposal."
Eli's eyes lit up:
"You're leaving the Moonlight Society? That's great! You should have done this a long time ago, with your strength and potential, our Earth Society has always reserved a seat for you! When will you come with me to meet the Grand Elder?"
Samantha said seriously:
"Calm down, Eli, I swore under the moon that I must eradicate the Frenzy Swarm for the Grove. Even if I leave the Moonlight Society, this vow will not change. If I can't do this, I will never leave."
Eli was taken aback.
Then he showed a satisfied expression:
"Good, that's the will of the woman I admire! The God of Earth will bless you, Samantha. When I go back and prepare, we will join forces to break into the tenth level and kill the Frenzy Queen!"
"It's a pity that the situation in the highlands is not optimistic, otherwise I could apply to the church to mobilize the holy relics, sigh, you know - that scar of the earth, it's getting worse."
……