Lycanthropes

dark.

This is the most intense feeling for anyone who enters the Underdark from the Surface World.

The narrow passage was pitch black, the floor slightly slippery from the water, and dark blue moss grew on the walls. Soren's night vision allowed him to easily see his surroundings, but the little girl following behind him was in a bit of trouble. Dragon have far superior eyesight than humans, but their effectiveness in dark environments is limited; they can only achieve 'blind spot vision' at best, making movement very inconvenient in complete darkness.

The Underdark is not entirely black.

In fact, most of the entire Underdark is in a state of 'blind vision'.

Because there will always be some light diffusing, it could be from glowing plants or other sources. The specific situation varies; think of it like a cloudy night with no moon and few stars. In such cases, human visibility is reduced to less than three meters. This is true in many parts of the Underdark, so Adventurer from the surface must prepare torches or find Supernatural Item that enhance night vision.

This is not difficult for Wizard; a typical night vision Helmet costs around 3,000-5,000 Gold Daler's.

Those capable of venturing into the Underdark won't be short of money!

"Ugh! It's so dark!"

The little girl nestled on Soren's back, leaned close to his ear, and whispered, "Aren't we underground yet? Can I cast a Light Spell?"

Light spell?

Are you planning to become a target in the Underdark?

"No!" Soren refused without hesitation, saying in a deep voice, "About 1000 meters down, there will be fluorescent moss, and then you will be able to see things clearly."

light source.

In the Underdark, a light source is a sitting duck, Soren knew all too well how much trouble lighting a light source would cause.

Hook Horror, Giant Lizard, Mind Flayer, etc.

The creatures in these Underdark are very sensitive to light; recklessly using light spells is tantamount to activating what Adventurer jokingly called 'monster-slaying mode'.

As Soren ventured deeper into the Underdark, stalactites began to appear above his head.

I don't know where the underground water source is nearby, but I can hear a dripping sound. In the Underdark, any place near a water source is a combat trigger zone, and you are bound to encounter monsters living underground in this area.

Hmm! There seems to be a swamp nearby!

The little girl, perched on Soren's shoulder, seemed a bit annoyed, wrinkling her delicate nose as she said, "I could smell that dampness from a distance. And there was a rotten smell too. No wonder those ugly, filthy Black Dragon like to stay underground."

Underground swamp.

Basically, in Underdark with swamps, there will be very obvious light sources.

Just as expected!

Light began to appear in Soren's vision—dark blue moss with a faint fluorescent glow, a variant of plant common in the Underdark, and a mushroom native to the Underdark. Both plants were incredibly Hit Points, even growing near volcanoes. Soren had seen fiery red moss before, near a volcano in the Underdark. The ground became slightly damp. Soren gently put the little girl down and then gestured for silence.

Underground swamps are generally places where a type of creature can easily exist.

--"The Marsh Werebear!"

In short, they are a type of mutated human infected with a virus, belonging to a branch of Lycanthrope. Due to some unknown reason, they were bitten by other Lycanthrope, or were born with Lycanthropy, ultimately gaining the ability to Change Shape beast or Lycanthrope forms in battle. Lulumiao that Soren brought back is a ' Catfolk ' from the Lycanthrope branch. Looking at Lulumiao's talent should make you understand the true combat power of Lycanthrope; the vast majority of adult Lycanthrope a natural level between 5 and 8.

Regarding the Lycanthrope.

Sauron was most familiar with werewolves, tiger-men, and bear-men. Werewolves infected with the beast-like virus were the most common, occasionally encountered even on the surface world. Tiger-men and bear-men were rarer, mostly living in very secluded areas. As for cat-men like Lulu, they were practically extinct. Werewolves and tiger-men were self-explanatory. Bear-men had a natural strength modifier of +16, meaning their strength increased by 16 points upon transformation. (Note: Bear-men in the Underdark have strength values between 27 and 36; in human form, their strength is not significantly different from ordinary humans, mostly between 9 and 14.)

Even newly grown Werebear are stronger than Toughness Brown Bear after their Change Shape!

Huge footprints began to appear on the ground.

Similar in size to Brown Bear, these mutant Werebear exist somewhere between humans and wild beasts. A Werebear -Lycanthropic Virus has affected their intelligence, making their IQ comparable to that of savages. Most live in tribes. Rumors suggest that the Werebear are a failed product of druidic Change Shape experiments conducted during a glorious Arcane Magic era, ultimately leading to the Lycanthropy. Unfortunately, no one can currently confirm this. (Note: The Lycanthropy existed before the Arcane Empire Arcane Empire also conducted research in this area.)

Just think about how you first met Lulumiao, and you'll understand what kind of creatures these Werebear are.

She was truly wild and untamed back then!

"I'll go check it out."

Soren glanced at the little girl behind him and said softly, "Perhaps we can find a guide in the Werebear's territory. They enjoy capturing other creatures as Slave and food supplies."

Stealth.

Soren's figure vanished into the shadows; in the Underdark, he was like a fish in water, able to enter Stealth mode at any moment.

There were many footprints on the ground.

Soren initially estimated that there were 3-6 Werebear living here. Even the patrolling Drow Guard wouldn't easily provoke them.

The swamp terrain is a bit tricky.

Fortunately, Soren still Spell, and as he gradually infiltrated, he soon spotted a dilapidated and shabby shack.

And a huge cage.

There were clearly visible skeletons on the ground, which could be roughly identified as belonging to Drow, Duergar, and Gnome. The absence of a campfire indicated that the Werebear before them belonged to the most primitive, bloodthirsty level, incapable of communication. The Lycanthropy could completely destroy their brains, turning them into beasts, and some might never regain the ability to Change Shape back into humans. In the entire Underdark, there were very few Lycanthrope races possessing civilized intelligence.

In this respect, Lulumiao is one of the most intelligent Lycanthrope! (Her powerful combat abilities and low intelligence seem more like preparations for war.)

There were some creatures being kept in the cage.

Soren saw a wounded mutant Bugbear, a dying Duergar, and a dead Hook Horror.

They were all very difficult creatures.

But for the Werebear infected with the Lycanthropy, they were all just food.

Bang.

Heavy footsteps approached.

In Soren's field of vision, a gigantic monster weighing over 1500 pounds appeared. It looked like an upright-walking Brown Bear, with a bear-like head, but its body had some human-like features, similar to Werewolf in its Change Shape state. From any perspective, its bloodline level was far lower than Lulumiao's, which also meant that it was more primitive, wilder, and more threatening.

"Werebear who can't Change Shape back into a human!"

Soren immediately discerned the enemy's condition, because after returning to his own territory, the enemy was sniffing around with his nose twitching, as if he had smelled something.

Wild Sense!

Before me are the lowest, most brutal, ferocious, and inhuman Lycanthrope. They cannot be considered intelligent beings at all; they are merely upright-walking wild beasts.

"Werebear [Lycanthrope] (Tier 3)."

"Challenge Rating 10, CR 12+, possesses Shapechanging Ability."

"Highest attribute: 36 points, lowest attribute: 9 points, total attribute value: 85-100 points."

Special Feat: Toughness, Power Attack, Improved Sunder, Rake, Claw, Roar, Alternate Form, Rage, Blood Frenzy, Charge, Wild Sense.

Difficulty level: S+.

Most Werebear are around level three creatures, but if you judge them by the standards of ordinary level three enemies, you're basically asking for death.

Because their challenge difficulty at Tier 3 is 'S+'! (Note: The chance of a fully armed Adventurer party with a job level of around 10 defeating it after exhausting all their items is less than one in ten.)

(P. S.: Only one chapter today, please let Fututu organize his thoughts. Mwah!) (To be continued~^~)