"We killed a few on this trip by working together. Since they can cast fireballs, these Skeletons are pretty strong, but we still need to watch out for the Gray Wolf's ranged attacks. Just stay behind when commanding them."
Hearing this, Ye Qian imagined something like a Pokémon battle.
"Do we need to spend more Life Energy?" Lan Xinyu asked.
"Yeah, ten points per person. Let's summon three more and bring them out together. That handful earlier was too few. They couldn't even withstand a single hit from an LV1 and got slapped to death outright. Also, the pangolin's skill is to curl into a ball and roll into things. It's hard to deal with, but people should still be able to outrun it."
After saying that, Chen Ning prepared to recruit new Skeletons.
A few minutes later, looking at the newly appeared LV1, LV2, and LV7 Skeletons, no one knew whether they had gotten lucky or unlucky.
"I'll go out this time."
Ye Qian stood up and picked up the novice shortsword Chen Ning had placed beside him.
"Mm, be careful. It's best not to go due north. That's where the pangolin is."
"OK!"
After Ye Qian left, Chen Ning, who was behind them, looked at the liquid in the bucket in surprise.
"Where did all this clean water come from?"
Lan Xinyu grinned. "Ye Qian. I only just found out that her little feet can Purification water."
"Her feet?" Chen Ning's expression turned strange as he subconsciously touched his mouth.
Thinking of what he had drunk last time, could it be...
"Fuck!"
Ye Qian, who had not gone far, stumbled.
What the hell did she mean by her feet having Purification abilities? It was her body, okay? Her hands worked too. How had this girl interpreted it as her feet?
She called over five Skeletons and had them spread out within a sixty-meter radius, leading the way ahead while Ye Qian checked the map.
Before long, several small red dots appeared in her field of view one after another.
A large area in the distance was still black, gradually lighting up as she walked forward.
After getting within a certain distance of one red dot, Ye Qian spotted the target: a lone Gray Wolf.
"Go."
Several Skeletons surrounded it at once.
Fireballs were quickly launched.
The target had clearly noticed them as well and immediately got up to dodge.
Boom! Boom!
After two consecutive explosions, the wolf was injured and fell to the ground. The strongest Skeleton immediately ran over and began tearing into it.
Before long, the target was killed.
"This looks pretty easy." Ye Qian nodded in satisfaction.
Thanks to the map function, she deliberately chose solitary creatures, then stealthily approached them with extreme caution. Her efficiency was much higher than Chen Ning's.
Before she knew it, she realized she was already four hundred meters away from home.
At that moment, she spotted a building in the distance.
It looked like ruins, wrapped in withered vines as thick as fists. The ground was covered in weathered stone slabs. Mysterious writing was carved into them, carrying an indescribable archaic beauty.
Ye Qian had two wolves scout ahead and cautiously entered the hall.
"This is... a statue?"
An utterly unfamiliar statue stood inside the main hall. Ye Qian stood behind a side corridor, peeking her head out from behind a pillar, only to see a young man.
He was wearing a suit of armor.
Sudden Attack
He looked no older than his early twenties. He was injured and half-kneeling on the ground.
A vicious wound crossed his chest, and he gripped a silver longsword with a metallic gleam.
As if sensing something, he suddenly turned his head, his gaze instantly falling on Ye Qian's face.
Ye Qian, who had been about to leave, froze.
In truth, the moment she saw this stranger, her instinct had been to turn and run. But she had not expected him to seemingly have eyes in the back of his head, noticing her immediately.
Just as Ye Qian was about to step back, she stopped.
The man instinctively gripped the hilt of his sword, but when he saw a pure-looking young girl standing behind the pillar and staring timidly at him, he froze.
In his eyes, the girl wore a mostly white top and a simple blue skirt.
Her clothing was unlike any attire he knew. Her long legs were wrapped in pure white stockings, and her entire body radiated a breathtaking beauty.
Ye Qian blanked out for two seconds before seeming to come to her senses and cautiously taking several steps back.
The young man before her was clearly stunned by her appearance, seemingly dazzled by Ye Qian's beauty. This made her feel that something was wrong. After all, he held a sword and had sustained many injuries. No matter how she looked at it, a half-baked amateur like her could not possibly beat him.
The only fortunate thing was that she was only fifty meters from the Arrow Tower's surveillance range. With a short run, she would basically be under its protection.
After staring at the delicate girl for several seconds, the warrior did not show any hostility. Instead, he awkwardly opened his mouth. "You..."
It was definitely not a language she knew, but the system seemed to have translated it so she could understand.
After several seconds of silence, Ye Qian had originally planned to turn and run, but she had a feeling that doing so would be dangerous. Her clone was not in this world, and the Mystic Thread stretched directly outside this world, crossing an utterly incomprehensible void to connect with her distant body. She could not sense the other person's thoughts at all.
Under those circumstances, Ye Qian ultimately chose to... show a hint of fear and retreat to the entrance of the hall, only to accidentally bump into the wall behind her.
The man swallowed and took a deep breath. "Don't be afraid. I mean you no harm."
Of course I know you mean no harm.
Ye Qian muttered inwardly. She noticed that the map had already marked him, and he was yellow with the faintest tinge of pale green.
Generally speaking, yellow represented neutral, red represented hostile, and green represented friendly units. This man was obviously the kind of neutral individual who leaned toward friendliness.
And judging by his clothing, he was one hundred percent a native.
But... just because he had no ill intentions now, did that mean he would not have any later?
Ye Qian had a clear understanding of her own looks. Even in modern society under the rule of law, there was still the slightest potential risk. Now she was in a remote forest ruin in another world with no law enforcement whatsoever: a powerful warrior and a soft, weak girl with no ability to resist. This was practically the standard opening scene of some trashy adult comic.
To avoid becoming the heroine of such a comic, Ye Qian felt that she should probably turn around and flee immediately.
But when she truly prepared to take that step, she gave up on the idea.
If she ran directly, it might instead provoke him into doing something. After all, he was covered in injuries and looked like he had gone through a brutal battle. In that condition, it was easy for him to become hostile toward an unknown person.
So after several seconds of silence, Ye Qian spoke in a very quiet voice. "Sorry, I disturbed you."
There was just a slight hint of fear in her tone. In any case, she looked nothing like a dangerous girl.
Perhaps because she appeared too weak and vulnerable, the man lowered his guard significantly. But he was truly puzzled as to why such a strangely dressed and beautiful girl would appear in a place like this.
"Cough, cough. Don't be afraid of me. I merely... encountered some wild beasts." The man tried to stand, but just as he was barely about to rise, he fell to the ground again.
"Damn it."
The man cursed resentfully under his breath, a trace of anger in his voice.
"I... know there's medicine nearby that can stop bleeding and relieve pain. Do you need me to get some?" Ye Qian was preparing to run, of course, but she could not make it too obvious, so she spoke softly.
"Thank you, but there's no need."
Under Ye Qian's gaze, the man thrust his sword into a nearby stone, gritted his teeth again, and slowly stood up.
Once upright, he actually moved directly toward Ye Qian.
"Can't let him get close."
Sensing danger, Ye Qian immediately backed away.
Sure enough, in the next moment, the man suddenly sped up and reached for her neck. Fortunately, with her enhanced physical abilities, Ye Qian jumped backward at once, trying to evade his hand.
"So fast!"
There was no time to react.
Fortunately, just two seconds earlier, she had given the Skeletons lying in ambush on both sides a subtle signal. Having clearly received the order, they instantly leaped up.
Bang!
The man's fist viciously struck the Skeleton's forehead. With a crack, its skull shattered completely.
"Why are you running?" A sinister smile appeared on his face.
Fuck!
Ye Qian was glad she had been quick-witted. If her reaction had been even a beat slower, she would already be dead.
She retreated at full speed as the second Skeleton leaped up.
Sure enough, this one did not fare well either, its body smashed apart by the man's fist once again.
Just like that, the two weakest Skeleton monsters had both been instantly killed.
However, no matter what, his physical condition was not good. After throwing two consecutive punches, his speed was clearly affected.
He subconsciously glanced at the creature that had fallen to the ground, narrowing his eyes. "Undead creatures?"
Whoosh—
Two or three fireballs flew over from the side, and the man instinctively dodged.
Boom! Boom!
After a series of explosions, smoke and dust billowed everywhere. He stared at both sides with a strange yet solemn expression, seemingly deep in thought.
Looking down at his abdomen, he saw that it had split open further.
Just as he was about to continue forward, a thin Iron Arrow flew in from afar. He hurriedly stretched out a hand and grabbed it tightly.
Before he could figure out what it was, the second and third arrows came flying at him in succession.
He backed away several steps and returned inside the building.
"Huff... huff..."
Still shaken, Ye Qian ran to a tree, braced herself against the trunk, and gasped for breath.
"What happened? Did you run into some dangerous monster?" Lan Xinyu ran over from a distance and immediately supported her.
"It was a person." Ye Qian wiped away cold sweat that did not exist and said between gasps, "There's someone ahead wearing ancient armor. He attacked me as soon as he saw me... He took out two Skeletons with just his fists."
"His fists?"
Lan Xinyu was startled.
The Holy See's Dog?
"Let's go back under the Arrow Tower first, then think of a way."
After hearing Ye Qian's words, Lan Xinyu also realized the severity of the situation.
"Mm."
The two returned to their home.
The farther away the Arrow Tower was, the more its power weakened. But after seeing him catch an Iron Arrow barehanded, Ye Qian seriously doubted that even at close range, the weapon could hurt him.
After hearing the details, Ye Ning thought for several seconds before immediately saying, "Everyone, stop saving Life Energy. Put all the bones we've stockpiled into it. Once we have enough Skeletons, even if we focus fireballs on him, we can withstand one wave of attacks."
"Oh, right." Hearing this, Lan Xinyu immediately nodded. "Come on."
Everyone began producing them.
Of course, they could only be made one at a time.
Before you continue