The two Martial Artists at peak rank nearly got into an argument inside the shelter. In the end, Han Qingshan was the one who backed down.
They adjusted the team assignments. Old Zhao, a Martial Artist Rank 7, stayed with Han Qingshan, while Old Ma was transferred to Shen Yunfei's group.
Lin Feng was assigned to Han Qingshan's team.
"Come with me through the main passage." Han Qingshan tossed out the words, his tone flat.
Lin Feng nodded without asking why.
There were more Exotic Beasts in the main passage, which meant more Martial Path Points.
He couldn't ask for more.
That night, the nine of them rested inside the shelter.
Before dawn the next day, Han Qingshan roused everyone.
"Let's go."
The nine of them headed north through the Wilderness. After nearly three hours, the Rift came into view.
It was more than twice as large as the Rift Lin Feng had visited last time.
The opening stretched nearly fifty meters across the ground, its depths unfathomable. Purple light rose from below.
"The two teams will split up and move out." Han Qingshan stood at the entrance to the Rift, giving their communication devices one final check.
"If you encounter a Martial Master-class Exotic Beast, don't engage. Fire a flare and call for backup immediately. The coordinates for the meeting point on the third level have already been entered into your communicators. Stay alert."
Shen Yunfei led four people and turned left down a side passage.
Han Qingshan led Lin Feng, Old Zhao, and a Martial Artist Rank 5 named Sun Liang down the main passage.
The four of them entered the Rift.
The light quickly faded, and the air grew damp and hot.
Han Qingshan took the lead, Old Zhao brought up the rear, and Lin Feng and Sun Liang walked between them.
They hadn't gone fifty meters when the first wave of Exotic Beasts appeared.
Six Shadow Spiders, E-Rank, twice the size of a person. Barbed spikes covered their eight legs, and the strands they spat out were highly corrosive.
Han Qingshan didn't move.
Old Zhao stepped forward twice and took them all down, one slash apiece.
Quick and clean, without a hint of hesitation.
A Martial Artist Rank 7 completely overpowered low-rank E-Class Exotic Beasts. It was like chopping vegetables.
[Assisted a teammate in killing an Exotic Beast, gained 60 Martial Path Points]
"Hm? That works too!"
Lin Feng's eyes lit up. The reward was nowhere near as much as he'd get for a solo kill, but getting points for free without lifting a finger? There was only one word for it: sweet!
Following behind, Lin Feng quietly memorized Old Zhao's sword technique.
The man's style was forceful, with plenty of power behind each strike, but his turns were a little slow. It was a broad, sweeping approach.
They continued onward.
The deeper they went, the more densely packed the Exotic Beasts became.
Cold Crystal Scorpions, Iron-Armored Centipedes, Blood-Claw Giant Lizards... E-Class Exotic Beasts of all kinds emerged from cracks in the rocks, burrows in the ground, and the ceiling. They had to fight every thirty to fifty meters or so.
Old Zhao and Sun Liang handled most of the fighting.
Han Qingshan didn't lift a finger the entire time, only observing from behind.
Lin Feng volunteered to deal with several stragglers that slipped past.
Once the Mountain Splitter was unsheathed, E-Class Exotic Beasts couldn't withstand it.
The blade slid through their scales so smoothly it was addictive. Spirit Patterns reinforced each strike, and its Armor Piercing effect was maximized.
[Killed an E-Class Exotic Beast: Cold Crystal Scorpion ×1, gained 50 Martial Path Points] [Steel of the Blade: 90/500] [Killed an E-Class Exotic Beast: Iron-Armored Centipede ×1, gained 50 Martial Path Points] [Steel of the Blade: 91/500]
Sun Liang stared, dumbfounded.
"What's the story with that sword of yours? You can pierce an E-Class Exotic Beast's armor with a single strike?"
"Got lucky. Found it."
"Found it? You've got one hell of a lucky streak!"
Old Zhao glanced back without a word, but his grip on his sword tightened.
He'd noticed that every one of Lin Feng's strikes was incredibly precise. He almost never needed a second blow.
That kind of precision wasn't something a Martial Artist Rank 2 should have.
By the time the group reached the second level, the Exotic Beasts had clearly grown stronger.
Three Iron-Spined Black Pythons coiled in the middle of the passage. They were twice as large as the ones in the F-Class Rift.
Old Zhao took two steps forward, about to attack.
Han Qingshan suddenly patted Lin Feng on the shoulder.
"You take them."
Lin Feng glanced at him.
"All three at once?"
"Mm."
Old Zhao frowned. "Brother Han, this kid's only a Martial Artist Rank 2..."
"Let him take them." Han Qingshan cut Old Zhao off, leaning against the rock wall with his arms crossed.
Lin Feng didn't waste words. He drew his sword and walked forward.
The three Iron-Spined Black Pythons raised themselves at the same time, hissing as their tongues flicked out. Their eyes locked onto Lin Feng.
The one on the left moved first.
Its tail swept across with a whoosh.
Lin Feng ducked low. The python's tail skimmed over his head, and rocks clattered down from above.
He kicked off the ground and shot to the side of its body, slashing Mountain Splitter diagonally through the gap between its scales.
Splurt!
A wound half a foot deep opened, spraying dark-red blood.
The python recoiled in pain and twisted around, trying to coil around him.
Lin Feng didn't let it pin him down. He planted a foot on its body, leapt away, and landed directly in front of the second python's head.
The opening stance of Mountain-Breaking Slash unfolded in midair.
His sword descended, and his whole body dropped with it, all his strength concentrated in the tip of the blade.
The second python lifted its head, about to spew poisonous mist.
Too late.
Mountain Splitter came down from directly above, piercing the python's head and embedding itself in the ground.
The python's body twitched twice, then went limp.
The third python attacked from behind, opening its jaws wide to bite down on him.
With his right hand gripping the sword hilt embedded in the ground, Lin Feng twisted sideways. The python's jaws snapped shut with a smack where he'd been standing a moment earlier, biting down on a mouthful of rocks.
Seizing the opening, he yanked out his sword and slashed backward.
The blade cut from the python's lower jaw to its throat, leaving a half-meter-long gash.
The python shrieked and recoiled. Lin Feng chased after it and struck twice more.
The first python was still bleeding and thrashing. Lin Feng doubled back and plunged his sword into its eye.
It had taken less than a minute.
All three Iron-Spined Black Pythons were dead.
[Killed an E-Class Exotic Beast: Iron-Spined Black Python ×3, gained 150 Martial Path Points] [Steel of the Blade: 94/500]
Sun Liang's jaw dropped.
"Sixty seconds? Three E-Class Beasts?"
Old Zhao's expression turned complicated.
As a Martial Artist Rank 7, he'd have no problem fighting three Iron-Spined Black Pythons, but taking them down in sixty seconds? He couldn't do it.
Han Qingshan pushed away from the wall and walked up to Lin Feng.
"Your combat ability far exceeds your rank."
"Thanks for the praise."
"I'm not praising you." Han Qingshan glanced at the python carcasses on the ground. "There's a move in your sword technique that pulls downward, toward the ground, when you strike. What kind of Martial Technique is that?"
"I figured it out on my own."
Han Qingshan stared at him for three seconds, then didn't press further.
"Let's go. We're almost at the third level."
The four of them continued onward.
As they reached the transition zone between the second and third levels, Lin Feng noticed something unusual.
The ground beneath their feet began to soften and felt faintly warm.
It was almost exactly the same as what had happened on the third level of the F-Class Rift last time.
But this was a D-Rank Rift.
"Deputy Captain Han." Lin Feng stopped.
"What is it?"
"The ground temperature's off."
Han Qingshan crouched and pressed his palm against the ground. Two seconds later, he stood up.
His expression changed.
"This kind of geothermal heat isn't caused by normal E-Class Exotic Beast activity."
Old Zhao felt it too. He frowned and looked around.
"The third level shouldn't be this hot. The archived data says it's a constant eighteen degrees. It's at least thirty-five now."
Sun Liang crouched beside them and poked the slime with his dagger. He leaned in to sniff it, then sprang back at once.
"I know that smell. It's exactly like the nest of those Mutated Rock-Armored Beasts we encountered last time."
Han Qingshan fell silent for a few seconds, then picked up his communicator.
"Shen Yunfei, respond if you can hear me."
A burst of static crackled, then Shen Yunfei's voice came through.
"Loud and clear."
"Is the ground temperature normal over there?"
There was a two-second pause on the communicator.
"No. It starts getting hotter on the second level of the side passage, and liquid's seeping out of the rock walls."
Han Qingshan and Lin Feng exchanged a glance.
Both passages were heating up.
"What do you think?" Han Qingshan asked Lin Feng.
Lin Feng crouched and pinched some of the slime between his fingers.
It was scorching hot.
"I encountered something similar in an F-Class Rift last time."
"What happened?"
"A nest."
Han Qingshan's hand settled on his sword hilt.
"The reason this Rift changed might not be natural expansion." Lin Feng stood and flicked away the slime.
"Something might have forced it open from the inside."
Before he'd finished speaking, the ground beneath them gave a violent tremor.
Everyone drew their swords at once.
The vibration rose from beneath the earth, a low pulse, again and again, drawing nearer.
It felt as though something enormous was moving beneath the ground.
Straight toward them.
Shen Yunfei's voice suddenly erupted from the communicator.
"Han Qingshan! The side passage has collapsed! A massive Exotic Beast just burst up from underground!"
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