Mark's Battle Plan

Fourth Layer.

The still-warm campfire was rekindled. Ireland poured the prepared rations into the pot, and before long, the boiling broth released a rich meaty aroma.

"Ireland, you're up pretty early."

Oliver emerged from the tent with a yawn, dark circles clearly visible beneath his eyes. The dungeon's sudden tremors last night had left him unable to rest for the latter half of the night. In his nightmares, hordes of monsters had torn him to pieces.

"Looks like you didn't sleep well."

Ireland glanced sideways at Oliver. The bloodshot redness in his eyes and his listless demeanor made it obvious that he was in poor condition.

"Blessing of Light."

With his hands pressed together, holy light shone over Oliver's entire body. He visibly perked up from his previous lethargy.

"Thanks. I feel much better."

"Don't mention it. We're hunting those monsters today. If you're not in good shape, you won't be the only one affected."

As the two chatted, Mark and Vinnie, who had gone out to scout, returned safely. They sat down beside the campfire, accepted the bread and meat soup Oliver handed them, and reported the information they had gathered while eating.

"I counted carefully. There are nine mutated giant Puchis in total. They patrol in three groups of three from different directions. About every fifteen minutes, two groups meet up."

"Besides the nine mutated Puchis, there are around a hundred and fifty ordinary Puchis tending to those mana mushrooms. With our strength, as long as we aren't surrounded, those ordinary Puchis won't pose a threat."

Mark held bread in one hand while using the other to draw a simple map on the ground. The entire basin was roughly oval-shaped, and he marked out the patrol routes of the three giant Puchi groups.

According to the battle plan he had devised, as long as they controlled the timing and distance properly, they could face one group of giant Puchis at a time and deny them any chance to converge. That would reduce the risks of battle to a minimum.

"That's the general situation. Is there anything else you want to add?"

After speaking, Mark looked at the teammates beside him. As a qualified captain, he did not think he was always right. Before the battle officially began, he still had to seek his teammates' opinions.

Only then could he prevent anyone from disregarding orders once the battle began.

"I have no objections."

"The plan is thorough."

Neither Oliver nor Ireland had any objections to Mark's battle plan. After all, Mark was the professional in this area.

"I have something to add." At that moment, Vinnie raised her little hand with a smile and lightly tapped a spot on the map with her fingertip. "There's a treasure chest here. A very precious treasure chest."

As an assassin, Vinnie was mainly responsible for scouting the terrain and checking for traps. During her earlier reconnaissance, she had unexpectedly discovered the treasure chest. It was entirely black and covered in Mithril patterns.

The chest alone was already extremely valuable, let alone the treasures inside it.

"Looks like we're getting rich this time."

After hearing Vinnie's description of the chest, Oliver's eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth could not help curving upward. Mark and the others wore much the same expressions. At that moment, they were thinking exactly the same thing as Oliver.

They had not expected that, besides the many valuable mana mushrooms, there would be such a huge unexpected windfall.

More than ten minutes later, Mark and the others, full and refreshed, put on all their equipment. Aside from the essentials needed for battle, they left everything else at the temporary camp. The group of four followed the route they had scouted in advance and slipped toward the basin.

After moving forward for a while, Mark and the others soon reached the bottom of the basin. The moment they entered it, Oliver felt an incomparably dense wave of mana rush toward him, and his body instinctively took several deep breaths.

"What dense mana!"

Oliver looked at the mana ahead, so dense that it had condensed into mist. Though he had already guessed that this was a natural gathering place for mana, its density far exceeded his expectations. He even felt a little drunk on mana.

"Keep your voice down." Without turning his head, Mark reminded Oliver, then looked toward Vinnie, who was moving along the edge of the group. "Vinnie, you're in charge of tracking the giant Puchi squad. Return immediately once you find them."

Vinnie did not reply. She merely waved her hand before darting away in an instant, using the shadows with incredible agility to conceal her movements. Even when she ran past several Puchis spraying spores, she remained unnoticed.

One minute later.

Vinnie suddenly appeared in the shadows several hundred meters from the group and raised a hand to signal Mark.

Seeing this, Mark's expression immediately turned solemn. He gripped his greatsword with both hands and assumed a fighting stance, his battle aura concealed but ready to erupt. His gaze fixed on the front like that of a hawk, while his breathing became almost inaudible.

He was like a cheetah constantly building strength as it waited for the chance to deliver a fatal blow.

Behind Mark, Ireland was not idle either. With his hands pressed together, he continuously bestowed various divine spells upon himself and his teammates. Oliver held his staff and quietly chanted an incantation. As a formal mage, he only needed lengthy chanting when casting magic above his level.

At that moment, the entire space seemed to fall into dead silence. Then, half a minute later, heavy footsteps approached from afar. Mark and the other two instantly opened their eyes, their gazes locking onto the three giant Puchis walking toward them.

"Hoo..."

Mark exhaled a breath of white mist, his gaze fixed on the giant Puchi walking at the front. According to the battle plan he had made, they would hide in advance along the giant Puchis' patrol route, while Vinnie scouted out their movements.

Then, the instant the giant Puchis appeared, he, Ireland, and Oliver would unleash their full strength and strive to kill all three giant Puchis at once.

After that, everyone in the squad would rush at top speed toward the nearest group of giant Puchis. As long as they successfully dealt with that group as well, the remaining three giant Puchis would no longer pose any threat to them.

"Flame Cross Slash."

"Storm Strangulation."

"Heresy Judgment."

The instant the three giant Puchis came within three meters of Mark and the other two, the fully charged trio erupted with all their strength. A several-meter-long flaming cross-shaped slash arrived in an instant, followed closely by a storm that swept in like a meat grinder.

Fanned by the gale, the flames became even more scorching. Under the threat of death, the three giant Puchis let out ferocious roars, their nearly three-meter-tall muscular bodies swelling once more. Just as they tried to force their way out of the fiery vortex, white holy light descended from above.

Spears of light pinned the three giant Puchis in place.