The underground river valley was a winding network of caverns hidden beneath the valley floor. Above it lay a lake of mud and water; below a layer of rock ran the river.
Li Man, dressed in a black robe and fully equipped, made her way alone through the jagged caverns along the underground river.
Her illuminated watch lit only a small area. Mo Xie had marked the route for her so she could match it to the markings on the walls.
The task was not too difficult. Li Man and Zhang Xiaohou were both Military Mages, and besides their necessities, they had brought positioning devices.
"Hello? Li Man, are you in position?"
Mo Xie's slightly muffled voice came through the Bluetooth Earbuds.
Li Man adjusted an earbud and replied.
"I'm underground, but the signal is terrible. I can barely make out what you're saying."
"Fine. As long as we can communicate, it'll do. We're going to start luring the monsters. Get ready as soon as you can."
Mo Xie's tone turned serious as he reminded her once more.
"All right. Be careful, both of you."
With that, Li Man continued toward the designated spot.
"Right, Xiaohou. Did you eat what I gave you?"
After asking, Mo Xie waited for Zhang Xiaohou's answer.
Aboveground, Zhang Xiaohou had already eaten who knew how many foul-tasting fruits. He stood ready in the swamp where the Swamp Poison Centipede lived.
"Brother Xie, those fruits you gave me taste awful. I feel sick."
Zhang Xiaohou took a huge gulp of water, hoping to wash the sickening taste away.
"Oh, they're supposed to taste awful. They're actually Swamp Poison Centipede eggs. Now that you've eaten them, we won't have to worry about the poison. Just run—it'll definitely keep chasing you."
Mo Xie chuckled and delivered the