The Phantom Assassin named Sarah gave Cao Xing a slight bow, the two Phantom Shadow Blades in her hands radiating a chilling gleam.
Cao Xing nodded. "Welcome aboard, Sarah Blade Dance."
Sarah showed no reaction.
Liu Muxue also spoke softly. "Welcome, Sarah."
Hearing her voice, the aloof Phantom Assassin looked toward Liu Muxue, then replied, "Thank you, beautiful lady. Sarah Blade Dance is at your service."
Cao Xing rolled his eyes from the side.
This Phantom Assassin was a little aloof. She only responded to Liu Muxue and barely paid him any attention.
However, he was already used to the cold reactions of new recruits when they had just been recruited. A barely perceptible smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Then, Cao Xing checked the Phantom Assassin's attributes.
[Phantom Assassin: Sarah Blade Dance]
[Race: Dark Elf]
[Level: Level 20, 7613/100000 (Tier Two Elite Creature)]
[Health: 6713 (equipment bonus)]
[Attack: 731-754 (weapon bonus)]
[Armor: 134-151 (equipment bonus)]
[Attributes: Strength 234, Agility 307, Spirit 227, Constitution 251]
[Skills: Hindering Dagger (Throw a dagger, dealing damage equal to 130% of attack power to the enemy and reducing their Agility by 135. Cooldown: 180 seconds.)
Phantom Form (Blur her figure and conceal her presence. While hidden, increase her chance to dodge by 30% and movement speed by 20%. Duration: 5 minutes. Cooldown: 8 minutes.)
Coup de Grace (When attacking, has a 30% chance to deal 225% damage, a 15% chance to deal 315% damage, and a 5% chance to deal 432% damage.)]
[Talent: Shadow Body (While hidden, increases her dodge rate by an additional 15%.)]
[Bond: Assassin (When there are at least 3 Assassins in the party, the chance of Coup de Grace triggering increases by 5%. When there are at least 10, the chance increases by 10%.)]
[Satiety: 63]
[Loyalty: 59]
Cao Xing's eyes filled with undisguised astonishment.
Clearly, this was an incredibly fearsome being.
With an attack power of nearly 700, a single strike that triggered a critical hit could even rival a shot from [Barrett].
If [Coup de Grace] triggered, that single strike could slice an enemy's skull right off.
Cao Xing marveled, "How is this an Assassin? She's practically a berserker, one-shotting the little guys!"
However, Sarah was already strong as she was.
But with Cao Xing's permanent talents applied, she could become even stronger by several levels.
So Cao Xing looked at Sarah with interest and asked, "Well, Sarah, I'm going to apply blessings to you now. Are you willing to accept them?"
Sarah parted her lips slightly, puzzled. "Blessings?"
Cao Xing nodded. "That's right."
Sarah didn't answer. She seemed a little hesitant.
First, she didn't trust this new lord. Second, she felt that with the other party's weak strength, what powerful blessings could he possibly give her?
After waiting a moment, Sarah still nodded gently. "All right. Please bless me."
Then, without Cao Xing having to say anything more,
Ilena applied [Snakefolk Frenzy] and [Scale Armor] to her.
Sarah's body trembled. She could clearly feel the strength of this power.
Her thin lips parted slightly, but before she could speak,
Cao Xing also sent her [Ice Healing] and [Ice Armor], along with Liu Muxue's [Aurora Blessing].
After five permanent buffs were applied in succession,
Sarah froze completely in place.
Then Cao Xing saw her shoulders trembling slightly.
As an Assassin who often carried out assassination missions, Sarah knew better than anyone how terrifying these permanent effects were!
They could not only greatly increase her endurance, but also improve her ability to keep herself alive.
Especially Ilena's [Snakefolk Frenzy]-it was a percentage-based buff.
Sarah could feel her movement speed and attack speed surge even higher.
A heavy pant came from beneath her helmet.
Then she raised the Phantom Shadow Blades in her hands to her chest and respectfully bowed to Cao Xing.
"Thank you for your blessing, great lord."
"Sarah Blade Dance pledges her loyalty to you!"
Sarah's bow came from the heart.
A system notification also appeared beside Cao Xing's ear.
[You helped your follower: Sarah Blade Dance improve her strength. Her loyalty has increased. Current loyalty: 71.]
A smile appeared on Cao Xing's face.
Then he looked at the others in the territory.
"Then, let's continue on our way."
"Our destination: the Moleman Mine!"
Asam and Andrew responded one after another.
"We will follow the lord's will."
The aloof Sarah also spoke softly, "The Shadow Sanctuary will guide me forward."
Cao Xing nodded with satisfaction.
Then he brought Liu Muxue along.
The five of them left the camp and headed into the boundless snowy plains.
An hour later, the group appeared in the vast frozen wilderness.
A long trail of footprints stretched across the snow behind them.
The weather forecast said it would snow tonight, and the footprints would soon be covered.
Cao Xing stopped.
They had reached the location marked on Asam's map.
It was a snow-covered mountain, and at its foot there seemed to be a passage leading underground.
Asam spoke first. "My lord, that's the mine I discovered yesterday."
Cao Xing nodded and continued leading the group forward.
As they approached, a system notification appeared before them.
[Moleman Mine: Special Area (Large numbers of Molemen are active inside, along with some unusual dangers. Approach with caution.)]
[Danger Level: Extremely Dangerous]
Extremely dangerous again.
But Cao Xing paid it no mind.
Compared to when he had been at the Hunter Camp, his strength had increased considerably.
Cao Xing waved his hand and said, "Let's go in."
The others understood, and they headed into the mine together.
Andrew, who had the highest defense, walked in front, with Asam entering second.
As for Sarah, she vanished into the darkness as soon as she entered the mine.
Cao Xing couldn't sense her presence at all.
But he knew Sarah was nearby.
Liu Muxue held up her shield and warily watched their surroundings.
She knew her task was to protect Cao Xing from harm.
As they stepped into the mine, a system notification appeared.
[You have entered a special area: Moleman Mine.]
[Current temperature: -34°C]
The temperature inside the mine was a little warmer, gradually dispelling the chill in their bodies.
Cao Xing saw one or two torches emitting blue flames on the mine walls.
"Asam, help me take these torches down."
Asam obediently did as he was told.
[Obtained Mana Stone Torch *1]
[Mana Stone Torch: A low-energy lighting tool. One Mana Stone can provide up to half a year of light.]
(Note: You can remove the Mana Stone from the torch.)
Before you continue