Don't Come Any Closer!

Boom—

An explosion rang out through the forest beneath the night sky.

Vera knew that Feiling was using Thunderbolt Arrows to hold back the flesh monster behind them.

"Don't stop. It'll catch up again soon."

Hearing Feiling's words, Vera quickened her pace as she carried Feiyin on her back.

In truth, if that monster had not been so reluctant to abandon the chunks of flesh blasted off its body, insisting on retrieving them every time—

The three of them would have been caught long ago.

Even so, Feiling had already used up all her Thunderbolt Arrows. If it caught up to them again, they likely would not escape.

The reason the three of them were here was naturally because the main gate had already fallen.

The collapse had happened in an instant.

Not long after the branch president named Oberon finished speaking, that terrifying monster burrowed out of the Dungeon.

Vera could still remember what it looked like when it emerged.

Diamond-shaped scales shimmered with strange colors beneath the setting sun, while dark green venom constantly seeped from its body.

Three snake heads twisted through the air, greedily looking down upon everyone present.

Before it, Vera felt like prey caught in its coils, able only to let it devour her.

Fortunately, the Three-Headed Snake did not ultimately set its sights on her, instead targeting the branch president in the most extravagant attire.

Oberon apparently had not expected that he, standing in the rear ranks, would be the first to come under attack.

Faced with venom spewed simultaneously from all three heads, he hastily cast a wall of light, only for it to be corroded away instantly.

Venom splashed across half his body. Every Adventurer heard the sizzling of flesh being dissolved, along with his inhuman screams.

In the end, Marshall was the one who grabbed Oberon and fled the battlefield.

With the two highest-ranking officials fleeing in such a sorry state, who among the remaining Adventurers would dare fight to the death?

The defensive line, which had barely been holding, instantly collapsed. Everyone scrambled for their lives, wishing they had grown two extra legs.

And the Monsters seemed to have entered an all-you-can-eat buffet—if they could catch someone, they could eat them.

Luckily, Vera and the others had moved to the edge of the group early on and were not killed in the first wave.

But before they could even run, the ten-meter-long tail of a Dragon Beast severed two Adventurers in succession before sweeping toward them.

The chipped scimitar in Vera's hand had no chance of blocking that strike.

At the critical moment, Feiyin cast impact magic where she stood, blasting the three of them away and barely saving them from being torn apart.

But Feiyin's chest was still slashed open.

Though they promptly fed her a Healing Potion, she had remained unconscious.

Vera could only carry her and run.

They did not flee toward Mute Wind Town. Too many Adventurers had gone that way, and even more Monsters had pursued them.

Amid the chaos, Vera could only flee into the forest to the west.

Fortunately, only one Monster came after them.

Unfortunately, even that one was more than they could handle.

Vera did not recognize the monster behind them, stitched together from human and Monster corpses, but its style undoubtedly came from the Ninth Floor.

They might not have been able to defeat it even at full strength, let alone now.

Feiling's five Thunderbolt Arrows had been their only means of buying time along the way.

But now, even those special arrows had run out.

The crunch of bushes being crushed sounded behind them once more.

"It's here again..."

Feiling's voice was weary and desperate. They truly had no way out.

At that moment, Vera said, "Feiling, give me the bow. You carry Feiyin and run."

"No!"

Feiling immediately understood what Vera meant. She wanted to lure the monster away herself.

"If anyone goes, it should be me. I'm faster than you. Maybe I can still get away."

"Neither of us can get away," Vera bluntly exposed her lie. "You know I can't just leave you behind."

"So I'm supposed to watch you go die?"

"Then what about Feiyin?"

"She wouldn't agree to this either!"

"..."

Vera let out a long sigh, stopped, and set Feiyin down beside a tree.

She drew the battered scimitar at her waist and turned to face the malformed monster charging toward them.

"Fine. Let's hope it stitches the three of us together nice and close..."

Feiling fired two arrows into the mass of flesh, but they did not affect the monster's movements in the slightest.

Covered in twisted flesh, it lunged straight at them.

A light breeze brushed past. Vera gripped her sword hilt horizontally and assumed the opening stance of a combat technique.

To die in battle was an Adventurer's final dignity.

The monster drew closer and closer, and the sound of wind grew louder.

In the end, a whirlwind formed directly around it, blowing Vera off balance and making it impossible for her to stand steady.

Wind?

This monster could use wind too?

Under the howling gale, Vera could not even unleash her final strike.

She could only close her eyes as if resigned to her fate.

The monster's roar grew louder in her ears...

Louder... and more miserable?

When she opened her eyes again, she saw the flesh monster spinning through the air.

It struggled and wailed, yet as though it had been sliced apart a thousand times, it was gradually shredded into minced flesh by the whirlwind. Even its core was no exception.

Eighth-tier magic—Wind Tunnel.

"Even the Blood of Sargs has gotten out. Looks like I came a little late."

At some point, an old man in a gray robe, leaning on a staff, had appeared behind Vera.

"Young ladies, can you tell me what happened over there?"

Vera, who had just escaped death, came back to her senses and glanced at the emblem of the Relic Association on the old man's chest.

"The gate's defenses were breached. The branch president was severely injured and carried away. I don't know anything else."

"Thank you for the information. Feed this potion to your companion. It would be a shame for such a young girl to be left with scars."

As he spoke, the old man took a small vial from beneath his robe and handed it to Vera.

After Vera accepted it, another gust of wind rose around them, carrying the old man through the air toward Mute Wind Town.

After the old man left, Vera and Feiling looked at each other.

Only then did Feiling's legs give out, and she collapsed beside Feiyin.

Covering her face, she laughed and cried at the same time.

Vera crouched down and carefully fed the potion to Feiyin.

The effects were immediate. Her abdomen, which had been a bloody mess, healed at a visible rate.

"Limb Regeneration Potion..."

Vera knew the old man's identity was far from simple, and the potion he had given them was surely valuable.

But she had never expected it to be a Limb Regeneration Potion, a top-tier magical medicine.

That was more than a little extravagant.

The price of that single vial was more than the three of them could earn in a year...

She woke Feiyin, who had recovered completely and was now arguably in the best condition of the three.

After roughly explaining the situation to her, the three continued west, intending to cross straight through the forest.

Although the old man had already gone to Mute Wind Town, Vera believed he was capable of resolving the crisis.

But she did not want to risk running into Monsters again.

After discussing it, the three decided to rest in a nearby area first and make further plans once things settled down.

Hallucinogenic Spores filled the entire Cave. The repeated spraying had nearly drained Knight Puji's entire stock.

That single-minded Dragonkin had really dug a tunnel toward this place.

Its claws could easily gouge through rock, and it had burrowed into the Cave like a mole.

It had probably already dug halfway here by now.

There was no choice. To welcome it, Linden had to bring out the highest level of hospitality.

Not only had he prepared a poison mist with an off-the-charts concentration, but six disposable Mycelium Cannons extended from behind Knight Puji.

With an additional 200% skill power, the moment it emerged, they would give it a grand welcoming gift!