In the captain’s words, this was only one of the caves; the main cavern where the mother beast resided lay ahead, and though its numbers might not be greater, its quality would certainly double!
This was why the group had been delayed for so long.
However, despite the large number of exotic beasts, the spoils weren’t particularly abundant. Time was of the essence, so they had to kill them quickly, making the replenishment of inner energy a significant issue.
Outside the safe zone, there was little safe spiritual energy to replenish naturally. On top of that, killing enemies meant even greater consumption.
Therefore, before setting out, the members of the Small Knife team had prepared a large supply of medicinal consumables, with pills that replenished inner energy making up ninety percent!
According to the captain, based on experience, the residual souls obtained from hunting all the exotic beasts here would barely be enough to cover the cost of these medicines.
“These are wild boar beasts, with thick hides and violent natures. Among their kind, they are considered somewhat difficult to kill. In fact, killing these things is a losing proposition.”
“We are targeting the reward items posted for the mission. One of the herbs is crucial for the captain’s breakthrough. If he can obtain it smoothly, the captain can advance, and we can then take on higher-level missions.”
This was their true objective for coming here.
Because of this, Li Chonglou had slain hundreds of wild boar beast residual souls over the past seven days, not daring to touch a single one. After all, he was only a temporary member, and consuming medicine was a waste, as these were to be handed over.
However, it wasn’t without its gains.
The seven days weren’t entirely spent with him hunting alone. To minimize consumption, each person was responsible for four hours, allowing for rest periods.
Due to his latent pulse, Li Chonglou’s consumption was far less than theirs. During his rest times, he would use the excuse of going out to explore alone. Besides hunting some solitary exotic beasts, he also found several medicinal herbs that aided in his soul injuries.
Even with the effect reduced by at least half from consuming them raw, Li Chonglou had successfully raised his integrated strength to the peak of the fourth level!
It was now his final hour of duty. After this hour, if he could find more herbs, he should be able to recover to the fifth level.
In the underground world, the fifth level was considered truly participating. Recovering to the fifth level would be sufficient for Li Chonglou in the short term.
Thus, even if the burly man hadn't spoken, he would have wanted to finish the mission sooner.
Although each person had a fixed four-hour duty, the residual souls of the exotic beasts hunted were shared. This was a benefit for him as a temporary member and a perk from the team.
The burly man hid there, not only recovering his stamina and inner energy but also helping to watch the surroundings. After all, this was the underground world, where accidents and tomorrow were unpredictable, so caution was necessary.
Of course, this also helped Li Chonglou keep count.
Three wild boar beasts were child’s play for Li Chonglou. After luring them to a relatively safe spot, he finished them all in less than five minutes.
Then, without needing the burly man’s reminder, he turned back into the beast’s den.
The burly man, watching Li Chonglou’s effortless movements from his hiding spot, couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, “This kid has good skills. After watching him hunt for so many days, not a single accident has occurred. If we could recruit him, he might truly become a main force.”
Every time it was Li Chonglou’s turn to perform his duty, the burly man was responsible for guarding. Li Chonglou’s performance over the past seven days had been observed by him. At his age, possessing such strength and combat prowess was, in his opinion, top-tier potential.
The four hours passed in the blink of an eye. The burly man timely gave a reminder and swapped shifts with Li Chonglou.
“Little Li, I know you like to hunt during your rest time, but after today, it’s supposed to be a general assault. Make sure to conserve your strength.”
The burly man reminded him, and Li Chonglou nodded but said nothing more.
After the burly man left, Li Chonglou also exited the valley.
“I went west last time; this time, I’ll check out the east.”
Because the team’s allocated activity range was limited, and they couldn’t cause too much disturbance, Li Chonglou could only explore outwards bit by bit over the past seven days.
Now, except for the east, he had scouted the other three directions. Aside from areas that clearly looked like no-go zones, he had basically mapped them out. Only the eastern side remained.
The reason he left this for last was that the east was actually the area above the valley. Initially, fearing it would affect the hunting below, Li Chonglou had to avoid it.
Now that the first cave had been cleared and the other wild boar beasts were blocked in the second cave, any special circumstances occurring above would have little impact on them.
However, Li Chonglou didn’t expect that as soon as he reached the top, a strange noise suddenly came from the valley below.
“Is that… a wild boar beast’s roar?”
His expression changed slightly, and Li Chonglou quickly went to the cliff edge, leaning over to look down.
The entrance to the wild boar den was directly below. Li Chonglou saw the burly man rush out from inside with an anxious look.
“Quick! The exotic beasts are rioting!”
A shout rang out. The captain and others not far away immediately flashed forward. Li Chonglou also wanted to go down but suddenly stopped.
Wait, didn’t the captain say earlier that one of the characteristics of the wild boar beasts was their reluctance to riot?
Although wild boar beasts were naturally violent, it didn’t mean they weren’t afraid of death. In fact, quite the opposite; once a wild boar beast sensed mortal danger, it ran faster than a rabbit!
Because of this, wild boar beasts were the least prone to rioting among all exotic beasts. This was why, after clearing the first cave, they had chosen to block the second cave.
Only leaving one accessible exit to lure a few out during each shift.
They hadn’t killed them in the first cave either, to avoid their cries stimulating them.
So, by all rights, there shouldn’t have been a riot!
While there could always be unexpected events, Li Chonglou felt a primal sense of unease this time.
When things are out of the ordinary, there’s usually a hidden reason; this was Li Chonglou’s first thought.
Since they didn’t know his current location anyway, Li Chonglou narrowed his eyes slightly, not rushing down. Instead, he used his elevated position to quickly conceal himself and carefully scan the surroundings.
He recognized the strength and potential of the Small Knife team. He would definitely go down, but before that, he needed to confirm that there were no other complications.
However, as he looked, he did indeed catch sight of several unfamiliar figures.
They were humanoid!
But he couldn’t yet determine if they were humans or Blackguards.
Yes, outside the safe zone, Blackguards were the true landlords. The reason he hadn’t encountered them before was that they were also deliberately concealing their presence!