Translator: Stellar Novels Editor: Stellar Novels
(Translator's Note: I'm going to be uploading just 1 chapter a day from now onwards as I am unable to keep up with the current release rate)
The five members of the Double Sunflower hunting team moved at a slow pace, remaining vigilant of their surroundings, but they didn’t encounter any attacks along the way.
When they reached the area where Jin Jian and his team had been active, they still saw no sign of them.
If not for the motorcycle parked nearby, Bocchi would have suspected that the Black Horn members had already left.
“This is really strange. Could they have grown wings and flown away in such a short time?”
Setta mumbled casually, but it reminded Ma Lu of something.
“Flying might be impossible, but what about going underground?”
“Underground?” Mai Mai raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, didn’t Setta mention before that Jin Jian and his team had been looking for something over the past two days? Is it possible that whatever they were searching for is underground? And they suddenly disappeared because they found an entrance leading below.”
Though it sounded unbelievable at first, after careful thought, Bocchi had to admit that Ma Lu’s guess might be the closest to the truth.
The group then lowered their heads and searched the area, soon finding a spot that was slightly uneven compared to its surroundings.
Bocchi reached his hand under the sand and quickly touched something hard.
Setta used his psychic ability to gather the surrounding sand together, revealing a stone slab door underneath.
As expected!
Jin Jian and his team must have gone through this stone door, which explained their sudden disappearance.
The Double Sunflower hunting team had originally just wanted to investigate the mastermind who hired Black Horn against them but unexpectedly stumbled upon another one of Jin Jian’s secret dealings.
Setta became excited again, “What do you think is down there? Could it be Black Horn’s treasure vault?”
“If it were Black Horn’s own vault, Jin Jian wouldn’t need two days to find it.”
“That’s true. So it must be someone else’s vault—probably a vault left by another hunting team long ago. If that’s the case, whoever finds it gets to claim it.”
At this point, Setta’s breathing became heavier.
“Wow, you’re really just thinking about money, huh?” Mai Mai commented.
“Well, my family needs money,” Setta admitted openly. He then looked at Bocchi. “So, what do you think? Should we go down too and seize the treasure before they do?”
Since they had already decided to target Jin Jian, Setta wasn’t worried about offending Black Horn by taking this step.
However, Bocchi said, “No, we’ll stay here. We don’t know the situation down there yet, and going in blindly could be dangerous. It’s safer to wait here and catch them off guard.”
“But what if there are other exits and they don’t return the same way?”
“No matter where they exit, they’ll have to come back for their motorcycle.”
“Good point.” Setta was convinced.
Ma Lu was also curious about what lay behind the stone slab door, but he knew that Bocchi’s choice was the best from a safety standpoint.
However, after waiting outside for a full four hours, Jin Jian and his team still hadn’t emerged, and instead, another group was coming from the direction of The Giant Screen.
Mai Mai, who was on lookout, was the first to spot them and informed the others. The five members of the Double Sunflower hunting team quickly hid behind a sand dune.
The newcomers were clearly headed in their direction. When they saw Jin Jian’s motorcycles, they weren’t surprised and parked their own motorcycles beside them.
Setta risked a peek and quickly ducked back down, lowering his voice, “They’re Black Horn members too—eight of them. I saw their badges.”
Things quickly became more complicated. These new arrivals were likely called in by Jin Jian for backup. If they joined forces, the opposing side would have 15 people, three times the number of Double Sunflower.
More importantly, over seven hours had passed since Ma Lu arrived in this dimension. Fortunately, before setting out, he had upgraded his Traveler's Bracelet by 2 levels, extending his activity time by two more hours.
Even so, Ma Lu now had only 6 hours and 40 minutes left.
No matter what Jin Jian was searching for down there, it didn’t seem to be going smoothly. Even with backup, there was no guarantee they could get out within 6 hours and 40 minutes.
Ma Lu’s mind raced as he turned to Bocchi, “The plan has changed. Let’s strike now and take care of these newcomers first.”
“Alright.” Bocchi also realized they couldn’t allow these people to join up with Jin Jian and called over Setta and Senqi.
At that moment, the newcomers also discovered the stone slab door.
While their attention was focused on the door, Bocchi quietly slid down the sand dune.
The current squad’s four basic buffs were Strength 52%, Speed 59%, Endurance 61%, and Reflexes 70%.
Combined with the 40% speed boost from triggering 【Backstab】, Bocchi’s speed was now double what it had been, making her move like a lightning bolt striking straight at his target!
It wasn’t until Bocchi was within ten steps that the group finally noticed her and scrambled to react.
“Watch out! Someone’s ambush…” The first person to spot Bocchi shouted to warn his companions.
However, before he could finish, his entire body convulsed as if electrocuted, performing an impromptu wild dance on the spot.
【Silence Rule: Any combatant, ally or foe, whose volume exceeds 60 decibels during battle has a 33% chance of being paralyzed for 3 seconds.】
He didn’t even last the full 3 seconds before a barrage of thorns pierced him, ending his life.
Senqi’s psychic ability might not be as effective against large, tough-skinned prey, but in player-versus-player combat, it was exceptionally lethal.
Especially when she unleashed fifty or so thorns at once, the attack was akin to a machine gun spray.
Anyone who failed to dodge immediately or lacked defensive abilities was struck down.
Senqi took out four people in one go, while Bocchi’s mechanical spear pierced through another person’s throat.
Of the three remaining, two activated their abilities, and the third, just as he was about to make a move, was punched to the ground by a sand golem that had appeared behind him.
Two icy daggers flew toward Bocchi, one from the front and one from behind.
However, one was intercepted mid-air by a fragile-looking water shield, while Bocchi deflected the other with her mechanical spear. The dagger then made a sudden turn, silently aiming for Bocchi’s back.
It was as if Bocchi had eyes on her back; at the last moment, she sidestepped the attack and accelerated toward the person controlling the daggers.
Meanwhile, another opponent erected an earth wall, blocking Senqi’s second volley of thorns.
But instead of helping his comrade, he turned and fled.
Ma Lu pulled out his hand crossbow and fired several shots, but without 【Headshot】, his accuracy was subpar, making him look like a master of narrowly missing targets.
Thankfully, Little Ash, the Swift Coyote, charged bravely at the fleeing man, biting fiercely.
The man was knocked to the ground and, though he eventually kicked Little Ash away, the delay allowed Setta to catch up.
The opponent tried to pull the same trick, summoning another earth wall, but before he could finish the incantation, another crossbow bolt hit him squarely in the back.
Setta looked at Ma Lu with admiration, giving him a thumbs-up, “Nice shot.”
Ma Lu nodded slightly, then turned to Mai Mai, who had somehow acquired a small hand crossbow of her own.
“Where did you get that?” Ma Lu whispered.
“I bought it last week. I saw how handy yours was, so I got one too,” Mai Mai replied with a sweet smile, putting a finger to her lips, “Don’t let the others know. I’ll cover your shots from now on.”
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