(From MC's perspective)
My gaze fell on the left path. There are weird monsters in this cave which can cause danger to Elite level warriors. I couldn't help but up my guard.
The weird bat-type monster has nothing to do with insect bugs. But the environment here is responsible for the changes.
After taking a deep breath, I decided to check the left path.
Swish!
I'm swiftly moving while illuminating the surroundings using the light gadget. On the way, I observed the cave structure. Which is similar to the right path.
There is no man-made sign here.
"Scream"
Right after, a terrible scream reached my ears. I stopped my movements and instinctively used the blood field technique. A reddish aura released from my body.
I looked ahead and the appearance of the monster became much more clear. But I wasn't surprised by the night monster.
Rather I took the initiative to attack. The blood field quickly expands in a blink of an eye and covers the night monster.
The next movement, the night monster let out a terrible scream. But the attack is not so powerful. Under the power of the blood, the monster is suppressed completely.
A few seconds later, the blood in its body completely vaporized. When I moved past the corpse, a quick glint flashed in my eyes.
I paused my movements and looked at the cold corpse again. Why don't I try to absorb the monster core? Doubt appeared in my heart.
Out of curiosity, I picked up the corpse and searched for the monster's core. The entire corpse was an empty shell without blood.
Suddenly, I caught something. Slowly, I retrieved the core from the corpse. Unlike other monster cores, this monster core is dark in color.
Looking at it, I don't why? A hint of uneasiness appeared in my eyes. Then shaking my head, I placed the monster core in my storage ring before continuing the journey.
Time passed in a blink of an eye,
Even after two hours of journey, I didn't reach the dead end. My mood is beginning to worsen. I feel it is not safe to go deep anymore.
Though Elite level strength gives me the courage I'm not stupid enough to barge in without thinking.
When this thought appeared in my mind. I stopped moving forward. So far I found nothing valuable. There is no point in continuing anymore.
Swish!
I started to retreat to the surface without thinking further.
As time went on, I reached the spot where two paths were divided. After taking one glance at the paths, I moved and flew back toward the surface.
A few hours later,
Swish!
I appeared above the surface and stood in mid-air. "Phew," I exhaled in relief. Finally, I came back to the surface before anything went wrong.
Then I looked around. It's already late evening. I have to find a good spot to spend the night time. Suddenly, I remembered the old wooden house in the inner area.
After knowing the direction, I immediately moved toward the destination.
One hour later,
I arrived in front of the wooden house. It brings back old memories. Where I killed those bandits last time here.
I spread my consciousness around to check the area. After seeing there is no problem in this vicinity. I decided to take a rest here.
The following day,
Again, I continued my journey. This time I picked another dangerous spot to investigate. This dangerous spot is quite familiar to adventurers. It is called a green swamp or poisonous swamp.
Many adventurers and bandits had lost their lives after mistakenly stepping inside the green swamp. But I would like to know what is causing the poisonous miasma around there.
Without wasting any more time. I disappeared from the spot and moved towards the destination at a breakneck speed.
Soon the poisonous swamp appeared before my eyes. From mid-air, I looked down below. Near the swamp, some courageous adventurers were trying their luck.
But it's nothing but self-seeking death. A deep green color mist shrouded the entire green swamp. Seeing that I moved closer to the mist.
I feel no sense of threat from the poisonous mist. To be on the safe side, I used a blood field aura to dispel the poisonous mist near me.
Swish!
I stood in mid-air on top of the swamp. Using my perceptual ability, I quickly started to scan the surroundings.
Those adventurer groups didn't find any abnormality.
In a blink of an eye, my senses covered a few parts of the swamp. "Hmmm," My eyes lit up with surprise. Like a cave structure, I spotted the minute sign of life.
Other weird monsters living under the swamp. I frowned a little. I'm not ready to dive into the swamp.
Soon I sensed a strange object in my perception. What is it?
Swish!
I disappeared from the spot and landed on the surface of the swamp water. From here I can sense the object.
Splash!
Then without thinking further, I dived into the swamp. A terrific smell attacked my nostril. It is not much worse than the cave structure.
Then I reached the bottom of the swamp to retrieve the strange object. After picking it up, I hurriedly flew upwards.
Splash!
In a blink of an eye, I appeared in mid-air.
Finally, I take a good look at the strange object.
"Metal stele," I uttered in disbelief. My gaze immediately fell on strange letters written on the metal stele.
This thing is more precious than I had imagined. Because I have seen something similar back in the library.
In old times, powerful warriors used to record their techniques on a stele. I get the same feeling with this stele.
After calming down my heart, I gained a trace of clarity in my thoughts. Then I placed the stele in my storage ring. I came here to investigate this place but I got something else instead.
Then my gaze fell on the swamp again. This place is something else. I feel if I spend a few more times here, I may come across other valuable things.
Shaking my head, I decided to move away from there. The disgusting smell continues to attack my nostril.
Swish!
Several minutes later, I found a small stream ahead. After landing near the running stream, I immediately began to clean myself.
While cleaning myself, I felt a rumbling sound in my stomach. After getting freshened, I ate a few mana fruits which I had stored earlier.
The monsters roaming in this forest are unsafe to eat. I'm not going to do that till the end.
Tap!
Suddenly, I heard some disturbance. Hearing that, I quickly spread my perception. Within my perception, a huge plant monster appeared. The plant monster is targeting small prey to eat.
After figuring it out, I retracted my perception. Next, I accessed the map again. Earlier, the trip to the cave structure failed. And I found the stele in a swamp area.
But it's a relic that belongs to the old times.
So I hope to find something good on the next site. The area close to me now is an important one. It is safe to say it's the core area of the insect forest.
It is also the old home of an elite bandit leader.
Thinking about the elite bandit, my lips curve into a gentle arc. I know that Jonathan had dealt with him easily. But I don't know whether there will be any leftover treasures in that place.
If my assumption is right, no one entered that place after the death of the elite bandit leader. A heat appeared in my heart.
Time passed in a blink of an eye,
Soon I reached the core area. In mid-air, I stopped my movements and looked ahead. I have to say this place has natural protection.
The core area is slightly above the ground. Like the top of the hill. Except for plant monsters and bird-type monsters. The place is not accessible to terrain monsters.
Swish!
Then I entered the core area. When I got a little bit closer. I see many broken and smashed wooden houses. The traces of battles are very visible.
"Sigh"
Seeing that I let out a deep sigh. I'm more convinced that no one had visited this place. Jonathan had completely overturned the core area.
Then shaking my head, I went a little bit deeper. "Where is that leader's hideout?" I mumbled under my breath.
My gaze swept past the nearest areas. But there is no sign of life. I furrowed my eyebrows. The bandit leader was not an ordinary person. So where is the place?
Slowly, I crossed half of the core area. But I didn't stop my perception. Finally, when I moved further, my perception caught something.
"What is that?" I looked at a certain ruin.
Swish!
I disappeared from the spot and landed on the ground. The wooden structure looked larger compared to other areas. There seems to be another space hidden inside the wooden structure.
I released my momentum to clear away the debris. Soon the place becomes visible. And I see a door leading to the underground chamber.