Of course, Clay Magic is merely a 2nd Ring skill, while her shadow abilities are intricately connected to her entire being.
Comparing Clay Magic to her shadow abilities is actually somewhat unfair.
Over 90% of Ying’s power is concentrated in her shadow-related abilities.
Gauss and the others waited outside the mountains for a moment.
Soon, two shadows returned from afar, merging with the shadows at Ying’s feet.
"We’ve found the target tribe."
Ying said steadily.
"Then let’s move out."
While traversing through the cave, Ying shared the information gathered by her abilities with Gauss and the others.
This included the number of Kobolds, main weapons, number of elite Kobolds, tunnel conditions, etc...
Interestingly, this group of Kobolds also enslaved a small Goblin Tribe.
This situation is uncommon.
Kobolds and goblins are both considered common low-level humanoid creatures, and their relationship is more like competitors or mutually hostile neighbors.
On one hand, their individual strengths are similar, their ecological niches overlap, they both prefer inhabiting caves, ruins, forests, and other environments, and they compete for similar food and treasures.
Only under some strong external force, such as a powerful leader, like a Giant Dragon or ogre leader, or when one side has an overwhelming numerical advantage, might they capture individuals after crushing the other tribe, forcing them into the most dangerous labor.
The thought that this Kobold Tribe might have already wiped out another sizable Goblin Tribe made Gauss feel a bit pained.
How wonderful it would be if they could live cooperatively in the cave and wait for him to come knocking.
Truly a pity...
As they continued advancing through the passage.
The group systematically eliminated both obvious and hidden sentries along the way.
Soon, they reached the deepest part of the cave, a natural cavern.
This place was much smaller in scale compared to the Kobold lair Gauss encountered outside Gold and Silver Town recently, but it was enough for their activities.
"Clang clang clang!"
Upon entering, some Kobolds were clinking pickaxes against the rock wall, unsure if they were mining or expanding the cave.
"Gah?"
A Kobold’s arm holding the pickaxe paused in mid-air, looking at the sudden appearance of the humans, seemingly unable to react.
But the next moment, before it could show a hostile expression.
A streak of Sword Qi floated to its throat.
"Bang!"
Its voice got stuck in its throat.
Although it didn’t raise the alarm, the Kobold beside it fulfilled its last wish.
Like a spark thrown into a barrel of oil, with a "whoosh," the entire Kobold lair was "ignited."
To demonstrate the changes in strength to Gauss and the others, Ying voluntarily stepped forward, splitting into two shadows.
The shadows stood beside her like two guards.
Suddenly.
The shadows moved.
Two long spears formed in their hands.
Then they thrust towards the nearby Kobolds.
"Swoosh!!!"
The spearheads rapidly extended, finally piercing through the Kobolds’ necks, pinning them against the rock wall.
Two splashes of blood blooms suddenly blossomed on the rock wall.
Gauss’s pupils contracted quickly at the sight!
As if he had seen something unbelievable.
It wasn’t that he was surprised by the shadow’s killing power; every creature present could easily do this.
It’s just...
He swallowed hard.
Two lines of text floated across his vision.
"Kobold killed *1"
"Kobold killed *1"
Judging by the timing, these notifications appeared just as the shadows killed the Kobolds.
The monsters Ying killed count as my kills?
Gauss hadn’t anticipated this change after Ying broke through to level 6.
No...
There must be a distance limitation.
Gauss thought that when Ying sent out two shadows for reconnaissance earlier, they also cleared a few blocking Kobolds in the cave.
The difference must be that this time he was at the scene of the kill.
But, why?
Why do the monsters Ying killed count as his kill count this time?
Her kills had never been counted before.
Though, Dragon Beast Hephaestus had long achieved the effect of sharing the kill count, but that seemed due to some sort of contract relationship between Dragon Beast and him through the white egg.
What caused Ying’s change?
The shadow abilities grew stronger? Clearly, that’s not the reason.
How could the Adventurer’s Handbook’s calculation method change based on a teammate’s ability?
But the Adventurer’s Handbook didn’t seem to explain such matters, just like the Dragon Beast’s shared kills, there’s no explanation, he could only guess.
Or it’s....some kind of invisible attribute like affinity or trust? Ying and his relationship breaking through some barrier, causing her kills to be considered his?
Gauss could only speculate this way.
Under Gauss’s surprised gaze, the two shadows danced continuously within the Kobold crowd, slaughtering them.
Besides turning into weapons, they could also generate a "Shadow Ground Spike" effect around them, exploding sharp shadow spears that pierced surrounding Kobolds.
Ying noticed his expression changing and suddenly thought of something.
"Gauss, should I call them back?"
She suddenly remembered that Gauss seemed to want to kill the monsters himself.
"No no no.... You just carry on." Gauss shook his head.
Anyway, he was present, Ying killing the monsters and him killing them made no real difference in the index.
Of course, he wouldn’t slack off; he would join the fight later too.
He needed combat practice to train his skills and fighting techniques.
He was just thinking, if Ying’s kills could be shared with him, does that mean the other teammates, Aaliyah, Serdur, Albena, could do the same?
He might need to ponder why Ying could do it and find the key within.
If it were attributes like "affinity" or "trust," even newcomer Albena had substantial trust in him.
Hephaestus, Ying...
He believed if one and two existed, then there could be a three.
After thinking for a moment, Gauss summoned Dragon Beast Hephaestus.
The appearance of Hephaestus was like the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
Many Kobolds paused their actions and looked up, dumbfounded.
As if seeing their heart’s white moonlight.
"Boom!"
In their shocked gaze, Dragon Beast Hephaestus breathed out a scorching flame, engulfing them entirely.
"Whoa whoa whoa!!!"
The Kobolds lost the last bit of desire to fight.
Especially those low-ranking Kobolds, they instinctively revered yet feared such creatures.
After Hephaestus descended, the battlefield presented a one-sided situation.
Gauss’s casting speed became much faster than before.
The effect of the Intermediate Dragon Speech was showing.
He was already very attuned to Magic, and now this affinity had moved to another level, reaching a non-human degree.
Fast!
Spells were continuously released.
Eliminating these monsters as quickly as possible was Gauss’s last mercy.
In the painful wails, the Kobold lair quickly fell silent.
Corpses of Kobolds littered the flames.
Even the enslaved small Goblin Tribe was casually wiped out by Gauss.
"Intermediate Dragon Speech (Beginner) is upgrading!"
"Congratulations! Upgraded to Intermediate Dragon Speech (Elite)"
The number of Kobolds killed at once was enough for the Intermediate Dragon Speech to complete its upgrade.
Gauss’s Dragon Speech became more proficient.
He opened his mouth, feeling a strong urge to say something.
Of course, he knew that Dragon Speech wasn’t to be used lightly.
It contained magical power.
"Total Monsters Killed: 9214"
This Kobold lair, with Kobolds and goblins together contributed to 284 of the kill count.
Gauss exhaled.
Every time he killed a vast number of monsters in a short time, he felt like he was growing stronger.
As if an invisible power was slowly merging into his body.