The Cave

The three of them left the academy's east gate and stepped onto the internal express teleportation array. As long as there were coordinates, this type of teleportation array could go to any unblocked location, completely different from ordinary teleportation arrays, primarily designed for the convenience of students.

With a flash of light, the surrounding scenery shifted. They arrived at a somewhat desolate hilly area. In the distance, the pitch-black entrance of an abandoned mine could be seen, resembling a giant mouth waiting to devour people. The air was filled with a faint smell of sulfur and rusted metal.

"Stay close to me and stay alert." An Changqing took the lead, walking toward the mine entrance. His pace was steady, his sharp eyes scanning the surrounding environment.

Su Yuehe followed closely behind. At some point, the short flute in her hand had been raised to her lips, blowing a few almost imperceptible syllables.

Chen Guan felt a gentle mental fluctuation spread out from her as the center, like invisible tentacles, probing the movements ahead and around them.

[Is this Susu's support skill? Looks like sonic exploration?]

[Susu's ability is Spirit Speech, whatever she says becomes reality.]

[An Changqing is so reliable, always walking at the very front.]

[Coffin Bro carrying a coffin in the wild, the vibe is a bit weird.]

[What do Rock Beetles look like? The Guangdong twin-tails kind?]

The bullet screen became active again as the mission started.

Soon, the trio arrived at the mine entrance. A portion of the opening had collapsed, with rubble piled up, only allowing two people to pass through side by side.

It was pitch black inside, with only the occasional faint rustling sounds and the friction of rocks echoing from the depths.

An Changqing took out a fist-sized illumination crystal from the side pocket of his backpack and injected a trace of spiritual energy into it. A soft yet bright light immediately illuminated the area ten meters ahead.

The cave walls were slippery, covered in moss and water stains, and the ground was littered with decayed minecart tracks and rusted tools.

"The light might disturb them, but the darkness is more dangerous," An Changqing said in a low voice. "Stay close."

The three slowly entered the mine in a triangular formation. An Changqing was in the front, Chen Guan was on the left rear, slightly forward, and Su Yuehe was on the right rear, covering the back.

After going about fifty meters deep into the mine, the passage began to become intricate, with several forks appearing. The strange smell in the air grew stronger, and the rustling sounds became more dense.

"Front left, thirty meters, multiple life signatures approaching," Su Yuehe suddenly gave a low warning, the tone of her short flute changing slightly.

An Changqing immediately stopped and raised the illumination crystal. As far as the light reached, at the corner of the passage ahead, several bug-like creatures the size of millstones were swarming out rustlingly. They were covered in thick grayish-brown carapaces, had six pairs of sharp segmented limbs, and their constantly opening and closing mouthparts dripped corrosive slime.

Their compound eyes reflected a cold glint under the light, locking onto the three people and letting out sharp hisses.

They were exactly the mutated Rock Beetles. Fortunately, there weren't many of them, only about seven or eight.

"Prepare for battle," An Changqing shouted in a low voice. With a clang, his longsword was unsheathed, its blade flowing with a faint golden luster as a scorching aura filled the air.

Chen Guan also immediately got into the zone. His body sank slightly, and his hands gripped one side of the coffin, ready to swing it as a shield or weapon at any moment.

Fortunately, Old Me inside was secured very firmly, otherwise being swung around every day would definitely result in quite a few bumps on his head.

He didn't rush forward rashly but moved his feet in tacit understanding, maintaining a mutually supportive triangular formation with An Changqing and Su Yuehe.

The Rock Beetle swarm hissed, surging forward like a gray tide. They looked clumsy, but their speed in the narrow mine was not slow. Their sharp limbs struck the ground, making dense clicking sounds.

"Yuehe, restrict their movements." As An Changqing gave the order, his body shot out like an arrow from a bowstring. The longsword in his hand drew a golden arc, precisely slashing at the connection between the head and carapace of the Rock Beetle charging at the very front.

Pfft.

With a flash of sword light, the head of that Rock Beetle fell in response. Viscous green bodily fluids sprayed out as its massive body twitched and collapsed.

Su Yuehe's short flute played rapid and sharp sonic waves. Invisible ripples spread out, shocking the senses of the remaining Rock Beetles.

The movements of several Rock Beetles clearly slowed down, swaying unsteadily as if they were drunk.

Chen Guan seized the opportunity and suddenly stepped forward. He didn't attack the interfered Rock Beetles but swung the heavy black iron coffin like a door panel, ruthlessly smashing it into a Rock Beetle that tried to bypass An Changqing from the side and pounce on Su Yuehe.

Bang!

A heavy, drum-like boom echoed through the mine. Caught off guard, the Rock Beetle was struck head-on by the coffin. Its thick carapace let out a teeth-grinding cracking sound, and its entire body was sent flying backward as if hit by a battering ram. It crashed into the cave wall, slid down limply with a caved-in carapace and twisted limbs, clearly dead.

[Holy crap, smashing bugs with a coffin, simple and brutal, it's just that the guy inside the coffin is suffering.]

[Twin tails]

[An Changqing is so handsome!]

[Thank you everyone for praising my husband, we are very much in love, thank you.]

[Someone with yellow pee, wake the person above up.]

The bullet screen was in an uproar.

An Changqing's sword light flashed repeatedly, slaying two more Rock Beetles that were disrupted by the sonic waves. Chen Guan, like a humanoid fortress, swung the coffin vigorously, either slapping or ramming, knocking down the other few Rock Beetles that tried to get close one by one.

His attacks had no technique to speak of, relying purely on the coffin's own weight and his own brute strength. However, in this narrow environment, facing a bug swarm with low intelligence that primarily relied on instinctive charging, it was exceptionally effective.

Occasionally, acid spat by the Rock Beetles splashed over, landing on the black iron coffin with a soft sizzling sound and emitting faint white smoke, but it failed to leave any marks on the coffin's surface.

Chen Guan himself also relied on Toughness and flexible footwork to dodge most of the attacks. Only a small amount of acid splashed onto his combat suit, which was blocked by its built-in defense, leaving his flesh unharmed.

In just two or three minutes, the seven or eight Rock Beetles were completely cleared out. The passage was filled with the pungent smell of bug corpses and sour decay.

"Clearance complete, collect samples."

An Changqing sheathed his sword, his expression normal. This level of mission posed no difficulty for him.

He walked over to a relatively intact bug corpse, used a special tool to cut off a few pieces of the hard carapace, and put them into a sealed bag.

Su Yuehe stopped playing, her small face a bit pale. Clearly, continuously casting sonic interference took quite a toll on her, and this was when she was only using spiritual energy and not her ability.

The stronger the ability, the greater the consumption. Therefore, for people like Su Yuehe and An Changqing who possessed top-tier abilities, they rarely needed to use them at this current stage.

She took a pill to replenish herself; her mana shortage problem was getting more and more serious...

Chen Guan was also panting slightly. That burst of action just now consumed quite a bit of stamina.

He put the coffin back on his back, walked to another bug corpse, and learned from An Changqing to collect samples.

The black iron coffin had just endured multiple impacts and acid corrosion, yet it remained as clean as new, without a single stain on it. As expected, products from the system were absolutely top-notch.

"Keep moving. Stay alert, there might be a swarm leader or a hive ahead." An Changqing stowed the sample away and signaled for them to push deeper inside.