The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 183 Finding a Way Out (4.2k)

"Do you know what the consequences will be if you keep eating like this? You're past the age where eating more will make you grow taller."

“Cut off his goatee. All I know is what the consequences of not eating him will be!”

After all, he was the benefactor who had pulled him out of the brink of death. Although Tang Qi was annoyed by the teasing, Sui Shi unusually refrained from retaliating.

He just kept chewing on the rye bread that had become soft from being soaked in water, eating without any regard for his image.

Actually, this stuff tastes like wet, cold putty now, but for the famine-stricken rocks, it's the best bread on the entire continent.

With the glow of the Ring of Glory, Tang Qi could see that the dwarf had lost a lot of weight. His once bulging muscles had shriveled up, and his sturdy physique was about to resemble that of a bare-chested monk.

That's the aftereffect of squeezing out one's potential after exhaustion.

Fortunately, this is only temporary. With continued nutritional supplementation, returning to peak condition is not a problem.

However, it's best not to have any expectations of him while he's deep in the well.

Tang Qi then began using the recovery glue to repair the broken body of Chenxi.

【Resurrection Spell】, a third-circle spell.

Touching a creature that has died within the last minute will revive it. This spell cannot resurrect creatures that have died of old age, nor can it restore lost body parts.

A simple and brutal resurrection.

This is also why Tang Qi accepted Chen Xi without hesitation.

Fortunately, he led Dawn and Iowa down the dive, with almost no time to stop along the way.

When you're tired or sleepy, take a sip of [stress medication] to relieve dizziness.

Only then can they pull the rubble back from the clutches of death at the last moment.

However, the divine magic of the third ring was still too damaging to this body, burning off every part that connected her body, causing Dawn to lose her ability to fight in an instant.

Fortunately, he had been to the black market before returning to the dungeon, and his two bottles of restoration glue were still in ample supply. If he used them sparingly, it shouldn't be a problem.

"Mr. Tang Qi, how did you find us?"

Although both were hungry, Wendy's way of eating was much more elegant than that of eating pebbles.

She tore off pieces of bread one by one, put them in her mouth, took a sip of water, and then began to chew slowly.

"Through the corpses along the way."

Tang Qi pointed to Kuru, who was gnawing on snake-chicken-beast leg meat and reading a spellbook by the light of his own—

The meat of the snake-chicken beast is tender and nutritious. Most importantly, after being soaked in chicken blood, it has a certain stimulating effect, making it the only meat he carried when heading to the underground city.

The kobolds who abandoned corpses along the way as road signs deserve a chicken leg as a reward:

"As I climbed up to the fourth level of the dungeon, I noticed the corpses—besides the signs of being eaten, each corpse had a tooth stuck in its head."

As Tang Qi spoke, he took out the teeth he had collected along the way from the package.

Wendy glanced at it and could vaguely make out a few giant spider fangs and the sharp teeth of the Displacement Beast...

Those were spoils of war that Tang Qi had given to Kuru along the way, originally intended to be made into jewelry after returning to the surface.

However, it was precisely because of this relationship that Tang Qi was able to identify the kobolds as the source of the corpse.

This made her look in surprise at the dog-headed man who was standing with his hands on his hips, smugly praising him, and she exclaimed:
"So you planned from the beginning to have Mr. Tang Qi find us? Because he's the only one who can find light in the dark?"

“Rua!” The kobold raised his wise forehead.

"I'm sorry, when I first learned that you were a first-ring mage, I even underestimated you."

Wendy sincerely apologized, and then looked at Tang Qi.
"But from another perspective, it really trusts you."

And you did not betray its trust, even at great risk, you returned to the dungeon to rescue your companion.

This kind of friendship is truly...enviable.

This is exactly the kind of partner she's been looking for, the kind of journey she's been longing for:
"After we leave the deep well, may I embark on this adventure with you?"

"Don't have preconceived notions about what 'adventure' looks like, and don't have any expectations about 'adventure' itself."

Tang Qi shook his head, which was a way of refusing.
"Unfounded expectations are easily shattered, and I cannot bear all your expectations."

So rather than following me on the road, I actually suggest you let go of the idea that 'only doing this constitutes adventure,' and instead view everything that happens along the way in a realistic light—

Only by trying to walk your own path can you discover what kind of path you want to take.

That's what they say, but Tang Qi also had some personal motives involved.

We can't let Orion find out that he kidnapped his daughter after we leave the dungeon, can we?

He still hoped to escape by relying on the other party's favor.

Estimating the time, there were probably less than three days left. Tang Qi quickly reattached Chenxi's body.

“We didn’t have time to eat our fill. What we needed to do now was to get out of the deep well as soon as possible. So once we had the strength to stand up, we prepared to set off.”

Rumi swallowed the last bite of bread, slurring his words as he smacked his lips:
"But we ran into a guy who was completely devastated. He was crying and telling us that the entrance to the deep well was blocked. The bigwigs in Dragon Gold City have strictly forbidden anyone from leaving the deep well by any means. Even if we reach the first level as quickly as possible, we still have no chance of escaping the deep well. And that underwater passage you mentioned probably doesn't have enough underwater breathing agents for us to swim through for two days..."

In fact, it will take at least three days.

Even if they possess the ability to breathe underwater, without the speed boost from the [Manta Cloak], it would be difficult for them to reach the surface before the Twin Moon Feast.

"I know a fast track."

Tang Qi recalled the fact that he had fallen into the fifth floor from the Red Scarf Gang's bunker.

However, that passage should have been closed by the valve, making it difficult to go upstream and climb all the way up.

Therefore, he can only choose another shortcut:
"Once we reach the boundary between the second and third floors, we can jump directly to the first floor in a very short time."

"But……"

Wendy looked around and saw the ten-meter-long beam of light emanating from Tang Qi's ring—

Thanks to the Ring of Glory's ability to dispel magical darkness, the Light spell's effect is not simply about 'providing a light source' in dark environments.

Instead, it was as if the curtain of darkness had been lifted, leaving a gap in the sky where colors were illuminated by the intense sunlight.

This allowed them to see the gray pebbles, the green grass and leaves, and the thick tree trunks scattered haphazardly before their eyes.

But the world outside the light is still pitch black to them.

The treetops are invisible, and the blue sky is out of sight.

more importantly--

“But we can’t even tell which way is which,” Wendy said.

Tang Qi asked, "It's alright. Just use the entrances on the fourth and fifth floors as a reference. You should be able to figure out which direction the entrance on the third floor is, right?"

In the dungeon, not having a guide who can tell directions is tantamount to suicide.

Although the Silver Medal team was a temporary group, their professional skills were hard to fault.

Rumi led the way:

"Hey, I remember it very well. Before darkness fell, the fourth level of the forest was still bathed in sunlight! It was roughly in the southeast direction of the entrance, diagonally opposite—with a tower in between, a very tall tower, its top even higher than the towering trees in the forest. We met some adventurers resting in the tower and made some trade with them."

"Southeast of the entrance." Tang Qi glanced around at the pitch-black surroundings, and as his gaze shifted, he raised his arm.
"There."

"How did you figure that out?" Wendy asked curiously.

"intuition."

Tang Qi recounted his feelings about being the "guide"—

I don't know why it's there, but it's there anyway.

Shattered Stones wasn't surprised at all: "You can't go wrong with trusting him. He's figured out the directions in the Dawn and Dusk Forest."

Actually, it was because of [True Vision Eye Drops] at that time.

This saved him a lot of time explaining, and after confirming that his strength had recovered, he walked at the front of the group for the first time.

Even if the light cannot cover everyone in the team, it can still act as a beacon, guiding them in the right direction.

As he moved forward, Tang Qi remained vigilant about his surroundings.

This is, after all, a dark forest, where it is common for a giant python to emerge from the jungle and for several giant crocodiles to lurk in the pond.

Unexpectedly, as he walked through the woodland, he attracted some forest animals that saw the light and followed him—such as a few squirrels and rabbits at his feet, and ravens circling overhead, chattering away.

Occasionally, a few extremely hungry vultures and blood eagles with bright red feathers would attempt to enjoy a 'self-service' meal, thus killing a few weak prey.

Yet, as if cherishing this sole source of light, it made no attempt to harm Tang Qi, which only attracted more and more wild beasts to gather around him.

What could be described as an encounter were several living corpses covered in mushrooms.

The swampy and forested terrain meant that most mushroom hunters would venture between the third and fourth levels.

Therefore, these humans, who at first glance appear to be fully armed and like adventurers, have become frequent visitors, along with Red Scarf Gang bandits, short lizardmen, and brown bears covered in slash marks...

Their only thing in common is that after they lose their lives, their bodies become excellent habitats for mushrooms.

The spores were extremely sensitive to this sudden light source, and almost the instant they noticed it, they rushed forward to try to extinguish the only glimmer of light.

Even without Chenxi's intervention, the wild beasts following behind them spontaneously tore at their skin, restricting their movements and clearing obstacles for Tang Qi's advance.

In the end, as if to reward them, Tang Qi distributed as much food as possible from the package so that they would have the strength to act as bodyguards.

At the same time, he looked at the dawn:

"Is it possible to establish contact with the spores?"

“I tried to communicate with them, but they seemed to be in a state of irrational rage, rejecting any external information…”

"It's a pity... If we could communicate with the spores like we did with the flail snail, it might have saved us a lot of trouble."

Just as Tang Qi was sighing, a joyful shout suddenly rang in his ears:

"That's right, it's light! It's fucking sunlight! My eyes aren't blind!"

The sound was distant yet very deep, like the low mooing of an old ox.

The other party seemed to realize that the center of the light source was a living person, and continued to call out:
Hey, you over there—can you see us?!

Tang Qi looked in the direction of the sound.

All I could see was complete darkness.

"Don't move, please don't move—I mean, please wait for us, we're on our way!"

Tang Qi and his companions exchanged glances.

The other party's attitude was fairly friendly.

However, 'friendly' is hardly a compliment in the dungeon.

The 'friendliness' between adventurers should be 'indifference'—

Let's ignore each other and let's not cause any trouble.

"Please, don't go, please don't go! We'll give you all the spoils!"

Tang Qi stopped in his tracks:
"Anyway, in terms of combat power, few people can fight better than us."

Realizing the light source had stopped, the source of the sound quickened its pace.

Tang Qi soon felt the trembling sound beneath his feet.

Two bull horns, as if piercing through the darkness, were the first to emerge into the light:

"[A group of adventurers]?"

"【Wild Bull】?"

The memory wasn't long ago; Tang Qi had seen this black bull just before stepping into the deep well.

Compared to its former ruggedness, this black bull now has a broad hunched back, and even needs to remove its giant sword, which is as tall as a man, to use as a crutch to support its body. It is clearly quite tired.

"Damn it, I should have guessed it was you guys—only an adventure team that can come out of the Dawn Forest has the potential to dispel the magical darkness."

"Are you here to pan for gold in the deep well?"

"Of course. Who told the employer, who had no grass to eat, to die for no reason? In order to make some quick money, I had no choice but to bring people to the dungeon to collect some materials, and I almost died in the darkness!"

The bull, panting heavily, quickly pulled on the rope binding him and dragged in his three companions and two civilians carrying packs.

They were all human males: warriors equipped with swords and shields, archers wielding bows, and a wanderer adept at spotting traps.

They looked disheveled and their expressions were somewhat solemn, but more so tense, their eyes darting around, unable to look Tang Qi in the eye.

This is almost an instinctive reaction of the weaker party when facing the stronger party.

The wounds on his body varied in size. Some were wrapped in medical bandages but became stained with blood due to his exhaustion. Others were simply left exposed on the skin without any treatment.

This is actually the standard configuration for an ordinary adventure team.

There were no spellcasters, no magical items, not even enough healing potions, only a dimensional bag to hold supplies...

Therefore, they could only pay the corresponding wages to hire civilians from Shenjing as laborers to carry supplies, assist in setting up camp, or cook.

Realizing that Tang Qi and his group were 'veteran adventurers,' the Bull dared not be negligent and directed the boy, who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old and carrying a heavy pack, to say:
"Human boy, quickly bring out all our spoils."

Tang Qi noticed from the rope connecting them that the two civilians were being supported by four soldiers in the middle.

Whether it's for the protection of supplies or for some other purpose.

They never abandoned their 'burdens' in dangerous circumstances.

This, in turn, confirms the credibility to some extent:

"So, you're planning to come with me?"

“We’re herbivores, of course! I don’t want to die in this dark and sunless underground city. Although you may not care about this, it’s all we have.”

Tang Qi hesitated before looking at the others:
"Can you help?"

Before I could hesitate, I heard another noise.

(End of this chapter)