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Chapter 36 Subterranean Monsters (Please continue reading)

"This way, go this way!" Stephania suddenly pointed in a direction.

Richard was greatly puzzled, because the direction Stephanie pointed was to a secluded and narrow cave, and the sparse spider webs around it clearly indicated that this could not be the lair of the Crystal Web Spiders. They were here to investigate the reason for the increase in Crystal Web Spiders, and they should definitely go straight to the heart of the matter to find out the cause. What was the point of going to a remote cave?

"Should we head in this direction?" Javier pointed straight ahead, to an area where the spiderwebs and large white cocoons were clearly more concentrated.

"Yeah, Stephania, why go to that cave? The spider webs are so sparse, it shouldn't be the cave of the Crystal Web Spiders, right?" Lena asked, puzzled.

"Intuition!" Stephania didn't explain much, but the determination in her eyes seemed to leave no room for argument.

Richard didn't care; as long as he killed monsters, he could earn energy points!

So, at Stephanie's insistence, the group began to venture deeper into the cave. But once inside, they discovered that despite the narrow entrance, the cave became increasingly spacious, and the towering Havel could walk upright.

The cave was incredibly deep. After walking slowly for over a hundred meters, the group discovered that the tunnel clearly extended downwards, meaning that the deeper they went, the farther they were from the ground, and the more branching paths there were, leading in all directions.

Amazingly, at each fork in the road, Stephanie could accurately point out the direction to go. Then, the number of spiders encountered increased, from scattered black widows to small groups of seven or eight black widows, and then to crystal web spiders leading groups of twenty or thirty black widows!

After killing three waves of crystal web spiders, everyone was exhausted, so they rested for a while in a recess in the cave wall.

Richard stepped forward and glanced at the harvest.

Name: Richard Clavel

[Attributes]: Strength 2.2, Agility 2.5, Constitution 2.3, Spirit 4.1

[Witchcraft]: Rodrigo Meditation (Basic 3%, Arcane: Lesser Mental Shock), Shadow Grip (Proficient 34%), Manipulate Bones (Proficient 16%)

[Skills]: Clavier's Breathing Technique (Proficient 2%), Cornell Swordsmanship (Master 6%, Secret Technique: High-Frequency Vibration), Bow and Crossbow (Master 13%, Secret Technique: Shortbow Rapid Fire, Multiple Shots)

[Shortbow Rapid Fire: A special skill that allows for the continuous, rapid, and accurate firing of arrows within a short period of time, consuming a large amount of stamina. Requires a shortbow.]

[Multi-Shot: Fires up to three arrows at once, attacking three different targets. Using this technique consecutively will consume a lot of stamina.]

[Secondary Mental Breakthrough: Instantly consumes a special pure mental energy to attack the opponent's sea of ​​consciousness, causing dizziness, unconsciousness, or even death. The stronger the opponent's mental energy, the less damage is suffered, depending on the difference in mental energy between the two parties.]

[Energy Points]: 1674

Richard's lips curled up slightly. 1674. This was after he had already used up 500 energy points. Sure enough, every time he came to the wilderness to do a mission, no, to be precise, every time he came to kill spiders, he always reaped a lot of rewards. Spiders are truly his lucky star!

For this reason alone, Richard still hoped that the spiders here could grow continuously, so that he could earn points by taking on tasks to clean up the crystal web spiders, and at the same time earn energy points, killing two birds with one stone!

After the rest, the group continued to move forward stealthily.

Because they were in a deep spider cave, even the slightest sound would travel a great distance. So, to avoid being surrounded by a large number of spiders, everyone was extra careful!

Havel led the way around a corner and stopped behind a huge rock in the passageway. He noticed that if he looked ahead along the rock, the space suddenly became unusually spacious. It was as if such a large open space existed deep underground, like a high-arched hall.

However, judging from the deep, crisscrossing marks around the wall, this was clearly caused by the claws of a giant spider.

Just as Havel stepped forward and peered out from behind the boulder, intending to take a closer look at the empty hall, he turned back instantly, his face filled with terror!

Everyone was very surprised. After all, Havel was a senior student. He had remained calm and composed even when he encountered two groups of crystal web spiders along the way. How could he be so frightened after just one look?

As everyone crouched low and cautiously peeked out to observe, they saw two enormous spiders, one black and one white, standing out prominently in the center of the empty hall! All around were the carcasses of various large beasts and even monsters, their decaying bodies densely covered with white spider eggs the size of eggs, a sight that sent chills down everyone's spine!

There were also many Crystal Web Spiders patrolling back and forth, as well as a considerable number of Black Widows!

The black-striped spider was as big as a calf. The head and claws that should have been at the front of its body had been replaced by an extremely horrifying human female face. Its four pairs of legs, sharp as knives, easily pierced the hard ground with each casual step.

The larger white and gray spiders are likely a variant of the crystal web spider, much larger than the black spider, but they are characterized by their cylindrical abdomens, which are bulging like those of a human woman who is nine months pregnant.

Richard was also terrified when he saw it. It seemed that they had found the reason for the abnormal increase in spiders.

Even a fool could tell at a glance that the white spider is a female spider that only lays eggs.

Just as everyone was in shock, Richard inadvertently turned his head and unexpectedly discovered that Stephanie was staring intently at the two giant spiders in front of her, as if she had seen a treasure, and the surprise in her eyes was beyond words.

After everyone retreated back into the passage, Stephania's cheeks flushed with excitement as she exclaimed, "Human-faced Spiders! Human-faced Spiders and the Crystal Web Spider Queen! I never expected to find Human-faced Spiders here, this is such a pleasant surprise! I was just hoping to find a Crystal Web Spider Queen!"

"Human-faced spider?" Richard looked puzzled. Recalling the "Common Monsters of the Mud Swamp Illustrated Guide" he had been looking through, he was certain that this kind of monster was not in it. Regarding spider monsters, there were only three common types in the Mud Swamp: Crystal Web Spider, Dark Fang Spider, and Venom Spider.

He had seen an introduction to the Crystal Web Spider Queen, which said that when a Crystal Web Spider colony expands to a certain size, there is a certain chance of a Crystal Web Spider Queen being born, but it is extremely rare. Therefore, it is only mentioned briefly in the monster encyclopedia.

But it was clear that the giant black spider in the hall was the human-faced demon spider that Stephana had mentioned, and its aura was even larger and more terrifying than that of the Crystal Web Spider Queen!

"Human-faced spiders, a kind of monster that only exists in the Dark Lands. I don't know how they got to the surface, but let's not investigate the reason for now. Richard, think of a way to kill them. As long as I can kill them, I can..."

Seemingly trying to hide something, Stephania immediately shut her mouth.

Upon hearing this, Richard knew that the human-faced spider might have special significance for Stephanie.

Considering the strange sorcery Stephania performed every time she killed a Crystal Web Spider, it's not hard to guess that it was to nourish the mysterious egg in her hand.

Thank you to reader 20230510202251927 for the reward, and thank you to readers 缥缈精灵 and 紫金七夜 for the many recommendation votes!

(End of this chapter)