Chapter 27

As soon as I stepped into the cave, I felt the darkness envelop me, and everything around me turned pitch black. Even with my enhanced vision, visibility was no more than three meters. Startled, I didn't care if there were any ambushes and immediately retreated, rolling like a lazy wolf to quickly exit the cave entrance.

Hmm, there doesn't seem to be any movement, I thought. If there were enemies around just now, the poisonous flower vines underground would have started attacking automatically. Their vision shouldn't be affected by the darkness, right?

After some thought, I cautiously stepped into the cave again. Knowing there were no ambushes this time, I wasn't as clumsy as before. However, my eyes still hadn't adjusted, and everything around me was dark, severely limiting my vision. There was also a faint, oppressive aura that weighed heavily on me.

I felt my limbs becoming heavy, and I knew this was bad. In this situation, if I had to face an enemy, I would be dead for sure.

With no other choice, I felt my way along the wall at the cave entrance, letting the poisonous flower vines guard the surroundings. I sat down against the wall, planning to let my eyes adjust to the dim environment first.

"Ah."

Suddenly, I felt something soft under my buttocks. When I touched it with my hand, a wet and slippery sensation came through. Shocked, I had a pretty good idea of what it was, but driven by that damned curiosity, I still turned around to look.

A bloody Rogue's head was staring at me, its lips already rotting and covered in maggots, as if grinning at me. My hand had touched a section of his intestines, which had been ripped open...

"Ugh..."

I don't know how many times I've vomited. I vomited out all the bile in my stomach and rushed out of the cave. I found a small river nearby and frantically washed my hands, which were covered in the putrid smell.

The river reflected my blurry shadow. This was the first time I saw myself in this dark world. I was a bit thin, not particularly handsome, with a pale face. My short, messy hair lightly covered my forehead, and my eyes still carried a hint of weakness and confusion from the other world.

Since coming to this dark world, I thought I had already adapted and was prepared for it. But when the moment came, I still felt so unwilling. What powerful force could compare to a comfortable life at home? What thrilling battle could match the peace and tranquility of that world, the enjoyment of high technology, the protection of a sound legal system, and the carefree days? Now, everything has turned into a land of corpses, a world of survival of the fittest, a life of constant fear and worry, a world shrouded in sorrow and despair. Why do I have to live in such a hellish place? Why do I have to endure all this pain? Why me?!

"It's okay, you'll get used to it after vomiting a few times."

After a long while, I laughed, talking to myself. Tears slowly streamed down my cheeks and dripped into the river, turning into a feeling of委屈 (grievance) and helplessness that drifted away with the current...

"Yes, that's right. In this world, I am alone. I am different. I have no kindred spirits, no true friends. I can only rely on myself. No one is worth trusting, and no one can be shown mercy..."

I admit, at that moment, I was crazy, I was wild, my thoughts had become twisted, and I had reached an extreme. But it's okay, as long as I can survive. I want to survive, and I want to live better than before...

When I stepped back into the evil cave, I no longer felt fear or cowardice. The piles of corpses and bones around me seemed like mere rocks. My eyes finally showed a glint of resilience. It didn't make me stronger or help me abandon my emotions, but it made me bury my feelings deeper, more hidden.

The wolf transformation had already worn off, and the 15 points of mana consumption prevented me from using it again. Fortunately, I had 95 points of health, so even if danger appeared, I wouldn't lose my life.

Ignoring the overwhelming stench of rotting flesh and bones, I sat quietly near the cave entrance for a while. Once my eyes adjusted to the light, I stood up and immediately moved forward, heading into the depths of the cave, which resembled the gaping mouth of a ferocious beast, without any hesitation.

The interior of the evil cave was vast and deep, with no light reaching inside. Fortunately, there were occasionally eternal light magic lamps on the walls, but the cave itself seemed to be filled with a damp, bone-chilling black mist. Even with the light from the magic lamps, my vision was severely restricted, reaching only a tenth of what it was outside. This was very dangerous, as I might think I was safe when the enemy was already upon me.

Fortunately, I had the poisonous flower vines guarding me. Their vision wasn't affected, or rather, they didn't have vision at all. They could detect enemies within a 10-meter range and attack them proactively. In theory, I shouldn't be at risk of being ambushed.

The cave was large and deep, like a maze, with winding paths and sometimes forks or even crossroads. If I hadn't brought a teleportation portal, I wouldn't have dared to enter.

The spaces inside varied in size, some narrow enough for only two people to walk side by side, and others larger than a football field. Ninety percent of the time, a large monster clan would inhabit these spaces.

I generally chose the narrower paths, as they couldn't accommodate large groups of monsters. I couldn't tell which direction I was going, but as long as I could keep moving forward, I would continue. If there was a fork, I would choose the smaller path.

My judgment seemed accurate. Along the way, I encountered many Fallen and Corpses, usually in small groups. With the poisonous flower vines, they were just pieces of meat to me.

With my current strength and the poisonous flower vines, I could handle two squads of Fallen without transforming into a wolf. If I transformed, I could handle twice that number.

Of course, most of the credit goes to the poisonous flower vines. They could usually take out a Fallen in one bite. The key was how long I could hold out against the Fallen's attacks. These Fallen weren't stupid; when they saw their comrades being attacked by the poisonous flower vines, they knew I was the main target and would all rush at me, except for the ones entangled by the vines.

If these monsters were a bit dumber and some attacked the poisonous flower vines, I would have an easier time winning. I wasn't worried about the poisonous flower vines; they recovered quickly, and even if they were severely injured, they could be back to full strength after an hour of rest. Besides, if they accidentally died, I could just summon them again.

As for the Corpses, to be honest, I wasn't afraid of them no matter how many there were. Their movements were too slow. Even if a dozen gathered, I could stand back and command the poisonous flower vines to attack. By the time they reached me, they would be mostly dead. The poisonous flower vines would take some damage, but with 137 health points, they could survive without dying.

I really started to like these clumsy Corpses. The terrifying corpses didn't seem as disgusting anymore. Each one gave 10 experience points, twice as much as Fallen and Hardened Rats. With my bug amulet, that was 40 experience points. Their drop rate, whether it was as Lar said or because of my bug amulet, or both, was particularly high. On average, two Corpses would drop some gold or silver coins, and ten would drop a potion. However, the equipment I needed still hadn't appeared. I was still naked at level 3.

Suddenly, the light ahead dimmed, and several blurry, almost indistinguishable shadows stretched out. From the shape of the shadows, based on my previous experience, I knew there were Fallen ahead, and not many.

Compared to the increasingly adorable Corpses, I disliked these Fallen more after entering the cave. Unlike the Corpses, they were very agile. When my poisonous flower vines attacked one, the other Fallen, being very cunning, knew I was the owner of the vines and would abandon their struggling comrade to swarm and attack me. The poisonous flower vines, though powerful, could only hold one at a time. This situation meant I couldn't provoke large groups of Fallen like I did with the Corpses.

Feeling my way along the damp wall, I slowly moved forward and looked at the dim light. My eyes narrowed, and my breathing became erratic.

It was an Elite Fallen Mage and six small Fallen.