Chapter 20: Paying a Visit
Through the footage relayed by Bubu Wang, Su Xiao saw the full view of the Rain Throat Tribe. The tribe had about two hundred members, but strangely, all of them were young and strong males.
The Rain Throat Tribe’s shaman priest was very powerful, proficient in using Emerald Poison. In a one-on-one fight, even Gask from Death Paradise would be no match for this shaman priest.
Bubu had confirmed that the Illusionist and others had entered this underground space and were discussing something with the shaman priest, and Mu Xiao was also there.
Such a good opportunity was not to be missed. Su Xiao immediately took Amu and headed toward the water source area.
“I can run fast enough, no need to carry me, woo~”
Xibeier, being slower, was slung over Amu’s shoulder. She was needed for this battle.
Su Xiao moved swiftly, encountering two contractor teams along the way. These survivors had become fully active, exploring this world to gain more benefits.
In less than an hour, Su Xiao traveled from the Tiger Bee Zone to the Water Source Zone and arrived near the hidden cave.
“Boss, over here.”
Baha poked his head out from a bush, and Bubu Wang also popped his head out from the same bush. From a distance, the scene looked a bit comical.
“What shape is that passage?”
“Z-shaped. The Rain Throat Tribe is skilled with poison and has defenses against it.”
Based on Baha and Bubu Wang’s reconnaissance, the Rain Throat Tribe lived underground year-round. Due to their unique eye structure, they hated sunlight. Even when hunting, they only went out at night. In the dark, they could see everything clearly, but during the day, if the light was too strong, they might suffer from blindness.
This underground space was quite large, with two passages. Each passage was guarded by over a dozen Rain Throat Tribe members. Moreover, the tribe had a natural immunity to poison. If an enemy broke into the underground space, they would release poisonous smoke and fight within it.
This was all intelligence gathered by Bubu Wang through observation. Whether it was accurate remained to be tested, but when Su Xiao was at the first rank, Bubu Wang had been fighting alongside him. Now at the seventh rank, Bubu Wang was a professional in reconnaissance.
Both exits had to be blocked. Su Xiao sent Amu and Baha to the east exit while he stayed at the west exit. These two exits faced each other, and the area between them underground was where the Rain Throat Tribe lived.
Su Xiao hadn’t even known about the Rain Throat Tribe’s existence, but they had revealed themselves by shooting a cold arrow at Amu. Not only that, after killing the Twin Apes, the tribe had appeared again to ambush Su Xiao.
Leaving aside other matters, the tribe’s ambush skills were indeed formidable. So Su Xiao decided to deal with them first. If the Illusionist and the Rain Throat Tribe’s shaman priest reached a cooperation, the tribe might also act during tomorrow’s battle for the Life Dragon Essence, which would be troublesome.
Bubu Wang led the way, and Su Xiao’s every step was silent until he reached a hidden cave entrance among broadleaf plants.
On Su Xiao’s side, he had Bubu Wang and Xibeier with him. On the other side, Amu and Baha were responsible for blocking the other underground passage. With Amu’s ice, holding that side for a while wouldn’t be difficult.
A bird call came from a lookout tree. A blue flash streaked by, and the bird call abruptly stopped. This bird call had a regular pattern, trained by the Rain Throat Tribe for alert purposes.
In the waist-high grass, Xibeier clasped her hands together, and a light green formation appeared behind her. Plant Apostle: Wobol was summoned, increasing friendly targets’ true strength attribute by 3 points and true agility by 3 points, while also continuously restoring health over time.
“Summoning me for what?”
A winged bird resembling a shoebill stork appeared, only palm-sized, with light green particles floating around it.
“Wobol, go protect my ally.”
Xibeier pointed forward, indicating Su Xiao.
“Oh? An Elemental Guardian! How did he end up with someone like you? Did you use your looks to latch onto a big shot? That doesn’t seem like your style, hahaha.”
“Sh-shut up, you familiar!”
Xibeier was so embarrassed she wanted to cover her face. Plant Apostle: Wobol was the familiar she least wanted to summon, bar none.
“Honor is my life. I’ll help you this once.”
Plant Apostle: Wobol flew behind Su Xiao. Su Xiao could feel a plant-based energy clinging to his skin, temporarily enhancing his physical abilities.
Su Xiao suppressed his aura and stepped forward, pushing aside the intertwined broadleaf plants. A slanted, downward cave entrance appeared. The scent wafting from it, when inhaled, left a faint bitter taste in the mouth.
Entering the cave, Su Xiao put on a gas mask covering the lower half of his face. In the darkness ahead, faint green light flickered on and off.
Walking slowly for a few meters, a turn appeared ahead. Su Xiao raised his left arm, and the Banishment on his sleeve flattened out like a small mirror, reflecting the scene beyond the turn.
Beyond the turn, the cave walls were lined with wooden planks to prevent collapse. A stone basin the size of a washbasin was embedded in the wall, burning with a ghostly green flame.
Five Rain Throat Tribe members, covered in graffiti-like markings and with dark skin, were inside the cave. Some were dozing off, others stared blankly ahead. Guarding the exit was boring.
Su Xiao stepped out from behind the turn and strode forward.
“Dudu yasa.”
Su Xiao spoke. The five Rain Throat Tribe members all turned their gazes toward him. As they raised their weapons, they were momentarily confused by his words, because before this, an outsider had joined the Rain Throat Tribe. As for what Su Xiao said, he made it up on the spot—it had no real meaning.
Zheng~
Su Xiao drew his blade and charged forward, slashing at a Rain Throat member who was about to shout.
With a swish, Dragon-Slaying Flash trailed a line of blood. After one slash, Su Xiao sheathed his longsword, assuming a drawing stance for a brief charge.
‘Blade Path Sword: Absolute Nether.’
Three dark purple-black slashes swept through gracefully. Su Xiao continued forward. The Rain Throat Tribe members were skilled in poison and stealth, but their bodies weren’t particularly tough.
Su Xiao walked past the several Rain Throat members. The next moment, blood sprayed behind him, and all five fell almost simultaneously.
“Catch.”
Su Xiao tossed an activated Apollo behind him. Xibeier, following closely, fumbled to catch it.
“This explosive... how long until it detonates?”
“25 seconds.”
“Eep!”
Xibeier was so startled she nearly threw the Apollo back to Su Xiao. This time, Su Xiao wasn’t using the third-modified [Blazing Sun’s Wrath: Apollo] but a second-modified Apollo.
The Rain Throat Tribe wasn’t known for survivability, so using [Blazing Sun’s Wrath: Apollo] would be wasteful. As for the contractors in the underground space, they had many survival methods and could likely avoid the explosion of one Apollo.
With a grim little face, Xibeier clutched four Apollos in both hands and hurriedly followed. She had no idea yet how powerful the explosives in her hands were.
A wave swept through, sealing the space. It was Baha’s Demon Hawk Domain. After several potential activations, Baha had grown a lot. His ultimate ability, Demon Hawk Domain, could now seal seventh-rank spatial abilities, lasting for 10 minutes.