Chapter 2339 - Go Ahead if You Can

The cave was dimly lit. After everyone in the team entered it, a magic barrier appeared and sealed off its mouth. Now, players would no longer be able to enter or exit the cave unless they found the mechanism to remove the barrier.

Inside this dim environment, even Tier 2 experts couldn't see more than 30 yards away—a considerably disadvantageous situation to current players.

A distance of 30 yards might seem very far, but Level 90-plus Lord ranked monsters could cross it in two seconds, at most, getting within melee range. If a group of Lords suddenly charged forward, even Tier 2 experts would take damage.

"Our quest begins now. Everyone, stay cautious. There are many diverging paths here, so stick close to each other," White Autumn commanded. "Lin Ya, you scout ahead. Blue, focus on protecting Ye Feng. The monsters here are far stronger than the monsters found outside. Ye Feng, you pay attention as well. Players that are not a Sea God's Kin will be heavily restricted here. You must not try to solo the monsters here at all."

In response to White Autumn's warning, Shi Feng simply replied with a silent nod.

The suppression this ruin subjected players to was indeed powerful. The instant the magic barrier sealed off the cave, the inside of the cave felt as if it had transformed into a completely different world. Shi Feng could also feel the suppression on him intensifying.

Now, although the suppression of his Basic Attributes remained the same, his physique was only 60% of his original. Moreover, the sensitivity of his five senses had decreased sharply. It was no wonder Lin Ya and White Autumn were constantly reminding him to be careful.

Under such a powerful suppression, even Tier 2 experts would not be able to fight a Lord ranked monster of the same level. If they came across a group of Lords, their fates would basically be sealed. Even Domain Realm experts would not fare much better in this scenario. After all, the greatest factor differentiating ordinary experts and Domain Realm experts was their control over their five senses. A suppression of the five senses would affect Domain Realm experts much more than it would affect ordinary experts.

However, the ruin's suppression had minimal effect on White Autumn and the others, who were Sea God's Kin.

On the trek into the cave, Lin Ya, who was an Assassin, was fully responsible for scouting out the path ahead. The two Sea God's Direct Kin of the team handled clearing out the monsters in the way. Although the suppression on Direct Kin was negligible, the monsters inside the cave were still extraordinarily powerful.

[Naga Siren] (Bloodline Creature, Great Lord) Level 98

HP 63,000,000/63,000,000

Nagas possessing special Bloodlines filled the cave. Occasionally, the Nagas would suddenly appear from a branch cave and execute a hit-and-run attack on the team or launch a long-range ambush using crossbows. Every one of these Nagas was like a well-trained, expert assassin. They also possessed combat standards reaching the Trial Tower's fifth floor.

To White Autumn and the others, however, these Nagas posed very little threat. After all, every one of them possessed Basic Attributes rivaling those of a Great Lord of the same level. As for the Silent Rain and Uneducated Bull, the two Direct Kin of the team, their Basic Attributes were even higher. Before the dozen or so ambushing Nagas could get close to the team, they were already sent flying by a bunch of powerful attacks.

"We cannot waste Stamina here! Accelerate our advance!" White Autumn ordered as he shoved back a Naga with his shield.

The Nagas inside the cave were endless. No matter how many Nagas the players killed, more would just take the place of the fallen. If they did not speed up their progress, they would eventually die from exhaustion, even if they were more powerful.

At White Autumn's words, everyone immediately hastened their footsteps. For the next three hours or so, the team kept pushing through swarms of Nagas. However, as they moved deeper into the cave system, not only did the terrain become increasingly complex, but the number of Nagas that attacked them each time also multiplied.

Initially, each group would have only a dozen or so Nagas. Eventually, that number increased to at least 20. In addition, the Nagas' coordination with each other constantly improved. Even though White Autumn and the others possessed very high combat standards, they still could not help but feel more and more pressured.

Fortunately, this was not White Autumn and the others' first time visiting this place, so they were very familiar with the cave system's paths. Eventually, after fighting for another two hours or so, the team arrived at an extremely expansive cavern that housed a large temple.

The instant everyone entered this underground cavern, a magic barrier appeared and sealed off the tunnel behind them, preventing the Nagas from chasing them any further.

"How close! Sure enough, it's much tougher now that we're bringing one more person!" Silent Rain said. Glancing at White Autumn, he continued, "White, we never agreed to bring an additional person before. You have to increase our remuneration once we get back!"

"Rain, you'd best not go overboard. The Vice Guild Leader already offered you a high remuneration. Moreover, our people were the ones responsible for protecting Ye Feng. You were only responsible for opening up the path," Lin Ya countered, frowning. She felt very dissatisfied with Silent Rain's demand.

If not for this ruin being special, they wouldn't have allowed non-Guild members to participate in this quest at all.

"Fine, then! You guys tank the monsters later on! I'll stay in the rear! If that's the case, I won't have any objections!" Silent Rain sneered as he pointed at the two golem monsters standing guard before the temple.

[Rock Giant] (Elemental Creature, Grand Lord)

Level 101

HP 375,000,000/375,000,000

"You..." Lin Ya's complexion turned ashen at Silent Rain's words.

Everyone present was fully aware of how powerful Level 100-plus monsters were. This was especially true for the two Rock Giants before them.

Through her previous experience fighting against these two Rock Giants, Lin Ya knew that they were not monsters that current players could hope to go up against, even while in an unsuppressed state. Meanwhile, players were prohibited from using magic tools and Berserk Skills while inside this ruin. In such a situation, even White Autumn, who was a Guardian Knight, could only hold his ground against one of these Rock Giants for a very short period. Hence, they had to rely on Silent Rain and Uneducated Bull, who were Direct Kin, to tank and distract the Rock Giants while the others opened the temple's doors.

"How much do you want?" White Autumn asked. From his calm reaction, he had long since expected this situation to occur.

"Not much. Just give the two of us one extra Ocean Boundary Stone each. You should know that as Direct Kin, we burn through Ocean Boundary Stones much more quickly than you people. Moreover, unlike independent players like us, you people from Giant's Heart are filthy rich," Silent Rain replied, smiling.

However, just as White Autumn was about to agree to Silent Rain's demands, Shi Feng suddenly spoke up in the team chat.

"Vice Guild Leader White, you'll pay two Ocean Barrier Stones to whoever can tank those two monsters?" Shi Feng asked.

Everyone on the team turned involuntarily to look at him in surprise.

Why is this guy adding fuel to the fire? Lin Ya's mood soured greatly when she heard Shi Feng's question. Giant's Heart had expended a lot of effort just to protect Shi Feng, yet he was actually helping Silent Rain stir up trouble.

In this situation, White Autumn also could not help eyeing Shi Feng strangely, wondering what Shi Feng was up to.

"If you can safely stop these two monsters for 30 seconds, I'll gladly give you two more Ocean Barrier Stones," White Autumn said. He did not particularly mind making this additional transaction. Instead, he was more curious about what Shi Feng was planning to do.

"What? Kid, you want to give it a try as well?" Silent Rain laughed loudly at this development. "Sure! Go ahead if you can! I won't object. As long as you can tank those two monsters, I'll also give you the remuneration White promised me!"

Even a Sea God's Direct Kin like him still had a very tough time tanking one Rock Giant. The slightest mistake would mean his life. On the other hand, Shi Feng wasn't even a Sea God's Kin. It would be a miracle if he could tank one of the Rock Giants, let alone two.

"If that's the case, I'll give it a try," Shi Feng said before slowly approaching the two Rock Giants.

The instant Shi Feng got within 100 yards of the two Rock Giants, the latter's eyes suddenly released a crimson glow. Both Grand Lords then started pacing toward the Swordsman, their bodies releasing a frightening pressure that made everyone tense up.