Chapter 311: The Land of Mist and the Screaming Rabbits
"What the hell, we've been at this for so long, and we haven't even seen a single labyrinth creature."
Walking at the front of the group, Amayee looked around eagerly.
The empty cavern left her feeling quite disappointed.
She had thought that labyrinth monsters would be endless.
But after descending five floors in a row, they hadn't encountered any creatures at all.
"The upper-floor adventurers haven't dispersed yet, so all the labyrinth monsters have already been eliminated by those ahead of us. As we descend further, the paths to the lower floors branch out into countless routes, and adventurers naturally spread out. By the seventh floor, we should start encountering monsters," explained Bella.
Her voice reached Amayee's ears, as well as those of the teammates trailing behind.
"But we still can't let our guard down. A labyrinth monster could suddenly emerge from the walls at any moment."
"Crack!"
As if her words were prophetic, a section of the wall abruptly crumbled.
A fiery red labyrinth scorpion crawled out from the broken wall.
It was massive, roughly the size of a small car.
The appearance of the labyrinth scorpion caused the group's expressions to shift.
Bella didn't make a move but instead stopped in her tracks.
"It's a fire-attribute labyrinth scorpion. Attack with non-fire magic immediately!"
Several mages clad in robes rushed forward, brandishing their staffs as they began to chant spells.
Amid flashes of colorful magical light, ice arrows, stone spears, and wind blades shot toward the scorpion.
"Shhh!"
An ice arrow struck the labyrinth scorpion, piercing through its carapace.
Half of the arrow embedded itself into the creature's body.
The stone spear and wind blades followed quickly, dealing further damage.
The stone spear hit with a heavy thud, lodging deeply into the scorpion's body, while the wind blades tore open a massive wound.
After enduring three magical attacks, the labyrinth scorpion collapsed and turned to ash, leaving only a single blue magic crystal on the ground.
The labyrinth scorpion was merely a creature of the fifth floor, with limited strength. Against a team full of top-tier adventurers, it wasn't even an appetizer.
After dispatching the scorpion, the group continued forward.
In the following stretch, they encountered several more labyrinth scorpions, but all were newly spawned and easily dealt with.
---
"Boss, this is the boss chamber, where the floor's lord-level labyrinth monster resides."
Eventually, the team arrived at a large, open space.
The chamber was vast, roughly the size of three football fields. At the far end was an entrance to the next level, the only path downward.
"Bella, does every floor have a boss?"
Bella shook her head.
"Boss, every floor does have a boss, but not all of them guard access to the next level. Some floors have multiple paths leading downward, but on certain floors like this one, where there's only one route, a labyrinth boss almost always guards it."
"But it seems the boss here has already been defeated."
The chamber was completely empty.
Just then, noises erupted from behind.
A group of adventurers emerged from another entrance to the chamber.
"Looks like we're lucky; the boss has already been taken care of!"
"Let's move! It would suck to run into the boss right as it respawns."
"What are you afraid of? We're strong enough to take on the Bull Demon Lord."
"This is just the fifth floor; we shouldn't waste supplies here."
The adventurers noticed Li Meng's group of over a hundred but didn't pay them much attention. They merely maintained some vigilance as they passed by.
"Let's move too!" Li Meng decided.
Although he was curious about the Bull Demon Lord's strength, waiting around for it to respawn wasn't an option.
The group continued forward, following the others.
---
Before long, they reached the sixth floor, then the seventh, the eighth, and finally, the ninth.
"Boss, I can't see anything ahead."
The ninth floor was engulfed in a dense mist, with visibility limited to less than five meters.
"Help! Help me! Please, someone save me!"
A woman's cries for help echoed intermittently through the mist.
But the group ignored the calls.
Those cries came from the "Screaming Rabbits," a type of rabbit-like monster on the ninth floor that mimicked human speech to lure prey.
If one followed the sounds, they would find themselves surrounded by thousands of Screaming Rabbits. However, as long as the cries were ignored, the rabbits wouldn't attack, as they only fought within their designated traps.
"Boss, everyone's exhausted. Let's rest here on the ninth floor for the night," suggested Bella.
Li Meng surveyed the surroundings. Though the area seemed like an easy place to get lost, anyone who wandered off in such an environment had only themselves to blame.
"Alright, let's rest here," Li Meng agreed.
With his approval, Bella turned to the group.
"We'll camp here tonight. Don't wander off, don't stray from the team, and don't respond to cries from the mist."
Bella's voice echoed far into the mist.
Soon after, a similar voice mimicked her words from the distance, a clear mockery by the Screaming Rabbits.
The adventurers efficiently set up camp, unpacking their supplies and pitching tents. In no time, tents of various sizes dotted the mist.
Most were small, single-person tents. A few were slightly larger, intended for two.
After assigning night watch duties, Bella returned to Li Meng's side.
"Boss, why don't you... come to my tent tonight?" she asked, her cheeks flushed and her gaze flitting about nervously.
Although such activities were best avoided in a labyrinth, adventurers needed to conserve their energy for potential dangers. Still, she was a Sword King, and Li Meng was an even stronger warrior. If he wanted to, it should be fine.
Amayee glanced at Bella, her lips curving into a slight smirk. So, Bella and the boss really were involved. She must have been the woman in his tent last night. No wonder Bella's voice had seemed familiar—she'd been loud.
"Is camping here really safe?" Li Meng asked, his brows furrowed as he surveyed the misty surroundings.
"Don't worry, Boss. Only the Screaming Rabbit King actively attacks adventurers, and I've assigned people to keep watch. It'll be fine," Bella reassured him.
Hearing this, Li Meng stopped questioning her. With his strength, any unforeseen events could be handled easily. He just wanted to avoid unnecessary casualties.
"Boss, we're off to rest now!" Amayee called out before retreating into her tent.
Amay and Ame also turned to leave, heading toward their respective tents.