"Young friend Arkz, the water of purity is indeed very important to Liyue."
"If you have any requests, please do not hesitate to ask."
"If I can manage it, I will certainly not refuse."
Zhongli looked at Arkz solemnly, his expression full of sincerity. A promise made by Rex Lapis, the God of Contracts, naturally carried immense weight.
Previously, Zhongli had only agreed to protect Arkz within the Underground Mine because he had reached a deal with the "System" behind Arkz.
However, now, Zhongli had acknowledged Arkz as a true young friend.
Xiao also nodded solemnly from the side, saying: "Within Liyue's borders, for any difficulty, Xiao will answer the call."
Arkz smiled, "I actually do have something I need your help with?"
Zhongli gestured for them to sit, poured them both a cup of tea, and then said: "Please, tell us while enjoying the tea."
Unlike before, the tea in the teapot had been replaced with the water of purity that Arkz brought.
Although the water of purity was colorless and tasteless, indistinguishable from plain boiled water, its miraculous effects had made both Zhongli and Xiao fall in love with it.
At this moment, chatting and sipping the tea, their faces were filled with enjoyment.
Arkz did not choose to beat around the bush; instead, he spoke plainly.
"I want to explore this Underground Mine, clear out the monsters within it, and then develop the minerals here."
"After all, there are some hidden monsters in the Underground Mine that are somewhat tricky for me. I don't want to be sneak-attacked from behind while I'm digging."
"So, I wanted to ask the two of you to accompany me on a trip into the Underground Mine."
*Clink!*
Zhongli set down his teacup and asked, "When shall we depart?"
Arkz curled his lips and looked at Xiao, who was already taking out his crescent pike to wipe it down, and said:
"Right now!"
...
...
Inside the Underground Mine, the ruler of the first one hundred floors, the Slime Queen, who was respected and feared by numerous monsters, was troubled.
"Sigh!"
"Fake! All fake!"
"The lying hero actually sent clones to explore. This is too despicable!!!"
"Shouldn't the hero charge directly into the monster's lair and fight the Demon King honorably?!"
"Why is my hero not playing by the rules?!"
As the Slime Queen sat on her throne sighing deeply, a blue bat flew in.
"Reporting, Your Majesty!!!"
"The hero has come again! This time he brought two subordinates!"
The Slime Queen roared, "Call me Her Majesty the Queen!!!"
"Forget it, it's definitely a clone again this time. Go, have A'Long deal with that fellow."
Blue Bat: "But Her Majesty the Queen, that A'Long has always been insubordinate to Your Majesty. I'm afraid he won't..."
The Slime Queen flipped over, her pink body undulating slightly, languidly saying:
"Just tell him that group of people is very strong, and he will naturally go."
"That muscle-headed fool. I truly don't know why Lord'System' chose him as a Demon King's cadre."
Blue Bat: "Yes, Her Majesty the Queen."
After receiving the Slime Queen's order, the blue bat immediately flew towards the direction of the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap, dutifully relaying the intelligence.
On the other side, Arkz and Xiao were clearing the path together. The monsters along the way were no match for them and were easily defeated. Zhongli walked behind the two at a leisurely pace.
By now, the three of them had fought their way to the seventieth floor of the Underground Mine.
The Guardian BOSS of the ninety-ninth floor, the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap, was grasping the blue bat. Before its massive claws, the blue bat looked as small and harmless as a plush toy.
"Lord A'Long, Her Majesty the Queen orders you to go deal with those heroes."
The Dark Ancient Geo Vishap spat sparks from its nostrils. It roared at the blue bat, its huge voice audible even to the monsters on the ninety-eighth floor.
Seeing the blue bat trembling in fear on its claw, the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap showed a satisfied smile and said: "Say that again!"
"What does that fellow want me to do?!!!"
The blue bat was close to tears. It was just a messenger; what did danger have to do with it?
But looking at the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap's gaping maw, the blue bat imagined that if it angered the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap further, it would definitely be torn to shreds and thrown into its mouth to be chewed.
So, the blue bat stammered, "The Queen says that group of people is very strong."
"Lord A'Long, spare my life!!!"
"I absolutely did not mean to offend Lord A'Long!!!"
Just as the blue bat closed its eyes awaiting death, another green bat flew in.
"Report, Lord A'Long, the Dark Mage on the eighty-first floor has been killed by the hero!"
The Dark Ancient Geo Vishap immediately became interested. Someone capable of defeating the fellow on the eighty-first floor must have some strength. It seemed the Queen hadn't lied to it this time.
So, the Dark Ancient Geo Vishap tossed the blue bat aside, then shouted at the green bat in the air: "Lead the way!"
Green Bat: "Yes, Lord A'Long!"
The green bat looked at its miserable companion and dared not resist A'Long. It quickly flew ahead to clear the path for A'Long.
A moment later, the green bat, having narrowly escaped death, flew up, cautiously looked around, and immediately flew towards the direction of the 100th floor.
"Her Majesty the Queen, something terrible has happened!!!"
"Call me Demon King Your Majesty!!!"
Meanwhile, Arkz and Xiao were sorting through their spoils of war.
The strength of the monsters in the Underground Mine continuously increased with the floor number. The Guardian BOSSes before the eightieth floor could all be handled by Arkz alone, but after the eightieth floor, the pressure began to rise.
These BOSSes in the levels after the eightieth floor each possessed unique ultimate skills that put significant pressure on Arkz.
Take the Guardian BOSS of the eighty-first floor, the Dark Archmage, as an example. It looked like an ordinary Abyss Mage but could wield the Elemental Power of Water, Ice, and Fire simultaneously. It could trigger Elemental Reactions all by itself, and Arkz almost fell to the Dark Archmage due to a rookie mistake.
Continuous Frozen reactions were triggered, followed by a fully charged, max-power Great Fire Dragon that took three minutes to prepare. This combo was far more vicious than the monsters outside.
Perhaps due to the special environment within the Underground Mine, most monsters here were irritable. Furthermore, because the area was saturated with Elemental Power, these monsters recovered quickly after being injured, not needing to worry about injuries at all.
Therefore, when these monsters fought for the BOSS position on each floor, they fought desperately. Their movesets were all developed with the philosophy of fighting to the death unless the opponent was already dead.
Arkz couldn't help but sigh, thankful that he had brought Zhongli and Xiao along.
Otherwise, he really might have capsized in the gutter.
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