After sending the message, Cloud's Nemesis seemed to feel her request was a bit excessive, so she added a follow-up.
【Cloud's Nemesis】: However, this watermelon seedling is a bit wilted. If you feel it’s not worth that price, a single serving of a meal is also fine.
She swallowed hard, nervously clutching the hem of her shirt. Upon closer inspection, she realized her fingers were already slick with a thin layer of cold sweat.
This request...
Cheng Shuili narrowed her eyes. It was indeed a bit pricey.
If it were normal times, a meal for two would be a fair trade, but this was a famine. The prices for food had been driven through the roof.
Such regular meals were expensive before, let alone now.
Only a single serving of food...
That was manageable.
Cheng Shuili hesitated for a moment, but ultimately agreed to the revised request.
After all, she was buying the meals at a normal price plus a discount, and the meat was obtained entirely for free—either caught by Liang Shanbo or found by a few people in supply crates.
No matter how you looked at it, she was making a profit.
Having agreed on a meal for the evening, Cheng Shuili promptly initiated the trade. The watermelon seedling mentioned by Cloud's Nemesis was soon in her hands; it did indeed come with a pot and soil, and it was indeed on the verge of death.
Cheng Shuili browsed the regional channel again to ensure there were no other plants available, then glanced back at the watermelon seedling. It looked even more wilted than before and was truly on the brink of dying.
Cheng Shuili checked the time. It was two in the afternoon—the perfect time to start a dungeon.
She raised her hand to grip the dungeon opening card. After mentally apologizing to the players who might be pulled into the dungeon with her, she chose to use it.
The gold-leafed surface of the card suddenly rippled with blue light. Cheng Shuili reflexively tried to let go, only to find the card wrapping around her fingers like molten metal.
【Dungeon access permission detected】
【Searching for available dungeons...】
A translucent system panel unfolded in front of her like a fan, and the densely packed names of dungeons swam across it like a school of startled fish.
Each title shimmered with a faint light of a different color. Beneath the crimson 《Glutton's Feast》, oily ripples floated, while virtual snowflakes drifted around the silvery 《Snowfield Outpost》.
"There are so many options..."
The flowing light spots reflected in Cheng Shuili’s slightly widened pupils. The quality of these dungeons looked incredibly high. By comparison...
Could the things they had been participating in really be called dungeons?
The dungeon opening card interface was exquisitely designed. When Cheng Shuili’s gaze rested on a title, its corresponding description would even suddenly expand:
【Seven-Day Cicada Song】: Survival until the cicadas stop chirping constitutes victory.
【Doll Theater】: Those who can still control their own bodies after the performance ends win.
...
Cheng Shuili searched through the long list of dungeons for a long time before finally finding 《Scorched Earth》 in a corner, which Glory had mentioned before.
The 《The Mist》, 《The Hunt》, and 《Lost Door》 she had participated in before were all here.
She looked at the exquisite visuals and brief, cryptic descriptions of the other dungeons, then back at the ones that only had two-character titles.
Cheng Shuili suddenly frowned deeply. Surely their previous dungeons couldn't all still be novice-level? This perfunctory and simple text felt completely out of place compared to the intricately crafted dungeons above!
Despite her thoughts, Cheng Shuili’s index finger hovered over 《Scorched Earth》. After a moment of hesitation, she clicked it without looking back.
The moment Cheng Shuili’s fingertip touched the characters for 《Scorched Earth》, the entire system panel began to tremble violently. The brilliant dungeon titles scattered like insects fleeing a fire, leaving only the line she had selected to twist and expand on the virtual panel.
【Dungeon selected!】
【Dungeon Details: Scorched Earth】
【Description: You have stepped into a scorched wasteland. The sky is obscured by heavy ash, and the earth is cracked, as if licked clean by flames. Withered giant insects roam here. If you kill them, foul-smelling slime will seep into the ground, gradually congealing into fertile black granules. When an individual consumes too many remains of its own kind, it mutates into a “Brood Mother,” spewing corrosive spores and turning the entire area into a bed for digesting living creatures... Do you hear the rustling squirming from beneath the ground?】
【The dungeon will open in five minutes. Current participants: 1/1!】
A solo dungeon!
Cheng Shuili immediately organized the supplies in her Abyss Ring, took out all her energy stones to ensure the space was ready, and then took a moment to inform Su Rui about the solo dungeon.
Su Rui nodded without a change in expression.
In truth, she was somewhat shocked that such a thing as a solo dungeon existed, but considering it was Cheng Shuili, she didn't find it strange at all.
After the countdown hit zero, Cheng Shuili’s field of vision suddenly twisted, as if grabbed by an invisible hand and thrown into an unknown realm.
When she opened her eyes again, she was standing on a scorched wasteland.
The sky was veiled by heavy ash, displaying a sickly dark red, like a burned wound.
The earth was cracked, and in the dried-up gullies, some kind of viscous black liquid could be seen slowly squirming, emitting a pungent odor of rot mixed with sulfur.
"So this is 《Scorched Earth》?"
Cheng Shuili whispered to herself, her fingers subconsciously stroking the long blade at her waist.
The system prompt appeared at the right moment:
【Dungeon Objective】
【1. This dungeon is point-based: 20 points for normal monsters, 80 points for special monsters! Current difficulty is Hell-level! 1000 points are required to clear!】
【2. Since only Hell-level dungeons are available to be opened, this dungeon will last for four hours. After four hours, the dungeon will automatically close!】
【3. Once the point requirement is met, the player may choose whether to end the dungeon!】
【Finally... survive!!】
This dungeon was somewhat similar to 《The Hunt》.
To clear it with 1000 points meant Cheng Shuili had to kill 50 normal monsters within four hours.
She gasped. The system hadn't specified the penalty for failure, but it certainly wouldn't be light! Especially since this was one the player had manually initiated—looking for trouble on her own—there was no way the system would let her off easily.
Cheng Shuili shook her head and held her long blade upright. Next up was finding monsters.
Rustle, rustle.
The ground not far away rose slightly, as if something was squirming beneath the soil.
Cheng Shuili’s eyes sharpened. Talk about being right on cue!
If these were the monsters, this dungeon would be much better than 《The Hunt》.
She lightened her footsteps and approached slowly.
With a loud "Pop!" in the next second, a monster resembling a withered giant insect burst out from the ground. Its entire body was covered in honeycomb-like armor, and its mouthparts squirmed, dripping with viscous black liquid. It emitted a foul stench from its entire body.
The sight was truly disgusting, and combined with the pervasive odor, Cheng Shuili couldn't help but dry-heave.
She didn't rush to attack, instead silently chanting in her heart: "Insight!"
Rate on N.U.
