Chapter 70: Grinding Monsters in the Tuo River

The Fluorescence Microscopy Technique increased his vision range by one hundred meters. Ye Rong viewed it as an utterly useless and disappointing support spell.

After practicing the Qingcheng Qi Refining Method, Ye Rong’s eyesight was superb. He could see everything clearly within three to four hundred meters. But at the bottom of the Tuo River, where sunlight didn’t reach and the muddy water clouded his vision, he could only see up to several dozen meters away at most.

Once the Fluorescence Microscopy Technique was activated, however, his vision extended, expanding by a full one hundred meters without the slightest bit of discount.

Ye Rong even saw, to their left about a hundred meters away, an old turtle the size of a house swimming slowly. Its eyes, like two lanterns, glowed with a murky yellow, pearlescent light.

“With the Fluorescence Microscopy Technique, if the Water Mansion is truly found, I’ll definitely be the first to spot it.”

“Boss Kurong, is that the Fluorescence Microscopy Technique you’re using?”

Changkong Wuhen silently moved to Ye Rong’s side. Instead of speaking aloud, he sent a private message.

Ye Rong had been keeping his back to the group all this time. Only Changkong Wuhen, who was paying him extra attention, noticed the brief flash of yellow light in his eyes.

“That’s right,” Ye Rong nodded, not denying it. Changkong Wuhen was, after all, a Closed Beta player. Even though he hadn’t had any special opportunities and was quite average, he had still mastered the Qingcheng Qi Refining Method to the 20th level. How could he not know about the fifth-level derived spell?

Changkong Wuhen shifted his position slightly, getting closer to Ye Rong.

“A top player like Yijian Kurong remains hidden within the group, plus he has the Fluorescence Microscopy Technique as support. If the Water Mansion is found, he absolutely has the greatest chance to enter first. If I turn and support him, I might just snatch a piece of the pie out of that hypocrite Ethereal Green Robe’s mouth.”

Changkong Wuhen mentally calculated the strengths of both sides, mistakenly believing Ye Rong had prepared in advance to scheme for this Water Mansion.

“Let’s find a few isolated monsters to test their strength. Just avoiding them won’t lead to any real progress.”

The typically quiet Pudu Taoist suddenly spoke up, making a suggestion.

Indeed, mindlessly avoiding them wouldn’t work in the Tuo River; monsters were everywhere. If they didn’t even figure out the strength of the aquatic monsters, this trip would be completely wasted, yielding nothing at all.

Finding a lone monster in the Tuo River was no easy task, especially since the six of them needed to carefully hide their presence, fearing they might disturb nearby fish schools. If a swarm attacked, a total party wipe would be inevitable.

“Slash!”

With a light shout, six streaks of sword light simultaneously fell onto the back of a Black Carp, making its blood splash wildly. As it reacted and spat a ball of green elixir qi in an attempt to block, another round of sword lights surged forward, instantly slicing it into several pieces.

Among the six returning sword lights, one icy, chilling light abruptly pressed downward. It wrapped around a small, bean-sized object before a golden sword light could reach it, carrying the item back to Ye Rong.

The one wielding two flying swords, sending out a golden light last, was naturally Ethereal Green Robe. His reflexes were already extremely fast. He attacked with one sword and instantly switched to another sword to retrieve the dropped item.

But no matter how fast his actions, they were still a step slower than Ye Rong directly controlling the Taixuan Ice Soul Sword. The item landed in Ye Rong’s hand.

“Players using the System Sword Moves trying to compare with me in the speed and flexibility of sword light control? How laughable!”

Ye Rong secretly mocked inside. Other than him, the other five all used standard System Sword Moves. Everything followed pre-set paths. After an attack, they couldn’t make their sword lights bend flexibly to casually pick up dropped gear like that could.

Ignoring the looks of surprise, envy, and resentment from others, Ye Rong took out the seized “little yellow bean” for a look. It wasn’t equipment—

Black Carp Inner Elixir (Incomplete State): After consumption, permanently increases Qi Value by 2 points.

Huh, not bad for a small trinket. Better than nothing.

Ye Rong popped the Black Carp’s Inner Elixir into his mouth and swallowed it like a candy bean. It tasted tart and sour.

“Why don’t we grind monsters and level in the Tuo River together? Although the efficiency might be slightly slower, it will at least help us understand the situation in this water area. Plus, aquatic monsters have a high chance of dropping Water-repelling Pearls. Getting one would make traveling in aquatic regions much easier for everyone later.”

Ethereal Green Robe’s gaze towards Ye Rong carried a trace of something odd, swiftly withdrawn. He paused slightly before speaking.

Judging by the performance of the level 30 Black Carp, the strength of Aquatic Demonic Creatures wasn’t stronger than land monsters of the same level; in fact, they seemed a bit weaker. But players were hampered in the water, and aquatic creatures often gathered in groups, making them tough to handle.

“I have no objections. Leveling grinding is leveling grinding anywhere; a slight difference in experience gain doesn’t matter.”

Shinai Zuigao was the first to agree. Though he followed the Qingcheng lineage, he wasn’t actually enrolled in the Qingcheng Sect walls, so naturally, he had no worries about the Initiation Task.

Lingding Yang looked hesitant. Was it worth spending so much time in the Dujiangyan Waters for such a vague hope of a Water Mansion? He couldn’t decide immediately. After pondering for a long while, he reluctantly nodded.

“I can.”

“Same here!”

Seeing Ye Rong voice his agreement, Changkong Wuhen quickly followed suit, keeping in step.

“Approved!”

Pudu Taoist’s response was simpler and clearer, just a single crisp word.

“Good. Since that’s the case, we must set up an equipment distribution plan between us to avoid disputes that would embarrass everyone later. ”

Hmph. Such righteous talk! It’s only because he realized the advantage of his dual swords couldn’t beat me in snatching items anymore that he came up with this scheme.

Ye Rong inwardly snorted coldly. So this was Ethereal Green Robe’s character: greedy for small gains, forgetting righteousness. He had to be careful not to get too close to this person.

If things continued like before, Ye Rong would probably snag 90% of the items dropped from the monsters the six of them killed. Taking turns to collect drops made sense. It wasn’t like killing a boss that required intricate, detailed rules.

The six ascended toward the surface of the Tuo River, specifically targeting lone Aquatic Demonic Creatures or ones traveling in small groups of two or three.

Then, they found this method too slow. They gradually spread out instead, splitting into three small groups to hunt Aquatic Demonic Creatures separately.

Grouped as Ye Rong with Changkong Wuhen, Ethereal Green Robe with Shinai Zuigao, and Pudu Taoist with Lingding Yang – as long as the three pairs were cautious, there wasn’t much danger. When the Water-repelling Barrier’s duration ended, they’d find Shinai Zuigao to renew it on everyone.

After the barrier was applied numerous times, and Shinai Zuigao’s mysterious water orb had yet to run out of uses, Ye Rong frowned slightly. That orb magic treasure might not be something as simple as a Water-repelling Pearl; it probably had other capabilities.

Late that night, the first Water-repelling Pearl finally dropped from an Black Sea Serpent monster – the most common, ordinary type, whose water-repelling effect only worked for the wearer. According to the distribution order, it was Pudu Taoist’s turn. He equipped it immediately. Upon entering the water, a layer of airflow pushed the river water aside, an effect basically identical to the barrier.