Chapter 28: Clearing the Sewers
Chapter 28: Clearing the Sewers
At Gu Xi's command, the three combat squads quickly entered the underground sewer through the well.
The sewer below the well was quite large, with no branching paths—just a kilometer-long underground passage wide enough for four or five people to walk side by side.
On both sides of the passage, there were sewage outlets the size of human heads, connecting all the buildings in the area.
As soon as Gu Xi descended into the sewer, he understood why the sewers became a part of the transformed structures of Aridowil City.
It turned out that this sewer system was one of those parts that could be replicated but couldn't be completely duplicated.
The layout of the sewer could be copied, but the accumulated filth inside couldn't be replicated.
Moreover, since Aridowil had been abandoned for so many years without inhabitants or any drainage, the sewer was surprisingly clean, with very little water residue.
Upon descending, the skeletal soldiers of Combat Squad 3 raised their shields and stood at the forefront, ready to fend off any possible threats.
Gu Xi glanced both ways; the well was located in the middle of the sewer, extending about 500 meters in each direction.
With his keen eyesight, Gu Xi could clearly see that the ends of the sewer were shrouded in a mysterious black mist, obscuring the view beyond.
This black mist was similar to the white mist they encountered upon entering Aridowil, a characteristic of this world.
Gu Xi didn't need to know the composition of the black mist; he just needed to understand that the areas shrouded by it were yet to be conquered.
However, this situation left Gu Xi puzzled about how to activate the well.
What did it mean to conquer the sewers of the first block?
The sewer appeared empty, unlike what he had seen from above through the ice.
Exchanging a glance with Luna, Gu Xi pointed forward.
"Advance, push to the black mist."
The skeletal soldiers of Combat Squad 3 quickly raised their shields and swords and moved forward.
Gu Xi led the remaining combat squads, cautiously guarding the surroundings.
They first advanced in one direction, intending to reach the end and examine the black mist. If there was no change, they would return and check the black mist on the other end.
However, Gu Xi's concern was unnecessary. As soon as the skeletal soldiers of Combat Squad 3 touched the black mist, a horde of rats emerged from it.
These rats varied in size, with the larger ones as big as sows and the smaller ones about the thickness of a normal person's arm.
Upon emerging, all the rats launched a charging attack, aiming to run through the sewer to the other end.
Without needing a command from Gu Xi, Luna reacted instantly, using Ice Touch to slow down the rats.
Combat Squad 3's skeletal soldiers raised their shields and intercepted the larger rats.
Meanwhile, the skeletal soldiers of Combat Squad 2 raised their spears, targeting the smaller rats.
Although the spears' close combat effectiveness was reduced, their strong attack power ensured that each stab was lethal for the small rats.
In a short time, hundreds of small rats were skewered into blood clumps by the skeletal soldiers' spears.
At this point, the larger rats had yet to break through the defensive line set by Combat Squad 3.
Gu Xi stayed at the back, not participating much, focusing instead on the constant stream of information and extracting the rats' souls.
[Summoned Skeleton Soldier kills Strange Rat (Level 0), you gain 0 experience points, the combat squad gains 0 experience points, and the summoned unit gains 1 experience point.]
[Summoned Skeleton Soldier kills Strange Rat (Level 1), you gain 1 experience point, the combat squad gains 1 experience point, and the summoned unit gains 3 experience points.]
[Summoned Skeleton Soldier kills Giant Strange Rat (Level 2), you gain 1 experience point, the combat squad gains 1 experience point, and the summoned unit gains 11 experience points.]
[…]
[You gain Strange Energy Bead (White) *3]
[You gain Strange Rat Meat (White) *2]
[Strange Rat Meat (White): Rat meat imbued with strange energy, consumable by units like the strange and demons.]
[You gain Strange Rat Skin (White) *4]
[Strange Rat Skin (White): Rat skin affected by strange energy, usable for leather crafting.]
[…]
As the battle progressed, Gu Xi gradually realized that the collected [Strange Rat Meat] was the required component to activate the candle factory.
However, the quantity seemed insufficient. It took about five small strange rats to produce one piece of strange rat meat, while the larger giant strange rats yielded only their strange organs.
These organs didn't count as strange corpses and had higher quality.
This left Gu Xi speechless. Initially, he thought he needed to find strange corpses from the giant rats.
Unexpectedly, he had to gather them from the smaller rats.
After some piecemeal efforts, Gu Xi finally collected fifteen strange corpses from all the killed strange rats.
At this point, the black mist at the end of the sewer transformed into a transparent white light curtain, revealing the next section of the sewer.
Gu Xi understood that this marked the boundary of the sewers; beyond this point was not his territory.
Of course, Gu Xi could sneak through here, using the sewers to infiltrate other areas of Aridowil, but the enemy could do the same.
The current situation resembled a thin membrane; it was a matter of who would pierce it first.
Glancing at the sewer beyond the light curtain, Gu Xi said nothing and pointed to the other end of the sewer.
"Head over there and clear that side."
The skeletal soldiers immediately turned and charged towards the other end of the sewer.
Luna accompanied them, realizing from the previous battle that these rats had decent impact force and speed.
Without Luna's Ice Touch, it might not be possible to quickly eliminate the rats, so she followed to assist.
As for Gu Xi, he leisurely followed behind, holding a bone club in one hand and a strange head in the other.
Gu Xi estimated that by the time he covered the kilometer-long distance, the battle would be almost over.
There was no rush.
Thus, Gu Xi intentionally slowed his pace.
But as Gu Xi approached the battlefield, Luna suddenly flew over.
"Master, Master, we've made an unexpected discovery!"
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