Chapter 30: The Chosen One

After saying this, Nick used the miniature altar to pack up the camp. The Rune Bow, being his strongest offensive weapon at the moment, was naturally not left behind.

He slung it across his body and picked up the shovel, heading towards the unexplored areas around the current dungeon.

During the last exploration, Nick had found a Gene Potion in this vicinity. This time, he might be able to scavenge some more good stuff.

And with the hidden dungeon as a precedent, it was better to strike first than to be preempted by others.

"..."

Sally looked at Nick's back, unable to quite grasp his personality for a moment. Perhaps, in Nick's eyes, she was purely a teammate.

She didn't dwell on it and quickly picked up her shovel, following Nick's footsteps.

Nick arrived at an unexplored wall. When he considered digging, a light blue screen appeared before him.

[Dig 7 meters to the right, and you will encounter a dungeon creature - a Giant Lizard. After killing it, you might receive some unexpected rewards.]

[Don't dig upwards! The mutated Sand Wolf will tear you to shreds in an instant!]

[Dig down for 7 seconds, and you will fall into a Cave Spider's trap. There is a 30% chance that you will become this big guy's food reserve.]

Three hints appeared before him, causing a flicker of seriousness in Nick's eyes. The situation he least wanted to face had still occurred.

The danger level of the current area was gradually increasing, and the difficulty of exploration was constantly rising. This mutated Sand Wolf was the first crisis he had to face.

"Dig to the right..."

The best choice for Nick was undoubtedly to dig to the right, or else change direction and start digging elsewhere. However, he definitely wouldn't choose the latter.

As Nick swung his shovel to dig, the Python beside him also raised its two claws, offering a meager bit of help on the dry dungeon wall.

With only seven meters to go, Nick quickly arrived at this new cave.

His eyes were filled with vigilance as he surveyed the dungeon before him. The space, approximately thirty square meters, was not as stuffy as other caves; instead, it was somewhat cool.

Nick didn't find the Giant Lizard, but instead, on the flat ground in the distance, he discovered a hole about half a meter in diameter, slanting down into the depths of the earth.

Without much thought, Nick knew what was living at the bottom of this hole.

"Be careful of this guy..."

Nick took the Rune Bow from his body and handed the retired Ancient Crossbow and 9 bolts to Sally.

Now that he had the Rune weapon as the optimal choice, it was better to use this spare equipment to enhance the strength of his teammate, Sally.

"Okay."

Sally was a little surprised but didn't make a fuss. During her first trade with Nick, the weapon on display at the stall was the crossbow in her hands.

She familiarized herself with its use and then cocked and loaded the crossbow with bolts. As a form of repayment, she would provide Nick with whatever help she could in the upcoming battle.

Seeing that Sally was ready, Nick stomped his foot hard to create noise, trying to lure the Giant Lizard out of its lair.

But even so, he didn't see the Giant Lizard crawl out of its lair.

"Still not coming out?"

Nick frowned slightly and decisively pulled the string of the Rune Bow. As the pulling range increased, the wind swirling around him became stronger, and a wind arrow quietly condensed.

"Whoosh!"

As the bowstring was released, with a brief whooshing sound, the wind arrow shot out instantly, stirring up dust on the ground and shooting straight into the Giant Lizard's lair.

With a strong tremor, the large, empty dungeon instantly sank by more than half. Then, a wave of dust hit Nick, forcing him to cover his eyes.

"Is this guy dead?"

Nick was quite confident in the power of the Rune Bow. After the dust settled, an iron treasure chest appeared not far from him.

In the sunken pit of the dungeon, the Giant Lizard's blood had already soaked much of the soil.

Nick glanced at Sally beside him. Her hair, which had been washed clean last night, was now covered in dust. Although she wasn't completely covered in dirt, she was pretty close.

"..."

Sally looked at the huge commotion and a flash of helplessness crossed her eyes. She suddenly added, "Captain, I suspect you're taking revenge on me."

Nick didn't respond to this remark. He walked to the iron box not far away and opened it. What greeted his eyes was a green Gene Potion, the color of which was a few shades darker than the beginner one.

He took it in his hand, opened the black panel, and decisively used the [Identify] function. The specific information about the potion in front of him appeared.

[Gene Potion (Intermediate)]: A product of dungeon civilization, made from precious dungeon herbs. Taking it can greatly enhance overall physical fitness.

[Note: Taking too much of this potion will lead to resistance!]

"An Intermediate Gene Potion?!"

Nick's pupils constricted slightly when he saw the information on the black panel. The improvement brought by the beginner Gene Potion alone was transformative.

Nick couldn't imagine how great the change brought by the intermediate Gene Potion would be. But when he recalled the agonizing feeling of taking the Gene Potion for the first time, he couldn't help but shiver.

"..."

Sally looked at the green potion in Nick's hand. From his complicated expression, she could roughly guess that the value of this thing was no less than that of the [Rune Charging Stone].

She didn't ask any more questions and went to the deeply sunken pit. If this dungeon creature was edible, it could be used as a trading item in this food-scarce situation.

However, when Sally saw the festering lizard, which was exuding black blood, she decisively gave up the idea. Although it was edible when cooked, and not poisonous.

But people cannot, or at least should not, do such a thing.

Nick didn't directly take the intermediate Gene Potion. He put it back in the box and stuffed it into the camp. He looked around and, finding no trace of survival resources, continued to focus on exploration.

He looked at the several directions he could dig in, and the translucent light blue screen appeared before Nick again.

[Dig 8 meters to the right, and you will encounter a hungry ghoul. The only outcome waiting for you is death!]

[Dig 11 meters upwards. After killing the monster - Scarecrow, you will get a rune equipment!]

[So-called Chosen One, you are nothing more than this. Dig 9 meters down, and you will enter an abandoned library. You might find unexpected gains.]

"..."

Nick looked at the two hints in front of him, the corners of his mouth unconsciously curving upwards. Sometimes, when luck comes, no one can stop it.