At the same moment that Chu Xiu was in deep pursuit, Zhang Qingshan and two others were also engaged in battle with the surrounding hordes of corrupted creatures.
Although the main target of the Calamity was Chu Xiu, it couldnât precisely control the corrupted residents born later with low Abyssal power content, and could only give simple commands.
Thus, a large number of corrupted residents were still surrounding the three of them.
"Get away!"
Zhang Qingshanâs Dragon Soul surged out, shattering the corrupted creatures rushing at him. Su Jinyu also summoned a great number of Rune Pillars for support, while Guan Ke had six Floating Cannons behind her outputting energy at their maximum, relentlessly blasting the rocks clogging the passage.
The hardness of the deep mountain rocks, unimaginable to ordinary people, under the massive pressure of the entire mountainâs gravity, had been compressed into an extremely solid and stable form. A rock the size of a water tank would require hundreds or thousands of armor-piercing bullets to destroy if fired upon with a heavy machine gun.
And the three of them had to, in a short time and amidst countless corrupted creaturesâ interference, forcibly clear a blocked passage of over a hundred meters long completely sealed by tough mountain rock!
This was no small challenge, even for General Tier Awakened individuals.
Fortunately, the three had high Professions and Talents, and through coordinated efforts, they finally broke through the sealed path after nearly ten minutes of struggle.
When the air flowed through the opening, the three of them displayed expressions of having narrowly escaped disaster.
"We finally got out!"
Guan Keâs face showed unconcealed excitement mixed with profound lingering fear.
The scene of countless corrupted creatures descending from the sky had left her a great psychological shadow. She wasnât like Zhang Qingshan, a Close Combat Profession who could physically withstand corrupt creaturesâ attacks. Being swarmed by this many corrupt creatures would truly have been deadly for her!
"But the Dark Night Monarch is still inside."
Zhang Qingshan turned to look at the dark passage behind him. No more corrupted creatures were pursuing, but from the depths of the passage, the roars of corrupted creatures could still be heard, though much quieter than before.
"Has the battle ended, and has the Dark Night Monarchâs Ghostly Legion been nearly wiped out?" Zhang Qingshanâs expression was somewhat grim.
"Damn it, who cares about him? That guy tried to get himself killed and almost dragged us down!" Guan Ke spat with resentment, "We better hurry up and get out of here."
"You canât say that," Zhang Qingshan shook his head. "As a Civilization Envoy, the Dark Night Monarch is of significant value to Huaxia."
Guan Ke looked incredulous, "Youâre still thinking about this? Weâve done enough, do you seriously want to go back in and rescue him?"
"We common folks should just look after ourselves, we have no business worrying about the country or humanity."
Guan Ke spoke with confidence. She had risked her entire painstakingly built Mechanical Legion to help Chu Xiu.
Even though she did gain quite a bit, she could still say she had a clear conscience.
However, Zhang Qingshan continued to stroke his chin, gazing at the passageway behind them. After a long pause, he suddenly said, "Do you think itâs possible that the Dark Night Monarch actually let us out on purpose so we could seek help?"
Guan Ke was taken aback by his words.
Zhang Qingshan continued, "Didnât you notice that while those corrupted creatures did attack us, their overall desire to attack wasnât strong? Only the nearest corrupted creatures came, and most of them were drawn to the Dark Night Monarch."
"I guess he realized that the Calamityâs target was him, so he let us escape to seek help. He didnât show it because he didnât want the Calamity to notice, increasing our chances of breaking through!"
These words deepened Guan Keâs confusion.
After some time, she said, "You mean... we should thank him for drawing the fire away from us? Wait a minute, now that I think about it, he did give me a communication artifact earlier. Could it be that he anticipated this scenario and prepared an escape plan in advance?"
Guan Keâs expression was incredulous.
Zhang Qingshan nodded earnestly, "Itâs possible. I donât believe that someone with the Dark Night Monarchâs strength is just a brute as he appears."
"Hissâ"
Guan Ke took a deep breath at his words, falling into thought.
She found Zhang Qingshanâs guess far-fetched, yet it didnât seem entirely impossible.
On some level, she too couldnât believe that the Dark Night Monarch had a reckless gamblerâs personality.
Aside, Su Jinyu: ...
Watching the two seriously contemplate, she was at a loss.
Foolish kids, he was simply using you as bait.
While the Dark Night Monarch certainly wasnât a mindless gambler, neither was he the all-knowing strategist they were imagining. She knew Chu Xiu had a tendency to set traps for others.
"In any case, what we need to do now is quickly contact some King Tier seniors and get them here for support as soon as possible."
Zhang Qingshan didnât dwell any further.
In fact, as soon as they were surrounded by the corrupted creatures, Guan Ke didnât hesitate to send out a distress signal despite Chu Xiuâs objections.
But although their locator device showed each otherâs positions, the underground base was so complex that it wasnât easy for the Kings to find their way there.
She glanced at the locator; Qin Xiang was already nearby, but the other three Kings didnât seem particularly concerned about Chu Xiuâs survival, thus their speed was slow.