The players cheered and immediately began stripping the most valuable parts off the tree ghosts.
Zheng Kai lingered at the finish line, held himself for a moment, then couldnât resist and joined the scavenging queue.
Money, money, moneyâeverything was money!
âIâm going to keep moving forward. If anyone wants to leave, you can go now,â Xu Lang said after a few minutes.
âMy valueâs already doubled. I want to leave!â
âI want to stick with Lang Ge and go eat something nice!â
The team split into two camps, and in the end four people formed a group and left.
Xu Langâs squad fought all the way through;
the tree ghosts hadnât recovered their vigor yet, so this was the best time to withdraw.
The life cores were what made the tree ghosts most valuableâeasy to carry and worth a lot. The players who withdrew took life cores and second-tier items and returned laden with loot.
Then Xu Langâs squad pushed on another fifty meters.
âHoly crap, my value tripled. I really have to go!â
âSame here. My three tactical backpacks are full of life coresâenough to trade for a decent door!â
âLetâs bounce, see you, Lang Dad!â
âBrothers, leave together. Donât get ambushed on the way!â
Only six people remained in the team.
They were Xu Lang, Cao Yaxuan, Wang Yazhi, Tong Qi, Zheng Kai, and a pretty girl named Jiang Xiaowen.
âArenât you leaving?â Zheng Kai looked at Jiang Xiaowen.
Jiang Xiaowen acted strangely. Her large pack only had a few life cores at the bottom, and she didnât look very eager.
âNo.â Jiang Xiaowen licked her lips, but her gaze fixed on Xu Lang. âMy dormâs level and equipment are too low. Even with these supplies, Iâm not confident Iâd survive the next round.â
If she really were some wealthy lady, she wouldnât have chosen the Pet Dorm just because of Xu Langâs bounty.
In peaceful times there was a widely circulated motto:
âChildren without umbrellas must run.
This applied especially to bottom-tier players.
Without capital, they had to fight harder.
âHaha, donât worry, this time Iâll make sure youâre fed.â Tong Qi smiled at Jiang Xiaowen. âStick close to me.â
âOkay, thank you, Sister Tong!â Jiang Xiaowen smiled.
Zheng Kai saw this, gritted his teeth, and started unloading items.
If even an ordinary player dared to go all out, he couldnât be weak!
Pioneering teams often saw this phenomenon.
They would gather a huge haul, then be chased by monsters and have to discard their loot.
Lightening your load, tossing out some junk, didnât hurt anyone.
After a brief rest, they set off again.
They pushed forward and eventually reached a terrifying area filled with poisonous miasma.
âWeâre already five hundred meters in!â Zheng Kai swallowed and felt his heart race.
He had actually run this far?!
No exaggeration, he felt like he was cheating!
Even when NPCs used him to grind maps before, it never felt this intense!
On the way theyâd met higher-level tree ghosts and other monsters;
the haul was so big it made him uneasy.
Yesâuneasy!
If I take this many resources, wonât I be punished by heaven?
Would the Dorm Survival Game really let me off that easily?!
âThrilling, thrilling!â Zheng Kai stared at the poisonous haze, adrenaline surging, and then grit his teeth and put his pack on the ground:
âDamn! Whatâs the point of this junk? Isnât it just a few million Copper Coins?â
âLang Ge, Iâve decided!â
âIâll leave this pack here. No oneâs going to grab it!â
âIâll travel light and go all the way with you. If you donât retreat, I wonât retreat!â
At that moment, he felt incredibly brave.
âI think not.â Xu Lang looked at Zheng Kai calmly and said, âAnyway, Iâm not going any further.â
Zheng Kai: â???â
For goodnessâ sake, Iâve already taken my pants off.
âWeâve been here too long, and our main objective hasnât been completed.â Xu Lang explained.
Main objective? Whatâs that?
Pushing to the end and withdrawing fullâwasnât that the main objective?!
Zheng Kai froze, then remembered.
âXu Lang came here to catch the Ginkgo Wolf!
âLetâs go.â Cao Yaxuan chuckled.
The front looked dangerous and information was completely unknown. How could Xu Lang possibly risk going alone?
If he could risk going alone, why would he make you come?
Seeing Xu Lang and his group turn to leave, Zheng Kai hurriedly slung on his large pack and followed.
Without Xu Lang and the others, he had no confidence about getting back.
Wang Yazhi glanced back at the poisonous haze and tightened her grip on her long sword.
Sheâd had a blast fighting today, but she also realized how much she lagged behind Xu Lang.
âAfter we get back, I have to train even harder!â
Then her clear, beautiful eyes looked at Xu Lang.
Xu Langâs expression was as calm as a deep wellâshe couldnât tell what he was thinking.
At this moment, Xu Langâs idea was simple.
Catch the Ginkgo Wolf quickly, then take the job as Animal Tamer.
As for sweeping through the ginkgo forest and finding a strongholdâheâd thought about that at first, but the moment he saw the poisonous miasma that idea vanished.
I stacked attributes in the newbie village for three thousand years and left the gate as the strongest killing god!
Only the poor need to risk their lives.
And Iâm the Mad King Buildingâs number one tycoon!
What a payoff? Is it worth risking my life? Better go back and sleep!
On the way back, more blood-mist monsters appeared intermittently.
Their pace slowed;
Cao Yaxuan and the others needed to collect supplies, and they also wanted to search for the Ginkgo Wolf.
Fortune favored the persistent. At about one hundred meters away, Xu Lang found the Ginkgo Wolf.
The instant their gazes met, the Ginkgo Wolfâs mind collapsedâits facial features bled, and even healed it would drool.
âThe spirit attribute wasnât wasted.â Xu Lang lifted the Ginkgo Wolf with satisfaction.
âIt turns out we rushed too hard before, thatâs why we didnât see the Ginkgo Wolf,â Cao Yaxuan said with a smile.
They chatted and laughed while following Ginkgo Avenue, leaving the Blood Mist World.
Outside.
The moon hung at its zenith.
The stronghold was brightly lit and many players had pitched tents there.
Someone saw Xu Lang and the others emerge and immediately reported to Zhen Lu and the rest.
âXu Lang, youâre out!â
A familiar figure rushed over, and for a moment Xu Lang thought it was the Tyrant.
But when he focused, he saw it was a beaming Wu Huihui, and he felt something was odd.
The first person to greet him after coming out of the Blood Mist World wasnât Zhen Lu and her group, but Wu Huihui.
ThisâŠ
âHuihui, what are you doing here?â Xu Lang asked.
âWaiting for you. I heard you went into the Blood Mist World, I was worried.â Wu Huihui answered honestly.
In truth, sheâd gone in to look for Xu Lang several times but found nothing each time, which made her more anxious.
âThen thank you. I have life cores hereâdo you want some?â Xu Lang asked.
Wu Huihui shook her head, about to say something when Zhen Lu and the others arrived.
Seeing the other girls approach, Wu Huihui quietly stepped aside.
âI told you you were worrying for nothing, Huihui.â Nie Xiaozhu patted Wu Huihuiâs arm.
Wu Huihui sighed, âAs long as youâre all right. If it werenât for Lang Ge, I really donât know how Mad King Buildingâs game would be won!â