Chapter 82: Ascending the Mountain

"Don’t worry, bro, we’re not newbies, we definitely know how to cooperate."

After the middle-aged man in a leather coat emphasized many times that everyone should unite and cooperate, the Lv17 gunman player felt a bit speechless. He immediately said that the other’s worrying was unnecessary because players who can level up to this degree surely understand this basic principle.

"Besides, this dungeon not only produces summoned pets but is also useful for us non-summoning players. I heard it drops special skill scrolls, and there’s a chance to earn the Dragon Slayer title. It’s said that this title significantly increases damage output, I’d love to get one for myself."

The young gunner spoke while smoking, sharing the relevant information he knew. He seemed to be quite yearning for the rewards after clearing this dungeon.

"Hmm... I was a bit verbose... In that case, let’s start climbing after I finish smoking this cigarette?"

After hearing the gunner speak, the middle-aged man in the leather coat quickly responded with a smile.

"Let’s hurry a bit, bro. I feel this place is quite cold; it’s better to get moving now."

The gunman player tucked his neck inside his collar, expressing he didn’t want to wait any longer.

"Start now? I don’t have any problem with that, but are you two ready?"

The middle-aged man turned to ask the sword-wielding female player and Wang Zhifan, upon hearing the gunner’s statement.

"I can start anytime."

The long-haired young woman dressed in slim-fitting black clothes immediately replied.

"I’m ready too."

Wang Zhifan also nodded. He had been prepared for a long time, and he could say he was ready for battle even before entering this dungeon.

"Alright then, let’s set off! However, the mountain path is a bit narrow, so I’ll let my pets lead the way."

As soon as the middle-aged man finished speaking, without any noticeable actions, everyone heard a low beast roar nearby. They then saw a giant gray bear with a shoulder height of at least two meters suddenly appearing from tens of meters away on the side, swiftly rushing toward the mountain path ahead on four legs.

The bear was so massive that once it entered the stair-like mountain path ahead, it almost blocked the entire road. The people behind couldn’t see a large section of the stairs at the entrance, only the bear’s heavy, rounded, towering body and the deep footprints it left in the snow.

"Bro, what level is your bear? It looks mighty and imposing!"

Just as the middle-aged man summoned his first pet, the surprised young gunner exclaimed, echoing disbelief as it seemed to be his first time seeing such a large gray bear.

"Just an Lv6 bear, nothing special."

Upon hearing the young gunner’s surprise, the middle-aged man squinted his eyes and smiled. Before his sentence even finished, everyone heard a sharp cry from above. Raising their heads, they saw a large golden eagle with a wingspan of well over three meters swooping down from the sky, promptly rushing in front of the big gray bear slowly climbing the mountain path.

"You have ground forces and air forces, bro, I’m sure you have pets that can swim too."

Seeing the imposing golden eagle fly past them, the young gunman didn’t appear particularly startled. Instead, he started speculating about the cards the middle-aged man with the beast tamer profession might hold.

However, the middle-aged man didn’t particularly acknowledge him at this moment. Instead, he turned to the two sword-wielder players behind him and sounded the horn for the dungeon raid:

"Everyone, my pets are in position; let’s start climbing the mountain."

"Since your summons are leading the way, I guess I’ll temporarily play the role of a gunner. Not to brag, but I’ve practiced my gun skills for many years."

The sword-wielding female player listened to the middle-aged man in the leather coat, then stored the white long sword in her hand into the portable space, handling the black pistol with both hands. Paired with her slim-fitting black clothes and long hair, she gave off a very high-grade secret agent vibe.

On the side, Wang Zhifan remained silent, still holding a fine layer pistol in his left hand and the Wolf-Slaying Blade in his right, not intending to wield the pistol with both hands. After all, given his current personal strength and physique, the kickback from a mere pistol was negligible, and there was no need to dual-wield to improve shooting accuracy.

"Let’s get started! I have a feeling this dungeon raid will go extremely smoothly for us! Having bro’s pets lead the charge, I’m a perfectly happy gunman."

The young gunner threw the cigarette he had almost finished smoking into the snow beside him, focusing on handling the black-gray colored rifle, over a meter long. Maybe due to the inspiration from the cigarette, he felt his current state had reached its peak.

"Yes, we’ll undoubtedly clear this smoothly and then drop a rare-grade pet. No matter who gets it, bro, I’m willing to buy it at a high price."

The middle-aged man boasting a silver-gray rifle suddenly appeared in his hand, shockingly adopting the gunner role, even more professionally than the female sword-wielder player behind him.

"Goodness... At this level, do players of any profession carry guns? Seems like everyone’s ideas aren’t far off."

Wang Zhifan, holding a gun in one hand and a blade in the other, followed at the end of the group, remarking internally while advancing toward the mountain path ahead.

He once thought it was odd for a warrior player to hold a gun, but it seemed many players enjoyed doing so. Those lower-level players without guns probably just couldn’t get their hands on them.

Immediately, led by the middle-aged man’s giant gray bear and golden eagle summons clearing the path, followed by the four players climbing the stairs, they successfully stepped into the mountain path leading to the summit.

The four players, although only one possessed the gunman profession, all carried guns in their hands. Furthermore, the beast tamer profession middle-aged man carrying a rifle displayed some financial capability.

They followed the gray bear and the golden eagle overhead, having walked less than a hundred meters when suddenly, the beast tamer middle-aged man leading the group stopped, turned, and spoke to the three people behind:

"My eagle pet has detected the first blocking enemy—looks like a saber-toothed tiger. But don’t worry, my bear pet and eagle pet can take care of it."

"A saber-toothed tiger? That’s the first enemy in this dungeon? It makes me feel nostalgic like I’m dreaming back to newbie days."

The young gunman behind the middle-aged man in the leather coat heard this and immediately quipped with a carefree expression because at this level’s dungeon, encountering tiger or lion-type enemies was rare, a distinct memory of the Lv1 and Lv2 newbie phase.