The System’s voice rang out in everyone’s minds at the same time.
Arrays of profound runes appeared beneath the feet of the five people, followed by a pillar of light rising from each formation.
Once the light dissipated, the five had vanished from the spot.
***
**[Congratulations, Player! You have entered the Dungeon — The Road Out of the Village]**
By the time Luo Taozhi and the others regained their senses, the scenery before them had changed.
The five of them had stepped into a place they had never seen before.
It was a lifeless forest, littered with withered branches and skeletal remains. Bare trunks twisted toward the sky like countless withered hands. The ground was scattered with the bones of birds and beasts, some so eroded by time that they were incomplete. Stepping on them produced a crisp *crunch*.
The air was thick with a decaying, frigid aura that sent shivers down their spines.
“This is a massive difference from the Novice Village, isn’t it?”
Li Dong was the speaker, the only one among them to voice his amazement.
“Indeed. I have a proposal.” The Tiger Regiment Leader scanned their surroundings warily the moment he opened his eyes. He then followed behind Li Dong and spoke up slowly. “Though it’s a bit late, I think we should each introduce our skills, classes, and stats. It will make our coordination much easier later on, don’t you think?”
The Tiger Regiment Leader was right. Among the five of them, aside from Li Dong and Xiazhi knowing each other well, only Xiao Taozhi and Left Hand High Damage, Right Hand High Damage had a slight understanding of each other’s abilities.
For the rest, they were basically operating in the dark.
“I agree with the Leader. I am Left Hand High Damage, Right Hand High Damage. My name is too long, so just call me Left Hand.”
Xiao Nanchu was the first to agree with the Tiger Regiment Leader, taking the lead in setting an example.
“Level 7, currently classless. My weapon is a Single-handed Sword. I can tank and deal damage. My damage is quite high, but my mechanics are just average.”
“I agree as well,” Li Dong added, immediately providing his own information. “Li Dong, Level 10. My class is Traveler, my weapon is a bow. My mechanics are alright, and my damage is decent.”
“Xiazhi, Level 7. No class yet. My weapon is a Greatsword, and I have high Health Points.”
Seeing his proposal unanimously accepted, the Tiger Regiment Leader also shared his details.
“Tiger Regiment Leader, you can just call me Leader! Level 10! Class: Warrior, Weapon: Two-handed Axe!”
Warrior. That was not among the basic classes offered by the Village Chief. From the looks of it, it was a Hidden Class, and its rank probably wasn’t low.
Among these people, only the information revealed by Left Hand and the Leader truly surprised Luo Taozhi.
The Leader was one thing, as she had never seen that class before. But the information Left Hand gave was very strange!
What did that guy say? No class yet?!
That was nonsense! How could that be!
Luo Taozhi had previously speculated that not only did he obtain a class early, but it must have been a high-quality Hidden Class. Now, this guy was actually telling her he didn’t have one?
“You don’t have a Hidden Class?” Luo Taozhi couldn’t help but ask.
“Who, me?” Xiao Nanchu pointed a finger at himself in confusion.
“Yes! Exactly! You actually don’t have a class?”
“Yeah, that’s right. I haven’t reached Level 10 yet, so of course I don’t have a class.”
Luo Taozhi was speechless, not knowing what to say. After letting out a long breath, she shared her own information under the gaze of the other four.
“Level 10, Class: Traveler, Weapon: Longsword. My mechanics are passable.”
After listening, Xiao Nanchu was the first to speak.
“In that case, the Leader and I will take the front to clear the way. Li Dong and Xiao Taozhi will walk in the middle, and Xiazhi will cover the rear?”
It was a very standard arrangement, so standard that no one could find a flaw in it.
“Fine, no problem with me.”
“Same here.”
“Alright.”
“Okay, let’s do it that way.”
There was only one path beneath the feet of the five people, with unidentifiable withered trees on both sides. It was clear they could only move forward.
Before long, they encountered the first wave of monsters.
It was a bizarre lump of flesh, covered in dark brown, sticky skin. The surface was riddled with tiny holes that constantly oozed a foul-smelling mucus, making a *plip-plip* sound as it dripped onto the dead leaves.
It had four limbs, but they were extremely short and thick, almost merging with the lump of flesh. It could only barely support itself with these limbs, using the twisting and writhing of its muscles to crawl slowly across the ground. The friction of its flesh and limbs against the earth produced a grating sound.
Occasionally, broken bone spikes would jut out from the flesh mass and quickly retract. It was a hideous and disgusting sight, enough to make one’s stomach churn just by looking at it.
[Abyssal Crawler]
Level: 8
Health Points: 200
Description: The Abyss’s most loyal believer!!! Fanatical to the point of losing sanity, turning into a monster that eats anything.
It was ugly, its level wasn’t high, and its Health Points were very low. It would be easy to take down.
This was the five people’s first impression of the flesh lump crawling on the ground.
And indeed, it was true. Before Luo Taozhi or Xiao Nanchu could even move, Li Dong fluently drew his bow and fired.
-32
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-120
A few arrows followed by a single swing from the Tiger Regiment Leader’s axe ended its life.
The monster fell easily.
However, before it died, a mouth grew out of nowhere from that lump of flesh and let out a shrill wail.
The five didn’t take it seriously at first, treating it as just a normal death rattle.
But reality soon taught them a lesson.
They hadn’t walked much further when dozens of Abyssal Crawlers blocked their path.
“Damn, a Deathrattle-type monster!” Li Dong cursed under his breath.
As the most experienced gamer among the five, he should have realized it when he saw the Abyssal Crawler’s extremely low Health Points!
“Deathrattle?” The Tiger Regiment Leader was hearing the term for the first time.
“It’s an effect that triggers only after death,” Xiao Nanchu explained.
Although he didn’t play as many games as Li Dong, he had played enough to understand the terminology.
“It won’t keep triggering forever, will it?”
Luo Taozhi offered her opinion. This type of Demonic Beast wasn’t rare; what was so strange about calling its kin before dying? She had even seen ones that summoned their own elders before breathing their last.
“The Big Shot is right. This type of monster usually only triggers the effect when there’s only one of them,” Li Dong nodded, confirming her thought.
“Then let’s go!”
Knowing that more wouldn’t appear, the Tiger Regiment Leader breathed a sigh of relief. Since the numbers wouldn’t increase, these dozens of slow monsters posed no real threat.
Just as the Tiger Regiment Leader finished speaking, a ball of flesh shot out from the middle of the dozens of Abyssal Crawlers!