This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 183, Section 182: Supply Troops
How did it get such a big crack?

If that opening gets two sizes bigger, it will be as big as the one during the Demon Tide.

Speaking of which, the rift that the slime was suppressing has also expanded quite a bit. What was originally the size of a fist has now expanded by about half. Fortunately, the two-colored slime is also quite large, so it seems it can hold the rift for a long time.

Lin Jun is now afraid that before she can deal with one problem, another one will immediately appear, and in the end, the entire Deep Zone will become some kind of battle royale, the kind where there are no winners in the end.

The cave where the Qisi Rift is located is only three interconnected caves away from the former snake cave, now the Puji Fortress. Its location is neither too far nor too close, but just at a delicate vigilance distance.

In fact, ever since he suffered a loss in the snake pit last time, Qisi has clearly avoided the areas where the fungal carpet is spreading, seemingly wary of Puji.

But Lin Jun still managed to find her way there using her reconnaissance skills.

The search was much easier than expected; the caves that the Qis had cleaned were far too "clean".

That almost predatory clearing not only wiped out all life, but also swept away moss and lichen, leaving only bare, lifeless rocks.

Following the cleared cave, Lin Jun discovered the location of the fissure within a few days.

After Reconnaissance Puji No. 1 was killed and sacrificed, Lin Jun immediately dispatched Reconnaissance Puji No. 2 and No. 3 to conduct a circular reconnaissance around the area where the rift was located.

The feedback was simple: the Qis were waging a massive, bloody hunt in the Deep Zone.

They were like tireless butchers, sweeping through the dark underground.

Flesh and blood, plants, and even magic crystals are being collected by them and transported back to their lair.

Lin Jun even discovered their "supply wagons"—a type of monster called [Kiss-Clumsy Beast].

This creature has eight short, sturdy, calloused feet that support its heavy but exceptionally stable body.

Most striking are their enormous stomachs, which almost reach the ground, emitting a dull gurgling sound as they slowly move.

Their heads resemble oversized vacuum cleaners. With each opening and closing of their enormous mouths, accompanied by a low "whooshing" sound, they forcefully suck in everything, from scattered bits of meat and broken shells to soil and gravel stained with nutrients.

Once their stomachs are full, they turn around and slowly crawl back into the depths of the fissure.

Each group of clumsy beasts was accompanied by guards, clearly indicating that these "transport vehicles" lacked means of self-defense.

Lin Jun's expansion is about spreading life and order within the caves.

Each cave conquered creates a vibrant kingdom of fungal carpets, dotted with mushrooms that flit and scurry about, becoming a self-sufficient ecological node.

However, the evil Qis are different; they only know how to plunder and destroy.

They don't seem to intend to move their nests out; they just want to use the fissure as a center to scavenge the surrounding resources.

Of course, they don't visit every cave. They bypass caves with powerful monsters, caves with high-temperature lava, and now they also bypass caves with fungal carpet...

Thanks to their cleanup, the pressure from wild monsters invading their own caves has actually decreased significantly recently.

Honestly, if they were any further away, say seven or eight caves away, Lin Jun wouldn't have bothered with them.

After all, considering logistical issues, their operational radius is limited.

However, the distance of only three caves clearly puts it within range where it could be attacked at any time.

However, it is obviously not easy to block them back in.

Putting aside whether they could win or not, the low temperature near the crack was something that Puji couldn't withstand.

After digesting the previous batch of beetles, Lin Jun's [Cold Resistance] finally reached LV5, which means she can move around nearby, but her condition won't be very good.

In Lin Jun's view, this resistance level would need to be LV6 or even LV7 to prevent the Puji from being affected by the extreme cold. Therefore, the path to upgrading [Cold Resistance] naturally fell to these Qisi who had emerged from the rift…

The fungal carpet has begun to spread towards Qisi, one layer at a time. The "inside" layer is naturally the fungal carpet that burrows into the ground and spreads spores in the network as it digs forward.

Since the decisive battle is far off, the expedition cannot be delayed because of Qisi, which would be putting the cart before the horse. Therefore, Lin Jun only has about six hundred Puji in her possession.

With combat power insufficient, Lin Jun naturally turned her attention to the relatively weak "supply troops"...
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Inside the cave filled with giant webs, some agile, reptilian-looking creatures called Keith were using sharp blades to cut the connections between the webs and the rock walls.

Once all the webs are cut, the spider webs, along with the remains of their prey, will fall down and be eaten by the dozen or so clumsy beasts below.

As for the owners of these nets, they had been wiped out by Qisi's attacking forces a day earlier.

A football-sized ogle floated in the center of the cave, constantly circling and scanning its surroundings.

At one moment, the half-closed eyes suddenly opened, and a silent signal was transmitted throughout the cave and also to distant places.

It saw Puji coming!
All the clumsy beasts stopped eating and began running towards the rift, but even at full speed, they were very slow.

Meanwhile, the monsters responsible for guarding the passage rushed in the opposite direction, attempting to block the entrance and occupy advantageous terrain.

The previous experience taught it that Puji's ranged attacks are very strong, and it is necessary to engage in close combat in places with corners and cover, such as at the entrance of a passage.

Unfortunately, Puji is faster.

A dozen or so scaly creatures, rolled into a ball, rushed out first and plunged into the Qisi, exploding with a "boom"—the explosion was so smooth that there wasn't a single pause.

The explosion sent the scales on Puji's body flying outwards, creating a fragmentation grenade-like effect. A large number of Qis were pierced by the scales; they didn't die, but they lost their fighting ability.

The massive damage caused the Qis to pause their charge slightly, and they tried to spread out their ranks a bit, instead of forming such a tight formation.

Otherwise, without those ranged attacks, a few more rounds of self-destructing attacks would wipe out this group of guards.

It was regrouping, but Lin Jun wouldn't wait for it.

The Puji successfully took their positions and began bombarding the Qis with artillery fire.

After three rounds of mushroom cannon fire, very few of the already small number of Keith Guards were still alive.

At this moment, those clumsy beasts hadn't even managed to run from the cave into the passage yet; they were lambs to the slaughter.

Seeing that things were not going well, the eye worms in the sky prepared to escape.

Its form blurred and disappeared from sight.

However, with the dual perspectives of [Magic Perception] and [Sound Wave Detection], Lin Jun could clearly see its location.

Although the eye worms were high in the air and difficult to hit, several bats in the group quickly followed after them, puffing out their breaths.

Even though half of them were out of control, spinning and flying wildly in the air, four of them still managed to catch up with the Eyebugs using their [wake jets].

With four explosions, the shattered bodies of the eye worms fell down along with the mycelium scattered across the sky.

These bugs, despite being over level 30, have pitifully low health. They can't even withstand two of their self-destructing attacks, let alone four.

Having dealt with the eye worms, the dozen or so clumsy beasts on the ground immediately scattered in a chaotic mess, huddled together and trembling, while the Puji swaggered forward.

However, at this moment, the feedback from the [Sound Wave Detection] indicated that a large creature was approaching from the direction of Qisi's hometown.

(End of this chapter)