The comments said I was deeply affectionate, I just added points by using an alternate account.

What's more troublesome is that these gelatinous substances seem to draw power from their surroundings, quickly reassemble themselves after being severed, and seem to be continuously gushing out of the channels.

"This won't do. Their weakness is their energy core. We need to find the core, or use a large-scale energy shock to instantly vaporize them."

While using a simple spiritual energy barrier to block the sporadic splashes of gel and corrosive liquid, Liu Xiao shouted loudly.

"I'll do it!" Long Ao suddenly raised his fist, and violent power gathered in his hand. With one strike, the gelatinous substance fell in all directions, scattered here and there.

The gelatinous mass that was directly attacked by Long Ao trembled violently, the dark red light inside it dimmed rapidly, and then it went limp like a deflated balloon, turning into a puddle of foul-smelling slime, no longer wriggling.

We've found a solution!

Li Yuqing and An Changqing immediately followed suit, focusing their attacks on the core of the gelatinous substance, aiming to defeat the enemy in one fell swoop.

Chen Guan also tried to stab the core of a clump of gelatinous substance with his scythe, but he found that his attack seemed to have a special effect on these monsters, and it was still the gray one that made the difference.

His spirits lifted, and he coordinated with An Changqing and the others' attacks, focusing on targeting the core members, greatly increasing his efficiency.

However, the amount of gelatinous substance was far too great, and it continued to gush out from the depths of the passage, leaving everyone exhausted and drained of energy.

Li Yuqing and Long Ao were both covered in corrosive slime, their combat suits smelled burnt, Su Yuehe's flute playing began to falter, her mana was almost depleted, and Huo Qixing and Liu Xiao were even paler, their spells and detection consuming a great deal of energy.

"We can't keep going like this; we must block the source or find something to control them."

An Changqing's expression turned solemn as he looked once more at the dark entrance to the passage. Below, the real danger probably lay.

Just then, deep inside the passage, the hurried dragging sound suddenly turned into a slower footstep.

dong... dong... dong...

Like a giant taking a step, or like a heavy hammer striking the heart.

The shadows at the entrance of the passage twisted and contorted, and a figure slowly walked up.

The first thing that catches the eye is a pair of white leather boots with dark red stains on the bottom, but the uppers are unusually clean.

Then came the impeccably tailored, seemingly spotless white trousers and the hem of a long white trench coat. The person was tall and slender, wearing a smiling, pure white mask and even white gloves on both hands.

His right hand casually dragged a white bone blade, almost as tall as him, with a grotesque design. The blade was still covered with undried, dark red, viscous liquid, which was the source of the cracking sound.

His left hand held a wriggling, dark red gelatinous core, which was the source of the gelatinous substance.

He stood quietly at the entrance of the passage, his gaze sweeping calmly over the seven people who looked as if they were facing a formidable enemy, and finally landing on Liu Xiao, or rather, on the tattered sketches in Liu Xiao's hands.

"Oh? Someone's here to scavenge." His voice came through the mask, the last syllable rising in tone, casual yet chilling: "Too bad, everything here already belongs to me."

As soon as he finished speaking, the gelatinous core he was holding in his left hand trembled violently, and the dozens of gelatinous masses lying around him sprang up instantly as if they had received a command.

They were no longer attacking haphazardly, but began to coordinate in a simple way. Some attacked head-on, while others outflanked and encircled. Some even merged together to form a more dangerous behemoth, blocking everyone's retreat.

"Be careful, he's a summoner, the one who controls these monsters!"

Huo Qixing cried out in disbelief. The reading on the detection disc, representing the white-robed man, was frighteningly high. The sixth rank was the upper limit of the disc, but it could never be the upper limit of the white-robed man.

Such a powerful individual is definitely not someone they can handle.

Fortunately, the other party doesn't seem to have any intention of killing them; it's more like they're toying with them.

"Pay attention to your positioning, don't get separated."

An Changqing shouted sharply, his golden sword light surging as he tried to stabilize the situation. Li Yuqing's cyan sword light echoed An Changqing's golden light, forming a sharp barrier that temporarily blocked the most intense frontal attack.

Long Ao roared repeatedly, his crimson flames erupting wildly. Like a humanoid beast, he charged left and right through the gelatinous mass, trying to disrupt their formation. However, he was quickly entangled by more gelatinous substances. The corrosive slime and tentacles made him roar repeatedly, and new wounds kept appearing on his body.

Liu Xiao's face was deathly pale. He used frost magic to slow down the approach of the gelatinous substance while staring intently at the man in white, his eyes filled with resentment.

The blueprints he was looking for were probably on the other party, or perhaps... they had already been destroyed.

What you care about is probably just junk in the eyes of such a powerful person.

Su Yuehe's flute music weakened under the immense mental pressure and the monster's roar. She gritted her teeth and persevered, trying to wrest control of the gelatinous substance from the white-clad man, but to little avail. His will and mental strength far surpassed hers.

The pressure on Chen Guan was equally immense; several clumps of gelatinous substance were specifically targeting him, attempting to trap him and the coffin with slime and tentacles.

He swung his scythe, severing each tentacle, but the gelatinous substance seemed endless. The black iron coffin could resist corrosion, but it couldn't stop the substance from sticking the coffin to the ground. He tried to mobilize the gray energy again, but the depletion of his mental strength meant he could only barely condense a trace, which had limited effect.

"Their skills are decent, and their teamwork is fairly good."

The man in white commented calmly, his tone still devoid of joy or sorrow: "It's a pity they've run into me. These sweethearts are new toys that I've finally managed to train. Perfect, I'll use you to test their performance in actual combat."

He raised his left hand, and the gelatinous core slowly rotated in his palm, its emanating waves connecting with all the surrounding gelatinous substances.

As soon as the order was given, the gelatinous substance underwent an even more bizarre change. Several larger clumps of gelatinous substance suddenly coalesced into a giant entity, three meters tall, resembling a slime monster. Dozens of thick, barbed tentacles extended from its surface, lashing out fiercely at the defensive line constructed by An Changqing and Li Yuqing.

At the same time, more small gelatinous substances began to merge together, turning into waves of corrosive energy that crashed towards the crowd from all directions.

The formation showed signs of collapse instantly. An Changqing and Li Yuqing's sword light was firmly entangled by the tentacles of the giant gelatinous monster. The golden and blue light flickered violently, and their energy consumption increased rapidly.

Long Ao was struck by several waves, his crimson aura dimmed, and his body was corroded in many places, causing him to groan in pain.

Huo Qixing and Liu Xiao's defensive spells were on the verge of collapse under the impact of the waves, and Su Yuehe was even shaken back by an invisible mental shock, causing her flute music to stop.

Everything... seems to be heading in the worst possible direction.