The Heartbeat of the Cruel Elves

"Therefore, our only hope is to find a way out before the other two teams. Let them become the sacrifice instead of ourselves."

"But..." Li Yin said hesitantly, "Wasn't this so-called route determined from the beginning? Wasn't the fate of the three teams determined when we set out on the paths we chose?"

He recalled that Cassia had specifically asked him to choose a path first. Although he had already vaguely felt the importance of this choice, how could a mortal guess the will of God? He did not know the real path, so he could only make a choice blindly based on his intuition.

"Maybe so, but not necessarily." Myrcella's expression was indifferent, and Li Yin couldn't tell her mood when she said this.

"We can only pray that the goddess' game won't be so easy this time."

"Princess Cassia once said that the goddess will not bless weak and incompetent fools. Believers must prove that they are worthy of being favored."

"The useless people who are waiting here will probably not be guided to the right path and will only become sacrificial lambs."

"Besides, with the power of the Spider Goddess, is the existing 'true and correct path' really important?" Myrcella looked at Lein, but her gaze was not focused on Lein. Instead, she seemed to be staring at a more noble image, with a solemn and sacred expression. "As long as she wants, she can turn reality into illusion and turn correctness into fallacy."

"So, we can only move forward now - just as Princess Cassia led us in a seemingly futile march through the maze before - and pray that the courage and spirit we will show next, and the pain and suffering we will encounter, will please the goddess and be lucky enough to gain her favor."

Is he going to completely entrust his fate to the hands of the gods? To be honest, Rein, who was deeply influenced by the Lahya unbelievers' culture, felt very uncomfortable with this for a while.

However, there seems to be no other opinion at the moment.

Anyway, why not take a walk and watch one?

So the two led the expedition team deeper into the tunnel.

About six hours later, the team stopped to rest somewhere in the tunnel. During these six hours, they kept trudging and passed through seventeen forks in the road, but still found nothing. The so-called signs of divine revelation did not seem to exist, and there was no place that made them feel that they had found the exit. Every place they passed was still the same as before, making them feel like they had seen it before...

During the break, Li Yin was actively asking Myrcella and several dark elf scouts for advice on reconnaissance, trap placement and removal, etc. His thirst for knowledge and vigorous energy surprised the elves.

"I don't know his thirst for knowledge, but I can guarantee that you won't have to worry about his 'energy'." Myrcella raised her lips and made a rare joke. She winked at the female dark elves around her and said, "If we are lucky enough to return to Nevre, you can find a chance to test it yourself."

The curious and provocative looks from the many female dark elves made Li Yin lower his head involuntarily.

"Or, if we can't find a way out," Freya, a tall dark elf warrior with a high ponytail, licked her lips with her pink tongue, "before we eat all the food, we can eat you first."

Li Yin felt his hair stand on end when he heard this. To be honest, he couldn't figure out what they meant by "eating".

The dark elves around suddenly burst into giggles.

"Why are you interested in these technologies, Captain 'Sir'?" In the interval of laughter, a female dark elf with short hair down to her neck asked curiously. She kept playing with a dagger in her hand. Her name was Qiwena, and she was one of the elves with the best reconnaissance technology in this unit.

"Aren't we scouting ahead? As our 'leader', 'you' don't have to worry about these dirty jobs."

"I want to improve my abilities in all aspects." Li Yin said sincerely, "I can't always rely on you. When necessary, I hope I can also contribute."

"Oh," she said with a smile, "our 'adult' is really kind-hearted. I finally understand why our princess likes you so much."

Li Yin's face turned slightly red, and he lowered his head again amid the laughter of the dark elves and fell silent. His words were not false, but there was one sentence he did not finish:

"So that I can survive this damn maze after you all die."

He thought about it carefully.

With the zombie's strange physique of not sleeping, not drinking or eating, even if he was assigned to this advance team, even if he could not find a way out and was separated from the main force, even if all his team members died of hunger and lack of water, he could still survive.

The premise is that he will not die due to some other factors. The so-called other factors are mainly divided into two parts. One part is the hostile creatures that may appear - he cannot control this. However, with the strong physique of the ghoul and the equipment made by the dark elves, plus the psychic spells stored in his mind, Li Yin believes that most ordinary creatures are not enough to threaten his life. The other part of the factor, which is the factor he needs to worry about, is the huge and lethal traps everywhere in this maze.

It can be said that as long as this factor is overcome, he can stay in this maze as long as he wants!

As long as he stayed there, he would find a way out one day - referring to the dark elf who finally escaped from the maze. Li Yin believed that even if he was not as good an explorer as him, he would not be trapped here forever if he put in ten or a hundred times the effort.

Therefore, he suddenly realized that separating from Cassia might be a good choice.

The normal result is that they are the chosen group. Under the care of the goddess, they find the right path, return safely, and lead the large group out of danger.

The so-called "bad result" is that other groups are selected, which can also allow Cassia to escape from danger. And although it may take a long time for him to escape from the maze, he can move freely after that and explore the way back to the world above!

However, the only price was the lives of the slaves and dark elves in front of him - but he couldn't be blamed for that. He wasn't the one who ordered these slaves and dark elves to explore, and he wasn't the one who set up this maze to trap them. He was just one of the many victims who happened to be lucky enough to have the ability to save himself.

Although Li Yin felt a little sorry for the possible destruction they might face, he did not feel any self-blame at all.

However... Li Yin thought about it and thought that maybe he could keep a small number of them and control them with charm as his subordinates. After all, it was not an easy task to find a way home in the vast underdark. And, their presence might also help him find a way out of the maze faster.

However, such targets must be carefully selected and not too many.

Because... Li Yin glanced at the tall dark elf female warrior and Freya... It is not easy to "feed" them.

If you are not careful, you will really be eaten up!

After listening to several dark elves share their reconnaissance experiences, Li Yin leaned against the cold stone wall, closed his eyes and rested, thinking about how many subordinates his body could support as a "renewable resource". And who should he choose as his subordinates - or, to put it another way, "friends".

Cassia sent Myrcella to "teach" her "how to manage her subordinates and the team". Rein knew that this was just a euphemism, and Myrcella's real intelligence was actually to manage the team on his behalf. Because as a human slave, the dark elves would never accept his management. This had nothing to do with any management art, so it could not be changed by "teaching".

But... Li Yin smiled slightly. Princess Cassia did not expect that he had his own way of "management". If necessary, he would make these unruly dark elves accept his "art" of leadership.

Li Yin was quite contentedly immersed in his future plans. Suddenly, with a clang, he heard a sharp sound of metal clashing against metal.

He was stunned for a very short moment, then he jumped up, his expression suddenly changed: "Enemy attack!"

He yelled, unsheathed his sword, and looked around.

Myrcella, Qivina, and several dark elf warriors also jumped up, drew their swords, and looked around with vigilance.

"Keng, keng, keng..." The crisp and sharp sounds continued to be heard, but everyone's faces were suddenly stunned.

Although the sound was sharp, it was not loud, but rather quite subtle - it was not a sound that was close at hand, but came from quite far away.

Li Yin looked at Myrcella. Myrcella and her companion looked at each other at first, then turned to look at him, and the two looked at each other.

"Has the 'sacrifice' you mentioned begun?" Li Yin asked in a hoarse voice, his face somewhat nervous.

"No, it shouldn't be them." Myrcella shook her head calmly. "You forgot that they are not on the same path as us."

"But the roads may intersect and overlap." Li Yin replied cautiously.

"What on earth is that?" Myrcella grinned coldly. "Let's just go and take a look."

She turned around and looked at the female dark elves. Li Yin saw that each of them had a similar expression, a look of confidence mixed with excitement and curiosity. Although they were occasionally afraid, it was rare.

Li Yin's forehead was slightly sweaty. He almost forgot. Unlike him, a human slave on the surface who was always worried and frightened, these dark elves in front of him were one of the most powerful races in the underground world. They despised and feared the races around them, and were keen on invading and conquering, rather than fearing and avoiding.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Li Yin couldn't help but nodded.

"However," he said cautiously, "our actions should still be kept secret, and we should try our best not to be discovered by those unknown guys first."

No dark elves objected to this. Secrecy and cunning were the dark elves' style. However, no dark elves agreed. They just automatically ignored Li Yin's words.

Are you kidding? As for keeping the secret, why would they, the dark elves, need a lowly human slave to interfere?

So, "under Li Yin's order", the third advance team lowered their bodies, lowered their footsteps, and quickly ran towards the source of the continuous sharp metal collision sounds.

Chapter 134 Reunion

After running in the dark for more than ten minutes, Li Yin and others approached the place where the sound came from.

A huge cave. Inside the cave, the first thing that came into view was a group of dark elves wearing armor and holding swords. They gathered in the center of the cave, forming a dense formation, with their swords and crossbows pointing outward.

Outside the formation of the dark elves, at the edge of the cave, in the direction pointed by the dark elves' weapons, there were seven or eight burly figures as tall as two people running around the dark elves at high speed, jumping back and forth. Those huge figures were covered with thick shells on their backs, and their oval and wide backs made them look like giant beetles. However, they did not move like beetles crawling, but used their bent and thick lower limbs to stand. Their lower limbs ended with bird-like claws, and every jump left deep scratches on the hard rock surface. As for their upper limbs, they were as strong as their lower limbs, and their forearms were almost invisible. Instead, they had a pair of long and thick bone claws that were comparable to the front claws of giant cave crabs.

"Boom" - a monster's short and thick lower limbs suddenly exerted force, rose from the ground, and pounced towards the dark elves in the center.

Its huge hook-shaped front claw collided with the fine gold sword of a dark elf, making a sharp clang sound. Li Yin and others immediately understood that the sharp metal collision sound they had just heard was caused by this. After the collision, the huge hook claw was not damaged at all. Instead, the dark elf's sword flew out of his hand under the huge pressure, and his chest was pierced by the hook claw. Then the huge monster retreated, and the long claws pulled and raised, and the dark elf's body was pulled out of the formation by the hook claw and lifted into the air. With a shrill scream, a splash of blood rain was sprinkled in the air.

As the giant monster howled frantically and turned around to continue running around the dark elves' formation looking for flaws, Li Yin saw its short and thick neck and vulture-like head from the side.

The Devil's Claws - This is a wild monster that is notorious in the underground world. They are named after the long bone claws at the end of their arms. With their strong arm strength, those hard claws can easily crush rocks and pierce through people's bodies.

The thick carapaces behind them made them difficult to deal with despite their terrifying destructive power. According to Turner's memory, even the finely forged gold blades of the dark elves could hardly penetrate the carapaces directly. The only way to cause substantial damage to them was to find the gaps in their carapaces. In a tense and fierce battle, it was extremely difficult to find the tiny flaws and insert the sword into them in an instant.

Li Yin turned his head and glanced at his "subordinates" behind him. Seeing this tricky monster, even the dark elves who were excited about facing the unknown danger just now couldn't help but show a trace of caution on their faces.

He turned around quickly and looked at the dark elves in the field again.

"Not one of ours." Behind him, Myrcella said calmly.

Li Yin was stunned at first, as if he didn't understand what Mircella said, but then he nodded, agreeing with her judgment.

Although he was not as familiar with the dark elves of the Borgia family as Myrcella, he noticed a special fact when Myrcella spoke:

Among the dark elf warriors who were all wearing helmets and armor, there was a strange scene - a figure who was not wearing armor, but wearing a dark blue robe. Around her figure, a faint blue arcane light flickered.

Li Yin was very familiar with that spell - a first-level protective magic: Mage Armor.

And that elf was more familiar to Li Yin - her light bangs and long hair fluttered slightly in the airflow caused by the battle, and her pair of violet eyes were wide open under her silver-white hair, revealing a sharpness and coldness that Li Yin felt had not seen for a long time.

She gave a light shout and raised her white hand. A beam of dark green light shot out like an arrow towards the terrifying claw monster that had just attacked.

With a "pop", the magic arrow hit the body of the Deinoclaw monster, but the power of the arcane seemed unable to overcome the thick armor on its body. Instead, it broke into a ball under the violent impact and spread green on the Deinoclaw monster's shell.

The claw monster, covered in the green magical substance, jumped a few steps without any slack, but then it suddenly let out a shrill wail.

Second-ring conjuration magic: strong acid arrow.

It seems that the acid has completely corroded the thick shell of the Devil's Claw and is eroding its flesh and blood.

Seeing this, Li Yin jumped out of the tunnel in one step, leaped up, and landed on the broad back of the Devil's claw monster with the amazing jumping ability of the ghoul. He grabbed the cockscomb-like crown on the Devil's bald head with one hand to maintain balance, and with the other hand, he held the sword upside down and stabbed it into the center of the green acid.

With a swoosh, the sword went straight into the hilt. The Devil's Claw continued to jump forward a few steps, each step weaker and shakier than the previous one. Before its huge body fell down, Li Yin jumped again, jumped off its back, and returned to the ground.

"Attack!" He waved his hand toward the soldiers of the third advance team in the tunnel behind him and gave the order without thinking.

"What?" In the tunnel, Myrcella and a group of dark elf soldiers gritted their teeth, expressions of disbelief appearing on their faces.

What an idiot! This was the unanimous thought in their minds at the moment.

The Horrorclaws were a threat, but there was no need for them to immediately help the Dark Elf army. Wouldn't it be more appropriate to remain hidden, let both sides suffer losses, and then clean up the mess?

Moreover - Myrcella and the other dark elves thought angrily, it was this idiot himself who said he wanted to remain hidden!

It's true what I said, humans are really stupid creatures with poor brains!

Although they angrily condemned their stupid "leader" in their hearts, the dark elves had no other choice. Now that their whereabouts had been exposed, if they continued to watch the fire from the other side, it would be a clear sign of hostility - and this was not the style of the dark elves. In contrast, even if they really had to resort to stabbing, they would prefer to use friendly assistance to make these guys relax, and then stab them in the back when they were not paying attention.

So, at Mircella's command, all the soldiers of the Third Advance Team rushed out of the tunnel, drew their bows and swords, and joined the battle.

In the center of the cave, the troops of the Dinitya family were shocked to see the large number of soldiers suddenly appearing. Especially Du Feiya, when she saw the familiar figure suddenly jump out of the darkness, jump onto the back of the Devil's claw, and take down the Devil's claw with her strong acid arrow. Her lips, which were chanting the spell, froze, and the next spell she was preparing almost exploded out of control.

As soon as Li Yin landed, he did not stop. He stretched out his legs and rushed towards another Devil's Claw that was running towards him, but at the moment when the two were about to touch, he lowered his body, aimed at the opponent's right leg and tripped it to the ground with a sliding tackle. Just as he jumped up and prepared to deal with the Devil's Claw that fell to the ground, he caught the cold light of several crossbow arrows aimed at him.

Only then did he realize the racial habits of the dark elves, and he shouted loudly: "Don't worry, we are friendly forces." At the same time, he jumped onto the back of the terror claw monster, carefully looking for the gap between its shells, and stabbed it with a sword.

"Keng!" The monster rolled and flapped, and Li Yin's sword missed the gap and pierced its hard and smooth shell, then slid away, bringing out a string of sparks in the violent collision.

He sprang up and jumped back from the monster's back before he was crushed by it.

He pointed the tip of his sword forward, bent his knees slightly, and watched the monster, which was as tall as two people, stagger to its feet, guarding against its next attack.

"Whoosh" - a sharp sound suddenly passed by Li Yin's ears. Before he could turn around to check where the sound came from, he saw a flash of magical light on the ground in front of him where the Devil Claw was, and then with a plop, the Devil Claw that had just stood up fell down in a dim yellow oil light, splashing a pool of oil as high as a person.

"Attack the Devil's Claw with all your strength." Then, Du Feiya's clear and majestic voice of command came from behind him.

Then, he heard another sharp sound and a slight burning sensation. A bright ray passed over his shoulder and landed in the oil. The next moment, a blazing fire ignited on the body of the Horror Claw. Along with a burst of inhumane wailing, the smell of burnt meat began to fill the noses of the hungry dark elves...

With the addition of the Borginia family's troops, the battle ended quickly under the pincer attack. A few minutes later, Li Yin officially met Du Feiya again surrounded by many dark elves and slave soldiers.

"The son of the witch of the Borgia family," Dufia's pretty face showed her usual cool but distant cold smile, "We meet again."

Her expression made it difficult for Li Yin to connect her with the girl in the alley who looked sincere and even a little reserved and shy. In an instant, he felt as if he was in another world.

But he knew very well that this was a necessary disguise for the other party to survive.

He bowed and greeted her politely, "Your Excellency Princess Dufiya, it is my honor to leave a trace in your memory."

Du Feiya nodded slightly to show that she accepted his greeting, and then smiled slightly and said:

"The Denitya family is very grateful for your enthusiastic assistance, but let me ask you out of curiosity, why are you here? And why is it that only you, the son of the witch, are standing here, and not your master?"

"Princess Cassia is still somewhere else," Li Yin answered honestly, "We are the advance team she sent to explore the route."

As he spoke, he pretended to casually glance at the troops of the Denitya family out of the corner of his eye, only to see that the dark elf soldiers were looking at him and the soldiers behind him with strange expressions, with suspicion and fear mixed in with a hint of obvious confusion.

The soldiers were talking to each other in whispers, and Li Yin could vaguely hear words like "lurker", "signpost", and "tampering" from their mouths.

Oh no, he thought to himself, it seems that these dark elves seem to have encountered the same difficulties as they had encountered before - not only did the marks not match the map, but they were also constantly changing, and now they seemed to attribute the reason to the sudden appearance of their group.

He raised his head and looked at Du Feiya, hoping that she wouldn't think that way.

Du Feiya nodded, but her expression remained calm and composed.

"I see," she said with a smile, "It seems that Princess Cassia and we have a special connection, and she is also in this maze right now?"

"Who is the leader of your advance team?" As she said this, her violet eyes pretended to look back past Li Yin.

Misella was well aware of Li Yin's predicament. Cassia sent her here to help him deal with this situation. She stepped forward, looked at Du Feiya, bowed slightly, and at the same time stretched out her hand and pointed at Li Yin: "He is standing in front of you, Your Highness."

A look of surprise suddenly appeared on Du Feiya's snow-white face.