Please be my partner.

The old man was stunned, thought for a moment, and shook his head.

"Like This."

Just when Mellen was feeling a little disappointed, he heard Old Linn add, "However, the hunters in the village have been to many places and are knowledgeable. Perhaps he would know."

Mellen nodded, took note of the information, and continued, "Do you know where there's a castle nearby?"

As soon as these words were spoken, it seemed as if something had been touched upon. Old Linn stood up suddenly, his eyes became sharp, his hand grasped on the dagger, and he released the aura of a veteran soldier who had experienced many battles, as if he could launch an attack at any time.

He stared at Mellen intently and asked word by word, "Who are you?! What's your purpose in coming here?!"

Mellen didn't understand why Old Lynn suddenly reacted so strongly, but he didn't want to lose this clue, so he immediately spread his hands to indicate that he meant no harm, and then said, "I am indeed a traveler from afar. As for my purpose, I'm sorry, I can't say it clearly for now. I can only assure you that I have no ill intentions."

Old Lynn stared at Mellen for a long time before gradually calming down.

Chapter 131 Brave Team

After what happened just now, no matter what Mellen asked, Old Lynn would no longer answer, and he could only shut up helplessly.

Although it felt a bit like a waste to waste an entire night like this, he couldn't do anything now that he had no information, so he could only close his eyes and rest, just treating it as going through the 'plot'.

When the sun rises, it also means the arrival of the sixth day.

After saying goodbye to Old Lynn, Mellen went to look for the hunters in the village. On the way, he saw that the villagers had gotten up early to work.

Snow White's dark fairy tale is obviously different from the Giant Kingdom. The people here are not eroded by the black air, so they still use their normal schedules, and it will not have any impact on them during the day.

When the villagers saw Mellen, they all looked a little curious. It was obvious that few outsiders came to this village.

When Melen found the hunter, the latter was already dressed and ready to go out hunting. He was a little wary when he saw Melen.

Melen said straight to the point, "Hello, Mr. Hunter. My name is Melen. I'm a traveler from afar. I'm looking for something called the Water of the Spirit Lake. Have you heard of it? If you have, and are willing to take me there, I can pay you."

"Water from the Spirit Lake?"

The hunter paused for a moment and said, "If you're looking for the Spirit Lake, I once encountered it deep in the forest when I was young. It was not only shrouded in thick fog, but also guarded by ferocious beasts. I almost lost my life there."

Mellen nodded, thinking this dungeon was fairly straightforward, so he said, "The beasts aren't a problem. What kind of payment do I need to make in order for you to take me there? Is gold coins ok?"

He still has a lot of gold coins on him now, and if the problem can be solved with money, things will be much simpler.

The hunter looked at Melen deeply, thought for a moment, and then said with a firm mind, "Actually, I've always wanted to hunt the beast that guards Spirit Lake, but I never felt ready."

"Perhaps, now is the time to make up your mind. If you are willing to help me, I can lead the way for you."

"But before that, I need to test your skills. If you are strong enough, we can go directly, but if you are average, we need to make some preparations first."

Mellen had a strange look on his face, and he felt more and more that this dark fairy tale was like a series of tasks, like connecting the main line to the branch line.

He nodded and said, "Okay, where do we do the test?"

The hunter said, "This is fine."

As he finished speaking, the space around them suddenly became hazy. Only the circle centered on where the two of them were standing was clear, as if shrouded in an invisible cover.

Melen looked outside and saw that the villagers seemed to be frozen in time, not moving at all.

The hunter reminded: "Let's start!"

Then the hunter blew a whistle, and two hounds half a man's height appeared beside him, while he himself took out a bow and arrow and prepared to shoot.

Melen smiled and said, "What a coincidence, I have a dog too."

"Woof!~"

Spike emerged from the Azure Ring and let out a menacing roar.

The hunter and the two hounds froze in unison.

The ensuing battle was a foregone conclusion, with Spike winning easily.

Through this battle, Melen also got to know the hunter's strength. The latter was only about level one, and the two hounds he summoned were close to level one.

When the battle was over and everything around them returned to normal, the hunter exclaimed, "Your hounds are amazing! Looks like we can set off right away without making any special preparations."

Mellen smiled slightly and asked, "What should I call you, Mr. Hunter?"

The hunter said calmly, "I don't have a name, just call me Hunter."

Then, the two set off into the depths of the forest.

On the way, the two chatted and got to know each other a little better. Melen took the opportunity to ask, "Mr. Hunter, do you know if there is a castle nearby?"

The hunter was slightly startled, and looked at Mellen suspiciously, and asked, "You want to go to the castle? Is it for the treasure in the castle?"

Melen was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said, "No, I have another purpose for looking for the castle."

The hunter looked at Mellen deeply and said, "Whatever your purpose is, I advise you not to go. There is indeed a castle nearby, but it has been occupied by a terrifying monster. All those who went there to search for treasure have died without exception."

Melen asked, "Is there a treasure in the castle?"

The hunter shrugged and said, "Who knows? Many people say there's treasure in the castle, but Old Lynn says there's nothing there except monsters."

"Old Lynn said?" Mellen blinked in confusion.

The hunter explained, "The castle originally belonged to our king. Later, something happened and the castle was occupied by a group of terrible monsters. The guards also fled..."

He hesitated, then added, "Old Lynn is one of them."

Mellen nodded suddenly, and he finally understood why old Lynn reacted so strongly when he asked about the castle yesterday.

Old Lynn probably mistook him for one of those treasure hunters.

The hunter said, "If you want to know about the castle, you should ask Old Lynn."

Mellen nodded and asked no more questions.

The two men moved very quickly. Melen, needless to say, had a second-level physical fitness level, while the hunter had been in the forest for many years and had already formed an instinct.

Occasionally, when encountering some prey, hunters have no intention of hunting them. They basically scare them away or simply bypass them.

According to hunters, once you have determined your hunting target, you should not be distracted by other things.

Along the way, the hunter hardly stopped except to occasionally determine the direction.

Three hours later, the two passed through a thick fog area and saw a small lake in the distance. The water in the lake was extremely clear and looked like a mirror.

A red beast, nearly three meters tall and six meters long, was lying there and sleeping soundly by the lake.

The hunter was eager to try and whispered, "Brother Mellen, wait a moment. I'll go set the trap first. Later we just need to..."

Mellen interrupted directly: "Mr. Hunter, there is no need to go to such lengths."

Spike jumped out again, waking the red beast with a roar, and then rushed forward.

This time, Little Red Lotus also came out of the [Blue Ring] and squatted obediently at Mellen's feet to support Spike.

Currently, Spike's racial strength has reached the limit of the second level, and he needs to go through more high-intensity battles to break through his own bottleneck and advance to the third level.

The dog, eager to fight, faced the beast, whose sleep was disturbed and who was in a bad mood. Without any hesitation, both sides started to bite and pounce fiercely.

The strength of this red beast is equivalent to that of a third-order extraordinary life form, but it seems that apart from its high physical strength, it does not have any special abilities.

Spike used all his explosive skills, and with the help of the [Fighting Formation], the two fought evenly, and he was even gradually gaining the upper hand.

This left the hunter stunned.

The hunters' original plan was that if Melen was weak, they would first go to the north of the forest to look for a herb that could weaken the red beast's strength. The round trip would take at least a day.

If Melen is stronger, you can skip this step and just cooperate with the traps he sets to complete the hunt.

But he never expected that Melen was so strong that he didn't need his help at all.

The red beast's skin and flesh were even thicker than Melen had imagined. The battle lasted for nearly twenty minutes before Spike gained a decisive advantage by weakening his opponent and enhancing his own abilities, and knocked it to the ground with one claw.

Just as Spike was about to kill the red beast, a faint voice suddenly rang out: "Please... please don't... hurt the fur ball."

Melen looked in the direction of the sound and saw a palm-sized water-blue elf standing on the lake.

This elf looks similar to the flower fairy in fairy tales, but it has no wings.

Mellen asked, "Who are you?"

The elf said timidly, in a tone that seemed to be about to cry: "My name is Undine, and I am an elf from the Spirit Lake. You bad guys, please don't hurt Maoqiu."

Melen and the hunter looked at each other.

The hunter was the first to spread his hands. His desire to hunt was actually just the obsession of his youth. It didn't matter to him whether he killed the red beast or not.

What's more, he had no involvement in this hunt, so according to the rules, he had no right to deal with the prey.

Melen didn't care at all, his only goal was the water from the Spirit Lake.

He took a few steps forward and came to the lake. Undine was so scared that she stepped back repeatedly, as if she had met a big devil.

After scooping up some lake water, he immediately got the message "ordinary lake water." Realizing that this wasn't going to work, Melen looked at Undine and asked, "Undine, I can let Maoqiu go, but I want you to give me some Spirit Lake water."

Wendini said doubtfully, "You can take the water from the Spirit Lake if you want."

Melen shook his head and said, "Ordinary spiritual lake water won't do. I need something with special effects, like... the ability to wake up a sleeping person!"

Undine's face turned pale and she cried out, "How...how did you know...No, I can't give it to you!"

Melen heard that there was indeed a chance, and asked, "Why can't you give it to me?"

Undine pursed her lips tightly and stopped talking. Instead, she looked at the ball of fur with an apologetic and sad look, as if she felt guilty for not being able to save it.

Seeing this, Maoqiu suddenly struggled, looking as if he was ready to fight to the death with these bad guys.

Melen thought for a moment and suddenly said, "Actually, I came here under the guidance of the Magic Mirror. It told me that in order to awaken Snow White, I need the water from the Spirit Lake."

Undine's eyes widened as she asked in surprise, "Did the [Magic Mirror] guide you here?! Really? How can you prove it?"

Melen took out the broken magic mirror from the Azure Ring. Undine immediately believed it and sobbed, "Are you the warrior who came to save Snow White? I'm so glad!"

Then, he said a little embarrassedly: "Sorry, I just thought..."

Melen smiled and said, "That's fine. You can give me the real Spirit Lake water this time."

Undine nodded repeatedly, then quickly dived into the lake. After a moment, she returned, holding a thumb-sized crystal bottle in her hands, with a drop of crystal liquid in it.

After Melen took it, he saw its properties...

[Water of the Spirit Lake]: It is condensed from the Spirit Lake crystals collected by the Spirit Lake elf Undine and can purify negative states.

Wendini said, "It takes me a long time to collect even a single drop of this [Spirit Lake Water], which possesses special properties. Currently, this is the only drop left."

Mellen nodded to show that he understood.

Just as he was about to leave, Undine hesitated and said, "Sir Brave, since you are going to save Snow White, please take me and Maoqiu with you."

"The dwarfs have gone crazy because of Snow White's deep sleep. Although Maoqiu is no match for them, he should be able to hold one of them back for a short period of time."

"I...I can treat you."

Melen looked at Maoqiu and agreed with this statement when he thought about how difficult the latter had been in previous battles.

I was a little surprised that Undine volunteered to follow, after all, this elf looked very timid.

Before he could reply, the hunter stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "I can't pretend I didn't hear your previous conversation. Snow White's beauty and kindness are still fresh in my memory. Since we are going to save her, please let me do my part!"

Melen looked at the hunter and said helplessly, "Well, Mr. Hunter, the dwarves are all very powerful..."

Although he didn't finish speaking, his meaning was clearly expressed.

Faced with the questioning, the hunter was not annoyed. Instead, he said, "I am a hunter. What I am really good at is setting various traps. Mr. Mellen, I am well aware of the strength of the dwarves. But as long as you give me enough time to prepare, it will not be a problem to hold one of them back in a short time."

Melen was stunned, wondering if he had just heard similar words.

Then, the hunter continued, "I think we can also invite Old Lin to join us. Although he's quite old, he's very strong. Moreover, he has said more than once that he hopes to recapture the king's castle, even if it means dying in battle."

"More importantly, he is familiar with the terrain of the castle and can guide us."

At this time, Undine also added, "I know there's a magician living in seclusion in Tieshan Town. He's very interested in the [Magic Mirror]. If I let him study the [Magic Mirror] in exchange, maybe I can ask him for help. The magician not only has many interesting props, but also knows amazing magic tricks."

Melen had previously thought that Undine was just casually calling him a hero, but in just a short time, a team of heroes was assembled to rescue the princess?!

And it is a fully equipped team with tanks, healers, output and control.

The key point is that although this team is not very strong, each member seems to have a unique skill.

At this moment, Melen had a deeper understanding of what Pinocchio had said before: "Every fairy tale has a perfect ending."

Chapter 132 Castle and Plan