Chapter 22 Reluctant Choice

Just when Iris and her companions found themselves in a dilemma, they were unaware that their every move was already fully observed by Jane. At this moment, Jane was sitting on the throne, seemingly resting with his eyes closed. In reality, Jane had connected his mind with the entire dungeon, making no secret hidden from him.

"Twenty serpent men, fifteen Tiflings, and eight vampires... Hmm, they all seem to have the strength of elite ranks. That one named Iris must be a high-level mage, I didn't expect to find such a young high-level mage. But it's hard to say..."

Jane lightly tapped his fingers, a slight smile curving at the corner of his mouth.

"Then, let's start a grand party."

In the end, the patrol team decided to move forward. The stone wall blocking their retreat was too thick, and even Iris was not confident she could handle it. Of course, as a high-level mage, if Iris exerted her full power, a mere wall would naturally be nothing. But then there was the question of whether they would all be buried underneath it as a consequence.

Therefore, they had no choice but to continue forward with gritted teeth. However, their mood was no longer as relaxed as at the beginning. The magic-driven traps were too bizarre, activating without any signs, and even the seasoned thieves couldn't detect the secrets of these traps, let alone know where the trap zones were. Thus, with every step, they took extreme caution, raising their vigilance to the highest level, fearing the traps might suddenly activate and fall upon them—that would be truly unfortunate.

Now, they could only hope to find some clues or the hiding place of an enemy sooner rather than later. At least that way, they would have a clear objective and not be completely in the dark about what to do next.

Unfortunately, things did not go as they wished.

"Damn it, we've been walking for almost an hour!!"

The serpent man captain clenched his long sword, his face ashen. If it weren't for the concern of traps possibly being everywhere, he might have already jumped up in anger. They had been following this path for so long, yet they found nothing but tunnels, winding and turning without any clue. If this continued, he felt he might go mad!

Hearing this, Iris also frowned slightly. Unlike the serpent man captain, she noticed another anomaly—the stone slabs laid on the ground along their path were all of the same pattern, which indicated there should be man-made structures nearby. But after walking for so long, aside from the traps that had been activated earlier, Iris saw no other signs of man-made structures.

What was going on?

Of course, Iris didn't understand that this was one of the main features of Jane's dungeon system—only land "flattened" by goblins would be officially recognized as part of the dungeon. Once recognized by the system, the dungeon area could draw magical power from the earth for the dungeon master's use. Therefore, the larger the dungeon area and the wider the influence, the higher the magic power limit Jane could have, the faster the recovery rate, and the broader the exploration range.

This abnormal development meant that although Jane's dungeon occupied land the size of a surface royal palace, in reality, he used less than one-tenth of it, which was why Iris miscalculated.

Moreover, what made Iris feel uneasy was that the patrol team members were becoming increasingly impatient. It was no wonder, after walking for so long and finding nothing, while also having to be vigilant against traps that might activate at any moment, the elite members from the Black Onyx City felt extremely frustrated. Many of them had faced the three major powers of the underworld face-to-face for the sake of Black Onyx City. When had they ever encountered such a situation?

If there was a clear enemy, it would be one thing, but now they couldn't find the enemy or the traps, leaving them with nowhere to vent their strength, making these elites almost explode with anger!

While these elites were cautiously moving forward, Jane was also controlling his summoned creatures, silently crawling in the dark tunnel crevices, vigilantly watching the prey ahead.

"I didn't expect these guys to be so tough."

Watching the complete formation of the Black Onyx City patrol team, Jane found it somewhat tricky. He also noticed the agitated atmosphere among the patrol team. However, Jane hadn't expected that, despite their irritation, they still acted methodically and were very vigilant. There wasn't a situation where they had a big argument due to disagreements and then split up—if that had happened, it would have been much easier for Jane to deal with.

But now it was different. The other side had a high-level mage, and the others were not easy to deal with either. Aliens are good at stabbing in the back, not so strong in frontal combat—but that wasn't a problem. The alien's special ability, [Self-evolution], means it can gain the advantages of any race by absorbing enough of their genetic material. As long as Jane could control the alien to defeat enough enemies, it could evolve into a Mega Blastoise!

Something seems off?

Never mind, now is not the time to worry about such details.

With that thought, Jane shook his head, casting aside the sudden thought that had popped into his mind, and continued to watch the prey ahead.

The next moment was crucial.

The patrol team stopped.

It wasn't because there were no more passages ahead. On the contrary, three dark entrances were waiting ahead for some unwary entrants.

"Hey, you half-breeds, what's the situation?"

The serpent man captain glared, watching the Tifling scouting ahead.

"Which way should we go?"

"How should I know, idiot... I'm looking...!!"

The Tifling was also troubled, even ignoring the serpent man captain's sarcastic remarks. It was obvious to anyone that among the three paths ahead, only one was safe, and the other two were definitely traps leading to a dead end. But now, how to choose became a big problem for everyone.

"Can't you even see that? We should follow the path with traces of underground lizards, right?"

"Do you think I don't know that, idiot?!!"

Hearing the serpent man captain's continuous mockery, the Tifling finally couldn't help jumping up and roaring.

"The problem is, there are traces of underground lizards moving through all three entrances now. Can you tell which path we can take?!!"

Seeing things going south, Iris had no choice but to step forward and mediate.

"Can we determine it based on the weight and time of the traces...?"

"That's what I was thinking, Miss."

Hearing Iris speak, the Tifling's previously pale face from anger now looked somewhat better. But soon, he helplessly spread his hands.

"But according to our scouting just now, the enemy has evenly divided their underground lizard team into three groups, each entering a different entrance. Based on the weight traces, there's no sign of changing goods..."

With things having reached this point, Iris was out of options.

"Anyway, we have to choose a path, and I decide to go left!!"

The serpent man captain swung his long sword angrily, then stared at Iris.

"Either all these paths lead to that damn bastard's place, or only one is the way out. Either way, we have to try!"

"I don't think there's any need to rush."

Facing the serpent man captain's words, Iris, unusually, showed a serious expression and waved her hand.

"Everyone is very anxious now. If something happens at this juncture, our situation will only get worse." Saying this, Iris frowned, and her slightly timid face unexpectedly showed a hint of majestic aura.

"I suggest we each send one person, three people as a group, to scout each tunnel. That's the best approach."

Hearing this, both the serpent man captain and the Tifling were stunned, but then they looked at Iris with more respect.

Indeed, Iris's suggestion sounded quite cruel, clearly sending people to probe for traps, knowing some might not return. But this was what a military-disciplined team should do. They were not adventurers risking their lives for money but soldiers and guards protecting Black Onyx City. For them, sacrificing their lives to protect their hometown was not a difficult decision.

Iris's attitude had been somewhat ambiguous before, causing others to have some doubts about her. Now, hearing her propose such a suggestion, they regarded her more highly. Indeed, their most important task was to find out where the Black Onyx City trade convoy had gone. That was the priority!

"I agree with Miss's opinion!"

"I also agree."

Soon, both the serpent man captain and the Tifling agreed with Iris's suggestion, and they quickly selected their guards to enter the three tunnels.

Seeing this scene, Jane also showed a smile.

Now, it was time for him to make a move!