Chapter 168

First, there is the dampness.

The extremely rich water vapor in the sewer, driven slightly by the temperature difference between inside and outside, turned into tangible, turbid dewdrops.

Seeping out from the air, they condensed on the surface of the metal ladder covered with rust and moss.

Just a light touch, and one's hand would be full of copper-green and rust-red.

Then, there is the acid-rotten, fishy stench permeating the air.

The all-around strengthening of physical fitness gave Xia Nan full and abundant stamina, meticulous observation ability, balanced and flexible body control...

He enjoyed the convenience brought by these increases in physical attributes.

But correspondingly, at certain times, he also needed to bear some indescribable side effects arising from this.

Just like the sound of bed-rocking coming from the end of the hotel corridor, three or four rooms away, when resting late at night;

Or after just enjoying a "big meal", the bristles on the surface of the compound eyes and chelicerae of tiny insects covered in food residue moving.

As his chest rose and fell slowly, air surged into his nasal cavity with his breathing.

Xia Nan could clearly smell the slightly sour, greasy, rotten, and spoiled foul odor in the sewer.

It caused the appetite that was originally squirming and growing in his stomach to drop suddenly.

Speaking of which, he had just ordered a few dishes at the 【Iron Barrel Toad】 and hadn't had time to taste them before being pulled out by Wood.

He didn't know if the cream mushroom soup at this tavern was delicious or if it tasted as good as the one at the White Tit.

Finally, there is the suddenly quiet air around.

As if arriving in another world, following the ladder down into the sewer, even though the manhole above was still open, the noise that originally filled his ears but went unnoticed all disappeared.

Only the sound of rushing water, echoing leisurely and never stopping in the pipe gallery, remained.

Looking up, his pitch-black eyes reflected the bright manhole.

At this moment, Xia Nan only felt like a drowning person falling into the deep sea.

His body was gradually swallowed by darkness and dampness.

Suddenly, a glimmer of dark red light flashed before his eyes.

His gaze subconsciously followed it, and what came into view was a small cluster of strange moss parasitic in the wall cracks, spreading and growing outward.

It had a dark red texture and felt hard, with tiny particles on the surface that emitted a metallic luster like crystals.

"Iron Scab Moss."

His feet landed on the ground, and the rough, deliberately lowered voice of Tie Tou in the sewer reached his ears.

"A type of plant common in the Niumu city sewer."

"After grinding the dark red crystal particles on its surface and applying them to a wound, it has the effect of stopping bleeding and accelerating healing."

"But if used for a long time, it may cause skin erosion and leave dark red scars where the wound heals."

Seeing that Xia Nan seemed interested in information in this regard, the bald, burly man sandwiched in the middle of the team shared his knowledge about this plant quite tactfully.

"It is said that many years ago, an alchemist passing through Niumu tried to use Iron Scab Moss as the main material to make cheap healing potions."

"They say it was later mass-produced and was well-received by nearby adventurers due to its low price."

"But it might have been the influence of the side effects of the Iron Scab Moss inside; many adventurers who drank this healing potion for a long time developed symptoms of internal organ crystallization and wound gangrene, and many people died."

"Later, this kind of potion was banned by the association, and that alchemist who made a fortune from it also disappeared without a trace."

Listening to the anecdotes introduced by the other party, although Xia Nan's expression remained unchanged, he felt it was interesting in his heart.

He never expected that this unknown little plant he accidentally encountered on the road would have such a story.

"Don't play any tricks, lead the way!"

In contrast, Wood, the rogue who was the first to come down from above, acted very seriously.

It might be that he was already accustomed to his own guard work, and also out of distrust for gang thugs like Tie Tou.

After checking that there were no traps or ambushes nearby and that it was safe for the time being.

He shouted coldly, ordering the bald man to go ahead and lead the way.

"Coming, sir, don't be in a hurry, I'll lead the way for you right now."

Unlike his arrogant behavior in front of ordinary residents and underlings, Tie Tou, under the gaze of two professionals, was like a new apprentice in a blacksmith shop, showing an exceptionally submissive, flexible, and resilient contrast.

He had no complaints about Wood's scolding, and even the smile that looked a bit stiff at first became much more natural; he nodded and bowed, taking small steps forward to guide the way for the two.

Truly entering the sewer, gradually swallowing his body, the cold, deep darkness, and the pressure slowly condensing in the silent air also made Xia Nan feel as if he had returned to the Mist Forest and entered an adventure state.

His body muscles tightened, and while concentrating his mind to guard against possible dangers around him, he prepared for battle.

Fortunately, although he had never adventured in this kind of environment, and the Niumu sewer was far larger than the sewers of ordinary towns.

But compared to the situation in the Mist Forest where he had to be careful of every bush by his feet and keep his mind highly concentrated.

The Niumu sewer was slightly easier.

Both sides were hard walls covered with moss, and even if there was danger, it mostly came from the dark depths of the pipe gallery in front or behind, which was easy to distinguish.

As for the huge pipe channel on the side that should have been flowing with wastewater, perhaps because their location had already been abandoned, only the remaining dirty, dried-up bottom remained, reflecting the sound of water flowing from afar.

The environment inside the sewer was very complex, like a huge underground palace built by some intelligent creature living underground.

Fork after fork, corner after corner.

And because of those monotonous, similar walls that looked no different at a glance, and could only be vaguely distinguished by the different distribution of moss and the ladders that occasionally dropped down.

If an ordinary person entered here, I'm afraid they would be completely lost after walking just two sections forward, and could only rely on luck and survival instinct to find a way out.

Even for the current Xia Nan, if he wanted to distinguish his location and find a way out, he would probably have to stand in place, think carefully, and replay the path he came from based on the memory in his mind.

And at the same time, at the front of the team, Tie Tou, who was leading the way under Wood's surveillance, performed with ease.

It was as if he had returned home; he didn't know what he was relying on to distinguish the direction, but he didn't stop along the way, just kept walking.

If it weren't for the fact that as time passed, the traces of human life gradually increased in the corners of the walls on both sides, along with the graffiti of grey badgers on the walls, confirming to Xia Nan that they were indeed approaching the core base of the Grey Badger Gang.

He would even think that the other party was deliberately leading them astray just to delay time.

It was only at this moment that Xia Nan finally understood the reason why Wood acted so cautiously.

In this kind of hellhole, if this bald man really ran away.

Even if the other party's straight-line speed was likely not as good as the two professionals, they could shake the two off by just taking a few turns in the sewer.

Having lost the "guide", even if Xia Nan and Wood managed to escape from the sewer, they would probably have to wander around for a while.

On the other hand, it could be considered fortunate.

Along the way, the few people walking in the dimly lit underground pipes did not encounter any danger.

Let alone ferocious and dangerous magic beasts, they couldn't even see a single creature taller than their knees.

The most common things were just a few long-haired rats darting from the darkness and some unknown flying insects emitting a foul odor.

Instead, it was as if Xia Nan and his group had disturbed this underground world, appearing exceptionally quiet and safe...

"Roar!!!"

A high-pitched and eerie beast roar came from the far distance of the corridor.

It echoed constantly between the walls; the distant distance made the originally high-pitched and fierce roar become somewhat distorted, carrying a bit of desolation.

It sounded exceptionally creepy.

It almost gave Xia Nan a start.

He couldn't help but look back.

What came into view was only a deep darkness that couldn't be seen to the bottom.

Clearly, they had just walked through it a few minutes ago, but after being swallowed by the darkness, it carried a bit of unfamiliarity again.

"Don't pay too much attention, sir."

Regarding this, Tie Tou showed an expression of being accustomed to it and explained.

"The Niumu sewer is very complex, its area is even larger than the entire slum, and it has been built for so many years, so there's a little bit of everything... this is very normal."

"Magic beasts and the like certainly exist, but even if the city's church and officials send knights and priests down to clean it up every year, they can't clean it up at all."

"For us... at least for an ordinary person like me, it's very dangerous."

"Fortunately, the few sections of the road we are walking on are ones that the brothers in the gang have already explored; under normal circumstances, it is relatively safe."

Speaking of this, the strong, bald, burly man seemed to suddenly think of something and shrank back.

"Although this is not something I should say in my position, two sirs, I still have to give a reminder."

"If there is no one who knows the way to lead, for the sake of safety, it is best not to enter the sewer."

"I have several friends in the gang who never came back because they accidentally took the wrong fork in the road."

Xia Nan didn't know why the other party would give such advice under the current situation where their relationship wasn't exactly friendly.

But seeing that Wood did not refute this, nor did he urge the other party to focus on leading the way as he did just now, as if he tacitly approved of the correctness of Tie Tou's words.

He also secretly kept the information revealed by the other party in his heart, just waiting to use it when needed in the future.

He didn't know how much more time had passed.

An hour, or maybe two hours.

Or perhaps it was just because the journey was too monotonous that he felt time had been stretched.

As the graffiti of badgers on the walls on both sides increased, the three finally arrived at their destination:

——The underground lair of the Grey Badger Gang.

"Lan Ya, Lan Ya!"

"Niao Hu, come out!"

"That's strange, where are these kids? Did they sneak out to drink again? That shouldn't be, weren't they punished by the boss a while ago? Are they that bold?"

Tie Tou scratched his head, somewhat puzzled; in front of him was a simple little tent set up in the corner of the pipe gallery.

The tent curtain was open, revealing a few rolled-up blankets inside.

The charred firewood in the brazier in front was still glowing with sparks, burning out wisps of white smoke in the damp and cold air of the sewer, clearly having just been extinguished not long ago.

Although it was just a medium-sized gang in the West District, and all the members added up to not many people.

But at least it was a force that "properly" controlled several streets, and there were still people guarding the entrance and exit of its core territory.

As a small leader in the Grey Badger Gang, Tie Tou naturally knew "Lan Ya" and "Niao Hu", who were responsible for guarding today.

It was just unexpected that his two little brothers were so bold that they dared to leave their posts without authorization even after being reprimanded by the gang leader just a few days ago.

"I'll settle the score with them when I come back. Two sirs, it's just a short walk further."

The Grey Badger Gang was not a military organization; the bottom-level members were all idle people and thugs in the city who didn't learn anything.

Things like this were perfectly normal.

And the core base of the Grey Badger Gang itself was located in a hidden position deep in the sewer, and very few outsiders could walk here by themselves.

Tie Tou didn't think much of it.

He just shouted a few times toward the surroundings, and seeing no response, he was about to continue leading Xia Nan and the other toward the depths.

But perhaps his voice was too loud, or maybe it was some other reason.

Accompanied by the echo of Tie Tou's rough voice circling and dissipating, a series of tiny, strange sounds suddenly came from the darkness deep in the pipe gallery ahead.

It was like raindrops falling densely on the water surface, with messy and rapid tiny footsteps approaching at high speed.

Two scarlet glimmers suddenly emerged from the darkness, and as its body darted, they swayed up and down; one could vaguely see the blurry outline of its wet fur swaying in the air.

Swish——

An iron-grey sword light flashed through the air suddenly.

Xia Nan, whose perception attribute had been strengthened due to his professional promotion, reacted almost at the same time as Wood, who was a rogue.

The longsword was already unsheathed, set off by the cold light of the short dagger in front.

He gripped the sword hilt tightly with both hands, his pitch-black eyes staring forward.

"Squeak!"

A sharp, ear-piercing shriek broke the original silence in the pipe air.

Its long, fleshy tail left zigzagging traces on the dust-covered ground; its originally grey-black, damp fur looked even dirtier because of the sludge in the sewer, and a pair of incisors protruding from its upper jaw emitted a hard luster under the refraction of the dim light.

This was a giant rat that was nearly the height of a normal person's lower leg when crawling, and about two meters long including its tail!

Its speed was extremely fast.

When its figure appeared completely in the field of vision of the few, Xia Nan and the others had already entered the attack range of this rat.

Its short, sturdy, and powerful legs suddenly exerted force, and the swollen, tightened muscles allowed it to burst out with strong explosive power that did not match its bloated body.

In the blink of an eye, it had leaped into mid-air, and the two sharp incisors were about to pierce toward the fresh blood-food in front of it.

It was just that, extremely abruptly.

Halfway through the grey-skinned rat's upward leap, even though it hadn't reached the highest point it should have touched.

In the air, it was as if an invisible big hand had appeared.

Grabbing its ugly, hairless long tail...

And pulling hard!

"Chila!"

A sluggish sound of a sharp blade piercing through flesh and blood suddenly rang out in the quiet pipe gallery.

Blood spurted out from the wound.

Twitching and convulsing, its four short legs struggled and swayed in the air, and there was a shrill, painful wail in its mouth.

A sturdy longsword with an iron-grey, streamlined design had already pierced through its chest.

Without deliberately exerting force, nor needing to adjust the angle.

Just by lifting the sword tip slightly and controlling gravity.

This grey-skinned rat, which had just treated everyone in front of it as delicious food, was like being attracted by the blade, actively crashing into it.

It sacrificed its life.

(End of chapter)