Chapter 157 - 155: Very Simple and Straightforward

Chapter 157: Chapter 155: Very Simple and Straightforward

After a brief battle, the wolf pack was eliminated by the Hunters’ combined efforts.

The group trudged through the thick snow, continuing deeper into the forest.

Along the way, they encountered a few more bizarre-looking Pollution Bodies, but none were very large and were easily dispatched.

"There are traces of a campsite up ahead!" a Hunter with excellent eyesight called out, running forward. He crouched to inspect the ground, then beckoned to the others behind him.

The group gathered around.

The snow was thinner in this area, and the ground held the dying embers of a fire. Several pine trees lay toppled nearby, the cuts on their trunks perfectly smooth, as if severed by a tool.

"Look, there’s a stainless steel cup here too," another Hunter said, picking it up from the snow.

Su Yuqing took the cup from him and examined it closely. "This must have been left by the expedition team," he said. "They must have rested here."

Xu Yiming glanced around. "Why don’t we rest here for a bit, too?" he suggested.

"Good idea." Su Yuqing nodded and looked toward Feng Ling. "We’ve been in the Maze for an hour now. We should take a short break."

"Sure," Feng Ling agreed.

The temperature was frigid. An ordinary person would have been frozen through after walking for an hour. Even for Hunters like them, enduring the bitter cold was exhausting.

So, the group stopped to rest and reorganize.

The thick, fallen trunks served as makeshift benches, and their branches were chopped for kindling. A bonfire was lit, and as it grew, the pine resin in the wood released a distinct, fresh scent.

The warmth improved everyone’s spirits.

Xu Yiming stretched his slightly stiff fingers, warming them by the fire as he observed Feng Ling’s group.

"Old Su, what’s the deal with Feng Ling?" Xu Yiming couldn’t help but ask Su Yuqing. "It’s been over an hour, and I haven’t seen her lift a finger."

Su Yuqing paused. "But she has, hasn’t she? Her two pet Pollution Beasts have been helping out the whole time."

Xu Yiming was a little speechless. "I meant *her*."

Su Yuqing chuckled. "Ah, I get it. You want to see what the number one Hunter on the rankings looks like in action."

Xu Yiming laughed too, glancing at the nearby Hunters. "Who wouldn’t? I bet everyone here wants to witness the top-ranked Hunter’s prowess. Don’t you?"

Su Yuqing glanced at Feng Ling. "Unless we run into a particularly dangerous situation, I doubt she’ll step in personally. Her ability transforms her upper body, and that’s probably not very convenient while she’s wearing all this thick cold-weather gear."

"Ah, so that’s it," Xu Yiming said, then couldn’t help asking, "What about the two people with her? Why haven’t they done anything either?"

Su Yuqing knew Huangfu Miaomiao, but this was the first time he had met Li Qing. He guessed this was the Maze Administrator that Feng Ling had mentioned on her phone. Still, with so many people around, it wouldn’t be appropriate to ask directly, so he just replied, "Why don’t you ask her yourself?"

"Huh?" Xu Yiming’s eyes widened. "...Is that really okay?"

"It’s fine, go on," Su Yuqing said with a smile. "Don’t worry, she’s easy to get along with. You don’t need to beat around the bush with her. If you have a question, just ask."

Xu Yiming still hesitated. A man in his mid-thirties striking up a conversation with a young woman like that... it just felt a little awkward.

Besides, asking her directly why she hadn’t fought would have the subtext of accusing her of slacking off.

While he hesitated, a few of the female Hunters in the group had already struck up a conversation with Feng Ling.

"Your Pet is so cool! Can I pet it?"

"Yeah, can we pet it?"

Xu Yiming was instantly filled with regret. ’Why didn’t I think of starting with the Pet topic? Look at them, their approach is so natural!’

Feng Ling smiled. "You can pet the black one, but he’s a little prickly."

The Cat Spider looked utterly bewildered as it was petted all over by a group of women.

One female Hunter said, "The moment I see any other Pollution Body, I just want to kill it. But this one is so cute!"

"I know, right? He’s so well-behaved, like a black cat I used to have," another female Hunter added. "Does he meow?"

Feng Ling thought for a moment, then said to the Cat Cat Spider, "How about you make a few sounds for them?"

Cat Spider: "HISS HISS HISS~"

"Haha! That’s hilarious! He sounds like a cat with a bad cold."

A few more people joined the cat-petting crowd, taking the opportunity to chat with Feng Ling.

"Is your Card Ability taming Pollution Bodies?" someone asked.

Feng Ling replied, "It’s a little different. It’s more geared toward cultivation. I can use a Card to cultivate new species. This one, for example, was cultivated from a Spider Card and the corpse of a kitten."

Someone immediately gasped in amazement. "Wow, if you cultivated a few more, you wouldn’t even have to fight yourself. That’s so cool!"

Feng Ling laughed. "I can cultivate one more at most. Keeping these two is already enough of a headache. The first thing I have to do when I wake up every day is figure out how to feed them."

"What do they eat?"

"Meat," she said. "Any fresh flesh and blood."

"...Do they eat people?"

Feng Ling thought of the decapitated Xiao Zhiwen and answered hesitantly, "They do. But I don’t let them, so they don’t make a habit of it."

The few hands petting the cat silently drew back.

Seeing that the atmosphere was right, Xu Yiming raised his voice and called over to Feng Ling, "Feng Ling, this area is pretty big. You have experience clearing Mazes. In your opinion, which way should we head next?"

Feng Ling thought for a moment before saying, "My friend’s Card Ability is Divination. I’ll have him do a reading."

She turned to Li Qing. "Daoist, use those beads of yours to divine which direction we should head next."

Li Qing, suddenly put on the spot, blinked. "...What do you want me to look for? The safe direction, or the dangerous one?"

Without a moment’s hesitation, Feng Ling said, "The dangerous one. Our mission is to clear out Pollution Bodies. The more dangerous a direction is, the more Pollution Bodies there will be."

She looked at the others, seeking their opinions in a very democratic fashion. "The more dangerous, the better, right?"

"Right, um... yes. We should head toward the danger..."

The Hunters replied, their expressions a little complicated.

The logic was sound, so why did it feel so strange to hear it said aloud?

Su Yuqing silently shot Xu Yiming a look that said, ’See? I wasn’t wrong, was I? She’s very straightforward.’

Xu Yiming gave a silent nod in return.

Li Qing, ever more considerate than Feng Ling, said in a gentle tone, "Since the goal is to clear out Pollution Bodies, I’ll just divine which direction has the most of them."

He took out his string of beads, detached three of them, and tossed them into the air, performing a Divination to find the direction with the most Pollution Bodies.

Seeing this, Xu Yiming announced, "Alright, let’s rest for another ten minutes, then we’ll set off to clear out the Pollution Bodies. Sound good?"

There were no objections.

Although they were all reluctant to leave the warmth of the bonfire, the mission was more important. The sooner they wiped out the Pollution Bodies, the sooner they could leave the Maze.

Feng Ling sat by the bonfire, lost in thought for a moment before leaning toward Li Qing and asking in a low voice, "With the Maze this damaged... do you think that thing still exists?"