The Cornflower Witch Chapter 167

“Spiders? Or cave spiders?” Karl calmly analyzed.

Spiders are a large group, and cave spiders are among the larger ones, some even preying on birds.

After Yarn blocked the first attack, Hylial quickly aimed and shot, the bowstring trembling, and a black arrow struck the spider’s abdomen, piercing into it.

Then, the captain, ‘Bad Apple,’ silently and swiftly approached from the side and rear. He held a dagger, its blade glowing faintly with concealment, and directly slashed a half-meter-long incision into the spider’s abdomen. Yellow-green fluid sprayed out, filling the air with a sour, pungent smell.

Soon, the ferocious spider stopped struggling and fell to the ground, dead.

Seeing this situation, Karl, who had originally intended to intervene, saved his spellcasting materials and went to inspect the scene.

Bad Apple caressed his new dagger with a pained expression, muttering, “Sigh, I was careless. I shouldn’t have used this new dagger against bugs. I should have known these guys’ bodily fluids are corrosive.”

His newly forged and beloved dagger was exceptionally handy but also caused him much heartache.

Yarn could only pat his head, suppressing the urge to laugh. His shield, however, was fine; the minor scratches were common in almost every battle. He would only seek a blacksmith for maintenance when they accumulated excessively.

Hylial also stepped forward, covering her nose as she observed the dead spider.

It was about 1.5 meters wide, covered in erect white bristles, likely organs for sound dampening and sensation. Its two pairs of chelicerae were black, with serrated inner edges, looking somewhat frightening.

“Only the chelicerae and forelegs have some value; the rest is useless,” Karl said, standing up after his inspection.

“Ultimately, spiders are a type of moth. Individually, they are relatively weak, and generally not a match for other creatures of the same rank. They rely on ambush, venom, and group combat.”

“If we hadn’t spotted it and it had ambushed us, there indeed might have been casualties. But since we found it, we won’t give it another chance.”

“Chelicerae and forelegs, then? I’ll chop them off and take them.” Yarn nodded, pulling out an axe from his saddlebag and cutting off the useful parts of the spider.

[Spider Chelicerae] (Tier 2 Mist Shadow): Chelicerae containing venom, with certain penetrating power. Due to the original owner’s death, the venom is gradually becoming inactive, and the quality is decreasing. (Current: Good)

After collecting the spoils, everyone set out again, only to encamp at the base of a rock face in the mountains by evening.

Tonight, Hylial prepared roasted potatoes, vegetable mushroom soup, and meat-filled flatbread for everyone.

After eating their fill, everyone sat around the campfire resting, Hylial also seized the opportunity to take a half-hour nap.

ωwш TTκan ￠ ○

In the evening, Bad Apple took out a map, verified the day’s route, planned their future itinerary, and then arranged the watch rotation.

“Lia, go to sleep first. You just need to wake up at five tomorrow.” The twilight hours before dawn are actually the safest time. Creatures that attack at night won’t wait that late, and creatures active during the day won’t be out that early.

After the arrangements were made, everyone took on their respective duties, some cleaning their equipment, others chatting about the day’s events.

“How far did we travel today?” Yarn asked, sounding a bit sleepy.

“Approximately 30 li in a straight line. If we account for the actual winding path, it’s probably over 80 li.”

“It’s impossible to walk in a straight line in the mountains. We can only slowly find our way. This misty mountain range is rarely visited by students. The map I have was compiled and drawn by a senior a few decades ago, and as for where he got it from, he probably synthesized it from the maps and notes of his predecessors,” Bad Apple grumbled.

“I estimate that some students tried a few years ago, but found it difficult and dangerous early on, so they quickly withdrew.”

“This time, if Hylial wasn’t with us, I would have led you all back too.” The visual perception was too severely compressed, making it difficult to assess danger. Exploring in such conditions was a gamble with their lives.

“The map records that there should be many white venomous snakes here, but all we’ve encountered so far are ordinary ones, not the kind that condense their **Aspect** as described.”

“Perhaps Hylial led us to avoid them beforehand.” As they spoke, they looked at the young girl resting against a tree nearby.

“Never mind, we’ll just have to ask her tomorrow.” The group was quite tolerant of Hylial, being the youngest.

After a night of rotating watches, Hylial was awoken in the early morning, slowly getting up from her sleeping bag in the tent.

“Good morning~” she purred like a kitten, still a little sleepy.

After washing up, Hylial quickly became wide awake and prepared a simple breakfast for everyone. After finishing their porridge and flatbread, the group continued their journey deeper into the mountains.

During this day, they encountered fewer cave spiders, but other troublesome monsters appeared.

“Be careful!”

An arrow whistled through the air, piercing a black shadow that attacked mid-flight, bringing down a strange bat. Before Hylial could string another arrow, more bats surged out of the mist, attacking the group.

A strange sonic web spread, and everyone felt a dizzying nausea, their ears seemingly deaf, followed by a muddled mind and spinning vision.

Bad Apple, who had been darting swiftly with his dagger, was now interrupted. He clutched his head and slowed his steps. Yarn held up his shield, his body tense, but his consciousness was already blurry, dizzy from the intense sonic waves. Karl, behind him, also clutched his chest, feeling his heart ache from the sonic vibrations, unable to cast abilities.

Hylial, in the back, was also not doing well. She could barely resist the dizzying sonic attack, relying on the ‘Moonlight Breath Method’.

This time, the fight had barely begun, and they were already on the verge of complete defeat.

[Sonic Bat] (Tier 1 Nightmare): Weak in itself, but can emit strange dizzying sonic waves. When in groups, many Tier 2 creatures have to flee.

About thirty or so sonic bats attacked them, continuously emitting violent sonic vibrations that made the people below sway precariously.

Fortunately, these bats were not inherently strong, so they couldn’t launch a fatal surprise attack while the group was weakened.

However, this situation couldn’t last much longer.

Suppressing his splitting headache, Karl raised his hand and summoned the phantom black cat he controlled.

“Meow—” As soon as the black cat appeared, it scanned its surroundings and let out a long cry, then began to act.

Its semi-corporeal body darted back and forth through the air, its sharp claws constantly tearing at the bats’ wings and biting the struggling enemies to death.

Just like that, with the help of the black cat, all thirty-odd sonic bats that had flown in fell to the ground dead. Only then did everyone gradually recover.

“Now I have to lament our good luck,” Bad Apple summarized as he tidied the battleground.

“If it weren’t for the Ash-Wrought Fruit we found last time, which helped Karl upgrade the black cat’s tier, we would have probably fallen here this time.” He concluded with lingering fear.

That day, they traveled another 73 li, until they finally rested for the night.

Originally, they had considered retreating, but thinking that they had already covered two-thirds of the journey, giving up now would be a shame. So, after some discussion, they decided to press on.

“Let’s try going deeper tomorrow. If we can find that stone gate, I’ll just steal the spring water myself, so you all don’t have to go through it.”

The one who stood to benefit most from finding the Stone Mist Spring was Captain Bad Apple, so he didn’t want so many of his members to risk their lives for him.

“Now’s not the time for such talk,” Yarn said, patting his shoulder.

“I’m counting on you to help me get the ‘Stone Mist Spring’ water this time, and then you can help me with my promotion trial next time.”

“If we team members don’t help each other, are we supposed to pay strangers to trust them instead?”

“Come on, tomorrow we’ll continue to climb the mountain.” After saying this, Yarn went back to setting up camp.

Sitting not far away, Karl watched this scene with a chuckle, yet also a hint of warmth.

He had actually served with several other teams in the past. Although everyone respected him, there was often an invisible barrier between them, making it difficult to fully trust each other.

When did it begin, that he no longer considered changing teams? The young wizard apprentice fell into a reverie.