"Hoo hoo hoo..." Old Liu held his bronze coin sword, warily eyeing his surroundings, his breath ragged. A cold sweat had broken out on his forehead, and several gaping wounds, deep enough to see bone, marred his body.
He had already realized that this invisible monster was treating him like a plaything, engaging in a cat-and-mouse game.
The other "Sha" creatures had already fled, terrified of Number One's strength. They hadn't even taken the human corpses with them, leaving them behind, gnawed beyond recognition.
"It's here!" Old Liu's heart tightened, and his bronze coin sword instinctively moved to block his left side.
"Clang!" The sword and blade clashed. Number One's attack failed, and it vanished again.
Old Liu slightly flexed his numb wrist, his gaze fixed on his surroundings without a hint of carelessness. Through multiple exchanges, he had discovered some patterns in Number One's attacks – it alternated attacking from his left and right sides. Of course, only Number One truly knew if this pattern was reliable.
Fang Ming watched the exchange between the human and the "Sha" from the shadows, his admiration for this "Old Liu" growing. Such a talent, if recruited, would be of great assistance in his future explorations.
However, he also knew that people like Old Liu, accustomed to being leaders, would be difficult for others to direct. They possessed a high degree of pride.
Sensing that the test was nearly complete, Fang Ming slowly emerged from the shadows.
"Number One, stop." Fang Ming's voice attracted Old Liu's attention. Seeing this familiar "human," Old Liu's heart skipped a beat. Had both monsters he had offended below ascended?
"Hehe, got it." Number One retreated, standing to Fang Ming's right. The reason it was on the right was that Nannan was on the left.
"Are you working together?" Old Liu eyed Fang Ming warily, gripping his bronze coin sword in a reverse grip, adopting a defensive posture.
Fang Ming smiled and didn't answer the question. Instead, he said, "With your strength, you can't possibly leave this place, but I can lead you out."
Old Liu sneered, "Would monsters be so kind?"
"First, let me emphasize, I am human. Due to certain reasons, my arm has become like this." Fang Ming extended a tentacle, its black scales reflecting a cold light. "Second, I have no grievance with you. It was you who attacked me as soon as we met. I never initiated an attack on you."
Old Liu frowned, thinking. It seemed... that was indeed the case? No, that invisible monster had attacked them first!
"The 'Number One' you speak of killed many of my brothers. Isn't that initiating an attack?" Old Liu scoffed, maintaining skepticism about Fang Ming's claim of being human.
"Number One was not my companion at first. We formed a temporary alliance to jointly kill the behemoth, our sole purpose being to escape the eighteenth floor. If you are willing, you can temporarily join us," Fang Ming explained.
Seeing Old Liu's lack of willingness, Fang Ming added, "Even if I harbored ill intentions towards you, at most, I would kill you. How much worse could that be than your current situation?"
Old Liu didn't retort this time. He simply stared intently at Fang Ming's expression, his mind in turmoil. He knew Fang Ming was right; if Fang Ming had malicious intentions, it wouldn't be much worse than his current predicament.
Should he take the gamble?
After a while, Old Liu slowly spoke, "There are many powerful monsters in this labyrinth. You and that invisible monster absolutely cannot get out. What makes you so confident that you can lead me away?"
Old Liu was wavering, but he wanted to see Fang Ming's capability to lead him out.
Fang Ming smiled inwardly. This fellow was truly cautious, but it was precisely this kind of personality that would help him survive in more dangerous places in the future!
"Nannan, can you sense the 'Sha' creatures around?" Fang Ming turned to Nannan. Her strength was greater, and she should have a sense of the surrounding "Sha" creatures.
"Yes, I can," Nannan nodded.
"Find the strongest one within your sensing range and demonstrate your strength to this person. But don't pick one that's too dangerous; choose one you can handle," Fang Ming said.
"Mhm, mhm." Nannan nodded again, closed her eyes, and after a moment, "Follow me."
With that, Nannan led the way in one direction. Fang Ming quickly followed, calling out to Old Liu, "Follow us. I'll show you the confidence we have in leading you out."
Old Liu hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and followed. He wanted to see what these monsters were up to.
A few minutes later, they stopped on a wide road. Compared to the other paths in the labyrinth, this one was more than twice as wide.
At the end of the road, a colossal "Sha" creature was sprawled on the ground, dozing. It resembled a python but with an enormous head, its mouth occupying nearly half of its head. Its underside was covered in dense tentacles, and its tail split into three massive human arms. Each palm on the outer two arms had a closed eye, while the palm on the middle arm bore a mouth full of fangs.
Old Liu: "..."
"What do you want to do?" Old Liu swallowed and asked in a low voice.
"Isn't it obvious? We're going to take it down," Fang Ming said, spreading his hands.
"Are you kidding me? One of its eyeballs is bigger than both of us combined. How can we fight it?" Old Liu became agitated. Was this person so ignorant of the immensity of the situation? This monster, at a rough estimate, was a hundred meters long. How could a few of them possibly fight it?
"Number One, go test it first," Fang Ming ignored Old Liu and had Number One test the waters. This creature looked massive, but it was likely only a half-"Sha," comparable to the four-armed monster that emerged from the fusion in White Wood Village.
Of course, if Fang Ming were alone, he would have fled without a second thought, never daring to confront a creature of this caliber. As Old Liu said, one of this half-"Sha's" eyes was bigger than them; killing them would be as easy as stepping on an ant.
"No problem!" Number One's eyes lit up as it looked at the behemoth in the distance. "Wow, how powerful would I become if I devoured it?"
"Let Mona Lisa. Francila take care of it!" Number One swaggered towards the half-"Sha," "Begin the music!"
The surrounding "Yuanzi" creatures began to hum and sing, displaying a fearless demeanor that chilled Old Liu to the bone.
Were these guys all reckless fools? Was an invisible, sneak-attacking creature being so high-profile courting death?
"Let's escape quickly. This monster is beyond our human capabilities. Unless we bomb it with missiles, there's no way to defeat a creature of this level!" Old Liu tried to pull Fang Ming away.
"Let go of Fang Ming!" Before Fang Ming could speak, Nannan spoke first, her eyes coldly fixed on Old Liu.
Old Liu's spine tingled under Nannan's gaze. A fear that emanated from his very core made him tremblingly release his grip on Fang Ming's clothes.
"Nannan," Fang Ming called out.
"Fang Ming, I'm here!" Nannan immediately changed to a cute expression, replying with a sweet smile.
"Don't be so fierce to friends, what if you scare him?" Fang Ming patted Nannan's head. Nannan didn't resist.
"Mhm, I understand." Nannan nodded.
"Who... who is she?" Old Liu, echoing Number One's earlier mistake, kept a distance from Nannan, his eyes filled with fear as he looked at her. He had initially thought this little girl was just an ordinary human but never expected her to so easily evoke such a feeling from him!
He was so foolish, truly. He should have known that no one in this building was ordinary. He had overlooked the threat posed by this seemingly harmless little girl. How could a harmless little girl appear in such a place?
"She's the daughter of a friend of mine. Quite cute, isn't she?" Fang Ming said with a smile, his eyes full of pride.
Old Liu's mouth twitched. He had no choice but to force himself to agree, "Indeed... indeed very cute, haha."
While they were conversing, Number One had already begun its attack.
This python-"Sha" never imagined that its sector's elder would be ambushed one day. Completely unprepared, Number One pierced its eye through the eyelid. The sudden pain instantly awakened it.
"Roar!" Its massive body suddenly reared up, green blood flowing from its left eye. "Who dares to ambush me!"
"Of course, it's me, your master!" Number One's arrogant voice echoed from above it. "Continue the music, continue the fight."
The surrounding "Yuanzi" creatures sang even more enthusiastically.
"It's you, Number One!" The python-"Sha" actually recognized Number One, which momentarily stunned it. How had it become so famous?
"You know me?" Number One asked, puzzled.
"Hmph! I don't know you, but your ability is a weakened version of hers. I could guess it immediately," the python-"Sha" said disdainfully. "I didn't expect you to dare to ascend from below. Truly fearless."
"Her?" Number One's pupils constricted as if it had suddenly remembered something. "She's still alive?"
"Whether she's alive or not, I don't know. But you will die here today!" the python-"Sha" coldly snorted, and a terrifying surge of malevolent energy erupted from its body. Small snakes of malevolent energy condensed and crawled all over it, searching for Number One.
"You can't find me," Number One boasted. "Even if you find me, you can't attack me."
"You still don't know your weakness, do you, Number One?" the python-"Sha" sneered. The snakes of malevolent energy on its body began indiscriminately spitting waves of energy into the surroundings.
Number One's position was soon engulfed by this malevolent energy, but it wasn't worried. This energy, theoretically, wasn't harmful.
"Found you!" the python-"Sha" suddenly roared. The skin beneath Number One suddenly split open, and a snake's head shot out, lunging at Number One.
Number One was shocked and quickly counterattacked with its sword, attempting to sever the snake's head. However, a half-"Sha" was still a half-"Sha." It couldn't be directly confronted. As soon as it made contact, its arm holding the sword was bitten by the snake's head, and Number One's true form was revealed in that instant!
Fang Ming, watching from afar, was also surprised. Had Number One's weakness been discovered?
Fang Ming had noticed Number One's weakness as soon as he encountered it. Although it could become completely invisible, the moment it attacked, the blade that made contact with the target would briefly reveal its form. It was only for an instant, but it was a fatal flaw that exposed its true nature. If Number One hadn't been quick enough back then, Fang Ming could have easily defeated it.
"Nannan, go save that guy."
"Okay, Fang Ming," Nannan nodded cutely, and in a blink, vanished from Fang Ming's side.