Luckiest Person (Chapter 79)
ヽ(.>д<).
No way! No way! No way!
'I can't be this unlucky, right?'
Ye Sheng, refusing to believe in bad luck, took a few steps forward and shone her torch on the door, closely examining the raven carved on it. It was indeed identical to the emblem on the Black Spring Freemasonry's identity token.
It was simply an enlarged version.
At this point, all hopes of it being a coincidence were dashed. Ye Sheng couldn't help but sigh.
She had a fateful connection with the Black Spring Freemasonry.
Here they were again.
And compared to last time when she was ambushed halfway, this time she had directly found their lair.
Built underground in the wilderness, even if it wasn't the main base of the Freemasonry, it was certainly an important branch. There must be dangers waiting for her behind this door.
(? _? )
Just her luck!
Now, turning back wasn't an option either, as there was a raging worm chasing her!
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Ye Sheng gritted her teeth and decided to move forward. Finding the Black Spring Freemasonry's hideout meant there must be a passage to the surface, and she might be able to catch a 'ride' back!
If she could save a double-point draw, she would brave even the most dangerous places!
Ye Sheng knew that in previous crises, she used the double-point draw, though it cost her organs and soul, it allowed her to immediately recover equipment and repay the points.
However...
If she retreated back through the tunnel the Berserk worm dug, even if she managed to escape its attack, it would not be easy to return to the surface.
She would definitely need to perform another double-point draw.
Assuming she safely made it back to the surface, and the Berserk worm stopped attacking, where could she recover weapons to exchange for points?
Energy stones were rare and could be ruled out...
Although she had a two-week grace period, who could guarantee she'd be able to gather enough?
Touching Xiaodongxi only required 1,000 points to draw, which was more economical than the double-point draw, but the regular draw was really like a blind box; the items she got were random.
The double-point draw, on the other hand, was more targeted.
It was excellent for dealing with immediate crises.
However, most of the items Ye Sheng got from the double-point draws were disposable or time-limited, like daily use items.
Both types of draws had their pros and cons.
If Ye Sheng had a lot of points, she could be a gambler.
See how her luck was with the blind box.
But in reality, Ye Sheng was broke; she didn't have points to gamble.
Instead, she was always in debt, using points to save her life!
The emergency points she had saved up over the past few days were just used up, and now another draw would mean mortgaging her organs... It was nerve-wracking!
o(╥﹏╥)o
Now, going forward means bravely entering the Black Spring Freemasonry's hideout, and going back means being in debt and uncertain if she can safely return. The choice is clear!
It had to be the former.
Thinking positively, maybe she could even loot the Black Spring Freemasonry...
She might be the only one daring enough to sharpen her knives and head straight into their base.
After comforting herself, Ye Sheng felt a lot better. She then took out her invisibility cloak from the lottery space, which had just finished its cooldown, and was ready to use it again.
Ye Sheng quickly put on the invisibility cloak and immediately activated the invisibility state for safety. She then raised her hand and forcefully pushed the large door until there was a gap wide enough for her to slip through. After waiting for a few seconds to ensure there was no danger, she quickly sneaked in.
Compared to the desolate underground cave outside, the environment inside was much better. The main passage was wide enough to accommodate five or six people walking side by side. The walls were neatly smoothed out, and touching them felt incredibly smooth, showing the care taken in constructing this place.
Torches hung around the walls for lighting, providing a dim illumination that made it possible to navigate without stumbling in the dark.
Ye Sheng couldn't help but compare this to the porcupine rat's burrow, realizing that humans, with their ability to use tools, truly had the upper hand.
After some idle thoughts to push back her fear, Ye Sheng continued down the main passage. Soon, numerous smaller passages branched off from the main one, hundreds in total, without any signs or guides, causing Ye Sheng some distress.
She wanted to keep going down the main passage, but it came to an abrupt end with a solid wall blocking the way. The path to the surface must be hidden in one of these side passages.
With so many paths and her invisibility cloak's effectiveness limited, Ye Sheng couldn't explore them all before the cloak wore off. Resigned, she randomly picked a passage, hoping her luck would guide her to the right one.
As she proceeded down the chosen path, Ye Sheng 'luckily' encountered other people. Startled, she quickly pressed against the wall, her heart was pounding. She was glad she hadn't tried to save on her cloak's invisibility time, as she would have been exposed to danger.
"Black Raven Squad Three did well this time, capturing so many!"
"Yeah, among all the squads, they stood out. Unlike Black Raven Squad Seven, who failed their ambush and got killed... If not for the quick response from the archbishop, our mole in the base might have been exposed."
"Shh, don't talk about that stuff carelessly."
"Hehe, all these captured mercenaries are unconscious, not a single one awake. What are we afraid of? I'm only talking about it in our own territory, it's not like anyone else is here!"
Two men in black robes chatted and laughed as they walked out of the passage. Ye Sheng, eavesdropping from the side, couldn't help but smirk.
(?? ?? )σ
Sorry about that!
She had heard everything.
And, unsurprisingly, the Black Raven Squad Seven was probably the group she had taken out.
Fortunately, the side passages weren't as wide as the main one but still allowed three burly men to walk side by side. As Ye Sheng hugged the wall, the two robed men passed without noticing her.
Once the robed men were gone, Ye Sheng pondered for a moment. Instead of following them, she continued deeper into the passage.
Soon, the passage widened, ending in a small underground cavern where she saw the unconscious mercenaries the robed men had mentioned.
These burly mercenaries were tied up like pigs, with their hands and feet bound. There were at least a hundred of them, packed tightly in the small cavern, making Ye Sheng feel suffocated just looking at them.
It was like a sardine can.
The mercenaries wore different uniforms, indicating various groups. After a quick scan, Ye Sheng spotted members of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group.
Though Ah Mu, Lan Zhang, and the others had escaped, the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group had more members on other missions. Thinking of the generous rewards the vice leader had promised, Ye Sheng rubbed her chin, her dark eyes lighting up. She thought another big job wouldn't be bad... But for now, escaping was the priority, not rescuing people for money.
However, she couldn't explore all the passages alone. She needed to wake these mercenaries as allies.
This way, they could help explore the routes and defend against dangers, ensuring safety!
Even if the Black Spring Freemasonry had confiscated their weapons, their strong physiques alone could be useful in a fight.
Much better than her own skinny frame.
But how to wake them up?
Ye Sheng decided to start by rescuing members of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group, as their quality was assured. She found one member lying on the outskirts and, after some effort, dragged him to a hidden corner.
The torches on the walls didn't reach this spot, so Ye Sheng felt safe deactivating the invisibility and revealing herself. If she woke the mercenary suddenly and wasn't visible, it could cause unnecessary trouble. After all, she hadn't heard of any research on invisibility cloaks at the base.
After propping the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group member against the wall, Ye Sheng lifted his eyelids. His pupils were dilated, and his breathing was irregular, indicating he was in a deep coma.
This was a problem.
Ye Sheng thought about what tools she had that might help but found nothing useful. She tried the classic method of pinching the philtrum (the area below the nose) hard, but even when she pinched hard enough to break the skin, the man didn't wake up.
Refusing to give up, she considered another, more drastic approach. Her eyes drifted to the lower part of the man's body. Cough, if a man’s "little brother" was hurt, the pain would be intense...
With no other options, Ye Sheng clasped her hands together in apology and then stood up, preparing to kick.
The infamous "crushing kick" made its debut!
However, even injuring the man's private parts didn't wake him. It only made his face contort in pain, causing Ye Sheng to awkwardly rub her nose. Having been a man herself once, she knew how excruciating that pain could be.
Just then, Ye Sheng noticed something odd in the mercenary's ear. Perhaps the pain from her kick caused the unconscious mercenary to curl up, exposing his left ear. There, she saw a white, wriggling object, seemingly trying to burrow deeper.
Ye Sheng quickly pulled out a worn but still usable glove from her bag. Even with the glove on, she was hesitant to touch the creature, fearing it might bite through. She instead unwrapped some roasted rat meat from her bag.
Using the meat as bait, she waved it near the mercenary’s ear. The wriggling creature inside reacted, emerging from the ear and leaping onto the meat, latching on tightly.
Watching the scene, Ye Sheng felt disgusted and wanted to kill the thing immediately. However, before she could act, the previously unconscious mercenary began to stir. His eyelids fluttered, and the next moment, he opened his eyes.
"Ah, it hurts!" The mercenary's voice was weak from pain, particularly due to the injury Ye Sheng had inflicted on him. He curled up on the ground, looking like a shrimp, making Ye Sheng feel a pang of guilt.
Desperate times called for desperate measures.
She quickly explained, "Shh, keep it down. You've been captured by the Black Spring Freemasonry and being held here. There are patrols that come by frequently."
The mercenary, despite his pain, managed to suppress his reaction. He straightened up, wincing, and looked at Ye Sheng with sharp, piercing eyes. "Who are you?"
"Just someone passing through."
"..."
After a brief pause, Ye Sheng explained her presence, detailing how she had been unlucky enough to be chased by a berserk earthworm and stumbled upon the Black Spring Freemasonry's hideout. She kept some details vague, not wanting to reveal too much, but she did mention her acquaintance with the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group, emphasizing her connection with their vice leader, Xu Li, and members like Ah Mu, Zhang.
She provided enough detailed information, including a hand crossbow given to her by the vice leader as proof, to convince the man of her sincerity.
Seeing that Ye Sheng was an ally, the man's demeanor softened, though he still struggled to smile due to the pain. "I'm Meng Chi, a squad leader sent by the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group to assist with the base's hunting. We were ambushed by the black-robed men and knocked out after being captured."
He smiled bitterly, unable to believe they had escaped the polluted creatures only to be caught by humans—specifically, the notorious Black Spring Freemasonry.
"When I found you all, you were in a deep coma. I found this in your ear." Ye Sheng showed Meng Chi the white worm still attached to the piece of meat. Meng Chi's brows furrowed as he recognized it. "That's a soul-stealing worm. Its saliva can induce a coma. It likes the smell of meat and won't let go easily!"
"Ah, this!" Ye Sheng was taken aback by the strange creature. She realized the Black Spring Freemasonry had no regard for human life, inserting these worms into people’s ears. If the worm decided to stop biting the ear canal and burrow deeper instead...
It could end up eating their brains!
Meng Chi took the barbecue meat, and then shook the dried meat vigorously, but the white worm still clung tightly. Finally, he stomped it to death with the sole of his shoe.
When Ye Sheng thought about the worms in the ears of the other mercenaries, she shuddered. Then, she detailed the situation outside the passageway to Meng Chi, making him aware of the current circumstances.
"This is the lair of the Black Spring Freemasonry. It's hard to escape with just a few people; we must wake up the other mercenaries."
After hearing this, Meng Chi agreed with Ye Sheng's decision.
Then, Ye Sheng took another piece of barbecue meat from her bag, and the two began luring the soul-stealing worms out of the mercenaries' ears, successfully waking up one unconscious mercenary after another.
During this time, Meng Chi noticed that after waking up, the other mercenaries were only somewhat weakened. None of them were injured as badly as him, which filled Meng Chi with anger and a determination for revenge against the Black Spring Freemasonry.
Unaware that the Black Spring Freemasonry had been wrongly blamed, Ye Sheng paused after waking up a dozen mercenaries and distributed the barbecue meat from her bag to the awakened mercenaries, asking them to help.
Soon, all the mercenaries in the small cave were awake. Being well-trained, they didn't cause a commotion but instead quietly discussed how to escape.
Compared to the inexperienced Ye Sheng, the mercenaries had much more experience.
Meng Chi temporarily took the lead and sent out a dozen agile mercenaries to explore the other passages, looking for one that led to the surface.
Ye Sheng was puzzled, thinking that with so many passages, a dozen people weren't nearly enough.
While waiting in the cave, Ye Sheng quietly asked, "Meng Chi, there are at least dozens, maybe even hundreds of passages. Are a dozen people enough?"
"They are observant mercenaries who can find clues by observing the traces in the passages. They also have good hearing, allowing them to avoid patrolling black-robed men."
"I see."
Ye Sheng understood. It was like hunters tracking the signs left by beasts to determine where they had gone. The mercenaries were tracking the people of the Black Spring Freemasonry, figuring out their movements.
It was much better than checking each passage one by one, relying on luck as Ye Sheng would have done.
The mercenaries sent out soon returned, reporting their findings.
"The first passage on the left leads to a food storage area, guarded."
"The fifth passage on the left leads to a storage room for daily supplies, unguarded."
"The eleventh passage on the left leads to a bathroom, unguarded."
Starting with the left passages, they skipped the unused ones, making the process efficient.
Despite the many passages, most were unused.
The last person reported, "The twenty-third passage on the right is heavily guarded with thirty guards. The situation inside is unclear."
Meng Chi pondered silently. Based on the mercenaries' reports, three passages remained unclear. The others didn't seem to lead to the surface, as they would need to prevent anyone from entering. Therefore, they needed to explore these three passages further.
However, they were currently unarmed, which would put them at a disadvantage if they encountered the black-robed men. They needed to secure weapons first.
After some thought, Meng Chi decided to target the passages with fewer guards to seize the enemies' weapons and arm themselves.
Ye Sheng listened to Meng Chi's plans and, knowing her combat skills were weak, decided not to join them in the action. However, she didn't plan to just wait around either; she had something in mind.
Among the three unexplored passages, one was unguarded but had formidable traps. This seemed like a good place to hide treasures, and she wanted to check it out. With the Featherweight Belt still active, she planned to see if she could navigate the traps. She couldn't feel at ease without some rewards!
When Ye Sheng told Meng Chi she wanted to explore the trapped passage, he looked at her deeply but did not refuse. Instead, he reminded her to be careful. Despite her cute and harmless appearance, Ye Sheng had shown strength and resilience by escaping from the Berserk worm and rescuing the mercenaries from the Black Spring Freemasonry's hideout. Thus, Meng Chi valued her abilities.
Unaware of Meng Chi's high regard for her, Ye Sheng, only thinking about stealing treasures from the Black Spring Freemasonry, set off after informing him. Once she was alone, she activated her invisibility and headed straight for the forty-third passage on the left.
Upon entering, Ye Sheng noticed the neatly laid marble slabs on the floor, indicating something suspicious. She tested the ground by tossing a stone onto the slab. The slab sank slightly, triggering a mechanism that shot an arrow straight into the stone, startling her.
She waited two minutes, and when no black-robed men appeared, she cautiously stepped onto the marble slab with one foot to avoid being shot. When no arrows came, she placed her other foot on the slab. The Featherweight Belt proved useful!
With the traps neutralized, Ye Sheng quickly proceeded along the passage, which was entirely paved with marble slabs. She wondered how the Black Spring Freemasonry members managed to navigate this gravity-based trap. However, she was more interested in the treasures that might be hidden there.
She wasn't greedy; she didn't expect to find piles of energy stones at the end of the passage. Just recovering the confiscated weapons of the mercenaries or accessing the Black Spring Freemasonry's armory would be enough.
As she imagined her future rewards, she finally reached the end of the passage, only to find no energy stones or heaps of weapons. Instead, there was a row of bookshelves along the wall, filled with books, and a wooden desk nearby. Disappointed, Ye Sheng approached the desk, noticing a red folder prominently placed among numerous blue folders.
Upon closer inspection, the label on the red folder read:
[Research Report on Psychic Abilities]