Chapter 68: Is That All?

Yu Yan naturally understood what he meant.

He simply wanted her to keep an eye out for his brothers in the future, and offer them some care once she recognized them. Ha! This man had no idea what it meant to behave honestly. Compared to these clever types, she much preferred interacting with simpletons like Zhang Quan. Or Tang Yan, who was at least straightforward and never tried to play tricks on her.

Still, working with clever people had its advantages.

For example, now, Zuo Changyu pondered for only a short while before suggesting a highly feasible plan. “As you said, we need to first test the abilities of these two birds before we can finalize a battle strategy.”

“To prevent them from fleeing, we can conceal our own strength at first.”

“Er, actually, it’s mainly you, Sister Yan... As for me, even if I went all out, I’d probably still get pecked to death in no time.” The thought made Zuo Changyu feel utterly defeated.

He never imagined that the king of solo combat before the arrival of the dungeon world would become powerless against even a pair of birds. Not only could he not beat them; they probably wouldn’t even bother wasting their spiritual energy on him—just a couple of casual pecks would do. With the formidable fifth-tier strength of the Lightning Herons, their speed and sharp beaks alone could kill him several times over.

Having considered all this, Zuo Changyu shared two of his thoughts about the Lightning Herons.

Unable to help himself, he flattered, “Sister Yan, please don’t forget about me when the fight starts!”

“Don’t remove that skill that conceals our aura.”

Along the way, many monsters had acted as if he and Yu Yan were invisible.

Even the two fifth-tier Lightning Herons ahead—they hid in a cave less than twenty meters from them. Ordinarily, animals are alert, especially these high-tier dungeon monsters. Yet despite hiding there for so long, the Lightning Herons seemed completely unbothered. They wandered and preened as if Yu Yan and Zuo Changyu simply didn’t exist.

Zuo Changyu certainly didn’t believe these birds—or any dungeon monsters they’d encountered—were collectively dumb. The only explanation was that Yu Yan’s aura-concealing skill was extraordinarily effective, powerful enough to fool even fifth-tier dungeon monsters!

If only he and his brothers possessed such abilities... Zuo Changyu couldn’t help but daydream.

“Enough chatter, get to the point!” Yu Yan shot Zuo Changyu a glare.

If she truly didn’t want to help him, no number of lives would save him. They’d already encountered dozens, if not a hundred, fifth-tier monsters along the way, all within their groups. Each encounter could have easily killed Zuo Changyu several times over. Luckily, her illusion skills were potent—perhaps due to the unique nature of her heavenly-tier plant spirit.

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Although she was only a fourth-tier spirit vein enhancer, her illusion skill could fool the spiritual senses of all fifth-tier monsters.

Of course, this only worked if she didn’t initiate an attack. Once she launched an assault, especially one using elemental abilities, monsters of fourth-tier and below who lacked detection abilities might still fail to find her. But fifth-tier and above, as well as those with specialized detection skills, could quickly uncover her hiding place.

That was one reason why she hesitated so long inside the cave, reluctant to attack the Lightning Herons outright.

She worried that if threatened, they might escape. Two fifth-tier monsters at thirty percent of their abilities—especially Lightning Herons known for speed and attack—were already capable of injuring and drawing blood from Yu Yan. If they were clever enough to switch roles with her and launch a sneak attack instead, Yu Yan might lose her life.

“My plan is to play dumb, test their abilities, and then act according to the situation,” Zuo Changyu said quickly.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.” Zuo Changyu blinked innocently. He knew little about Yu Yan.

Aside from the illusion skill she’d used along the way, her “Wind Walk” for flying, and the force and speed she’d shown when hitting him—all clearly superior to his own—Zuo Changyu knew nothing of her other skills and abilities.

Oh, and she had that miraculous spirit fruit that restored him to peak condition!

But that fruit didn’t seem to help in combat. And since they’d only known each other briefly, if he asked about her trump cards outright, she’d have every reason to beat him. Even in peacetime, probing someone’s secrets was a serious offense—let alone now, when the dungeon world’s arrival had shattered and rebuilt society’s order.

A person’s survival skills would only be shared with those closest and most trusted.

His knowledge of the Lightning Herons was based solely on Yu Yan’s descriptions. He only half-understood the effects of their four abilities: Thunder Strike, Electric Arc, Lightning Cloud, and Raybird.

Under these circumstances, expecting him to offer specific tactical advice? That was pure fantasy.

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Yu Yan soon realized this herself.

She’d acted in desperation, overly concerned about the Lightning Herons.

Cloudlet had spent over two days alone in the plant spirit world. Though there was food and drink there, and companions like Little Fu Zhu, Little Crocodile, and Little Golden Plover, she must have been worried about her mother entering the dungeon alone.

Yu Yan took a deep breath, suppressing her irritation and anxiety.

What should she do? The urge to hit someone was rising again.

But at this point, beating Zuo Changyu was clearly inappropriate.

Forget it—if the birds escape, so be it. She could spend another two days searching for suitable dungeon monsters to target. The more one cared, the more likely one was to make mistakes in haste! In truth, for someone with Yu Yan’s temperament, even if Cloudlet was her daughter, she shouldn’t let her emotions be swayed so easily.

Otherwise, she would have died countless times during those three years in the previous dungeon world.

A faint clarity flickered in Yu Yan’s heart.

It was clear that relying too much on external resources to boost her tier and strength had left her unstable in her cultivation. It seemed she mustn’t eat the remaining seventh and eighth-tier vermillion fruit, even if it cost her some spiritual energy.

“Stay put here, and don’t blame me if you die,” Yu Yan instructed, splitting her mental energy in two: one part to conceal Zuo Changyu’s aura, the other to transform herself into a small, porous rock—these rocks were common on the Gobi.

When the wind blew, porous rocks, hollow and sand-filled inside, rolled everywhere.

Hidden among them, Yu Yan was virtually undetectable.

Of course, this was only superficial. Her actual size far exceeded that of the illusionary rock.

If either Lightning Heron happened to cast a skill toward Yu Yan’s location, they’d find the empty ground’s airflow suddenly disturbed and swirling, outlining a large, transparent, crouched humanoid object moving swiftly toward them.

If their luck was good and their skill hit Yu Yan directly, the illusion would be broken and her disheveled appearance would be exposed in full. Whether by detection or exposure, Yu Yan’s chance for a surprise attack would vanish...

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