My Computer Leads to an Instance Dungeon-Chapter 142 - 117: Good Luck

Fang Zhen wasn't driving his motorcycle particularly fast.

To his surprise, Jilenna actually kept up, and even seemed to be running with ease.

'Girls from the Otherworld really are different,' he thought. 'She's making a three or four-kilometer cross-country run with a thirty-pound pack look effortless.'

Soon, Fang Zhen arrived at the valley outside the entrance to the Underground Cave.

Near the entrance to the valley was a small stream, the place where Fang Zhen and Gwendolyn had agreed to meet.

By the time the Jue Ying motorcycle arrived, Gwendolyn and Mark were already by the stream.

Two horses were drinking from the stream while Gwendolyn and Mark were on the bank, tending to some alchemy equipment.

Fang Zhen drove over, and Jilenna followed close behind.

「By the stream.」

"Perfect timing. I just finished preparing my alchemy equipment and now I need those magical Alchemy Pills of yours," Gwendolyn greeted Fang Zhen, then nodded at Jilenna who was standing behind him.

Fang Zhen got off his motorcycle, took off his backpack, and pulled out a strip of potassium permanganate tablets.

"Let's use the same dosage as yesterday," Fang Zhen said. "Five of my Alchemy Pills mixed with one portion of your Alchemy Powder."

Gwendolyn nodded.

Mark, who seemed to be learning the trade of an Alchemy Apprentice in addition to his Curse Sealer skills, immediately took the potassium permanganate tablets. He produced a copper bowl, scooped some clear water from the stream into it, and then placed the five tablets inside.

Once a deep purple potassium permanganate solution formed in the copper bowl, Gwendolyn poured in the same type of Alchemy Powder she had used yesterday.

The solution quickly turned blood-red and gave off a metallic, bloody smell.

The Secret Medicine Blood Burst was successfully created.

Gwendolyn didn't stop there. She took out a small glass vial and poured a pinch of a goose-yellow powder into the mixture.

Fang Zhen's curiosity was piqued. He watched, wondering what new formula this was.

He saw the Secret Medicine Blood Burst in the copper bowl begin to rapidly solidify, eventually forming a paste-like, semi-gelatinous substance.

"This is an Alchemy Powder I made before. It has no other function than to make liquids congeal into a paste. You can think of it as a kind of solidifier."

"The Blood Burst is too corrosive. I was afraid it would destroy my weapons after just a couple of uses. Adding this solidifier reduces the corrosiveness to a minimum. With proper maintenance, our weapons won't be damaged. Besides, it's more convenient to apply it to our weapons as an ointment."

Fang Zhen nodded, thinking, 'No matter how I look at it, this bowl of Blood Burst Ointment looks a bit like blood tofu.'

Many of the products Gwendolyn created with her Alchemy had a catalyst-like effect. 'This can't be a coincidence,' Fang Zhen thought.

"Let's apply some of the ointment to our weapons," Gwendolyn said.

Fang Zhen got off his bike and smeared some of the Blood Burst Ointment on his spearhead, Armor-Piercing Crossbow Arrows, G5 arrows, and Meteor Hammer.

Although he was planning to replace his spearhead soon, he was still very careful when using it. He had cleaned it thoroughly after returning from yesterday's fight, so it hadn't been severely corroded yet and was still usable.

Gwendolyn was also applying the ointment.

Jilenna seemed to understand what they were doing and came over to coat the blade of her greatsword.

Soon, the preparations were more or less complete.

"Let's set a strategy. How do we do this?" Gwendolyn asked. She glanced at Jilenna before turning back to Fang Zhen. "I don't know where you found this helper, but she seems quite strong."

"Your feeling is correct," Fang Zhen nodded.

"If nothing has changed in the Underground Cave, we'll be facing those four mutated Fierce Ghosts and Maticvia," Fang Zhen said. "We'll kill the Fierce Ghosts first, and our top priority among them is the one that can fire the Poison Cannon."

"Agreed," Gwendolyn nodded.

The Poisonous Cannon Fiend posed the greatest threat to them.

"I'll need at least thirty seconds. Ideally, I can fire three arrows in that time. If they all hit, I can kill the Poisonous Cannon Fiend and two other Fierce Ghosts," Fang Zhen explained. "Thirty seconds is about the time it takes for four or five breaths."

"We can get you that time. We'll strike by surprise at the start. This Warrior and I can block the Fierce Ghosts' attacks for you," Gwendolyn said.

"What if that Maticvia attacks?" Jilenna suddenly asked.

Fang Zhen glanced at Jilenna, a little surprised.

He didn't know if the language Jilenna heard was the same as Gwendolyn's, but it was clear she understood them perfectly.

"Madici is a huge variable. If he disrupts the battle, he'll ruin the balance," he said. "My solution is to initiate the fight at the junction between the large cavern and the smaller tunnel."

"The terrain there is narrow, making it difficult for Maticvia to enter. Even if he does, there won't be enough space for him to swing his weapon."

"If Madici charges, we'll retreat into the tunnel. If he follows, we'll use the terrain to our advantage. If he backs off, we'll press deeper into the cavern and continue with our plan to kill the Fierce Ghosts."

"Once we've cleared out all the Fierce Ghosts, we can move into the open area. The three of us will be on the offensive. In a three-on-one fight, if we adapt as we go, killing Maticvia won't be impossible."

"Sounds good," Jilenna agreed, and Gwendolyn nodded as well.

"We have one more alchemical product," Fang Zhen said, pointing to the five-kilogram Liquefied Gas Cylinder on the back of his motorcycle. "It's an extremely dangerous alchemical item. A special method can be used to trigger an explosion powerful enough to tear Maticvia apart, or at the very least, severely injure him."

"But before we use it, we need to completely exhaust Madici's stamina. Otherwise, he might use Curse Seal Gangzan, which would block most of the damage for him."

"We also need to be careful not to get caught in the explosion from the alchemical product ourselves," Fang Zhen added.

And with that, their pre-battle strategy was set.

Fang Zhen, Jilenna, and Gwendolyn all had clear minds. After discussing the battle plan, there were no disagreements.

The four of them stood up and headed for the Underground Cave.

「A dozen or so minutes later.」

The four of them parked the motorcycle and tethered the horses, sprinkled some protective powder around them, and then entered the Underground Cave.

Jilenna took the lead, with Gwendolyn right behind her. Fang Zhen was third, and Mark brought up the rear.

Mark was well aware of his role. He silently took on all the heavy loads to lighten the burden on the others. He carried the tactical backpack, the alchemy pouch, Gwendolyn's spare quiver, and the spear, while also lugging the five-kilogram Liquefied Gas Cylinder in his left hand.

Mark had no complaints about this.

Fang Zhen gave the Night Vision Goggles to Jilenna and a high-intensity flashlight to Gwendolyn, while he himself used a thermal imager.

The group advanced at a steady pace. After nearly twenty minutes, they reached the entrance to the cavern where they had previously encountered the Fierce Ghosts.

Jilenna, at the front, suddenly raised her left hand, signaling for the others to halt.

Fang Zhen slowly took two more steps forward, his footfalls nearly silent.

Through the thermal imager on his left eye, he saw the heat signatures of only three humanoid monsters in the cavern ahead.

The Poisonous Cannon Fiend was lying on the cavern floor, apparently asleep.

A Black Armored Fierce Ghost was wandering near the Poisonous Cannon Fiend, looking like it was just moving around out of sheer boredom.

The massive Giant Fierce Ghost was sprawled out about thirty meters away from the Poisonous Cannon Fiend, also appearing to be asleep.

These three Fierce Ghosts were the only ones Fang Zhen could see.

The other Black Armored Fierce Ghost and Maticvia were nowhere in sight.

'Good luck. This is a great opportunity.'

Fang Zhen crouched down and raised his compound crossbow.

The compound crossbow was already drawn, loaded with an Armor-Piercing Crossbow Arrow, its tip coated with Blood Burst Ointment.

The Blood Burst Ointment was indeed easier to use than the solution. It had already solidified, coating the arrowhead in a thin, blood-colored film.

Fang Zhen took a deep breath, his breathing steadied, and his mind grew calm.

He activated Precise Intuition, Combat Focus, and Steady Shot.

As the skills activated, the familiar sense of focus and control washed over him.

Fang Zhen's gaze sharpened as he aimed the compound crossbow's optical sight at the sleeping Poisonous Cannon Fiend on the ground.

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost patrolled around the Poisonous Cannon Fiend.

Under the effects of Combat Focus, Fang Zhen clearly saw its pattern.

The Fierce Ghosts seemed to possess a sense of teamwork. The Black Armored Fierce Ghost's movements looked aimless, but it was actually circling in front of the Poisonous Cannon Fiend, ready to protect it and let out a warning roar at the first sign of trouble.

It was acting as a guard and a sentry.

But that didn't matter.

The compound crossbow's scope remained fixed on the Poisonous Cannon Fiend.

After a few seconds, inspiration struck Fang Zhen.

'The passive triggered.'

Following his intuition, he slightly adjusted the angle of the compound crossbow and pulled the trigger.

WHIR!

The Armor-Piercing Crossbow Arrow shot from the compound crossbow, about to strike the Poisonous Cannon Fiend in an instant.

The patrolling Black Armored Fierce Ghost leaped up as if by instinct, just as it had before, intending to block the incoming Crossbow Arrow with its tough armor.

However, this wasn't last time.

The compound crossbow fired its arrow with far more kinetic energy, and Fang Zhen was using an Armor-Piercing Crossbow Arrow.

The combination of the two resulted in lethality that far surpassed the ordinary Hunting Arrow he had fired from his Hunting Crossbow before.

PFFT!

The Armor-Piercing Crossbow Arrow struck the Black Armored Fierce Ghost in the chest, punching through its hard, exoskeleton-like black armor. Half the arrow sank into the creature's torso.

ROAR!

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost shrieked in pain, fell to the ground, rolled over, and struggled back to its feet.

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost had incredible vitality. An arrow had pierced its chest, seemingly right where its heart should be, yet it still had the strength to get up and even looked ready to fight again.

But at that very moment…

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost's body suddenly began to swell from the inside. The immense internal pressure caused its black, bone-like armor to crack.

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost let out a bewildered, low growl, but before it could react, its body expanded violently.

BOOM!

The Black Armored Fierce Ghost exploded.

The explosion was deafening and incredibly violent. The black, armor-like exoskeleton of the Black Armored Fierce Ghost was blown apart, scattering everywhere like shrapnel from a fragmentation grenade.

The sound of the explosion instantly jolted the other two Fierce Ghosts awake.

The Poisonous Cannon Fiend immediately stood up and began searching for the enemy. The Giant Fierce Ghost leaped to its feet with agility that belied its size and also began to scan for threats.

After firing the shot, Fang Zhen immediately placed the crossbow's stirrup on the ground, took out the metal lever, and began to crank the winch to re-cock it.

Without a word, Jilenna charged out, hefting her two-handed greatsword.

Gwendolyn switched on the high-intensity flashlight at her waist and charged out right after her, Single-Edged Sword in hand.