"Have you discovered the treasure of the mutated creature? Would you like to excavate it?"
"Yes!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Xu Que decisively chose to excavate, for this was the first treasure he had obtained in this life—an opportunity too rare to pass up.
Though in his past life, he and his team had encountered mutated creature treasures several times, each encounter had come at the cost of life.
It was only when he, along with Duan Jiude and the others, entered the last dimension that they had found such a treasure and obtained the pet beast egg.
He had originally hoped that with this egg, he might ascend to the top 100 of the Pet Beast Rankings, but somehow, the news had leaked to Liu Ruoyan and Ji Bodan.
The result had been nothing short of agonizing—indeed, cruel.
As Xu Que reminisced about the excruciating pain of his past life, three items suddenly appeared in his inventory, one of which was a pet beast egg!
[You have obtained a Thunder Cloud Ferret Pet Beast Egg.]
[Name: Thunder Cloud Ferret C-Class (Unhatched).]
[Quality: Fine (Light Purple).]
[Note: During the incubation process, there is a high probability of hatching a Thunder Cloud Ferret, a certain chance of hatching a mutated Thunder Cloud Ferret, and a very small chance of hatching a Saint Spirit-level pet beast.]
Xu Que harbored no illusions about obtaining a Saint Spirit-level pet beast, for in his past life, he had encountered six such creatures, each acquired through overwhelming luck, and none of their details had been passed down.
For now, his only hope was to hatch this egg as soon as possible and claim the top position on the Pet Beast Rankings!
[Name: Spirit Spring Liquid D-Class.]
[Quality: Excellent (Blue).]
[Consumable Item: Each use of this liquid reduces the incubation time of a pet beast egg, with a cooldown of 300 seconds.]
[Note: Each pet beast egg can use this liquid up to three times.]
[Name: Thunderstrike Ring C-Class.]
[Quality: Fine (Purple).]
[Active: Deals lightning damage to the target with a chance to cause paralysis (Cooldown: 180 minutes).]
[Passive: Can resist one magical attack (Cooldown: 90 minutes).]
Upon seeing these three treasures, Xu Que was so excited that he didn't even know how to express his joy, jumping around in circles.
After calming down, Xu Que did not immediately choose to hatch the pet beast egg. Instead, he replaced his ring and made his way out of the area.
Although the pet beast was important to him, he hadn't forgotten the reason for entering.
After returning to the left corridor, Xu Que glanced behind him and, seeing no sign of the Shadow Leopard, cautiously stepped into the central passage.
He did not rush forward but instead began to feel along the right wall.
*Crack!*
With a sharp sound, the torches above him flared to life.
Then, one by one, the heads of the Shadow Leopards poked out from the holes in the wall.
Xu Que's lips twitched—according to the information, there were supposed to be more than twenty, but here, at least fifty or sixty were emerging!
"Awoo!"
A massive female Shadow Leopard roared, and immediately, over a dozen more leapt from the wall, all focusing their gaze on Xu Que.
A forced smile appeared on his face. He spread his hands helplessly and turned to run!
Though he had already reached B-Class, facing fifty or more Shadow Leopards was utterly absurd.
As Xu Que fled, the dozen or so Shadow Leopards charged after him like arrows from a bow.
*Thud!*
The first Shadow Leopard that turned the corner of the passage had its head sliced off by Xu Que, who had been hiding on the right.
With a swift strike, Xu Que didn't feel even the slightest pride. After all, there were still more than ten behind him. He kicked the second oncoming Shadow Leopard and continued running.
When he reached the passage where he had originally entered, Xu Que did not attempt to hide again from the Shadow Leopards. Instead, he boldly sprinted ahead—there were over a dozen of them, and even he, with all his strength, would be injured. He hoped to draw them away so that Zhao Xian and the others could hold a few back, allowing him to pick them off one by one.
The noise from Xu Que's escape was considerable, and by the time he emerged from the cave, Zhao Xian and the others were still puzzled.
But the next moment, when they saw the black shadows behind him, their scalps went numb!
"What are you standing there for? Grab your weapons and hold them off!" Xu Que yelled, then grabbed a nearby wrecked car and tossed it toward the pursuing pack.
Seeing Xu Que casually throw the car, Kun Shao and Huang Bo were both astonished. But before they could recover from their shock, Zhao Xian tossed weapons to both of them.
"You and Huang Bo, hold off the three on the left. I'll help Xu Que with the eight behind."
As soon as Zhao Xian's command was issued, the five immediately ran toward Xu Que.
Xu Que moved swiftly. After throwing the car, he immediately spun and struck down at a Shadow Leopard.
With a swift stroke, the battle turned into a siege.
Huang Bo, holding twin daggers, swiftly approached a Shadow Leopard. Just as he was about to test his strength, another Shadow Leopard lunged at him.
"Watch out!" Kun Shao's spear darted forward, intercepting the attack.
But the next moment, the steel spear bent completely!
Kun Shao was stunned, quickly pulling Huang Bo back and retreating.
"These useless hunk of metal! If you're not afraid of dying, just use your fists!" Xu Que said, striking down another Shadow Leopard with a blade.
Huang Bo and Kun Shao froze. If even metal weapons couldn't defeat the strange leopards, would fists work?
But before they could contemplate further, another Shadow Leopard pounced on them.
"Damn it, let's do this!"
Kun Shao, brimming with youthful vigor, made a decision and prepared to fight head-on.
Just as he was about to clash with the Shadow Leopard, Huang Bo quickly intervened and struck it from the side.
*Bang!*
The twin daggers shattered as the Leopard's claws slashed across Kun Shao's shoulder.
Seeing the blood pouring from his wound, Huang Bo kicked Kun Shao in the back: "You fool! That's a beast, and you're going toe to toe with it?!"
Before Kun Shao could respond, another Shadow Leopard lunged toward them.
"Watch out!" Zhao Xian, not paying attention to the Leopard before him, threw his large ring knife toward Huang Bo.
Had Zhao Xian not gained power, his throw would have been slower than the Leopard's charge. But now, at his E-Class five-star strength, his throw was just as formidable as Xu Que's spear toss.
*Boom!*
The large ring knife shattered into three pieces, changing the direction of the Leopard's attack.
Seeing how close the Leopard had come to striking Huang Bo, Kun Shao's eyes filled with rage, and he swung his fist with explosive force!
"Die!"
*Bang!*
The Leopard appeared unharmed, but its brain had been turned to mush.
Kun Shao stood dazed, stunned by the impact. But before he could revel in his success, Huang Bo dragged him aside.
Moments later, a shadow dashed toward them.
"Are you alright?" Kun Shao asked, seeing the pained expression on Huang Bo's face.
"It's fine. Just be more careful!" Huang Bo grunted through his gritted teeth.
Noticing the claw marks on Huang Bo's back, Kun Shao scanned the area, grabbing two stones and hurling them at the Shadow Leopard.
Meanwhile, Zhao Xian continued to push against the head of a Leopard with his hands, retreating step by step.
*Puff!*
After Xu Que quickly dealt with the Leopards that Qi Shan and the others had drawn away, he rushed toward Zhao Xian's side.
"Go help them!" Zhao Xian shouted.
Xu Que ignored him, focusing all his energy on his legs, channeling his spiritual energy into his Cloud Spirit Magic Blade, slashing through the air.
After taking care of the Leopard in front of Zhao Xian, Xu Que made no further moves.
Seeing this, Zhao Xian was about to speak, but Xu Que interrupted, "Do you all want to improve your combat skills?"
At this, Qi Shan and the others froze, but Zhao Xian instantly understood.
Xu Que continued, "This one isn't going to die yet. I want each of you to try your hand at it. Don't be afraid of getting hurt—I'll watch over you."
Meanwhile, Kun Shao, still collecting stones, stood dumbfounded. He had just obliterated one with a punch. Was he supposed to try again?
But as Xu Que and Zhao Xian approached, Huang Bo and Kun Shao knew this was no joking matter!