Free Web NovelChapter 78: Chapter 78: He Has Personally Experienced All of These
Staring at the blood-red bone whistle in his palm, Xiong Jie suddenly felt at a loss.
As soon as he got it, information about the bone whistle appeared in his mind.
[Bone Whistle: The user gets one extra use; the shrill whistle can pierce the brain membrane of targets within range (creatures without a brain are not affected).]
Xiong Jie didn’t even need to appraise the quality of this bone whistle.
Although he was a bit timid and didn’t have many items on him, he did know a lot about the various dungeon tools.
If you rated this thing by human standards, its quality would undoubtedly be called ’Golden’!
The item rating was straightforward: damage, attack range, affected targets, usage restrictions—compiled together.
He hadn’t actually used it yet, but judging by the information, it was an area-of-effect item, and could even select attack targets—so it wasn’t indiscriminate.
Looking at its damage, it directly attacks the target’s brain.
The brain is a crucial organ for any creature; creatures without a brain aren’t included, so Xiong Jie ignored that detail.
Some evil spirits might not have brains, but for him, that wasn’t an issue at all.
The most valuable function here was the extra use.
The average human’s energy bar was limited; using items would consume energy, and active items normally could be used twice—more than that meant burning life force.
Now, this extra use wasn’t just a lifesaving trump card, it was also his weapon for catching people off guard.
Ding Ning took out the Crystal Ball in her hand, and with a thought, it transformed into a Light Gate beside the two of them.
Xiong Jie watched as the Crystal Ball in his master’s hand suddenly changed, and the Light Gate appeared.
A familiar system prompt sounded in his mind:
[Survival channel has opened, please Survivors escape as quickly as possible.]
Xiong Jie kept his expression unchanged, but his mind was in turmoil!
He never expected that the escape route everyone was desperately searching for was just an item the other side was fiddling with.
No wonder this exit could be opened anywhere, anytime—it was all because the exit was merely an item?
Xiong Jie felt like he’d uncovered the deepest secret.
No. 9 Dungeon was like this—were the other SSS-level dungeons the same?
He refused to believe that a dignified SSS-level dungeon couldn’t control its own escape route.
Thinking about those SSS-level dungeons, where the escape routes were openly displayed, and survivors tried every possible way, desperately aiming for them...
The thought made him laugh.
He figured no one escapes SSS-level dungeons for now; but low- and mid-level dungeons have had survivors escape.
This meant the exits for low and mid-level dungeons weren’t controlled by the evil spirits.
And in high-level dungeons, those exits were just for show...
If a survivor really touched an SSS-level dungeon’s escape route... the exit would surely close a second before they reached it.
Everyone used to say that No. 9 Dungeon’s hidden escape route was the most despair-inducing part.
Now that he thought about it, No. 9 Dungeon was actually the most straightforward of all.
But if the moment you’re about to grasp hope, the exit is snatched away—
That’s true despair.
"Let’s go." Ding Ning patted Jiang Che’s head.
Jiang Che nodded and looked at Xiong Jie beside him, "Uncle, let’s go. You first."
As he spoke, Jiang Che made space to let Xiong Jie go ahead.
Xiong Jie shook his head forcefully, and Tuantuan stared at him with all its might.
Jiang Che didn’t know what was really going on in here—but Xiong Jie did.
Every dungeon, the first to escape gets the huge reward; other survivors who escape afterward get much less.
Humans analyzed this and said escape was more about absorbing the dungeon’s core energy to become stronger.
He’d survived this time, gotten out, collected these items, and even a drop of Life Crystal...
Xiong Jie counted his gains and realized—not too shabby!
He was already content, and dared not covet the top reward.
"You go first, I have something to tell him." Ding Ning finally stroked Jiang Che’s face, gave him a gentle shove, and sent him toward the door.
"Wife, I’ll do my best to reunite our family."
"Take good care of yourself." Ding Ning watched as Jiang Che vanished into the Light Gate.
Seeing Jiang Che get away safely, Xiong Jie relaxed; he didn’t covet first place.
As long as Jiang Che escaped safely, Xiong Jie wouldn’t be left behind.
"I don’t want your ’human secrets’. Your job is to take good care of him." Ding Ning looked at Xiong Jie in front of her.
Saying this, Ding Ning handed him a mirror.
"This can save your life twice. When needed, I want you to stand in front of him."
Xiong Jie took the mirror—it was a handheld mirror, double-sided.
[Each death shatters one side, blocking the damage; with each revival, physical condition is halved.]
After reading that description, Xiong Jie understood why she didn’t give this to Jiang Che.
Because these items had side effects for humans.
Even so, he was already very satisfied.
"Master, I’ll take good care of him." Xiong Jie knelt and bowed to show sincerity.
"Go." Ding Ning stepped aside.
Xiong Jie looked at the exit before him, reaching out as if he could feel the searing light.
Seeing the two figures vanish, Tuantuan came over and tugged at Ding Ning’s sleeve, "Mother, aren’t you going to modify this human?"
"He’s so weak, how can he protect Dad?"
"Silly child." Blood Slaughter came over and watched the Light Gate. The glare gradually faded as it became the Crystal Ball in Ding Ning’s hand again.
"That silly kid needs to grow up too."
"Everyone, come here, I’ll show you something." Ding Ning waved the others over.
The Crystal Ball suddenly became a gigantic light screen, showing a live stream from Xiong Jie’s point of view.
Hua, beside them, felt her heart skip a beat as soon as she saw the light screen.
This way, the wounds on Jiang Che and Xiong Jie would be exposed!
Without saying a word, she hugged Ding Ning tight.
"Ning, I’m sorry."
"I accidentally hurt him just now." Hua quickly explained her actions, saying she’d been worried that Ding Ning would be bewitched by a human Illusion Technique master.
"I know." Ding Ning grasped her floral tendrils.
When Hua gave her Life Essence, especially to Xiong Jie, Ding Ning knew something was off.
"You didn’t mean it—Che wouldn’t blame you." Ding Ning patted her flower head.
"Yeah, that kid—I even made him eat something weird at the time, who knows if he got an upset stomach."
"I almost strangled Dad back then too..."
...
Hua watched as they admitted their past mistakes so openly. She’d always thought Jiang Che could get along with these evil spirits because of sentimental manipulations.
Now, she realized these were dangers Jiang Che lived through himself.
