Chapter 436: Haunted Streets and Hidden Bait

Be careful. There should be at least two Third-Stage Otherworldly Ghosts lurking around…

Creak—creak.

Clutching his Giant Crossbow tightly, Zhang Ke followed Yenir with a grave expression.

The entire team moved like arrows, slowly stepping into the abandoned commercial district.

In the darkness, shattered shop windows looked like gates to hell, making you feel that at any moment an Otherworldly Ghost might burst out and bite your head off.

Leading the way, Yenir brandished his Longsword in a reverse grip, silently scanning the street.

This ten-story building was also the last known location of the missing Ghost Hunter Squad.

Although he wasn’t too interested in Zhang Ke’s mission, he was quite ‘curious’ about the ghost activity here.

“Not too strong, but that missing squad is most likely done for,” he muttered.

Muttering under his breath, Yenir’s peripheral vision caught something off in the distance.

Hanging from a power line about three meters above the ground in the main street was a corpse, its organs completely removed, slowly swinging.

Even though the body was partly desiccated, Yenir’s remarkable vision could detect moist blood inside, indicating that the organs had been taken out just days ago.

The exposed fat around the wound was a pale yellow-brown, ragged and clearly torn apart by bare hands.

Judging by the Combat Uniform, there was no doubt this was the missing Ghost Hunter Squad.

Unlike the Otherworldly Ghosts hiding within the Safe Zone, those on the higher levels had dropped all pretense. To them, humans were nothing more than food—pigs and dogs to be slaughtered at will.

“Two ghosts – one should be at Third-Stage Mid-level… and judging by the residual Spirit Energy, the corpse hints at Third-Stage,” he observed.

“Being torn apart by brute force and then hung up shows that the Ghost Hunter Squad really had no strength left to resist.”

Assessing the ghost levels, Yenir tightened his grip on the Elemental Blade.

Third-Stage Mid-level ghosts aren’t so easy to kill anymore.

Bang…

While carefully searching for more corpses, an abrupt high-pitched whoosh suddenly startled the tense group.

Instinctively turning around, they saw a shadow skimming low along the ground behind them—a phantom-like figure charging in an instant.

“Watch out!”

Everyone tensed up.

Just as Zhang Ke’s eyes narrowed and he instinctively readied his team to attack the fast-approaching shadow, Yenir’s voice cut in.

“It’s okay. He’s one of us.”

“Huh!?”

The moment the crossbow bolt was about to be fired, the high-speed shadow, accompanied by a suffocating whoosh, came to a sudden halt and wavered.

Ignoring the group’s panic, it strode directly to Yenir’s side.

As if everyone else were nothing more than air.

Meeting his gaze, Yenir couldn’t help but smile as Uncle Liang approached.

It was none other than Liang Lie.

After entering the eleventh floor with Yinglong and the others, he had abandoned his plan to have NPCs approach Yinglong.

Waiting for the right moment, he intended for Li Dafu to step in. Once Uncle Liang handled the aftermath, this immensely powerful Protector would join them.

With Liang Lie by his side, everything would be so much easier.

“Yenir!? You know him!?”

Coming back to his senses, Zhang Ke nervously glanced at Liang Lie and blurted out.

Her perception couldn’t fully gauge this middle-aged man’s power…

But judging by his speed just now, it was clear his strength was at least Third-Stage Mid-level!

For hunters of their caliber, Liang Lie was undoubtedly a major figure.

“He’s my friend—a Third-Stage Advanced,” Yenir offhandedly explained.

In Yenir’s eyes, Zhang Ke and the rest were just tools. He had noticed that after he dispatched those ghosts, the squad’s attitude had become much more eager, almost ingratiating.

Yet, uncertain of Zhang Ke’s true identity, Yenir deliberately kept his distance.

Besides, these NPCs were pretty useless anyway…

“Third-Stage Advanced!?”

A low, suppressed exclamation rang out.

Hearing about Liang Lie’s power, every team member looked at him with awe. Even their glances at Yenir were filled with surprise.

A Third-Stage Advanced Ghost Hunter was among the elite of the entire Dungeon.

None of them could have imagined that the captain’s friend’s brother was that formidable.

For a moment, everyone grew excited, and the oppressive tension of the environment dissipated.

With Yenir and this super powerhouse leading the charge, what was there to fear?

Even Zhang Ke, lowering his Giant Crossbow, couldn’t help but smile in astonishment, feeling a bit dazed.

But moments later, as if recalling something, the young girl hesitated:

“Yenir, there’s an old large shopping center over there. It’s been abandoned for ages but… but…”

Her voice trailed off, a hint of embarrassment in her tone.

Glancing at her teammates and stealing a quick look at Liang Lie, she hesitated further:

“But there’s plenty of valuable stuff over there…”

“Should we check it out? Besides, judging by the bloodstains on the ground, if any members of that squad managed to survive, they’d probably be there.”

After speaking, the young girl nervously looked at Yenir.

Originally, their request for Yenir to join the team promised nothing of real value. Yenir had claimed he wanted to hunt ghosts, and trailed them along was as good as carrying extra dead weight.

Now she wanted to inspect the abandoned mall; after all, if two Third-Stage threats were nearby, not exploring would be a missed opportunity.

In the past, they would never have dared to go there.

Beyond the eighth floor, not only did Third-Stage ghosts multiply, but places of value were often the lairs of these creatures, used as bait for survivors.

Listening to the captain, the entire squad turned their eyes to Yenir.

They’d figured out that the captain was practically begging Yenir to lead them to some easy profit.

“No problem.”

Without much thought and much to Zhang Ke’s surprise, Yenir agreed immediately.

It was no big deal.

He could tell that Zhang Ke and the others wanted to ride on his coattails—after all, he too was eager to use these subordinate humans as bait.

Third-Stage ghosts weren’t difficult to kill—they were just hard to find.

Sticking close behind Yinglong while keeping a safe distance meant many areas were off limits. The Dungeon was vast, but it was still just a dungeon.

On the lower levels, the routes were fixed, and one misstep could lead straight into Yinglong’s path.

So he had to forgo certain ghost gathering spots.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have let Zhang Ke and the others tag along.

After Yenir agreed without hesitation, Zhang Ke’s face lit up with delight, and his regard for Yenir grew even warmer.

Though this guy was a bit odd, he truly was a good man after all.

Indeed, despite his quirks, his genuine nature shone through.