71: Chapter 71 High-Level Employees

Facing over a dozen good grade early-stage Tundra Direwolves, this team composed of top-tier powerhouses didn't show the slightest hint of panic.

"Leave them to me!"

The Archer named Archer gave a low shout, his figure flickering like an agile ape as he easily leapt onto a protruding ice rock.

He drew his bow and notched an arrow, his movements flowing like floating clouds and flowing water, all in one smooth motion.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Three arrows flashing with cold light shot out like three meteors, whistling through the air as they accurately struck the three direwolves charging at the front.

Puchi!

The arrows pierced through the direwolves' skulls without resistance. The immense force even sent their bodies flying backward, crashing heavily onto the snow. After a couple of twitches, they went silent.

One arrow, one kill—clean and efficient!

"Excellent archery!"

Someone in the team couldn't help but voice their admiration.

Archer merely gave a cold snort, his hands never stopping. Arrows flew out continuously as if they cost nothing; every shot inevitably claimed the life of a direwolf.

On the other side, the heavy-armored burly man named Iron Bull also demonstrated his astonishing defensive power.

He slammed his massive tower shield into the ground, standing like an immovable mountain at the very front of the team.

Several direwolves that had slipped through the cracks roared and pounced, their sharp claws and teeth frantically biting and scratching at his shield and armor.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of metallic clashing sounds rang out, sparks flying everywhere.

However, no matter how the direwolves attacked, they couldn't leave even a single scratch on that heavy plate armor.

"Are you just scratching my itch?"

Iron Bull let out a disdainful chuckle and violently swung his giant shield.

Bang!

A direwolf was swatted away, tumbling several times in the air before slamming heavily onto the ground. Blood spurted from its mouth and nose; it clearly wasn't going to survive.

From the very beginning, the battle showed a completely one-sided trend.

These Tundra Direwolves, which were like nightmares in the eyes of ordinary Survivor, were as fragile as paper in front of these top-tier powerhouses.

Li Taiping stood at the very back of the team with his arms crossed, watching leisurely with no intention of making a move.

He was happy to be idle, taking this opportunity to observe what kind of abilities these "favored children of heaven" from other regions actually possessed.

He discovered that none of these people were simple.

Besides Archer and Iron Bull, the doll-like girl named Sakurako brandished a massive folding fan that was completely disproportionate to her petite frame.

With every swing, she whipped up a fierce gale that sent the direwolves stumbling and falling.

There was also a refined-looking man wearing gold-rimmed glasses whose weapon was actually a thick magic book.

As he chanted under his breath, the pages turned on their own. Fireballs and ice spikes appeared out of thin air, blasting the direwolves into pieces of flying flesh.

In less than five minutes, the dozen or so Tundra Direwolves were easily cleared by the group.

A pile of stone treasure chests and black iron treasure chests of various sizes dropped onto the ground.

"Hahaha, a great start!"

Iron Bull put away his shield and laughed heartily.

The others also showed relaxed smiles as they stepped forward to pick up their loot.

Li Taiping naturally had no interest in those good grade items.

His gaze swept over the battlefield, finally landing on a black iron treasure chest opened by the mage.

Just now, the moment that chest opened, a faint blue light had flashed and vanished.

Though it was faint, Li Taiping, who had been paying close attention to the entire scene, captured it accurately.

That was... the glow of an Excellent Grade material!

"Friend, wait a moment."

Li Taiping started walking over.

The mage with the gold-rimmed glasses was about to put the items from the chest into his inventory. Hearing Li Taiping's voice, his body visibly stiffened.

He turned his head and watched Li Taiping approach, a hint of wariness flashing in his eyes.

"Is... is there something?"

He pushed up his glasses and asked somewhat nervously.

It couldn't be helped; the pressure Li Taiping exerted on him was simply too great.

"Don't be nervous," Li Taiping smiled, trying to make his tone sound as friendly as possible. "I just want to make a trade with you."

He pointed at the item in the mage's hand and got straight to the point:

"I'll trade ten pieces of any good grade rank-up materials for that thing in your chest. How about it?"

The mage was stunned. He subconsciously looked down at the object in his hand.

It was a fist-sized piece of pitch-black ore that emitted a metallic luster.

[Pig Iron (Excellent Grade)]

[Description: Pig Iron containing Excellent Grade energy. It is a basic material for crafting Excellent Grade equipment and upgrading ships.]

This was the first time he had found an Excellent Grade material.

He had originally thought about keeping it for himself, thinking he might be able to gather enough materials to craft an Excellent Grade staff later.

But now, Li Taiping had directly offered ten good grade materials in exchange.

Ten for one!

No matter how you looked at it, he was making a massive profit!

A conflict immediately broke out in the mage's mind.

On one hand, it was an Excellent Grade material that was hard to come by.

On the other hand, it was ten good grade materials he could use immediately, and he would also be doing a favor for this unfathomably powerful expert.

He hesitated for less than three seconds before making his decision.

"Deal!" He decisively traded the Excellent Grade Pig Iron to Li Taiping. "It's my honor that you're interested in it, boss."

"Very good." Li Taiping nodded with satisfaction and traded over the ten good grade materials.

A trade that left both parties happy was completed just like that.

This scene also fell into the eyes of the others.

They looked at Li Taiping, their eyes becoming somewhat fervent.

This big shot was actually using good grade materials to buy up Excellent Grade resources?

And he was being so generous about it?

In an instant, everyone's minds began to race.

When they looked at the monsters that hadn't been cleared yet, their perspective changed.

Those weren't monsters anymore; they were walking pieces of Excellent Grade materials!

As long as they could get Excellent Grade resources to drop from these monsters, they could trade them to this big shot for a large amount of good grade resources they could use right now!

This deal was a steal!

In a split second, the motivation of the entire team was galvanized.

Li Taiping didn't even need to say anything more. One by one, they were like they'd been injected with chicken blood, howling as they charged deeper into the tundra.

Watching their scramble to be first, the smile on Li Taiping's lips deepened.

"Heh, a bunch of high-level part-timers."

He thought happily to himself, following behind the team and leisurely acting as a hands-off manager.

He even took the opportunity to reveal a piece of information to everyone:

He was buying Excellent Grade Power Engines at a high price. Anyone who had one could trade it for anything they wanted.

Unfortunately, a treasure of that level was clearly not so easy to come by.

The team pushed forward smoothly, encountering several more waves of good grade monsters like Snow Bears and White-Feathered Eagles, all of which were easily handled by these energized "part-timers."

And Li Taiping, as he wished, managed to trade for a few more pieces of Excellent Grade plastic.

He even acquired some of the rare Excellent Grade materials they had stored from outside the dungeon.

Although the quantity wasn't large, for someone who possessed the treasure basin, this was not a problem.

As long as he gathered 36 pieces, it was equivalent to having infinite amounts!

This wasn't a loss at all; instead, it was very much worth it. It was equivalent to borrowing their luck and leveraging their personal inventories.

After all, every piece of Excellent Grade resource was something that could be sought but not easily found at the current stage.

...

The team continued forward until, after passing through a "forest" composed of massive ice pillars, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

A massive open-air altar built of ice and snow appeared before everyone.

A terrifying aura that made one's heart palpitate permeated the area around the altar.

Everyone's footsteps involuntarily stopped, and their expressions became more solemn than ever before.

They knew that the final BOSS of this dungeon was just ahead.

...