46: Whispers of inner demons, a hunt in the dark.
The moment Lin Mo stepped out of the range of the Wailing Ice Lake, the Banshee's lament that had been ringing in his ears, seeming to freeze his soul, finally vanished.
His taut nerves relaxed slightly, but were immediately tightened again by the throbbing crimson countdown in his quest log.
[01:55:10]
Time was his greatest enemy and his most luxurious resource at this moment.
He dared not delay for a moment, not even taking the time to check the attributes of the rare skill book he had just acquired.
After identifying the direction of the final crimson marker on his map, he plunged into the increasingly deep snowstorm.
The Lightless Grotto—just hearing the name—exuded an unsettling aura.
As he delved deeper, the terrain began to slope distinctly downward.
The profound ice beneath his feet gradually disappeared, replaced by strange black soil that was frozen hard as iron but felt slightly sticky when stepped upon.
The coldness in the air had not lessened; instead, it was joined by a chill that seemed to emanate from the netherworld, along with... a thick, nauseating stench of blood and decay.
The sky seemed shrouded by an invisible haze, completely obscuring the pale crescent moon.
The surrounding light dimmed rapidly, and visibility plummeted.
“The Wither rule here seems to have mutated as well.”
Lin Mo keenly noticed that although the continuous damage applied to him hadn't changed numerically, its nature now included a hint of mental Corrosion.
A feeling of restlessness, suppression, and negative emotion was attempting to sprout from the deepest part of his heart, intending to disrupt his judgment.
He immediately held his breath and focused his mind, forcibly suppressing the negative emotions.
His gaze grew colder and more vigilant.
He knew this final challenge would likely be more bizarre and dangerous than the previous two combined.
After traveling for about ten more minutes, a colossal, pitch-black grotto, like a mountain in size, finally appeared at the edge of his vision.
The entrance resembled the gaping maw of an ancient beast ready to devour someone, continuously exhaling visible black mist mixed with abyssal demonic energy.
This was the Lightless Grotto!
Lin Mo didn't hesitate, activating Stealth.
His figure transformed into a wisp of the most inconspicuous green smoke, silently melting into the profound darkness.
The moment he entered the grotto, a surge of absolute darkness and deathly silence completely engulfed him like a tide.
It was truly... pitch black!
Lin Mo's game interface even displayed a negative status notification.
[Ding! You have entered the 'Absolute Darkness' zone. Vision reduced by 99%, Perception reduced by 50%!]
“Damn it!”
Lin Mo's heart sank.
Although his Shadow of Deadly Poison passive granted him a certain vision bonus in darkness, in this "Absolute Darkness" environment, he could barely make out the area within three meters of his feet.
What was more lethal was that even his Perception ability was severely weakened!
This meant that his Stealth ability, which he prided himself on, was almost half useless here!
It would be difficult for him to detect danger in advance, yet enemies could launch a fatal sneak attack from any corner he couldn't see!
Lin Mo immediately slowed his pace, raising his senses to their absolute limit.
Like the most cautious leopard, he explored deeper into the grotto, step by step.
The path inside the grotto was rough, filled with jagged rocks, and unusually damp.
From time to time, his feet stepped on some sticky, unknown liquid, making a soft “squish, squish” sound that was particularly jarring in the dead silence.
The stench of decay and blood in the air grew thicker, and it was even mixed with a faint... almost intangible whisper of fear, seemingly emanating from the depths of the soul.
“Heh heh...”
“Your heart... is afraid...”
“Give up... Stay here... Become one of us...”
The voice was like a curse, constantly assaulting his mental defenses.
Lin Mo's brow furrowed tightly.
He knew this was mental pollution inherent to the environment.
He could only clench his jaw, guard his true self, and prevent these negative emotions from affecting his actions.
Suddenly, his footsteps halted abruptly!
About two meters in front of him lay a player's corpse, already badly decomposed and impaled by several large bone spikes.
Judging by the faded equipment on the body, it must have been a high-level Shield Warrior.
“Did other players come here?”
Lin Mo was startled, but immediately dismissed the idea.
This was a dedicated area for the Epic Quest; it was impossible for other players to enter.
Then this corpse... Just as he was pondering, a sudden change occurred!
The previously lifeless corpse suddenly sprang up from the ground!
Two points of crimson light flared in its rotten, hollow eye sockets, and it opened its foul-smelling mouth, lunging viciously at the nearby Lin Mo!
[Adventurer Assimilated by Fear]!
This wasn't a corpse at all, but a monster disguised as one!
The distance between them was too short!
So short that Lin Mo didn't even have time to attempt a dodge!
In a flash of lightning, Lin Mo displayed superhuman reaction speed.
He executed a sudden back-bend bridge, his body arching backward at an impossible angle, narrowly avoiding the fatal pounce.
Immediately after, he exerted force with his waist, spinning his body like a top.
The night's bite dagger in his reverse grip became a streak of poisonous light, accurately piercing the monster's back and exiting through its chest!
“-3899!”
A massive critical hit damage figure appeared above the monster's head!
“Hoo... hoo...” The monster let out a reluctant roar, its body stiffened, and it completely dissolved into a puddle of black water, vanishing on the ground.
Lin Mo slowly straightened up, a layer of cold sweat already dampening his back.
That was too close!
If he hadn't maintained maximum vigilance, even if he hadn't died from that attack, he would definitely have been inflicted with a host of disgusting negative statuses!
“The monsters here actually know how to disguise themselves and ambush!”
Lin Mo's expression grew increasingly serious.
He realized that the Lightless Grotto tested not just his combat power, but also his insight, reaction speed, and... his mental fortitude when facing unknown fear!
The path ahead became even more perilous.
All sorts of monsters corrupted by fear emerged endlessly from the dark corners.
Some disguised themselves as rocks, some hung from the ceiling, and some could even mimic the glow of treasure chests to lure prey.
But Lin Mo, after suffering one setback, had raised his vigilance to the maximum.
He was like a top-tier bomb disposal expert; not a single anomaly could escape his senses.
Relying on his rich experience and supremely calm mind, he dealt with all the ambushers without major incident, continuously advancing toward the deepest part of the grotto.
Finally, after passing through a narrow and long corridor, the space suddenly opened up before him.
A massive underground cavern, large enough to seemingly hollow out the entire mountain, appeared before him.
Countless stalactites, shimmering with faint blue phosphorescence, hung from the cavern's dome.
Like stars in the night sky, they provided the only light source in this absolute darkness.
Illuminated by the faint blue starlight, a huge, heart-stopping “nest,” constructed from countless white bones and black flesh, stood silently in the center of the cavern.
An aura a hundred times denser than before, filled with Chaos, madness, and extreme fear, continuously emanated from the nest.
Lin Mo knew that the final Guardian was inside!
He took a deep breath, completely suppressing his aura, and cautiously approached the huge nest, step by step.
However, when he was still a hundred meters away from the nest, a voice filled with mockery and cruelty, which seemed to ring directly inside his mind, made the hairs on his entire body stand on end!
“Hee hee hee... I... smell... fresh flesh...”
Not good!
He'd been discovered!
Lin Mo's heart trembled violently.
Without thinking, he activated Shadow Step, and his figure instantly split into three afterimages, retreating rapidly in different directions!
And at that very moment!
“Swoosh—!!!”
A massive black shadow, too fast for the naked eye to track, flashed out of the nest like a phantom!
Its target was clearly the leftmost of Lin Mo's three afterimages!
“Pfft!”
The afterimage shattered instantly!
Immediately after, the black shadow didn't pause for a second.
With an eerie gait that completely defied the laws of physics, it twisted mid-air and pounced on the middle afterimage again!
“Pfft!”
The second afterimage shattered!
Too fast!
This thing's speed was even faster than Lin Mo's own!
Lin Mo's pupils contracted into the shape of a dangerous needle point.
Without hesitation, just as the third afterimage was about to be caught, he decisively activated Poison Shadow Shift, entering 1.5 seconds of invulnerability!
It was only during these short 1.5 seconds that he finally saw the true face of the black shadow!
It was a terrifying monster, the size of an elephant, appearing as a combination of a praying mantis and a spider!
Its entire body was covered in an exoskeleton as black as ink, seemingly capable of absorbing all light.
It possessed eight segmented limbs like sharp spears, and a pair of massive, sickle-shaped forelimbs that gleamed with crimson cold light.
Its head was a horrific face composed of countless twisted, wailing human faces—a sight that would cause one's sanity to plummet instantly!
[Grotto Lurker Corrupted by Fear · Morpheus]
[Level: 35]
[Tier: ???]
[Life Value: ???]
[Notes: A monster born from the deepest fear within the Lightless Grotto. Darkness is its best camouflage, and slaughter is its only instinct. It is the ultimate nightmare of all creatures who step foot here.]
The moment the invulnerability ended, Lin Mo's figure reappeared.
However, before he could react, the terrifying Lurker was already closing in again!
Its massive crimson sickles transformed into two intersecting streaks of deadly cold light, slashing down toward his head!
[Fear Harvest]!
Fast!
Extremely fast!
At such close range, there was no room for evasion!
A fierce glint flashed in Lin Mo's eyes.
He knew he had to tank this blow!
[Toxic Body]!
He activated this ultimate Life-saving skill once more!
“Clang—!!!”
The crimson sickles slashed savagely onto the thin, cicada-wing-like pale green shield, erupting in a deafening clash of metal!
“-28999!”
“+14500!”
A terrifying damage number, accompanied by an equally substantial healing number, appeared above Lin Mo's head!
Even with Toxic Body converting half the damage, the blow still sent him flying backward, and one-third of his HP bar instantly evaporated!
What terrifying attack power!
Lin Mo forcibly stabilized himself in mid-air, watching the monster pounce again, his mind racing.
No!
He couldn't fight it in an open area!
Its speed was too high; he had no room to kite it!
The only solution was... Lin Mo's gaze swept over the jagged rocks and narrow passages surrounding them.
An incredibly bold plan instantly took shape!
Instead of fighting the Lurker head-on, he turned and ran, plunging into a narrow crack in the rock nearby that was only wide enough for one person to pass through!
“Trying to run? Hee hee hee... It's useless...”
The Lurker let out a sharp, mocking laugh.
Its massive body, seemingly boneless, twisted and folded unnaturally, squeezing into the narrow rock crevice and pursuing relentlessly!
A chase and hunt of the extremes, set in the dark, narrow, and oppressive environment, began!
Lin Mo pushed his movement technique to the limit, dashing wildly through the complex underground passages.
The Lurker behind him, however, clung to him like a maggot in bone, refusing to let go.
Its sharp segmented limbs constantly scraped blinding sparks across the rock walls, and its terrifying sickles narrowly missed him repeatedly.
However, during the chase, Lin Mo's hand secretly performed a hidden action.
He quietly sprinkled bottle after bottle of [Potent Corrosion Poison] into every corner he passed.
He was using himself as bait!
He was using the entire grotto to set a... inescapable trap for this terrifying predator!
When the Lurker finally cornered Lin Mo, preparing to enjoy its prey, it suddenly noticed that the entire cavern had, at some point, become permeated with a faint, sweet-smelling... green poisonous mist.
“Welcome to... my hunting ground.”
At the end of the dead end, Lin Mo slowly turned around, his eyes shining terrifyingly bright in the darkness, flickering with cold and frantic killing intent.
Toxic Domain, quietly activated!
The next second, he abruptly snapped his fingers.
“Poison Burst!”
Boom—!!!
The Deadly Poison that had been accumulating for a long time detonated with a roar at this very moment!