67: Escape

Randall, the newly promoted Oath of the Crown Holy Knight, didn't hesitate in the slightest.

The moment he turned, a resolute light flickered in his eyes, and his holy emblem was raised high in his hand, as if becoming a source of holy light to dispel darkness and evil.

He silently chanted a sacred incantation, activating the Holy Knight's unique ability, "Turn Undead."

Those fleeing Undead Creatures, whether their bones were shaped like wolfhounds or other various animals, all made cracking sounds under the holy light, as if encountering an irresistible force, and then turned into a pile of ashes, scattering with the wind.

The three of us continued forward, the ground beneath our feet slippery, and the air filled with increasingly heavy moisture.

Thousands of meters later, an underground dark river came into view; it flowed silently, its waters deep and dark, extending into endless darkness at both ends.

We didn't rashly step into that unknown water, but decided to return and explore the other end of the rock crevice.

As I crossed the Bone Mountain, I kept feeling that the mycelia above my head were a bit strange, or was it just my imagination? I looked up carefully, but the mycelia were blurry in the dim light, and I couldn't make anything out, so I had to give up.

On the other side of Bone Mountain, apart from the ashes left by the low-level Undead Creature skeletons that Randall had Turn Undead again, there was nothing else unusual.

It was silent here, with only our footsteps echoing between the rock walls.

With no other way out, I decided to go to the underground dark river again to observe the situation.

When we crossed the highest point of Bone Mountain again, this time I found that the mycelia above our heads had actually contracted upwards a bit, as if trying to avoid something, or perhaps out of fear?

My heart skipped a beat; the behavior of these mycelia was too strange. Was it a timed contraction, or did they only react this way when we passed by?

The three of us slowly walked down the slope, our footsteps unusually clear in the quiet environment.

I kept my eyes fixed on the mycelia above, and saw them descend slightly, as if silently responding to our approach.

A thought stirred in my mind, and I decided to conduct an experiment.

"Wait for me," I said as I quickly ran back to the top of the slope alone.

Standing at the top of the slope, I looked around, confirmed there were no other anomalies, and waited quietly.

However, the mycelia showed no movement; they hung silently between the rocks, as if everything before had just been my imagination.

It wasn't until Randall also walked to my side that the mycelia contracted upwards again.

"Randall, stand still," I whispered.

After speaking, I slowly walked down the slope again.

This time, when I reached the bottom of the slope, I was surprised to find that the mycelia, which had originally contracted slightly upwards, remained in that contracted state and did not descend as before.

They seemed to have some special reaction to Randall, but not to me.

What was particularly different about Randall and me?

A strange excitement welled up in my heart, as if I had already touched the edge of this mystery.

"Randall, come down!" I shouted.

Randall heard this and immediately walked down quickly from the top of the slope.

"Did you discover something?" Fiona asked, her voice tinged with curiosity and anticipation.

"Possibly," I said, looking up at the mycelia above, "I'll observe more."

Sure enough, when Randall came down, the lowest mycelia descended a bit more.

He walked to my side, his gaze also turning to the mycelia above his head.

My heart was filled with joy, and I immediately said to Randall and Fiona: "Let's all go up. I found that these mycelia contract when Randall approaches. Fiona, later at the top of the slope, try casting the Magic Vine spell to send us up again."

Fiona's eyes flashed when she heard this; she immediately understood what I meant.

Randall also showed an excited expression.

"Okay!" Fiona readily agreed.

She stood at the top of the slope, chanting a spell. Green light bloomed from her fingertips, and the Magic Vine, like a living giant python, snaked out from the nearby rock wall, flexibly wrapping around our waists.

"Are you ready?" Fiona asked.

"Ready!" Randall and I answered in unison.

The Magic Vine wrapped around our lower bodies several times, forming three stable and comfortable vine baskets that held us, and then began to slowly lift us upwards.

The Magic Vine seemed to possess endless vitality, continuously growing upwards, carrying us higher into the air.

Randall stood at the very top, with Fiona and I close behind, the breeze whistling behind our heads, ruffling our hair.

As we continued to ascend, I noticed that the mycelia above began to show significant changes.

As Randall ascended higher and higher, the mycelial tubes near us also rapidly contracted, as if trying to avoid something terrifying.

The speed at which those mycelial tubes contracted was so fast that you could almost visually perceive every inch of their retreat.

"Fiona," I shouted, staring intently at the constantly contracting mycelia above, "Let's try to ascend close to the rock wall!"

"Okay!" Fiona readily replied, her hands moving slightly, manipulating the Magic Vine to change direction, bringing us closer to the rock wall.

When we approached the dense mycelia, I found that their contraction speed began to slow down.

"Randall, try 'Turn Undead'!" I shouted.

Randall heard this and immediately cast the "Turn Undead" skill.

He raised his holy emblem high, silently chanting an incantation, and a holy light emanated from his hand, shining on the surrounding mycelia.

The mycelia, which had been retreating slowly, began to accelerate their escape under the holy light, as if encountering an irresistible force.

"Hahaha!" Fiona burst into laughter when she saw this scene, "They can't trap us at all now!" Her laughter echoed between the rock walls, full of joy.

As the mycelia retreated one after another, the Magic Vine beneath our feet rapidly ascended.

The whooshing wind whistled past our ears, carrying us through stretches of mysterious mycelial jungle.