Chapter 214

Chapter 211: Poison Fog

Deep within the underground ruins of King Campus, in a long, narrow corridor, Dorothy was running swiftly, trying to evade the swarm of bats that were searching from above.

“Huff… Huff… To be able to summon so many bats at once for a full search and to immediately spot my small zombie puppet, and then save the thistle from the hunter’s encirclement… This guy… He might not just be a Black Earth Tier…”

Dorothy analyzed as she ran, clearly indicating that whoever was using the bats to search for her was likely an Extraordinary Being above the Black Tier, which would make them a White Tier existence.

Although Dorothy could rely on extraordinary items, system skills, and combat plans to defeat a Black Tier opponent one rank higher than herself, she had no confidence in challenging a White Tier being two ranks higher, especially one who suddenly appeared and about whom she knew nothing, with almost no intelligence gathered.

Therefore, Dorothy could only try to escape. With the bats already covering the upper layers, she couldn’t run back and could only flee deeper into the ruins.

But soon, she realized that running wasn’t going to be a viable solution.

“No… Based on the intervals between the elimination of the zombie puppets left behind, these bats have an astonishing search speed. They can sweep through a layer in no time. If this continues, they will reach my level very soon. I can’t outrun them; I need to think of another way. I can’t just wait to be caught. At least, I should hinder him!”

Dorothy thought, then began looking around for any environment she could use. After scanning the area, she seemed to notice something.

“It seems… Since I came down to this level, I haven’t encountered any other forks in the path. It’s been a straight corridor all the way. So, if the bats want to chase me, they can only come from one direction… That’s behind me!”

With this realization, Dorothy stopped at a corner ahead and took out her magic box, adjusting its entrance size before controlling three zombie puppets to emerge from it. One of the puppets held a large bottle filled with an unusual liquid—oil for lamps, which Dorothy had prepared for the exploration.

Then, Dorothy controlled the four puppets, including the one holding the lamp and oil, to walk toward the direction from which the bats were coming. She herself hid in the darkness behind the corner, away from the light.

Under Dorothy’s control, the four puppets blocked the middle of the corridor, standing ready to face the approaching bats, with three in front and one holding the lamp and oil lying down behind them.

Facing the dark corridor, Dorothy and her puppets held their breath, waiting intently for the bloodthirsty bats to arrive.

Soon, a rustling sound emerged from the darkness at the end of the corridor. The sound grew louder and closer, and Dorothy could feel something approaching.

Finally, after searching all the upper levels, the bloodthirsty bat swarm reached Dorothy’s level. They rushed down the stairs and flew in groups along the long, winding corridor.

“Here they come…”

Preparing herself, Dorothy heard the dense, chaotic sounds. On the other end of the corridor, countless bats flew along the single-file path, turning several corners before sensing the presence of a living person and rushing forward.

Quickly, the first puppet Dorothy had positioned was instantly surrounded and torn apart by the bats, unable to resist. Seeing this, Dorothy confirmed the position of the bat swarm in the darkness and, while the bats were attacking the puppet, she opened her mouth.

“-Fus·Ro-”

The ancient words echoed like thunder in the darkness. The resulting shockwave sped forward along the single-file corridor, striking the bats tearing apart the puppet.

Under the impact, Dorothy’s puppets and the bat swarm were thrown against the walls, creating bloodstains. Large groups of bats were smashed against the end of the corridor, leaving the walls cracked from the force. These cracks spread outwards, some reaching the ceiling.

Compared to the shockwave, the sound of Dorothy’s dragon roar affected the bats even faster. Bats, which relied on echolocation, had highly developed auditory organs. The immense noise of the dragon roar stunned those bats not yet in the corridor, causing them to collapse and twitch on the ground, significantly weakening the incoming swarm.

Seeing this, Dorothy felt a surge of joy and controlled the puppet nearby, which had avoided the dragon roar, to stand up and rush forward with a lamp and oil to clear the battlefield.

Dorothy planned to burn the remaining bats that had not entered the corridor and were still stunned but not destroyed by the dragon roar.

Dorothy directed the puppet holding the oil to the end of the corridor, turned, and saw a mass of bats trembling on the ground. Without hesitation, she poured the oil over them. Just as she was about to ignite them, distant rustling sounds indicated another group of bats approaching.

“d*mn… Why are there still so many behind? Wasn’t this group the only one?”

Watching the new group of bats approaching, Dorothy instructed the puppet to set the fire quickly. However, the new group of bats rapidly changed.

These bats began to converge during flight, forming a constantly expanding shadow. This shadow eventually condensed into a human form, resembling Claudius, though his skin was covered in bloody wounds.

Using only a fraction of the bats, Claudius reappeared and swiftly flew to the puppet preparing to ignite the oil. His pale, sharp claws pierced through the puppet, which quickly shriveled into a dry corpse. The wounds on Claudius healed slightly.

Claudius could transform into fifty bats, and as long as one-fifth survived, he wouldn’t be in mortal danger.

Thus, Claudius never used too many bats for any task, always keeping enough safe in reserve. These newly arriving bats were his backup, and the wounds on his body reflected the losses from the dragon roar.