Chapter 65: 65 Chapter 65: The Last Time The air on the island was full of moisture. Every breath carried a strong fishy smell. The humidity was extreme, as if soaked in water. It was very uncomfortable. "What an awful place, smelly and fishy," Ning Yiyi covered her nose, disliking the smell. There was a prominent mountain peak at the center of the island. The Mermaid dungeon was on top of the mountain. A huge waterfall could be seen cascading down the mountain from afar. At the peak, the entrance to the Mermaid dungeon swirled like an underwater vortex. Jiang Taotao looked towards the mountain, confirming their direction. The island was larger than imagined. After passing through the water barrier, everyone had scattered. The once dense crowd was now nowhere to be seen. "We need to move quickly. Our target is the Mermaid dungeon," Jiang Taotao said solemnly. "Avoid fighting monsters if possible." She took the lead and ran forward. The others immediately followed. There were ponds everywhere, with many monsters visible inside. These monsters were half-human half-fish, covered in scales. They weren’t as beautiful and cute as mermaids in stories. Their exposed fangs were very sharp, glinting coldly in the sunlight. Without doubt, their teeth could bite through steel. The team moved swiftly through the narrow paths between ponds. Suddenly, with a splash, a mermaid monster shot out of a pond straight at them. Jiang Taotao reacted extremely fast, immediately using a skill. Taunt! The knight’s signature skill. The mermaid monster seemed greatly insulted. It suddenly turned towards Jiang Taotao, eyes glowing red, seemingly having lost all reason. Lin Moyu cast Detection on the mermaid. [Mermaid Tribe Soldier] [Level: 19] [Strength: 300] [Agility: 150] [Spirit: 200] [Constitution: 320] [Skills: None] The attributes matched the standard for a level 19 monster. Not very strong, and no skills. Such wild monsters were no match for them. Charge! Before the mermaid monster arrived, Jiang Taotao had already charged forward with her shield raised. With the Charge skill, she instantly crossed over 10 meters and crashed into the mermaid monster. With a bang, the mermaid monster was sent flying several meters. At this moment, a fireball flew out, accurately hitting the mermaid monster. With a boom, the mermaid monster was engulfed in flames. But it didn’t die, struggling to charge at Jiang Taotao again. Behind it, a shadow flashed as Ning Yiyi appeared beside it. Her dagger glowed as she stabbed. Fatal Strike! The skill activated as the dagger pierced the mermaid monster’s heart. Scales shattered as the mermaid monster fell with a miserable cry. Then an ice arrow shot out, hitting the mermaid monster. It was completely frozen, no longer moving. [Killed Level 19 Mermaid Tribe Soldier, Experience +1500] [Jiang Taotao obtained Fish Scale x1] Lin Moyu received the notification that the mermaid monster was killed. Due to being in a 6-person team, the experience gained wasn’t high. As team leader, Jiang Taotao received all dropped items. This was a trial, not for leveling up, so Lin Moyu didn’t mind. After quickly dealing with the mermaid monster, the team continued forward. They encountered several more waves of monsters along the way. As they got closer to the mountain, monster numbers increased. Their levels also gradually increased. Later they encountered level 21 monsters, which took some effort to defeat. After killing a level 21 monster, Jiang Taotao looked towards the mountain. "At our current speed, it will take at least 3 hours to reach the island center." "Climbing the mountain will also take time." "We’re too slow." "From now on, when we encounter monsters, Miao Yu will control them. Avoid fighting if possible." "Let’s speed up towards the dungeon." Jiang Taotao decided to ignore monsters and increase their pace. Miao Yu nodded, "Understood." The team sped up. When encountering monsters again, Miao Yu directly used control skills. Wind Binding! With the skill, wind elements moved gently, restraining the monsters like shackles. It lasted one minute. By the time it wore off, they would be long gone. This greatly increased their speed. Just twenty minutes later, they could see the foot of the mountain. As Jiang Taotao had judged, they were behind. Other teams had already reached the mountain base, well ahead of them. A waterfall cascaded down from the mountaintop. There was only one narrow path up the mountain. Mermaid monsters stood on the waterfall and the path. Especially at the mountain base, where the waterfall created many interconnected ponds. The ponds formed a winding road. Mermaid monsters were everywhere, impossible to avoid. Some teams had already reached the mountain base and were clearing monsters, preparing to climb. Jiang Taotao gritted her teeth, "If we charge straight up, do we have a chance?" Miao Yu shook her head, "There are too many. I can’t control them all." "And they’re level 22, higher than me. My skills have a chance to fail." When monsters were higher level than Miao Yu, her skills had a chance to fail. It had failed several times on the way, but there was only one monster then, so they just killed it when control failed. But here, there were too many monsters. Dense like an army camp. Jiang Taotao frowned. If they cleared all the way up, it would take at least an hour, putting them far behind. But charging straight through without Miao Yu’s control would be very difficult. They might even get surrounded by mermaid monsters, putting the team in danger. Jiang Taotao was caught in a dilemma. Lin Moyu looked at the path ahead, having found the shortest route. "I’ll do it," he suddenly said. Ling Zhen sneered almost instinctively, "You? What can a level 17 nobody do?" Lin Moyu hadn’t taken action the whole way, just following behind. Except for Ning Yiyi, no one knew his abilities. Ning Yiyi snorted, "Ling, shut your stinking mouth." Jiang Taotao glared at Ling Zhen, signaling him to be quiet. Then she asked Lin Moyu, "What do you plan to do?" Lin Moyu said, "Use skeleton warriors to lure away the mermaid monsters." Jiang Taotao’s eyes lit up, remembering Lin Moyu was a Necromancer. Though she didn’t understand what Necromancers could do, She knew he had summons. Using summons to lure away mermaid monsters was a good method. This also made Jiang Taotao notice that the teams who had reached the mountain base also had summoners. They were likely using summons to lure away mermaid monsters too. Jiang Taotao said, "It’s up to you then." "Everyone else get ready. We’ll charge through when the monsters are lured away." Lin Moyu focused, and skeleton warriors ran forward with their unique clattering sound. "So fast!" Jiang Taotao’s eyes widened. The skeleton warriors’ speed far exceeded her expectations. In the blink of an eye, they had run dozens of meters, appearing before a group of mermaid monsters. The mermaid monsters let out shrill cries, immediately charging at the skeleton warriors. The skeleton warriors ignored them, turning to run. They ran to another pond, luring out all the mermaid monsters there. Then they ran to other ponds. In moments, over a dozen mermaid monsters were chasing the skeleton warriors. The skeleton warriors led a group of monsters, running further and further. With the path cleared, Jiang Taotao shouted, "Go!" The team quickly advanced. The skeleton warriors ran ahead, clearing the way by luring away monsters along the route. The team’s progress was very smooth. In just minutes, they had reached the mountain base. By now, over a hundred monsters were chasing the skeleton warriors. Under Lin Moyu’s control, the skeleton warriors ran further and further. Suddenly, the skeleton warriors disappeared. Lin Moyu had recalled them to his summoning space. The mermaid monsters suddenly lost their target, looking confused. Jiang Taotao let out a long sigh of relief, "Well done." Ning Yiyi giggled, "So amazing." Duan Gao and Miao Yu also looked at Lin Moyu with approval. They owed this to him. Ling Zhen said coldly, "Why didn’t you do this from the start? We could have reached the top by now." Lin Moyu turned his head, looking at him as if he were an idiot. Wasn’t this guy supposed to be a mage? Mages should be smart. How did this guy seem so stupid? Ning Yiyi snorted, "Ling Zhen, shut your stinking mouth. Stop talking nonsense. If you’re so capable, do it yourself." Lin Moyu looked at him coldly, "Last time." Ling Zhen looked disdainful, "It’s just relying on summons..." Jiang Taotao interrupted Ling Zhen, "Enough, be quiet." Ling Zhen had repeatedly targeted Lin Moyu. Lin Moyu rarely spoke, but Ling Zhen always started trouble. Anyone could see who was causing problems. Suddenly screams came from the mountaintop. Everyone looked up to see many mermaid monsters rushing down the mountain. The teams that had climbed up earlier were rapidly retreating downhill.