Starting Unlimited Evolution from Grinding

Chapter 349: Life is a Play, It's All About Acting

Continuing deeper into the ice cavern, after learning that there might be bandits in the current Millennium Cold Cavern who killed for goods, everyone's vigilance was raised once more.

Whether they were afraid or not was one thing; since they knew there might be danger, they naturally had to take precautions. No matter how strong their strength, they couldn't afford to be careless.

Because they needed to find the Phantom Snow Fox, for the rest of the journey, they were no longer mindlessly advancing forward. Instead, they had to search the surrounding areas, trying to discover traces of this magical creature.

So after more than an hour, they still hadn't ventured too deep into the cold cavern.

However, the area they were currently in was actually quite a deep part of the Millennium Cold Cavern. Therefore, the magical creatures they encountered along the way were also relatively powerful. Although not as strong as the target of the final B-rank mission, the Phantom Snow Fox, they were all above level 15, each possessing decent value as sparring partners.

"This thing is really quite hard to find..."

Yet the most important mission target for them had remained without any clues. After searching for a while, Ellie couldn't help but complain.

Flora shook her head: "If it were easy to find, this mission wouldn't have been available for us to take; it would have already been completed by other adventurers long ago."

Among the various B-rank missions, the reward for this one could be said to be among the top.

"Be a bit more patient. Anyway, the mission's time limit is still quite long; we don't need to be in such a hurry..." Halfway through her words, Ellie suddenly looked ahead, her brow furrowing as she sniffed: "There are people ahead!"

Everyone's expressions instantly turned serious. After all, they had just learned from that adventurer team not long ago that there might be bandits within this Secret Realm. Suddenly encountering people naturally required extra caution.

Ellie sniffed again, confirming the faint, elusive scent: "Seems like only one person, but their strength is very high!"

"Approximately how strong?"

Lin Mo inquired.

"Unclear, but definitely above the Transcendent Level."

That one sentence was enough to make everyone raise their guard once more.

The other party made no attempt to conceal their presence, soon appearing before them.

Lin Mo focused his gaze and looked. It was a middle-aged man around fifty or sixty years old, his temples already somewhat gray, but his body still quite robust, his gaze sharp, looking full of energy and vitality.

Most eye-catching was the badge he wore on his chest, which bore the emblem of the Adventurers' Guild.

This wasn't a symbol signifying adventurer status, but rather belonged to personnel of the Adventurers' Association. Specifically, it should be someone from the Adventurers' Association's management layer.

Seeing them, the uncle also frowned, scrutinizing them up and down with an inspecting gaze.

"Haven't you heard the recent news? It's not very peaceful inside this Millennium Cold Cavern; it's better not to venture deeper."

"You are?"

Lin Mo asked with a slightly furrowed brow.

The man smiled gently: "Oh... I almost forgot. Let me introduce myself. I am the general manager of the Frostbreath City Adventurers' Association, named Karen. If you've been at the Association for a while, you should have heard my name."

After all, apart from the chairman and vice chairman at the branch, it's me. You could say I'm the third-in-command of the Frostbreath City Adventurers' Association.

However, the faces of Ellie and the others before him showed only blank confusion. The corner of Karen's mouth twitched, and he continued: "It seems you must be adventurers who arrived recently. No wonder you don't know about the recent events happening inside this Secret Realm..."

He briefly explained, then summarized: "In short, although your strength isn't bad, it's best not to enter the Millennium Cold Cavern lightly recently, especially don't rashly venture deep."

"What about Mr. Karen?"

Lin Mo nodded, but his response to the other's suggestion was noncommittal.

"Me?"

Karen pointed at himself: "I, of course, represent the Association, to find and eliminate those scum."

Lin Mo suddenly narrowed his eyes, carefully observing the Karen before him.

Ellie's judgment wasn't wrong; the other party was indeed at the Transcendent Level, and his aura was very stable, not like someone who had just reached the Transcendent Level recently. His level was likely above 23.

After watching for a few seconds, Lin Mo suddenly smiled: "Since we know there are such scum, as adventurers, of course we can't just stand by and do nothing. Manager Karen is alone, and villains act cunningly. If they use some despicable methods, Manager Karen might also encounter some trouble. Why not change into adventurer attire and stay with our team, acting together? This would also help lure the snake out of its hole. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Karen was momentarily stunned, then a look of delight appeared in his eyes: "That is indeed a good method... it's just that you all might face some danger. Of course, rest assured, with me here, I will definitely ensure your safety."

Flora suddenly frowned, her gaze falling on Karen's face.

Sherfilia and Ellie had been staring at him from the very beginning.

Finnie blinked her eyes, her face innocent and adorably clueless. Eve stared vacantly at the ground, lost in thought about postures related to getting stronger.

"Of course, Mr. Karen is a manager of the Adventurers' Association. We naturally trust in your strength."

Lin Mo responded with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

At this moment, he suddenly remembered a saying: Life is a play, it's all about acting.

Karen scratched his head, while taking out a set of clothing that looked like adventurer gear from his Spatial Ring, saying: "Still feels a bit embarrassing. It's my own task, yet I'm troubling you all for help... How about this, what mission are you currently doing? If you don't mind, you can tell me. Maybe I can help a little."

"Of course, if it's inconvenient, you don't have to say..."

Lin Mo shook his head: "It's not inconvenient at all. Our mission is the B-rank [Snow Mountain Phantom]; we need to find the Phantom Snow Fox."

Karen frowned: "That mission? This kind of magical creature is indeed hard to find, but... I've been inside this cold cavern all this time, and I do seem to have some impression. Let me recall first..."

He frowned, appearing to be thinking seriously.

Seizing this opportunity, Flora suddenly walked to Lin Mo's side and tugged on his sleeve.

Lin Mo turned to meet her gaze, and Flora, who had opened her mouth, immediately closed it again.

"What's wrong, scared? It's okay, I'm here..."

A mischievous smile appeared on Lin Mo's face. As he spoke, he very naturally pulled her into his embrace.

The corner of Flora's mouth twitched repeatedly, her teeth itching with anger, but she could only play along: "Mhm, those bad guys sound so scary. I'm a little worried..."

"Don't be afraid, I'm here. And besides, isn't there also the Association's Manager Karen? He's so strong; nothing will happen."

This dialogue was rather... bizarre for Ellie and the others who were familiar with the two of them.

Thus, they all looked at them with strange expressions.

Seeing this scene, Karen just thought to himself that this kid was quite lucky with women, to have so many beauties vying for his affection.

Immediately after, he revealed an expression of sudden realization: "Right, I remember now! I think I saw traces of Phantom Snow Fox activity before, right in this direction!"

He pointed towards the deeper part of the Millennium Cold Cavern.

"Then we'll trouble Manager Karen to lead the way."

"Small matter, small matter, no need to be so polite. You're also helping me a great deal; this is only right."

Karen smiled as he turned around, taking the lead and walking towards the direction he had just pointed.

Lin Mo led the group to follow, but maintained a certain distance from him.

The group continued deeper into the ice cavern. After quite a while, they had advanced another ten-plus kilometers.

Suddenly, Ellie moved her nose and whispered: "There's the smell of a magical creature."

"This half-orc young lady's sense of smell is very sharp. I saw traces of Phantom Snow Fox activity in this area before. Is the scent you smell a slightly foul odor masked by a sweet fragrance?"

Ellie nodded.

"That's it then!"

Karen's face showed delight: "Little brother, you've found your mission target."

Lin Mo immediately exclaimed with feigned surprise: "Quick, Ellie, lead us to find it!"

"Okay..."

Ellie sensed something was odd about Lin Mo, but after exchanging a glance with him, she didn't voice it, already somewhat understanding in her heart.

Eve's gaze also looked over, thoughtful.

Finnie continued to hold onto Lin Mo's arm, rubbing her delicate little face against it.

Ellie's sense of smell was still very reliable, especially after the revival of her Ice Wolf Clan bloodline. Her sense of smell had become even more acute and precise than before. Not only could she detect subtle scents, but she could also roughly judge the other party's strength, size, and other information based on the scent.

So under Ellie's lead, they quickly followed that scent and found traces of the Phantom Snow Fox.

"The smell is getting clearer and clearer. The Phantom Snow Fox should be nearby."

Ellie's pace quickened, hurrying forward. Gradually, even Lin Mo and the others could smell that strange scent coming from the Phantom Snow Fox.

Lin Mo surveyed the surroundings. Although this type of magical creature was naturally cautious and would take care to hide its activity traces while moving, in places it frequently lingered, it was still inevitable to leave some traceable clues.

Suddenly, a silvery-white figure flashed before their eyes. Lin Mo's gaze instantly locked onto it. That figure appeared somewhat petite, not at all like the other magical creatures they had encountered before.

That's right!

Among magical creatures of the same level, the Phantom Snow Fox could be said to have the smallest physique. While other magical creatures of the same level generally reached heights of over 5 meters, the Phantom Snow Fox's size was no different from that of the most ordinary fox. This further increased the difficulty for adventurers hunting this creature.

Its inherently extremely fast speed, combined with its petite physique, made it like a fish in water within the relatively complex environment of the Millennium Cold Cavern. Many adventurers finally found traces of the Phantom Snow Fox, only to chase it halfway before the creature suddenly made several sharp stops and turns, causing them to lose it completely.

Without hesitation, Lin Mo immediately gave chase. His speed was extremely fast, even faster than the Phantom Snow Fox's.

This caused Karen, who had stayed behind, to narrow his pupils, thinking to himself, how is this kid so fast?

Before he could think further, Lin Mo had already caught up from behind and intercepted, blocking the Phantom Snow Fox's path. At the same time, Ellie and Sherfilia had also caught up. The three of them surrounded the Phantom Snow Fox.

Seeing no chance to escape, the Phantom Snow Fox could only stop and prepare to fight.

It let out a sharp screech, revealing a fierce expression. However, contrasted with its petite physique, it held no intimidation at all, instead appearing cute and almost cuddly.

At such a close distance, Lin Mo finally got a clear look at the creature's appearance. It was covered in silvery-white fur, its eyes a bewitching blood-red.

"Everyone, be careful! This type of magical creature has the ability to attack people's spirits, causing hallucinations!"

Karen, who had followed from behind, reminded them.

Finnie, very practiced, had already applied all the available buffs to everyone the moment they started moving.

Lin Mo showed no fear, directly attacking. Ellie also closed in from another side. But Sherfilia did not join the attack, instead staying beside Finnie, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

The Phantom Snow Fox stared intently at Lin Mo. From its perspective, it could clearly sense that this person posed the greatest threat to it. There was another human with considerable strength nearby, but that fellow didn't seem to intend to attack it.

So when it used its mental attack, the target naturally could only be Lin Mo.

Lin Mo knew about this creature's methods, but he had sufficient confidence in his own mental strength. Because he simultaneously mastered the two spellcasting professions of Priest and Mage, his Spirit attribute was actually quite high. At the very least, it was much higher than that of a typical single-profession Mage.

The Phantom Snow Fox's "Phantom Charm Assault" could work wonders against the vast majority of Professionals, but it wouldn't have much effect on him.

Of course, being conservative, Lin Mo still used the newly learned Priest professional skill—Concentration Technique.

This was also one of the 50 Skill Scrolls he obtained back in the palace of the Doria Kingdom, a green excellent-grade skill. The effect of this skill was to alleviate mental fatigue while also providing some protective effect against mental attacks.

Sure enough, with his already considerable mental strength plus the protection of the Concentration Technique, the Phantom Snow Fox's mental attack only made Lin Mo feel a slight stinging pain in his brain, after which there was no further sensation.

Meanwhile, Lin Mo had already gathered fire element. With a wave of his hand, he launched a Fireball towards the Phantom Snow Fox before him.

His attack method was very conservative. Such a simple Fireball naturally couldn't hit the speed-focused Phantom Snow Fox.

Lin Mo was deliberately doing this. With his strength, dealing with this Phantom Snow Fox was naturally not difficult. He didn't want the battle to end so quickly, because after all...

Some people should be about to reveal their true colors soon.

The Phantom Snow Fox's attack failed. Although somewhat puzzled as to why its Phantom Charm Assault hadn't taken effect, there wasn't more time left for it to think. Instinctively, it launched a counterattack.

Lin Mo unhurriedly dealt with its attacks, deliberately putting on an act of being completely capable of handling it, yet not too easily.

Karen remained observing from the side, not making a move.

He stared at Lin Mo, very keenly sensing that this kid's strength was somewhat unusual, and could even detect that he was deliberately hiding it.

What surprised him even more was that the Phantom Snow Fox's mental attack had actually failed?

Could it be that, like himself, he carried equipment that could resist mental attacks?

Though puzzled in his heart, Karen remained completely unflustered.

Although it was somewhat different from the original plan, so what?

Although reaching such strength at this age was an extremely exaggerated feat, in the end, he was just a kid who hadn't yet reached the Transcendent Level.

No matter how much he hid, he couldn't possibly be his opponent...

Looking at Lin Mo, who seemed evenly matched with the Phantom Snow Fox for the moment, he gradually lost patience. Matters had reached this point; there was no need to continue acting.

He clapped his hands. The crisp sound echoed far within the spacious ice cavern.

"Mr. Karen?"

The innocent Finnie only now realized something was amiss. Frowning, she looked at him: "Didn't you say you would help us complete the mission? Why are you just watching?"

"Young Mistress, please step back."

Sherfilia interrupted her, firmly shielding Finnie behind her.

"If I'm not mistaken, he should be the culprit behind those adventurers perishing here!"