Chapter 54: The Chosen Box

The sky outside the optical barrier of the mine was already a dense, ominously blood-tinted purplish-red, casting an oppressive twilight over the vast grassland. A chilling wind swept by, carrying with it a rich, oppressive aura of darkness.

Damn it! Su Liu felt a chill in her heart.

She had lost track of time inside the mine, actually dragging it out until this moment!

[Remaining kilometers for today: 3 km]
[Current time: 21:27]

The crimson numbers in the upper-left corner of her vision pulsed like a death warrant.

Only thirty-three minutes left, and she had to cover three kilometers!

"Tuanzi, hold on tight!" Su Liu gave a low bark, instantly pulling the prepared [Pan-Seared Gale Rabbit Chop] from her backpack.

Without even pausing to taste it, she practically swallowed it whole. The warm piece of meat instantly transformed into a light, gentle current that swept through her entire body; her fatigue plummeted, and the sluggish feeling in her limbs was instantly wiped away.

Buff activated! Agility temporarily increased by +5!

At the same time, Su Liu's mind screamed: "Hourglass of the Hour of Chen—Slow Down! Target: The flow of time around me!"

Buzz! A familiar azure radiance diffused from the hourglass, instantly washing over Su Liu and little Tuanzi.

The actions of the surrounding world seemed trapped in glue, abruptly slowing down by at least twenty percent! The flow of the air and the swaying of the grass blades all turned into slow motion.

Yet, Su Liu and Tuanzi's movements were relatively accelerated, and a feeling of lightning-fast speed surged over them.

Take inventory of the mine's harvest?

There was no time!

Too rushed to check the clinking crystals in her pack and the newly acquired [Shadow-Veil Necklace], Su Liu only made sure her grip was secure on her poisoned dagger and sharpened short blade before breaking into a sprint toward the depths of the grassland path!

Her enhanced agility (38 points), combined with the 5-point bonus from [Light as a Swallow] and the 20% acceleration effect from the Hourglass of the Hour of Chen, made Su Liu shoot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring. Tuanzi's four short legs blurred until they were mere afterimages as it clung securely to her shoulder.

The human and the fox flashed across the desolate grassland trail amidst accelerated light and shadow, leaving the heavy twilight fiercely behind them.

Sweat had long since soaked through her back, and her lungs burned with pain, but Su Liu's eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, locked relentlessly on the constantly ticking mileage and countdown on her panel.

[Current time: 21:55]
[Remaining kilometers for today: 0.3 km]

Almost there! Just bypass that small dirt mound ahead... Just at that moment!

[Big Sis Liuli, look!]

Tuanzi suddenly cried out urgently, its fluffy, large tail pointing excitedly toward the edge of the black fog on the right side of the path—there, right in front of a tear in the darkness as thick as ink, the outline of a familiar box was faintly visible.

Its silver-white sheen could not be entirely concealed even in the dim twilight.

Silver Secret Casket!

Su Liu's pupils contracted sharply, her pace instantly slowing as the blue light of the Hourglass of the Hour of Chen silently faded away.

"It's that... the 'surprise' at the end of the phase!" Her heart hammered wildly from the high-speed run and the sudden turn of events.

Memories rushed over her like a tide: her previous gaming experience clearly told her that on the final day of each phase (such as the end of the novice protection period), there was an extremely small probability for supply chests far exceeding the current phase's grade to refresh along the roads!

Inside these often lay crucial supplies or precious information needed to deal with the next natural disaster or crisis... but the price was that the strength of the strange entity guarding the box was definitely off the charts! And it would ambush!

21:56.

Only four minutes left until the ten o'clock travel curfew!

She was still 0.2 kilometers short of today's mileage goal!

Take it? Or leave it?

Su Liu's eyes flickered rapidly, and within a single breath, she made her decision:

Take it! Fortune favors the bold!

But it had to be fast, precise, and ruthless!

Four minutes left—more than enough!

Taking advantage of the chosen-one chest mechanic, this box would not lure out the over-leveled strange entity for an ambush until the player proactively "opened" it!

It was precisely this "opening" instant she was after!

Shadow's Fang! Since she had newly acquired the Shadow-Veil Necklace, if she didn't use it now, when would she?

"Tuanzi, prepare for battle! Listen to my command!" Su Liu's voice was frighteningly calm as she spoke, swiftly putting on the [Shadow-Veil Necklace], which emitted a faint, distorted force field, around her neck.

A subtle sensation, like a drop of ink entering clear water, enveloped her and Tuanzi. Their presence seemed to blur slightly, fusing even deeper into the surrounding dim scenery. It was a perfect beginning.

At the same time, she pulled out a kerosene lamp, ignited it, and placed it by her feet.

The faint yet vital lamplight tenaciously propped up a ten-meter safety zone optical barrier at the edge of the dense darkness—this was the fundamental basis for surviving tonight!

With all that done, the time froze at: 21:57.

Su Liu did not run directly toward the Silver Secret Casket. Instead, she stood at the edge of the ten-meter safety zone, about seven or eight meters away from the casket.

At this distance, she could not directly touch and open the box, but this suited her plan precisely.

She took a deep breath, and abruptly pulled out... a flashlight, its beam striking precisely upon the smooth surface of the Silver Secret Casket.

The light reflected! That blinding flash acted just like a provocative signal sent out to the strange entities!

"Awooo—!"
"Hiss, hiss—!"

Accompanied by skin-crawling howls, the black fog beside the Silver Secret Casket boiled violently.

Five long, knife-like shadows as fast as ghosts lunged out fiercely.

Their forms were blurred, their entire bodies covered in moss of a dark green hue that continuously dripped with viscous fluid, and the ends of their limbs were horn-like structures as sharp as sickle blades—[Shadow Moss Claws]!

Level 3 wasn't particularly off the charts, but the problem was, there were five of them!

The moment they appeared, they brought with them a chilling cold and a corrosive aura.

Right now! Use their attack trajectory!

"Tuanzi! [Void Trace]—direct front fan-shaped coverage!" Su Liu issued a sharp command, her body sliding backward in a rapid dodge as she retreated to the center of the light barrier.

The chilling howls tore through the stagnant air! The five dark-green afterimages, carrying dripping mucus and a foul stench, slashed the twilight with blade-like forelimbs as they lunged straight for the "provocative light source" illuminated by the kerosene lamp!

In the blink of an eye—

"Shadow-Veil!"

Su Liu gave a low shout in her heart. The Shadow-Veil Necklace at her neck flickered with a faint, ghostly light, and a bizarre, distorted force field instantly enveloped her and Tuanzi, making them seem like nothing more than a negligible patch of shadow at the edge of the darkness.

Simultaneously, leveraging the momentum of her retreat, she dropped into a deep squat, her commands snapping out like frozen pearls: "Tuanzi! Fan-shaped [Void Trace]! Underfoot [Gale-Step]!"

Tuanzi reacted with the speed of lightning! Pushing off Su Liu's shoulder with its four short legs, it leapt lightly into the air, its two fluffy, large tails bristling from root to tip!

Cyan-white psychogenic energy frantically converged upon its tiny front paws—and it slashed them downwards in a fierce cross!

Rip—!

Two massive, silent spatial fissures carrying terrifying cutting power instantly extended and intersected directly in front of the charging paths of the five Shadow Moss Claws! It was like ripping apart a massive, invisible curtain!

The two Shadow Moss Claws rushing at the very front had no time to dodge at all. Their high-speed moving figures collided head-on with the spatial fissures under their own momentum!

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a teeth-setting "shree" sound of cutting. The resilient moss-covered bodies of the two strange entities were cleanly sliced down the middle, dark-green foul-smelling juices and shattered moss splashing everywhere like raindrops.

They didn't even have time to scream before their remaining halves turned into two pools of viscous energy debris and slowly dissipated.

The other three Shadow Moss Claws, relying on their high speed and their companions having "scouted the path" with their lives, narrowly managed to side-step or drop low just before the spatial fissures formed, barely evading that fatal blow!

However, just as they steadied their figures, their hearts still pounding with terror—