Infernal Artist

A group of snow camels moved forward slowly in the wind and snow.

Liu Ping said loudly:

"Uncle Zasha, how long until we reach the border?"

On the other snow camel, a thin man responded: "Mr. Paladin, we are almost at the checkpoint. Look -"

Liu Ping looked in the direction of his finger.

Ahead is a towering mountain as far as the eye can see. This mountain is like a wall, completely blocking the entire plain.

A winding path stretches forward, leading to the foot of the mountain.

At the foot of the mountain, there are several buildings.

"You two, that's the border post. You have to check the pass. Then you can pass through the mountain through the underground tunnel and reach the other side of the mountain - that side is the territory of the Kingdom of Ceylon." Guide Zasha said.

"What's the climate like over there in the mountains?" Hua Qingkong asked.

The guide smiled and said loudly: "You two, please be prepared. This mountain blocks most of the ice air from the Kingdom of Ceylon, so Cold Hammer Town can still exist. Once you cross this mountain, the climate will change." It’s even worse, and ordinary people simply can’t survive.”

The camel caravan moved on.

finally.

The entire team arrived at the sentry post.

Zha Sha went to arrange the camel team, while Liu Ping and Hua Qingkong went to verify the passes.

In the office as warm as spring, a pot-bellied man read the pass carefully and said:

"Are you from the energy exploration team?"

"Yes." Hua Qingkong said.

"You are so young." The man sighed.

Liu Ping glanced at his epaulettes and smiled: "So we are just trainee members."

——The other party is a major.

I'm afraid he is the highest-ranking officer in this sentry post.

"Get to know me, I am Major Bart who is in charge of the sentry here." The major put down his pass and cleared his throat and said, "That's it. Two mineral deposits were discovered in the underground tunnel. I hope you can help me investigate. Make a note."

As he spoke, he casually placed the two passes next to Zhang Zi and continued:

"This won't take long. I'll stamp your passes as soon as you get back and give you some self-defense items - what do you think?"

Liu Ping and Hua Qingkong looked at each other.

If it's just for record keeping, of course it's no problem.

It is said that mineral exploration also needs to be recorded by professionals like them and reported to the superiors, and then people will be sent to carry out the next step of the work.

"Okay." Hua Qingkong said.

The major said: "Then it's settled."

He stood up and led the two of them outside.

Liu Ping looked around and suddenly found a marching chess piece on the other side of the desk.

This is a very popular game among the military.

"Huh? Major Bart, do you also play marching chess?" Liu Ping asked with interest.

Major Bart didn't expect him to ask such a question. He was startled for a moment and responded: "In a place like the border, there is no decent entertainment at all. Playing chess is a good way to pass the time - okay, let's hurry up and go Look at those mineral deposits.”

He led the two of them out of the room.

…

Underground tunnel.

Every hundred meters, there is a dim light, illuminating the spacious tunnel.

"Strange, this tunnel is not mentioned at all in the book."

Liu Ping said.

"This tunnel existed a long time ago. During the expansion of the empire's territory, it was discovered, not dug by our people." Major Bart said.

"It turns out it's not the empire's achievement, no wonder it's not written much." Liu Ping said with relief.

The ground is paved with neat small stones, which are quite solid when stepped on.

Liu Ping knelt down and touched it.

"Qinglan Stone." He whispered.

"Yes, this stone is very good for paving roads, and the roadbed below is also very strong, so we basically don't have to worry about it." Major Bart said.

Liu Ping looked around again.

On the rock walls on both sides, you can occasionally see some residual colors and object outlines. At first glance, they are murals from long ago, but they have been eroded by long time and are now completely invisible.

He stepped forward and touched it, sighing:

"Quite advanced mural skills. If nothing happens, I would really like to stay here for a while."

"Do you still understand this? I remember you were prospectors." The major asked.

"Ah, I was an artist when I was alive - in some fields." Liu Ping said casually, admiring the incomplete mural.

Hua Qingkong interjected: "Does this tunnel lead all the way to the Kingdom of Ceylon?"

"Yes," said the major.

"Such a tunnel is very necessary for historical research. Why has no one come and there are no decent records?" Liu Ping asked strangely.

The major shrugged and said, "I don't know. We just stay here. Who knows what the higher ups think."

After walking for a while, there was a fork in the road ahead.

"Look, there are five tunnels here. The mineral deposits we discovered are in two of the tunnels. You need to go and record them respectively."

The major waved his hand, and a group of soldiers followed him out.

"Ms. Hua, they will take you to one of the tunnels; Mr. Liu, come with me and we will go to the other side." The major ordered.

Hua Qingkong glanced at Liu Ping.

Liu Ping nodded.

"Okay." Hua Qingkong said.

She followed the soldiers toward one of the tunnels.

Liu Ping and Major were left in place.

"Let's go the other way," the major said.

"good."

The two of them walked into another tunnel under dim light.

rustle……

The tunnel was very quiet, only the footsteps of the two people could be heard.

Walked for a while.

The major stopped, pointed to a collapsed wall in front of him and said, "That's where the mineral deposits were discovered."

Liu Ping looked around and saw that the wall had been crushed, exposing large chunks of rock behind it.

"Are those stones?"

"Yes."

"Very good, I'll go take a look." Liu Ping said happily.

He was about to walk forward when he suddenly stopped and said:

"Major Bart, I also like to play marching chess, and I even got third place in a competition when I was in school. When we have time, can we compete?"

"Haha, yes, yes, if you are not in a hurry to leave, you can play a few games with me tonight." The major smiled.

"It's better to wait until we come back. Then we can discuss and learn from each other." Liu Ping said.

"No problem! Now please go and record the status of these ores." The major said.

"certainly."

Liu Ping walked forward step by step.

Behind him, the smile on the major's face gradually faded, and he stretched out his hand to gently twitch.

A card appears in the major's hand.

The major took one look at the card and threw it away.

"Goodbye, knight."

The card turned into a streak of fire, flew out, and slammed into Liu Ping's back.

Bang!

Before the fire even touched him, it seemed to be blocked by something. It immediately dispersed and went out.

Liu Ping slowly turned around and said with a smile: "Major, I just saw that these are ordinary rocks, there is no need to record them."

Major Bart's face darkened and he shouted: "This is impossible, you obviously have no defense!"

Liu Ping spread his hands and said: "There are actually many things in the world that we have never seen before, so there is no need to make a fuss."

In the void, lines of burning small characters have already stayed there:

"You issued an invitation to fight to Major Bart: 'Let's compete when we have time'."

"The other person's answer was: 'Haha, yes, yes'."

"The conditions have been met."

"As a prison knight, this battle has entered your exclusive battle mode: soul gambling."

"The souls of the losers belong to the victors."

All the small words disappeared in a flash.

Lines of new burning characters quickly appeared:

"The opponent's spell card attacked you."

"The attack failed."

"In the current soul gambling mode, the opponent must defeat all your cards before they can cause harm to you."

"—Just like the bartender who fought you."

Liu Ping didn't look at these prompts at all, he just stared at Major Bart and said:

"As an imperial soldier, you also surrendered to that cult? Tsk, it seems like things are serious this time."

In front of him, three half-human, half-insect monsters quietly emerged.

Major Bart looked regretful, shook his head and said, "Wouldn't it be better to simply die?"

"I would feel very embarrassed if I was killed by a sneak attack." Liu Ping said.

Major Bart took two steps back and whispered:

"Give me strength!"

A card quietly appeared above his head.

This is a card Liu Ping has never seen before.

Infinite black light emerged on the card, making it impossible to see what was drawn on it.

"Then, you will only see true despair." Major Bart said.

The card turned into a black mist that surged downwards, completely covering the major.

boom--

Large swaths of black fog obscured the tunnel.

The next moment.

A jagged bony hand stretched out from the black mist and made a gentle stroke.

Snapped! Snapped! Snapped!

Three crisp sounds.

The three-headed bugs blocking Liu Ping were instantly killed.

At the critical moment, a white light suddenly appeared and waved forward with force——

when!

A violent clash sounded.

Zhao Chanyi showed her figure, blocked Liu Ping behind her, and shouted: "Be careful, it's very strong!"

Liu Ping looked at her arm.

After just one fight, Zhao Chanyi's fair and slender fingers had already been ripped open.

Blood gurgled out.

Looking at the three bugs, I saw bursts of flames burning on their bodies, and they were burned to nothing in an instant.

Liu Ping's expression changed and he took out three cards.

The three-headed bug on the card was gradually disappearing, and the card turned into powder and fell from his hand.

A line of burning small words appeared:

"You have completely lost three cards: Cemetery Corpse Worm."

one strike!

Kill three level 11 zombies with one strike!

What a strength this is!

In the black fog, a strange voice sounded:

"I said, from now on, you will only feel despair."