“The Zombie Piglins elsewhere can sense it too?
A Hive Mind?”
Jing Yuan was somewhat surprised.
He hadn’t expected these creatures called Zombie Piglins to possess something akin to a Hive Mind.
Fortunately, Fu Mo had stopped him earlier, or he might really have attacked them.
Once he did, Jing Yuan wasn’t worried about his own safety, but the Zombie Piglins would probably keep coming to harass him like mosquitoes in summer.
That would be unbearably annoying.
After some thought, Jing Yuan put away his weapon, avoiding any rash actions in this unfamiliar dimension.
No other monsters blocked their way, so Fu Mo and Jing Yuan reached the edge of the cliff with ease.
Ahead of them stretched a Lava Lake covering thousands of square meters, while the Nether Fortress they were heading for stood at its very center.
“That’s pretty far…”
Fu Mo estimated the distance, then glanced at the Blocks remaining in his Inventory.
He had enough to build across, so he turned his back to the Lava Lake, crouched at the cliff’s edge, and began placing Blocks outward one at a time.
Seeing this, Jing Yuan asked worriedly, “Fu Mo, will a bridge built like that hold your weight?
Aren’t you afraid it’ll collapse halfway?
Why don’t I just fly you over?”
Fu Mo had been about to tell Jing Yuan not to worry, but he froze upon hearing that last sentence and abruptly looked up at him.
Jing Yuan was baffled by his stare.
“What is it?”
“You should’ve said you could fly!
Then why am I going through all this trouble to build a bridge?
Forget it.”
Fu Mo stood and returned to Jing Yuan’s side, pointing toward the Nether Fortress at the center of the Lava Lake.
Jing Yuan nodded and placed a hand on Fu Mo’s shoulder.
The two rose into the air, then flew toward the Nether Fortress.
Suspended in midair, Fu Mo glanced enviously at Jing Yuan.
Being able to fly was certainly convenient.
It made traveling so much easier.
He wondered when he would gain the ability to fly.
Without buying a Mod, the soonest opportunity would be in The End.
“Jing Yuan, take me down to the surface of the Lava Lake first.
I need to scoop up a bucket of Lava.”
“All right.”
Fu Mo immediately took an Iron Bucket from his Inventory and scooped up a bucket of Lava.
[Achievement Unlocked: Hot Stuff]
[Achievement Points Obtained: 10]
He had nearly forgotten about this achievement.
When he built the Nether Portal earlier, Tingyun had prepared the Lava for him, so the achievement hadn’t been triggered.
He had almost forgotten about it entirely.
Once Fu Mo finished collecting the Lava, Jing Yuan carried him into the air again and landed steadily on one of the Nether Fortress’s exposed walkways.
[Achievement Unlocked: A Terrible Fortress]
[Achievement Points Obtained: 30]
“What do we do next?”
After setting Fu Mo down, Jing Yuan asked him about their next step.
Fu Mo surveyed the area and spotted a Blaze Spawner nearby.
He had originally intended to ask Jing Yuan to help kill monsters for Blaze Rods, but he was worried that the rule of slain creatures dropping items only applied to him.
As someone from another world, Jing Yuan would most likely be wasting his time.
After some thought, Fu Mo decided to have Jing Yuan search for Nether Wart instead.
“How about this?
I’ll fight the monsters, while you search beneath the staircases in this building for Nether Wart.
It’s a crimson, fern-like plant.
Remember, if you encounter monsters in the fortress, use ranged attacks whenever possible.”
“Don’t worry.
I’m quite confident in my own strength.”
Jing Yuan patted his chest and replied with a smile.
Besides, he knew these monsters might carry some form of Zombie Virus.
He certainly didn’t want to become Mara-Struck, so he would naturally choose ranged attacks.
After dividing their tasks, Jing Yuan and Fu Mo split up.
Jing Yuan descended the stairs to search for Nether Wart, while Fu Mo placed Blocks along the way toward the Blaze Spawner.
Jing Yuan cautiously descended the stairs, his gaze constantly sweeping his surroundings.
Although this place was supposedly a fortress, it looked more like a ruin to him.
Its interior structure was extremely simple, consisting solely of corridors and staircases, with no other signs that a civilization had ever existed here.
Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he heard a roar from deep within the corridor to his right.
Turning his head, he saw a pitch-black skeleton at least two meters tall walking toward him with a Stone Sword in its hand.
Its body was also shrouded in a dense aura of [Destruction].
“A monster walking the Path of [Destruction]?
Although Jing Yuan was curious about these monsters he had never seen before, Fu Mo had warned him beforehand.
He had no intention of putting himself in danger merely to satisfy his curiosity.
“Lightning-Lord.”
Jing Yuan whispered softly.
A golden, fully armored phantom appeared behind him, wielding an Array Blade.
Jing Yuan raised his hand and pointed at the Wither Skeleton charging toward him.
The Lightning-Lord behind him immediately swung its Array Blade down at the Wither Skeleton.
Wreathed in lightning, the Array Blade descended straight through its head.
With a single strike, the Wither Skeleton dissolved into a wisp of smoke.
Jing Yuan was somewhat surprised to see the Wither Skeleton die so easily.
“I didn’t expect something walking the Path of [Destruction] to be so remarkably fragile.
Still, that’s good news.”
At least Jing Yuan wouldn’t need to worry about encountering any trouble ahead.
After dealing with the monster blocking his way, Jing Yuan continued down the corridor.
He encountered quite a few more Wither Skeletons along the way, but eliminated them one by one.
Before long, Jing Yuan finally found the Nether Wart Fu Mo had mentioned beneath a staircase descending from an upper floor.
“It certainly looks unusual.”
Jing Yuan studied the crimson, fern-like plant before him for a moment, then reached out to pick it.
However, just as his hand approached it, he suddenly sensed that something was wrong.
Tiny souls abruptly burst from the strange sandy soil beneath the Nether Wart.
As they passed through his palm, Jing Yuan immediately felt something furiously tearing at his soul.
The sudden attack drained the color from Jing Yuan’s lips.
Losing his balance, he dropped to one knee and hurriedly withdrew his hand.
Fortunately, once he pulled his hand back, his condition gradually improved, and the sensation of his soul being torn apart disappeared.
“What happened?
Was it because of that strange sandy soil beneath the Nether Wart?”
Jing Yuan frowned at the peculiar soil beneath the Nether Wart.
Only upon looking closely did he notice something strange: the patterns across its surface formed the shapes of countless souls.
Upon closer inspection, he could even see their screaming faces.
No matter how he looked at it, there was definitely something wrong with this soil!
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me!
★ ★ ★
Shilling time!