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The inner ring of the ruins is much smaller than the outer ring, about the size of four football fields.

But its grandeur is even more magnificent.

The walls of the pitch-black pyramid overhead are covered with murals painted in crimson gold. The murals depict ferocious and terrifying monsters, powerful priests in robes who are as powerful as gods, and epic wars burning with blood-red flames, all of which are so lifelike that they seem to come to life at any moment.

Blood-red streams crisscross the ground like blood vessels, weaving a network that runs through the entire inner ring. The flowing liquid within is as hot and scalding as magma, and its scattered power creates minerals, nurtures strange plants, and gives rise to powerful monsters.

In the very center, a straight avenue, like a central axis, runs through the camp, altar, training ground, nursery, and other buildings, leading all the way to the pyramid at the very center.

"Is that the core of the ruins?"

Xiao Yun's eyes flickered as he looked at the world before him, when suddenly he heard a cacophony of whispers in his ear.

Xiao Yun was suddenly startled. He glanced at his personal panel and found that the two negative effects, "Burning Blood" and "Firestorm," had already reduced his health by 10%.

"We've only just entered the inner ring road, and the impact of the ruins is already so obvious?"

Xiao Yun frowned slightly, drank a few mouthfuls of spiritual spring water, his blood volume slowly increased, and the whispers in his ear decreased significantly.

If he really had to fight and explore with such a debuff, he would find it quite difficult to cope.

Fortunately, our friends in the student council are there to stand up for us.

Xiao Yun smiled and turned to look at Shen Ze beside him:

"Teacher Shen, please."

Shen Ze gave him a deep look, sighed softly, and led Liu Xiyue and the others to the front.

Xiao Yun and the others followed behind them at a leisurely pace. The two groups of people slowly made their way toward the central pyramid, stopping from time to time to explore the surrounding area, gather resources, and deal with wild monsters.

Each time they set off again, the size of the student council team at the front would be reduced.

Behind them, Xiao Yun's waist pouch was even fuller.

Time flew by, and half a day later, both teams had completed half the journey.

Suddenly, accompanied by a rumbling collapse, terrified screams echoed through the pyramid.

"Ah! Help! Help!"

In the scorching pool of blood, the boy fell from the shattered altar and struggled frantically in the crimson water.

Seeing the indifferent expressions of the group of people on the shore, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he clutched the treasure chest tightly in his hands.

"Help me get up here, or you won't get the treasure chest!"

Hearing his threat from behind, Xiao Yun remained calm and unconcerned.

On the other side, Liu Xiyue, standing on the shore, watched her teammates being trapped in danger, her face grim.

This scenario has happened many times since we entered the inner ring road.

At first, she still held onto some hope, thinking that Xiao Yun and the others would make an example of her and then it would all be over, but now she was completely desperate.

"What are you all standing there for? Don't you want the treasure chest anymore?!"

The boy in the pool of blood roared tremblingly. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but he seemed to sense something lingering around him.

Immediately afterwards, he felt another impact on his leg, and he trembled violently, his fierce expression instantly turning into terror.

"Minister, Minister, Sister Liu, save me!"

Liu Xiyue gritted her teeth, unable to endure the agony of death any longer, and was about to direct everyone to rescue the person.

But the next second, her hand, which she had just raised, was pulled back by Shen Ze beside her.

"You've already endured this for so long, don't do anything stupid."

"If you save him now, you'll be next to die."

"We have less than thirty men left. If this continues, we'll be wiped out soon!"

More and more dark figures lingered and wandered in the blood pool, and Liu Xiyue's eyes were filled with anxiety.

The boy's cries for help grew increasingly piercing, but Shen Ze remained calm and ignored them.

"Which is more important, your teammate's life or your own? You decide."

As he spoke, he released Liu Xiyue's hand.

Liu Xiyue gritted her teeth, her eyes flashing with a complex expression.

Thump—thump—thump—

Waves surged in the pool of blood, and a group of ferocious fish surrounded the boy, their gaping maws wide open.

Click—click—

A chilling chewing sound rang out, the stench of blood filled the air, and even more large fish lunged forward.

The boy let out a painful scream, slapping the water's surface with his hands.

"Help! Minister! Minister... Damn it, Liu Xiyue, you filthy bitch, you'll all die a horrible death!"

The cries for help quickly turned into insults, but as the waves in the pool grew larger, even the insults gradually disappeared.

Liu Xiyue, standing on the bank, closed her eyes and trembled all over.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

She cried out in anguish, but no one came to her aid.

Beside her, the others listened to the commotion in the pool of blood, and looked at Liu Xiyue, who was weeping bitterly, and the light in their eyes slowly faded.

In fact, if Liu Xiyue had been willing... no, if anyone had been willing to stand up and lead everyone in the rebellion from the very beginning, even knowing they would die, everyone would have resisted to the end.

However, after witnessing the deaths of so many of his comrades, his initial fighting spirit and rebellious attitude completely died out.

Instead, a group of numb and cowardly people took their place.

Behind them, Xiao Yun looked at them and gently shook his head.

They were all afraid of being pushed toward death, but they were all gambling that they wouldn't be the next one to be pushed out.

"That's what a smart person is like..."

Xiao Yun chuckled softly, a complex light flickering in his eyes.

In the beginning, he had actually prepared himself for a counterattack from Liu Xiyue and the others.

However, he realized that he had underestimated Liu Xiyue and Shen Ze's cruelty and overestimated their moral bottom line.

Aside from a few initial disturbances, the subsequent plans went more smoothly than anyone could have imagined.

The student council was constantly losing members, and Xiao Yun was constantly taking over various resources, but the negative impact of the ruins did not increase much. Everything was so perfect.

"There are even more monsters on the way. By the time we reach the core pyramid gate, Liu Xiyue and the others will be almost all dead."

Xiao Yun drank from the Spring of Spirituality while lost in thought.

"quack."

The crow king's cawing pulled him back to reality.

Xiao Yun took the treasure chest that the Crow King had retrieved and opened it casually.

Click—

Congratulations on obtaining the Blood Pool Building Card (D+ grade), Blood Piercing Arrow Skill Scroll (D grade), and Blood Copper Alloy Spear (D grade)!

"Another building card. It seems the rewards in the inner ring of the ruins are even more plentiful than I imagined."

Having explored less than halfway, I've already collected 7 treasure chests, yielding four D-grade skills, three D-grade equipment pieces, three D+-grade equipment pieces, two D+-grade runes, one C-grade rune, and one D+-grade [Fire Pot Building Card].

In addition to the rewards from the treasure chests, there are also [Blood Marrow Fruit] that can enhance physical fitness, [Blood Copper Ore] with blood-sucking properties, and countless other miscellaneous materials that you can find along the way.

"No wonder Liu Xiyue wanted to seize the ruins; the rewards for developing such a dungeon are far greater than exploring the wilderness."

Xiao Yun packed up his things and casually tossed the blood-stained treasure chest to the ground.

bang-

The sound of heavy objects crashing echoed through the pyramid's passageways, and the stench of blood filled the air.

A group of girls standing next to Xiao Yun turned pale.

They looked at Xiao Yun as if he were a living devil.

Lu Zhi put her hand to her forehead and said with a wry smile:

"Why does it feel like we've become the villains?"

Xiao Yun glanced at her and said calmly:

"I was only trying to ensure everyone's safety, even if the methods were a bit bloody, and besides..."

Xiao Yun suddenly smiled and gestured to Liu Xiyue, who was staring intently at them.

"Do you think we'd be better off if we fell into their hands?"

Lu Zhi's pupils dilated in shock, her delicate body trembled, and she slowly lowered her head.

She knew, of course, that Xiao Yun was right, but for some reason, she had a vague feeling that something was amiss...

"quack!"

The Crow King flew back again and retrieved the boy's dropped items.

Xiao Yun took it, shook off the blood, and stuffed it into his system inventory.

Seeing this, Liu Xiyue trembled all over and roared with eyes wide open:

"Xiao Yun, you'll die a horrible death for profiting from human suffering!"

"If it were us who died, you would be eating this blood-soaked bun with more gusto than anyone else."

Xiao Yun chuckled softly, raised his eyelids to look at Shen Ze, and said meaningfully:

"Let's keep going, Teacher Shen. We're not far from the next gate."

Shen Ze gave him a deep look and nodded.