That's right, that's what adventure is like!

boo——

The azure herb was pulled from the mud, its roots splashing muddy water. Aletta shook it off and then put it into his bag.

This is the fourth leaf-seeking grass she has found.

It grows next to the corpses of a group of dead adventurers.

Thick black mud buried most of the flesh and blood, a few vines wrapped around the man's face, obscuring his eyes that had lost their luster, and deep marks remained on his neck.

Beside him were the two teammates, their bodies scattered in various places. One arm was stuck diagonally in a puddle, still in the posture of gripping a weapon, and the other half of their bodies leaned against a dead tree, the cut at the waist jagged.

The air was thick with the stench of decay, carrying a faint metallic smell. Several worms crawled around inside the eyeballs, gnawing on the still relatively fresh flesh.

"Two days," Ate pulled off three bronze badges, examined the extent of the corpses' decay and their equipment, and sighed slightly. "These people have only been dead for two days. They must have gotten lost and couldn't get out of this area."

After three hours of trekking, he had gradually calculated their approximate location by observing the distance his pocket watch hands moved and the team's pace.

Unfortunately, that's not enough.

The fog was thicker than before, and his movement speed began to stagnate, preventing him from calculating his location more accurately or knowing how far he was from his target.

Should we continue deeper? Or turn back?

Not sure.

The only thing that's clear is that there's an opportunity now.

"These adventurers were killed by lizardmen," Roland concluded, examining the wounds on the corpses. "These monsters have their own territories and generally don't stray far from them."

"Not bad," Art picked up a heavy stick stuck in the fallen leaves and looked at it. "There aren't many lizardman tribes in the Trembling Swamp, and I've recorded their locations."

Thea added, "Once we find their camp, we can determine our current location."

Roland nodded, agreeing with the idea.

Lizardmen are primitive humanoid creatures with a very strong sense of territory. They generally do not migrate, and once their camp is located, their current location can be determined.

The issue is……

"How do I find it?"

Thea looked at the staff in her hand and sighed, "I don't know any tracking spells. The swamp terrain is too complicated, and those lizardmen won't leave any footprints."

"It's alright, I have a way."

The lost coin was tossed into the air and then caught by Roland.

He immersed himself in it, focusing his attention on the traces around him, and soon, a faint light appeared.

The cut of a withered branch was very fresh, and several silver coins were scattered around it. Although it was submerged in the mud, it emitted a white light.

Several glow mushrooms were in unusual positions, deviating from their normal growth trajectory, as if they had been trampled.

There was also a clump of grayish-brown fibers scattered in the corner, like some kind of fabric—the kind that's only sold in towns.

"They're prisoners," Roland said calmly, picking up the piece of cloth and looking down at it. "It seems the lizardmen have a new reason to hold a feast."

Art looked on in surprise as he discovered the clue with just a coin. He took the fabric and examined it carefully, agreeing, "Not bad, it seems they did leave traces."

Besides their territorial instincts, the lizard people also have a strong religious culture. If they capture human prisoners, they will not kill them on the spot, but will bring them back to their camp for a feast.

As a result, the captives were either turned into soup or sacrificed to the lizardmen's gods.

"Now that we've confirmed our target, let's set off," Thea said with a smile, pointing to the sky. "It's getting dark, and I don't want to spend the night in the lizardman camp."

Roland nodded, told Aletta to pick up the silver coins, and then took the lead and strode forward.

The group maintained their formation and, following the guidance of the lost coins, slowly advanced into the gray fog.

After walking about a few hundred steps, the fog thinned slightly, revealing a path. To be more precise, it wasn't a road; it was just withered grass lying flat on both sides in the same position, as if creatures frequently walked by.

"This is the lizardmen's patrol route," Art crouched down to examine it, pulling out several dark green scales. "It seems they frequently operate in this area."

Roland nodded, stuffed the coin into his pocket, drew his longsword again, and stepped forward first.

"Stay close and don't make a sound."

The four of them slowly made their way along the hidden path, occasionally hearing the gurgling sound of bubbles rising and falling, like some kind of creature rolling around in the mud, making Aletta's palms sweat.

Less than half an hour later, a dim beam of light appeared before Roland's eyes, with the vague outlines of several short figures floating within it.

He immediately told the others to stop, and then he stepped forward alone to take a closer look.

Lizardman camp.

Unlike human camps with neat fences, the "walls" were made of dark green vines that wrapped around a dozen dead trees, forming a shape similar to a fishing net. Many fluorescent mosses hung on them, which was the source of the dim yellow light.

In the middle of the withered leaves, there was a deep pit that had been dug out, with black ash from the fire still remaining. Several bones, some of them from animals and some of humans, were stuck in the ground.

There were no signs of human prisoners, only scattered pieces of cloth amidst the ashes, which looked like they had long since been eaten by the monsters.

A dozen or so lizardmen sat quietly around the pit. Their bodies were covered in dark green scales, except for their shoulders and abdomens, which were deep yellow. Their lips and teeth protruded outwards, revealing two rows of jagged teeth, and a prominent bony ridge stretched from their foreheads to the back of their heads.

They are mostly equipped with spiked shields made from the hides, shells, and fangs of dead monsters, and in their other hand they carry heavy clubs or javelins, with a few occasionally carrying slightly rusted longswords—clearly taken from adventurers.

After scanning the lizards and counting them, Roland slowly took two steps back and returned to his teammates.

"Twelve," he didn't speak, but gestured, "that's manageable. Shall we begin?"

Ate craned his neck, looked at the large, withered trees, then pointed to the ground, shook his head slightly, indicating that he had identified which lizardman camp this was, figured out the location, and didn't need to take action.

Roland nodded and prepared to retrace his steps along the path.

But just then...

call out--

A sharp whooshing sound came from the side, carrying a fierce force and moving extremely fast. Roland instinctively dodged, but was still grazed by a dark green shadow on his shoulder, tearing his black robe to reveal red scales underneath.

"Prepare for battle!!!"

Ate reacted quickly, immediately shouting and raising his two-handed sword to protect Thea.

call out! ! !

A second dark green shadow attacked from the same direction again. This time Roland saw clearly that it was not an arrow or a javelin, but a long whip covered in thorns.

bang——

A blue barrier rose up, blocking the second long whip; the thorns shattered, releasing a foul-smelling liquid.

"Kaso (some kind of dragon language)!!!"

Upon hearing the noise, the monsters in the camp instantly went berserk. More than a dozen lizardmen roared and charged towards the four. Their coordination was quite exquisite. Three rushed towards At, four pounced on Thea who was chanting a spell, and the rest surrounded them from both sides, trying to cut off their retreat.

But they are not the real threat.

Under Roland's watchful gaze, the mist churned and a slightly hunched lizardman slowly emerged.

Unlike ordinary lizardmen, this one was two inches shorter, wearing a robe woven from vines and animal hides, and holding a staff with a dark green crystal at the top emitting an eerie glow.

His dark green pupils were vertical, with a faint golden light inside. The corners of his mouth curled up, revealing a cruel smile, a pure joy of killing.

Lizardman Shaman.

As spellcasters, a rarity among the lizardmen, they naturally hold a higher status in the camp and exude a stronger sense of oppression.

boom!!!

Without speaking, nor in the Common Tongue, the lizardman shaman raised his staff, and a sudden flash of dark green light appeared in the air.

The next second, countless withered grasses and vines that had been lying quietly straightened up, as if they had come to life, and wrapped around the ankles of the four people.

Entanglement Technique?

A cold glint flashed in Roland's eyes. Before the vines could wrap around him, he stomped on the fallen leaves and swept through the gray mist, heading straight for the lizardman shaman!

Behind him, Thea's staff glowed red, and the scorching flames burned the vines that were chasing him.

But as a result, countless vines had already wrapped around the ankles of the three of them, climbing up their boots and calves!

"Damn it!"

Ate cut off two vines, only to see more wrapping around him. He cursed under his breath and reached for his bag.

Thea wasn't faring much better. She unleashed two bursts of flame from her fingertips, but the lizardmen pounced on her, forcing her to switch targets and focus on dealing with the more immediate threat.

Roland ignored the trouble his teammates were facing, because he knew that the strongest one here was this lizardman shaman. Once he dealt with it, the remaining ordinary lizardmen were no threat at all!

The lizardman shaman, seeing his decisiveness, showed a human-like surprise in his eyes, and then took a step back.

The staff was waved gently.

A thick gray fog surged from the ground, drastically reducing the area illuminated by the torches, while simultaneously carrying a sweet, metallic scent that filled Roland's nostrils.

Suddenly out of sight of the enemy, Roland stopped, threw the torch on the ground, held his breath, and began to listen intently.

To be precise, it's perception.

The first sounds that reached Roland's ears were the hissing of the lizardmen, the curses of his teammates, and the rustling of vines sliding, all of which he ignored.

Then he heard it.

Three steps to the right front, there was a slight wriggling sound, like the sound of fine scales rubbing against fallen leaves.

Roland's eyes turned cold as he turned and swung his sword horizontally, the silver-white blade drawing a semi-circular arc in the air.

A long, spotted snake covered in pustules leaped from mid-air, its scarlet lips not yet parting to spew out putrid liquid before it was cleaved in two by the sharp blade.

Summoning spell.

cheated.

Roland shifted his gaze, quietly waiting for the lizardman shaman to make his next move.

Suddenly.

boom!!!

Thea's incantation came from behind, and a pillar of fire shot into the sky, dispelling the nearby clouds and mist. The rolling heat wave made Roland's robes flutter, and he was able to see the current situation clearly.

At was being attacked by three lizardmen, and there were several bloody marks on his leather armor. But after clearing his vision, his two-handed swordsmanship became more disciplined, and he was suppressing them.

Thea had already burned all the vines under the three people's feet with her magic, but two thorny whips still came from a distance, hindering her next spell. It was the lizardman shaman obstructing her from the shadows.

Aleta pressed close to Thea, plunged a black dagger into the eye socket of a lizardman, spraying dark green liquid all over her, but then turned and grazed the neck of another lizardman with the blade.

boom!!!

A foul stench emanated from above, causing Roland to look up and instinctively shrink his pupils.

It was a huge swamp crocodile, about two zhang long, covered in dark green scales. It had climbed to the top of a dead tree at some point and was attacking from above. White saliva dripped from its open, blood-red mouth as it was about to bite Roland with its four rows of sharp teeth!

Another summoning spell?

Roland quickly scanned the crocodile's eyes and saw a cunning glint in them, making a judgment in an instant.

It's a transformation spell; the lizardman shaman has transformed into this swamp crocodile!

Since that's the case, then kill!

He gripped the sword hilt tightly, and the rune slot suddenly lit up, flashing white light as it transformed into a sharp blade that shot upwards.

"--disperse!!!"

boom!!!

The inscribed runes worked their magic at that moment. Although they did not interrupt the spell directly, they did cause the lizardman shaman's transformation to become unstable for a brief moment, and the crocodile body froze in mid-air for a split second.

For Roland, that moment was enough!

He took a half step forward, and the sword tip twisted accordingly, aiming at the soft flesh under the crocodile's jaw. His muscles bulged, and power surged from the soles of his feet, across his waist, torso, and arms, gathering at the tip of the sword, and then... poured out!

laugh.

The sword tip, forged by the dwarf master himself, was incredibly sharp. It easily pierced through the soft flesh, and Roland didn't even feel the slightest resistance before the blood and flesh seeped out from the back of his head.

"Ugh—!!!"

A mournful roar came from the crocodile, and Roland couldn't tell if it was the crocodile's cry or the dragon language of the lizardman shaman.

All he saw was that as the sword was pulled out, the crocodile crashed heavily to the ground, its long tail lashing wildly and snapping a nearby dead tree in half.

Then, he collapsed to the ground with a thud!

"Kla (some kind of dragon language)..."

Its massive body began to shrink, its dark green scales receded, revealing the lizardman shaman's murky eyes. It stared at Roland above, its lips moving as it uttered a sentence whose meaning was unclear.

Then, he slowly died.

"Kaso!!!"

With the death of the lizardman shaman, the remaining lizardmen let out terrified howls and scattered in all directions.

Several of the slower ones were caught up by Thea's magic and fell to the ground with a "thud" before they could even use their spiked shields to defend themselves.

Ate severed the last lizardman that was entangled with him, wiped the blood off his body, leaned on his sword and breathed slightly, his eyes fixed on Thea with concern.

But Thea didn't look at him; instead, she stared at the streak of light that swept across the sky.

call out! ! !

The scorching spear, wrapped in strips of cloth, whistled through the air, leaving a brilliant crimson trail, before piercing the heart of a lizardman whose body was mostly submerged in the gray mist, pinning it firmly to a dead tree.

Roland walked over, slowly pulled out the javelin, wrapped it again with a strip of cloth, and then returned to the three of them.

Thea sat cross-legged on the ground, drinking a bottle of blue potion. Her face turned from pale to rosy, but her gaze remained fixed on the javelin behind Roland.

She seemed to have connected Roland to the recent rumors, but after several attempts to speak, she chose to remain silent.

Aletta stood there, her arms trembling, clearly exhausted, but she didn't seem to be seriously injured, except for a few bloodstains on her face.

Meanwhile, At had already searched through all the lizardmen's corpses, but it seemed he hadn't found much.

He walked over and stared at the lizardman shaman's corpse: "We need to clean this up quickly, the smell of blood will attract other monsters."

Roland nodded, walked over to the shaman, and quickly pulled out some spoils of war.

A few gems, seemingly looted from adventurers, were casually tossed to Thea.

A necklace of animal teeth, engraved with incomprehensible patterns, was probably a sacrificial item. It might be of interest to some, but it was too troublesome to deal with, so I simply gave it to Atlantis.

A strangely shaped bone dagger, quite sharp, was given to Aletta to replace the black dagger if necessary.

Finally, there was the staff inlaid with dark green crystal, which Roland kept for himself. This item was worth almost ten times more than all the other items combined.

No one objected to this allocation model. That's how temporary adventure teams work: whoever does the most work and has the strongest combat power has the right to speak.

However, just to be on the safe side, Roland activated his magical perception again for a moment to check if he had missed any items.

This sight surprised him.

"Is this... creating a demon?"