Facing the Abyss as a Demon Cultivator

Facing the girl's invitation, Chu Xiu naturally had no reason to refuse.

The group continued upwards, reaching the thirty-first floor, which was cluttered with barricades. Every so often, they could see warning traps set up.

"Stay close to me and don't step on the traps on the ground. They took me a long time to set up," the girl wiped the sweat from her forehead. "By the way, I'm Guan Ke."

"Chu Xiu."

While they talked, they arrived at the thirty-second floor.

On other floors, scattered stones and planks were everywhere, but here, everything had been cleaned up and piled near the stairway. Along with wooden tables, wardrobes, and door panels, a nearly two-meter-high makeshift defensive barricade had been formed.

Peering through the gaps, they saw two boys sitting on small stools at the end of the corridor. One was surrounded by a pile of clothes, while the other was fiddling with a dead mutant rat.

"That's Xu Hang and Song Ziping. Their professions are Tailor (D) and Perfumer (C) respectively. The latter also handles food when he's not busy."

"Thanks to the Perfumer, even if these rats are gutted, their smell won't attract monsters. The perfumes he makes can also mask our scent at night."

"That's a good profession," Chu Xiu nodded. "What about you? What's your profession?"

"Puppeteer (D)," Guan Ke said, leading the group up.

"Puppeteer?" Chu Xiu was surprised. "There's such a profession in the Abyss? Is it for making dolls?"

"It's for making human-like puppets," Guan Ke corrected. "My puppets can be used as monitors. Abyss professions are all kinds of strange. What's yours?"

"Bone Assembler (D)."

Guan Ke paused, "That sounds made up."

"Abyss professions are all kinds of strange," Chu Xiu replied with a smile.

"Tch," Guan Ke pouted. "What's your talent?"

"Bone Polishing (D)."

Guan Ke: "You're making this up, aren't you?"

Chu Xiu laughed and changed the subject, "What's your talent?"

Guan Ke rolled her eyes, "I'm not telling you."

Then she asked, "So what can you do?"

"I can use corpses to make equipment."

Hearing this, Guan Ke glanced at Chu Xiu's Bone Armor in surprise, "So you're not a rich kid?"

"No," Chu Xiu shook his head. "My dad is a factory worker, and my mom is an accountant for a small company."

Whether it was his imagination or not, Chu Xiu felt that Guan Ke's gaze seemed a bit friendlier after he said that.

While chatting, they reached the rooftop. The water tank was not far from the door, and the path was covered with a large patchwork cloth, forming an almost enclosed space.

"This is the handiwork of our tailor. This way, we don't have to worry about being spotted by flying mutant creatures when fetching water," Guan Ke explained.

"Not bad."

Chu Xiu was a bit surprised. He had to admit, their small group was quite organized.

They arrived at the water tank, which was covered in a layer of green algae. However, thanks to the filtration system, the water was just about drinkable.

And there was plenty of it, enough to last at least seven days.

Chu Xiu was thoroughly relieved and took out a water bottle, drinking deeply. The other three's eyes lit up as well, and with Guan Ke's nod of approval, they eagerly picked up nearby filtered water bottles and drank.

The cool water flowed down his throat, and Chu Xiu felt like every cell in his body was being hydrated.
"Refreshing!"

He drank at least a liter in one go.

The other three did the same, which made Guan Ke chuckle, "You guys, why did you wait until you were this thirsty to find water?"

"We had mushrooms to eat," Yun Lu said, her mood greatly improved after drinking. She took out a handful of mushrooms from her storage space, "Sister, these are for you."

Guan Ke accepted them with a smile but soon frowned, "Although water is no longer a problem, food still is. I wonder if the others have had any luck."

Yun Lu took a bite of a mushroom, "Don't worry, Sister. My talent is Food Perception (B). I can help find food."

Hearing this, Guan Ke looked at Yun Lu with a surprised expression. Before she could speak, a hearty laugh came from the stairway, "Food Perception? Haha, then we won't lack anything in our team."

The group turned to see four people—three men and one woman—coming up. The leader, about 1.8 meters tall, was handsome, wearing intricately made leather armor with a large sword on his back.

He walked up to the group, smiling and extending his hand, "I'm Shen Zhuo. I heard from Ziping downstairs that we have newcomers, so I came to take a look."

Chu Xiu silently observed Shen Zhuo. The leather armor and the sword on his back were inscribed with complex, mystical runes, suggesting they were extraordinary items.

Clearly, this person was the rich kid Guan Ke mentioned.

Everyone greeted each other in turn.

Except for Chu Xiu, the other three were a bit reserved in front of him, especially Li Shan, whose tone unconsciously carried a hint of respect and flattery.

As luck would have it, his stomach growled at that moment, causing his face to flush with embarrassment as if he had lost face in front of an important person.

However, Shen Zhuo didn't mind at all. Instead, he waved his hand, and a few pieces of mutant rat meat appeared, "You guys must be hungry. Eat something to fill your stomachs. Don't worry, this rat meat may have a strong smell, but it's edible."

Li Shan accepted it gratefully, looking at Shen Zhuo with admiration. The others also took a piece each.

Only Guan Ke frowned, "Shen Zhuo, these are all team supplies. Shouldn't you discuss it with everyone first?"

Hearing this, the four eating paused. Shen Zhuo waved dismissively, "It's fine. These are on my account."

Guan Ke opened her mouth but said nothing, only clicking her tongue in annoyance.

Yun Lu, feeling embarrassed, tried to return the rat meat, but Guan Ke stopped her, "You eat. I'm not blaming you."

As for Chu Xiu, he finished his piece within ten seconds, prioritizing getting it into his stomach as quickly as possible.

While they ate, Shen Zhuo kept observing them. When they finished, he smiled and asked, "I still don't know your names. What are your professions and talents?"

The four introduced themselves one by one, and Shen Zhuo's eyes lit up, praising each one lavishly.

"Power Burst? Great! We need combat professions in our team!"

"Poacher! That's a fantastic profession—stealth, skinning, scouting—all greatly enhance team safety!"

"What? You can make weapons from corpses? Excellent! We'll never lack weapons again, greatly boosting our overall strength!"

His compliments made everyone feel good, especially Li Shan, who looked ready to die for his new benefactor.

So when Shen Zhuo invited them to join his team to clear the trial together, there was almost no hesitation in their acceptance.

Except for one.

"Sorry, I refuse."

Chu Xiu looked at the handsome young man before him and calmly said.