Facing the Abyss as a Demon Cultivator

Following the uncertain shout, a somewhat frail young man emerged.

Seeing him, the tall young man’s expression changed, and he cursed angrily, "Li Shan! Didn't I tell you to stay hidden? What are you doing out here?"

Li Shan shrank back and said weakly, "Wang... Wang Long, I know this person. He’s a classmate of ours. He’s a good guy."

Hearing this, Wang Long snorted coldly, obviously displeased with Li Shan's disobedience, but he didn't say anything more.

Chu Xiu, on the other hand, was a bit surprised. He hadn't expected to run into someone he knew.

Chu Xiu remembered Li Shan. Like Chu Xiu, Li Shan’s energy level was average in their class, making him relatively unnoticed. They occasionally exchanged a few words but were not really friends.

At this moment, Li Shan looked at Chu Xiu's armor with envy and asked, "Chu Xiu, did your family buy this for you?"

Chu Xiu did not confirm nor deny, remaining silent.

Seeing that the tension was rising again, Yun Lu quickly tried to smooth things over, "We are all trial participants. We need to unite to better pass the trial!"

Li Shan added, "Yes, Wang Long, didn't you say you wanted to kill those monsters outside? Having more people means more safety."

With the two of them mediating, Wang Long's expression softened a bit, though he still kept a safe distance from Chu Xiu. Chu Xiu, however, remained expressionless and sat down quietly.

Then, they re-closed the wooden door and began to share their information and intelligence in low voices.

Wang Long's talent was Strength Burst (D), which allowed him to explode with three times his strength for a short period. His profession was Barbarian (C).

Wang Long didn’t go into much detail about his professional skills, but it was clear that they were close-combat types.

Because his talent and profession matched well, even though their grades were not exceptional, Wang Long still had considerable early combat strength.

Li Shan, on the other hand, was much worse. His talent was Breath Holding (E), and his profession was Poacher (D), specializing in stealth and ambush. It was why Chu Xiu hadn’t noticed him hiding by the door earlier.

Between the two, Wang Long was clearly the leader. Chu Xiu suspected that Wang Long was probably using Li Shan as a scapegoat in critical moments.

"So, what's your profession and talent?" After introducing himself, Wang Long looked at Chu Xiu inquisitively.

"I can use corpses to make equipment," Chu Xiu said calmly.

Wang Long was momentarily stunned. He glanced at Chu Xiu's armor and snorted, "No wonder so many dried corpses disappeared outside. You were behind it. What's your profession then?"

"This is my profession, Bone Assembler (D)."

Wang Long: "...Did you just make that up?"

Chu Xiu smiled faintly, not bothering to explain.

"You..." Wang Long's temple throbbed, but he suppressed his anger and said nothing more.

From the first moment he saw Chu Xiu, he knew that this guy was definitely the type to hide his cards. He would never reveal anything unnecessary unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Fine, let's talk business," Wang Long suppressed his anger. "As Li Shan mentioned earlier, I plan to hunt those monsters outside."

"My profession is Barbarian, and only combat and killing enemies can earn me a lot of professional experience. Ordinary training yields very little, so I won't spend seven days hiding in this broken building."

"After all, who knows what might happen in the future? I don't believe we can easily pass the trial just by hiding in one place!"

"If you share my thoughts, we can discuss cooperation. If not, then you better leave."

As he finished speaking, the other three fell silent. Li Shan lowered his head with a gloomy expression, while Yun Lu looked to Chu Xiu.

Chu Xiu gently stroked his chin. He actually agreed with Wang Long's idea, but...

"I won't act rashly without knowing what kind of enemies we face," Chu Xiu said calmly.

"Don't worry. Although I'm a Barbarian, I'm not a brainless brute," Wang Long laughed, patting Li Shan beside him. "This guy has seen those monsters. Tell them what you saw."

Li Shan was reluctant, but after a fearful glance at Wang Long, he started recounting his experience to Chu Xiu.

As it turned out, Li Shan had briefly collaborated with the man who was killed on the eighteenth floor.

They were exploring the corridor separately when his companion found a mutated rat and, while calling for Li Shan to help surround it, chased after it.

Perhaps because the apartment was too quiet, he let his guard down and made quite a bit of noise during the chase.

By the time Li Shan arrived, he saw his companion being brutally killed.

"It was a nearly two-meter-tall monster, covered in pitch-black hair. It walked upright like a human, but its fingernails were over ten centimeters long, like five sharp blades!"

"It pounced like a beast, tearing open Maoshan's entire back with one swipe! Then it stomped and broke his spine! I didn’t dare to look anymore. Anyway..."

Li Shan’s face turned pale, his lips trembling, unable to continue.

"In short, it was a humanoid mutated creature."

Wang Long took over, waving his metal baseball bat dismissively. "No matter how terrifying, it's just a carbon-based lifeform. With my triple strength, I can smash a bear’s skull with one swing!"

"But... but this is a creature from another world!" Li Shan stammered, clearly not recovered. "How can you compare it to creatures from our world?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Long's expression darkened. He grabbed Li Shan by the collar and growled, "Are you doubting my judgment? I think you're just scared to die!"

Li Shan looked at Chu Xiu for help, but seeing that he was indifferent, he lowered his head and apologized, "I'm sorry. I was just worried."

"There's nothing to worry about!" Wang Long snorted, releasing Li Shan and glaring at Chu Xiu. "What about you?"

Chu Xiu glanced at them, thinking.

Clearly, Li Shan just wanted to hide and survive the seven days, while Wang Long wanted to kill monsters to level up and seek opportunities.

Honestly, Chu Xiu was more inclined toward Wang Long's approach. He also believed that hiding for seven days while being hunted by these monsters was unrealistic, with too many variables. Without enough strength, any unexpected event could lead to death.

Moreover, there was very little food in the apartment. Despite Yun Lu's efforts, they had only gathered a few dozen mushrooms, which were far from enough. Their condition would only worsen over time.

Given this, it was better to take the initiative while they were in their best condition on the first day.

Initially, Chu Xiu hesitated because he was alone, but now, with a strong fighter like Wang Long, the safety factor increased significantly.

But he didn’t agree immediately. Instead, he raised three fingers:

"Three questions. First, how do you plan to kill those monsters? Second, how will you ensure that the battle won't attract other monsters? Lastly, how will we divide the spoils?"

(End of Chapter)