CHAPTER 299: CHAPTER 299: MUTATED GOLDEN-WINGED PHOENIX

"So it means the good ones are hiding. Once I find the seal and purify this area, they’ll reappear."

Jiang Yuan carefully read the system’s prompt and suddenly realized, "All that’s visible now is bad, I can attack indiscriminately!"

Then he looked up at the crooked-neck tree emitting black miasma. Did the system mean that to find the seal, besides defeating monsters, he also had to cut down the tree and dig out the mud pit?

This is a big project, but for someone with awakened genes from the homeland of gardening, isn’t the new dungeon just like farming and reclamation!

Cutting trees, weeding, chiseling stones, filling mud pits, fighting monsters... altogether, it’s just familiar old work.

Previously, he was worried about the lack of time and energy, leaving tasks like cutting trees to his apprentices, hence slowing his skill upgrades. But as soon as he opened a new dungeon, all worries disappeared. The map showed this vast polluted mountain range needed reclamation, inch by inch, a super project indeed.

"Caw!"

While pondering, a sudden high-pitched bird cry came, Jiang Yuan cautiously picked up the Blade and looked up, his pupils contracted instantly!

What kind of monster is this?!

The main body appeared as a fiery red bird-shaped figure, but above the neck was wrapped in a group of roughly seven or eight black worm-like "heads," each with maw-sized spiked orifices, and the wings were covered with miasma-emitting pustules, making one nauseous at the sight.

[Polluted Mutated Golden-winged Phoenix: Intermediate Monster]

The system’s prompt was incredibly simple, Jiang Yuan frowned tightly, looking at the wings covered with large and small black pustules, where was the golden wing’s shadow?

"Caw!"

Seven or eight black orifices opened simultaneously, the mutated Golden-winged Phoenix flapping its wings swooped to demonstrate again while spitting out a visibly black mist.

"Such big talk?" He noticed the system prompt indicated his poison resistance coefficient was high enough, so he wasn’t harmed. With a thought, Vast Mountains and Rivers struck!

Pale yellow mist enveloped the opponent, then the newly learned Instant Teleportation Technique was deployed, Jiang Yuan chose to appear behind the mutated Golden-winged Phoenix from a flashing position. The next second, he indeed appeared from mid-air, wielding the Blade and slashing directly!

-2800!

-300!

"Puff!"

As data floated above the mutated Golden-winged Phoenix’s health bar, Jiang Yuan’s big saber sliced off one of the worm-like orifices, and his figure also fell from the sky.

"Plop!"

Fortunately, reacting quickly, as he cut off the orifice, he took out a paper crane from the Storage Bag, blew on it, and the paper crane expanded with the wind, flapping wings in the air, catching him smoothly.

However, the toxic miasma within the new dungeon was evidently highly corrosive, as the paper crane landed, black spots appeared on its white wings.

[Paper Crane is being polluted, must interrupt quickly, or it will become a Mutated Paper Crane]

What the heck?!

Jiang Yuan had considered using a massive paper army tactic, but seeing this, he quickly set the paper crane on fire, destroying the polluted paper crane, and incidentally offered the mutated Golden-winged Phoenix a dose of the Heaven-Burning Flame.

After having a mouthpiece cut off, it evidently became more agitated, continuously shrieking to attack.

"Vast Mountains and Rivers!"

-2600!

"Instant Teleportation Technique!"

"Crack!"

-300!

The benefits of data-focused operations were apparent. There was no need to cast pre-spell setups like novices, simply use frequently set skills as soon as their cooldown ends.

Even more convenient than mobile game operations, without occupying both hands, a thought triggered the skill, leaving him free to strike with the Blade whenever an opportunity arose on the opponent.

Thus, even with the newly learned Instant Teleportation Technique, Jiang Yuan quickly became adept at implementing it during combat.

Fire a shot then change position, slash from unexpected angles, wait for cooldown, teleport, then reposition. Vast Mountains and Rivers was even smoother, requiring almost no cooldown, automatically locking onto targets and combo attacks.

Before entering the new dungeon, he couldn’t find a suitable opportunity to grind Vast Mountains and Rivers skill experience, so it remained at 0 level for so long, far from leveling up.

After all, this skill was so domineering, needing specific targets for effective strikes to upgrade, yet once it locks on, it would ’devour’ everything within the area.

Including but not limited to Spiritual Energy, flowers, plants, trees, etc., leaving bald and barren devastation.

But now, luckily, it’s a polluted world fragment, nothing much to worry about, having Vast Mountains and Rivers devour all these toxic miasma is perfect!

With no worries, Jiang Yuan unleashed his skills relentlessly against the mutated Golden-winged Phoenix, rendering it powerless, finally chopping off the last mouthpiece, its wings fluttered briefly before it collapsed from the sky, Health Bar zeroed, body transformed into light points and vanished.

[Mutated Phoenix Tail Feather +2, polluted mutated items will be purified along with the area]

[Miasma Ridge Specialty Toxin +1, can be used directly; can temper Weapon with poison; can refine specific Elixir]

Jiang Yuan was momentarily stunned seeing the loot, hey? After purification, isn’t the polluted item just Phoenix Tail Feather? This stuff is material for crafting fire-resistant Phoenix Tail Gauze!

Last time Xiao Ba mentioned the reason there’s no authentic Feathered Robe nowadays is that both Celestial Silk Cloth and Phoenix Tail Gauze are too rare, especially Phoenix Tail Gauze requires Phoenix Tail Feather woven through complex processes. Ever since the last migratory cloud phoenix groups moved to Otherworld, Phoenix Tail Feathers have been hard to find.

Unexpectedly, what he sought high and low, came effortlessly. Killing a mutated Golden-winged Phoenix in the new dungeon could also drop Phoenix Tail Feather!

"Kill! Wipe them all out, bring lush green mountains and clear waters here!" He was instantly filled with drive, but still cautiously didn’t run amok, instead took out a sickle to harvest the polluted wild grass on the ground.

Clearing a relatively open "base" area, before gradually spreading outwards, avoiding snake-like monsters hiding in the wild grass stealthily.

Bundles of to-be-purified wild grass were stored into the Storage Bag, Jiang Yuan then took out the axe to cut trees.

With the upgraded Profound Iron Axe, dealing with the crooked-neck tree was effortless, hacking a dozen times, the big tree scattered into light points, view immediately expanded!

However, when he used the Mining Pickaxe to clear the black stones, the system prompted it must be upgraded to a Profound Iron Pickaxe to chisel the odd rocks in the dungeon.

"Tools must be upgraded to keep pace, a shortcoming in any area leads to restrictions." Putting away the Mining Pickaxe, Jiang Yuan checked the time, chopped a few more trees, cleared a patch of wild grass, then exited the new dungeon.

He needed to inquire at the Market if there were any Magical Treasures or Arrays to help protect his apprentices to successfully gain legacy, since the new dungeon was vast, it wouldn’t be explored all at once, not urgent to open up now.

He harvested Spirit Medicine in the Ice Cave, collected the refreshed Luminous Stone, and after thorough scrounging, he used the Demon Seal Escape to teleport to the marked Floating Market, opened the door stepping onto the surface.

A silver fish appeared silently below his feet, carrying Jiang Yuan towards the free trading market direction.

"Good evening!" Hou Ze sensed the aura, jumped up, hugging the prepared blueprint, grinning broadly to greet, "Do you have time to check the incense burner blueprint you ordered? If unsatisfied, modifications can be made now!"

Wanting to make new connections, Hou Ze revised the incense burner appearance blueprints repeatedly, striving for perfection to please the new neighbor. A bit delayed, confirming the final effect, unsure if it matched neighbor’s tastes, he eagerly awaited feedback.

Jiang Yuan was initially steering the silver fish some distance away, but upon hearing, he turned back, "Is the finished product considerably different from what’s on the blueprint?"