Chapter 10: Silver Treasure Chest

Since they couldn't find it outside, they might as well try a different approach.

Xiao Qichen nodded, and the two of them headed back.

As soon as they entered the cave, they indeed discovered something abnormal.

There should have been nothing on the Jade Purple Tree, but now, its trunk was shrouded in black shadows, as if it had been wrapped in black electrical tape.

Even more disgusting was that these black shadows were constantly moving, even bulging, like black pus.

Ning Yun felt a bit nauseous.

"What should we do? It's on the tree; we can't attack it directly, can we?" If they accidentally injured the Jade Purple Tree, they wouldn't be able to complete their mission.

Fortunately, the boss of this dungeon wasn't quite that obnoxious. As they approached the Jade Purple Tree, the black shadows descended from the trunk and gradually formed a humanoid shape.

Without wasting words, Xiao Qichen stepped forward and delivered a strike!

Ning Yun hated that she didn't have any long-range weapons; otherwise, she could have helped.

But soon, Xiao Qichen discovered that his weapon was dealing very low damage to the boss—only double digits.

This wouldn't do; the boss had very high weapon resistance.

Ning Yun saw this as well.

"What's wrong? Why is the damage so low?"

After fighting the boss for a while, the boss's health bar had barely moved.

"This boss has high resistance. There must be something nearby that can reduce its defense. I'll hold the boss; go look around!"

Since this was a game, the boss had to have a weakness.

Especially in a dungeon, things that could weaken a boss were usually located very close by.

She searched the cave twice, but there was nothing but rocks.

"What should I do? There's nothing here!" She grew anxious.

The boss seemed to possess some intelligence; knowing they couldn't deal much damage to it, its attack frequency grew increasingly rapid.

Although Xiao Qichen wasn't injured, his stamina was being constantly drained.

This wouldn't work; they had to find a way quickly!

Ning Yun's mind was racing.

This was a game, so when designing this dungeon, the key items would definitely be hidden well.

If she were the one designing the dungeon, what would her logic be?

The more critical the moment, the more Ning Yun emptied her mind.

She stared at the boss, carefully observing its position.

As if they were telepathic, Xiao Qichen led the boss in circles, tracking its movement patterns.

"The branches of the Jade Purple Tree!"

That was it! Although the boss was highly aggressive, Ning Yun noticed that it seemed to be intentionally avoiding the branches of the Jade Purple Tree!

Even though those branches swayed randomly and were easy to hit, the boss hadn't touched them once.

Who would have thought that while the boss climbed down from the trunk, the tree's branches would be its nemesis?

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qichen immediately turned and rushed toward the Jade Purple Tree.

Gripping the Crimson Blood Blade in his right hand, he used his left hand to tear a branch off and swung it backward!

The boss followed closely behind, unable to dodge in time, and was struck in the face by the branch.

"Aaaaaah!" Its face seemed to corrode, and the black shadows covering its body became translucent.

"It worked!" Ning Yun cheered joyfully.

Having found its weakness, Xiao Qichen didn't stay in the fight for long. Before long, the boss vanished with an indignant roar, leaving behind a pile of loot.

The most conspicuous item among them was a Silver-grade treasure chest.

Ning Yun ran over. "Is that a Silver-grade chest?" To her, nothing else seemed as precious.

"This dungeon run was truly worth it. I didn't expect a Silver chest to drop."

Xiao Qichen was also surprised; at least in his previous life, he hadn't encountered a Silver chest for a very long time.

Or perhaps, it was the good luck Ning Yun brought with her.

He picked up the other loot, selected the items Ning Yun could use, and handed them to her.

"You open it."

Without him needing to say it, Ning Yun was already wearing a "hehe" grin toward the chest.

"Ahem, you're the one who killed the boss. Once I open the chest, the items are yours. Don't refuse!"

It was obvious that a Silver chest would contain good things.

A hint of a smile flashed in Xiao Qichen's eyes. "If I can use them."

Before opening the Silver chest, Ning Yun didn't rush in. Instead, she rubbed her hands together, closed her eyes, and pressed her palms together.

"All the gods and immortals, please bless me to get something good. Amen!"

This was her unique "gacha ritual." While it didn't work every time, it at least prevented her from hitting the "pity" threshold.

Having finished the ritual, she knelt devoutly before the chest and opened the lid.

A flash of golden light erupted. She stared into the chest, her face filled with shock.

Xiao Qichen, however, frowned. *Why is it this?*

There were less than 20 minutes left before the dungeon closed.

They placed the three offerings in front of the Jade Purple Tree.

Ning Yun remarked with some emotion, "I didn't expect the third offering to be the boss's heart. It feels a bit bloody."

Xiao Qichen felt no emotion at all; in his past life, he had cleared countless dungeons, many far more terrifying than this.

His only concern was whether they could clear the stage.

As the three offerings were set in place, a ray of sunlight suddenly shone down from above.

The light fell precisely upon the Jade Purple Tree.

In a trance, Ning Yun seemed to hear a sigh—a sound that felt both far and near, but she felt certain it came from the Jade Purple Tree.

The offerings turned into light and flowed into the tree.

The scorched wounds healed rapidly.

The already tall Jade Purple Tree seemed to grow even taller.

Even its branches swayed with greater vigor.

The system notification rang in Ning Yun's ears.

[Congratulations, Player, on completing the mission to heal the Jade Purple Tree! Rewards: 3 Free Attribute Points, 2 Bronze Chests, 1 Emergency Kit.]

"Xiao Qichen, our mission is complete!"

Her weak attributes could finally be increased!

A brilliant smile spread across her face, more radiant than the sunlight.

Xiao Qichen wanted to say something, but the system countdown had already begun.

[Please leave the dungeon. Three, two, one!]

Without a chance to say goodbye, Ning Yun and Xiao Qichen were instantly teleported back to their respective spawn points.

Ning Yun felt the dizziness once again. When she finally arrived home, she realized that the time flow in the dungeon was the same as in her spawn point.

It was currently 5:00 PM, with one hour left before sunset.

"Damn it, I didn't even get to say goodbye to Xiao Qichen."

In the past, Xiao Qichen had left without a word, and by the time she realized it, his house had been emptied.

Now, having finally reunited, they were separated again before they could even catch up.

"XX System, would it kill you to add a friend system?!"

She really wanted to curse this dog of a system, but the thought of being punished made her swallow the first two words.

"Forget it, I'll go home first."

She didn't want to fight strange monsters after dark.

Upon returning to her house, the first thing Ning Yun did was organize her backpack.

The harvest this time was so massive it was dizzying.

But what she cared about most was the reward from the Silver chest.