Before getting started, Liam first checked with the elven woman who gave him the quest. "Is there any specific region nearby that can help me become stronger quickly?"
Unexpectedly, the woman started lecturing him, "Hmm? What are you asking? It is not wise to rely on shortcuts to improve your strength. Only patience and hard work will be rewarded."
With a sigh, Liam ruffled his head and slipped away. It looked like he had no other choice. He needed to do some hard-mode grinding.
He had some spots in mind but they were all still within the Gresh kingdom border. So he did not want to leave his ticket to the elven lands alone here.
"Would you like to spend some time in the human kingdom while I increase my strength?"
The elven woman was once again shocked. Why was this human still talking so arrogantly as if this was something that was bound to happen?
She did not like his overconfidence one bit. However, for now, she decided to go along with him. Not because she thought that this man would amount to something but because this would give her some time to heal.
The five elves ended up silently following Liam as he walked back into the Gresh Kingdom. They did not have to walk for long as soon Liam stopped near a ravine. "You can set up camp here and rest for some time."
He took out some food and gave the elves. Immediately after that, he dove into the ravine without any explanation and disappeared. The elf's eyes widened.
He is going to enter the dungeon alone? Her gaze sparkled with interest as he watched the waters curiously.
When Liam appeared again, he was inside an underground cave through which the same ravine was still running turbulently. He was standing on a network of rocky passages above the water body.
<Ding. You have entered the dungeon Wailing Ravine>
<Ding. Warning! Warning! Warning! The minimum recommended number of players for this dungeon is 5 and the minimum recommended level is 50>
Liam grinned and casually swiped the notifications away. He then placed Luna down on the rocky surface and summoned his party members for the dungeon raid.
Instantly, Crawford, Gorak, Gu Donghai, and the rest of the army descended onto the dungeon.
"What dungeon is this?" Both Gorak and Gu Donghai looked around. They looked at Liam in envy seeing how he was progressing so fast. However, the two quickly got to work as they felt a chill on their back. "That damned old guy. How the hell did he end up as this loser's plaything?"
As the group became alert, the first mob was here. A group of beasts jumped from the water towards them. When looked closely, these were big flying fishes with multiple rows of dangerously sharp teeth. Their speed and strength were alarming.
Liam immediately summoned the howler demon as well, letting Crawford and the demon take charge while he stood back with the other minions to get the bigger picture.
However, he did not plan to remain idle. He churned his mana core and sent out fireballs one after another. Each of them was strong, powerful, and packed with a punch.
Along with this, as and when the cooldown wore off, he also cast [Ring of Fire]. He was yet to grasp the technique behind these bigger spells so Liam practiced with them whenever he could.
His damage output was still several times better than Crawford and the howler demon though all three of them were about the same level.
With Crawford, the howler demon, and Liam included three of them were level 50 and above, only two were missing as per the minimum requirement of the dungeon.
Moreover, Liam alone was dealing damage equal to three players combined together. So they did not get overwhelmed. The first mob was taken care of smoothly and Liam received a bunch of notifications.
<Ding. 50 experience points received>
<Ding. 50 experience points received>
<Ding. 50 experience points received>
<Ding. 50 experience points received>
…
…
…
"Pitiful!" Liam clicked his tongue. This was the only drawback of grinding experience points with a big group. He only received a portion of it.
The bunch of fish dropped some metallic scales which were crafting items so Liam took those and placed them inside his inventory. He then signaled the group to stop and did not move forward.
"This is too slow." Liam sat on the rocky surface and sized up his minions. There were still a lot of weak minions in the group.
The overall number was good but they were not strong enough. So the fight wasn't too efficient and the experience points split was inconvenient.
Not to mention if they faced a strong boss, then the weaker minions in the group would be quickly wiped out and if they continued to get wiped out every now and then, they would forever disappear.
This would be extremely wasteful. Logically, it would be better to have a few stronger minions than several weaker minions. After a moment, Liam examined the stats of the three-headed chicken.
<Name: Chicken1>
<Type: Undead>
<Level: 39>
<Health: 3100>
<Mana: N/A>
<Strength: 35>
<Agility: 31>
<Phyisical Defense: 65>
<Magic Defense: 14>
<Special Skill: Hurricane Peck>
"There is a significant level bump when I join two souls together…" This was something Liam had noticed previously and now he couldn't help but think about it.
After a few minutes, he shook his head and decided to go for it. "In the long run, this should save a lot of time."
Liam settled at the entrance of the dungeon and started to work. Leaving aside the elite chickens and rabbits, his focus was on the wolves and the hounds this time.
The hounds had a nether attribute while the wolves did not have any attribute specifically. So combining these two could possibly create a powerful elite with a nether attribute. The only question was their compatibility.
He had lost three chickens and three rabbits when he tried to forge them together. "Hmmm… these two should be compatible…" Liam murmured looking at the two undead and then began to work.
If they were not compatible then he would simply lose one set of minions. This much he had to risk. He busied himself inside the dungeon and soon a few minutes later…
<Ding. Soul Forging Successful>
<Ding. New Soul Undead Follower is summoned>
In front of Liam, a huge gnarly hound stood, its eyes viciously staring at him. This beast looked a lot tougher and stronger when compared to either the hound or the wolf.
"Impressive. What is your level big guy?" Liam hurriedly pulled up the status screen to take a look.
