Qin Sisi stood across from them, her expression subtly conflicted.Was this… good luck?She had not crossed over—and those spiders had not even glanced in her direction.Now that her teammates had run off, what was she supposed to do?Qin Sisi frowned in silence. Should she keep pushing forward too, or would it be better to stay here, cut trees, and gather supplies?She sent messages to Yun Luohe and Lin Zhu, letting them know that she would wait here for their return. She even shared a bottle of her insect repellent potion with each of them.That was all she could do for now.—Yun Luohe sprinted wildly, the swarm of spiders behind her giving no quarter.It was not her first time experiencing something like this—strangely, she was starting to get used to it.Some of the more clever spiders had figured out they could climb trees and swing from web to web like vines, moving far faster that way.They closed the gap in an instant.The trees here were massive, blocking out nearly all sunlight overhead. The dagger in her hand gleamed coldly in the dim light.Yun Luohe twisted sideways to avoid a spider’s lunge, then ducked low. With a backward sweep of her arm, her dagger slashed cleanly across the spider’s abdomen.Green mucus sprayed out as she dodged quickly, careful not to let any of it touch her.But that momentary delay was enough—the dense swarm of spiders was nearly upon her.Even Yun Luohe, as quick as her blade was, could not fend off that many spiders attacking all at once.With no other choice, she grabbed the Poison Water she had obtained earlier in the swamp and hurled it toward the nearest cluster of spiders.A harsh sizzle erupted on contact. The poison doused them, instantly melting them down.Just like sulfuric acid—its corrosiveness was terrifyingly potent.That brief opening gave Yun Luohe a chance to breathe. She zeroed in on a weak point in the swarm, then surged forward with explosive force.The dagger spun rapidly in her grip. Each slash brought shrieks from the spiders as they dropped one after another.Spider silk fell from their bodies with every kill—but she had no time to collect it.After cutting down a portion of the horde, Yun Luohe resumed her frantic run.Yet no matter how many she killed, the number of spiders did not seem to decrease. They still surged after her like a rolling tide of darkness.Her senses sharpened to the extreme. She listened to the chaos around her from all directions, her mind whirling.There—northeast—she heard the wind.The sound was broader, more open. If it were still dense forest, the wind would not have been able to blow through at all.Without hesitation, she turned and bolted toward the northeast.The extended sprint pushed her body to its limits. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it would burst from her chest.Just as her strength was nearly spent, she caught sight of a wide, open hillside. She rushed up toward it—thick vegetation everywhere, sheer rock faces lining the slope.She dared not stop. Even as she turned to glance over her shoulder, the spiders were still there.And then, her foot struck a rock.She stumbled, then tumbled straight down the slope.Talk about bad luck.Yun Luohe curled to protect her head as she rolled. Jagged stones tore through her clothing, and pain shot through her bones and flesh.She crashed through a patch of brambles—thorns piercing into the backs of her hands.But all of that was nothing—so long as she was not dead, it was fine.Eventually, she came to a stop.Her entire body felt disjointed, like it had fallen apart. She struggled to her feet, and just as she lifted her head, the corner of her eye caught sight of something in the distance.A cave. Or rather, a fissure in the rock wall—a narrow crack veiled by vines and vegetation. Without sharp eyes, she might never have noticed it.There was no time to hesitate. Yun Luohe sprinted toward it with all the strength she had left.The fissure was only wide enough for one person to squeeze through. She had to get inside—there was no way she could keep running any longer.Besides, even if she tried to keep fleeing, she would not last.——Inside the cave, Yun Luohe pulled out a torch from her backpack and aimed it toward the entrance.If any spiders came through, she would burn them on the spot.At least now she had the terrain advantage.It was a bit of a shame, really, that she had used up the Poison Water from the swamp so quickly.Its corrosiveness was immense. If she had applied it to her arrows, the damage would have skyrocketed—it would have been incredibly effective against large beasts.Strangely enough, once she entered the cave, the spiders seemed to lose her trail entirely.The whole cavern reeked of moisture and rot—more than enough to mask Yun Luohe’s scent. That was probably why the spiders did not follow her in.Hearing the sound of the spiders crawling away outside, Yun Luohe finally managed to calm her breath.Once her breathing had stabilized, she leaned against the cave wall and rested for a moment. Then she opened her interface and saw a message from Qin Sisi.Yun Luohe:“All right, I am fine. Let us regroup at the spot we separated—two hours from now.”Since they had already split up, there was no point in rushing back to explore together.It would be better to search separately for supplies and then return earlier.No one dared to stay on Spider Island after dark.It was already dangerous enough during the day—staying at night would be suicidal.She retrieved a Resin Lantern from her pack. This one could burn for two hours. Two hours would be more than enough.The lantern’s glow was a warm amber.The stone walls of the cave were jagged and uneven, covered in loose rocks and puddles.Her steps sent water splashing, soaking the bottoms of her pants.Holding the lantern high, Yun Luohe examined her surroundings. She saw stalactites hanging from the ceiling—irregular, some of them terrifyingly sharp, as if they could drop like blades at any moment.She moved forward with caution. Something told her there had to be something worth finding in here.Her eyes missed nothing. She even considered whether some of the minerals might be medicinal—something she could bring back and refine.But the cave was narrow—just walking was exhausting. If she accidentally knocked loose one of the stalactites and triggered a collapse, she would not even have space to dodge.Yun Luohe pressed onward with difficulty. Droplets rolled constantly down the damp walls, each drip echoing loudly in the silence.And then—after circling a particularly large stalactite—the cave opened up before her.A pale blue underground lake stretched into view.Its surface was still as glass, and the lakebed glimmered with a soft glow, lighting the entire cavern from below.Holding up the Resin Lantern, Yun Luohe saw the reflected shimmer of minerals twinkling above—beautiful, dreamlike.The cave walls, too, were lined with exposed veins of mineable ore.Yun Luohe’s heart leapt.Jackpot. She had stumbled into a mineral cave.She hurriedly pulled out her pickaxe and chose a smooth section of the wall to begin chipping away.[Iron Ore ×1][Iron Ore ×1]It really was Iron Ore.Yun Luohe was overjoyed.The resources on Spider Island far exceeded her expectations.It was dangerous—yes, incredibly so—but the sheer volume of materials she could collect made it worth it.Yun Luohe wished she had a few extra hands. That way, she could mine faster.She had not learned any [Mining] skill, and her pickaxe was not made of steel, so her mining progress was agonizingly slow.It took ten full swings just to mine one piece of Iron Ore—and each swing consumed Stamina.For a normal player, Stamina would be drained long before they could make any gains.Fortunately, Yun Luohe had brought plenty of Grilled Crocodile Meat with her.Every time her Stamina dropped, she ate a piece to recover.She opened the trading interface, hoping to buy a steel pickaxe—but there was none listed for sale.With a sigh, she contacted Mu Zitang and asked him to help her figure something out. If anyone could get their hands on a steel pickaxe—even if it cost 50 Iron Ore—she would still buy it.Mu Zitang agreed to try.An hour later, Yun Luohe finally stopped to catch her breath.She had only mined 80 Iron Ore.If she had a steel pickaxe, her yield could have easily doubled.Just then, Mu Zitang replied.“Someone’s willing to trade a steel pickaxe for 40 Iron Ore. Yun-jie, do you want it? I don’t have that much Iron Ore myself.”Yun Luohe made up her mind instantly and sent him the 40 Iron Ore.“Buy it!”Soon after, she received the Steel Pickaxe—and with it, her mining efficiency soared.In just half an hour, she mined another 80 Iron Ore.Profit.It was worth it. The new pickaxe let her earn back an extra 40 Iron Ore.But she was not done mining yet.There were still many parts of this cave she had not explored, and across the lake, she had spotted another tunnel.She had no idea where it led.A soft glow emanated from that side of the cave. Something told her there was something valuable over there.The lake water was crystal clear—she could see the sand and stones on the bottom, and strange glimmers sparkled in its depths.She scooped a bit of lake water into a glass bottle and poured some on the surrounding plants.After confirming there was no abnormal reaction, she decided to cross the lake.She took out her Sailboat, sat inside, and paddled across using a wooden plank as an oar.Midway across the lake, she noticed a shallow depression at the lake bottom.Two glowing crystals rested there.Yes—crystals.Exactly like the ones she had seen before: green, slightly asymmetrical, their surfaces etched with fine lines, radiating a sense of boundless energy.Excitement surged in Yun Luohe’s chest. She had found crystals here.The lake looked harmless, but she did not dare jump in recklessly.Still, she had to get those two crystals somehow.She could not just stare at them and give up.Thinking quickly, Yun Luohe opened the trading interface and purchased two fishing nets—the kind with circular rims on sticks, used for catching small fish.The handles were not long enough, so she tied them to her long wooden pole with rope.Luckily, the lake was clear enough for her to see the exact position of the crystals.With careful maneuvering, she scooped them up one by one using the fishing nets.Once both crystals were secured, she inspected them—they were genuine.Score.Satisfied, Yun Luohe continued rowing toward the opposite shore.A few minutes later, she arrived.Once ashore, she rested briefly, organized her supplies, and moved items from her backpack into the Gold Crocodile Pack, freeing up space in her main pack in case she needed to carry new materials soon.This part of the cave was massive—completely different from the narrow fissure she had entered earlier.The air reeked of moisture and decay. The lighting was dim, punctuated by faint green glows, and a strange mist hung in the air.Unlike the fog in the forest, this mist was of an entirely different hue.Holding up her lantern, Yun Luohe could barely illuminate the path at her feet.But she had not gone far before she saw them—countless spiderwebs.All across the cave.Each web was filled with horrifying cocooned corpses.They hung twisted and still from the cave walls and ceiling, wrapped in faintly golden silk into oval shapes that only exposed their heads.The corpses were half-translucent, as if coated in a crystalline film—but it was actually tightly wound silk.The bodies were of all kinds of animals, their faces contorted in agony, mouths open, revealing sharp teeth.Yun Luohe even spotted the bodies of two players she had seen earlier.So… they had been dragged here.A chill crawled up her spine. Her whole body tensed.The horror of this place became all the more real.She held her breath and gripped her dagger tightly.Green veins pulsed on the surface of the cocoons, as if draining energy from within.Gritting her teeth, Yun Luohe slashed one open. With a dull splat, the corpse inside fell to the ground with a muffled thud.Her heart jumped—but nothing was alerted. No movement. No sounds.The cocoon itself seemed to be a usable resource.When the body dropped out, the silk cocoon followed.[Obtained Golden Spider Silk ×1][Golden Spider Silk]: An exceptionally durable silk with high tensile strength and a faint glow. Used to craft high-grade armor, weapons, or as a silk substitute.A valuable find.There were at least a hundred cocoons in the cave.No way she could take them all.She began by cutting open the two human-player cocoons.This time, besides the spider silk, she got a new item:[Essence of Energy]: Can be used to craft recovery potions. Rapidly restores {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} Stamina and Health.Curious, she moved one of the corpses aside—and sure enough, there was another Essence of Energy beneath it.She could not leave these behind.Yun Luohe began cutting open the surrounding cocoons one by one.When animal corpses fell out, they dropped something different.[Essence of Venom]: Highly toxic. Can be used to craft poisons or to enhance weapons.After harvesting several dozen cocoons, Yun Luohe finally stopped.She still wanted to take more.But the cave was too quiet.Unsettlingly quiet.Even though nothing dangerous had appeared yet… something about this place felt wrong.Better to leave early. If she lingered, something was bound to happen.Yun Luohe had never been wrong about her instincts.Suddenly, she heard the sounds of fighting up ahead.Her expression darkened. She took one last look at the cocoons.Greed devours the greedy…Better to leave.She quickened her pace toward the direction of the commotion.Just as Yun Luohe vanished around the corner, the ground trembled—twice.Several of the cocooned corpses suddenly lit up with blinding light, glowing veins on their surfaces flaring.Green liquid oozed out from within……

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