Ningguang and Hu Tao knelt on the ground, starting to build an aerial bridge of Netherrack.
Zhongli and Jiang Xuan were responsible for vigilance, while Hu Tao observed the movements of the Nether Fortress, constantly reporting the Wither Skeletons' positions.
Jiang Xuan had repeatedly mentioned the characteristics and threats of the Wither Skeletons.
Naturally, in everyone's minds, they were as annoying as Endermen.
But precisely because of this, there were Chests around them.
Jiang Xuan wanted to take a risk.
In silence, the aerial bridge was soon built near the Nether Wart room.
This stealthy feeling made everyone feel a little excited.
Ganyu looked up at the distance and quietly tugged at Jiang Xuan.
He nodded, signaling Ningguang to start digging with her Diamond Pickaxe.
Everyone held their breath. After Ningguang dug a passage wide enough for one person, Jiang Xuan immediately said in a deep voice,
"Go!"
With that, he rushed in first, a shield in one hand and Netherrack in the other.
He didn't pay attention to his surroundings, just headed straight for the door.
A Blaze that happened to be wandering nearby spotted them and immediately floated toward them.
Jiang Xuan swiftly blocked the door, then turned to look.
There were no Blazes in this room.
Everyone had already begun systematically digging up Soul Sand and Nether Wart.
Jiang Xuan also breathed a sigh of relief and looked around.
It was a tightly sealed room with no openings.
Coupled with the lava light shining through the hole they dug, the room was quite bright.
Unfortunately, there were no Chests.
With everyone working together, Jiang Xuan didn't need to dig himself.
After a short wait, Ningguang looked up, signaling that Jiang Xuan had finished collecting.
They didn't waste time, returning the way they came and breaking the passage behind them.
Then, just as before, they built a bridge from below the Nether Fortress to the Blaze Spawner room.
This time, Ningguang didn't dare to strike carelessly.
Jiang Xuan thought for a moment and whispered,
"Dig a small opening at the bottom of the room's wall, then 'trim the feet' of the 210 Blazes. After clearing the Blazes in the room, Zhongli and I will go in and block the entrance."
"Let the Blazes continue to spawn inside the room."
Ganyu was about to say that this might be dangerous, but then she remembered Jiang Xuan's familiarity with the Nether these past two days and refrained.
First, they expanded the surrounding passage into a platform with stone walls, then Ningguang resumed digging.
Soon, bricks shattered, and scorching heat rushed out.
"I'll kill them. My Looting enchantment is the best."
Jiang Xuan stepped forward, pulling Ningguang aside, and stood at the opening.
The Blazes, sensing Jiang Xuan's presence, swarmed and squeezed towards them.
However, due to the height difference, they could only frantically spin around like headless chickens.
Jiang Xuan was not polite, sweeping his Diamond Sword repeatedly, and Blazes fell one after another.
Blaze Rods continuously dropped and fell into Jiang Xuan's pocket.
Seeing that everything was going smoothly, everyone relaxed their guard slightly and quietly waited for Jiang Xuan to kill the Blazes.
When only one was left, Jiang Xuan gave Ningguang a look.
She understood and began digging a passage wide enough for one person.
Almost the instant the last Blaze fell, bricks shattered.
"Zhongli!"
Jiang Xuan called out, and Zhongli, without hesitation, entered the room with him, one after the other.
Just as before, they used bricks to block the entrance.
This time, it went smoothly; no Blazes rushed in from outside. However, after blocking the entrance,
Before Jiang Xuan and Zhongli could catch their breath,
The Spawner flashed briefly, and four Blazes appeared simultaneously in the room.
Jiang Xuan was stumped.
A Blaze Spawner would normally spawn one to four Blazes at a time.
But usually, it would only be one or two.
Four at once, what kind of outrageous luck was that?
For a moment, Jiang Xuan didn't know whether to call it bad luck or good luck.
"The Director is here!"
Before the Blazes could attack, Hu Tao shouted, and she, Ningguang, and Ganyu rushed into the room together.
With five people cooperating, the situation instantly reversed.
The four Blazes were cornered and disintegrated by the five.
However, due to only Jiang Xuan's and Zhongli's weapons having the Looting enchantment,
Only three Blazes dropped loot.
As for why three…
Others had Fortune enchantment on tools and Looting on weapons.
But Ganyu's luck attribute was maxed out automatically…
She dropped two Blaze Rods without any Looting enchantment, which was embarrassing for Zhongli, who had Looting but only dropped one.
After collecting the Blaze Rods and confirming that there were no further issues in the room, everyone retreated back to the platform.
After blocking the opening, ensuring they could continue "trimming feet," Jiang Xuan chuckled,
"With this, it should be enough for now. Later, we just need to take some time to clear out the Blazes outside the Nether Fortress, and we can slowly accumulate Blaze Rods."
"So, was our trip to the Nether very smooth this time?"
Ganyu blinked her big eyes, looking at Jiang Xuan expectantly.
He gently ruffled Ganyu's horns.
"Very smooth. We've gained a lot. Next, we just need to gather enough Blaze Rods, and we can return to the Overworld."
"Of course, before that, I want to try for the Chests."
Standing at the edge of the platform, Jiang Xuan gazed at the Chests near the Wither Skeletons in the distance.
He began to ponder.
After a while, Jiang Xuan said,
"Zhongli and I will go. You all continue farming Blaze Rods with our Looting enchanted weapons. We'll come back after getting the Chests."
Taking the weapons, Ningguang said with some concern,
"Is that really okay? Two Wither Skeletons and so many Blazes around, shouldn't we wait for more people?"
Jiang Xuan smiled easily.
"It's fine, there won't be any danger. We're just going to grab stuff. One bucket of Milk is enough to handle any unexpected situations."
"Besides, don't I still have Zhongli's shield?"
Hearing this, Zhongli's mouth twitched, and he calmly said,
"I advise you not to place too much hope in my Jade Screen Shield. My power is suppressed too much; I might not be able to withstand the Wither Skeletons' damage."
"Moreover, as you said, the Wither Skeletons' most dangerous aspect is the Wither status."
Jiang Xuan patted him, chuckling.
"So, are you coming or not?"
"I'm coming."
Zhongli replied decisively, saying no more.
Jiang Xuan nodded to Ningguang and the others, then took the pathway towards the Chests.
The Blaze room wasn't far from the Chests, and besides, Jiang Xuan and his team had built a bridge through the air.
All in all, it only took a few minutes.
About three blocks from the Chests, Jiang Xuan stopped.
In fact, Wither Skeletons weren't that hard to kill. If one was confident, they could be taken down with ranged bows and arrows.
However, without the Looting enchantment, the already rare Wither Skeleton Skulls would be wasted.
These weren't like Blazes with Spawners, so they weren't easy to farm.
Two Wither Skeletons should be utilized to their maximum potential.
Ideally, they'd drop two Wither Skeleton Skulls.
After a moment of observation, the Wither Skeletons' movements were largely predictable.
They wouldn't leave the Chests by more than ten blocks. More troublesome, at least seven Blazes were within sixteen blocks of the Chests.
This was their active attack range.
It was almost as if they were guardians of a treasure vault, a situation Jiang Xuan had never encountered in his previous gameplay.
But he could still take a gamble.
Jiang Xuan whispered,
"When the Wither Skeletons are at their furthest points, roughly when Wither Skeleton #1 is ten blocks away and Wither Skeleton #2 is seven blocks back, that's when we go."
"The other Blazes will be a bit further away."
"I'll go get the items, you distract them with the shield, and then we immediately return to the path, break the connection, and just head back."
Zhongli nodded slightly, applying a layer of Jade Screen Shield.
"What are our chances?"
"How should I put it…"
Jiang Xuan smiled.
"Eighty percent chance of no injuries, and a hundred percent chance of taking all the items."
Zhongli chuckled, saying no more.
Patiently waiting for the two Wither Skeletons and Blazes to reach the opportune distance, Jiang Xuan immediately placed blocks, jumped, and headed straight for the Chest.
The two Wither Skeletons, as expected, turned around, and the Blazes flew over, emitting strange hisses.
Jiang Xuan dared not delay. The only shield he had brought this time was Zhongli's, which had less than half durability left.
Two Wither Skeletons would be manageable, but adding so many Blazes would be truly troublesome.
Otherwise, Jiang Xuan wouldn't mind farming the Wither Skeletons now.
Without time to think, he quickly emptied the Chest of its resources.
The haul was rich: besides a Diamond Horse Armor, there were nine Diamonds, six Gold Ingots, and some enchanted equipment.
The only pity was no Diamond Equipment.
But this was already enough.
Not far away, Zhongli had engaged the two Wither Skeletons.
The powerful sword strike felt heavy to Zhongli, but other than that, he felt no special sensations.
Could they counter-kill them?
Zhongli pondered, but Jiang Xuan waved him away.
They returned to the path along the previous route and immediately broke the Netherrack.
The Wither Skeletons could only stand at the edge, raging ineffectively.
"Very smooth,"
Jiang Xuan said, grinning, holding the Diamonds.
This haul wasn't massive, but barring any unforeseen circumstances, at this rate, the achievement quest could be completed in less than a week.
"Are you sure we're not killing the Wither Skeletons?"
Zhongli asked softly.
"With a shield, it doesn't feel that complicated."
Jiang Xuan rolled his eyes and pointed at the rapidly approaching Blazes.
"Two Wither Skeletons are easy to deal with, but have you considered how the two of us will handle so many Blazes?"
"From a universally rational perspective… how about using Elemental Power and the SlashBlade?"
Zhongli suggested softly.
Jiang Xuan paused, then slapped his forehead in annoyance.
"I forgot! Things have been too calm lately, I completely forgot you still had that kind of output!"
Zhongli remained silent. He knew Jiang Xuan had probably just been treating him as a mere shield-wielding utility character.
But he didn't mind; unless necessary, he was too lazy to fight now.
Retirees didn't need to be responsible for combat issues.
Looking at the Blazes that had already flown around them,
Jiang Xuan took out his long-unused SlashBlade and looked at Zhongli, saying,
"In that case, I wouldn't mind getting some more loot."
Zhongli chuckled.
"Good, I also wanted to test how much power I can unleash in the Nether."
Arms crossed, Zhongli's eyes glowed gold.
"Planet Befall!"
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