Aelita's bold idea was once again thoroughly rejected.
The Dragons of the Aetherium Continent were not so easily deceived; although Dragons were indeed arrogant, they were still long-lived species, and there were no fools among the long-lived species.
Except for a certain Archangel.
After briefly organizing the basic information about ice and fire legend, Su Lin took Aelita and the other two, along with an army of several hundred, to the fourth-floor portal.
But upon reaching it, he found himself in a bit of a predicament… "Roar!"
The seemingly endless roar of Dragons from behind the door was quite a deterrent… "Are you sure this door doesn't lead directly to a Dragon's Lair?"
Aelita still voiced the doubt in everyone's mind.
"Don't worry."
Su Lin smiled and gave a thumbs up.
"If I encounter danger, I will definitely teleport back immediately!"
"That's not what I meant at all! You're far too afraid of death, aren't you!"
"Well… my life is more valuable."
"Are our lives cheap then?!"
Watching the two start bickering again, Beixi sighed and shook her head, gripping her enchanted Diamond Sword and staring at the portal.
In the MC Dungeon, especially when facing a potentially appearing Dragon, her magic staff, which she relied on for a living, was less useful than a piece of wood.
Dragons already had maximum magic resistance, let alone the Dragons in the MC Dungeon.
If she were to enter and immediately face a close-quarters attack, no matter how many super-level spells she cast, it would only serve to exfoliate the Dragon's scales.
"All in all."
Su Lin raised his Netherite Sword, his face full of boldness, and retreated behind Hilulele.
"Let's go!"
"Hmph!"
Without continuing to complain about Su Lin, Aelita and the others charged in first.
— — —
On the other side of the door, it was not a Dragon's Lair, nor were there Dragons soaring in the sky.
It was just an ordinary wilderness.
It was merely more beautiful under the texture and light enhancement, and the mosaic graphics were much improved.
"No Dragons, huh."
Hilulele dispersed the glow from her staff with a bored expression, and Su Lin also expressed a slight regret.
"It seems the portal only shows off the characteristics of the fourth floor, serving to scare people."
Looking at Su Lin, who immediately walked to the front of everyone after confirming safety, Aelita felt a bit annoyed again.
There were no buildings around, but looking to the west, there was an endless desert landscape.
To the east was a jungle connected to snow-capped mountains, and to the south, the sea could be vaguely seen… It was as unreasoning as ever with the environmental characteristics of the MC Dungeon.
Next up… "Transport villagers over, establish an Adventure Town for the fourth floor centered around the portal, and build a safe residential area before sunset."
"The army can explore the surroundings; if there are any unknown abnormalities, retreat as soon as possible. Aelita, you all come with me."
This spawn point was neither good nor bad.
Underneath the desert, there might be antlion nests, and the desert itself had Death Worm activity.
The snow-capped mountains to the east were an area where Crypts might exist, and with the current equipment, let alone the army, even Su Lin would turn and run immediately if he found one.
The most crucial area was the southern ocean region.
The Gorgon Temple, Cyclops Cove, Siren Reef… any of these three areas could easily claim the lives of these Elves.
For those who had just entered the fourth floor, it was quite dangerous, but once they passed the early development stage, this geographical location would make finding anything convenient.
It could be said that resources were right on their doorstep.
Taking the strongest fighters, Su Lin walked towards the desert, still intending to start exploring from the simplest terrain.
Before leaving, looking at the Elves who had already entered work mode, Su Lin nodded in satisfaction.
"Tell the army not to risk digging underground casually. If any resources are needed, transport them from the first floor."
Beixi's expression changed slightly.
"Is there a Dragon's Lair hidden nearby underground?"
"No, if there were a Dragon's Lair underground, there would be features on the surface, but underground isn't just this one type of danger. It's hard to explain in a short time; I'll tell you when we encounter it. In short, just listen to me."
ice and fire legend was not like the first three floors of the Dungeon; in this layer, hostile creatures like Zombies and Skeletons were the weakest… The desert terrain was not far, and they reached it after more than half an hour of walking.
Compared to jungle and mountain terrains, desert exploration was relatively easy, as there weren't many obstructions to visibility.
"Su Lin, what exactly are we looking for?"
Aelita excitedly ran to Su Lin's side.
"Fire Dragon skeletons."
Pointing to the desert beneath their feet, Su Lin said softly:
"In desert environments, the probability of Fire Dragon skeletons spawning is higher than in other areas. If we find a few, it will be enough for our early development."
Dragon Bones were essential for crafting Dragon taming tools and could also be used to craft many powerful Dragonbone tools and weapons.
On the Aetherium Continent, this item would also be the best equipment forging material, worth a fortune.
But for Su Lin, the most important use of Dragon Bones was in crafting the overpowered artifact that made all BOSSes meaningless—
The Dragonbone Longbow and Dragonbone Arrows.
An enchanted Dragonbone Longbow with Level 5 Power, firing Dragonbone Arrows at full draw, dealt a critical hit damage of up to fifty-nine points.
Taking down a Level 4 or higher Dragon within ten arrows was not a dream.
High damage, and it satisfied Su Lin's need to hide in the back and output damage stealthily; this was the Dragon-slaying artifact he had always dreamed of.
Dragons could almost one-shot people, and Su Lin would never engage in close combat with any Dragon.
With the Dragonbone Longbow and Dragonbone Arrows, Su Lin could take a group of front-liners to slay Dragons.
This thing was a mobile, miniature space-based Dragon-slaying cannon.
Who said the ice and fire legend mod didn't have its own Barrett?
But Aelita still felt Su Lin was too conservative.
"Just looking for Fire Dragon skeletons? Boring… With so many of us, why don't we try hunting lower-level Dragons first to get some practice!"
"Lower-level? Ailili, are you mistaken about something… What level do you think Dragons that spawn and are active in the wild are?"
"Level one?"
"Level three!"
Su Lin irritably tapped Aelita's head.
"Any Dragon active in the wild is at least on the level of an Ender Dragon. If you find a Dragon's Lair underground, it will be at least a Level Four Dragon."
"Without adequate preparation, encountering a Dragon in the wild that charges at you is very dangerous."
Aelita dejectedly suppressed the impulse in her heart.
She still remembered the near-death experience of fighting the Ender Dragon for the first time. If the weakest Dragons in the fourth-floor wilderness were comparable to the Ender Dragon… it was better to make some preparations and get familiar with the area first.
Although they might not necessarily lose, it would be a shame if a few people died. The Elf Soldiers currently being developed in the MC Dungeon were all elites among elites.
They were drawn from the Imperial Guard and the exploration teams of the Elven Kingdom's old Dungeons.
It took a long time and many resources to train one.
It seemed the difficulty of exploring the fourth floor had indeed increased dramatically, but… "The Dragons underground… they shouldn't burrow out, right?"
Aelita looked at the ground beneath her feet somewhat nervously, fearing that a Level Four or Five Dragon would burst out of the earth and swallow her as a snack in the next second.
"That won't happen…"
Su Lin reassured her with a smile, glancing at the desert land ahead.
"Underground Dragons won't burrow out of the ground to attack, but… other creatures might."
"What do you mean?"
A somewhat stunned Aelita looked around suspiciously.
The wind was calm, but looking at the desert for too long made her eyes dry.
"Literally, Ailili!"
The wind carried Su Lin's distant warning.
Wait… distant?
Aelita and the others suddenly turned around, and Su Lin was already waving from a small hill over two hundred meters away.
"Run!!!"
"Bang!"
A huge explosion sounded, and a giant worm burst out of the ground.
It had no eyes, its body was clearly segmented, and its terrifying mouthparts opened wide, letting out a dreadful hiss.
It looked capable of devouring an Aelita in one bite.
To be fair, this monster was far more frightening than those they had seen on the first three floors.
But that wasn't important.
In that instant, Aelita, facing the giant Death Worm at close range, felt her hairs stand on end, and her life flashed before her eyes.
Bizarre images flickered before her, finally settling on Su Lin's infuriating face.
Aelita was beyond furious. She turned around and ran.
"Bastard! I told you to remember to pull me along next time you run away!!!"
"Got it! Next time for sure!"