Chapter 27: The 2nd Type of Extreme Heat Creature—Abyssal Wurm

Chapter 27: Chapter 27: The 2nd Type of Extreme Heat Creature—Abyssal Wurm

The second type of marine creature to emerge under the extreme heat disaster was the Abyssal Wurm, a species that grew rapidly in scorching temperatures. They could practically be called a nightmare of the extreme heat weather. Because of their high-temperature resistance, they would closely shadow a raft for quite some time.

Moreover, the Abyssal Wurm’s appearance was particularly sanity-draining. Its entire body was crimson with black patterns, and its back was densely covered with whisker-like tails. Its mouthparts were its primary means of attack, featuring fine, dense teeth that could rapidly devour Wooden Boards. Meanwhile, the whisker-like tails on its body secreted a special Slime that easily corroded the Wooden Boards, reducing their Durability.

Initially, one might ignore them due to their small size, but Abyssal Wurms always traveled in groups. If left unchecked, they would cause immense damage to the raft. However, these creatures also had their weaknesses: they feared light and could not leave the seawater for long periods. As a result, daytime was the best time to deal with them. But the time they swarmed out in full force was... at night.

It was safe to say they were the greatest catastrophe of the extreme heat disaster. Many players died precisely at this juncture.

The Abyssal Wurms had to be dealt with, and Bows and Arrows were considered a viable method to counter them. After all, they didn’t just radiate high heat that caused burns upon contact; their long bodies also gave them a wide attack range. If players weren’t careful, they could easily be entangled and dragged into the water.

Considering the habits of the Abyssal Wurms, Rowan Rhodes quickly plucked leaves from a nearby tree and combined them with Wooden Boards, scrap iron, and other materials to craft Arrows on her Workbench.

Time ticked by. After Rowan stockpiled a large number of Arrows, she noticed a change in the waters ahead—the entire area was bubbling. This was the habitat of the Abyssal Wurms: deep-sea hydrothermal vents. At the same time, the sky gradually darkened, heralding the active period of the monsters.

Finally, by the dim light of the not-yet-pitch-black sky, Rowan spotted the Abyssal Wurms rolling in the hydrothermal vents. The moment he saw them, her heart involuntarily leaped into his throat. This truly gave him psychological trauma!

The next moment, Rowan aimed her Bow and Arrow and began shooting at the Abyssal Wurms. When the Arrow pierced an Abyssal Wurm’s body, the creature’s health bar immediately dropped by half. Rowan quickly nocked a second Arrow. Before the creature could even get close to her raft, its life was ended.

[Acquired: Rough Insect Skin x1]

Seeing an extra resource in her inventory, Rowan felt relieved. Although the Abyssal Wurms were tough to deal with, killing them dropped some resources. For example, the Rough Insect Skin provided a warming Effect once crafted into Equipment. Aside from that, killing Abyssal Wurms also dropped Hot Stones, Slime, and geothermal cores.

Hot Stones could be used to craft simple torches, which had a repelling effect on marine creatures, or they could be smelted in the Furnace to add temporary fire damage to weapons. Slime could be used to coat the raft, preventing other marine creatures from chewing on it. A geothermal core could be used to craft a temperature control device to maintain the raft’s ambient temperature. It could be said that every resource was extremely useful, but the drop rates were relatively low. The most common drop was still the insect skin.

After this particular Abyssal Wurm was dealt with, the waters ahead remained temporarily quiet. Seizing the opportunity, Rowan used her blueprints to craft several Simple Bows and Arrows, then immediately listed them in the trading hall.

[Basic Bow and Arrow x1. Trading for: Wooden Board x15, rope x10, broken cloth x5]

After listing them, Rowan waited quietly for a response. Sure enough, the response came incredibly fast. The Basic Bows and Arrows were quickly snatched up, and players were already discussing them on the world channel.

"Someone is suddenly selling Basic Bows and Arrows. This should be a weapon only available for a Level 5 Raft, right?"

"Is this a heads-up from a top-tier player?"

"It should be. Are they meant for dealing with some kind of marine creature?"

"I think so too."

"Damn it, the Abyssal Poison Conchs just passed not too long ago, right?"

"Has the big shot already encountered it? And this marine creature needs to be dealt with using a Basic Bow and Arrow?"

"If so, please craft more, big shot!"

"@Zelda Parrish, boss, aren’t you Level 5? Are you selling Basic Bows and Arrows? Or were you the one who just sold them?"

"Zelda Parrish: It wasn’t me, but I will look into it."

"..."

After sending this message, Zelda Parrish immediately crafted a Basic Bow and Arrow. She wondered what kind of marine creature this weapon was meant to deal with.

Suddenly, she noticed that the waters she was passing through began to change. The seawater was churning violently, looking just like boiling water. While Zelda Parrish was observing, a slender marine creature abruptly lunged out of the sea. Its tooth-filled mouthparts instantly bit into the raft. At the same time, its ferocious tail whipped directly toward her like a snake, attempting to coil around her.

Zelda Parrish’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly retreated, dodging its attack range. Although she wasn’t snatched away, the tail lashed onto the Equipment on her raft.

SIZZLE...

She watched with her own eyes as her Equipment was corroded by the Slime on the creature’s body, emitting faint steam. It really was a tough monster to deal with! Zelda Parrish immediately took out her Bow and Arrow to fight back. It took three Arrows for her to finish off this marine creature.

[Acquired: Rough Insect Skin]

So this marine creature was an Abyssal Wurm. Its weaknesses lay in its mouthparts and the core of its abdomen. Simple Bows and Arrows could deal with it just fine, but those lacking accuracy would likely struggle to land a hit. She thought that she could invent a new weapon. Zelda Parrish hurried over to her Workbench and began tinkering.

At the same time, Celia Lynch also encountered Abyssal Wurms. It took her a considerable amount of energy to eliminate them, and her raft was left in complete disarray. After rushing to repair it with Wooden Boards, Celia Lynch spoke up in the world channel.

"Celia Lynch: A new marine creature has appeared. It’s the Abyssal Wurm, accompanied by boiling hot water. The temperature in the waters is high. Abyssal Wurms will chew on the raft and attack players with their bodies. Be careful not to get touched; their bodies secrete a corrosive Slime and are extremely hot. You can use Bows and Arrows to shoot them from a distance, or ensure you have proper protection to attack their mouthparts."

Celia Lynch dumped everything she had encountered and experienced into the chat. After posting, she quickly went back to her preparations. She figured there would definitely be several more waves of attacks coming; they could not be underestimated.

On the world channel, the players’ suspicions had become a reality, and they finally had a grasp of the situation.

"Thanks, good to know."

"This damn game. One wave hasn’t even settled, and another rises."

"It’s too difficult!"

"High heat plus multiple monsters. We just made it out of the novice phase. Dammit, they’re not treating us like humans at all!"

"Whining is useless. At least the top-tier players tested things out and gave us a heads-up. If we prepare well, we can still handle it. Otherwise, if we ran into them unprepared, we’d be totally screwed."

"That’s true."

"..."

One by one, the players began making their preparations. In order to survive, they absolutely refused to give up!