“What rotten luck! Those goblins looked like easy kills, but they set traps too. How despicable!”
“You fell for that lousy trap? You’re seriously terrible. Those goblins were tough to deal with, though. Several of them focused fire on our team’s Main Tank Knight and killed him instantly!”
“After all, this is an outdoor instance. The monsters are much stronger than the normal monsters in the leveling area!”
“It’s too late to go now. Sigh, we got no benefits from this trip and even lost a level. Damn it!”
“This Dungeon is too difficult. Ordinary Players probably need to reach level 20 or higher and equip level-20 Common-Grade Equipment before they have any chance of clearing it, right?”
……
At this moment, streaks of white glow flashed continuously at the Respawn Point in Glar No. 1 City as one figure after another emerged.
One sighing or furious voice after another rang out without end.
Clearly, these were all people carried out after entering the Dungeon.
Being carried out at this time meant they had not even made it past the first wave of Goblins.
Some teams might have suffered heavy losses to kill those few Goblins. After seeing the Goblins ahead, they realized they had no hope and chose to leave the Dungeon rather than waste time.
This showed that the Outdoor Instance was far more difficult than same-level wild monsters in the Leveling Area.
……
Inside the dungeon.
The passageway ahead gradually grew wider.
“Stop.” Just as Xia Miao was walking forward woodenly while her mind wandered, a low shout suddenly came from behind, startling her back to her senses.
Only then did Xia Miao see a figure sitting beside the passageway not far ahead of them.
No… it was a skeleton.
The skeleton wore tattered clothes, making it look like a human figure from a distance in the dim environment.
Xia Miao was about to investigate when the Imperial Guards stopped her. “Careful, there might be a trap. Let Snail handle it.”
The Spirit-Calling Snail waved her Magic Staff and Summoned an Earth Golem to approach the skeleton.
The earth golem reached the skeleton without triggering any trap, and only then did Xia Miao walk over.
A skeleton from the game…
Xia Miao stared at the skeleton for two seconds. Then, on a whim, she stretched out a finger and poked it.
“Hey!” Seeing Xia Miao’s action, the imperial guards were startled and immediately shouted.
Unfortunately, he spoke too late. Xia Miao could no longer withdraw her hand.
Poke~
The skeleton lay on the ground until Xia Miao touched it. Two clusters of green flames ignited in its pitch-black, hollow eye sockets.
Crack, crack—
Crisp cracking sounds came from the skeleton’s entire body, after which it stood up.
Xia Miao’s scalp prickled, and she backed away.
The others gripped their weapons and prepared to kill the inexplicable skeleton at any moment.
However, the skeleton did not attack after standing up. It stood there blankly for a while, then began to speak.
“Someone managed to come here…” The skeleton’s exposed jaw trembled, and no one knew where its voice came from.
Still, there was no need to take a game’s settings so seriously.
“The monsters inside are too powerful. You should leave. Take my remains outside and bury them, and I will give you a piece of level-10 Blue-Grade Accessories as your reward.” The skeleton advised them in an indifferent tone.
Ding!
Accepting the undead’s quest will count as a dungeon failure, but you will not lose any experience.
Accept?
The system’s crisp notification sound rang in everyone’s ears.
Naturally, only the Team Captain—Hua Luo Hongchen—could make the decision.
Hua Luo Hongchen frowned. With her former team, she would have quit while they were ahead. A piece of level-10 Blue-Grade Accessories would already have been a great reward, so there was no need to take further risks.
But after seeing Xia Miao’s performance, Hua Luo Hongchen felt… there was hope!
She could withstand an Elite Monster alone while possessing powerful Reflective Damage and astonishing recovery.
If they could not clear this Dungeon with such a powerful Knight, Hua Luo Hongchen believed that no team outside the few top teams in the Major Guilds could clear the stage.
If she lacked even this much courage, how could Hua Luo Hongchen still qualify as the BOSS of Tulip Studio?
“What do you all think?” Hua Luo Hongchen looked at everyone and asked.
“Accept my ass! Of course we’re going all the way, or this trip would be a complete waste!” Handsome Hua Manlou began shouting at once.
“I’ll follow your decision,” the Imperial Guards replied flatly.
“I… I will too…” the Spirit-Calling Snail said timidly.
The Embroidered Uniform Guard glanced at Hua Luo Hongchen in silence.
“What about Wenwen and Little Shrimp Sprout~” Hua Luo Hongchen smiled at Nangong Wen and Xia Miao.
“Either is fine with us.” Nangong Wen glanced at Xia Miao, who was still poking the skeleton, and answered on her behalf as well.
“Good. Then my choice is… not to accept!”
Hua Luo Hongchen exhaled and rejected the skeleton’s offer.
“What a pity. You will all meet the same fate as my former team and perish inside…” the skeleton said regretfully. Then its tone changed. “However, you are warriors. I bestow upon you the Blessing of Fury. I hope you can avenge me and my team!”
As soon as the skeleton finished speaking, green flames erupted and devoured it, becoming a streak of green radiance that scattered over everyone’s heads.
Ding!
You have obtained the “Blessing of Fury.” Strength +10, intelligence +10, Constitution +10, stamina +10, Speed +10, healing effect increased by 200%!
Effective only in this dungeon.
A buff that increases all basic Attributes by +10 is only average. The main benefit is the Healing Effect, which greatly improves the entire team.
The Healing Effect boosts a Priest’s Healing Spell, carried Health Potions, and similar items.
Xia Miao’s Passive Skill, “Regeneration,” suited it even better.
With this buff, Xia Miao’s Health reached 2,290 points. She could recover 70% of her Maximum Health every five seconds—1,603 points—further improving her survivability.
Beyond this area, only scattered Minor Monsters remained. At most, five Goblins appeared at once, and the team defeated them with ease.
Until they reached the end of the passageway…
Everyone could not help but freeze slightly at the sight before them.
A mountain… of bones…
Bones piled as high as a mountain formed an eerie, gloomy, terrifying throne.
A massive, portly, black-skinned monster sat on the bone throne.
Ogre
Level: 25
Health: 10,000
Description: A powerful, man-eating monster impervious to blades and spears—the ruler who dominates the Cave!
“Heh… hungry… humans…”
Upon seeing the group, the ogre let out a low growl and leaped down from the throne made of piled bones.
Bang!
The dull impact made the ground tremble.
The ogre was taller than the Elite Goblin from before, apparently nearly three meters tall. Its enormous muscles made it look like a gigantic black ball of flesh.
Ugly beyond description, but…
The pressure it exuded was off the charts!
✦✦✦