Chapter 581: The Bronze Chamber (4k)
“Hidden room?”
Dark turned his head towards the bronze door, his eyes filled with surprise.
He wasn’t surprised that there was a secret room at the end of the passage; he was just pleased that the secret room’s door seemed to open on its own.
After all, this meant he wouldn’t have to waste time looking for traps or puzzles and could directly enter the hidden room to claim his rewards.
But first, he needed to clean up the ground full of monster materials.
Dark thought for a moment and then entrusted this important task to the nimble-fingered Meow Meow.
Meow Meow raised her paw, sharp nails protruding from her fingertips. She blew on them and slowly approached the corpses on the ground.
The underground city of Saint Maryann Academy was very special. Once a monster died, all its mana would automatically gather in one part of its body, forming high-quality materials that were easy to collect.
However, it was impossible to collect all these materials.
Meow Meow hopped around among the corpses, picking and choosing, using the passive ability of “Treasure Accumulation Skill” to sift through the sand like gold.
After assigning the task, Dark let the yet-to-degenerate Crazed Lion Beast lead the way into the hidden room.
This hidden room was vastly different from the narrow chambers they had found before.
The hidden room in front of him was almost like a grand bronze hall, immediately reminding him of the chamber where he had encountered a tier boss last semester.
Yet, there was no tier boss inside this bronze hall.
At least not now.
Since the bronze giant could emerge from the walls, it wouldn’t be surprising if more monsters were hiding within the walls.
Dark kept his necessary caution and carefully observed. He noticed that the “Bronze Chamber” was filled with bronze statues, each one terrifying and seemingly composed of multiple animals.
There were bronze giants with ox heads, tiger bodies, and snake tails, as well as bronze birds with horse heads, monkey bodies, and eagle wings.
The most striking was the Sphinx statue placed right in the center!
The Sphinx statue had distinct features and special meanings in Egyptian mythology, West Asian mythology, and Greek mythology.
People usually called it “Sphinx.”
And Dark’s most familiar Sphinx was Sarah Swati’s “Sphinx Cat.”
That two-star Magic Golem with the “Shadow Stepping” ultimate skill was quite troublesome. If Sarah could refine a higher-star Magic Golem, it would be even more challenging.
“Let’s check it out,” Dark signaled to the Crazed Lion Beast.
The Crazed Lion Beast jumped forcefully, landing atop the Sphinx beast’s head – which had not come to life.
Dark sighed in relief and assigned tasks to the other Magic Golems.
Of course, the main goal was to find a treasure chest…
This “Bronze Chamber” looked vast, but they couldn’t find the treasure chest immediately.
He summoned the “Mana Book” to scan and record the room’s structure, finally gathering with the Magic Golems in the center.
However, even after Meow Meow finished collecting and came in with a small bag, they still hadn’t found the inevitable treasure chest.
“It looks like we can only rely on this.”
Dark reluctantly took out “Greed II.” He had originally planned to keep it as a backup for another treasure hunt later.
After placing the “Trash Slime” in his palm, Dark used “Greed II” to evolve it.
As the body expanded into a jelly-like form, “Greed Slime I” became lively.
It closed its eyes and sensed, suddenly calling out to the massive Sphinx statue.
Dark couldn’t help but approach the bronze statue, frowning in thought.
This Sphinx statue was so prominent; he had thoroughly searched it, but there were no mechanisms or ways to move it.
If the treasure chest was really here, it could only be hidden inside the Sphinx statue’s abdomen!
Dark stood behind the Sphinx statue for a while, confirming, “Is it inside?”
“Poyo poyo!” “Greed Slime I” nodded vigorously.
Dark took a deep breath and said, “Then let’s cut it open!”
…
After spending considerable time, the degenerated Lion Beast continued the operation. They finally sliced open the side abdomen of the Sphinx statue.
“Why does it always feel like an awkward cesarean section?”
Dark couldn’t help but complain, but the cesarean section of the Sphinx statue went smoothly. The Lion Beast soon retrieved a bronze treasure chest… and a silver one?
“Twins?” Dark was stunned and couldn’t help saying.
“Let’s see if there’s a golden one too.”
[Greedy +1]
…
The Lion Beast obediently searched again, of course, failing to find a third chest.
But finding these two chests was already a pleasant surprise.
The bronze chest was of standard size, while the silver one was like a small jewelry box.
Dark didn’t hesitate and ordered the Lion Beast to break the locks on both chests.
With two “bangs,” the chains on the chests were broken.
Dark took the smaller silver chest, filled with curiosity.
Holding a treasure chest in hand felt quite peculiar.
After all, most treasure chests were buried in the ground.
He pulled off the silver lock, slowly opening the lid, revealing a faint silver light.
Once the lid was fully opened, the contents were completely exposed.
It was a finely crafted silver Sphinx statue!
This silver Sphinx statue was exquisite, so detailed that even the fur was clearly visible, lifelike as if alive.
Dark opened the “Eye of Truth,” his heart suddenly tightening. He discovered that the value of this silver Sphinx statue was not inferior to a Bio Pearl!
This meant it was valued higher than a “Mana Dropper” in the “Door to Truth.”
Such a high evaluation was enough to bring joy.
Dark suddenly had an idea and turned to look at the silver chest in his hand.
However, the value shown by the “Eye of Truth” was even lower than a magic gemstone.
As the Sphinx statue was removed, it began to show a translucent trend.
“It seems we can’t take this silver chest out of the underground city.”
Dark was slightly disappointed but didn’t discard it.
Previously, the iron chain he used to record the scent of “Greed Slime II” had faded away, so he could replace it with something better.
But he couldn’t put the Sphinx statue inside.
Thinking this, he looked down at the other bronze chest.
The Lion Beast was lifting the lid of the bronze chest.
The chest was large, but inside, it contained only a solitary bronze mirror.
This bronze mirror was traditional and circular, with intricate patterns along the edges, though slightly rusted, indicating its age.
For such unknown items, Dark never complained about having too many.
He reopened the “Eye of Truth” to inspect it under the golden light, and the bronze mirror reflected his face.
“A value between the Cat Plant and Mana Dropper?”
Surprises often came unexpectedly.
…
After storing the two treasures, Dark had “Greed Slime I” continue searching for more.
But clearly, there was nothing else worth taking in the “Bronze Chamber.”
He clapped his hands, preparing to rest here temporarily.
Only then did Meow Meow walk over and pull out a sphere from her bag.
“What’s this?” Dark asked.
“Meow.”
Meow Meow pointed towards the bronze giant at the entrance.
Dark immediately understood, “I almost forgot about its remains.”
He took the sphere, playing with it in his palm, suddenly realizing, “Could this be the eye of that bronze giant?”
Meow Meow slightly opened her eyelid, smiling.
Dark shuddered but adjusted quickly.
“Let’s call it the Bronze Eye. Let me see…”
The Bronze Eye gathered the essence of the bronze giant, having a value between the Worm Tree and Cat Plant.
But this was from the perspective of the “Door to Truth.”
From Dark’s point of view, its value was even higher.
Because this was clearly a treasure similar to a “Mechanical Core,” perfect for acting as the core of a Golem!
With this “Bronze Eye,” he no longer needed to search for another core when learning how to make Golems.
“Good stuff, all good stuff.”
Dark muttered, a smile spreading across his face.
…
After resting in the “Bronze Chamber” for nearly fifteen minutes, Dark set out again.
He wasn’t eager to find more treasures but enjoyed the atmosphere of the underground city at night.
At this moment, the Magic Golems by his side were only Deoxys, Lion Beast, Imp Beast, and Illusionary Worm.
Walking through the silent, cold labyrinth, they felt a unique eerie sensation.
Occasionally, night-traveling monsters would jump out, causing some annoyance.
But they steadily approached the entrance to the fourth and fifth tiers.
After they left, Bobby and Simon cautiously entered the “Bronze Chamber.”
Initially, they had intended to help, but once they realized the monsters posed no threat to Dark, they hid.
Later, they waited until Dark’s group left before emerging.
Their goal was to “pick up leftovers”…
Even though Dark Diemon seemed to have a special ability for finding treasures, the value of things was relative.
What was useless to Dark might gain additional value in their hands.
For example, the countless bronze statues inside the halls!
“I need some time.”
In Simon’s puzzled gaze, Bobby took out a small knife and a bag, enthusiastically scraping copper powder from each bronze statue.
He mixed the copper powder together, filling a small bag, feeling delighted.
If forced to describe, this should be the most valuable thing he obtained since entering the underground city!
…
Half an hour later.
When “Greed III” was ready again, Dark still hadn’t found the staircase leading to the fifth tier.
He thought for a moment and used “Greed III” again to evolve the “Trash Slime” into “Greed Slime II,” using “Greed Addiction” to search for the Holy Sword and treasure chests.
But this time, neither succeeded.
As they delved deeper into the underground city, each level’s space became increasingly vast.
“Greed Slime II’s” “Greed Addiction” was clearly insufficient to cover the entire level.
Dark always searched for the Holy Sword after traveling a distance, due to this reason.
The labyrinth still hid countless undiscovered treasures.
He could only search within the range he could reach.
After this failure, he stopped searching and focused entirely on finding the entrance to the fifth tier.
The glowing moss in the wall cracks was extremely dim. Without the lighting provided by the Illusionary Worm, it would be nearly impossible to move.
Although the Imp Beast had a bat-like appearance, it lacked radar sensing in its familiar form and relied on vision, albeit with some night vision.
Similar to Deoxys and Lion Beast, the Imp Beast also had some night vision capability.
Hmm…
So, it seemed like only Dark himself was struggling to move in the darkness.
He scratched his head and continued forward.
Countless monsters lurked in the darkness, and the Lion Beast showed signs of fatigue after prolonged fighting.
They needed to move faster.
Another hour later, Dark began to feel restless.
But shortly after he thought he was hopelessly lost, the staircase leading to the lower level appeared before him.
Every cloud has a silver lining.
Life is always like this.
…
Dark descended the staircase, feeling his way forward. Three minutes later, he exited the tunnel and saw the reception hall on the fifth floor, the safety zone.
There were fewer people in the safety zone on the fifth floor than on the fourth.
Near the mana markers, only a few tents were pitched, and lights were still on inside.
Upon hearing Dark’s footsteps, only two students peeked out from the tents, quickly retreating after a glance.
The mana marker on the fifth floor was located in a hippo statue.
The statue of the hippo rose halfway out of the fountain, opening its mouth wide towards the sky, with a large circus ball stuck on its nose, quite comical.
Dark quietly approached the mana marker, completing the usual collection before finding an empty spot to sit.
Tonight, he would camp here.
Though he had no tent or sleeping bag.
But he had the “Zoo,” and the “Paradise.”
Unlike ordinary field cards, “Zoo” and “Paradise” lasted for twenty-four hours and could be reused once charged with mana.
However, the “Zoo” had limited structures, mostly cages or open pools. He couldn’t confine himself in a cage.
So, he initially only brought out the “Paradise.”
The “Paradise” had many buildings suitable for resting. To match the atmosphere of the underground city at night, Dark decided to set up a haunted house here.
Glancing at the few tents again, Dark took a deep breath and began channeling mana.
As the “Paradise” activated, a web-like network of mana spread from his feet, quickly covering the area of a dormitory in no time.
A haunted house adorned with colored lights and blood-stained signs appeared silently on the ground.
Dark entered the haunted house, lighting pumpkin and skeleton lamps, finding a platform to sit on, preparing to summon his Magic Golems for fresh air.
“Bang—”
Suddenly, someone knocked on the door of the haunted house.
…
[Votes!]
[I’ve already updated nine thousand words today. The eighteen-thousand-word task for this month was completed long ago, but I’ll continue pushing through tonight! I feel like I can push for another ten thousand and break this August record!]
[Thanks for another two thousand votes.]
