Who Designed This Underworld Dungeon?-Chapter 1013 - 667: What Is Torret Afraid Of
Spiritual Horse... scared?
Gapar looked at Torret's horse ring that couldn't summon the Spiritual Horse no matter what, and couldn't help but feel a bit of eeriness.
The dark Valley Bottom Forest, like a dirty and grotesque oil painting, makes anyone inside unconsciously feel tense from the surrounding environment.
Plus, it's so silent here that there's been no sight of any other living being except himself; the quiet is extreme, even the sound of leaves falling to the ground is exceptionally loud.
If an ordinary person were here, they would be truly frightened by this environment.
Not to mention that even the once diligent Torret dares not come out, further proving that something unspeakably horrifying exists in this forest.
This place is a naturally terrifying filming location!
However, the term "the more skilled, the bolder" is meant for people like Sword Saint Gapar.
Torret can't be summoned? Then don't summon him, just walk on foot.
"Clearly, in Topps' Painting World, Torret dared to follow the Elden King and fight that very powerful being that could release golden meteors. Why does he dare not come out in this forest?"
Could it be that the things in the forest are more powerful than the Elden Beast?
"The Elden King truly has been to all sorts of strange places." Gapar hadn't forgotten that their current place is based on the Elden King's memory, meaning he'll experience everything the Elden King had gone through. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎
I wonder what the Elden King felt when he found Torret unwilling to come out.
"Forget it, even if I won't ride, I can still walk by myself."
Though this forest looks eerie and strange, that's all there is to it.
So far, Gapar hasn't encountered enemies or even living creatures, as if this place is truly a forbidden zone for life.
So he believed it was a plot by Sain Dungeon, deliberately using such a bizarre setting to create a frightening atmosphere.
"Hehehe, for someone like me who has been to every area, this place is not scary at all."
Gapar laughed as he stroked his beard, displaying the charm of a reliable adult...or perhaps an elder, even appearing a bit conceited.
It wasn't arrogance, but with his skills, as long as he was cautious of mechanism monsters like Rust Monsters and didn't challenge overpowered bosses like Belle, he could walk through the Sain Dungeon with ease!
There was something he had always wanted to complain about: why is the final boss of each area vastly stronger than regular monsters? But excluding the Deep Bishop group and Greg.
"Step, step..."
Gapar's footsteps echoed in the silent forest. If one can overcome psychological fear, this place is no different from a theme park.
He remained vigilant of the surroundings while walking, thinking about what had happened today.
"What's the origin of that mountain and that crippled Dragon?"
To have the power to suppress several legendary-level Dragons, that strength is stronger than the Shattered Star General at the Battle Festival, right?
Gapar wasn't really afraid of the Shattered Star General, but he truly feared Belle; whereas Latan, although driven mad by Crimson Corruption, retained a fighting spirit in his core, and combined with his known feats, fighting him would only feel thrilling.
But Belle... his assessment of Belle was simply "madman."
The animal-type enemies in Sain Dungeon are all quite mad and stubborn, but Belle's madness might surpass that of the Lune Bear by hundreds or thousands of times, the type that rational people wouldn't want to mess with.
"Luckily, I didn't continue fighting him," Gapar said with relief.
Not sure how things turned out for Elo and the others left with Belle after he came to Valley Bottom Forest, he wished the best for them out of old comradeship.
Knowing how Sain Dungeon tends to behave, perhaps they'll encounter Belle again somewhere in the future.
"...Better not meet him, can't even fight him."
It would take a team of legendary figures to beat that guy, team of legends? That's far too novel and extravagant, no one would dare imagine it; historically, the last legendary team-up was the hero's party against the Demon King.
Gapar pondered Belle just a little while, and as for Younka and the Demon Dragon, he knew almost nothing about them, couldn't figure anything out just thinking.
"Why haven't I come across a blessing after all this time," he now just wanted to find a blessing to go back. "I'm very worried about my daughter!"
And at that moment, finally a trace of life was felt ahead.
Soon after, a nearly naked man, wearing only shabby animal furs, appeared from ahead, wearing a pair of Mad Skin Gloves.
This outfit clearly marked him as the enemy the Skyrim Strategy Group had once faced—the Mad Hand.
Just as he popped up, Gapar's figure vanished from his original spot.
The next second, the Famous Blade Moon Concealment flashing a cold light appeared suddenly beside the Mad Hand, seemingly ready to cut him in half.
The Mad Hand surprisingly sensed the astonishing killing intent, but couldn't dodge in time and could only block with his arm; when the blade struck his body, the force sent him flying, breaking several dead trees before barely stopping.
"Harder than I thought, what's going on?"
Having struck the enemy, Gapar flicked away the blood on the Famous Blade Moon Concealment and frowned with his graying sword-like brows.
He had indeed struck the Mad Hand just now, and his strength wasn't weak. If it hadn't been prepared, Leon would have been taken out directly. The Sub-human Sword Saint, who once put him in a tough battle, would have been injured by this move.
The Mad Hand on the other side slowly climbed up, with the arm used for blocking exposed down to the bone, blood flowing freely, but the body was completely unharmed.
Upon seeing this, Japar immediately understood.
"The enemies here have gotten stronger."
The strength of monsters in Sain Dungeon increases progressively; the further into the area, the stronger they are. The Giant Guards of Yanor Londo can crush a group of Crow Men from the Path of Living Sacrifice with one axe swing.
Yet the Mad Hand now, clearly with a human body (apparently), could block his slashing with its flesh.
"So, this forest must be a later-stage area in normal exploration, and that mad dragon, the mountain it resides on is probably the same."
Having deduced his current situation, Japar immediately knew just how much strength to exert and abandoned his earlier nonchalant attitude.
"I'll deal with you as quickly as possible."
The blade of the Moon Concealing Blade lit up with magical brilliance, shining brightly in his hand.
This weapon had been given to him by Banto. It's said that it was a reward Temude obtained from Sain Dungeon when the Meteor Shower landed on the ground, but it seems that mastering it requires understanding magic, so Temude couldn't use it and simply confiscated it for the national treasury.
It happened that Japar was doing Dual Cultivation of Physical and Magical, making this weapon quite handy for him. Banto gave it to him as a reward for his work.
Incidentally, the Linked Star Sword was kept in Japar's sword collection. He had already learned the combat skills on it, so he kept the Linked Star Sword itself as a memento.
Moments later, the headless corpse of the Mad Hand fell and slowly disintegrated into dust.
Japar coughed twice and gulped down a bottle of Healing Potion. Despite the small injuries he sustained in the battle, his gaze now appeared somewhat chaotic.
After the Mad Hand fell, it left behind a purple light point. Upon picking it up, it turned out to be his pair of skin gloves.
[Mad Skin Gloves]
[Gloves sewn together and stitched from the skin peeled off many untimely deceased corpses]
[Has the effect of driving the person touched insane, similar to the impact of being burned by the Mad Fire]
[When people around fall into madness, the wearer's combat potential will be stimulated]
These gloves had caused him a lot of trouble in the battle earlier. After being touched, it really felt like being burned by Mad Fire, and there was a maddening feeling engulfing his heart, which was extremely uncomfortable.
But fortunately, the Mad Skin Gloves didn't actually bring Mad Fire, they just simulated it. Japar gritted his teeth and endured the feeling of madness to eliminate the Mad Hand.
"The people around me are all upright, no one would use this."
Saying this, he casually shoved the gloves into his pocket. If there was no accident, he would probably give them away or discard them somewhere when he got out.
Having confirmed that this forest is a late-stage map, Japar became spirited and swiftly launched attacks upon encountering enemies during his subsequent explorations.
There was more than one Mad Hand. Japar resolved them one by one along the way, but subsequent Mad Hands no longer dropped weapons, instead dropping stacks of Madness Fire Stones.
For these items, which could restore Life Force but also cause madness after use, Japar kept his distance, taking just two as souvenirs and leaving the rest where they were.
As the exploration of the Valley Bottom Forest went deeper.
Gradually, he developed the habit of attacking immediately with all his might upon encountering living creatures.
No matter how peculiar the enemy's combat skill was, as long as he slashed fast enough, the victory would be his.
As he slashed his way through, Japar finally encountered a monster entirely different from the Mad Hand.
Not far away stood a creature whose body was pitch black but had a disproportionately large head that emitted light. It huddled over with a cane in hand, compelling one to associate it with "old man."
[Forbidden Old Man]
The last time it appeared seemed long ago, when Gong Qiying only had one dungeon.
"That head looks like it'd be juicy to slice."
For some reason, among the vast patches of weeds near the Forbidden Old Man, one could completely conceal themselves, as if the grass had grown intentionally for hiding.
Thanks to the grass, Japar stealthily moved to the back of the Forbidden Old Man, reaching the brink of being discovered.
Then came the Sword Drawing Slash!
He had never seen a weapon like the Moon Concealing Blade before, and upon wielding it, he instinctively grasped the Sword Drawing Slash, as it seemed particularly suited for such attacks.
This swift strike would sever the brain of the Forbidden Old Man directly!
It hit, the blade hit!
Japar was already imagining the ensuing sensation, however—
The blade of the Moon Concealing Blade passed right through the Forbidden Old Man, as if the monster was nothing but an intangible hologram.
Using too much force, the swing at thin air caused Japar to strain a muscle, but that wasn't the worst of it. More critically—
The Forbidden Old Man poked his chest with its cane.
