Pop!
With a soft sound, the ring detached from the notch.
The light from the milky-white crystal dimmed instantly, turning it into something resembling an ordinary stone.
The moment the ring left the slot...
Hum...
From deep within the massive altar base beneath his feet came a muffled sound, as if something had snapped. The ground across the entire ruin shook slightly.
Sensing trouble, Bai Xuan gripped the ring and tried to run without even taking a closer look.
But the change happened too fast.
From the notch, a wisp of grayish-white death energy erupted like long-suppressed smoke.
The smoke rose rapidly, merging into the already thick fog surrounding him.
Immediately after, all the Altar Guards still wandering the ruins stopped in their tracks.
They turned toward the center of the energy eruption—where Bai Xuan was standing!
Eerie green flames flickered wildly.
From further away came the sound of dense bone friction, mixed with drifting, shrill wails.
The sounds grew louder as they approached, as if countless entities were awakening and converging!
Bai Xuan's expression changed. He turned and sprinted in the direction he had originally planned to leave the ruins.
He hadn't run far before the sight in front of him made the hair on his neck stand up.
A thin mist had somehow enveloped the area, and numerous dark shadows appeared within it!
Undead were coming from all directions.
Mist-Shadow Wraiths drifted with translucent bodies, along with small, fast skeleton-dog-like monsters.
The soulfire within their eye sockets or chests flickered with the same greedy, restless light as they surged toward the altar ruins!
【Mist-Shadow Wraith Lv.3】
【Status: Swarming】
【Health: 190/190】
【Mana: 65/65】
【Skeleton Wanderer Lv.3】
【Status: Swarming】
【Health: 280/280】
【Mana: 8/8】
Their levels weren't high, but their numbers were enough to make his skin crawl!
Their status was a uniform “Swarming.”
“Is it because of this?” Bai Xuan understood instantly.
Removing the ring had broken some ancient device that masked auras.
This caused a massive leak of death energy from beneath the ruins, which likely connected to the tomb area he had just left.
These low-level undead probably weren't very intelligent; they were purely attracted by the sudden burst of thick death energy.
They were instinctively swarming toward this location.
He had to break out immediately!
While the undead flood hadn't completely surrounded him, and while their primary target was still the energy source!
He scanned quickly and chose a direction.
The number of undead there looked relatively sparse, and there were several large piles of collapsed stones that could offer some cover.
He gripped the Soul-Patterned Ring in his hand, feeling its cold, hard surface.
Then, he picked up his pace.
He dodged where he could and detoured where he had to.
Like a fish swimming upstream, he struggled through the edges of the grayish-white tide of undead.
Once the surrounding undead noticed Bai Xuan, they were immediately drawn to him.
A living person carrying the scent of fresh life...
Was also highly attractive to the undead.
A Skeleton Wanderer blocked his path, swinging its bone claws at him.
Bai Xuan didn't slow down. He slid to the side, swinging his iron rod to smash the side of its knee joint.
With a crack of breaking bone, the monster toppled over, and Bai Xuan had already swept past it.
But the gap was quickly filled by new undead.
Three Skeleton Wanderers surrounded him in a triangular formation.
He couldn't avoid them.
Bai Xuan's eyes sharpened. Instead of slowing down, he accelerated, lunging toward the Skeleton Wanderer on the left.
Before the opponent's bone claws could descend, he ducked and thrust his iron rod upward with all his strength, the tip flashing with golden light!
It struck the core connection point of the ribcage.
Clatter!
The Skeleton Wanderer fell apart instantly.
A notification for experience flashed, but he had no time to look. He shifted his steps, moving through the scattered bones.
He swung the iron rod back, knocking away another claw reaching from the right.
Then, putting his weight into his shoulder, he slammed into the one in the middle, forcibly breaking through the small encirclement.
【Exp +8, Pleasure +6】.
No time to pick up Magic Cores.
The trouble was the Mist-Shadow Wraiths.
They drifted in the air, emitting sharp screeches. Grayish-black mental shockwaves and dark erosion beams were fired from a distance.
Bai Xuan could only rely on his agile movements and the surrounding debris to dodge.
A dark erosion beam grazed his calf. His pants turned black instantly, and a burning pain followed by a slight numbness spread across his skin.
He let out a muffled grunt, immediately channeling mana to soothe the icy chill.
Just as he dispelled the discomfort in his leg, two wraiths on the other side shrieked simultaneously, sending two invisible mental pierces straight into his mind.
Bai Xuan felt his temples throb. His vision blurred for a moment, and a wave of nausea rose in his throat.
Right then, the face of the Soul-Patterned Ring in his hand suddenly lit up with an extremely faint glow.
A ripple carrying a peaceful aura spread out from the ring.
When the two mental pierces hit this ripple, they dissolved like snow under a warm sun.
The remaining power was no longer enough to affect Bai Xuan's movements.
“Good stuff!” Bai Xuan felt his spirits lift.
But the ring's light lasted less than two seconds before fading completely.
A faint “click” came from within the crystal, and a hair-thin crack appeared on the ring's face.
Clearly, the energy within this ancient magical ring was exhausted, and it might even be damaged.
Bai Xuan didn't have time to mourn. Taking advantage of the opening while the wraiths' attack was blocked, he lunged toward the nearest one.
It hadn't expected the target to resist the mental attack and close in so quickly, and it tried to scramble away.
Bai Xuan wouldn't give it the chance.
He caught up in a few steps. Without using a skill, he swung his iron rod with a whistling sound, striking its translucent body squarely.
The wraith let out a shrill wail, and its body dissipated like a popped bubble.
【Exp +9, Pleasure +6】
The battle was easier than expected. The advantage of elemental advantage was very apparent against these low-level undead.
Skeleton Wanderers had loose structures; a single hit could often heavily damage or kill them.
The wraiths' spells were significantly less effective against him, as he possessed the Holy attribute.
The real threat was the seemingly endless numbers and the risk of being surrounded if he were stalled.
He didn't dare linger, instead constantly breaking through in his chosen direction.
More and more undead sensed him as a fresh target, splitting off a small stream from the flood heading toward the ruins to doggedly chase him.
Various sounds of grinding bone and wraith screeches came from behind him.
He could roughly judge that the death traits leaking from the center of the ruins behind him were similar to the Tisolus's tomb he had just left.
Removing the ring had likely inadvertently opened some kind of external shield for that hidden space.
Then the leaking aura had caused this scale of undead unrest.
But the commotion was a bit too large.
He had to get away as soon as possible, shake off the pursuers, and find a way back up.
Bai Xuan gritted his teeth and ran with all his might through the fog into the unknown ahead.
The debris of the ruins gradually vanished beneath his feet.
The fog somehow dissipated mostly, and his vision cleared.
Bai Xuan found he had run out of that suffocating altar ruin and entered a more open area.
【Bone Wilderness】
As far as the eye could see, the ground was covered in grayish-white bone fragments and dust, stretching all the way to a hazy wall of fog in the distance.
A few gnarled dead trees stood like tombstones.
The ceiling was an oppressive leaden gray.
The wind here became coarse, kicking up bone dust and emitting a constant sigh.
Within this deathly tableau dominated by gray and white, a few splashes of vibrant color caught Bai Xuan's eye.
It was a small team, traveling across the wilderness at a leisurely pace.
The sense of displacement from the environment was jarring.
At the very front and back of the team were three men wearing uniform deep blue, near-black light breastplates.
One of the guards wore a slightly larger red gauntlet on his right hand.
Even from a distance, it was quite noticeable against the blue-black outfit.
In the middle were two women. The older one wore deep gray travel clothes, her black hair tied back.
The younger one looked like a drop of pink paint accidentally dripped into a black-and-white ink painting.
Pink hair cascaded over her shoulders, and she wore an exquisite light pink dress. She was looking around curiously with a relaxed smile, as if she were strolling through a spring garden.
Bai Xuan's pace slowed involuntarily.
After experiencing the betrayal of the Nightshade team, his wariness toward his own kind had reached its peak, even exceeding his vigilance against monsters.
However...
Seeing other humans in this barren, dead seventh floor where nothing but undead lived, a sliver of comfort still welled up in his heart.
This contradiction made his emotions feel complicated.
As the distance closed, he could see more clearly.
The aura of this team was completely different from the adventurers common in Blackcreek Town.
Adventurers mostly wore practical and durable clothing, with equipment showing wear and stains.
Their eyes were filled with vigilance, exhaustion, and a thirst for wealth.
But these people wore clean, even luxurious clothes and had calm expressions.
That sense of superiority and safety radiating from within, isolated from the harsh environment, was definitely not something ordinary adventurers possessed.
Right then, the pink-haired girl in the middle of the team seemed to spot him as well.
She froze visibly, her amethyst-like eyes blinking.
Then she tilted her head and whispered something to the older woman beside her. Bai Xuan was too far away to hear.
Her gaze fell back on Bai Xuan.
It was no longer the aimless wandering from before, but a gaze full of probing curiosity.
The look wasn't sharp, but it made Bai Xuan feel uncomfortable, as if he were being scrutinized by something invisible.
Just as Bai Xuan was distracted by this gaze, the familiar clicking sound from behind pulled him back to reality.
Two Skeleton Wanderers had tirelessly caught up, their bone claws raised, catching the wind.
Tsk! A nuisance.
Bai Xuan immediately turned, lowering his center of gravity and swinging his bent iron rod, preparing to counter.
Although his condition wasn't great, dealing with these two Lv.3 pursuers was simple.
However, just as his muscles tensed and he was about to lunge...
A black-and-blue shadow with a hint of red light streaked past him at a speed Bai Xuan couldn't comprehend, without any warning!
It was so fast that it only left a blur and a short whistle of torn air.
Bai Xuan didn't even see what the shadow had done.
He only saw the two Skeleton Wanderers lunging from the front suddenly freeze.
Then, from their skulls to their sternums and their entire upper bodies, they crumbled and shattered silently, like weathered sand sculptures.
They turned into a flurry of pale bone dust, rustling down without even a chance to struggle.
The shadow didn't slow down, crashing directly into the undead following behind.
This time, Bai Xuan barely managed to see that it was a figure holding a longsword.
The red gauntlet was quite noticeable even at such high speed.
The sword light wasn't dazzling; every swing left a gray line-like trail, precisely striking the core points of the undead.
There were no wide swings or slashes, only extremely efficient stabs and cuts.
The dense sound of breaking bones merged together.
In just a few breaths, that group of pursuers dissipated like withered grass neatly harvested by a scythe.
Only bone dust that hadn't had time to hit the ground floated in the wind on the wilderness.
Only then did the figure stop, sheathe his sword, turn, and walk back to the team at an unhurried pace.
Throughout the entire process, he didn't give Bai Xuan a single glance, as if he had just casually brushed a bit of dust off his clothes.
He reached Amelia and bowed, his red-armored right hand clenched into a fist and lightly touching his left chest. “Miss, the approaching undead ahead have been cleared.”
Amelia nodded slightly, her violet eyes curving. “Good work, Garrett! I'll treat you to some snacks I brought when we get back.”
Upon hearing this, the expressionless face of the guard named Garrett instantly flashed with a look that was almost overwhelmed by favor.
He immediately lowered his head even further, his voice sounding a bit more eager. “It is my duty and honor to clear the path for you.”
Bai Xuan watched this from the side, thinking to himself.
A simple mention of snacks could make a powerful guard show such an expression...
Those so-called snacks were probably no ordinary snacks.
To these high nobles, a small favor given casually was worth enough for an ordinary adventurer to risk their life for a long time.
He subconsciously focused his mind and looked at Garrett, who had just acted.
【Garrett】
【Class: Armor-Piercing Swordsman Lv.7 (Practitioner)】
【Health: 1000/1000】
【Mana: 310/360】
【Potential: 3 Stars (Monarch)】
Bai Xuan's heart pounded.
Lv.7! The peak of the Practitioner Rank!
He turned his head sharply to look at the others in the team.
Driven by a strong desire to probe and a sense of unease, he ignored the potential mental burden and turned his investigative gaze toward the other two guards and the older woman.
And that pink-haired girl.
Buzz—
A needle-like stabbing pain accompanied by a flood of information rushed into his mind, turning his vision black for a moment and making his body sway uncontrollably.
Probing multiple targets far beyond his own level simultaneously was far more burdensome than he had imagined.
But the information he gained made him instantly forget his discomfort.
【Damian Lv.7 (Practitioner)】, 【Jonathan Lv.7 (Practitioner)】...
The other two guards were also Lv.7!
【Anna】
【Class: Priest-Mage Lv.8 (Transcendent)】
【Health: 1500/1500】
【Mana: 930/1060】
【Potential: 3 Stars (Monarch)】
The older woman, who looked like a maid or housekeeper, was actually of the Transcendent Rank!
She dressed so modestly that no one would have known without the panel's probe.
And her class was... 【Priest-Mage】?
A healing-related class?
It was the first time Bai Xuan had seen a healing class other than himself.
Finally, there was that pink-haired girl.
Rate on N.U.
