Meanwhile, Qi Xu seized the opportunity to charge back into the horde of monsters, blades in hand. For every one he killed, two more seemed to take its place—an endless, relentless tide.
As his stamina waned, Qi Xu’s mind grew eerily calm. He suddenly remembered the peculiar treasure he’d scavenged from the junk pile and pulled out the multicolored dung of the Rainbow-Scaled Sky-Soaring Dragon.
The monsters hesitated, their assault slowing at the foul, fear-inducing stench. Yet they refused to retreat, circling Qi Xu with restless malice, poised to strike again.
Unwilling to waste time, Qi Xu pressed his advantage. Gripping his twin blades, he lunged forward.
From his countless past dungeon runs, he’d learned one truth: Items are just items. No dungeon could ever be conquered by relying on them alone.
Victory demanded strength—and the courage to carve a path through the chaos.
The dragon’s dung had merely bought him time. It couldn’t truly drive the monsters away.
At first, his reflexes, stamina, and focus held strong. Each strike landed true, each foe fell. But soon, the wounds began to pile up...
Slender tendrils slithered from the hollow eye sockets of one monster, coiling around Qi Xu’s wrists and ankles. The rest swarmed him, jagged bone spikes piercing his flesh in a brutal onslaught...
The armor Bian had given him shattered instantly. Four Dungeon Death Protection Cards crumbled to dust before Qi Xu finally broke free, bloodied and battered. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he swung his blades in desperate arcs.
He lost count of the monsters he slaughtered. Only when his title [Undying War God] activated—and his time ran out—did the battle shift.
The remaining creatures surged together, merging into a grotesque, pulsating mass of flesh studded with hundreds of screaming faces. With a single swipe of its twisted limb, it obliterated the surrounding graves and trees...
Yet Qi Xu only grinned. Finally, he thought. You show yourself.
Straightening his posture, he pressed a hand to his bleeding wounds and fixed the abomination with a look of utter disdain. As it lunged, roaring in triumph—
Qi Xu smirked. "You’re trash."
The words were soft, but they struck true.
The monstrous colossus collapsed. The remaining creatures dissolved into nothing. Qi Xu’s legs gave out next, and he hit the ground hard, gasping for air. He forced his eyes wide open, terrified that if he blinked, he’d pass out.
Desperate for clarity, he dumped two bottles of water over his face. The cold shock helped—a little.
He pulled out a High-Grade Healing Card, then shoved it back unused. The wounds refused to close, the gashes still oozing blood. Whatever these monsters were, their damage festered beyond ordinary repair.
To make things worse, the moment Qi Xu staggered to his feet, the crushing weight he’d been carrying returned, pressing down harder than ever.
Cursing under his breath, he trudged forward. But the path stretched endlessly, plunging him into a daze that mirrored his lowest moment in the last game cycle.
Negative emotions swamped him, dragging him into a suffocating mire. His chest felt wrapped in waterlogged blankets, each breath a struggle. The weight on his shoulders doubled, then tripled.
At first, he could barely stand straight. Soon, even breathing became a luxury...
Then, just as despair threatened to consume him, a single pebble appeared on the ground.
Qi Xu, already stumbling under the burden, lost his balance completely.
He reacted fast—jamming his blades into the dirt to break his fall. If he went down now, he’d never get back up.
He knew how dire his state was: Health below 10, Fatigue at 95.
His options? Use a Forced Dungeon Escape Card and bail—or gamble with his life.
Qi Xu tried to reason with himself.
Back in the Serpent’s Abyss, betting his life had been his only choice—die in the dungeon or die outside it. But now? He had cards to play, chances to survive...
Yet the thought of quitting chafed.
After deciphering this dungeon’s true nature, after enduring so much pain to get this far—just leave?
He’d meant to convince himself to prioritize survival, to retreat. Instead, the thought only fueled his defiance.
With a grimace, Qi Xu slashed his thighs with his blades. Pain was the only thing sharp enough to keep him conscious. The agony cleared his mind, and he forced himself eastward, faster.
Just as his Health teetered on zero, the path finally ended—at the largest grave in the Human Forbidden Zone.
His relief lasted two seconds.
The grave exploded outward, and from the wreckage tumbled... an egg?
Its surface shimmered with iridescent hues, like a rainbow shattered and reforged into art.
Qi Xu recalled Qiuqiu’s mention of a special easter egg. So this is it.
The weight on his body lightened. His muddled thoughts sharpened. And the egg? It launched itself straight into his arms.
Qi Xu, who’d fought tooth and nail to stay upright, was promptly knocked flat by a flying egg.
For a long moment, he lay there, emotions in turmoil.
Then, without warning, the egg began to glow, its multicolored light knitting his wounds shut. The oppressive "weight" vanished entirely.
Qi Xu felt reborn. Exhaustion lingered, but at least his injuries wouldn’t kill him.
His gaze locked onto the egg.
[Top-Tier Pet Egg]: Requires 1,000 Energy Stones and 100 special materials to hatch.
Note: You must secure first place in this dungeon to take the egg. Fail, and it stays behind!
A wild hunch struck Qi Xu—this was a Rainbow-Scaled Sky-Soaring Dragon hatchling. Why? Because the egg kept squirming toward his pockets, which were stuffed with nothing but the dragon’s dung.
A giddy thrill shot through him. Maybe the suffering had been worth it.
He promptly emptied his pockets, encircling the egg with the foul-smelling treasure.
The egg froze. It wriggled free with an almost offended wiggle, then began rubbing against Qi Xu as if trying to wipe off the stench.
Only after Qi Xu rinsed it thoroughly with water did it settle down—then happily rolled back into the grave.
Qi Xu blinked. "You’re not coming with me?"
The egg twisted, then nudged toward the dungeon exit.
Somehow, this absurd, wordless exchange made perfect sense to Qi Xu. Since when did we have this kind of tacit understanding? What’s going on?
...........
