Gamers of the Underworld (Web Novel)

Chapter 96: Rune Location of the Ancient Ruins

A Black Armored, agile Goblin swung his black Flail that flew very close over his head.

An elite Orc Skeleton Soldier, who was infused with Dark Mana, lost his balance when his attack missed. He used the Kite Shield on his other hand to bash the Black Armored Goblin.

The Black Armored Goblin, Arthur, shouted, “Peasant!”

Before Arthur shouted, a Goblin named BurningChestHair wielding a Kite Shield charged over.

The shields of BurningChestHair and the elite Orc Skeleton Soldier collided, and BurningChestHair was thrown back by the impact. He deflected the attack path of the Skeleton.

“Peasant bled to death!” Sylvanas shouted as she took advantage of the recovery period of the Skeleton Soldier to give him a slash.

Arthur turned his head and saw a Goblin leaning against the wall. His head was slanted, and his Breastplate had a gaping hole made by a Flail. A pool of blood formed on the ground underneath him.

A Goblin with four arms laid by the side.

There was no time for Arthur to be dazed. The Orc Skeleton Soldier regained its balance and began attacking again.

…

When the Skeleton Soldier that was fuming black smoke collapsed to the ground with a bang, Arthur, BurningChestHair, and Sylvanas heaved sighs of relief. There were only three surviving gamers on Level 4 of the high tower.

BurningChestHair lifted his arm that wielded the Shield. His arm bone had fractured, and the flesh had torn. The injury was caused by a Flail hit on the shield. All the Goblins tied their hands to the Shields using Spider Silk. As long as their arms could be lifted, it wasn’t a huge problem.

The three Goblins collected their loot, dragged the corpses of their companions, and left the Instance Dungeon. All the while, they chatted merrily.

Two Lich stood hidden on the Control Platform, looking despondent and helpless.

The three gamers returned to Eternal Kingdom via the Teleport Portal. Arthur and Sylvanas dragged the noisy equipment to the Dungeon Lord Main Hall for appraisal.

BurningChestHair dragged the corpses of his comrades to the Burial Main Hall.

Brainiac was helping a Goblin revive. BurningChestHair threw Peasant and NotWearingPants to the side and chatted with another gamer.

“The difficulty of the Instance Dungeon is getting higher. The weapons of the Skeleton Soldiers were smeared with poison,” BurningChestHair said and lifted his arm, which had a cut wound. The bleeding had stopped, but dark pigments continued to spread.

“I lost feeling in my arm. It was fortunate that we defeated the BOSS fast, otherwise, I might not have survived.”

The Goblin immediately replied, “Awesome, you are awesome. I heard that everyone had to wear green, otherwise, the team couldn’t challenge the Instance Dungeon.”

“Yeah, that’s right,” BurningChestHair said. “I feel that green clothing and Kite Shields are required to challenge the Instance Dungeon. The small round shields aren’t able to fend off the attacks of the BOSS.”

“I’ll go buy a Kite Shield this afternoon while the price is still low.”

The two chatting Goblins ignored Brainiac, who was reviving the corpses. The gamers felt that Brainiac wouldn’t interact with them.

At least Little Fairy would scold and spit at the Goblins. Besides reviving Goblins and two days of Goblin experimentation, Brainiac wouldn’t interact with them.

Brainiac watched the Goblins leave after reviving the corpses. NotWearingPants was complaining loudly because he had lost his two extra arms.

“The lousy producers are sh*tty. The Instance Dungeon is getting tougher and tougher. We can’t complete the mission without casualties. Do the lousy producers dislike my Dark Modification that much? My Dark Modification!”

Brainiac took out his journal and recorded what he heard.

While the gamers were complaining about the lousy game producers, the entire Eternal Kingdom had a peaceful day, and Sherlock was working hard for the future of the Dungeon and the gamers.

…

Magical searchlights penetrated thick gray mist as the Giants shouted and dragged their huge load of rocks.

The moving Beetlemons stopped orderly at designated locations under the direction of the magical lightstick wielding Gnomes.

Goblins climbed up and down the Beetlemons to load and unload cargo. Some Goblins pushed carts of soil mixed with worms to feed the Beetlemons during the short stops.

The scene of the Ancient Ruins No. 85 excavation site was bustling with orderly activities.

At a corner of the excavation site, numerous corpses of the Goblins, Gnomes, and Orcs were placed on the ground. It indicated that the excavation wasn’t as smooth as it appeared.

Sherlock, who was wearing his employment badge, followed behind the Orc, Beast, in a group of Winterfell recruited Archaeologists. They arrived at the edge of the excavated pit.

A fat, yellow-helmed Hamster distributed yellow helmets to each member of the group.

Devil, Orc, Vampire, Gnome, Lich, Centaur, Sludge Monster… A Sludge Monster?

The Hamster hesitated, but he gave the yellow helmet to the Sludge Monster.

“Thank you.” The Sludge Monster gave his thanks and wore the helmet on his head. Due to the weight of the helmet, it sank continuously and reached the Sludge Monster’s body.

The Hamster made sure he distributed a safety helmet to every group member before he led them down the plank walkway into the pit. He said, using his deep voice, “When entering the excavation site, make sure you wear the safety helmet at all times!”

The Sludge Monster was astonished, while the Centaur was looking worried.

In the next instant, a huge rock was tossed from a distance. With a booming sound, the Sludge Monster was crushed under the huge rock.

Small cracked rocks scattered from the impact and fell on Beast’s helmet, making pit-pattering noises.

The Hamster stopped and examined the huge rock. Then, he spread his little hands at Beast and said, “You can’t blame me. I told everyone to wear helmets.”

The group continued their journey.

The deep pit was several hundred meters deep. They walked on the spiraling plank walkway for 30 minutes before arriving at the bottom.

A huge Rune with an area of thousands of square meters was engraved at the bottom of the pit. The helmed Gnomes were wielding magical lightsticks and brushing soil and trash away from the Rune carefully.

The Hamster stood by the Rune and said to Beast, “The Ancient Ruins’ defense mechanisms weren’t deactivated. We used Mana detectors and found a large Mana response inside.”

The Hamster pointed at the corpses that were placed above and said, “We triggered the Spiritual Trap and suffered serious casualties. This will be included in the final cost. I hope that Senior Beast will report this to the Merchant Alliance.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll report this to the Merchant Alliance,” Beast said. “If you place the corpses over there, what happens if reporters manage to capture shots and publish them in the newspapers? Won’t our previous public announcement be in vain? If the officials from the Labour Union know about this and intercede, the Merchant Alliance won’t be held responsible.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t let any reporter come in here!” the Hamster said confidently.

Beast asked, “Is this place the only Rune location? Are there others?”

“No, our Mana detectors indicated that this is the only Rune location in the vicinity,” the Hamster said as he shook his head.

“Good, evacuate your creatures from this pit within two days. You must ensure that no reporters discover that there were fatalities in this Merchant Alliance’s excavation. For the final cost, go to the Finance Department of the Winterfell Business Unit.”

The Hamster nodded and ordered the nearby workers, “Make haste! Once the area is cleaned, prepare to evacuate!”

After the Hamster left, Beast turned his head and said to the group of Archaeologists, “I will leave the Rune location to you. I hope that you are able to find a safe method to access the Ancient Ruins.”