Chapter 578: Utmost Greed (6k)
Dark had an idea.
Traps, hidden doors, and mechanisms were all common features in dungeon-style underground cities.
If he could find a concealed door in the walls, it would likely lead to a “hidden room.”
A “hidden room” was essentially a “secret room.”
Last semester’s dungeon expedition had been triggered when Emma found a “hidden room,” which led to the activation of the hidden space where the Abyss was located.
Dark’s Holy Sword had been obtained from there.
Thus, as soon as he thought of this, he became immediately interested.
“Lion Beast, pull out the vine monster.”
In any case, before exploring the hidden door, it was best to clear the surrounding monsters first.
Dark temporarily put away the “Greed Slime” and then pulled out a pair of gloves from Deoxys’s backpack, wearing them as he began to carefully feel along the walls.
The vines at the end of the passage and the “vine monster” hiding within were quickly cleared by Lion Beast.
Usually, wall mechanisms were divided into two types: physical triggers and magical triggers.
The gloves Dark wore were very thin, with excellent mana permeability, allowing mana to flow to his fingertips, enhancing his sense of touch.
He felt along the wall from one end to the other and then retraced his steps, eventually finding a loose brick where the vine monster had crawled. Gathering mana, he pressed hard.
Cracks instantly appeared on the previously seamless wall.
Dark’s heart skipped a beat, and he immediately stepped back, letting Lion Beast take over.
“You do it.”
Lion Beast nodded, activating the mechanism in the same way and then exerting force.
On the wall, a door pivoting around a central axis appeared.
It did not hesitate, pushing through the door and emerging on the other side.
Half a minute later.
Lion Beast emerged from the other side of the central axis and said to Dark, “There’s a secret room.”
Dark’s eyes lit up, and he, along with Imp Beast and Deoxys, pushed through the door.
This “hidden room” behind the wall was approximately 4×4 meters, small and unadorned with excessive carvings or decorations.
Dark clearly remembered that Emma had found the “hidden room” after solving a puzzle, obtaining an oil lamp and a fresco from it.
Compared to Emma, the difficulty of finding the hidden room was significantly higher for him.
In the dungeon, difficulty and rewards were usually proportional.
This meant that the rewards inside the “hidden room” he discovered might not match those found by Emma.
However, having some reward was better than none.
Dark maintained a calm attitude.
He explored the “hidden room” for a while and finally found a small box about the size of a palm in the corner.
“Could this be the treasure chest inside the secret room?”
Dark blinked and couldn’t help but squat down to examine it closely.
Aside from its size, the box looked very much like a treasure chest, with a small lock on the lid.
“In any case, today seems to be a lucky day.”
Dark considered for a moment, decided not to open the box immediately, and stepped back, letting Lion Beast take the lead.
“Treasure Box Monster” was a common type of monster found frequently in dungeons.
If greed clouded one’s judgment, one could easily fall into the trap of a “Treasure Box Monster.”
Lion Beast squatted down, grabbed the lock chain of the box with two fingers, and twisted it forcefully, breaking the entire lock.
Only then did it open the box lid with great effort.
“Clang.”
The pink light from inside illuminated Lion Beast’s stern face.
As the light dimmed, the treasure inside the box was exposed to the air.
Lion Beast carefully took the treasure out of the box and held it up for a closer look.
“It’s not a Treasure Box Monster.”
Dark relaxed and approached to inspect.
What Lion Beast held in his hand was actually a pink crescent pendant.
The pendant was made of a pink metal of unknown composition, with a very fine chain. The crescent-shaped pendant emitted a warm, jade-like glow.
At first glance, it seemed like a high-quality accessory.
But upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the pendant contained only a negligible amount of mana.
It was the nature of the mana that caught Dark’s attention.
“So it’s a pendant with the property of charm. If this were in a game, it would have a ‘Charisma +1’ label.”
Dark took the pendant from Lion Beast’s hand, observed it carefully, and closed his eyes, focusing his mind.
After a dozen seconds, he slowly opened his eyes, and his eyes had changed from emerald green to gold, revealing the “Eye of Truth!”
Under the direct gaze of the “Eye of Truth,” no treasure could remain hidden.
Half a minute later, Dark closed his eyes and reopened them, returning to normal.
“How is it?” Imp Beast asked excitedly.
Dark pondered, “Although the mana is weak, it unexpectedly has value comparable to the Worm Tree. Perhaps we’ve found something valuable right away? We can investigate the origin of this pink metal when we return to the castle.”
Then, he took out a small bag from his backpack and placed the pink crescent pendant inside.
Overall, today’s luck was quite good.
Therefore, after leaving the secret room, he summoned the “Greed Slime” again and took out another Magic Card— “Gluttony III!”
“In the name of Dark Diemon, Mana Summon!”
Under the illumination of “Gluttony III,” the body of the “Greed Slime” rapidly expanded.
When the blue light converged, a huge jelly-like Slime appeared before him.
Dark restrained the urge to dive into the “Greed Slime II” and instead summoned the “Solo Sword Sheath” to his front, grasped the hilt, and slowly inserted it into the body of “Greed Slime II.”
“Greed Slime II” enveloped the sheath with its soft inner walls, greedily absorbing the aura of the Holy Sword.
After a while, it expelled the “Solo Sword Sheath,” its eyes filled with greed.
Dark asked carefully, “How does it feel? Did you sense anything?”
“Greed Slime II” narrowed its eyes, striving to perceive.
It possessed the ultimate skill called “Greed Addiction,” which allowed it to find more of any treasure it desired, regardless of what it was.
The aura of the Holy Sword in the “Solo Sword Sheath” was extremely unique. Once within its detection range, it would inevitably detect the presence of a Holy Sword.
The detection range of “Greed Addiction” was far greater than that of “Treasure Scent.”
The primary goal of Dark entering the dungeon this time was to use this ultimate skill to search for a “Holy Sword”!
After all, if there was one, there would likely be more.
Since he had luckily obtained the first Holy Sword, finding a second one was also reasonable, wasn’t it?
But “Greed Slime II” failed to meet his expectations.
Upon careful perception,
Afterwards, a dejected look appeared on its face, and even its gaze turned dim.
Dark hurriedly comforted, “It’s not a big deal. We’re only in the first layer of the dungeon; the probability of finding the ‘Holy Sword’ is already very low. Once we reach the second layer, we’ll try again.”
“Poyo—”
“Greed Slime II” moved forcefully closer to Dark’s feet, nuzzling his thigh and cooing cutely.
“Alright, alright.”
Dark said helplessly, suddenly thinking of something.
“Hold on, let’s enter the secret room again!”
“Poyo?”
…
Dark immediately led “Greed Slime II” into the secret room and then pointed to a small box in the corner and asked, “Can we find more treasure chests here?”
“Greed Slime II” blinked its big round eyes and moved towards the corner.
The treasure chests in the dungeon were very special. Although they were called “treasure chests,” they were actually part of the dungeon walls and could not be moved under normal circumstances.
Once “Greed Slime II” surrounded the chest, it began to carefully sense it.
After a moment, it lifted its head and let out an excited cry at Dark: “Poyo!ヾ（o?）?ヾ……”
Dark immediately understood: “Lion Beast!”
Lion Beast obeyed and immediately picked up “Greed Slime II,” then placed it on top of its head like a cloak.
“Gururu!”
“Greed Slime II” made indistinct gurgling sounds and squeezed out a short tentacle, pointing in a certain direction.
“Is it over there? We should run, Lion Beast.”
A hint of excitement appeared in Dark’s eyes, and the desire for “Greed” surged uncontrollably.
Although the plan to find the “Holy Sword” had encountered obstacles, finding many treasure chests could compensate for the loss.
Dark grabbed Imp Beast and quickly ran after Lion Beast.
The monsters they encountered along the way were no match for Lion Beast, and even any gaps were easily torn apart by Deoxys.
They ran at an extremely fast speed and finally found the second treasure chest before “Greed Slime II” regressed!
…
Bobby Bernal was a second-year student at Fool’s Academy.
Like most students at Fool’s Academy, he didn’t have much presence in class.
But his grades were not bad; he ranked in the middle-upper range among the entire grade.
During club recruitment, he managed to join a medium-sized club and got acquainted with Simon Bernal, a third-year senior in the club.
The two became familiar because they shared the same surname.
Despite living thousands of miles apart, sharing the same surname always made them feel closer than others.
This time, entering the dungeon for an adventure, Bobby worried that he might not reach the tenth floor smoothly, so he entrusted Simon as his “guide.”
They originally planned to quickly pass through the first two layers and start their adventure from the third layer, but unexpectedly saw Dark Demon and his golem running past them, causing some confusion.
Because Dark’s actions were too purposeful!
“Is that the legendary Demon?” Simon nudged Bobby’s shoulder, teasing him.
Bobby rubbed his nose and nodded.
Simon then said meaningfully, “Don’t you want to know where he’s going?”
Bobby’s eyebrows twitched, and various possibilities flashed through his imaginative mind.
Why is Dark Demon so smart?
Why is Dark Demon so powerful?
How did Dark Demon create so many high-intelligence golems?
No one wanted to know these things.
Simon was no exception.
“Perhaps following him will reveal some secrets?”
Bobby couldn’t help but think this.
Then he raised his head slightly and saw the same idea in Senior Simon’s eyes.
So the two agreed and quickly tracked after Dark’s direction.
Following closely behind.
Simon suddenly stopped at a corner and signaled Bobby to be quiet. He took out a mana card from his deck and silently summoned.
After a few seconds, a transparent bird flew out of the card and flew toward the corner.
Simon closed his eyes, sharing vision with the “Hidden Sparrow.”
That “Hidden Sparrow” completely vanished during flight, flying silently.
After a moment, it turned another corner and stopped abruptly.
Through its eyes, Simon saw the back of Dark Demon and…
“That… is a treasure chest?”
Simon’s breathing suddenly quickened.
He was now a third-year student who had been adventuring in the dungeon since the end of the first month of his second year, but he had only seen a dungeon treasure chest once!
Yes, that time, he saw a female student from his grade find a treasure chest and take out a pair of high-quality arm guards!
That feeling was like squeezing ten fresh lemons and drinking the juice in one gulp, making him stay awake all night.
Since then, every time he entered the dungeon, he intentionally paid attention to the location of the treasure chests.
Now, he finally saw a treasure chest for the second time, sobbing inwardly.
“Smack!”
Simon’s vision suddenly went dark, and he widened his eyes.
Bobby hurriedly asked, “What happened?”
Simon grabbed his hand and ran—why he ran, he didn’t know, but he stopped after running a hundred meters, panting, “Dark Demon found a treasure chest!”
Bobby was startled, “Treasure chest?”
Simon nodded gravely, “Yes. And I suspect he knew the location of the treasure chest from the beginning.”
Bobby exclaimed in shock, “How is that possible?”
Simon’s cheeks twisted in frustration, but he still said, “Nothing is impossible. Do you know ‘Silver Dragon Maiden’?”
“Uh.” Bobby paused, then said, “Is she the librarian?”
Simon gritted his teeth, “Exactly. Pandora Dragon! She’s also a legend in the academy. I heard she can easily find the location of the floor bosses each time.”
Bobby was astonished, “Really?”
Simon said, “That’s right. So, nothing is impossible. Come with me…”
…
“Meow?”
Deoxys watched the mana flow from its fingers and showed a puzzled look.
“Deoxys? What did you find?” Dark turned and asked.
“It seems like something, but also not quite.”
Deoxys shook its head and walked toward the treasure chest.
It didn’t see the invisible “Hidden Sparrow,” but sensed something there and pounced, only to grab nothing.
Seeing it return, Dark continued studying the treasure chest.
In the dungeon, there is a type of treasure chest that is neither hidden in a secret room nor guarded by a boss, but simply placed in a corner of the maze.
It is precisely because of the existence of these chests that treasure box monsters can be so unpredictable.
“The second treasure chest found by the ‘Greed Slime II’ belongs to this type.”
Of course, it’s rare to find high-quality items from such chests.
But compared to the joy of opening a treasure chest itself, this hardly matters.
As an ancient adventurer king once said, adventurers should enjoy the process of opening treasure chests more than the treasures inside them.
Why does the adventurer king always boast about finding high-quality items every time?
Haha…
Dark studied for a while and then stepped back.
This chest was of standard size, similar to the common “treasure box monster” size.
The exterior material of the “treasure box monster” and the “treasure chest” were identical, and there was no difference in aura either.
Therefore, before opening the chest, no one could tell if it was a regular chest or a treasure box monster.
When Dark moved back beside Deoxys, Lion Beast bent down and grabbed the lock, preparing to use the old trick again.
However, when he twisted it, he found that it wouldn’t break, and frowned.
“Use the blade,” Dark reminded.
Lion Beast nodded slightly and pulled out the ancestral demon blade “Lion King Maru” from behind his waist, then chopped forcefully at the chain behind the iron lock.
“Clang!”
Amidst the sparks, a gap appeared on the chain.
Lion Beast continued to chop with several more blows, severing the chain completely.
Then, he tugged at the chain along with the lock, removing it and opening the lid of the chest.
Not a “treasure box monster”!
Dark immediately approached and discovered that the chest was filled with mineral-like diamonds!
“Magic diamonds?”
Dark’s heart stirred as he took one out to examine closely.
The so-called “magic diamonds” are diamond-like minerals rich in mana.
Their greatest feature is their “hardness.” If embedded in weapons or armor, they can significantly increase the hardness of the weapon or armor, making them highly sought after by blacksmiths.
The sizes of the magic diamonds in this chest varied; some were as small as marbles, others as large as infant fists. Upon counting, there were nearly twenty in total.
With so many magic diamonds, they were worth at least ten thousand credits!
Compared to the crescent pendant obtained previously, this chest of magic diamonds might have even higher practical value.
However, when Dark activated the “Eye of Truth” to carefully assess their value, he found that according to the “Door to Truth,” their values were actually reversed.
Even the magic diamond the size of an infant’s fist was not as valuable as the crescent pendant.
But no problem, we’re going for quantity!
Twenty magic diamonds, even if just piled together, could make a high-value item.
“This quantity is quite substantial… And this is only the first level!”
Dark picked out a bag from his backpack, placed all the magic diamonds inside, and felt its weight. It was heavy!
He was a bit worried that if this continued, he would end up with too much good stuff to carry…
In any case, after finding this second treasure chest, the “Greed Slime II” regressed into a “Greed Slime.”
Before the cooldown of “Greed III” was over, he couldn’t continue searching for treasure chests.
Dark handed the bag full of magic diamonds to Deoxys and retraced his steps, looking for a side path to the second level.
He had lingered long enough in the first level; it was time to change the environment.
Half an hour later, Dark stood at the stairs leading to the second level.
He steadied himself and walked up the stairs into the entrance of the second level.
What met his eyes were bustling crowds and the mana marker in the center of the “Reception Hall”—the Frog Fountain!
The green frog sculpture looked up and opened its mouth, spraying a green unknown liquid from its mouth.
Dark navigated through the crowd and directly approached the frog fountain, alternating between using “Mana Needle” and “Mana Collector” to complete the collection task for the second level.
Immediately afterward, he rested for a moment in this safe area before re-entering the maze.
The difficulty of the maze in the second level of the dungeon wasn’t much different from the first level.
Under sufficient caution, it posed no threat to him.
After eliminating a group of “Small Demon Dogs,” Dark summoned the “Trash Slime” again.
He used a “Greed II” card to evolve it into a “Greed Slime I,” relying on “Treasure Scent” for a wide-area search without targets.
Then, he used another “Greed III” card to evolve it into a “Greed Slime II,” relying on “Greed Addiction” for a targeted search.
He still searched for the “Holy Sword” first, then the “Treasure Chest.”
“Treasure Scent” allowed him to collect the rare medicinal herbs mentioned in the official quest.
“Greed Addiction” led him to find another “Treasure Chest”!
The “Greed Slime II” also failed to detect other “Holy Swords” in the second level. Dark used the lock broken off from the chest to trigger “Greed Addiction.”
Luck was on his side; although this “Treasure Chest” was in a hidden room, Dark spent minimal time finding the entrance to the hidden room and entered smoothly.
Inside this “hidden room,” there was only one standard-sized treasure chest quietly placed on a stone platform.
Opening the chest revealed a bottle of potion.
The small bottle, about the length of a finger, contained a clear, transparent liquid.
Without a label, Dark couldn’t determine its type or expiration date and didn’t dare open it lightly for fear of poison.
However, when he measured it with the “Eye of Truth,” he found its value slightly higher than the worm tree, approaching that of the “Grass Cat Plant.”
Undoubtedly, this potion was more valuable under the assessment of the “Eye of Truth” than the crescent pendant and magic diamonds.
After storing the potion, Dark continued his adventure.
Three consecutive experiences of finding treasure chests had already made his blood boil.
An hour later, he found the staircase leading to the third level of the dungeon.
After traversing the long staircase, he arrived at the reception hall of the lower levels.
He suddenly noticed that the人流 in this layer was less than half of what it was in the second layer.
Second-year students and the third-year students guiding their adventures were mostly still wandering around the second level.
Higher-grade students generally used “Gate Keys” to reach below the tenth floor.
This left the safety zones between the third and tenth floors vacant.
The mana marker in the third level was a seven-colored totem pole carved with strange patterns.
After completing the collection, Dark rested in the third level for half an hour, and when the crowds began to increase, he set out on another treasure hunt!
