"All the items listed are related to the undead," Emilia said thoughtfully. "And he also mentioned something about an [Undead Temple]..."
"It’s a dungeon nearby," Leon replied calmly. "But the recommended level for it is fifteen."
Emilia sucked in a breath. "That’s way higher than our current level. Should we wait?"
"That depends on the event," Leon answered as they left the alchemist’s shop. "If the timing lines up, I think we can clear it anyway. The difficulty matters more than the recommendation."
"Hm..."
They didn’t linger in the ruined district for long and soon made their way back toward the main square of [Hub City].
As the first hub most players encountered in the [Lower Domain], [Hub City] felt... normal.
There were no strange structures floating in the air, no hidden traps embedded into the streets, and no monsters roaming freely.
It was one of the rare places in [Eternal Ascension] where players could actually lower their guard, at least a little.
Of course, that didn’t include player killers. But even PKs usually avoided people around their own level. The risk was too high.
Death here was permanent, and no amount of loot was worth gambling your existence against someone of equal strength.
That was why they almost always targeted players much weaker than themselves.
It was a way to have guaranteed profits, as you could acquire the player’s items.
Some people called it efficiency. Leon called it cowardice.
"Here," Leon said casually as they walked, sending a panel toward Emilia. "By the way."
His [Skills] panel opened before her eyes.
[Celestial’s Skills: Appraisal (Lv.4), Vision Enhancement (Lv.4), Powerful Fireball (Lv.6), Lightning Strike (Lv.3), Crescent Slash (Lv.2), Darkness Barrier (Lv.1)]
Emilia stopped walking for a second and stared.
"...Wow," she said honestly. "You have so many skills."
Then she smiled brightly.
"Here’s mine!"
Ding!
A new panel appeared before Leon.
[Saintess’ Skills: Appraisal (Lv.2), Agility Enhancement (Lv.3), Divine Beam (Lv.2), Strength Buff (Lv.1)]
Compared to Leon’s, her list was much shorter. The skill levels were lower as well. That was expected.
Leon was able to obtain a lot of [Skill Stones] early on thanks to his talent. Emilia simply hadn’t had the same opportunities yet.
"My only attacking spell is [Divine Beam]," Emilia said with a shrug. "But thanks to my talent’s passives, I can still keep up."
Leon nodded. He already knew that her [Elven Saintess] talent carried two powerful passive effects.
"Looks like I won’t need to protect you as much as I thought," Leon said with a grin.
"You never needed to," Emilia replied confidently. "And I can buff you too."
"Nice."
They exited the square, passing through crowds of players from countless races.
Some looked excited, some tense, some impatiently checking their panels every few seconds.
Everyone was waiting for the event.
Leon didn’t bother stopping or talking to anyone. Instead, his attention shifted to the map hovering in his vision.
’The [Undead Temple] should be close.’
He focused for a moment and scrolled through the surrounding area.
Sure enough, not far from [Hub City], there was a location marked with a skull-shaped symbol. The distance wasn’t great.
If they moved fast, they could clear the dungeon and be back before the event announcement even appeared.
"Let’s go," Leon said.
Not everyone stayed idle in the city. While many players preferred to wait for events, others continued grinding outside.
After all, events always gave a system-wide warning around thirty minutes before they began.
There was no reason to waste time.
Fwoosh!
Leon and Emilia left [Hub City] and sprinted toward the [Undead Temple].
Vision Enhancement!
Leon activated his skill, and the world around him sharpened. Distances felt shorter. Details became clearer. Even the terrain ahead seemed easier to read.
They encountered no trouble along the way. Still, Leon didn’t relax.
’Maybe they gave up,’ he thought, ’but I’m not stupid enough to assume we’re safe.’
Eventually, the temple came into view. It was massive.
A dark, ancient structure rising from the ground, its walls cracked and worn by time.
Several of its pillars were made from a mix of stone and bones, fused together unnaturally.
At the very top of the structure sat a giant skull, carved into the architecture itself. The mark of a king.
Hundreds of players had already gathered outside the entrance, forming groups and arguing over strategies.
"Hard is suicide without a full party."
"I heard the boss drops insane items though."
"We should wait for more people."
Leon didn’t pay them any attention.
He walked straight toward the entrance, Emilia right beside him.
Fwish! Ding!
[Which difficulty do you wish to choose?]
[Easy] [Normal] [Hard]
Just like the [Wild Ruins], the dungeon allowed players to choose its difficulty.
Most people didn’t know this, but Merek’s quest came with a condition.
Only the [Hard] difficulty spawned the [Undead King].
And only the [Undead King] dropped the heart required for the quest.
This, combined with the already low drop rates of the other materials, was the real reason almost no one ever completed it.
’Hard difficulty... recommended combat power around 16,000.’
Leon’s current combat power was far below that. But that didn’t worry him. Combat power wasn’t everything.
He had buffs. He had burst damage. He had Emilia.
And on top of that... He had [Celestial’s Might].
Even if it hadn’t activated yet, the passive alone made him confident.
Leon selected [Hard].
Ding!
[Undead Temple (Hard Difficulty) has been selected.]
[Party of 2 detected: Celestial and Saintess.]
"Perfect."
No one interfered as the two stepped forward. Their surroundings blurred.
Fwish!
A moment later, solid ground returned beneath their feet. They had entered the [Undead Temple].
Emilia looked around nervously. The air felt heavy. Cold.
"I... this is crazy," she admitted. "These monsters are going to be really strong..."
Leon smiled.
"Yeah," he said. "But that also means more experience and better items."
They stood in a massive stone hall, lit by torches mounted on bone-like handles.
The flames flickered weakly, casting long shadows across the walls.
The two moved forward carefully. After about a minute of walking, Leon felt it.
Enemies. And then they appeared.
---
[Undead Skeleton]
[Level: 15]
[Combat Power: 11,000]
[Details: Skeletons trained by the ’Undead King’ and bound to his absolute will.]
---
Eight skeletons stepped into view, each holding a rusted sword. A faint blue fire burned in their eye sockets as they locked onto Leon and Emilia.
Emilia shuddered. "These things are creepy. Let’s deal with them quickly."
"Agreed."
Strength Buff!
Emilia raised her scepter, and light flowed toward Leon.
Ding!
[Your Strength has been doubled.]
[Strength: 384 (+643)]
Leon felt power surge through his body.
His muscles tightened. His grip felt heavier. Stronger.
An increase of nearly one thousand strength meant his combat power jumped by roughly two thousand in an instant.
Support spells scaled with the target’s stats.
And Leon’s stats were abnormal for his level. Emilia smiled slightly, confident.
Leon stepped forward, sword in hand, his grin widening.
"I’m getting to your king," Leon said simply, "But I also need your materials, as well as his heart."
...
A/N
Don’t forget to give powerstones and golden tickets if you enjoy this novel, it grealty helps!