Saving the World in an Apocalypse-Style Text Game-Chapter 1167 - 526: Hero’s Gate, Mirage Dragon Relic_2
[Numerous soldiers followed their general, raising the weapons and crossbows in their hands and shouting in unison.]
[In an instant, murderous intent boiled over, endless malice transformed into surging black mist that soared into the clouds!]
[A fierce light flashed in your eyes, and at the command of your thoughts, the raging malice turned into a gigantic pitch-black claw...]
[Shell Skill ’Extreme Evil Invading Demon Claw’ activated!]
[The sky full of malicious black mist coalesced into the demon claw, which ferociously slammed down onto the ground!]
[In an instant, the earth trembled, and a black shockwave swept through, tossing soldiers into disarray as screams of agony rang out incessantly...]
[The black demon claw struck the ground over and over, and within a few breaths, it had slaughtered over a thousand soldiers.]
[You have defeated ’Extreme Evil Infantry of Hero’s Gate’ *732, experience points have slightly increased!]
[You have defeated ’Extreme Evil Crossbowmen of Hero’s Gate’ *219, experience points have slightly increased!]
[You have defeated...]
[...]
[In the blink of an eye, only the ’Guerrilla General’ remained mounted before the array, while behind him lay a field of severed limbs and torsos.]
Though the skill rank of Extreme Evil Invading Demon Claw was low and a bit lacking in power, it was more than enough to deal with these lowly monsters.
Moreover, this skill could harness the malice emanating from the lesser monsters, using the enemy’s own energy reserves to activate the skill, allowing for cost-free casting, quite effective for mowing down groups.
Lin Xun glanced at the progress bar of Star Lord Canis, noting that to subjugate these Fire Worship Army soldiers had awarded him significantly more ’Demonic Exorcism Merit’ than slaughtering the villagers’ lesser monsters.
After the ’Son of Evil’ advanced in rank, he contemplated upgrading the rank of Star Lord Canis’s Shell as well, otherwise it would be a wasteful disregard of Emperor Yuanwu’s skill inheritance.
However, after exterminating several lesser monsters in the villages en route, Lin Xun abandoned this time-wasting approach.
The ’Demonic Exorcism Merit’ granted by the lesser monsters of the village was nearly insignificant; no matter how many he killed, it made little noticeable progress on the bar, proving to be an unrewarding task.
He guessed that the inherent shell rank and level of the village monsters were too low to meet the minimum requirements for accumulating ’Demonic Exorcism Merit’.
The Fire Worship Army in front of him, however, seemed like decent experience-farming resources, just that their numbers were a bit too scant...
[The Guerrilla General pulled on his horse’s reins, the steed neighing and rearing up, and as it turned its head back, it saw behind it nothing but scattered corpses of over a thousand soldiers...]
[Its cruel smile froze on its face, then it came to its senses, dismounted with a somersault, knelt on one knee, and cupping one fist in the other hand, spoke loudly, "Turns out it’s the Living Buddha who has graced us with his presence. In my excitement, I’m afraid I caused the soldiers to become overly enthusiastic, I hope the Living Buddha will quell his anger."]
"This one still retains some clarity of mind, it must be an elite monster, perhaps it knows something."
Lin Xun mused, stroking his chin.
[You strode forward, reaching the Guerrilla General, about to speak when you saw the suppressed malice in his eyes suddenly erupt, as he thrust his halberd violently towards your face!]
[Your eyes turned sharp, and you caught the point of the halberd in your hand, regardless of how forcefully the Guerrilla General tried, his red face straining with all his might, he couldn’t push the weapon an inch further.]
[You scoffed, asking, "Had enough?"]
[The Guerrilla General’s eyes filled with increasing malevolence, he let out a roar and released the halberd, throwing a punch at you!]
[You took advantage of holding the blade to thrust instantly; the wooden grip of the halberd plunged into the Guerrilla General’s chest, then pierced the sandy ground, nailing him firmly to the spot.]
[Looking at the still roaring and struggling Guerrilla General, you couldn’t be bothered to waste words on him.]
[You reached into your bosom and pulled out a bowl-shaped magical artifact made of human bones, and held it above the Guerrilla General.]
[As he continued to struggle, the puncture wound in his chest kept gushing blood...]
[Just as you positioned the bowl over him, a drip of dark viscous blood emerged from his chest, and in the blink of an eye, it was absorbed by the magical artifact within the bowl.]
[You have successfully collected the ’Lifeblood’ of ’Extreme Evil Guerrilla General of Hero’s Gate’ using the ’ECSTASY’S FRUITFUL Gabala Bowl’!]
[The ’Guerrilla General’ has become your temporary puppet, and you can issue commands to him at will.]
[The White Elephant Demon stepped forward and pulled out the halberd, as the Guerrilla General respectfully knelt on one knee, offering a salute with a fist in palm. Malice remained in his eyes, but it was no longer directed at you.]
[You inquired of the Guerrilla General, within this Hero’s Gate, was there anything special, any particular place?]
["The Guerrilla General immediately replied, returning to his master, there is none!"]
Lin Xun frowned.
Could it be that he had made a wrong judgement, and there really was no hidden event at Hero’s Gate at all?
[You ask again, ’Hero’s Gate’ was known as ’Dragon’s Gate’ in ancient times, with legends of dragons falling from the sky. The Guerrilla General has been stationed here for many years, has he really not found anything related to the legend?]
[The Guerrilla General, without any hesitation, nodded and replied, "Returning to my master, there once was an Underground Palace related to the Evil Dragon God."]
Lin Xun couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth; just now you said there was nothing, and now there is something?
It seemed that although the Guerrilla General possessed some degree of consciousness, his mind was still somewhat unclear.
[The Guerrilla General declared aloud, "My master asked if there was anything unusual inside Hero’s Gate, while that Underground Palace related to the Evil Dragon God is outside the gate, so this is why I replied there was none."]
[...]
Following the Guerrilla General’s narration, Lin Xun roughly understood the situation.
Indeed, in ancient times there was an incident of a dragon falling, but the dead Dragon Demon did not exactly fall at the mouth of the pass; it was across several mountain heads.
When the ancients built the Dragon’s Gate, they flayed and skinned the Dragon Demon, extracting its bones to be built into the walls and gate...
The Dragon Demon, although it had been dead for many years, with its physical form turned to dust, left behind a strange and illusory landscape at the place it fell.
This illusion would appear periodically, with each appearance being different—sometimes a cave, sometimes a pavilion, and at other times it would transform into a marketplace...
Those who entered it felt as if they were walking into a wall of ghosts, dazed and confused, spending quite a while before finding their way out.
All that was within it was illusionary, and all events witnessed were false. Initially, the illusion appeared frequently and lasted longer, but later it became more unstable and seemed about to disappear, only appearing once every year or half.
As of now, this illusion had not appeared in several years, and even when it did, it could at most last for a day.
The Guerrilla General had been stationed here for more than a decade, and the last time he saw the illusion was seven years ago.
At that time, there was a rare torrential downpour. As the downpour ended, the illusion suddenly materialized, taking the form of a dim underground palace.
When the Guerrilla General heard the soldiers’ report, he led a large number of troops into it, but after spending the better part of a day exploring, they found nothing special and returned in disappointment.
After returning to Hero’s Gate, the illusion disappeared and has never appeared since then.
[...]
[The White Elephant Demon leaned in and whispered to you, "Junior brother, listening to what the Guerrilla General said, the dragon that fell could very well be the legendary ’Mirage Dragon’."] 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞
["The ancient texts describe that a Mirage Dragon looks somewhat like a chi-dragon, with horns and ears, a red crest on its back, exhales mist forming towers and pavilions, and when it’s about to rain, it becomes visible. Its fat and wax can be made into candles, so fragrant that the scent carries for a hundred steps. The smoke that rises from them takes the shape of towers and pavilions..."]
["The legends say that the Mirage Dragon is also a descendant of the Dragon God, just not a direct descendant from the original nine dragon offspring."]
[You then command the Guerrilla General with a word, "Lead the way."]
[Soon after, the White Elephant Demon sets up a magical cloud, and following the direction pointed by the Guerrilla General, flies over several mountain heads to the ancient site of the dragon’s fall.]
[The illusion of the Underground Palace the Guerrilla General saw seven years ago appeared here.]
[This place is a low valley, surrounded by hills that are not too high. Looking around, the land is barren, covered only in a mix of sand, stones, and wild grass, with nothing of interest to be seen.]
[You do not see the so-called illusion, presumably because the timing is not right.]
[Do you want to try your luck here and continue waiting for the illusion that has not appeared for many years, or do you leave this place, not engaging in the foolish act of waiting in vain?]
Lin Xun narrowed his eyes, his mind racing with various thoughts.
He ignored the options presented by the Underworld Game.
[You turn to ask the Guerrilla General, "Does every appearance of the illusion precede a heavy storm or extreme weather change?"]
[After pondering for a moment, the Guerrilla General replied, "Returning to my master, the previous appearances of the illusion happened so long ago that I am unaware. However, the one seven years ago did indeed appear suddenly after the torrential rain."]
[You look towards the White Elephant Demon next to you and inquire, "Senior brother, are you capable of calling forth wind and rain?"]
[The White Elephant Demon raises his head with a confident smile, "What’s so difficult about that!"]
