Two days passed, and, combining the vague words of Miss Anakin, Abandon firmly believed he had seen through everything.
This team must be Paradise's secret force; otherwise, their high level of coordination was inexplicable. Abandon now understood that if the monsters collaborated in raiding dungeons, Players would essentially have no role to play—
Usually, to open the doors of high-level tombs in the era of conflict, the team needed a "Grave Robber" or a higher profession, with a "Curse Unlocking" skill requiring a proficiency level above 80, and it came with a 50% failure rate. Failure meant waiting for a 24-hour reset.
As soon as they entered the tomb and saw the two rows of splendid and magnificent doors, Abandon nearly lost his cool. Seeing the Master of Paradise's action, he felt the urge to strangle someone in a different sense—
A Corrosive Slime was invited out. It grumbled as it slowly infiltrated the complex and massive door lock mechanism, throwing corrosion skills at critical components.
Fifteen minutes later, a grating sound of distortion came from inside the door, and the Corrosive Slime struggled to squeeze out a part of its body. The blob of slime formed a small hand and gave a thumbs-up to everyone.
Next, "Night Ranger" Solo stepped up. Facing the damaged tomb door, he managed to pry it open with just the basic [Lockpicking] skill of the rogue profession.
As the door slowly opened, the slime dropped to the ground with a plop. It proudly rejoined the team, even giving a high-five to the little ghost girl with its not yet retracted hand.
But that wasn't all. The Ironbone Bear and the Steel Armored Giant Lizard moved forward on their own. They leisurely stepped into the tomb passage, only to be greeted by whizzing poison arrows and a face-full of poison mist, with walls closing in from both sides.
The cloaked Master of Paradise waved his hand, and a dark protective shield enveloped the two monsters. The fierce curse light struck the shield and dissipated in vain.
Both types of monsters were notorious for their extremely high defense, and with the addition of magic protection, they were as tough as ten stacked Paladins. Now, no one complained about their slow movement. The two leisurely traversed the tomb passage a few times, neatly disabling all traps.
The team continued forward, and in just half an hour, Paradise had perfectly cleared a path through the tomb entrance.
Abandon was dumbfounded.
So that was it. Triggering all traps was also a way to clear them, but normal Players would never dare to play like this.
The following process—though Abandon didn't like to describe it this way—was like an assembly line. The Master of Paradise effortlessly took down enemies, the mercenary group and the strong monsters of Paradise split the medium monsters, and the lower monsters were left for the weaker members of Paradise for the final blow.
Anakin didn't even need to support the big shots. Those in the vanguard didn't lose a drop of blood. The top healer spent more time tending to the monsters of Paradise, promptly healing any minor scrapes and bruises they suffered.
Of course, there was an exception in this harmonious scene.
The beautiful succubus remained motionless, just watching the battle with a sweet and pleasant smile. His tail seemed glued to the Master's hand, occasionally caressing it.
"Is that succubus a relative?" The Archer approached to gossip.
"It doesn't seem like it," the Paladin whispered honestly. "When they first discovered us, Paradise sent him to scout. This person must be skilled."
"Come on, skilled? That Master is definitely a big shot. He was so close to us then, doesn't he know our capabilities?" the Archer huffed. "If that's skill, it's just for racking up achievements."
"The succubus's weapon is indeed not impressive." The Priest joined the gossip. "I've noticed he only has a small hunting knife and a small round shield, both looking quite ordinary, not on our list of important weapons."
"What can he hide in those clothes?" The Archer scoffed. "I hate men who sell their looks."
"Shut up. If you want to upset Paradise, do you believe the boss won't make us go dig potatoes?" Abandon immediately interrupted the conversation, which was veering off track.
Abandon also had doubts about the succubus, but his were less malicious.
Paradise's division of labor was very clear. Even the red-haired gentleman occasionally took action, but the succubus did nothing at all, looking simply… simply not like one of Paradise's people. Anakin was tight-lipped about his identity, which meant his position in Paradise must be very special.
If he was just selling his looks, Anakin wouldn't have been so serious. She warned them repeatedly, almost etching "Stay away from the succubus" on their faces.
Unfortunately, such things were like the monkeys of the Himalayas. The more Anakin warned, the more curious Abandon became.
He intently watched the back of the succubus's silver-white head, who still stood beside the Master, his tail affectionately winding around the Master's hand.
The succubus looked at the Master, smiling sweetly and happily. If you were to say he and the Master of Paradise had nothing between them, Abandon wouldn't really believe it.
After all, those golden eyes were too bright, and the gaze couldn't lie.
In the front of the team.
[There are outsiders here. You'd better join the fight,] Nol advised earnestly. [Anakin and the others won't say anything, but that four-person team will definitely notice something's wrong.]
Teest had been sticking to him the whole way, acting even more like a relative than a close friend. Not just Abandon and his team, but many neighbors' eyes were becoming subtly strange.
[No, no, no, honey. If I expose too much strength, it would be easy to associate me with the "Mad Monk".]
Teest walked cheerfully, as if he wasn't in a dark tomb but a sunny garden.
[If that's the case, dressing up as a succubus would be pointless.]
Aren't you the one who wanted to dress up? I see you're quite enjoying it. Nol pursed his lips, tempted to pinch the slippery tip of the tail.
[You can join the rear battle. Your strength fits the position of a normal succubus and won't arouse suspicion,] Nol said fairly.
[No! That means I have to leave you alone with that red-haired fox.] Teest immediately objected, his tail tightening around Nol's wrist. [If I'm not here, who knows what nonsense he'll tell you. That guy's known for his manipulative tactics.]
As he spoke, Mr. Painter elegantly lifted his paintbrush wand.
A beam of holy light enveloped the approaching sticky spider, erasing the creature on the spot. The effect was like clearing a layer in an image editing program; Nol hardly had time to see its health bar. In an instant, the sticky tomb passage became clean and tidy, as if washed with disinfectant water eighty times over.
Noticing Nol's gaze, Painter turned his head and nodded amicably.
In terms of politeness, sense of distance, and reliability, the former Pope was perfect—a candidate for Tahe's Top Ten Most Touching Companions.
It was really hard to dislike him, worthy of someone who had been a Pope.
Nol looked down at the warm tail in his hand, which was now tensely alert. It was obvious that Teest really disliked Painter.
So Nol gripped the tip of the tail with his other hand, changing the topic easily. [Have you thought about which skill to strengthen?]
He himself gained [Breath of a False God] through enhancement, but there were two skill enhancement stones in total for the mission, and one was still with Teest.
[Ah, I was keeping it for you.] Teest felt the warmth on his tail, and his thoughts brightened.
[No need,] Nol refused. [It was agreed that it's yours, so it's yours.]
Teest was silent for a few seconds, looking somewhat puzzled. [You don't like it? Or you don't need it? I'll allow you to plunder me.]
He seemed completely unable to understand Nol's refusal.
[Whether you see me as a husband, lord, or God, keeping promises is necessary.] Nol became serious. [If you can't understand, just take it as my way of being, uh, being a God.]
[You don't like my gift.] Teest muttered, puzzled.
[I prefer the withered flower over it,] Nol said. [Don't let go of something that can make you stronger so easily.]
Nol certainly knew that another skill enhancement would indeed raise his abilities by a large margin. But such things shouldn't be built on Teest's sacrifice—not that it was a complex matter of interest entanglement. He just didn't like it that way.
[I thought it would make you feel secure, but if you say so, I'll really use it.] Teest turned his face. [Even if I might use this power to betray you?]
[Even if you might use this power to betray me.]
The Mad Monk tapped his chin with a finger, not insisting anymore. After a dozen seconds, he let out a long hum, as if nothing had happened, and continued, [I've decided what to strengthen.]
[What?]
[I'll keep it a secret for now.] Teest curled up his golden eyes.
...
Finally, the tomb doors on both sides were thoroughly cleared.
The tomb of the "War King" had thirteen doors on each side, and each corresponded to a side quest. These branches offered incredibly generous experience points. Even before entering the last branch, several neighbors had already reached the maximum level.
Abandon sought out Anakin and managed to join a B-level side quest, ensuring at least not failing the task. The experience points from this mission were unexpectedly high, and as a result, both the Archer and the Paladin reached max level.
Once the basic quest was completed, the atmosphere within the four-person team became somewhat delicate.
"There's only that one door left."
The Priest pointed at the twenty-seventh tomb door—the one directly facing the entrance of the tomb, much larger than the other twenty-six. The door was square, adorned with complex and terrifying skeletal reliefs, clearly indicating it led to the final boss.
"I'll bet a gold wheel, that's definitely an S-level quest." he declared confidently.
"Who's going to bet with you on that?"
The Archer scoffed. "I'm saying, why don't we just wait outside—me and the Paladin are already maxed out. Going in would be pointless. An S-level side quest involves at least two locations and can't be interrupted. Just thinking about it is exhausting."
"But there's something related to the perfect completion requirements…" the Priest said quietly. His level was still a bit short of max.
"What do you need a +10 attack for? You're a Priest." The Archer immediately retorted.
The Priest fell silent, looking anxiously at Abandon, who was again plagued by a headache. Following the principle of "better safe than sorry", he was actually not very keen on getting involved in this side quest.
This time, the Master of Paradise left the monsters outside. Only six people planned to go in—
The Master of Paradise and his succubus, the red-haired man, Anakin and her brother, and an unremarkable young siren from the pile of monsters.
The mercenary group didn't plan to enter either. About a dozen of them set up tents and pots in the tomb courtyard and started cooking leg of lamb right there.
Their closest member—a robust young barbarian—wore a flower crown and a faceless god amulet on his chest. He stayed beside the most severely injured mercenary, gripping his wrist tightly, listening to him laugh and complain. The two shared a cup of berry beer, occasionally bursting into cheerful laughter.
The others picked some spoils of war for the young man with the flower crown. He cheerfully pulled out a large burlap sack, added his own share, shuffled it randomly, and distributed it. He hugged those who received gifts tightly, happily muttering "God's gift".
How nice the atmosphere of the mercenary group was, Abandon envied.
But then again, if his team of four were really useful, they wouldn't have been sent to such a place.
"I want to go, anyway." After hesitating for a long time, he still spoke up quietly.
The Archer was a bit surprised. "Dude, are you serious?"
"I want the attack bonus, and maybe I'll get a good class transfer book. Besides, my experience points aren't maxed out yet," Abandon said. "But I'm only speaking for myself. Everyone else can do as they please."
The remaining three looked at each other.
The Paladin hesitated for a while. "Bro, it's not that I don't want to go with you, but my experience points are maxed out. It's really inconvenient. An S-level quest is too long, and my girlfriend is waiting for me to go back…"
The Priest who first brought up the "perfect condition" was especially shaken. "If the Paladin isn't going, uh, I'll pass. I prefer a tank I can trust, and Anakin's already there. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to join."
"You see." The Archer nudged the first two who opted out. "I'll go with the majority."
As expected, it was the same old lackluster team he was familiar with.
Under normal circumstances, Abandon would definitely have joined his teammates in a leisurely manner. But the S-level quest was just steps away, and the +10 attack from the perfect reward was alluring.
The reward was one aspect… If he backed down now, when they report back, it would look like they just followed along and were useless. Returning with information about Paradise, he could only cobble together trivial news like "Paradise monsters have broad tactics" or "the Master of Paradise likes male succubi".
The team members might be excused, but as the captain, Abandon really couldn't swallow this.
He exhaled sharply. "Then I'll hand over the captaincy to the Paladin and go ask Anakin and the others."
"Are you serious?" The Archer raised an eyebrow.
"Yes."
Abandon closed his eyes and steeled his heart, making the most important decision of his life.
...
To Abandon's surprise, the Paradise team agreed quite straightforwardly.
"You're a Ranger, so you and Solo will take on the support roles," Anakin said. "Perfect, since Solo is an upgraded Rogue, the Ranger's skills are somewhat lacking."
"About the Paradise team—" Things going too smoothly made Abandon a bit uneasy.
"Just keep your mouth shut and don't cause trouble, and there won't be any problems," Anakin said. "There's only one requirement: once you successfully accept the second phase of the quest, help everyone as a scout for the rest of the journey. You don't even have to participate in the final battle."
"…What?"
"Don't you want the +10 attack bonus? As long as you accept the quest and don't stray too far, once we complete it on our side, it will be considered successful on your side as well."
Anakin glanced at Abandon. She had experience leading leveling groups. This kind of thing was nothing new to her.
Nol, as their fellow native of Earth, didn't mind letting Abandon leech some experience points. The quest was nominally a six-person team, but it was no problem to throw in a utility person like Fischer.
If it weren't for the quest's restrictions on the movement range of the escort team, Nol would have preferred to leave the experience leeching position to Lynn or Officer Luo.
Abandon was dumbfounded by the unexpected windfall and almost floated through the final door.
The space behind the door was surprisingly small.
The entire space was tall and cylindrical, resembling a stone tower, with peeling bricks revealing rough dark red bark underneath. It took him a few seconds to realize that this was the hollow inside of the red-barked spruce.
Abandon looked up into the dark void above.
…This is the final boss room? Where's the boss?
"Everyone needs to be serious this time," the Master of Paradise said gently. "I've explained the general situation to you all."
Abandon: "..."
I haven't heard anything! Wait! Does it mean it's unnecessary to explain it to me again?
"This Villain is ready," said the red-haired man, holding a wand resembling a paintbrush, emitting a warm milky-white glow.
Anakin also pulled out her wand, inlaid with the "Festival of New Green", and nodded solemnly. Solo licked his lips nervously, but he still put on a serious face, picked up the crossbow, and stood at the edge of the circular floor.
The siren's eyes were red, looking utterly dejected, perhaps scared. He didn't pull out any weapons, just listlessly guarding the entrance.
For a moment, only the cloaked person, the succubus, and Abandon were left in the center of the platform.
"Holy crap, come here!" Seeing this, Solo hastily called to him, not daring to raise his voice too much. "Do you want to die? We two supporters should stick together!"
"Oh, okay." Abandon jogged over to Solo, his mind short-circuiting from the sudden turn of events.
In the next instant, Abandon's heart nearly stopped—
Just as he steadied himself beside Solo, something brushed past his heel and slammed into the floor. He nearly lost his balance.
It was a giant human mouth.
A fat old man's head with a crown—fitting perfectly into the cylindrical tower—smashed down from the darkness above.
It buried deep into the ground, swallowing the Master and the succubus who were standing there. The head tried to close its jaw but couldn't manage.
At the same time, the red-haired man decisively acted. Blinding holy light pierced its throat. Anakin waved her wand, reinforcing the holy light attack. Solo's [Mud], [Emergency Trap], [Slow] were thrown in succession, slowing the old man's head considerably, its health bar gradually dropping.
The creature clearly sensed something amiss. After a grating sound of flesh and blood, it slowly retracted into the darkness above.
This time, Abandon clearly saw the boss "War King" for what it was—
The head's skin was loose, covered in age spots, the crown deeply embedded in the skull, with one eye open and the other filled with various swords and spears. Its facial proportions were completely distorted, looking inhuman and making one's skin crawl.
Especially that mouth. The head's mouth opened as wide as a snake's, with sharp teeth, and the corners of the mouth torn raggedly. Drool, murky and black, flowed down the sharp teeth, emitting a strong stench of decay.
What kind of thing is this!
Being looked down upon by such a creature, Abandon felt weak in the knees. He had seen the red-haired man's holy light magic—ordinary bosses couldn't withstand a second hit, but this head endured over ten seconds of attack, losing less than 10% of its health.
Not to mention the cramped space, just the sheer pressure from its fall could crush them to death!
Is this a dungeon meant for humans? Is this something he could handle? Abandon suddenly felt like an ordinary office worker who had mistakenly entered an Olympic arena.
"Just throw debuffs at it!" Solo kicked him hard in the shin. "Just keep throwing—mindlessly throw—throw whenever your skills are ready—apart from adding debuffs, don't do anything else!"
"But, but…"
The red-haired man was a mage, Anakin a healer, both Solo and himself were support… Who would tank? The Master of Paradise looked like a mage. Could it be a DPS rush???
Thinking this, he remembered to look towards the center of the platform.
The cloaked person pulled out a strangely shaped staff, supporting a protective shield. And beside him, the succubus finally let his tail go—somehow, a long sword appeared in his hand.
The sword was dripping with blood and purple flesh. Lying beside them was a huge tongue, cleanly severed.
The succubus glanced at Abandon, lifted the cloaked person's hand, and kissed the back of it.
…Unquestionably a knightly gesture.
In the next moment, the person's fighting and killing intent completely exploded, and for a second, Abandon thought another boss had entered the scene.
Abandon completely choked up.
To hell with the "meat-selling succubus". This guy was way too strong! Can a succubus be this powerful?
This might be the scantily clad, strangest-acting knight he had ever seen… but this succubus might also be the strongest knight he had ever encountered.
A few steps away, Nol had no time to bother with the storm in Abandon's mind.
[Well done. With the tongue cut like that, it won't be able to use its "Greedy Lick" for a while,] he thought. [Next, continue attacking inside its mouth. Aim for its eye…]
[I want to attack from the outside,] Teest suddenly said.
[We've talked about this. A frontal collision is not in our favor.] Nol frowned. [This space is too limited. We don't have a pure strength warrior, and we can't withstand a direct hit.]
[I want to try my new skill.] Teest looked up at the old man's head, eager to move.
In Nol's surprised gaze, Teest raised his hand—the one not holding the sword—with a sly smile in the corner of his mouth.
The Mad Monk retracted his fingers, and with a crack, something quietly shattered in his palm.
Golden flames ignited from Teest's body, and Nol instinctively raised his hand to shield his eyes from the blinding light.
This guy dared to enhance his skills right in front of the boss!
Before the light dissipated, Nol raised the protective shield, quickly looking up to check the enemy's status.
The War King's head was submerged in darkness, its health bar unchanged.
As Teest fiddled in front of him, it didn't make any attack moves—the previously wide-open eye and mouth were now closed. For some reason, it seemed to have fallen into a near-death slumber, its already scarce vitality dissipating even more.
A translucent system pop-up window floated in front of Nol, displaying a brand new skill.
[King of Sleep]!