It takes all sorts.
While Li Miao and Faraway were exploring with serious intent, the other three players painted a completely different picture...
[You have killed a Blood Axe Living Corpse]
[Acquired: Bloodstained Great Axe (Ordinary)]
"It’s finally here!!"
Brother Mangzi’s eyes were glued to the Great Axe in his hands. Without a moment’s hesitation, he tossed his Wolf Fang Club into his inventory to gather dust.
"Hmph!"
Even for Brother Mangzi, who had focused his stats on Power, it was a struggle to lift with just one hand. He let out a grunt and switched to a two-handed grip, which felt much better.
"ROAR!"
Just then, some unlucky Living Corpse chose that moment to roar and lunge at him.
"’Perfect timing! Eat my axe!’"
With a savage grin, the muscles in Brother Mangzi’s arms bulged like steel cables as he swung the Great Axe down hard on the creature’s head.
BAM!
The heavy Bloodstained Great Axe cleaved through the Living Corpse’s body without any noticeable resistance. Its momentum unabated, the axe continued downward and slammed into the wooden planks below.
CRASH! The floorboards of the dilapidated galleon shattered on impact, opening a massive hole. Seawater immediately began flooding in.
"Haha! Awesome!"
"’Now this is a real man’s weapon!’"
Brother Mangzi’s eyes glittered with excitement as he let out a gratified laugh.
Just then, another wave of monsters came roaring toward him.
Seeing this, Brother Mangzi chuckled. "’Perfect. I just had a new idea.’"
"’Behold, my Great Axe Whirlwind...’"
"’DEATH... TO... ALL... SIDES!!!’"
With a furious roar, Brother Mangzi began to spin, swinging the Bloodstained Great Axe around him in a blur.
In an instant, the heavy Great Axe became a terrifying reaping machine. One after another, the frenzied Living Corpses were ruthlessly sliced in half at the waist. It was absolute brutality.
[You have killed a Pillaging Ship Living Corpse]
[You have killed a Pillaging Ship Living Corpse]
[...]
"AAAAAH!"
Brother Mangzi roared continuously. Propelled by his immense Power, the heavy Bloodstained Great Axe spun faster and faster, fiercer and fiercer!
...until, with a CRASH, he smashed through the outer wall of the Pillaging Ship and went flying out with a WHOOSH...
SPLASH!
"Oh, holy shit! Hey, hey, he—!"
"GLUG GLUG GLUG..."
After gulping down several mouthfuls of seawater, Brother Mangzi dissolved into a pile of Wax Ash...
"Rrr..."
The surviving Living Corpses stood at the edge of the hole, looking somewhat bewildered.
...
Of the five members of the advance party, only Mushroom’s situation was peaceful.
Upon arriving on Exile Island, he had immediately chosen to take the stone steps leading up the side of a mine.
The steps were incredibly steep, and Mushroom struggled to make his way up.
"’I... *huff*... damn it...’"
"’Why are... these steps... so steep...’"
Leaning against the rock wall on the steps, Mushroom panted heavily.
The strange thing was, he’d been climbing for a while now and hadn’t run into a single monster.
He had passed a spot to light a Spirit Candle along the way, though.
But the boring journey made him want to turn back and find another route.
However, one look back was enough to make him dismiss the thought.
’’Forget it, I’ve already climbed this far...’
Mushroom decided to grit his teeth and press on.
He continued forward.
After another few minutes of climbing, he finally saw the top of the stairs.
’’Almost there!’
Mushroom took a deep breath and scrambled the rest of the way up in one last push.
The moment he stepped onto level ground, all the strength drained from his body. He collapsed into a sitting position and let out a long sigh.
"’Phew... Finally made it...’"
A wave of relief washed over Mushroom. He then subconsciously glanced down from the summit.
But what he saw made his face freeze.
He saw a vintage-style mechanical elevator that ran from an open area below all the way up to a small hut nearby.
"’Why is there an elevator?!’"
Mushroom felt like he was having a breakdown.
’’So, after all the blood, sweat, and tears I put into climbing all this way, it turns out I could’ve just taken an elevator to the top?!’
’’What kind of game design is this? The damn devs are total animals!!!’
Mushroom’s blood pressure instantly skyrocketed.
But just as he was fuming, he heard a sound from behind him—a grinding, clattering noise. At the same time, his surroundings suddenly went dark.
’It felt like some colossal thing was standing right behind him...’
A terrible premonition bloomed in Mushroom’s chest.
"’Law... Order...’"
A deep, mechanical voice reached Mushroom’s ears.
Mushroom stiffly turned his head.
He saw a humanoid monster made entirely of jet-black rock. On each of its arms was a massive iron Shield.
[Black Stone Gatekeeper]
[Tier: Embers]
[Level: 12]
[Talent: Spell Stone Skin (Power and Defense greatly enhanced)]
[Skill: Unknown]
[Explanation: A special existence constructed from hard ore and Spells. Although it does not possess Warfire, its combat power should not be underestimated. Perhaps... you should show it something?]
"..."
Staring at the wall-like Black Stone Gatekeeper before him, Mushroom couldn’t help but gulp, a cold sweat breaking out on his back.
Just moments ago, his blood pressure had been sky-high with anger. Now, it had plummeted from sheer terror.
"’Law... Order...’"
The Black Stone Gatekeeper repeated in its deep voice.
THUD.
As it spoke, it took a heavy step toward Mushroom, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Cough..."
Mushroom fanned away the dust, his mind racing.
’’Law and order, huh...’
"’Just a second, I’m getting it!’"
With that, Mushroom took a step back, pretending to rummage for something while actually drawing his weapon.
Suddenly!
Mushroom dove into a roll to the side, trying to quickly create distance.
"’Intruder!’"
The Spells on the Black Stone Gatekeeper’s body instantly glowed crimson. It slammed the two Large Shields on its arms together and charged straight at Mushroom like a bulldozer.
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!
Mushroom, who had just created some distance and drawn his weapon, stared wide-eyed at the scene.
’’Dude, you moonlight as a bulldozer or something?’
Mushroom quickly rolled again, dodging the attack.
Having missed its target, the Black Stone Gatekeeper stopped, quickly repositioned, and charged forward again with its Shields joined.
’’Again?’
Mushroom watched it carefully, then once again found the right moment to dodge just in time.
This repeated three times.
RUMBLE RUMBLE...
This time, the Black Stone Gatekeeper seemed to fail to recover in time, and its body stuttered to a halt.
Seeing this, Mushroom breathed a sigh of relief. ’Looks like it’s just a big oaf,’ he thought.
Feeling a bit more relaxed, he reached for a Recovery Wax Block to restore some of his Physical Strength.
However, the Black Stone Gatekeeper, having missed its attack, made a new move. Without even turning around, it raised an arm directly toward Mushroom’s position behind it.
All of this happened extremely quickly.
BOOM!
The Large Shield on the Black Stone Gatekeeper’s arm shot out like a projectile.
At that exact moment, Mushroom had just consumed the Recovery Wax Block. He looked up just in time to see a Shield rapidly filling his vision...
Mushroom’s pupils shrank.
The next second.
BANG—
Mushroom was sent flying.
Normally, this wouldn’t have been a big deal—he’d just be injured, at worst.
But... Mushroom was on a mountaintop.
"AHHH—"
Mushroom flailed wildly in mid-air, his bloodcurdling scream echoing across the entirety of Exile Island.
After a long freefall, Mushroom’s body finally hit the ground, turning into a pile of Wax Ash with a SPLAT.
"I..."
Mushroom’s Wandering Soul rose up. He was about to curse but stopped himself.
He took a deep breath, followed the pull back to the Spirit Candle halfway up the mountain where he had resurrected, and stared at the steps before him. A vein began to throb on his forehead.
’That long, long path... and I have to climb it all over again!’
This was too much, even for Mushroom, who had always prided himself on his calm temperament.
’The boring mountain path, the elevator you can only see from the top, the shove-happy monster waiting at the summit...’
’He could feel the profound malice in all of it.’
All these factors combined...
Mushroom’s face gradually turned red.
Rage burned within him, and his blood pressure soared like boiling water.
"’I swear...’"
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter