Chapter 435 - 353: Really Going to Get Beaten

Chapter 435: Chapter 353: Really Going to Get Beaten

After the other two squads had left through the luminescent blue light curtain.

Only Zelir’s squad remained in the vast hall.

The group immediately sprang into action without a word.

Valles kicked aside a toppled, broken stone chair, then dragged a stone table over.

Hill immediately took the Treasure Map from within her clothes, deftly spreading it out and smoothing it flat on the tabletop.

Then, both of them instinctively made way for Marcus.

Marcus walked up to the Treasure Map, planted his hands on the table, and studied the routes on it with a grave expression.

Zelir and Gray stood off to the side, looking on with mock seriousness.

"Can you even read that?" Gray asked, turning to Zelir.

Zelir didn’t say anything, just gave a sagely nod before shaking his head.

To be honest, Zelir had a bit of the ’No Sense of Direction’ attribute.

Even if he were given the parchment scroll to follow, given the complex paths shown, Zelir would have likely found it impossible to figure out a viable route.

Marcus’s finger traced the lines on the map.

He thought for a moment before his finger quickly landed on a specific spot.

"We are right here."

Everyone leaned in to look at the map.

The spot Marcus was pointing to was marked on the map as a circle.

Several passages connected to this circle, leading off in different directions like a spiderweb.

Zelir checked their surroundings and counted.

Sure enough, the number of exits in the circular hall perfectly matched the number of passages extending from the circle on the map.

’There are several similar structures on the map.’

’That’s Marcus for you, finding it so quickly.’

Now that their current location was confirmed, plotting a path to the treasure room would be much easier.

The treasure room was in the upper-right corner of the map, marked with a red X.

Starting from their current position, Marcus’s finger moved along the network of intricately winding paths.

It was like he was navigating a maze.

He set the treasure room as his destination and began searching for a viable route.

Sometimes, he’d trace a path to a dead end.

When that happened, his finger would have to backtrack and search for another path at a fork.

According to the map, the third level of the ruins wasn’t just a single floor.

It was split into multiple levels, with paths going up and down.

This made deciphering the route even more complex.

Marcus tirelessly tried one path after another.

At first, he was staring intently at the map, but after a while, he simply closed his eyes.

"Did he... fall asleep?" Gray asked, confused.

"Quiet. Marcus is thinking," Valles said, waving a hand to silence him.

And sure enough, though Marcus’s eyes were closed, his finger was still moving.

It followed the lines on the map perfectly, without the slightest deviation.

’Don’t tell me Marcus has already memorized the map?’

"Now that’s a talent for pathfinding..." Zelir marveled softly.

"How did he train himself to do that?" Hill asked, equally astonished.

As an Assassin, she also had a keen sense for maps, routes, and spatial orientation.

But compared to Marcus, she had to admit she was outclassed.

「A moment later.」

Marcus opened his eyes.

Without a word, he pulled out a charcoal pencil and swiftly drew a line on the map.

It started at their current position and wound its way through numerous passages.

Straight, up a level, a turn, straight again, then looping around several large circles that looked like dead ends.

Finally, the charcoal line connected to the treasure room!

"Whoa...!"

Zelir, Gray, and Valles exclaimed in unison.

"Incredible!"

’If it were up to us, it would’ve taken half a day, and we still might not have gotten it right.’

"This is the only route."

Marcus pointed to a passage entrance ahead and to the right. "We’ll set out from here."

The group walked over to the entrance and peered inside.

It was a corridor that looked no different from any of the others.

In the faint glow of the Fluorite on the domed ceiling, they could see several stone pillars lining the corridor.

At the far end of their sight, the corridor turned to the left.

’It seems like a very unremarkable path...’

But after their previous experiences, who knew what traps might be lurking inside.

"Well, at least we’ve found the way..." Zelir sighed in relief.

A renewed sense of anticipation for the treasure hunt ahead grew within him.

"Alright, we should head back."

After one last check, Marcus folded the map. "Let’s go rest and prepare. We’ll come back after."

... ℯ

After leaving the third level of the ruins, the squad returned to the camp at the entrance to the second level.

After all their efforts, it was already evening.

The sun sank behind the western mountains, its light fading to leave behind a magnificent, orange-red afterglow.

Exhausted from the long day, Zelir and his team couldn’t be bothered to travel any further.

They decided to rest at the camp for the night and set off in the morning.

The camp was different from how it had been during the day, however—many more people were out and about.

Judging by their uniforms, they were official personnel recruited by the Adventurer’s Association. Piles of newly delivered supplies were stacked nearby.

Things like shovels, wheelbarrows, and face masks.

They looked like they were preparing to go dig something up.

"They’re probably preparing to go to the caves tomorrow to clean up the Dragon Snake’s fleshy remains."

Marcus said, "The Adventurer’s Association sure moves fast."

The Nine-headed Dragon Snake was only killed at noon, and by evening, the Association had already mobilized a cleanup crew and an advance party.