Chapter 71: Day Three

72 hours...

It had been 72 hours since the dungeon awoke.

However...

It was only now that the dungeon began to scream.

Having been incapacitated last time, Peace didn’t get to witness the phenomenon — not that he was complaining.

But...

All spawning zones on the first floor were now being unleashed. This meant that, across the entire floor, thousands upon thousands of monsters were screaming, cawing, or groaning as they took shape.

Not only that, but Field Effects had come out to play...

With Peace and his posse being the lucky first recipients of the cruel wrath of the light.

’The light! It burns!’

Much like the blood rain, the Field Effect would select a certain area within the Bright Forest. Above, a cloud of light would appear and rain down sparks. These sparks weren’t particularly harmful, but they were far more painful and annoying than the blood had ever been.

It felt like he was holding his entire body over a gigantic piece of cooking bacon, letting oil pop up and torch his skin.

At least Peace had his cloak to shield him from the worst of it.

Yulis, Maura, and Ralph all had reinforced umbrellas, which caught most of the sparks, though a few still slipped through.

Volkar, however, was not only shirtless but had no such protection.

He was floundering around like a fish, spasming and running in circles as if that would somehow help him dodge the sparks. At some point, he’d even taken out his axe and begun trying to swat them away...

To no avail.

If nothing else, the sparks helped wake Peace up.

Sure, the stimulants were working, but pain was a different, more dramatic stimulant that really fired him up.

Ignoring the fool, Peace turned his attention to the Light Temple...

Standing in the center of a massive clearing, it resembled a ziggurat with four sets of steps leading up to a disc at its peak, which reflected the overbearing light of the Field Effect as the light cloud floated around.

The entire structure was made of pure marble, and countless monsters roamed its exterior, with countless more lurking inside.

There were also a shit ton of monsters in the open clearing leading to the Light Temple, an infamous area where multiple spawning zones could overlap.

And, from the looks of it, that had indeed happened.

Which meant they’d have to take quite the detour to find a passable route.

’A day and a half...’

For a day and a half, it would be up to them to wreak as much havoc as they could. Then, book it. Sprint towards the Convergence Zone to escape the mini-boss of the Bright Forest, which always spawned at the Light Temple — the Worshiper of Light.

From there, it would begin to roam randomly. Thankfully, it only attacked anything unfortunate enough to cross its path.

So, as long as they were already running away when it spawned, they’d be able to escape without issue. At least, without issue from the Worshiper itself.

After checking their gear, Ralph gave a single order:

"Get into Formation C and let’s move out."

Ralph took point, with Yulis behind him. Maura and Volkar on either side of Yulis, while Peace brought up the rear. About nine meters separated each of them. They’d group up or spread out as needed, but this would be their standard formation for plains warfare.

Ralph let out a quiet cheer as a towering golem pulled itself out of the ground right in front of him.

A Tier 9 B-class Lesser Earth Golem.

"Let’s start with a big one!" Without looking back, he issued his battle commands. "Yulis, conserve arrows. Maura and Volkar, take out its legs. Pariah, kill it."

Invoking Audacious Challenge, Ralph stomped his foot against the ground, then said:

"At me, rubbish!"

Peace watched as the golem brought its club-like hand down on Ralph’s already banged-up shield.

Still hanging back, Peace continued observing as the two axe wielders began chipping away at its legs.

’Alright...’

He’d been told... ’kill it.’

’Now how in the absolute fuck do you want me to accomplish that?!’

Unconcerned with the two barely scratching its legs, the golem brought its hands together and smashed downward at Ralph.

Ralph quickly jumped back, but not far enough.

The golem’s fists struck the ground a little ahead of him. Without raising its arms, it charged forward, dragging them through the earth like a plow as it closed the distance.

Then, right as it reached Ralph, it swung both arms upward.

Thinking fast, Ralph jumped, tucking his legs beneath him and positioning his shield between himself and the rising arms. He pressed his body against the back of his shield, bracing for impact.

A moment later, the golem’s arms slammed into the shield, launching Ralph five meters into the air.

"Aghaaahhh!"

It would have been almost comical if not for the fact that...

’Our tank just got launched five meters into the damn air!’

Thankfully, the annoying middle-aged man was quite durable, so he should be fine. The problem was that if anyone else took that same hit, there was a chance they’d be killed in one blow.

Even Volkar wasn’t safe!

Though that was mainly due to his lack of armor.

Peace watched as the golem’s red crystal eyes followed Ralph’s ascent, then tracked him back down. It rushed forward to intercept him.

’Oh fuck...’

Spinning mid-fall, Ralph drew back his sword.

"That hurt! Piece of shit!"

As he screamed, he activated a Resonance, bringing his sword down toward the golem as it swung its arms upward to meet him.

Peace fully expected Ralph’s sword to shatter and go flying, leaving those as the loathsome man’s final words.

However...

A thunderous crash rang out as the golem’s arms were driven straight back into the dirt. Its hulking body teetered, then toppled face-first onto the ground.

Ralph landed on his ass a couple of meters away.

"Yeouch!"

Maura and Volkar quickly swooped in behind the fallen golem, going for its ankles.

’Alright, I understand it now...’

Peace charged.