Chapter 179: A Familiar Figure at the Entrance
Besides these terrifying The Banished, there are several other troublesome Monsters on the third level. They are the second progression of the Zombie – the Ghoul, the third progression of the Crippled Fiend – the Grotesque, and a very special kind of Monster, which I'm not even sure should be described as a Monster.
This Monster is called the Flying Scimitar. Its appearance is not much different from ordinary Weapons. According to the introduction in Cain's Book, these Flying Scimitars were originally just ordinary Weapons, but when their Masters, Warriors with powerful Souls, suffered extremely severe death trauma in the moment before their death, their deceased Souls would occasionally possess their Weapons. It is for these reasons that these Soul-attached Weapons will swing continuously, just as those Warriors once fought. Since their last thought before being used was to eliminate their Opponent/Rival, they will Attack any approaching Life, attempting to complete their goal before death.
I was once ambushed by these Flying Scimitars. I remember it was a few days ago. I was carefully searching room by room with Light Snow and the others, looking for the Entrance to the fourth level, when Lazy Crow's sharp eyes suddenly spotted prey – in the Corner of the Corridor, a snow-white Scimitar lay quietly there.
My Curiosity was instantly piqued. My Brain churned a few times, but I couldn't come up with a suitable answer. First, this shouldn't be an Everyday Item type of Scimitar. I don't think anyone would be so bored as to throw this Junk here, and even if it were real, it should have long since rusted and rotten in this dark and damp environment.
Nor could it have been dropped by a Monster. Generally speaking, unless they die, Monsters will absolutely not drop their Weapons, and after a Monster dies, these Weapons will also disappear.
So, only one possibility remains. That is, this is Equipment dropped by a Monster or used by an Adventurer. But upon closer thought, that's also unlikely. Who would discard a valuable Scimitar here, even a Normal one? Moreover, if it were Equipment and Weapons, it should have been picked up by passing Monsters or Adventurers long ago. How could it be my turn to discover it?
Driven by Curiosity, I walked forward, wanting to pick up the Scimitar and examine it closely. Just as my rustling Footsteps approached five meters away, the Scimitar, which had been lying quietly on the cold green floor, revealed its fangs like a Viper that had been lurking for a long time. The entire blade suddenly erupted in a faint blue Glow. Before I could recover from my surprise, it had already Thrust into my chest with lightning Speed. Then, as if held by a battle-hardened Warrior, it cut at my Body with rapid Speed. The fierce sword style enveloped my entire Body. If I were just a fragile Mercenary, I might have already been chopped into meat chunks by it.
But I wasn't. After taking more than ten hits and losing about a fifth of my Life, Light Snow behind me reacted. She suddenly pounced towards the Scimitar and pinned it firmly to the ground. No matter how the Scimitar struggled, it couldn't escape Light Snow 's Claws. The rest was easy. Recovering myself, I immediately brandished my Weapon on the ground. Regardless of anything else, I'd kill it first.
Unfortunately, after the faint blue Glow of the blade dimmed, the entire blade also turned into a mass of black Ashes. My fantasy of pocketing it was shattered. Moreover, it didn't drop any other Items, not even a Silver Coin. Truly a poor devil.
With caution now, these lone Flying Scimitars were naturally not worth fearing. Not giving up, I tested out a few more Flying Scimitars, but ultimately came to the same conclusion – poor devils, and not much Experience either.
Detour. Detour...
The other two new types, the Ghoul and the Hungry Dead, seem to be printed from the same template. The Difference is that the Ghouls seem to live better lives. Look, the poor Hungry Dead are so hungry their bodies are turning blue, while Ghouls are merely patchy, their color being earthy yellow. Thinking this way, I suddenly feel that the Ghoul's Body seems to be a size bigger than the Hungry Dead...
However, corresponding to this is that the Ghoul's Ability is also much stronger. First is their proud Defense. Weapons striking a Ghoul's Body now produce a metallic clanging sound, as if striking brass forcefully. Their Attack has also increased significantly. Fortunately, their Speed still hasn't improved. As long as the Quantity encountered at once doesn't exceed 5, and there are no other Monsters mixed in, they can be eliminated effortlessly, provided you have enough patience, because their Skin is truly too hard.
Furthermore, as their name suggests, they can eat other Corpses to replenish Life. Even during Battle, if their Life is less than one-third and there happens to be a Corpse nearby, they will drop everything and pounce to feed. Even if you desperately Attack from behind, it's useless. They will use their sharp Claws to tear open the Corpse's belly, prioritizing pulling out and eating the intestines and internal organs inside. Gulping sounds, accompanied by the sizzling of the liver being gnawed, foul-smelling Blood splashes from their hands and teeth, and faintly, half an intestine hangs from the corner of the mouth...
When I first saw this scene, I couldn't eat any Jerky for several days. Fortunately, Velas had carefully prepared long-lasting vegetarian food for me. At this moment, I felt that even the most flowery words could not fully praise this girl's Kindness and virtuousness.
As for the last type – the Grotesque, honestly, I don't know how to describe them. In terms of Ability and Appearance, they can be called an upgraded version of the Corrupted Monster. The only difference is that they also have sonic attacks. During Battle, they often emit mournful and strange cries, like wailing relatives kneeling before a Tombstone. Especially in this eerie tomb environment, it makes one's hair stand on end upon hearing it. Is this what the so-called "suffering" refers to?
As the Entrance to Andariel's lair, the third level of the tomb is indeed extremely difficult for ordinary Adventurers, just like Tal Rasha's Tomb in the second Act, the Durance of Hate in the third Act, the Chaos Sanctuary in the fourth Act, and the Worldstone Keep and Throne of Destruction in the fifth Act in the Diablo Game. These places are all Boss outpost Battlefields that make people turn pale upon hearing their names.
The most obvious sign is the increased number of Corpses encountered along the way. Under normal circumstances, there should be more Corpses in the Trial Zones of the first few Novices. The further in you go, although the Monsters become more Powerful, the Adventurers' Strength/Power and Experience also become richer/more abundant. As long as they don't encounter exceptionally large groups of Monsters or particularly troublesome Elites and Mini-Bosses, Adventurers can escape with ample time even if they are unable to defeat them.
So, since coming to the Black Wilderness, up until the second level of the tomb, I encountered much fewer bodies of the deceased. But now, on the third level of the tomb, I encounter a Corpse almost every day on average. It's imaginable how dangerous a place this is for Adventurers.
"Bang--, Bang--"
Several streams of Flame continuously shot out from my hand, pouncing towards the four Corpses on the ground. These foul-smelling Corpses, so rotten their appearance was completely unrecognizable, were instantly engulfed in a sea of fire. The smell of Roasted Meat instantly replaced the rotten smell in the Air. Seven or eight blood-red eyed Mouse / Rats squeaking crawled out from the burning Corpses...
Judging from various factors, this was another poor party that suffered a Party Wipe. There were no signs of the Corpses being gnawed on, so the Enemy that killed them should be Monsters like Wrath or Exiled. This is already the umpteenth time I've dealt with these Corpses. They clearly already walked all the way here, but ultimately failed at the last step. Sigh...
However, as these four Corpses were reduced to Ashes in the Flame, I discovered something shiny left on the ground.
This is truly a great discovery. Because generally speaking, Equipment that could drop from the bodies of deceased Adventurers would be taken by passing Monsters. Perhaps this Item was too small and was overlooked by them.
I bent down and picked up this shiny thing. It was a blue Ring with an oval Ruby inlaid in a socket.
Artisan's Ring
+1 Maximum Damage
Although the Stats aren't great, as long as it's a Ring, no matter how much Junk it is, someone will always want it. I carefully put away this Ring. Speaking of which, although the Monsters on the third level of the tomb are Powerful, the corresponding Drop Rate has also increased. The gains of the past few days are even more than the past month combined. Not to mention the large quantity of Gems and Potions, there is a blue Chest Armor worth selling.
Crimson Chest Armor
Defense: 66
Durability: 50-50
Required Strength: 30
Required Level: 19
+21% Fire Resistance
Equipment like Chest Armor is a highly sought-after good item for early-stage Sorceresses and Assassins because the Strength Requirement needed is a full 14 points less than Scale Mail, but the Defense is even higher by about 10. The Stats of this Chest Armor are exactly what I needed. After putting it on, my Fire Resistance instantly increased to nearly 60. Now, even facing more than The Banished simultaneously, I have enough Confidence to block all of their Fire Balls.
In addition to this, an Elite The Banished also gave me a golden Skull Cap. Unfortunately, the Stats are a bit weak.
Wild Rose Forehead Skull Cap
Defense: 24
Durability: 24-24
Required Strength: 15
Required Level: 12
+30% Enhanced Defense
Cold Resistance +10%
Lightning Resistance +15%
+5 Mana
+5 Life
Replenish Durability 1 point per day
Although this Skull Cap is already considered the best Hat I currently have, compared to other Golden Equipment, its Stats are really much worse. Considering The Banished's clustered Fire Ball attacks, it's safer for me to continue wearing the Skull Cap with +25% Fire Resistance.
On the twelfth day of burying my head and counting the days while cautiously exploring the third level of the tomb, my Level also reached 22 and more. God seemed to finally cast a flirtatious glance at me, this Directionally Challenged person. Unconsciously, the surrounding Magic Light suddenly brightened. I was overjoyed. Based on the Experience from the previous two levels, this must be a sign of approaching the Entrance.