boyutpedia Page 452
Page 452
"Claiming credit is the most shameful thing. You mortals not only harass my battlefield but also pretend to help me. The great Zot has seen through your hypocritical masks! Get out of my way, you vermin!"
It muttered a few curses in its underground dialect, then kicked aside the spider monster in front of it and continued walking forward, saying:
"Don't let me find you following me again! You wicked humans, if you ever enter my battlefield again, I'll draw my sword! Don't blame me for not being more assertive; under my killing intent, you'll be scared out of your wits in less than a second!"
"...Holy crap."
Latis clenched his fist as he listened to the rapid-fire words. Since arriving in this world, he had never lost a verbal battle, truly embodying the spirit of his predecessor, adding a touch of brilliance to this other world. Yet today, he had been looked down upon by this tiny insect. This was intolerable!
"Brothers, execute plan B!" He glanced at his teammates and they nodded to each other. Sure enough, the plan to team up with Zote had already failed before it even started, and they had to choose another plan in the end.
"Wait!"
After making his decision, Latis immediately stepped forward, called out to Zote, and chuckled strangely twice, saying:
"Since that's the case, then I won't pretend anymore..."
"What did you say?"
Zot turned around, looked at the expression on Latis's face, and suddenly sensed something was wrong. It hesitated for a moment, but its pride instantly took over. It reached out and pressed down on the wooden splinter, shouting:
"Human, stop playing tricks! The code of chivalry will not frighten Zote!"
"Oh ho ho, really? Then take a look behind you."
Latis slowly raised his hand under Zote's bewildered gaze, covered his face with a strange laugh, and suddenly shouted:
"Amatras!"
Zuo Te shuddered, a bad feeling welling up inside him. He quickly turned around to look behind him, and his eyes widened instantly.
Suddenly, the spider monster, which had been dead for a long time, stood up unsteadily, stretched out its spider legs to support its drooping head, and then grinned at Zote and hissed.
"What! What is this thing?! A corpse...is it talking?"
Zuo Te was horrified, staring at this incomprehensible scene. He instinctively pulled out the splinter, but only dared to stand trembling in place, shouting loudly:
"Wei, the great Zote is not afraid of... afraid of you! What are you, playing tricks! If you come any closer, I, I, I, I will attack!"
"Oh? Instead of running away, you're walking forward?"
A deep voice came from almost right behind his back. Cold sweat poured down Zuo Te's forehead. In a moment of impulsiveness, he turned around and swung wildly, howling and screaming. Only then did he open his eyes and slowly look up at the burly man wrapped in a blood-red cloak. He was surprised to find that his wooden splinter was easily caught between the man's fingers, and he was unable to move for a moment!
"You...who are you!"
Zote finally revealed a serious expression. Although the man in front of it was still not considered powerful in its eyes, he had shown abilities that it could not understand. It began to recall the strong people it had encountered before, but none of them could be connected with the man in front of it.
With all his experience traveling around the country, Zuo Te couldn't guess where this man came from!
"There's no need to panic."
Latis chuckled in a deep voice. He snapped his fingers, dispelling the necromantic magic on the spider monster's corpse. With a tremor, the spider monster collapsed to the ground again.
Then, he secretly used a "wind-generating spell," blowing the red cloak he had temporarily borrowed from Holnet around his neck until it resembled a giant bat. Under this terrifying image that dominated Zot's entire field of vision, he flicked away the wooden splinter between his fingers and deliberately spoke in a hoarse voice:
"I heard you're also going to the arena, so I'm just testing you temporarily. Hehe, it seems you barely qualify as a toy, so I'll let you off the hook for now."
"What nonsense are you spouting?!"
Zot gripped the wooden spike in its hand. Even though Latis seemed incredibly mysterious, it still firmly believed that it wasn't without a fighting chance. However, something Latis mentioned caught its attention. It snorted coldly and pointed the wooden spike at Latis, saying:
"Could it be that an evil fellow like you dares to covet the sacred arena? Let me tell you, the arena is the fairest and most just place. If I become the champion, then I will be the most... no, the arena needs Zote's existence to prove the champion's worth! The great Zote is the strongest knight in the world!"
Latis kept a tight-lipped expression, suppressing his urge to retort. He crossed his arms, shook his head with a sly smile, and said:
"Is that so? I hope you can carry this belief all the way to the arena, where I will arrange for you to face the most powerful enemy you have ever seen in your life."
Although it was just bragging, Latis wasn't worried. After all, based on the strength of Zot that he had seen, almost any normal monster would be stronger than it, so there was no need to worry about his boast being exposed.
"Huh?? Could it be that you are..."
Zote looked at Latis with some skepticism, pondered for a moment, and then said:
"I don't believe your nonsense. I will arrive at the arena in unparalleled glory. Just you wait and see!"
He tucked the wooden spike back into his waistband, glanced at Latis again, and turned to walk towards the next room.
Although he didn't believe Latis, Zote subconsciously perked up. If Latis really had connections with the arena's higher-ups, they would definitely have deliberately suppressed him along the way. In order to prevent the invincible Zote from reaching the arena smoothly and taking away their predetermined championship, these people would definitely stop at nothing!
Upon realizing this, Zote snorted coldly and immediately blamed all the obstacles he would encounter on Latis.
Even if it's manipulated by capital, it will still descend upon the arena with the aura of an emperor!
It walked into a passage with a cold smile, and before it could even take in what was inside, a sledgehammer came crashing down from the sky and smashed it into the ground.
Bang bang, bang bang!
The vibrations of the mechanism traveled through the rough ground to Zot's ears. Confused, it shook its head, propped itself up, muttered a curse at Latis for "setting it up," and took a step forward with its chest puffed out.
boom!
A new sledgehammer fell from the sky and smashed Zote into the ground again.
"...Damn it!"
With a roar, Zote slowly lifted the sledgehammer, feeling the boundless power generated by his anger within him, and confidently walked forward again.
boom!
A large sledgehammer flew up from below and rammed it into the ceiling.
……
"I hope everyone is okay."
Latis listened intently to the sounds of machinery coming from not far away and couldn't help but mutter something to himself.
At least some blessing magic was secretly applied to Zote, so it shouldn't have died halfway there.
Although my acting was a bit over-the-top, it was enough for the subterranean monster. I hope it can establish an enemy image in Zote's dream, so that I can get closer to its true form next time I enter its dream.
He took off his cloak and returned it to Holnet, watching as the helpless Holnet put the cloak back on. He coughed lightly, chuckled, and asked:
"How about it? I look pretty good in this cloak, don't I?"
"Captain, are you still a child?" Holnet couldn't help but facepalm and complain, "I wear a cape to cover up the movements of using different weapons. If the wind blows it up like that, all the weapons will be exposed."
"Oh……"
Latis scratched his head, glanced at Jennifer and the others who were trying not to laugh, scoffed, walked to the edge of the room, and looked up at the top of the ceiling.
He had noticed a vertical shortcut earlier. Although Zote couldn't fly, he could take his teammates up the shortcut. According to the directions in his mind, going up from here should lead them to the path where the stag beetle was blocked by the boulder.
As for the mechanisms and traps along the way...
Unfortunately, as a mage, I'm best at detecting these things. You know, that's how the thief profession in the Kingdom of Norard gradually disappeared...
Latis scooped up the girls' petite bodies, listened to the ongoing sounds of machinery and Zote's angry curses not far away, laughed, activated the "Flight" spell, and took off from the spot, leaving only the words "Gana".
……
……
"Hmm."
The stag beetle yawned, looked at the boulder blocking the road opposite, shook its head hopelessly, continued chewing the regurgitated grass in its mouth, and lowered its head.
The last time I came to the Lost Path was many years ago. The passenger at that time was a strong moth who carried a straight sword and was said to be one of the strongest in the shallow underground.
Although as a flying monster, it was able to navigate the various traps of the Lost Path, which resembled an underground palace, with ease, the moth ultimately failed to push aside the boulder blocking its path.
Over the years, the shallow and deep underground are no longer easily accessible, and communication between groups has decreased significantly due to environmental changes. Although the stag beetle doesn't know what happened, it often worries about it.
What will their underground world become...?
Those tribes that were once positive and striving under the guidance of the gods, who had vowed to move towards the future and light for their entire lives under the watchful eye of the stag beetle, have unknowingly returned to their original state of isolation.
These monsters really only think of themselves...
Although the human team said they would solve the problem of the boulder, the stag beetle was still not very convinced. After all, the human body is inherently very weak and does not have the convincingly solid appearance of a monster.
If only a new god could emerge from the void, everything would be alright...
As the stag beetle was thinking about this, it suddenly heard a series of cracking sounds. It shook its ears, thinking it had misheard. Just as it was about to stand up and take a look, a rumbling sound suddenly shook the surroundings. It lost its balance and fell back to the ground.
what's the situation……
The stag beetle lay tightly on the ground, subconsciously raising its head to look up. Instantly, its eyes widened, and its mouth gaped open in astonishment. It didn't even notice the half-chewed grass in its mouth fall to the ground with a thud.
The boulder, several times larger than the entire stag beetle, began to move outward under some kind of brute force. After several ear-piercing frictions with the rock wall that was blocking the boulder, the person behind the boulder seemed very annoyed and suddenly roared.
Amidst a deafening roar that echoed throughout the entire passage, the boulder, as light as a piece of paper, suddenly shifted several meters outwards and then fell into the cave without any apparent incident.
The stag beetle froze on the spot. Behind the falling boulder, Latis's grinning face actually appeared. His body was still in the form of a giant, two or three meters tall, under the effect of the "Gigantification" spell. His muscles bulged like a steel exoskeleton, and his biceps looked like they could fit all his team members sitting on them!
There are actually such beings among humans?
The stag beetle instinctively began chewing the grass in its mouth, only to find nothing. It looked down at the clump of grass that had fallen to the ground sometime earlier, and suddenly realized what it had just witnessed.
Perhaps... even without a new god, the underground world can usher in a brand new beginning?
It picked up a clump of grass from the ground and slowly walked toward Latis, who was waving at it, a surge of excitement welling up inside it.
……
"Sure enough, the arena was built above the Lost Path, and the Antler Worm Station was right at the entrance."
Under the stag beetle's gaze, Latis cleaned the rusty bells on the platform, then stroked his chin, looked at the arena with its doors tightly shut, and fell into deep thought.
He had to admit that he was a little unaccustomed to suddenly seeing such a spacious place deep underground. The arena gate looked to be about five or six meters high, and he wondered how big it must be inside.
"Zote should still be on his way, walking slowly. Let's go in and take a look, and see what the connection is between this arena and the Radiance and the Moth Warriors."
Latis nodded to his teammates, walked to the arena gate, glanced at the small round hole above the gate, paused for a moment, and then suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He took out the coin he had seen earlier from his pocket.
He tossed the lucky coin into the hole, and sure enough, after a tremor, the arena gates slowly opened.
A sliver of golden light shone from the distant passage. Latis frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then took the first step.
Chapter 439 The Light That Was Exploited
Different colored monochromatic lights surrounded the arena gates. After passing through several open gates, Latis and the others finally reached the end of the magnificent golden corridor.
After passing through the last gate, a wave of heat immediately hit them, and a huge, golden venue appeared before them, almost blinding them. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that the venue was piled with shiny lucky coins.
"Roar!"