Chapter 170 of 217

Vol 23 Chapter 3

9 min read2,287 words

ACT 3 Flood, Hell River (II)

Kwa kwa kwa kwa, kwa kwa kwa kwa!

The rocks surrounding the Hell Door fell down into the Hell River. A huge spray of water rose and poured over the temple.

The water from the Hell River was filled with the forms of the cursed evil spirit. Every time a drop filled with evil spirit fell on the soldiers, it caused an electric shock.

-You have touched the Hell River.

If you touch it then you will lose 100 health per second>

A red warning message floated in front of Ark’s dumbfounded face. Ark realized that he had forgotten something important.

‘The coalition members!’

That’s right. The coalition members were fighting against the demons on the 60th floor. The Hell River contained deadly poison that was like hydrochloric acid. If the Hell River poured from the Hell Door to the 60th floor then all the coalition members would be dissolved in moments. Furthermore, he had only brought users along with him to fight Alan. In other words, the 1,500 Meow, Wolrang, raccoons and Eastern Nation were still protecting the fort….. They were the NPC members of Dark Eden. And the NPC members were the main axis of Dark Eden!

‘But it’ll be too late even if I give the order to escape now……’

It was only a matter of time until the Hell Door collapsed. Once it did, the Hell River would flow out to the 60th flow. No matter how quick the coalition members were, there was no way they could escape from the 60th floor in time. With how quickly the Hell River would rise after entering the 60th floor, they wouldn’t be able to escape the secret dungeon at all. Weren’t there also thousands of demons blocking the front of the fortress? Then Ark thought of a brilliant idea.

‘I don’t know if it’s possible but it is the only way!’

Ark instantly sent a whisper to Boramae who was the commander of the fort.

-Boramae, it is an emergency!

-Ark-nim, what was that shock just now?

-There’s no time to explain. Give up the fortress and retreat immediately!

-Retreat? We’re retreating? Retreat to where?

Boramae asked in an amazed voice after hearing Ark’s order.

-In the underground closed room.

-The closed room? The place we made when we were hiding?

-Yes, retreat to that room right away with the troops. Make them blow up the entrance to completely seal it off. Don’t let even a single drop of water enter. Do you understand?

This was the best course of action that Ark could come up with. Ark had previously commanded them to make a closed room on the 60th floor. It had a narrow passage in a rock wall which led to a wide stone room. The length of the passage was approximately 20 metres. In other words, the room was surrounded by 20 metres of rock walls. It was possible to avoid the Hell River in there. Of course, this was just a temporary solution. If the 60th floor was flooded then the closed room would eventually be as well. No, if the entrance was blocked because of that then they would suffocate from a lack of oxygen first. Anyway, if the Hell River wasn’t sealed then all of Nagaran would disappear. Then he wouldn’t have to worry about the alliance members anymore.

-Blowing up the entrance……

-There’s no time to explain!

-…..I understand.

Boramae answered after hearing Ark’s desperate tone and cut off communications. Now the life of his alliance members depended on how fast Boramae ran.

‘I have to regain the Hell Stone and reseal the Hell River!’

But finding the Hell Stone was an even more confusion situation. Due to the shaking of the crystal temple, everybody was jumbled up like a cocktail had been shaken. Not only did the 900 soldiers fly away in every direction, there was no way to even tell where the Hell Stone was. Pieces of the crystal temple had broken and small crystal pieces were scattered all over the place. The temple was made of black crystal while the Hell Stone was also black. Looking for the Hell Stone in a pile of crystals was like finding a needle in a desert. However, this wasn’t bad for Ark.

“Radun, find the Hell Stone!”

Ssak ssak ssak, ssak ssak ssak ssak!

Radun dropped down from his waist and looked around with glittering eyes. He flicked his tongue from side to side before pointing towards one side.

-Radun’s search target: Hell Stone search mode.

<radun>Ark instantly ran to a pile of crystal that Radun indicated.</radun>

<radun>Kwa kwa kwa kwang, kwa kwa kwa kwang!</radun>

<radun>However, he had only taken a few steps before the temple started shaking uncontrollably. Then the floor suddenly inclined at a sharp angle.</radun>

<radun>‘The Hell Door has broken!’</radun>

<radun>That’s right. In the end, the Hell Door wasn’t able to withstand the pressure any longer and broke. The Hell River quickly rushed out after the Hell Door broke. The Hell River pushed out like a swirling storm into the secret dungeon! The crystal temple was located in the centre of the swirl, just like the eye of a cyclone and it was embroiled in the torrent that rushed out the Hell Door. Therefore the crystal pieces and soldiers all fell to one side. Most of them grabbed onto the cracked ground or pillar but some unfortunately soldiers were thrown out the crystal shrine into the Hell River.</radun>

<radun>“Waaaaah!”</radun>

<radun>The evil spirits flocked around the soldiers that had fallen into the river. After a few seconds, the soldiers became pieces of bones like piranhas had attacked them. The fearful scene showed how toxic the Hell River was.</radun>

<radun>Ark looked around as he held onto his sword that he plunged into the ground. The Hell Door was built directly in front of the fortress that contained thousands of demons. After the coalition members hid in the underground like Ark commanded, the demons had immediately entered the fortress. But before they could even enjoy their victory, the Hell River swept over the fortress like a tsunami. The demons fell into a state of panic and shrieked while running away.</radun>

<radun>-Kiri, karam, keurama!</radun>

<radun>-Nohun, bakirama, kurara!</radun>

<radun>However, the demons were like fleas running around the 60th floor.</radun>

<radun>The Hell River enveloped the demons in one huge breath. The fate of the demons caught in the swirl was gruesome. The thick leather that prevented the demons from being pierced with a knife was no use against something like this. The demons caught in the swirl seemed like they were caught in a grinder and shredded into chunks of meat. The Hell River became a deep red colour from the blood of thousands of demons.</radun>

<radun>“There it is! The Hell Stone!”</radun>

<radun>Then he heard someone’s voice near him.</radun>

<radun>Ark who had been looking at the bloody Hell River flinched and turned. A pile of crystals had collapsed from the impact just then and the Hell Stone rolling out caught his eyes. The Hell Stone was also tumbling around everywhere thanks to the shaking of the temple. The soldiers would rush towards it whenever the Hell Stone rolled in their area. But the temple was still at a 30 degree tilt. The temple would shake again every time the river collided with the valley. Thanks to that, the soldiers rushing towards the Hell Stone lost their balance and died. Some of them even pulled the Avenger members with them. And they became minced meat. When the situation was like this, the soldiers and Avengers couldn’t easily move. It was a strange confrontation between two groups over the Hell Stone…….</radun>

<radun>However, those circumstances didn’t last long. The movement of the Hell River suddenly changed. The river had completely submerged the 60th floor and there was a moment of silence. Then a fierce geyser of water shot up near the crystal temple. And it started drilling a hole in the ceiling.</radun>

<radun>There was a violent roar and the ceiling broke. It was like a scene where the demons of hell clawed through the ground with their claws. A groan flowed from Ark’s mouth at the unimaginable situation.</radun>

<radun>Ark had thought the Hell River would flood from the 60th floor to the 59th floor to the 58th…..the secret dungeon would gradually fill up and head towards the outside. Considering the Hell River’s speed, it would take at least a few hours to reach the outside. But if it penetrated through the ceiling then it would take less than an hour.</radun>

<radun>‘There’s no time!’</radun>

<radun>He couldn’t afford to relax now. Since the Hell River had calmed, the tilted temple returned to a flat position. While rocks still fell from the ceiling, it was better than when the temple was 30 degrees tilted.</radun>

<radun>“We can’t blindly chase after it. It will become too messy.”</radun>

<radun>Ark raised his body and shouted.</radun>

<radun>“All warriors rush and seal the movement of the Avengers! Meanwhile the archers and hunters should quickly seize the Hell Stone. The magicians in the rear will attack the Avengers searching for the Hell Stone!”</radun>

<radun>Based on his previous experience, blindly chasing after the Hell Stone wasn’t the right answer. In such confused circumstances, the soldiers would definitely have the disadvantage. The soldiers had 100 less members than the Avengers. Even if the altar was repaired, everything would be finished if they couldn’t get the Hell Stone. There was also no meaning if someone placed the Hell Stone in their bag and died. On the other hand, the Avengers could place the Hell Stone in their bag and win. It really was disadvantageous to the soldiers in every way.</radun>

<radun>‘But Alan and the Avenger members are confused because the quantum transmitter didn’t work properly. This is the only chance to obtain the Hell Stone. The game starts now!’</radun>

<radun>This was the quick conclusion Ark came up with. The soldiers immediately organized themselves according to Ark’s order.</radun>

<radun>When the signal rang out, they simultaneously ran towards to Hell Stone. Meanwhile, the soldiers moved towards the Avengers. “Warriors block them from both sides and secure a path!” The warriors followed Ark’s instructions and stopped the Avengers from mobbing. The sound of hundreds of warriors clashing rang out. While the warriors were stopping each other, the archers and hunters rushed towards the Hell Stone. But this was different from a football game.</radun>

<radun>Dozens of magic blasts flew from the other side. At the same time, a 100 metres area became wrapped in a black aura.</radun>

<radun>-You have entered the influential range of ‘Blackout.’</radun>

<radun>* Due to the magical smoke screen, the vision of all life forms within the 100 metres area will be limited.</radun>

<radun>* There is no way to expand the limited view using magic or skills.</radun>

<radun>* The effect will only be displayed at night or in a dungeon.</radun>

<radun>The message window appeared in front of all the soldiers. The Avengers saw the soldiers’ methodical movements and used Blackout to prevent them from finding the Hell Stone. Thanks to the dense smoke screen it was impossible to distinguish between rocks or the Hell Stone. Contrary to Ark’s intention, once again it became a scene of confusion and disorder.</radun>

<radun>“I got it! The Hell Stone!”</radun>

<radun>“Bah, not a chance. Rush!”</radun>

<radun>“Ugh, this bastard…….ah, my hell stone!”</radun>

<radun>“Kukuku, I caught it!”</radun>

<radun>“Don’t be ridiculous. Heroic Strike!”</radun>

<radun>Shouts poured out from the smoke screen. Dozens of skills flew around in the vicinity of the Hell Stone. Whenever someone grabbed the stone, a skill would be used to stop them. Therefore the Hell Stone switched hands between the soldiers and the Avengers many times.</radun>

<radun>‘…….We’re being pushed!’</radun>

<radun>Ark looking at the situation he could see through the smoke screen with irritation. It was 400 against 500. The numbers were against them but Ark thought they could win if they faced the Avengers. The reason was due to his level. While Ark was distracting Alan on the 59th floor, he had looked at the Avengers using Eyes of the Cat. Their level was between 330~350. On the other hand, the allied forces and Dark Eden had an average level of more than 350. He judged that the level difference would make up for the extra 100 troops. However, the actual results were unexpected. When facing them 1 on 1, the Avengers showed no sign of being pushed.</radun>

<radun>‘There can only be one reason. When I encountered Alan at Pabiun Canyon, I was pushed despite obviously being high levelled than him. Alan and the Avengers must have something to raise their stats!’</radun>

<radun>But now wasn’t the time to ponder the mystery. The problem was that his soldiers were dying.</radun>

<radun>‘If we’re pushed during these circumstances then it is the end!’</radun>

<radun>“Radun, use Stalking and secure the Hell Stone!”</radun>

<radun>Radun shook his tail and went into the smoke. Ark also followed Radun in the scuffle and shouted.</radun>

<radun>“Summon Demon, Purital! Clad Armour!”</radun>

<radun>Clack clack clack, clack clack clack clack!</radun>

<radun>Purital was summoned to the area behind Ark. As soon as Purital appeared, his bones were taken apart and reformed around Ark. The ribs split to cover his upper body while the skull covered his head like a helmet. The leg and arm bones twisted strangely and stuck to Ark’s gloves and shoes.</radun>

<radun>-You have used Clad Armour.</radun>

<radun>* Damage will increase by 17~22.</radun>

<radun>* Defense will increase by 98.</radun>

<radun>* Health will increase by 1,866.</radun>

<radun>