HBWnovel Chapter 140: Chapter140-Trapped
Chapter 140: Chapter140-Trapped
The Mine Labyrinth dungeon, rather than being a maze, is more like an underground mine network, a vast web of interconnected mining tunnels.
The mining marks near the entrance of the labyrinth were quite obvious.
It seemed that many players and NPCs had mined ores here before.
However, the deeper they went, the fewer these mining traces became, until rare ores were visible everywhere, which brightened old Mac's eyes and lifted his spirits.
Even so, John felt something was strange.
They had delved quite deep, passing through three tunnels without encountering a single monster. The eerie silence was unnerving.
John wanted to voice his concern, but that would go against his initial intent. Luckily, Helena keenly noticed this.
"Something's wrong. It's too quiet here..."
Helena raised her hand to stop everyone and asked in confusion, "On the way here, did any of you see monsters? I didn't see any. This is a level 42 dungeon. How could the monsters be so scarce?"
"Could it be that the high temperature drove the monsters away?" Exiled Immortal wiped his sweat, saying helplessly, "We're practically roasting here; the monsters probably can't handle it either, right?"
"No! Monsters can withstand elemental magic users' fire spells.
This temperature might be uncomfortable for them, but it wouldn't be enough to drive them away. Something must have caused the monsters to disappear."
Helena shook her head, dismissing Exiled Immortal's guess, and furrowed her brows in deep thought.
Everyone instinctively looked at John, only to see him lost in thought, seemingly uninterested in the discussion, so they had to give up.
"We don't know the reason yet, but no matter what, stay alert. If we encounter danger, look out for each other.
Qing, please use your talent skill and summon the Shadow of War to lead the way."
"No problem."
Qing nodded in a muffled voice, the hot weather making him silent, as if speaking too much would waste a lot of stamina.
After casting his talent skill and summoning the Shadow of War, under Qing's control, the Shadow of War plunged into the darkness, maintaining a certain distance from John and the others.
It was neither too far to lose control nor too close to be affected by sudden dangers.
However, the labyrinth was winding and complex, and the internal paths were intricate. Unfortunately, the Shadow of War lacked the ability to think. After several rounds of circling, they found themselves back at the starting point.
Seeing the symbols Old Mac had left on the wall, everyone exchanged glances.
"We're back here again..."
"This is the third time. We've been going in circles for a long time."
"There's nothing we can do about it. The Shadow of War can't recognize the marks, so it's bound to take the wrong paths."
"Could it be the heartbeat of some monster?" Exiled Immortal wondered aloud.
"Doesn't seem like it. It sounds more like a hammer striking an iron ingot," Old Mac replied, shaking his head.
Hearing the sound gave him a sense of familiarity. Although he couldn't be certain, Old Mac stuck to his opinion.
"Uncle Mac, are you saying that someone is forging deep within this maze? That... that's impossible, right?"
"But there's no mistaking that sound. It's definitely the sound of forging. Could it be our imagination?"
Hearing this, Helena shook her head and said firmly, "It's impossible for everyone to have the same hallucination. If Uncle Mac believes it's the sound of forging, then it likely is."
At this point, John, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke again, "The God of Fire and Forge, Hephaestus. Perhaps His emissary is hiding in these mines, which would explain the rising temperature and the faint sound of forging."
"You mean the [Divine Emissary]?"
John nodded slightly, "It's not impossible."
"So, what should we do? Should we keep going?"
"I... I don't know."
John lowered his head, unwilling to say more. Seeing this, Helena could only sigh.
"Uh... did I scare you?"
At that moment, a voice suddenly came from behind John, causing everyone to gasp and draw their weapons.
But John remained unusually calm and simply signaled everyone to stay calm.
John knew this voice all too well. Who else could it be but [Deception]?
But...
"[Deception], what are you doing here?"
Seeing that John seemed to know the person, Helena signaled everyone not to act rashly but did not completely lower her guard, remaining cautious.
"I came for an old friend, but our conversation didn't go well. I happened to run into you, so I came to check. Hello, everyone. I am John's friend, [Deception Apostle]."
Deception made a gentlemanly bow, but it did little to ease the group's concerns.
"Hey, relax. I mean no harm. On the contrary, I'm here to provide you with information. John is right; the person inside is indeed the emissary of Hephaestus, the God of Fire.
But it's a bit different from what you think.
He is currently deep in self-doubt, unwilling to rashly attack you, yet unable to defy the will of the God of Fire and his instincts as an emissary.
So, I ask you all to help me free my old friend from his predicament and not let him remain trapped any longer."