Chapter 7: Beginning Liquid
The second day had flown by, and they had reached the end of the third day.
When Urdur gathered everyone together, the situation had taken an even worse turn.
Of the 26 people who had entered the dungeon, only four remained.
The young man could see that the person who had warned everyone on the first day was still alive.
Experience seemed to have made itself abundantly clear.
"Well done, everyone. You’ve all been excellent workers," Urdur said politely. This was the first time in three days, including today, that he had spoken so politely.
He congratulated everyone one by one, and when it came to Dean, Urdur handed the young man something.
It was a sealed box.
"My lady asked me to give this to you. She said she’d really enjoyed speaking with you. She hopes to see you again in the future and bids you farewell."
As soon as Urdur had spoken these words, Dean sent the box to his inventory without even looking to see what was inside.
After that, he smiled and said, "Thanks for your help."
Urdur smiled and took a few steps back.
At that moment, the message written in blood reappeared:
[The Cosmic Terror, First Beta, First Dungeon ended!
Title of the Dungeon: Outskirt Village
Task: Fulfil the jobs you are assigned to and survive for 3 days.
Players in the Dungeon: 4]
But that wasn’t all:
[Rewards: Beginning Liquid, Basic Aether Ghost and Nether Ghost contracts, 3,000 Nether and Aether Coins.]
Dean had read it all, and as soon as he did, the blood engulfed him and flung him out of the Nether.
The young man found himself back in reality in an instant.
He stood there, taking deep, deep breaths.
The first thing he did was take off the clothes he was wearing and put them in the washing machine, then take a long bath.
He’d gone to great lengths to rid himself of that foul Nether air.
When he emerged from the bath, he sat down at his computer and began his research.
The young man scoured the internet meticulously.
He had visited numerous forums, researching the Nether and the Aether.
After almost an hour of scouring the internet, he had finally managed to find a forum.
It was precisely because he had searched directly for ’Nether’ and ’Aether’ that it had taken him so long to find the forum.
[The Cosmic Terror.]
That was the name of the forum.
A forum sharing the same name as the game.
When the young man entered the website, he discovered he could browse around without having to create an account.
During this time, he’d seen many people trying to sell items, some who’d reached an advanced level in their cultivation, and a few who’d managed to acquire a ghost in Aether.
Dean had stepped into a world he didn’t fully understand. In just half an hour, he had managed to gain access to hundreds of times more information than what that silhouette behind the curtain had told him.
[Hey, I’m a 27-year-old bloke from China. Three weeks ago, I entered the Aether for the first time. It was... amazing. I learnt it was the very outermost region, literally the outer layer of the Aether. My dungeon quest was just clearing out a little palace of Zeus. It was fun. Turns out Angels do NOT kill humans for absolutely no reason, unlike Nether Ghosts and Demons.
I’m excited to go to the Aether once more, but... I need to go to the Nether once more for my next dungeon quest. Wish me luck!]
"Bloody hell... Literally myths and stories," Dean muttered.
He’d read dozens of stories, instructional posts and articles.
Still, what intrigued him most were the Ghost Contracts and this ’Cultivation’ business everyone was talking about.
Apparently, many people were turning to the path of cultivation to grow stronger, but this whole thing... was a bit too crazy.
Yin and Yang, Chakra, Holy Power, Qi, Dao, Magic and more.
By the very nature of things, once people consumed the Beginning Liquid, they would gain power and be able to embark on the path of cultivation.
Depending on what you chose, the ghosts and other races that would accept you would vary.
The young man’s interest had surged to an immense degree.
"Beginning Liquid?" Dean asked.
At that moment, the rewards he’d earned from the dungeon came to mind.
The young man opened his inventory and then looked at the properties of the Beginning Liquid.
[Beginning Liquid
An item that would help mortals embark on any cultivation path.
Condition: Incredibly Good]
The young man smiled.
According to the forum post, he simply had to drink this liquid and wait for fate... for eternity to decide for him.
Dean pulled the cap off the bottle containing the liquid.
As soon as he did so, he drank the liquid straight away and began to wait.
Barely five minutes had passed when Dean’s body began to tremble from head to toe.
Before the young man could even comprehend what was happening, his entire body began to convulse whilst seated in his chair, and within seconds he had fallen to the floor.
Dean’s muscles contracted one by one, his heart rate shot up dramatically, and he began to feel intense pain.
"Arghk!"
The young man let out a muffled cry. It was, of course, difficult for him to understand what was happening.
His body was trembling constantly, and with every passing second, the pain and agony were intensifying.
Before long, his nose began to bleed, followed by blood streaming from his eyes and ears.
Although the young man was unable to comprehend what was happening due to the pain, massive changes were taking place within his body.
Parts of his muscles were tearing away and then regenerating, becoming stronger in the process.
His blood vessels were rupturing, and his blood cells were regenerating to become stronger and have a greater effect on his organs.
In short, his body was regenerating itself, striving to become stronger. It was as if his body itself were preparing to face something.
What that something was would become clear within minutes.
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