novelraw Chapter 190-2: Entering the Hidden Canyon, the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon (2)
Chapter 190-2: Entering the Hidden Canyon, the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon (2)
[As the fog dissipates, you can just barely make out your surroundings.]
[The cracked, dry yellow soil under your feet gradually transforms into hard, pitch-black rock.]
[You are standing within a massive canyon. The sheer cliffs on both sides are composed of the same black rock. At a glance, it feels like stepping into an abyss.]
[Strangely, the endless mist seems to be blocked by some invisible force, unable to spill into the canyon. Only because of this are you able to see most of the canyon’s terrain.]
[You raise your hand to look further ahead. On both canyon walls deeper inside, there are many small caves. You think you can see figures moving at the cave mouths.]
[Do you want to approach and investigate?]
Lin Xun didn’t rashly press the option.
Hidden Canyon was a full day and night’s journey from his respawn point. Dying here even once meant instantly triggering the 24-hour anti-addiction cooldown.
It was worth noting that his soul strength was now 2/3, and he had already reshaped the Valkyrie.
[You possess the Shell of the Corrupted Theater Dancer!][You open a dim eye and step forward in fluid dance steps…]
[Your Shell skill Bloodshadow Step is empowered by Dim Shadow, greatly enhancing your stealth effect.]
After removing the eyeball defect, the Dancer had earned a chance at re-employment.
Lin Xun returned to his old profession: stealth exploration.
[You maintain your invisibility, moving silently step by step…]
[You arrive at the nearest cave entrance and see clearly the ‘figure’ lingering there.]
[It turns out to be a monster with the head of a dragon and the body of a human, its entire form bare. Its fierce head juts forward with sharp fangs, and curved horns rise from its crown.]
[You have discovered Descendant of the Hermit – Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward!]
[Do you want to seize the chance to ambush it while no one else is around?]
Who Gazes Upward?
Lin Xun frowned.
He had seen the “Who Gazes Upward” prefix several times before, once on the Stargazer Who Gazes Upward, and once on the President of the Multivision Association Who Gazes Upward who defected to the stars.
Having the Who Gazes Upward prefix meant this monster belonged to the radiant stars faction.
“Something doesn’t add up.”
Lin Xun clearly remembered that the Dark Dragon Knight, under the guidance of the Servant of Knowledge, had arrived in Hidden Canyon and tamed the Ancient Hermit Dark Dragon to become a Dragon Knight.
The Ancient Black Dragon race should belong to the Omniscient True Knowledge faction, so why had they become part of the radiant stars?
He wanted to ambush it, but worried the Dancer was too feeble and might fail, ending up dead instead.
According to earlier descriptions, there were many small caves in the canyon, very likely more monsters. If he alerted the others, he’d be finished.
“If only I had some scouting skill…”
[The Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward paces around the cave entrance for a while, then steps into the darkness within. Do you wish to stealthily follow it?]
Lin Xun’s eyes lit up, and he quickly pressed ‘Yes.’
[You remain hidden, tiptoeing after it…]
[You trail the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward only a short way before reaching the end of the cave.]
[Deep within the cave, a roughly hewn chamber had been carved out. Inside stood a stone bed, a stone table, and other primitive furnishings, all made of the same pitch-black rock as the cave walls.]
[You notice old copper pickaxes scattered in a corner along with some large burlap sacks filled with black ore.]
[The Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward walks to the stone table, picks up an object, presses it to its forehead, then kneels with eyes closed, chanting under its breath…]
[You quietly shift your angle and finally see what it holds.]
[It is a palm-sized statuette of a rotating elliptical galaxy, studded with countless tiny stars.]
[Looking at the familiar statue, you recall what you saw in the Star-Chasing Corridor and instantly realize the monster is holding a statuette of the radiant stars!]
[Do you want to ambush the monster while it is completely defenseless?]
This creature clearly wasn’t a mindless beast but an intelligent, tribal being.
Infiltrating the enemy from within was the optimal way to clear the map.
Lin Xun narrowed his eyes and finally launched the attack.
He was already prepared to switch to the Earth Giant if the first strike failed.
[You silently step up behind your enemy, and a sharp blade extends noiselessly from your gauntlet.]
[You suddenly plunge the blade into the monster’s back.]
[Blood sprays as its body convulses twice before going limp and collapsing to the ground.]
[You have defeated the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward. Your experience increases slightly.]
[You have obtained Small Divine Statuette of the Radiant Stars (Junk).]
“So weak?”
Lin Xun hadn’t expected the Dancer to instantly kill the monster with a single strike.
By his estimation, Hidden Canyon was clearly meant to be a high-difficulty map, so how could the monsters here be so weak?
[You look at the corpse of the half-dragon before you…]
[Shell of the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward: A deformed creature with a dragon’s head and a human body, bearing the faintest trace of the great Hermit’s bloodline. This bloodline, diluted through countless generations, no longer retains the mighty power of its ancestors. It died from a lethal strike piercing its heart. Compatibility: 88% (+45%)]
[Do you want to possess this Shell?]
Without hesitation, Lin Xun discarded one of his Student Shells and pressed ‘Yes.’
[You have possessed the Shell of the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward!]
He waited a while, and when no text appeared indicating he had recalled the Shell’s memories, he opened the panel to check.
[Shell – Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward]
[True Name: Unknown]
[Compatibility: 88% (+45%)]
[Shell Quality: Fine]
[Shell Level: 55 (+15)]
[Shell Equipment: None]
[Shell Skill: Venomous Bite (Fine+ Grade): The power inherited from its bloodline grants the mixed-blood half-dragon venomous saliva. So long as its fangs pierce the enemy’s flesh, the target will be afflicted with a deadly toxin. When using this skill, you will unleash an extremely close-range bite attack imbued with poison.]
[Exclusive item Omniscient Visage activated!]
[You have learned the True Name of the Mixed-Blood Half-Dragon Who Gazes Upward Shell, Bashakmu!]
[You can manifest this Shell in reality!]
Lin Xun’s mouth twitched.
The whole situation felt like throwing a heavy punch into a pillow, or winking flirtatiously at a blind man.
If he’d known this little half-dragon was so pathetic, he wouldn’t have bothered sneaking around with the Dancer at all, he could have just possessed the Earth Giant and gone on a massacre.
“Where’s the promised high-difficulty map? This is it?”
[You attempt to search the cave for usable items.]
[Searching…]
[You have obtained Worn Cross Copper Pickaxe (Item).]
[Searching…]
[You have obtained Empty Linen Sack (Junk).]
[Searching…]
[You have obtained Inferior Obsidian Venom Ore (Junk).]
Lin Xun quickly opened his inventory to check.
The Cross Copper Pickaxe was labeled as mining equipment with no special properties, but the two junk items contained some key information.
[Empty Linen Sack (Junk): A linen sack stained with black marks, still holding traces of black gravel and powder.]
[Inferior Obsidian Venom Ore (Junk): A piece of pitch-black ore commonly found throughout Hidden Canyon, containing a slight toxicity.]
Lin Xun was still pondering the implications of these descriptions when the game text suddenly updated.
[A muffled tolling of a bell echoed from outside the cave. You perk up your ears, listening as the bell sounds three times.]
[Hearing the familiar bell, fragments of memory stir within your Shell…]
[As the lowest caste of mixed-blood half-dragons, and among them, a mere mining slave, the meaning of the triple bell toll has been etched into your very bones.]
[It is time to assemble for mining!]