Chapter 33: Into the Canyon

Chapter 33: Into the Canyon

Soul Stone: Luna

Quality: Gold

Activation Count: 5

Benefits Gained: Heart of the Swarm (Permanent), Psionic Control (Permanent)

Upon inspecting this soul stone, Alex was surprised to find that, unlike Arthur, the Soul Stone of the Progenitor of the Swarm was actually more practical in use.

The reason for this conclusion lies in the nature of their soul stones. For Alex, Arthur's soul stone, embedded in the Map of Myriad Worlds, only provided a buff effective against undead creatures called "Undying King" unless he actively activated it.

To harness the true power of Arthur, the soul stone must be fully activated.

However, the Progenitor of the Swarm's soul stone was different. In fact, although it also had five activations like Arthur's, Alex discovered after probing it that the Progenitor of the Swarm's real power was the opposite of Arthur's.

While Arthur's power required consuming the soul stone's activations to be fully realized, the Progenitor of the Swarm's soul stone exhibited its greatest strength when not activated.

The reason for this lay in the "Heart of the Swarm (Permanent)" buff.

The description of this buff was simple: "Heart of the Swarm (Permanent): Allows creation and control of a swarm army."

With just this one line, Alex immediately understood its meaning.

Simply put, with the Progenitor of the Swarm's soul stone equipped, he could directly start a swarm base and play real-time strategy.

After all, the swarm's greatest strength was their endless numbers; their true power lay in their overwhelming masses.

In contrast, Luna's personal combat ability was quite limited. In other words, if it were Arthur, even after the Scourge was wiped out, he could still rely on his own power to turn the tide.

But for Luna, once the swarm army was defeated, she would have no choice but to flee.

Therefore, for Alex, this soul stone was more suitable for regular use. However... Luna, why did it have to be Luna?

Arthur was already unlikable, and the swarm were even worse. Alex was certain that if this thing appeared on the surface, it would be seen as a vanguard of a demon invasion... Couldn't the system give him Jeremy Raynor or even Artemis instead? Why did it have to be Luna?

Alex felt a deep sense of malicious intent from the system.

After all, he was its creator. If this game were a child, he would be the father. Do children really cause this much trouble for their parents?

Apparently, troublesome children do cause a lot of trouble for their parents.

Despite his reluctance, Alex had no choice but to put away the soul stone. It was certainly unusable in the main world, but it might be useful in a sub-world.

Who knows what world he would be sent to next when the mission portal opened again.

With this in mind, Alex glanced once more at the Map of Myriad Worlds in front of him. The cooldown was already counting down.

In 13 hours, the portal would open again.

Night passed.

At dawn the next day, everyone set out again. Unlike the previous day, they did not encounter a single undead creature along the way.

This made Malt and the others extremely uneasy. After all, they were not fleeing Shadow Canyon but retracing their steps.

According to logic, the closer they got to the central area, the more enemies they should encounter.

Previously, Alex and Knight Conan had encountered several waves of undead soldiers on their way to the Blood Beach.

It made no sense that now, as they walked into the trap, the enemies were ignoring them.

There could only be one reason: something more important had caught the lich's attention.

That more important matter was the dark ritual Malt had mentioned.

"It looks like the situation is dire."

Standing on a cliff and looking down, Malt's face was as grim as ice. Below the cliff was what appeared to be an abandoned quarry.

It seemed ancient, its origins unknown. However, Malt was clearly not here for archaeology.

"That quarry is the lich's lair. We were ambushed here before, but now there's not a single undead creature in sight... Could the ritual have already started?"

Upon hearing Malt's mutterings, Alex raised an eyebrow. Due to the special effect of Arthur's Soul Stone, his sensitivity to undead creatures was quite strong.

Just as Malt said, he could not sense any undead presence around the quarry, but that did not mean they were nonexistent.

In fact, deep underground, Alex sensed some clues. A large number of undead were gathering beneath the quarry, and it was clear they weren't there for a party.

"What should we do next?"

Alex did not tell Malt what he had sensed. He wasn't keen on risking his life for some obscure dark ritual, which might just be an attempt to bring back a loved one from the underworld.

Honestly, after spending time with these paladins, Alex found that they lived up to the title: fair, kind, willing to sacrifice themselves for justice, and generally very amiable.

Alex respected them, but he had no intention of following their path. It was like watching a Hollywood blockbuster: seeing soldiers sacrifice themselves to stop monsters was moving, but doing it himself was another matter. Why should he sacrifice his life for others?

Moreover, Alex had only been in this world for less than a month and felt no attachment to it. Strictly speaking, he only knew Stone and Miss M.

It was impossible for him to risk his life for this world. Therefore, Alex decided to follow Malt's lead and focus on playing a supporting role, ready to retreat if things went south.

After all, his portal cooldown was almost over. If things got too dangerous, he could use a Hearthstone to escape; it wouldn't be too difficult.

"Let's go down and check it out."

Finally, Malt made a decision.

"Something must be wrong here. I don't believe they would be so careless. Even if they are performing a ritual, there should be scouts outside."

Since Malt had given the order, Alex didn't plan to oppose it. He carefully descended the cliff with the others, keeping an eye on their surroundings as they approached the quarry.

The huge quarry was empty, with only the whistling wind passing through the cracks. Alex gripped his sword tightly, cautiously scanning the surroundings.

The Lich King's sense only worked on the undead; it had no effect on living creatures. Just because there were no undead here didn't mean he could charge in recklessly.

"Hmm?"

Soon, Alex noticed something odd. Among the ruins near the quarry, he found scattered white bone fragments, which appeared to be the remnants of destroyed undead.

Initially, Alex thought these were traces of Malt and his group's previous battle. But then he noticed a set of footprints nearby.

The prints were fresh, not from a long time ago, but seemingly recent... and made just before they arrived.

"..."

Alex frowned, gripping his sword as he slowly followed the footprints toward the ruins. The ruins appeared to be the remains of a supervisor's house, now mostly collapsed with only a few walls standing. Alex stared at the walls, thought for a moment, then raised his sword.

"Swish!"

Unexpectedly, before Alex could swing his sword, a shadow leaped over the wall and lunged at him.

Startled, Alex quickly swung his sword, colliding with the shadow. With a loud "thud," the shadow flipped backward and landed steadily on the ground. Only then did Alex see the shadow's true form.

"What is this?"

Alex was stunned. The shadow wasn't an undead creature as he had imagined. Instead, it was a jet-black panther.

Unlike ordinary panthers, its body had a deep blue hue, resembling the cosmos, and appeared semi-transparent.

Additionally, silver-white lines connected its limbs and head, making it look more like a constellation in the night sky when it stood still.

What on earth is this?

As Alex wondered and prepared to call for Malt and the others, an excited voice rang out beside him.

"Mr. Alex! I'm so glad you're okay!"

Hearing the voice, Alex froze for a moment. Then, he saw a cloaked girl running out of the ruins behind the panther, waving happily at him.

Although Alex wasn't very familiar with her, he did recognize her.

"...Miss M?"

🌟 Unlock the World of Stories with Early Access on Patreon! 🌟

Hello, beloved readers and supporters!

I am thrilled to offer you an exclusive opportunity to dive deeper into our captivating stories before anyone else. By joining the Patreon community, you'll unlock a treasure trove of benefits, including:

📚 Early Access to 20 Chapters: Be the first to explore new chapters, experiencing the twists and turns of our tales well ahead of regular readers. Your journey through our stories doesn't have to wait!

💬 Connect with the Community: Join a vibrant, like-minded group of readers who share your passion. Engage in exciting discussions, share theories, and make new friends who love the stories as much as you do.

👏 Support the Creator: Your patronage directly contributes to the ongoing creation and improvement of the content you love. Be a vital part of the creative journey!

Patreon.com/anish_44