444 Cathulhu Epilogue (3) – Evolved Slave Dungeon
Chapter 444 – Cathulhu Epilogue (3) – Evolved Slave Dungeon
= Game World Number Three, Slave Dungeon =
In front of the gnoll cave, Mary stood on a box, holding a loudspeaker. She gazed at the group of 20 players, who carried large backpacks of supplies and camping tents. Next to her, a large signboard “Backrooms Tour” was noticeable from afar.
These players were not here to raid the dungeon. Instead, they were tourists who came here to have fun instead of fighting.
Next to Mary, Joan acted as a bodyguard. Her Valkyrie armor set and a legendary-graded halberd stood out from the crowd of adventurers.
It had been 10 years since the war. Mary was now an immortal, and Joan ascended to the deity realm. The latter sported a pair of grey feather wings after she had received the blessing of Cathulhus.
With the two beautiful NPCs as their guides, the players were relaxed and friendly. They were eager to explore the legendary dungeon, which remained undefeated for a decade.
“Hello, sirs and madams. I’m Mary, the guide of this tour. We will soon enter the Backrooms Level 0. I hope you have prepared enough for the seven-day tour.”
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Seeing how the people were organized, Mary was overjoyed. She believed that this job would be smooth as usual.
“As we informed you yesterday through emails and sms, today, we will explore Level 0 to get you familiarized with the maze and the harsh nature of Backrooms. We will likely encounter some wandering bacteria monsters or stray smiling spiders during our journey, so I hope your gears are ready.”
Mary inspected the players’ levels and strengths. All of them were over level 3,000, which was considered average during the day and age. Only newbies who recently joined the game this year remained under level 1,000.
Things were different from 10 years ago. During Pangu’s reign, every player needed to grind and farm their levels through hard work. But after Uriel took over, the mortal stage breakthroughs were very easy as there were plenty of boosters in the cash shop, such as cultivation manuals, Qi boosting pills, spirit fruits, spirit stones, and essence stones. In short, players could simply pay to get stronger.
The company racked up tons of PACT with this scheme. Rich men and politicians fell for the traps, spending their wealth on the game, pursuing immortality. After the company robbed enough cash from the riches, they always dumped the PACT prices, enticing the poor players and commoners with good upbringings and righteous dispositions. As always, the latecomers with pure hearts surpassed the old cronies while selfish and rich players struggled as they were unable to obtain UR or SR NFT characters.
As for the middle-class and casual players, they didn’t care about politics or NFTs. They enjoyed their little longevity and adventures, treating the game worlds as GAMES.
This group tour aimed to entertain these casual players. It was Song Yang-Cheol and his grandson who came up with this business idea. Mary was hired as a supervisor, and she had been working for the Slave Dungeon and Song Family ever since.
“Alright, let’s go, people. Make sure not to stray from the group since Level 0 is full of glitch walls and trap holes. You don’t want to get lost in the maze.”
Instead of being scared, the players laughed in excitement. Some of them brought out drone phones, which automatically recorded, took photos, or broadcasted live streams for the owner.
As soon as they entered the cave, they found a paved road and reinforced walls. Floating light balls under the ceiling illuminated the path and the interior of the cave.
It no longer looked like a natural cave anymore. Everybody looked around and treated it as another pseudo-cave building that they could find anywhere in the game world.
As the group got deeper, they noticed a series of vendor stalls, selling recall scrolls, almond water, flashlights, and even mineral water.
Despite being prepared, a few tourists visited the stalls and purchased their goodies, using PACTs as currency. No one batted an eye as they spent one PACT for a bottle of mineral water, which could be converted into a lot of money on Earth.
Mary noticed that this group of tourists also fell for the stall traps. She waited for them at the stairs to the Level 0 floor. When the group finished shopping, she resumed guiding the people down the stairs.
Joan quietly followed the group, acting as their rearguard. She looked behind her and found another group of tourists, who stopped at the entrance of the Gnoll Cave.
In front of the cave, another guide showed up. Master Yeet, the guild leader of Slave Dungeon Mob, also worked for Song Family for extra income. The swordswoman stood tall with her bikini armor, showing off her skin and figure.
“Alright, you noobs. Double-check your belongings. We’re going to dive into the Backrooms! From what I heard, you want a 30-day hardcore journey, so I’ll happily give you hell as you want. We will blast through the first 15 levels together, alright?”
The men in front of Master Yeet cheered in delight. They couldn’t wait to challenge the legendary dungeon even though the local monsters wouldn’t fight them with their 100% strength.
Joan slightly shook her head. She turned around and followed her assigned group tour to Level 0.
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= Slave Dungeon, B11 =
Song Hyun Woo, the grandson of Song Yang-Cheol, gazed at the high-rise buildings through the windows. He sipped tea in his cup, thinking of the trouble he had been through.
The Song Family business thrived after the Solomon War. Xiaomao, the dungeon master, returned triumph, and his allies got control over the game worlds. With the backing of the higher entities, the Slave Dungeon transformed into Heaven for both Song Yang-Cheol and Song Hyun Woo.
Still, Song Hyun Woo seemed unsatisfied. He deeply sighed.
“Business is not fun anymore.”
In Song Hyun Woo’s office, a refined mannequin with cat ears, a cat tail, and a silicone physique sat on her secretary’s desk, staring at a computer. She yawned and stretched after her work was completed.
“Young master Song, the account report for tomorrow’s meeting is done, PUTA.”
Gata was also working for the Song Family and the Slave Dungeon. Nobody in the dungeon idled around anymore, and many floor bosses changed their careers to adapt to the new culture.
Unlike 10 years ago, Gata had a functioning facial feature. She managed to obtain eyes, a nose, and a mouth after becoming a goddess. Her charm skyrocketed, and many players pursued her.
Song Hyun Woo turned around. He put the cup down and walked toward her and sat on the edge of her desk, “Thanks for your hard work, Gata. Say, are you free today? There’s a movie I want to watch, but I don’t have a companion.”
Gata giggled, “Asking me for a date, PUTA?”
“Well, I’ve been single for a decade, and I’m looking for a bride. Are you interested?”
Gata grinned, “I’ll only mate a stronger man, PUTA. If you want to be my mate, be a deity first.”
“Ai, yai, yai. This is troublesome.”
Song Hyun Woo snickered and glanced at his status menu to check his level. He got stuck at level 5,000 for a year, and he couldn’t progress further because of his weak foundation and small dantian.
However, Song Hyun Woo didn’t give up.
“Say, if I’m a deity, will you give me a chance?”
“Am I not waiting for you right now, PUTA? We’ve been dating for five years, but you never asked me how to become stronger, PUTA!”
“Oh, dear,” Hyun Woo smacked his forehead and laughed. “Then, can you teach me, sensei?”
“That’s more like it. Head to Chang’e Sanctuary this Sunday, PUTA. I’ll coach you personally!”
“Is that a date?”
“Tsk.”
Gata’s face reddened. She stood up and licked his nose. Then, she left the room.
Song Hyun Woo touched his nose and brightly smiled. Since Gata gave him an opportunity, he wouldn’t let her down.
“Okay. I guess I’ll change my career from a regressor to an adventurer. I’ve protected my grandfather, and it’s time for me to pursue my life’s goal.”
Motivated, Song Hyun Woo followed Gata out. Then, they left the company building together in the same car. None of them was aware that a heavenly fate crystal was born inside Song Hyun Woo’s body.
.
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= Slave Dungeon, Dungeon Core Room, B666 =
Mao Miaomiao’s real body sat on the throne in the dark hall, blankly gazing at the orb in front of him while his primary consciousness ravished his wives in his dantian universe.
After the war, Mao Miaomiao visited Slave Dungeon to help Xiaomao fix the OS. However, after the long repair process, Mu-Nyang and Xiaomao requested Mao Miaomiao to leave his main body here. They then expanded the Slave Dungeon to 999 floors and hid the dungeon core on the B666 floor.
Mao Miaomiao ended up working as the B666’s floor boss. His main body was always half-asleep. However, he detached alter consciousnesses of himself to Earth and his dantian universe, managing three places at the same time. He could also transport people in his dantian to anywhere in this universe.
His task in the dungeon was simple. He needed to watch over several protagonist candidates in the game worlds that might cause trouble. So far, none of them seemed to pose any issue.
DING
<A new Heavenly Fate Crystal has been born inside Song Hyun Woo.>
<Song Hyun Woo has been chosen as one of the next generation’s protagonists.>
Mao Miaomiao slightly opened his eyes and glanced at the system messages.
“Meh, old news. I already saw that coming 9 years ago.”
The black-winged angel returned to his slumber, enjoying his sweet dream in his dantian universe. After all, he managed to bring all his wives in the previous life together, and they enjoyed being together 24/7.
He was no longer needed in combat. From now on, he would enjoy his laidback sex life to the fullest even though he might accidentally ignore Xiaomao and Mu-Nyang’s messages.
“Ah, this is heaven… But I’m literally in CATHULHU’S HELL, BAHAHAHAHA!!”