Chapter 270: Emblem
After coming out from the door on the left, Zhou Ning still had several options: he could either go through the middle or the right door, or return to the previous passage junction and try the middle or right passage instead.
This door clearly had the same kind of formation that absorbed light and sound—everything was deathly silent. Even with his powerful Observation Haki, Zhou Ning could not pick up the slightest sound.
He rested in place for half an hour until his focus nearly recovered, then held his breath and approached the stone door on the right. Carefully, he pushed it open, staying on high alert and ready to either fight or retreat at any moment.
The stone door opened with a harsh creak, though the sound was cut short as it was swallowed by the chamber's silencing formation.
With the Phoenix Battle Suit's night vision, Zhou Ning scanned the room. The layout was different from the one on the left. Though ritual vessels were still arranged around the edges, there was no coffin in the center. Instead, there were tables and chairs of unknown use, along with four jars about three meters tall, whose purpose was equally unclear.
Just as Zhou Ning was about to step inside, a sudden vision flashed in his mind—he "saw" himself being swarmed, wrapped, and devoured by moving shadows. Instinctively, he stepped back.
"This is the 'Soul Resting Place' in ancient elven tombs. As the name suggests, it's where the souls of the dead, along with their servants and those sacrificed with them, are meant to rest," Molly explained just then.
Sure enough, even without entering, Zhou Ning could sense the biting chill and dead stillness inside. With the light-absorbing formation shrouding the place in thick darkness, shadows seemed to writhe within, and countless faintly glowing eyes flickered among them. The sight was eerie, tightening his nerves involuntarily.
Were those… evil spirits?
And not just a few—at least a hundred of them!
Zhou Ning sucked in a sharp breath, unease spreading in his chest.
In the Apocalypse game, evil spirits were terrifying monsters—higher-tier undead. The weaker ones were like the beggar Zhou Ning had seen a few days ago, nothing but malice without attack power. But the stronger ones could rival high-ranking professionals.
As a veteran player, Zhou Ning knew well that in such high-level dungeons, risk and reward always came hand in hand. This place was bound to hide treasures of great value. But here, he wasn't a player—he had only one life. Survival came first.
Still, experience had taught him that even under pressure, one must stay graceful. Calmly, he extinguished his light and slowly retreated. When the evil spirits made no move, he quietly closed the door.
"Farewell," he muttered.
Only after the door shut completely and he had backed ten meters away did Zhou Ning finally exhale in relief. His Conqueror's Haki excelled at dealing with groups and might have been effective against the spirits—but who knew if among them lurked high-level evil spirits? They'd been lingering here for over a thousand years, after all.
Caution told him to mark this chamber as a forbidden zone.
That left the stone door in the middle. The thought of what he had just witnessed weighed heavily on his mind. Typically, the central chamber held more significance than those to the sides—and that usually meant greater danger.
He expanded his Observation Haki to the limit and edged closer, pushing open the door. Inside, the same deep darkness awaited.
Yet unexpectedly, though the layout resembled the other chambers, this one seemed to house no monsters at all. Zhou Ning waited at the threshold, ensuring there was no danger, before carefully stepping inside.
On the left wall, strange marks and twisted elven script were carved into the stone.
"The owner of this chamber was General Ranger Talonia, chief technician under Elven King Alfred," Molly noted after a glance.
Chief technician? Someone with that title must have been the kingdom's most skilled engineer. Zhou Ning couldn't help feeling eager about what treasures might lie here.
At this point, he no longer had the energy to doubt whether Molly truly knew what she was talking about. Nodding, he moved toward the center of the room.
The setup resembled the first chamber. Apart from hidden compartments that seemed to hold nothing special, a silver coffin engraved with intricate patterns lay in the middle.
Peering through the heavy darkness, Zhou Ning drew closer—then narrowed his eyes in surprise.
What? The coffin was… empty?
Just like Grand Archmage Oscard's coffin, there were scratch marks on the underside of the lid, showing that someone had once been sealed inside. But now the lid was ajar, and no body lay within.
A chill ran through Zhou Ning, his nerves tightening. Could Talonia have actually escaped from this silver coffin?
Inside the coffin, Zhou Ning found a few weathered scraps of cloth and a small, inconspicuous green emblem. To his disappointment, it wasn't some unknown relic or engineering-enhancing device, but merely a low-tier Epic item.
Epic Item: General Ranger's Swift Emblem
Quality: Low-tier Epic
Attributes: +7 Agility, +15% damage to ranged skills, +10% movement speed (doubled in forests).
Description: A symbol of the Ranger General's strength.
The attributes weren't bad—and happened to suit him perfectly. Without hesitation, Zhou Ning equipped the emblem.
Aside from that, there was nothing else of worth in the chamber. With lingering unease, he left. Following the passage lined with exotic treasures from other worlds, he soon returned to the junction of the three corridors.
Earlier, he had taken the left passage. Compared to the side passages, the middle corridor was broader, wide enough for five or six people to walk abreast. It stretched into shadowy darkness, its destination unknown. The right passage was narrow, much like the left.
By now, Zhou Ning had a general idea of the layout. If he was right, the central corridor should lead directly to the tomb of Elven King Alfred, the infamous ancient tyrant, buried here in the Sky City. The right corridor likely housed his other favored servants.
Zhou Ning's gaze lingered on the central passage. In a dungeon like this, encountering a hidden boss inside would hardly be surprising. He didn't dare rush in blindly, but neither was he willing to retreat just yet.
Advance, or withdraw?
After weighing the risks and gains, Zhou Ning decided to at least explore a little further. If things went wrong, he would retreat at once.
Two warrior statues wearing lion-shaped helmets crouched at the entrance. Zhou Ning revived them and sent them ahead. Holding several Barials in his hand, he prepared for a quick escape, then followed behind them into the corridor.
The light inside was dim. Eternal lanterns burned faintly along the walls, which were engraved with vivid scenes of the elven king waging war against humans and orcs. Unlike the left side, the floor here was paved with black stone blocks, riddled with deadly traps—including several extremely rare magic traps. Fortunately, with the lion warriors triggering them first, Zhou Ning was able to rely on his game experience to disarm them one by one.