Frostspire Tower, Basement Level 2. This area resembled an experimental lab: a dizzying array of equipment lay scattered about, and the pristine white floor was stained with dried blood—so cold that frost had formed in places.
Ethan moved swiftly and steadily. Guided by the Frostspire Tower Blueprint Intel, he arrived at an otherwise unremarkable section of wall.
He searched carefully for a long moment before spotting a subtle irregularity. Tapping it with his fingertip, he watched as the once-smooth surface parted to reveal a square display screen.
Staring at the panel, Ethan didn't hesitate to enter the password from his Blueprint Intel.
Instantly, the wall cracked open, and a cold, mechanical female voice intoned, "Verification successful. Welcome to Hurricane Research Facility."
"Hurricane Research Facility?" Ethan thought. "Isn't this Frostspire Tower? How does a Hurricane Research Facility fit in here?"
A bit puzzled, he pushed the questions aside and stepped through the opening.
As soon as he passed inside, the wall slid shut behind him, restoring its seamless facade.
About two minutes later, Daydreamer arrived with eight Level 8 Coffin Guild members, their footsteps echoing urgently.
Daydreamer swept the area but found no trace of Ethan. He muttered, "He must be scared and hiding."
"Spread out and search every corner—no spot left unchecked!"
Like locusts, the Coffin Guild members fanned across the chamber, overturning consoles and peering behind every crate—but Ethan remained hidden.
Daydreamer inhaled sharply, then said without hesitation, "He's probably on Basement Level 3. Move out! If he's so fast, we'll break his legs when we catch him!"
The guild members followed Daydreamer toward the Level 3 stairwell, with Flying Fish and Lucas close behind.
Unbeknownst to any of them, Ethan had already penetrated the true heart of Frostspire Tower: the hidden Hurricane Research Facility.
At first, he'd half expected new monsters to lurk here, offering fresh Intel drops. He tiptoed forward, noting that the space resembled a command center—every wall was lined with monitoring screens.
At its center stood a disordered desk strewn with papers and instruments.
Ethan crossed to it and immediately spotted the Frostspire Tower Blueprint.
The blueprint bore two ominous annotations: one labeled "Extremely Dangerous," the other "Untested New Weapon."
Lifting the blueprint, Ethan studied it closely. The "Untested New Weapon" was marked nearby, while the "Extremely Dangerous" creature lay down on Basement Level 3.
Coincidentally, on one of the still-active surveillance monitors nearby, the figures of several players appeared. Ethan glanced over and instantly recognized them—they were players from the Coffin Guild.
What he didn't know was who the player that had suddenly spoken up to warn him earlier was.
After pondering briefly, Ethan decided it was best to first locate the "untested prototype weapon" and then figure out how to lead the Coffin Guild players into a clash with that terrifying monster.
If they really ended up fighting, Ethan might have the chance to fish in troubled waters. Maybe he could land the finishing blow on that monstrous creature—or even wipe out the Coffin Guild players altogether. That wasn't entirely out of the question.
Just as Ethan was about to leave, his gaze unintentionally fell upon another document sitting on the table. It was a personal file.
[Name]: Jake
[Age]: 38
[Mutation Level]: Severe Mutation
[Notes]: This subject's integration with the Frost Virus far exceeds that of other individuals. Despite the severe level of mutation, he retains partial sanity. When exposed to small children or brown teddy bears, he experiences brief episodes of clarity. Suspected...
Ethan instinctively stopped in his tracks. He wanted to take this file with him as well. It mentioned an experimental subject, and something about the Frost Virus. That gave Ethan a vague sense that this might be connected to the origin of the monsters in Frostspire Tower.
As he picked up the document, he accidentally bumped into the table. A small brown teddy bear fell out from underneath it.
Ethan instinctively picked up the plush bear and placed it into his [Inventory] along with the file.
With that done, he quickly headed toward the location marked on the [Frostspire Tower Structural Blueprint].
About five minutes later, a deep-blue longsword appeared in Ethan's hand.
[Frostblade]
[Quality]: Blue-grade
[Equip Requirement]: Strength over 8
[Equip Effect 1]: Increases user's Strength by 2 points
[Equip Effect 2]: Consumes 2 Energy to unleash the blade's frost aura, reducing the movement speed and attack speed of enemies within a 2-meter radius by 10%.
[Description]: This is a pretty decent weapon—at the very least, it doesn't look like trash.
Upon seeing the details and stats of the [Frostblade], Ethan's eyes lit up. This was leagues above white-grade gear—it had two [Equip Effects], and both were extremely useful.
His current Strength was 10, fully meeting the requirements to wield the [Frostblade]. And once equipped, thanks to [Equip Effect 1], his Strength would jump to 12.
This longsword could definitely be considered one of the best among blue-grade weapons. If he put it up for sale, it would fetch a hefty price for sure.
But Ethan intended to keep it for himself. He was badly in need of a proper weapon right now—he couldn't just keep hacking away at people with the [Rusty Cleaver] forever.
The [Frostblade] was about 1.3 meters long, with a blade arc that was exceptionally smooth. It felt perfect in his grip. Ethan couldn't help but give it a few light swings.
The grip felt absolutely amazing—so much so that Ethan was getting impatient. He was itching to find someone to test the power of this longsword on.
The next step was figuring out how to lead the Coffin Guild players into a confrontation with the terrifying monster lurking on the third basement level of Frostspire Tower.
Ethan returned once more to the room that resembled a command center. While watching the movements of the Coffin Guild players on the surveillance monitors, he carefully studied the [Frostspire Tower Structural Blueprint] in his hands.
...
On the third basement level of Frostspire Tower, [Daydreamer] was already growing irritated. A single rookie player had somehow kept so many high-level players chasing him for so long without being found.
What an absolutely infuriating little rat!
[Daydreamer] had no intention of wasting any more time. He took a deep breath, then used all his strength to shout out loudly:
"I know you're hiding here somewhere! With this many of us, we're bound to find you sooner or later—it's just a matter of time."
"If you come out now and hand over the purple-quality Intel reward, I'll make an exception and let you join the Coffin Guild. I'll personally help you level up by killing monsters!"
Silence. The entire third basement level was eerily quiet. Only [Daydreamer]'s voice echoed again and again through the halls.
Not far behind [Daydreamer], [Flying Fish] heard his shouting and curled his lips in a faint, scornful smile. In a low voice, he said:
"Hmph. Sounds noble, doesn't it? But if that player actually comes out and hands over the purple-quality Intel reward, the only thing waiting for him will be death."
[Lucas] nodded from the side, clearly in agreement.
Right now, players who had reached level 10 were considered the top-tier players in Dawnfall Online. If it weren't for the lure of this purple-quality Intel reward, every level 10 player would be busy grinding monsters and preparing for their class advancement quests.
[Daydreamer] definitely didn't have the time to personally mentor some rookie player. The best solution would be to just kill the guy outright—no need to worry about the Coffin Guild's reputation.
After all, in Safe Zone 9527, the Coffin Guild's reputation was already in the gutter.
But just then, a voice—unusually calm and composed—shattered the silence.
Ethan said coolly, "And what if I don't hand it over?"