The stone bridge was only wide enough for two or three people to pass through at once, yet it was now crawling with monsters.
Unicorn Rabbits, Hellhounds, Armored Rats, Imp Bats, Minotaurs, and other monsters kept advancing.
On the opposite side, Shirou Emiya was relentlessly slaughtering them with two greatswords in hand.
Swinging, endlessly swinging, Shirou Emiya wielded the two greatswords in a seamless blur, constantly cutting down every monster that blocked his path.
Blood sprayed through the air, and anguished cries rang out.
The narrow stone bridge had transformed into a cruel meat grinder, constantly devouring the lives of monsters.
The stone axes thrown by the Unicorn Rabbits were knocked away one after another.
The flames spewed by the Hellhounds were dodged one after another.
Weapon after weapon was continuously projected beside Shirou Emiya before being launched outward.
At this point, Shirou Emiya had completely abandoned any thought of conserving his magic power. Given the situation, he had no choice but to keep pushing instead of slowly wearing them down. It was time to go all out.
Magic power surged. With everything unleashed, Shirou Emiya was as fierce as a god of war, fighting his way through the monster horde drenched in blood.
"Impressive!"
Infected by the scene before them, the Loki Familia, who had been advancing nonstop, could not help but stop and stare at the legendary spectacle unfolding across from them.
What shocked the Loki Familia was not that Shirou Emiya was overwhelmingly strong, but that his ability values were extraordinarily weak.
Those standing here were the executives of the Loki Familia. Every one of them was highly experienced, and they could judge Shirou Emiya's actual strength at a glance.
His basic attributes were probably around Level 2.
Under normal circumstances, someone with such attributes would have trouble surviving alone even on the Thirteenth Floor. Yet this person had actually reached the 16th Floor by himself.
Moreover, judging from the direction he was heading, he seemed intent on continuing deeper.
What kind of courage and perseverance could be supporting him?
"Is this guy trying to get himself killed? He's so weak, yet instead of scraping by in the upper floors, he's heading into the Middle Floors for what?"
The usually sharp-tongued Bete roared in disdain. However, the way his eyes remained fixed on Shirou Emiya's figure had already betrayed his true feelings.
"He's strong. This person is really strong!"
Ais gripped the sword in her hand tightly, suppressing the urge to charge over and slaughter her way through the monsters.
Reaching a floor like this alone with such physical abilities was something even she had never accomplished.
"Hey, kid, do you need our help?"
Finn shouted loudly, his hunter's instincts piqued. He could not tell whether the boy had encountered these monsters by accident or deliberately sought them out.
Normally, someone of his level could not possibly deliberately run into these monsters. Yet the other's fighting spirit and clear purpose both emphasized that this was exactly what he had done.
That was why Finn had called out to him.
Hearing the question from the other side, Shirou Emiya answered with some difficulty, "No need. This is my adventure!"
This was not the first group of well-meaning people Shirou Emiya had encountered. Shocked by the carnage around him, several groups of adventurers exploring the Middle Floors had asked him similar questions.
But he had refused them all.
Just as Shirou Emiya had said, this was his adventure.
Although it was difficult, compared to the battles of the past mythological war, this was nothing.
Crossing his hands, he swept the area before him with the two greatswords. Then Shirou Emiya leaped into the air and jumped backward.
However, during the jump, the greatswords in his hands transformed into a black longbow.
"Projection, begin!"
The strange sword, Fake Sword, appeared in Shirou Emiya's hand once more.
He skillfully transformed it into an arrow, nocked it on the longbow, and drew the bow to its limit. As his fingers relaxed, the magic-wreathed arrow shot out instantly.
"Illusionary Collapse!"
A violent explosion rose on the other side. Boundless flames and heat spread from across the stone bridge.
The gale sweeping toward him whipped Shirou Emiya's hair and cloak, etching his dashing figure firmly into the eyes of the Loki Familia.
But Shirou Emiya still did not stop. As magic power surged, another Fake Sword appeared in his hand.
Shirou Emiya clearly remembered that the passage beyond the stone bridge was likewise packed with monsters.
Even though the flames had yet to disperse, Shirou Emiya still found the passage with perfect accuracy and fired another arrow of Illusionary Collapse.
Another explosion rose.
Seeing that the road ahead had been cleared, Shirou Emiya projected the Twin Swords again, clenched an Elixir between his teeth, and continued forward.
As for the Loki Familia standing on the opposite side of the stone bridge, he did not spare them a single glance.
"That adventurer is amazing!"
Tiona, crouched beside her sister Tione, shook her body excitedly, venting the exhilaration in her heart.
As for Tione, she was still immersed in her anger at the other's refusal of their captain.
She would never forgive anyone who questioned the captain.
Ais, meanwhile, stared fixedly at the passage where Shirou Emiya had disappeared. Beside her, Riveria held her shoulder firmly to keep her from impulsively running after him.
"What an impressive young man! It seems another future star of Orario is about to be born."
Hearing Finn's exclamation, even Riveria could not help nodding.
Indeed, with fighting power like this, as long as he did not die, he would certainly become a renowned figure in Orario one day.
"All right! We've seen enough. Let's head back!"
With that, Finn led the group forward again.
Battle, battle, battle!
Running, running, running!
Shirou Emiya continued advancing, crossing every obstacle and pressing onward without pause.
After the fierce battle when he first entered the 16th Floor, Shirou Emiya encountered far fewer enemies along the road ahead.
Although the monsters never stopped attacking, groups on that scale never appeared again.
The monsters continued growing stronger, while the frequency and number of their respawns kept increasing. Yet none of that could stop Shirou Emiya's advance.
Against monsters of their current strength, as long as Shirou Emiya did not panic while wielding Gan Jiang Mo Ye, he could deal with them properly.
At low levels, a good weapon was truly that important.
But once he entered the Lower Floors, the deterrent power of weapons would no longer be so great.
At that point, both the weapon and the adventurer would need to be strong enough to handle the situation.
Of course, having a good weapon still offered an advantage.
On the 17th Floor, as his destination drew closer, Shirou Emiya's spirit grew increasingly vigorous, and his fighting power continued to rise.
Facing the monsters that kept rushing at him, Gan Jiang Mo Ye, once again transformed into greatswords, swung relentlessly.
At the same time, projected armaments continued to shoot outward.
For a while, there was not a single monster before Shirou Emiya that could withstand even one exchange.
"We're here. The destination is just ahead!"
As the passage before him grew wider and wider, Shirou Emiya knew that he was about to reach his destination.
As he ran, he soon arrived at a huge hall.
Unlike the irregular chambers elsewhere in the Dungeon, this hall was exceptionally smooth and even.
After Shirou Emiya entered the hall, no monsters came chasing after him anymore.
Walking alone through the hall, Shirou Emiya felt unusually calm.
On the left side of the hall, a wall that looked as though it had been polished attracted Shirou Emiya's attention. This was the famous Wall of Sighs!
It was also the wall from which Floor Masters were born.
Without lingering there, he crossed the long hall and entered the passage leading to the Lower Floors.
When Shirou Emiya passed through the pitch-black passage, a bright forest appeared before him.
This was the 18th Floor Safe Zone.
Without going any farther, Shirou Emiya leaned against the wall and sat down. He removed the backpack from his back and began recovering his stamina and mental strength.
Looking at the bright crystal overhead, Shirou Emiya murmured, "Half an hour."
"Half an hour from now, I'll begin the journey back!"
Before you continue