Arc 8The Thorned Arena

Gauss survived the Spider Demon, recruited Theron, and grew stronger while hunting monsters and exploring the maze. After uncovering a White Wand and surviving attacks by Rogues and a Drilling Worm, Gauss, Alya, and Theron entered an arena trial and began fighting a Thorned Giant Beast.

  • Gauss escaped the Spider Demon’s nest with a Teleportation Scroll, unlocked Ghost Form, and was carried to safety by Theron.
  • Gauss and Alya welcomed Theron into their party, then Gauss and Theron hunted goblins near Frostleaf Village and helped defend it from a Big Goblin.
  • Gauss and Theron explored a strange valley, where Gauss found a White Wand that enhanced his spellcasting.
  • Gauss reunited with Alya in the maze town, and the group explored the second floor, where Gauss discovered that Rogues were ambushing adventurers and captured one of them.
  • Gauss led Alya and Theron to an abandoned herb garden, where they encountered a Drilling Worm and collected its magic-infused soil.
  • Gauss helped rescue adventurers from a Man-eating Flower in an arena, then returned with Alya and Theron when the arena trial required everyone to enter.
  • Gauss, Alya, and Theron fought a Thorned Giant Beast, and Gauss suspected that its motionless vine tail concealed its weakness.
Chapters 179–203 Vol. 2 Read

Ch. 179The Appearance of Spirits

Gauss and Alya found an indestructible plant pavilion in the ruins but could not discover the key needed to enter, so they camped nearby. When Alarm woke them during the night, Gauss used his Spirit Bracelet to reveal spirits around the camp and drove them off with Light, earning the Ghost Hunter title.

  • Gauss and Alya examined the plant pavilion, found a key-shaped recess, and failed to locate anything that fit it.
  • Gauss and Alya camped beside the pavilion, ate Treasure Chest Monster tongue stew, and set Alarm while Ulfhen and Ike kept watch.
  • Alarm woke Gauss, and he woke Alya after finding no visible danger at the campsite.
  • Gauss used his Spirit Bracelet to reveal spirits gathering around the camp, and Alya sensed their chill.
  • Gauss cast Light with his Bone Staff, killing nearby spirits and earning the Ghost Hunter title.

Ch. 180The Maze's End, Pale Phantom

Gauss and Alya explored the maze’s second floor for one final day before planning to return to Barry, and they reached its temporary boundary in the black mist. A Pale Guard attacked them there, knocking Gauss back toward the edge.

  • Gauss purified 34 wraiths with Light, protected the campsite, and collected their ashes before resting with Alya.
  • The next morning, Gauss and Alya agreed to explore for one last day and then head back to Barry to restock supplies.
  • Gauss added the Erect Beetle, Spore Mosquito, and Bouncing Bug to his Common Monster Codex as they explored the second floor.
  • Gauss and Alya reached a road ending above a vast expanse of black mist, where they heard an ominous chant.
  • A Pale Guard attacked from above, and Gauss shoved Alya aside and blocked its hand blade before the impact drove him close to the mist.

Ch. 181Ancient Civilization Creature?

Gauss and Alya confronted a pale spider-legged creature on the labyrinth’s second level, whose strength seemed to exceed theirs. Gauss planned Alya’s retreat while preparing to hold the creature off, leaving their next move unresolved.

  • Gauss examined the pale, humanoid spider creature after it struck Alya and judged its Challenge Level to be at least 3.
  • Gauss tested the creature’s movements and realized it mirrored his steps as they faced each other in the cramped passage.
  • Gauss told Alya to escape with Ulfhen and Aike while he distracted the creature, but Alya refused to leave him behind.
  • Gauss showed Alya his Teleportation Scroll to reassure her that he could escape if necessary, and she agreed to retreat when he signaled.
  • Gauss stowed his weapons and drew the Indestructible Scepter, preparing to face the creature.

Ch. 182A Sturdy Fortress

Gauss stayed behind so Alya could escape, then fought the Pale Guard while looking for a chance to retreat. He repeatedly restored [Gauss Field] under the guard’s assault, but the passage began to seem unfamiliar as he fled.

  • Gauss used [Enhanced Leap] and [Monster Strength Transformation] to attack the Pale Guard while Alya rode Ulfhen away.
  • The Pale Guard blocked Gauss’s scepter strike and kicked him backward, badly weakening [Gauss Field].
  • Gauss used Light to dazzle the Pale Guard and ran toward the passage they had come from.
  • The Pale Guard adapted to the light, caught up with Gauss, and struck him with its arm and leg blades.
  • Gauss dispelled and instantly recast [Gauss Field], then noticed the passage looked different and felt uneasy.

Ch. 183Spider Demon

Gauss was driven by the Pale Guard into a web-filled nest where three smaller Pale Creatures awaited him. He prepared to kill the weakest one and use a Teleportation Scroll to escape.

  • Gauss realized the maze had shifted and kept fleeing the recovering Pale Guard while searching for Alya.
  • The Pale Guard knocked Gauss into a nest covered in thick white webs and egg sacs, then blocked the only exit.
  • Three smaller Pale Creatures emerged, and Gauss inferred that the Pale Guard had herded him there to face them.
  • Gauss drew his Bone Staff, chose the smallest Pale Creature as his target, and prepared to activate his Teleportation Scroll after killing it.

Ch. 184"Corpse-Picking" in the Labyrinth

Gauss killed a Spider Demon by destroying the core in its lower body, then escaped the adult Spider Demon’s fatal attack with a Teleportation Scroll. He arrived unconscious in another labyrinth passage, where a Half-snake person found him and carried him away.

  • Gauss realized the Spider Demon's upper body could regenerate and identified a red-glowing core where its lower body connected to its torso.
  • Gauss destroyed the smallest Spider Demon's lower-body core, killing it and unlocking the next stage of the Path of the Elite.
  • Overcome by exhaustion, Gauss tried to escape with a Teleportation Scroll as the adult Spider Demon attacked at full strength.
  • The scroll teleported Gauss three hundred meters away just before the adult Spider Demon's strike hit him, and he collapsed unconscious in a labyrinth passage.
  • A Half-snake person found Gauss as Spore Mosquitoes approached and carried him away.

Ch. 185Ghost Form

After recovering from the Spider Demon’s poison, Gauss gained the Blue Quality Talent [Ghost Form] and went with Alya to buy mounts and register at the Spellcaster Association. There, he reunited with the Half-snake person who had rescued him, and the man asked whether Gauss’s team had room for another member.

  • Gauss learned that killing five types of Elite Monsters had unlocked [Ghost Form] and the Path of the Hunt, which let him earn Elite Points by hunting Elite Monsters.
  • Alya explained that the Half-snake person had found Gauss unconscious in the maze and carried him out, and Gauss resolved to repay him.
  • After resting, Gauss and Alya bought two land birds, named [Golden Ear of Grain] and [Slingshot], and passed the riding assessment.
  • Gauss and Alya registered him at the Spellcaster Association, where he received a spellcaster crystal and learned about the member benefits.
  • Gauss found the Half-snake person at the association and offered to repay him, but the man asked whether Gauss’s team could take another member.

Ch. 186The Prototype of the Pale Ghost (4K; another chapter tonight)

Gauss met Theron, who asked to join his party, and agreed to consult Alya before deciding. He tested his skills and [Ghost Form] in a training room, discovering that the Talent greatly enhanced his physical abilities and magic but drained his energy quickly; Theron then noticed Gauss seemed stronger when they met again.

  • Theron asked Gauss to let him join his party, and Gauss said he would ask Alya before answering.
  • Theron reflected that he wanted a trusting, permanent party and had been drawn to Gauss's loyalty to Alya.
  • Gauss used the training room to test a level-two construct and found that his Magic Missile could damage it but could not defeat it in one hit.
  • Gauss activated [Ghost Form], gaining speed and strength and casting a much more powerful Magic Missile while moving, but rapidly exhausting his energy.
  • Gauss practiced until his training-room session ended, then met Theron, who sensed that Gauss's aura had grown stronger.

Ch. 187The Third Member

Gauss welcomed Theron as the third member of his team while Alya began meditating to advance to level two. He then visited the Golden Beak Merchant Guild to reunite with his former companion Hailiel, who was astonished by how much he had changed.

  • Gauss and Theron talked about Theron's hostile Half-snake tribe and learned more about his background.
  • After Alya returned, Gauss accepted Theron into the team with her approval.
  • Two days later, with Alya meditating, Gauss rode to West City with Theron to visit the Golden Beak Merchant Guild.
  • Gauss asked the receptionist to find Hailiel, and she hurried downstairs to meet him.
  • Hailiel recognized Gauss and exclaimed that he had changed so much.

Ch. 188The Squad Reunites, and Sets Out Again (5K)

Gauss reunited with Hailiel, Bell, and Mia in Forest Capital, returned the reward shares from their first commission, and learned how his former teammates were doing. After the reunion, he and Theron set out to hunt goblins for a mission that could raise their team's rank and help Gauss level his talents.

  • Gauss and Theron visited Hailiel, who recognized Gauss as a Level 2 professional and heard about his recent adventures.
  • Gauss returned the reward shares owed to Hailiel, Bell, and Mia from their first commission, and learned that Bell and Mia had recovered and moved on with their lives.
  • Hailiel invited Bell and Mia to lunch, where they recognized Gauss and learned that he had become a Level 2 professional.
  • After saying goodbye to his former teammates, Gauss and Theron headed outside the western city to hunt more than a hundred goblins.
  • Gauss planned to use the mission to level his [Energy Gland] and [Crawler Species] talents and advance his team's rank.

Ch. 189Monster (5K)

Gauss and Theron arrived at Frostleaf Village to answer its goblin extermination mission, while the villagers faced an approaching goblin tribe and a group of young men went to attack its watchtower. The village chief told Gauss that the young men had gone missing, and the chapter ended with Theo wounded and cornered by a huge monster.

  • Gauss and Theron traveled from Barry toward Frostleaf Village, where more than a hundred goblins were reportedly gathering.
  • The village chief and Bob prepared to evacuate villagers after a scout reported goblins building watchtowers near the village.
  • Theo led several young men toward the goblin watchtower despite the village chief's warning, and the group later disappeared.
  • Gauss shielded Theron from the villagers' panic, showed their adventurer badges, and asked Village Chief Bob to explain the situation.
  • Bob told Gauss that Theo and the other young men had gone missing, while Theo lay wounded in the woods as a huge monster knocked down the tree hiding him.

Ch. 190Are there still humans? (You-style 5K)

Gauss and Theron rescued Theo from a Big Goblin, and Gauss killed the elite monster with his enhanced Magic Missile. After the party cleared the remaining goblins, Gauss's [Crawler] Talent upgraded to Elite Grade, leaving him undergoing subtle changes.

  • Theo collapsed from his injuries as the Big Goblin pursued him, but Gauss and Theron arrived and drove the monster back.
  • Gauss used three Magic Missiles to break the Big Goblin's shield, then activated [Ghost Form] and killed it with a powerful shot.
  • Theron healed Theo, who promised to keep Gauss's transformation secret before returning to the village.
  • Gauss and Theron continued fighting the goblins, with Theron killing about forty while Gauss killed around seventy.
  • Gauss's [Crawler] Talent upgraded to Elite Grade, and Theron sensed that Gauss's body and scent were changing.

Ch. 191Contribution Point Acquisition (4K)

After Gauss upgraded his Crawling Species Talent, he and Theron salvaged valuable materials from the Big Goblin and returned to the village after clearing the nest. The villagers thanked the adventurers, and Gauss and Theron left after secretly paying the village chief for lunch.

  • Gauss felt the Crawling Species upgrade strengthen his skin, vitality, resilience, coordination, recovery, and dynamic vision.
  • Theron sensed a familiar aura from Gauss, and Gauss vaguely explained that he had an unusual bloodline.
  • Gauss and Theron collected the Big Goblin’s weapon and armor, then dissected its corpse for materials that could earn contribution points from the Spellcaster Association.
  • The pair returned to the village, where Bob’s family served them a generous lunch as the villagers mourned their dead and celebrated the threat’s removal.
  • Gauss and Theron departed, and Bob’s wife revealed that they had left thirty silver coins and a letter to pay for the meal.

Ch. 192The Goblin Slayer Appears Once More (5K)

Gauss and Theron continued clearing minor monsters around Barry, and Gauss trained his [Gauss Field] to resist toxins using a pattern from a wizard’s journal. When they arrived at a village, its residents recognized Gauss as the Goblin Slayer, leaving him uneasy about how far the title might follow him.

  • Gauss and Theron completed nearby monster quests while Gauss studied how to strengthen his [Gauss Field] against toxins.
  • Gauss trained his protective spell on the journey by stimulating it with a blade coated in Big Goblin blood.
  • Gauss and Theron arrived at a village outside Barry, where villagers recognized Gauss and welcomed him as the Goblin Slayer.
  • Gauss learned that a passing caravan had spread stories about him through the countryside, though he could not discover where the reputation began.
  • Gauss accepted the villagers’ welcome but worried that the Goblin Slayer title might cling to him as he rose to greater fame.

Ch. 193Winged Kobold, Weathered Valley

Gauss and Theron hunted monsters in a weathered valley, killing Winged Kobolds, goblins, and a Giant Spider. After noticing the land was unusually barren, they began searching for the cause and followed a subtle downward slope to a dead end.

  • Gauss and Theron found the valley where goblins were said to be hiding and cautiously followed its gullies, spotting signs of several kinds of monsters.
  • Theron detected kobolds ahead, and Gauss discovered that they were Winged Kobolds; the pair killed them, destroyed their near-hatching eggs, and added a new entry to Gauss's Common Monster Codex.
  • Gauss and Theron continued through the valley, killed a Giant Spider and more goblins, and brought their Monster Kill Count to 1,935.
  • Gauss and Theron noticed that the valley was unusually barren and decided to investigate its strange, weathered terrain.
  • Gauss found that the ground sloped imperceptibly toward a lowest point, and he and Theron followed the slope through ravines until they reached a dead end.

Ch. 194The Wand (4K)

Gauss investigated a magical quicksand vortex and descended into a light-swallowing underground space, where a white gem fused with his Bone Staff to form a Wand. After the darkness awakened and pursued him, Gauss escaped to the surface, but emerged confused and exhausted.

  • Gauss tested the vortex with a sparrow and concluded that the space beneath it was deep and had enough air to sustain living creatures.
  • Gauss descended into the vortex, found a dark tiled plaza with mysterious runes, and marked his location before exploring.
  • Gauss followed a strange pull into a small room, where a white gem fused with his Bone Staff and transformed it into a Wand.
  • Gauss fled as the darkness surged toward him, climbed the rope, and escaped the vortex just before his Light spell failed.
  • Theron urged Gauss to end Ghost Form, and Gauss ate jerky and drank water while struggling to understand what had happened.

Ch. 195Suspected "Divine Artifact"

Gauss returned from the quicksand vortex with his completed White Wand, which proved impossible to identify and greatly enhanced his magic and attributes. After testing its powers and completing a commission with Theron, he reunited with Alya, who had successfully advanced to level two, and proposed a celebratory dinner.

  • Gauss realized he could not remember what happened inside the quicksand vortex and discovered his Bone Staff had transformed into the White Wand, which could not be separated from its gem.
  • Gauss and Theron failed to reopen the quicksand vortex, searched the valley, and returned to the village before heading back toward Barry.
  • Gauss tested the White Wand and found that it let him cast five Magic Missiles at once, enhanced his attributes, and improved his control over spells such as Gauss Field.
  • Gauss and Theron submitted their commission items, received one gold coin, and sold their spoils at the Golden Beak Merchant Guild's shop.
  • Gauss and Theron returned to the inn, where Raven Ike had come back and Alya revealed that she had advanced to level two.
  • Gauss suggested that he, Theron, and Alya celebrate her advancement with a big dinner.

Ch. 1962,000 Kills (7K)

Gauss and his companions returned to the maze to train, take commissions, and explore its first level, where Gauss reached the 2,000-kill milestone. The reward granted him a 2nd Circle spell and increased strength, and he began considering something he had obtained earlier.

  • Alya checked the party's supplies before Gauss, Alya, and Theron left with the Golden Beak Merchant Guild's caravan, while Quentin urged Hailiel to stay in touch with Gauss.
  • The party arrived at the rapidly growing maze town, set reaching the third level as their goal, and decided to spend a day practicing on the first level.
  • Gauss reunited with the young adventurers he had previously saved, then followed Raven Ike to a group of goblins and killed them with his White Wand and sword.
  • Alya tested her new Wilderness Form as a Silver Wolf while the party fought maze monsters and Gauss's Monster Kill Count rose to 2,000.
  • Gauss received the 2nd Circle spell [Shaping Magic: Clay] and a Strength increase, then remembered something he had obtained earlier.

Ch. 197The Potential of Shaping Magic: Clay

Gauss practiced his newly acquired 2nd Circle Spell, [Shaping Magic: Clay], and joined Quek’s party for a meal and information about the maze. After the teams traveled to the second floor and parted ways, Theron revealed that he had found a hidden chamber, leaving Gauss wary of exploring it.

  • Gauss studied [Shaping Magic: Clay], practiced shaping the white clay, and raised the spell to lv1 (1/10).
  • Alya treated Gauss and Theron to dinner, where they met Quek and his teammates and agreed to travel together to the second-floor entrance the next morning.
  • Quek’s party led Gauss’s group to the entrance, then separated from them after they reached the maze’s second floor.
  • Theron told Gauss that he had found a hidden chamber on the second floor, and Gauss hesitated because of his previous dangerous encounter with the Spider Demon nest.

Ch. 198The Follower and Clay Shaping

Gauss and his companions explored the second level of the maze, found four adventurers who had been murdered, and made camp for the night. Gauss raised Clay Magic to Level 2 and began experimenting with the strange spirits he sensed, while shadows approached their camp.

  • Gauss led Alya and Theron toward the darkroom, and the team avoided a hidden acid pool along the way.
  • Gauss practiced Clay Magic during a break and discovered an Acid-corroding Beetle as the team explored the second level.
  • Theron found that the tree hollow he had previously discovered was gone, and the team later uncovered four stripped, maggot-covered adventurer corpses that Gauss believed had been left by killers.
  • Gauss and his companions made camp, and Gauss raised Shaping Magic: Clay to Level 2 while making Theron a clay figurine.
  • Gauss sensed faint spirits while using clay to kill mosquitoes and began gathering them for an experiment as several shadows sneaked toward the camp.

Ch. 199Hyena Squad

Gauss discovered a squad of four Rogue looters tracking his team and fought them off when they ambushed him near the camp. He transformed into Ghost Form to pursue the fleeing attackers, killing two and capturing one as Alya and Theron rushed to help.

  • Gauss controlled a clay mosquito through his spirit, recalled it, and noticed four cloaked Rogues nearby.
  • The Rogues ambushed Gauss, but his Gauss Field blocked their attacks and his counterstrike wounded one of them.
  • Alya and Theron woke at the explosion and ran toward Gauss as the Rogue leader ordered the others to retreat.
  • Gauss activated Ghost Form, chased the fleeing Rogues, and killed the crossbowman with a crushing blow.
  • Gauss struck another Rogue with Magic Missile and caught the last one, knocking him unconscious to keep him as a captive.

Ch. 200Idle Playstyle

Gauss captured and interrogated a band of adventurer-hunting Rogues, then headed west with his companions while training a Clay Spider to fight monsters and gather spirits. At an abandoned herb garden, Alya sensed unusual soil and movement underground just as the ground began to shake.

  • Gauss used Ghost Form to defeat the Rogues who had been following the party, then had Theron treat and awaken two survivors for questioning.
  • Gauss learned that the Rogues ambushed adventurers across the maze and that the entrance to the third level might be near the western edge; the party took the Rogues' valuables and left their bodies behind.
  • Alya asked Gauss to make her a Clay Creature, and he fashioned her a small figure before the party set out west.
  • Gauss made a Clay Spider from collected spirits and used it to kill insects, gather spirits, and advance his Shaping Magic while Theron considered blessing it.
  • Theron recalled an abandoned herb garden along their route, so Gauss led the party there to search for magic-conducting soil.
  • Alya sensed that the garden's soil was unusual and that something was moving beneath it; Gauss felt it too as the ground began to tremble.

Ch. 201Giant Beast Underground

Gauss and his companions provoked a Drilling Worm in the abandoned medicinal garden, and Gauss collected its slime-soil to create a small Clay Goblin. After the worm chased Alya and withstood Gauss’s spells before retreating, Gauss found enough of its mucus to strengthen his Clay Creature.

  • The Drilling Worm erupted from the ground and forced Gauss, Alya, and Theron to flee, then burrowed away without attacking again.
  • Gauss examined the worm’s corrosive mucus, identified the resulting soil balls as Magic Items, and used them to create a weak, clumsy Clay Goblin.
  • Alya used Nature’s Power to lure the Drilling Worm out again, and it chased her underground toward the garden’s exit.
  • Gauss fired two volleys of Magic Missiles at the worm, but its shell and teeth absorbed the attacks without damage.
  • The Drilling Worm retreated, leaving many more slime-soil balls behind, and Gauss anticipated using them to improve the Clay Goblin.

Ch. 202Arena

Gauss used clay from the Drilling Worm to create a sturdier Clay Goblin, then turned its spirit into more Clay Spiders. After helping an adventuring party escape an arena trial, he entered the arena with Alya and Theron, where a new battle began.

  • The Drilling Worm vanished underground, and Gauss used the gathered soil to create a Clay Goblin that could clear weeds before reclaiming its spirit to make four Clay Spiders.
  • Gauss followed distant cheers to an arena where a party of four adventurers was trapped with a Man-eating Flower, and he returned with Alya and Theron to help them.
  • A Clay Spider pulled a handle beside the arena gates, making the Man-eating Flower, barrier, and Insectoid Phantoms disappear; the rescued party thanked Gauss and left him a purse of coins.
  • Gauss rested before entering the arena alone, but a message announced that all participants had to enter for the trial to begin, so he returned to bring Alya, Theron, and the Clay Spiders inside.
  • The arena finally announced that the battle had begun, and its gates and barrier closed as the rope Gauss had tied to the mechanism snapped.

Ch. 203The Clash Across Time and Space

Gauss and his team fought a powerful Thorned Giant Beast in a trial arena, testing its abilities while keeping it distracted. Gauss spotted a suspicious vine tail that he believed concealed the monster’s weakness.

  • Gauss, Alya, and Theron appeared in an ancient beast-fighting arena and faced an unfamiliar Thorned Giant Beast.
  • Gauss tested the beast with Magic Missile and Fire Bolt, discovering that its vines regenerated quickly and its yellow mist extinguished flames.
  • Gauss drew the beast’s attacks while Ulfhen and the Clay Spiders harried it from behind, and Alya used Entangling Spell to help distract it.
  • Gauss observed that the beast lacked obvious weaknesses and avoided using Ghost Form while the team wore it down.
  • After Theron refreshed Blessing Spell, Gauss noticed that one vine tail had remained motionless throughout the fight and suspected it was hiding the beast’s weakness.
Arc 8 of 18