The Grand Appraisal of Nonhuman Races

"Good stuff. I didn't expect the Fourth Layer to produce such rare material."

Aik stepped forward and pried out the Life Crystal in one go. Even holding the fist-sized emerald crystal in his palm, he could feel its powerful vitality. The stamina and battle aura he had spent in the previous fight steadily recovered, and his wounds began to heal as well.

Taking out a box from the Alchemy Expansion Bag, Aik carefully placed the Life Crystal inside, then handed it to Mary beside him to seal with magic and prevent its life force from leaking away.

"Let's go. Clear out the remaining Treants and find the entrance to the next layer."

After cleaning up the battlefield and taking all the useful monster materials, the five members of the Ironblood Thorns Squad rested up before gradually clearing out the remaining Treants in the forest ahead. In the end, they found the entrance to the Fifth Layer in an inconspicuous spot beneath the hundreds-of-meters-tall giant tree at the center of the island.

"It's huge. Aik, do you think this tree has a Life Crystal too?"

Before the entrance to the Fifth Layer, the bard Ross raised his head and looked at the towering tree before him, majestic as a mountain. It was probably about as large as the legendary War Ancient Trees of the Elves. There might even be a larger Life Crystal inside it.

"Ross, do you think we could beat it?"

Of course, Aik understood what his teammate meant, but the enormous tree standing hundreds of meters tall before them was not something their squad could handle, even if it had yet to awaken its self-awareness and become a Treant.

Its mountain-like body alone already said everything. Besides, this was a dungeon. Nothing that happened here would be surprising.

"I was just saying."

Ross spread his hands and followed behind his teammates onto the stairs leading to the Fifth Layer.

After the Ironblood Thorns Squad left, the Giant Tree Guardian that had seemingly died at the edge of the island suddenly began to tremble. Its enormous roots plunged deep into the earth as magic from nature and the land began nourishing its body once more.

Before long, the dead Giant Tree Guardian would be reborn again.

"It got taken out instantly?"

At the deepest part of the Seventh Layer, Luo Ao watched the Giant Tree Guardian begin its resurrection countdown. He had gained some understanding of the combat strength of high-level adventurer squads, though the Giant Tree Guardian could not really be blamed.

Reality was like that. Things could never unfold entirely according to one's imagination.

After checking every adventurer in the Fourth Layer once more and confirming that there were no other unexpected developments, Luo Ao shifted his attention back to the Ironblood Thorns Squad. They were the strongest adventurer squad he had encountered since the dungeon appeared.

Luo Ao had to keep watch over them the entire time.

Fifth Layer.

Accompanied by the crisp sound of iron boots stepping on stone slabs, Aik was the first to emerge from the passage. What greeted his eyes was a sapphire-like lake, surrounded by stretches of emerald grassland, with dense forests and mountains in the distance.

Looking up, he saw that the sky overhead was formed entirely from brilliant crystals, giving off a gentle glow. Compared to the Venomous Swamp of the Fourth Layer, this place was practically paradise on earth.

"What rich magic and natural elements."

Mary, who followed close behind, sensed the gentle magic and natural elements filling the surroundings the moment she stepped into the Fifth Layer. A smile unconsciously appeared on her lovely face, and her entire body relaxed somewhat.

"Captain, it looks like this layer has a pretty nice environment."

Ulag lifted his visor and swept his gaze over the surroundings. There were signs of monster activity in the grass, while the lake ahead held a large number of fish. He silently began assessing the area. The environment was suitable, resources were plentiful, and no dangerous monsters had been found for the time being.

It was a pretty good layer for resting and resupplying.

"Ghost, scout the surrounding area and eliminate any dangers. The rest of you, come with me. Find a suitable spot. We'll rest here for the night first."

It had been nearly half a day since they entered the dungeon. Their continuous exploration and battles had not caused the Ironblood Thorns Squad any losses, and the powerful physiques of high-level adventurers still left them full of energy.

But since they had found a suitable place, Aik felt that resting for a night was a good idea.

Before long, Aik and the others stopped on a patch of grass a hundred meters from the lake. They took tents out of the Alchemy Expansion Bag. Aik and Ulag were responsible for setting them up, while Ross set up a pot to cook, taking out the meat of the Swamp Python they had brought from the Fourth Layer.

As high-level adventurers, they needed to replenish large amounts of nutrients every day to meet their bodies' needs. Magical beast meat infused with magic was an excellent ingredient.

Moreover, eating magical beast meat could strengthen the body. Ordinary adventurers could only improve their various attributes by raising their professional skill levels and advancing their classes, just as monsters awakened their racial bloodlines upon reaching adulthood.

Although most humans possessed no bloodline to speak of, when adventurers advanced, their physical attributes grew stronger according to their class.

This was how most adventurers became stronger: continuously honing their professional skills and advancing into higher-level adventurer classes. That was the path of human adventurers.

However, adventurers did not belong solely to humans.

"Aik, I'm going to get some water from the lake."

After lighting the fire, Ross glanced at the water skin, which was already half empty. He raised a hand to call out to Aik, who was setting up a tent, then headed toward the lake a hundred meters away.

Because it was close by and there was no danger nearby, Aik and the others were unconcerned.

Walking across the soft grass, with air carrying the fragrance of fresh greenery drifting past his nose, Ross felt especially good. Compared with the terrible environment of the Fourth Layer, the picturesque scenery of the Fifth Layer was a delight. Humming an unknown tune, he relaxed completely and crouched beside the lake to fill the water skin.

"Such a nice place. If I get the chance, I should bring some ladies here and play some beautiful ballads. I could probably win their hearts quite easily."

Looking at the life-filled forest in the distance, Ross smiled. As a bard, leaving affection everywhere was practically second nature to him. In fact, he had kept something from the teammates he spent every day with.

Over the years of his adventures, he had actually been writing a book called The Grand Appraisal of Nonhuman Races. It now contained his experiences and impressions of eighty individuals from different races.

Ross planned to submit it to a publisher once he had filled it with appraisal records of one hundred different races. Like the legendary bards of old, he would write a story that belonged to him.

If he could advance to Legend in the future, he even wanted to follow in that predecessor's footsteps and travel to the abyss, the void, and other worlds to appraise even more races.

Splash~

Ripples spread across the tranquil lake. Ross, who was filling his water skin while dreaming of the future, did not notice the small anomaly. Beneath the surface, a massive sphere of water was slowly approaching him. It was the same color as the lake water, and without a careful look, it was impossible to spot.