Expanding Territory, Gaining a New Dungeon

The clash of swords and flesh, the howls of wolves and the roars of monsters, the fierce avengers and the miserable killers.

With all these elements combined, even a poorly written script will attract an audience, not to mention that the Image Stone records a visual feast.

Of course, the special effects were mostly provided by Doslai Bo. This guy's body kept changing and changing, and he managed to turn physical mutation into a cool magic.

Da Er's performance in this battle can be summarized as: slash once, dodge once, slash again, dodge again, and repeat this cycle.

Although his "dodging" wasn't like the undead rolling around on the ground, but rather a more elegant dodging style similar to that of Yharnam Hunter, in essence, there was no difference.

These Image Stone, which record images of battles, suddenly appeared in the streets and alleys of Bede City.

All who witnessed it were terrified by Doslai Bo's terror and amazed by Da Er's exquisite martial arts skills. When someone recognized Doslai Bo as the demon who had controlled the City of Flesh that day, everyone looked at Da Er with respect.

The video quickly spread throughout the city, and people were playing it at every gathering point.

Someone even created a magic amplification device to magnify this hopeful image again and again, turning it into a giant screen covering the entire city's sky, so that you could see it as soon as you looked up, and every single hair could be seen clearly!

Da Er stood outside the city, looking up, when he saw himself on the giant screen, he threw his head back and howled.

He felt like the sky was falling.

It didn't matter if people saw the fight; he even thought he fought pretty cool.

But, but...

Why do my own howls sound less and less like a wolf's howl?

On the contrary, it seems more like a relative of some kind of wolf!

I didn't realize how embarrassing my howling was until I saw the video.

Just as he was brainstorming, the image of himself let out another howl, this time exceptionally loud and clear, his beautiful voice echoing throughout the entire Bede City.

"Pfft—" Someone couldn't help but burst out laughing.

In that instant, Da Er wanted to die.

More and more laughter rang out in Bede City. Everyone was so engrossed in the battle that even if they sensed something was off about Da Er's wolf howl, they kept quiet about it.

As a result, someone started laughing, and everyone realized that they weren't the only ones who felt something was wrong. So everyone stopped holding back, and the place seemed to turn into a sea of joy. Even Malu joined in the laughter, while only Da Er was overwhelmed by the waves and didn't know what to do.

He suddenly squatted down and started digging his fingers into the floor tiles.

"What are you doing?" Malu asked with a laugh.

"I want to find a hole to crawl into."

"Drilling through a hole? Forget about it for the rest of your life!"

A sinister smile suddenly appeared on Malu's lips as she shouted to the crowd, "Hey everyone, the main character is over here!"

The bustling crowd immediately turned around and stared at Da Er.

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Da Er's cheek. He forced a smile and raised his hand to greet the people.

Wow!

In the blink of an eye, the crowd had completely surrounded him. The change was too sudden. He was able to react to Dosleby's violent attack, but he didn't see clearly when people had arrived beside him.

A commotion erupted around him that was even louder than a celebration!

"Handsome guy, I want an autograph, an autograph!" A girl tore a piece of fabric off her skirt and squeezed it in front of Da Er.

"Thank you for killing the demons. My brother died in Val City," someone sobbed, wiping away tears.

Da Er was somewhat at a loss; this was the first time he had ever been surrounded by so many people.

Just then, Malu's voice suddenly came from the crowd, but no one could see her anywhere.

"How about we toss the hero up in the air? Let's celebrate!"

"Why?"

Without a word, people tossed the bewildered Da Er into the air, and cheers erupted.

As he went up and down, his expression went from bewilderment to unease to numbness, and he gradually got used to the feeling.

When you're tossed up in the air, it seems like the sky is right in front of you. As you go up and down, the sounds of people rise and fall. It's a really wonderful feeling, as if the whole world is changing because of you.

Once again, he was thrown to the highest point and looked in the direction of the Zane Dungeon.

For him, that was the starting point where his destiny changed.

The events in Val City were inevitable. He would definitely go there after hearing that Doslai Bo was also there. If he hadn't entered the Zane Dungeon, hadn't received the Wolf's Blood inheritance, hadn't learned the martial arts of the Farron Undead Legion, hadn't...

Then he will definitely be the one to die, and his revenge will absolutely not succeed.

It's no exaggeration to say that the Zane Dungeon changed his fate.

Thank you, Zane Dungeon.

Da Er silently thanked Sain, and suddenly thought to himself:

How many more people's futures will be changed because of Sain?

Change someone else's future.

This topic sounds a bit heavy, at least for Gong Qiying, whose purpose has always been singular—

"Create more dungeon designs that make people happy!"

The Lord's Room in the Zane Dungeon.

When Gong Qiying said those words, the Gide Kid raised his metal hands and clapped vigorously, looking almost like he was in awe.

On this celebratory night, Gong Qiying wanted to go outside and join in the fun, but was instead called over by Gide.

The purpose, of course, was to discuss what to do next, such as the reward for requesting rescue.

On this topic, Gide was very firm. He insisted on passing on the Val Dungeon to Gong Qiying so that he could happily leave behind the responsibilities left by the creator and embrace the carefree void.

Alchemical life forms are always flawed, and Gide's flaws manifest as his aversion to dungeons and his self-destructive tendencies, which are somewhat similar to those of his creator, Kirici.

Once the city lord's authority is handed over, it's a death sentence. Both Kirici and Gide understand this, but they think it's a relief to be rid of a heavy burden, and they're overjoyed.

Being trapped in a dark and sunless dungeon with no way out is an unbearable burden for life.

Not all city lords were as fortunate as Gong Qiying to obtain a way to go out. In Kirici's time, the Corpse Rebirth Technique had not yet been developed.

Sometimes Gong Qiying wondered if he hadn't obtained the Corpse Rebirth Technique and had been trapped in the dungeon, would he eventually become as disgusted with this place as Kirici?

Probably not. If he gets really bored, he can Mimicry as Patch and kick adventurers around. Life will find its own way to relieve boredom.

Gide acted decisively; he simply didn't want to live anymore, but Gong Qiying was a little reluctant to let him go.

Besides basic sympathy, the reason he was reluctant to part with him was also because he regretted losing the knowledge in Gide's mind. Kidd knew a lot of things, and if he died, all of that would be lost.

Gide's response was:

"You can leave my memories behind; they are stored in a crystal, which you can view at any time by infusing it with magic if you wish."

Well, Gong Qiying couldn't find a reason to keep him.

"It's so rare to find someone to talk to," he sighed.

People outside can talk too, but it's always a different feeling from Gide does. The two are each other's Dungeon Lord, so communicating with them feels much more enjoyable.

When communicating with outsiders, he is sometimes asked about his past experiences. At that time, Gong Qiying had to make up his own persona, which was very tiring.

Gide's mind was made up, and a hint of ease could be heard in his mechanical voice.

"Don't worry, Lord Godwyn, perhaps we will meet again in the future."

Are you trying to curse me to death?

[You have received a permission transfer request from the Dungeon Lord. Do you accept?]

Gong Qiying's hand hovered over the interface. He looked at Gide and asked, "Aren't you going to reconsider?"

"No," Gide shook his round body, mimicking a human shaking his head. "Killing the demons who defiled the Val Dungeon is my last wish, and this is the most suitable reward for you."

Gong Qiying didn't say anything more; he pressed accept.

You have acquired the Val Dungeon as an affiliated dungeon.

The City Lord Panel has been updated, and a new [Val] has been added next to [Sein], allowing you to manage the two separately.

A miniature model of the Val Dungeon appeared before Gong Qiying, where Scarlet Corruption and Frenzied Flame grew rampantly, seemingly enjoying themselves immensely, something they hadn't had time to clean up since annihilating the demon race.

With a wave of his hand, Gong Qiying caused the original design of the Val Dungeon to vanish along with the corruption and Frenzied Flame. Even the Frenzied Flame, which could burn down the world, had to absolutely obey its creator.

He looked back at Gide, who was no longer moving. The parts that were connected by magic were scattered all over the ground, and the alchemical soul that drove him had completely disappeared, leaving only an empty shell.

But this empty shell still held a pale blue crystal in its two hands, which contained all his knowledge. It was the second reward he gave to Gong Qiying, besides the Val Dungeon.

Faintly legible characters were engraved on the crystal:

[We hope you can design a dungeon that makes everyone happy.]

Gong Qiying pursed his lips, carefully picked up the crystal, and stroked the cool crystal as he said:

"I hope you can be reborn into a free world. I was able to travel here, so it's not surprising that you can too."

Please, whatever you do, don't get transported to some weird or strange world, like Warhammer Death Space.

The Living Dead felt a faint sadness, but it only lasted until he carefully collected the shell that Gide had left behind.

When he sat on the Shrine, holding a miniature model of the underground city in his hand, he transformed back into Gong Qiying volunteered to bring "smiles" to people.

"Let me see how the Val Dungeon should be designed. It seems to have great potential."

A brand new Val Dungeon is about to appear in people's view.