Brass Woman / Fang Huo Nv

Surrounded by dangerous monsters, someone suddenly appears and calls you over?

Generally speaking, the person who appears in this situation is unlikely to be a bad person, right?

After all, the doorway where the woman who looked like she was wearing Brass Armor was located was quite large; it seemed that even Giant Guards could easily bend down and enter.

It's unlikely that someone would take such a big risk to greet her just for a pittance. So far, it seems that only Patch would deliberately trick people among the afterimages we've encountered.

"So, she must be a good person."

Crouching on the observation deck where she was first thrown down by the Bat Monster, Elsa was reviewing her actions and finally came to a conclusion that made her ashamed.

As for why she returned to where the dream began, it's because she died once.

Unfortunately, when the Brass Woman appeared, she hesitated, and this hesitation gave the enemy an opportunity. The Giant Guards swarmed her and chopped her into mincemeat.

Thankfully, there's a campfire in the Zane Dungeon where you can resurrect. If that mangled mess had been teleported directly to the Resurrection Room, he probably would have won the Best Way to Die award this year.

Since the Zane Dungeon Incident, the winner of the Best Way to Die trophy has been highly controversial, mainly because new ideas emerge every day.

Elsa dusted herself off and mentally reviewed the various scenes she had encountered during her parkour run. She ultimately decided to take a steady and methodical approach to clear out the monsters this time.

Currently, the distance from where she ran to the woman in the Brass Armor is not far, and this distance is obviously not enough for the Giant Guards to give up the pursuit, nor is it certain whether the Brass Woman has any means to stop the Giant Guards.

Elsa stretched her limbs, feeling troubled at the thought of having to fight countless Giant Guards next.

It seems like I'm losing interest in fighting lately.

She descended the stairs, fought fiercely to defeat the Giant Guards who descended from the sky, and then engaged in a battle with two more Giant Guards who arrived later. By the time she had finally eliminated all the enemies at the start, she was already feeling sore back, aching legs, and cramps.

The Giant Guards dropped high-level Forging Stone, and occasionally even humanoid items. Elsa tossed them all into a corner.

After doing all this, she finally had time to rest and look around the spacious room.

If you had to describe what this place felt like to her, it would be grand, even more impressive than Anzi III's Royal Palace, but it lacked a sense of human presence, feeling like a desolate, ghost town.

I didn't feel it when I was fighting the giant guards, but now that I'm here alone, a feeling of loneliness quickly wells up in my heart, followed by an indescribable sorrow.

"This statue is, um, what's it called again?"

At the far end of the room, she found a tall statue, probably as tall as four or five of her stacked together.

It was a knight wearing lion armor, his entire body carved from some unknown material that looked like stone, exquisite and imposing. The only difference was the long spear in his hand, which was not made of stone and looked like it could actually be used.

"Oh right, his name is Ornstein."

Elsa looked at the statue of Ornstein, then suddenly walked down to it and jumped twice, reaching for the spear in the statue's hand.

She only snapped out of her daze when she grasped the spear, which was far too large for her. She slapped her hand that had been touching the spear, her face slightly flushed, and said, "What was I thinking? I actually wanted to take the spear and use it myself."

Perhaps influenced by Lu Lu Wo's shrewish nature of never missing an opportunity, Lu Lu Wo often brings along an intern who specializes in collecting odds and ends when entering dungeons, and she takes along anything unusual she sees.

However, if the entire statue could be brought back, Princess Serena, who is rumored to be fond of Sen, would probably spend a lot of money to acquire it.

Continuing forward, when she encountered the three Giant Guards lined up in rows, Elsa used a simple, roundabout tactic, and after quite a bit of effort, she finally managed to get past them.

She's having such a hard time, what will happen to the others who come here?

Dying in the Painting World would leave behind images of death, and she wanted to die as little as possible, absolutely not wanting to leave behind a wretched image for those who came after her.

The side doorway of the open space was where the Brass Woman had peeked out earlier. Walking over, it turned out that you had to walk down a distance. On the other side, behind the three Giant Guards, there was a spacious hall with no way to go.

At this point, she chose to explore the hall, which had no other way out, before going to find the Brass Woman, so that she wouldn't have to come back, saving time and effort.

Inside the hall, there was another familiar statue, Smough. The hammer in its hand was not a sculpture; it looked like a weapon that could be used normally. Unfortunately, Elsa couldn't take it off.

"There's a treasure chest!"

Two treasure chests were located on either side of the Smough statue. Elsa was pleasantly surprised and paid special attention to the appearance of the chests.

Lu Lu Wo once shared her experience that to tell if a treasure chest is Treasure Chest Monster, you only need to look at the direction the chains on it are facing. If they are facing inward, it's a real Treasure Chest Monster.

"This chain faces inwards; it's a real treasure chest."

Inside is a Giant Guard Greatshield.

Elsa looked at the Greatshield that was taller than her, and fell silent.

The size of the weapons and equipment produced by Sion is sometimes adjusted to fit the size of the recipient, but occasionally there are those that are still unacceptable after the adjustment, like the current Greatshield and Smough's Hammer.

Since things have come to this, let's take a look at the treasure chest next to us. The chain on this treasure chest is also facing inwards. We've really been lucky this time.

She bent down, grabbed the edge of the treasure chest, and suddenly lifted it upwards!

The sharp teeth and slippery tongue inside the treasure chest pounced on her face; this thing was a Treasure Chest Monster!

When Elsa was caught off guard and Treasure Chest Monster's mouth to be chewed up, Elsa only thought was: relying on experience is not a good idea!

Returning to where the dream began, Elsa fought the six Giant Guards again, her expression numb. She ran over and tore the Treasure Chest Monster to pieces, obtaining the Crystal Halberd.

Next, it's time to go find the Brass Woman.

"Clang clang clang—"

The Giant Guard Greatshield and Crystal Halberd dragged along the steps, making a clanging sound on each step. The sound even made the Brass Woman at the bottom, who was striking a cool pose, tilt her head.

What are you doing?

From her perspective, a Greatshield floated over, stumbling along. Upon closer inspection, she realized that Elsa was holding the Greatshield up behind it.

Elsa's little face peeked out from behind the Greatshield and asked:

"Can we exchange some supplies?"

A moment later, the Greatshield and Crystal Halberd were left in a corner. Elsa, standing in front of the burning campfire, counted the five-drink Element Bottle and various sizes of green grass. She looked touched and said to the Brass Woman, "You are a good person."

"In principle, I generally do not accept any transaction requests."

The Brass Woman shook her head, her tone tinged with helplessness.

"I didn't expect there would be pilgrims here. Undead warrior, if you keep going, you will reach your destination, the original castle of Lord Gwyn. If you are a true Brave, you should be able to receive the revelation there. As for what happens after that, that depends on your fate."

Elsa hung the Element Bottle on her waist, thinking that people in the Painting World seemed to regard her, an outsider, as an immortal. However, she didn't think there was any problem with that. After all, as long as her spirit didn't weaken, she could indeed be considered "immortal" in the Painting World.

Unexpectedly, there was a campfire here. Finally, I don't have to go back to the beginning and fight the Giant Guards again after dying. Moreover, the brass lady here is a good person. She actually accepted my request to exchange my Greatshield and Crystal Halberd for supplies.

But does going in from here really lead to the legendary castle of Gwyn, the Sunlight King? Why do the people here call Gwyn" the Great King"? It feels like a secular title.

Elsa decided to ask about the other person's identity.

"Me?" the Brass Woman said. "Yes, I am the guardian of the campfire here. Perhaps you can call me the Fang Huo Nv."

"Fang Huo Nv?" Elsa repeated the unfamiliar term.

This seems to be the first time adventurers have encountered the title "Fang Huo Nv".

"My mission is to keep this campfire burning. As long as the Fang Huo Nv is here, the fire will not go out easily." The Brass Woman looked at her and said, "Even this abandoned castle needs someone to guide the Brave. You may not understand, but I think it's not a bad thing to see the Brave off to accept the trials."

What you mean by guidance is simply telling people to keep moving forward, which is surprisingly simple and straightforward.

Elsa thought to herself, then asked, "Why is it called an abandoned castle?"

"You know nothing?" The Brass Woman's tone was tinged with doubt, but she still dutifully explained, "Ever since Lord Gwyn took away the Soul of King and abandoned everything to link the First Flame, Anor Londo has gradually declined. The gods left, the heroes departed, and it has gradually become what it is now."

"Was Gwyn's influence really that great? Did everything change in Anor Londo the moment he left?" Elsa couldn't help but exclaim, still having doubts.

"What do you mean by Apocalypse and Trials?"

The Brass Woman shook her head and said, "It's not my duty to reveal information here. If you can't pass the trial, then knowing what the Apocalypse is is meaningless. As for the content of the trial..."

She paused, then continued:

"I believe you've already seen the notification on your way."

Hint?

Elsa thought for a moment, then her face darkened.

"Could it be..."

When the Brass Woman looked up, did the child guess it?

"Could it be Legion of Giant Guards?!" Elsa exclaimed in surprise.

"."

The Brass Woman fell silent, then shook her head, feeling both amused and helpless.

"If you feel tired, come back to the campfire to rest. After all, the campfire was set up for this kind of duty."

She then leaned against the wall and struck a cool pose, as if she had nothing more to say.

Elsa couldn't think of anything to say. If it were someone else with a restless heart, they might have tried to attack the other person, but unfortunately, she wouldn't do that.

After making some repairs, she took the Element Bottle she had obtained and headed in the direction indicated by the Brass Woman.

"Are you about to set off? Good luck." The Brass Woman's voice came from behind. Elsa didn't turn around, but waved her hand. She thought that the gesture she was making right now must look really cool.

"I hope you can help him."

She thought she heard the Brass Woman mutter something, but she couldn't make it out. When she turned around again, the woman had already switched back to her cool mode.

That's settled then.

Following the route indicated by the Brass Woman, we ascended, and the scenery opened up again. Bathed in a twilight-like glow, we descended via an elevator.

The castle at the very center of the Leyndell, which had been seen from the watchtower, came into view. A straight road stretched forward, but it did not directly connect to the castle. Instead, at the end of the road, there was a mechanism resembling a rotating elevator.

Standing on the edge of the continent and taking a closer look, she understood why the rotating elevator mechanism existed: the castle was so tall and large that it needed such a mechanism to connect the various roads.

Elsa had a premonition that she would get completely disoriented by this mechanism; just looking at it from here seemed troublesome enough.

But I still have to say, as expected, what you see in the Zane Dungeon is what you get; you can eventually get past everything you can see.

What's even more troublesome is that a [Gargoyle of the Bell Tower] is blatantly loitering on the road in front of us. Just one glance is enough to tell that this guy is much stronger than the kind that appeared in the Swamp Area before. It is several times larger in size, comparable to the Hero Gargoyle of the Elden Ring.

On the edge of the road, there was a Gargoyle waiting for a ghost.

Elsa's clenched fist loosened again.

"Why don't I have magic?"

Having the ability to become invisible and Cast Sound would make the exploration much easier. I miss Luo Jieer's episode the most.

Why not try to persuade the Brass Woman to help him fight the Gargoyle?

To be fair, the previous Giant Guards had already made her completely unwilling to fight anymore, let alone two more Gargoyle.

Elsa suddenly realized something, walked towards the edge of the road, and muttered to herself, "You can actually jump down from here."

The road wasn't entirely "cliffs" on either side; there were actually places to stand at the beginning. She jumped down and then focused her gaze on the roof beams.

The buildings in Anor Londo are crammed together, with numerous narrow beams connecting each roof, each only wide enough for one person to pass through.

"Perhaps I can bypass the Gargoyle by going through the roof beams?"

Thinking this, Elsa walked onto the nearest roof beam and eventually arrived at another castle, being wary of something the whole way.

Because Saen liked to place knights who shot greatbows in such narrow places.

Fortunately, there wasn't one there, and she made it across unharmed.

"It's alright, it's alright."

"Bang--"

Before she could even catch her breath and assess her surroundings, the glass window she was leaning against suddenly shattered, and an enemy shrouded in a white robe burst out and grabbed her, pulling her inside the building.

At that moment, her heart rate must have definitely exceeded 100.

Driven by instinct, Elsa swung her sword to counterattack, but the white enemy seemed exceptionally agile, dodging the sweeping sword of the Sword Remains Greatsword with a backflip and throwing several Flying Dagger like Ninja.

"What agile movements!"

Elsa tried her best to dodge, but was still grazed by the Flying Dagger. Fortunately, the blade was not poisoned.

The enemy that appears here is called the [Painting Messenger].

These agile enemies have always been a headache for Elsa, but it's not so bad if there's only one enemy.

"When!"

Just as she was thinking this, she suddenly heard a whooshing sound from the side. Instinctively, she spun her sword and blocked the Flying Dagger that was aimed at her.

Are there still enemies?

Elsa stopped speaking abruptly when she saw the scene before her clearly.

The number of Painting Messenger was neither one nor two.

She was on the top floor of a spacious hall, a place made up of countless beams, where a slight misstep could send her plummeting to her death.

On these intricate beams, at each intersection stands a Painting Messenger, creating a scene resembling white waves.

Some of the Painting Messenger, in order to show off their skills, repeatedly jumped across the various roof beams.

"."

Elsa took a deep breath, her hands trembling slightly, and muttered to herself:

"No wonder Anor Londo is in decline; who would want to live in this hellish place?"

This is the first famous landmark in Anor Londo, which Gong Qiying named:

The Painting Messenger and the roof beam.

Anor Londo is vast, but the Painting World is small. Gong Qiying tried his best to shorten the journey and bring together famous attractions!