Blood Stone Shard

"That's all there is to it."

Fan En gritted his teeth, disregarding whether his companions could handle the massive amount of information, and recounted what he had just witnessed at lightning speed.

Absolutely no personal speculation was added!

After he finished speaking, he looked up.

Very good, we have seen nine victims who made eye contact with Medusa.

A few minutes later, someone finally came to their senses, and their body, which had been as stiff as a stone sculpture, began to move, though they still spoke haltingly.

"You mean, the person we just hit was the little girl's father?"

Fan En nodded.

"."

The man looked up at the sky, quickly rubbed his face twice, and after a moment of silence, sighed:

"What a tragedy!"

Clang!

Someone suddenly fell to the ground, their eyes vacant, as if their soul had wandered off somewhere.

Some people's expressions kept changing, like a TV that was constantly changing channels.

Some people couldn't help but sigh and shake their heads, repeatedly saying that the dungeon was inhuman.

Fan En recognized the person who had fallen; it was the one he had personally rescued and brought into the Zane Dungeon to grow into a hunter.

The first thing he did after successfully becoming a hunter through blood therapy was to go back and kill his mother, who was severely infected by the parasite and had become a walking corpse. According to him, his other family members were killed by his infected mother.

Looking at it this way, it seems that the things that happened in the little girl's family match his experiences exactly?

Later, he sought out a survivor who knew a rudimentary form of forgetting magic, hoping to erase this memory. However, judging from his current state, he probably didn't forget it, or perhaps the sight of the scene triggered his memories again.

Bell was Shattered Step around in circles, his aged face showing anxiety and worry, constantly muttering, "How am I going to go back and tell them now?"

Looking at people's reactions, Fan En suddenly realized something he hadn't noticed.

The little girl's actions seemed to have a far greater impact on her peers than she had imagined.

Because they experienced the parasite disaster, these survivors actually suffered severe psychological trauma; they just pretended to be normal people in their daily lives.

The most compelling proof is that the Spirit Power they are currently releasing is almost twice that of a normal person of equal strength!

If Gong Qiying were to specifically target adventurers with psychological trauma, he might be able to double the dungeon's revenue. It's just a pity that you might not encounter people with psychological trauma in normal times, and such thoughts are just too hellish. If the Hell March were lucky enough to wear his clothes, they would have an instant orgasm.

The fact that so many people with psychological trauma, like Reed, are appearing in clusters is truly unique, like a scene from a movie where a drug addict goes to the toilet.

Fan En's parents had passed away before the parasite disaster broke out, leaving only his sister Yi Sha as his family. Therefore, he did not lose any loved ones in this disaster and naturally did not have the same profound feelings as others.

On the other hand, given his father's skills in life, even if Fan En dies, his father probably won't.

After those who knew the truth had calmed down for a while, Fan En asked:

Should we continue?

I have a feeling that people's mentality becomes less suited to fighting after this battle.

I'm tired.

"I want to leave, I want to leave."

"Completely boring."

Sure enough, everyone was at a loss for how to proceed.

"Then let's rest here and enjoy the dinner prepared by Miss Doll before going out," Fan En said helplessly.

The meals prepared by the Doll only appear every night, and the quantity is not large, just enough to keep people from being hungry. However, the extraordinary deliciousness can bring people the greatest comfort, which leads people to come and freeload every night.

Fan En was looking for an empty spot to lie down and rest, but the area around the super popular Doll lady was already packed with people, and even he couldn't ask people to make room for him.

But just then, he saw Bell still Shattered Step around in circles, and couldn't help but shake his head. He walked over and asked, "It's time to rest, Ms. Bell."

"Ah."

Bell seemed to wake from a dream or be startled. She looked at Fan En and asked with a distressed expression, "Tell me, how sad the little girl must be to hear this news."

Although she knew she should be understanding and offer gentle words of comfort at this moment, Fan En didn't want Bell to get too deeply involved, so she said directly:

"Theoretically speaking, after the afterimage has given enough information, it will fall into a certain dialogue loop. If we don't tell the little girl this news, she will remain in the same state forever. You don't have to worry about her finding out the news elsewhere and being heartbroken. As long as we do nothing, she won't be any more heartbroken."

The sorrowful look on Bell's face faded. She stared at Fan En for a moment, then sighed helplessly and said:

"Fan En, did Yi Sha say that you can really ruin the mood sometimes?"

She feels like she's immersed in a tragic story, and suddenly someone jumps out and tells her that these stories are just the author's way of messing with people's minds, and if she's really sad, she's fallen into the author's trap.

How should I put it? Although it was a bit of a mood killer, it was indeed very effective, successfully awakening Bell's own rationality.

Fan En shrugged. "I was worried that your excessive grief would affect your health."

Bell tapped the ground with his cane. "Well, I really have to thank you. By the way, you still have that Ruby Brooch, right?"

"Right."

"Then you can keep it for now, but don't send it to the child."

Knowing that the little girl's story was likely to end in tragedy, she didn't want to know what happened next, at least not now. The lives of survivors were already miserable enough, and she really didn't want to add to her already unpleasant mood.

Speaking of the Ruby Brooch, Fan En took it out and examined it closely. The more he looked at the beautiful blood-red gem, the more unusual it seemed. When he got closer, he could almost smell a bloody odor, but it was definitely not the odor from a woman's corpse; it was the gem's own.

A tiny Messengers suddenly appeared at his feet, waving its thin arms to attract his attention.

"You want this?"

Fan En handed the Ruby Brooch to the Messengers, who did something he never expected—he simply removed the ruby from the brooch and rubbed it!

This startled him; these were the little girl's mother's belongings. Although he didn't want to tell the little girl, was it really appropriate to just open them?

The Messengers handed over a shrunken ruby, which Fan En took and his eyes lit up.

Blood Stone Shard

[Solid fragments formed in dead blood; a certain component of blood coagulates after death, and the part that does not crystallize is called bloodstone.]

In the workshop, hunters enhance their weapons by embedding bloodstone into them.

Upgrade weapons?

Fan En couldn't help but look at the Saw Cleaver in his hand. This was the first time he had obtained something like Blood Stone Shard, and the first time he had known that weapons could be enhanced.

But these were the little girl's mother's belongings.

After a fierce internal struggle, Fan En finally made a decision that might cost him -1 merit point.

Not long after, he stepped out of the workshop and examined the Saw Cleaver, which had been reinforced with bloodstone, by the moonlight.

"Why can't I see any difference?"

But the feel of swinging it seemed really different from before, even the sound of it cutting through the air was more pleasant, as if the Saw Cleaver itself was also rejoicing.

Learning of the little girl's family's tragedy, I gained Blood Stone Shard that can enhance weapons, and the little girl's mother's Ruby Brooch might respawn every time I enter the dungeon.

Fan En didn't know whether to show a happy or sad expression at this moment. Could it be that from now on, everyone who wants to upgrade their weapons will have to steal from the little girl's mother's corpse?

"I'm going to be driven crazy by this dungeon sooner or later."

He muttered something to himself, then suddenly realized something.

"Crazy?"

On the other side, people smelled the aroma of the food provided by the Doll, and their low spirits lifted. Just as they were about to gather around, they suddenly saw Fan En, with a serious expression, blocking their way.

"From now on, we should use fewer of the old exercise methods."

The training method he was referring to was, of course, to first get himself addicted to hunting and then use the process of leveling up to overcome the addiction.

"The little girl's father, Gascoigne, suggests that the cost of an obsession with hunting may be far more severe than we imagine."

His tone was quite serious, without a trace of ease.

A few moments later, the dinner freeloading time came to an end.

People gradually emerged from the underground city, and some people from nearby shelters would come over for a meal. Now, the parasites in the Fishing Port District have been mostly cleared out, and there is basically no danger on the road if you are careful.

Fan En and his group also came out. Among the group of people patting their bellies in satisfaction, their expressions were particularly serious.

"Brother, you're finally out."

Yi Sha ran over carrying a thick stack of drafts.

"Yi Sha? You've come at the right time. Gather everyone—"

"I've already figured out how to design the roads to lure the monsters from the other two areas over!"

Before Fan En could finish speaking, all his attention was drawn to the draft that Yi Sha handed him.

"It's been designed so quickly!?" He was shocked and couldn't believe it.

"Hmph, your sister is a super genius." Yi Sha put her hands on her hips and raised her little face. "And you also deserve credit for finding such comprehensive information, brother. You've really been a great help."

"Yi Sha, it's so good to have you here."

Fan En flipped through the draft, which marked which existing streets could be utilized, where terrain modifications were needed, and where extra attention should be paid. It was indeed a very comprehensive plan!

"Very good."

He clenched his fists, a triumphant glint in his eyes.

"Get everyone up, it's time for some big work!"