A Day of Sudden Upheaval

"Why does the boss look so gloomy?"

"I think," Malu's expression seemed to be on the verge of breaking down, "If you got the reward the boss received, you'd become like that too."

Te Er scratched his head and muttered to himself, "I really can't imagine the boss fighting with that thing."

"Knock knock."

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the imminent closure of the Zane Dungeon.

The Exploration Team felt that the day was exceptionally long, as if they had been in the dungeon for several years. The various disgusting monsters and traps were exhausting, and the days seemed to drag on forever.

The thought of finally being able to go back and rest brought a long sigh of relief to everyone.

"I don't want to come down here for at least another week," Si Telan, looking exhausted.

The Flame Monk shouted enthusiastically, "What are you saying? You have a destiny with the Fire God, you should come down here every day!"

Si Telan gave him a look that said he was an idiot.

Luo Jieer stroked the Poké Ball in his hand, grinning foolishly. Pei Li held the scroll, on the verge of tears. The Holy Light Knight looked at the cross with complicated eyes, but ultimately decided to take it back.

As the final bell rang, the adventurers' figures gradually faded into the distance.

A cacophony of sounds reached their ears, and when they opened their eyes again, they were back in the outside world. The sky was dark, and the cold moonlight shone on the ancient city, but it was no match for the city lights.

The area around the portal was unusually lively, but it was anything but harmonious.

Looking around, people were arguing; the two sides arguing were undoubtedly the adventurers and the guards of the Bede Family.

"Why should we inspect our spoils? Even Earl doesn't have that right!" the adventurer shouted.

The guard held up a piece of paper and said, "The new decree grants the Bede Family the right to priority purchase of ores from the Zane Dungeon. I don't care about your other gains, but you must hand over the ores."

"I'd rather sell to other merchants than to you!"

"Heh," the guard chuckled, "Go ahead and go find one. If you can find a merchant in Bede City willing to buy ore, I'll kneel down and apologize to you."

"What do you mean!"

The adventurers exchanged glances. They had only been in the dungeon for a day, so why did it seem like something had changed so much after they came out?

What exactly is Count Philip doing?

At this time, miners belonging to the Bede Family came out one after another. Five or six hundred people went in, but less than one hundred returned. However, the remaining people all had something to show for it.

The guards stopped arguing with the adventurers and instead shouted at the miners, ordering them to hurry up and hand over the supplies.

The atmosphere at the scene froze for a moment, and people rushed back to the city, wanting to find out what had happened.

Si Telan frowned as she watched the farce unfold, muttering to herself, "The Bede Family never acted like this before, how could they change so suddenly?"

Luo Jieer curled a contemptuous smile, his gaze at the guards somewhat amused.

Leon patted Si Telan on the shoulder and said, "Let's go to the guild first. Mr. Sid must know something."

This time the guards did not stop them, and the group quickly returned to the guild, where staff informed them that Sid had been waiting for them.

Pushing open the conference room door, Sid turned around, opened his arms, and smiled gentlemanly, "Welcome back. The stars tell me you will all have a very fruitful day."

"We've certainly gained a lot; we've cleared the Zane Dungeon,"

Sid gave a knowing look, waved his hand, and the instruments on both sides of the room began to play automatically. Glasses of bright red wine flew to everyone's faces, and he raised his glass first, saying, "Such an important moment deserves a proper celebration. Thank you all for your hard work!"

"We can talk about the celebration later," Leon said, his brow furrowed. "Mr. Sid, what happened today? What's the situation with the Bede Family?"

Sid downed his wine in one gulp, put down his glass, and said casually, "What else could it be? It's nothing more than greed being awakened, leading to an irrational decision."

"You may not know, Count Philip only returned to Bed yesterday from the Leyndell, bringing back His Majesty the King's orders and a dazzling array of treasures. Upon his return, he issued several new orders, just like the ones you see today,"

There are three commands:

One rule is that members of the Bede Family have priority to enter the Zane Dungeon, and others are not allowed to resist.

Secondly, the Bede Family has the right of first refusal to purchase the ores produced in the Zane Dungeon. However, the merchants in the city have all been dealt with, and no one dares to buy the ores, which means they can only sell to the Bede Family.

Thirdly, an entrance fee will be levied on adventurers entering the dungeon, with a monthly tax based on the number of times they enter, which would amount to a considerable sum.

"Is Philip insane?" Si Telan exclaimed angrily, calling him by his name. "Doesn't he know what happens to those lords who dare to tax the dungeons?"

"He made other preparations because he knew that,"

Sid said slowly, "With the King's support, he has temporarily mobilized that elite mercenary group that only obeys the King. Judging by the time, they should arrive tomorrow."

The Holy Light Knight suddenly raised his head, a hint of surprise in his voice, and asked, "You mean that mercenary group?"

"Yes, it's them,"

Sid nodded.

"The Light Eagle Legion,"

The Bede Family mansion.

"I don't understand. My father clearly knew that what he was doing was wrong, so why did he continue to do it?"

The Third Young Master Sally, who hadn't appeared in a long time, paced back and forth in the room, his face showing obvious irritation.

"If this continues, we'll eventually be turned against by the adventurers. What good is the Light Eagle Legion? Even if they can forcibly suppress the adventurers?"

He irritably ruffled his silver hair and muttered to himself:

"Why did he lock me up? Why won't he listen to any of my opinions? I only said that workers should be given priority, I didn't say anything about levying taxes or anything. I just went to the Leyndell, why has he become like this!"

Ever since Count Philip returned from delivering the potion to the Leyndell, he seems like a completely different person. The once gentle and refined man has suddenly become short-tempered, often lashing out at those around him. Sally was locked in her room after only offering him a few words of advice, with guards standing watch at the door.

He even suspected that Count Philip had been infected by the King's strange illness!

But when they secretly had the Priest examine him, they found that my father was fine.

So what exactly triggered him?

Hero Elsa, sat obediently with her hands folded on her knees, believing that she should behave herself when Sally was angry.

Elsa can tell that the current Count Philip is neither cursed nor a demon in disguise.

If she were a demon, she would have already drawn her sword and started fighting.

As for the current situation

Elsa glanced at Sally furtively. If her friend had a change of heart and decided to use her strength to escape the predicament, she would definitely help.

I'm not good with words, but I have the strength.

At that moment, Sally suddenly said to her:

"Elsa, do you remember my previous speculation?"

Elsa nodded, and Sally continued:

"I've always been puzzled as to why the dungeon underwent this transformation. The map after the transformation isn't chaotic at all. In some aspects, such as the location of traps and the distribution of monsters, it all seems like a well-thought-out decision, as if someone is controlling everything."

"My teacher told me that all of this was because of one thing—the dungeon has its own consciousness."

"Just like the Brave's holy sword, the elven Queen's scepter, and the dwarf king's hammer, those items miraculously gained consciousness. If we consider the dungeon as an item, it might also gain a spirit-like consciousness that manages everything in the dungeon."

"If it is truly conscious, if it knows what its father did,"

Sally clenched her fist and said:

Will the rampage incident from a century ago repeat itself?

"I can only pray, pray that the dungeon's consciousness is like a newborn baby, knowing nothing, hoping it has no way of knowing what's happening in the outside world, and even more so, hoping it won't go berserk."

However, the "underground consciousness" he mentioned already knew about these messy things.

Why is today's revenue lower?

Gong Qiying played back the recording from the Crystal Ball, his expression gradually changing.