Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 241 Underground Squad
As the waves approached, Rean hoped for at least a small fortress, a small territory enough to shelter him from the wind and rain.

Perhaps this is the reason why the Thousand-Faced Dragon doesn't actually need any main quest; it's simply for survival, so it will naturally strive to acquire more.

"How are you feeling? Can you continue?"

“Okay.” Dimon took a deep breath; his injuries had mostly healed during the actual combat.

He was at least a head taller than before, and his muscles had become much stronger. Standing next to Rean, he was even looking down at him.

Long-term use of the Giant's Gloves seems to have given him some Giant traits. This is a poor man's way of cheating, using cursed items to gain access to higher bloodlines, but the side effects are also obvious: the evolutionary direction will inevitably be tilted, and the bloodline will become mixed.

"The strongest bloodline I can access is still inferior to the lowest-ranking giant. At least I can borrow more of it in the early stages." Dimon didn't seem to think it was a big deal.

Rean has already asked him to stop using it, but whether he listens or not is up to him.

Considering the high resistance of his Classic Paladin's high-level oath, there shouldn't be any major problems overall.

"I'm fine now too." Larry was in the best condition. Her equipment was incredibly tough, and her crystal pupils were becoming more and more prominent, seemingly indicating that her "race" had advanced further.

"Give me some time." No one expected that the strongest member of the team back then would now seem to have inadvertently become the worst.

The battle just now left Talia panting heavily. She was unharmed, only exhausted from the prolonged fighting.

For an assassin of the Golden Bloodline, her stamina is already quite impressive, however...
"All three monsters are still wearing heavy armor." Compared to the paladins, her condition was indeed quite poor.

Talia sighed, preparing to adjust her approach to the next battle. Perhaps her main contribution to the squad was already guiding and tracking, and they no longer needed her combat support.

Rean's expression towards Talia was also quite subtle. The difference between a true inheritor of the Heroic Spirit and a backdoorer (an ordinary warrior) was obvious.

After that incident, the Knights Squad received the inheritance (Larry gained a bloodline upgrade and the blessing of the Law Knight), and their individual progress was phenomenal.

Talia is actually making progress, but the others are so outrageous that it seems like she's standing still. In fact, her progress is quite fast.

Is there a response?

"No. Is this a good thing?" Rean looked at the blueprints and "compass" in his hand, but did not show any obvious reaction.

"Of course it's a good thing."

This impromptu class reunion was certainly not just for the knights to gather and chat; the tavern up there was clearly a better place for them.

Rean came to the dock area specifically to keep this "date".

The knights of the dock area entered the underground ruins through the underground passages of the ship graveyard, and the "magical items" they now possessed were used to scout the distance to the newly established underground town of Radiant City.

The lack of response so far is probably a good thing, indicating that the current area is already beneath the underground town, meaning this passage has higher economic value.
"Uh, it's these minotaurs! Minotaurs deserve to die!"

What we just cleared out was a group of underground minotaur monsters, a species that is somewhat similar to the Minotaur people, but is actually a completely different species on the evolutionary tree.

They are said to be descendants of an ancient god from purgatory, natural guardians of the labyrinth. Their outrageous muscle strength and labyrinthine sense of smell make them easy predators of newcomers to the dungeon.

In the narrow corner of the underground maze, a muscular minotaur suddenly appears and blocks the door, forcibly trading blows with you. In a head-on clash, a novice dies very quickly.

"Tsk, poor bastard."

For Rean and his group, these elite minotaurs, whose average combat strength was around level two or three, were probably just roadblocks that wasted their time.

Dimon and Rean are now skillfully searching people for their loot, but unfortunately, these minotaurs seem to have only recently been "born" and don't have much wealth on them.

"Some Minotaur tribes, dwarves, and gnomes collect bull horns, but the Minotaur tribe only uses horns that are ten or thirty years old or older as extraordinary materials, the dwarves use large horns to make horns and wine cups, and the gnomes collect young bull horns to make handicrafts, but the purchase price is tragically low."

As the only "veteran" in the team, Talia still used her experience to help her companions.

"Oh, isn't that a loss?"

"That's not necessarily true. These minotaurs, though newly born, look like they're over thirty. This underground ruin is really outrageous; they're already in their prime right from birth."

Watching Dimon and Rean happily harvesting materials, Talia shook her head; the knights were growing too fast.

By the time you're capable of dealing with opponents of this caliber, knowledge of loot identification should be common sense in adventures.

She looked up at the ceiling, which was about four meters high, and felt a strange sense of oppression. Even though she was used to walking in the shadows, the darkness of this underground labyrinth still made her feel uncomfortable.

Based on her experience, this place should be quite deep and not suitable for new recruits below the third rank to undergo trials.

"There are many dangerous creatures around." In a sense, this seems to be a good thing.

This means that these monsters must have been accumulating for some time, and some troublemakers seem to have given up on this exposed passage. In such a place, the "people" you encounter are far more dangerous than the monsters.

"continue?"

"Well, we'll turn back after about another day's walk."

The knights were aware of their own limitations; they were only exploring and determining the direction at the moment. Going too far would not only make them vulnerable to danger, but it was also unnecessary.

The knights once again formed their battle formation, but this time, they placed Talia, who was already showing signs of fatigue, in the center.

This time, there's no need to rush or go too far, so let's prioritize safety and chat as we walk.

Minotaur shaman, minotaur warrior, python-skinned bison, two-headed bull monster. It seems that this time they really provoked a bull's den, and were attacked by a large number of bull-like creatures.

They are generally tough and thick-skinned, but the problem is that this knight squad is best at opening all kinds of hard cans.

"Another cow? Is monster spawning here based on bloodline?"

"No, I've heard it's highly random."

That's really bad news.

Since it is not a natural distribution, it must be the result of artificial selection.

This often occurs when a high-ranking monster of equal bloodline actively summons its lower-ranking bloodlines. This is similar to the relationship between dragons and kobolds, or between a lord and his subjects.

This area may contain a fairly high-level bull-type monster, a monster lord.

"Turning Back? Our Career Pairing"

Larry believes this team is purely melee-focused and will have a hard time defeating certain high-level monsters.

"Uh, have you forgotten that I'm a mage?"

"Ah, I really forgot."

With a sigh, Rean adjusted the formation and moved to the back. After thinking for a moment, he abandoned the plan to cast support spells and prepared to use fire spells instead. His support-like abilities were basically useless against the formidable knight squad.

Now that we're here, we should naturally test the waters.

Unlike the other adventurers who dared not even breathe, the knights chatted as they fought, exchanging the latest information.

Everything is going well for Larry. Her father has given her more authority, and she is using more resources on herself and the "Weavers' Knights." Progress is evident on all sides.

Things are going very well in Dimon as well. The entire port area has entered a period of rapid development, and some small and medium-sized businessmen have already tried to invest here.

They naturally asked about Rean. Rean picked out some less sensitive topics to talk about, but when it came to the story of the previous generation's hero, it still surprised and puzzled them.

"They are far from the heroes in our stories."

"I've heard that Lord Lex is incredibly powerful, practically perfect."

"The heroes of the mainland are quite famous even in other countries."

His companions praised him highly, which made Rean feel a little overwhelmed.

He also mentioned the upcoming inheritance of heroic spirits and the kingdom's open selection of heroes.
“I want to participate,” Dimon decided instantly.

He needs fame, and he needs his strength and ability to be recognized. That means more investment and room for development. He doesn't think he can win, but this is clearly an opportunity to stand out.

“I think I’ll join Dimon and us too.” Larry thought for a moment; she wouldn’t miss any opportunity to gain experience.

The knights made a swift decision, which made Rean hesitate about whether to reassess the effectiveness of the Hero Selection.

Those who possess power, have ambition, or are capable of attracting more investors will not miss this opportunity to gain fame, as it is far easier than directly engaging in battle to gain reputation and titles.

"arrive."

The sudden wall and the loud snoring in the distance indicated that the knights had found their target.

(End of this chapter)