Cornflower Witch

Chapter 305 Maze Trial
Walking through the silent mausoleum, Hiltiya could hear the sound of her own feet and the faint rustling of her clothes.

She glanced around; the passageways were engraved with uniform patterns, and the style seemed to be a product of the Eighth Era.

The abstract animal-shaped pattern, roughly square in outline, is filled with bricks arranged closely together, repeating endlessly within the passage.

After walking for a while, a fork in the road appeared in front of Hilti, but that was not the point. The point was that the fork had special directional patterns.

One side depicts a sword, and the other side depicts a book.

"Is this a choice I have to make myself?" Hiltiya wondered.

She'd choose "books" then; she prefers knowledge. As for the sword, which symbolizes martial power or weaponry, it might not even have survived after all these years.

Shortly after moving to one side, a small room appeared in the passage ahead, about the size of an enlarged cube. Inside the room was a square stone platform, on which was sealed an ancient card.

Walking over, Hilti came to the stone platform and carefully examined the card.

It is made of special dark yellow paper with a border of patterns drawn with old paint, and on the card is an arm clenching a fist with blood-red veins showing at the wrist.

[Sealed Card - Killing Fist] (Blood Law); Enhances the strength and lethality of the fist. (Further exploration is needed for more information.)
"This card... can I take it with me?" Shiltia wondered, carefully touching it with her hand.

Seemingly sensing the presence of other life forms, invisible, tiny flames seemed to spread across the card, instantly brightening its previously yellowed and worn surface and restoring its former color.

And it emitted a faint call, seemingly hoping that Hilti would absorb it into her body.

Tilting her head, Hilti examined the card repeatedly, but instead of absorbing it, she summoned the [Lion-Headed Monster] that had been sealed away yesterday.

After the lion-headed, beast-footed monster emerged, it was still somewhat defiant towards Hilti and attempted to attack her, but Hilti had already confiscated the four longswords in its hands, so it could only throw punches.

Inside the room, Hilti jumped back to dodge, while the Lion-Headed Monster touched the card during its pursuit.

Without hesitation, it absorbed the card, and then the same blood-red veins appeared on its wrist. At this moment, its fist became exceptionally fierce and sharp.

During one of her punches, Hilti dodged, but the fist slammed directly into the stone wall behind the girl. The solid stone wall was shattered by the punch, and the cracks spread along the wall.

In its subsequent attacks, its fists became faster and more powerful, no less so than when it attacked with the long bone sword.

Through these several exchanges, Hilti gradually figured out the function of that [Killing Fist].

[Killing Fist] (Blood Law); alters the blood vessels and veins in the arms and fists, forming natural power burst patterns, enhancing the fist's lethality and making the fists and arms stronger. (The increased power is affected by physical strength; the stronger the body, the greater the increase.)

This ability is much better than a normal 'power burst', and it is more concentrated, more powerful, and also has a certain degree of defensive capability.

Having figured it out, Hilti no longer hesitated. A glint flashed in her eyes, and several invisible chains stretched out from the void, binding the lion-headed monster layer by layer. Then she resealed it and extracted the [Killing Fist] that it had just absorbed.

Flipping the blood-red card in her hand, Hilti thought to herself that it seemed harmless, and then placed it into her destiny plate.

A strange sensation spread through her wrists, the backs of her hands, and her fingertips. Then she saw eerie crimson patterns appearing on her wrists. These crimson patterns, like winter plum blossoms in the snow, contrasted sharply with the surrounding fair skin, giving the girl a touch of alluring charm.

Clenching her fingers into a fist, the girl tried to swing it. A feeling of steely strength and reliability spread from her fist and wrist. She aimed at a brick and swung, easily shattering it. After releasing her fist, Hiltiya grasped another brick, slowly crushing it, watching the brick dust fall.

It lacks any mechanics, is purely a numerical enhancement, but integrates offense and defense beautifully, making it a capability worthy of excellent ratings.

Continuing forward, Hiltiya saw a closed room ahead, with animal head patterns engraved on the door.

As she approached, the stone door opened, and the three slumbering wolf-shaped stone statues inside awoke with a low growl before charging toward Hilti.

【Stone Statue Wolf】(Tier 2 - Beast Fang); A resurrected beast with a body like stone.

Each wolf was as tall as Hilti, and their stone-like bodies were exceptionally sturdy; ordinary swords would likely struggle to cleave them.

Facing the oncoming wolves, Hilti dodged one of their attacks, then punched and shattered the wolf's lower back.

Some stones shattered and fell, but the wolf with the stone body did not die. After recuperating for a while, it pounced again with its companions.

Shaking her head, Hilti stopped dodging and instead used her newly acquired ability to smash one of the wolves to pieces. Then she grabbed one of the wolves and threw it away, before smashing the remaining one away.

After several rounds, the three wolves turned into shattered stones on the ground, and the crystal gems hidden inside their bodies rolled out.

【Black Bone Crystal】(Tier 2, Good); A crystal that can control the skeleton, often used to make puppets.

Picking up the three 'Black Bone Crystals', Hiltiya seemed lost in thought.

The maze here is like a dungeon game from a past life, with different rewards in each room.

However, who designed this place, and why? We'll only find out by continuing onward.

She then continued deeper into the tomb.

……

On the other side of the tomb maze, in the monster room.

A young man with red hair, wielding a thin longsword, was fighting against the black stone lion pressing down on him. The lion's teeth were tightly gripping the blocking blade. If the blade shattered, the young man would probably have his throat bitten off by the stone lion on the spot.

In an attempt to survive, he struggled relentlessly. At that moment, he grabbed a ceramic jar from his waist and smashed it, from which flew a peculiar red beetle.

The beetle buzzed and burrowed into the young man's mouth. His expression then became contorted in pain, and strange patterns appeared on his body, resembling the limbs of an insect.

Soon, he roared and pressed the blade back, pulling it out of the lion's mouth. Then, he swung his body around and slashed, the sharp metal blade making a large circle in the air before striking the stone lion hard on the back of its neck.

Sparks flew, the blade broke, and then he gripped the hilt and continued to plunge it into the lion's back. He then embraced the lion's spine and swung the hilt repeatedly, using the broken sword to stab the lion's body until it died, falling to the ground and turning into shattered stones.

(End of this chapter)