Chapter 368: Underground Prison

All kinds of special equipment on Nie Yan could be displayed as exhibits. These items didn’t need to be worn all the time and could simply be stored in his backpack until needed, since his backpack had ample space.

Nie Yan had obtained five Luminous Gems in total. Luminous Gems could be used to craft special items and enhance their effects. Several of Nie Yan’s special items were nearly ready for upgrades, although he needed to return and find a suitable gem artisan first.

After quietly emptying the chest, Nie Yan carefully stepped out through the gaps between the chests and walked toward the distance.

The transformation state of the Gnome Ring lasted for an hour, and he still had plenty of time left.

He edged slowly along the wall toward the throne.

As he drew closer to the rear of the throne, he saw a Bloodthirsty Rogue approaching his direction and immediately stopped moving, shrinking into a corner without making the slightest motion. The Bloodthirsty Rogue’s eerie eyes scanned the surroundings, then it walked away into the distance.

Glancing at the retreating figure of the Bloodthirsty Rogue, Nie Yan quickened his pace during this window and circled behind the throne. Behind the throne was a pit, with a spiral staircase leading downward.

Following the spiral staircase downward, a chilling coldness and a bloody scent wafted upward.

The environment inside the prison was dim and damp.

System: You have discovered the Underground Dungeon.

Inside the dungeon, Nie Yan found the ground messy with scattered hay everywhere. A narrow corridor ran through the center, leading forward, while on both sides were iron cages. Each cage entrance had a black vicious dog chained outside.

These vicious dogs were level 70 elites capable of spitting soul fire, making them extremely difficult to deal with.

Inside each cage were some commoners or nobles in tattered clothes, though one could still vaguely discern their once luxurious attire before entering this dungeon.

Using conventional methods, it would take at least more than ten hours, or even days, to eliminate each vicious dog and unlock the doors while enduring their soul fire attacks. However, Nie Yan didn’t need to go through such trouble.

Nie Yan stealthily moved to a corner of the prison. He shifted his body sideways, tightened his torso, and slipped through the gaps of the cage. Inside this cage, a ragged commoner was anxiously pacing around. Nie Yan threw a Scroll of Instant Teleport onto the ground.

The commoner sighed, suddenly noticing the Scroll of Instant Teleport on the ground. He picked it up, revealing an expression of ecstatic surprise. After glancing around and seeing nothing, he activated the scroll. A flash of white light appeared, and he vanished instantly.

Nie Yan used his small frame to maneuver between the cages, skillfully avoiding the vicious dogs while distributing scrolls of instant teleportation.

One commoner after another teleported away.

Nie Yan checked his status.

Quest Progress: Rescued Hostages 56/100.

This number continued to rise steadily. Nie Yan moved extremely quietly and was very careful when bypassing the vicious dogs, which didn’t detect him at all. With their low intelligence, they couldn’t figure out why the prisoners in the cages had mysteriously disappeared.

After rescuing many hostages, Nie Yan reached the lowest level of the prison. Checking the number of rescued hostages, it had reached ninety-nine, yet one remained missing. Nie Yan searched the entire dungeon but couldn’t find the last one.

He explored the prison and discovered a damp burrow with a staircase leading downward.

As he was about to descend, he suddenly felt his body start to swell and expand. He had reverted to his original form.

After thinking for a moment, he had no choice but to continue climbing downward, gradually delving deeper into the dungeon. Here, everything was dark and muddy. Nie Yan navigated through the narrow passage, moving forward into the distance.

This narrow, damp passage led to an unknown destination.

Nie Yan guessed that the remaining hostage might be somewhere along this passage.

Regarding the Gray Judgment Set, he estimated that he needed to clear out all the Shadow Rogues in the main hall to find the remaining three pieces. However, defeating the monsters in that hall alone was impossible.

Nie Yan considered that Cui Can Dao Guang (Cui Can Sword Light) and others forming a team to deal with those Shadow Rogues shouldn’t be a problem. If using standard team tactics to fight that group of Shadow Rogues might be somewhat difficult, Nie Yan recalled a fairly effective strategy: using Entangle, Ice Wall, and AoE magic to defend the entrance of the hall while continuously bombarding the interior with AoE spells. The Shadow Rogues inside wouldn’t be able to withstand such an assault.

Currently, the number of members in the Bull Man Tribe who had learned advanced magic had reached seventeen. Annihilating those Shadow Rogues shouldn’t be an issue. As for the Bloodthirsty Rogue near the throne, if only one remained, there would always be ways to deal with it.

Given Cui Can Dao Guang and others’ equipment, they could withstand level 70 monsters without any problem.

Under normal circumstances, a tank warrior with average gear could withstand a same-level boss, a tank warrior with slightly better gear could withstand a boss more than ten levels higher, and a tank warrior with top-tier gear could withstand a boss more than thirty levels higher. This was quite typical. Therefore, a well-coordinated team could often defeat bosses dozens of levels higher. Especially since the Bull Man Tribe’s priests were equipped with basic resurrection techniques, and three paladins had learned Protect, which allowed the priests to escape combat without generating threat, avoiding the risk of a total wipe. Of course, this would still result in some experience loss.

Nie Yan sent the coordinates to Guo Huai for relay. At this time, Cui Can Dao Guang and others were clearing another boss and would arrive later.

The Bull Man Tribe members’ levels were still too low. Once they leveled up further, Nie Yan could lead them to clear level 100 bosses.

” How’s your class change quest going? ” Guo Huai asked. He previously knew that Nie Yan was challenging the expert-level class change quest and couldn’t help but admire Nie Yan’s boldness. Many players preparing for class changes wouldn’t even dare to accept normal-level quests, usually opting for easy-level ones.

” Just one last step left, ” Nie Yan replied.

” So fast? ” Guo Huai was taken aback. For ordinary players, completing a class change quest would take no less than several days.

In fact, if other players were to complete Nie Yan’s class change quest, it would take at least more than ten days, possibly even longer. Just finding the entrance to the underground prison wasn’t simple; one would have to spend several days searching around the Niran Colosseum.

” Not bad. Any movements from Zhandao Shixue (Zhandao Bloodthirsty)? ” Nie Yan asked.

” I heard that Century Capital has invested another 70,000 gold coins into Zhandao Shixue. They’ve also given subsidies to the players whose characters were killed. Zhandao Shixue has stated that if we’re willing to admit defeat, they’ll drop the matter and end it here, ” Guo Huai said with a smile. ” Century Capital definitely invested in Zhandao Shixue, but I don’t believe they provided as much as 70,000 gold coins. I don’t think Century Capital currently has that much gold to spare.”

” They must be desperate. Post a message on the forum: Bull Man Tribe’s assassination order against Zhandao Shixue will never be withdrawn until their guild collapses completely!” Nie Yan said. Zhandao Shixue’s financial resources were already at the brink of exhaustion. It was time to strike decisively and eliminate them completely. Otherwise, once Zhandao Shixue recovered, it would pose endless troubles.

” That’s a ruthless move. If Zhandao Shixue sees this message, they’ll probably lose all hope,” Guo Huai thought for a moment. Once this message was posted on the forum, it would greatly impact the Zhandao Shixue players, shaking their confidence in remaining with the guild. It might trigger a wave of departures from Zhandao Shixue.

” Be cautious of a desperate counterattack from Zhandao Shixue. Monitor their movements closely. Immediately report if they head toward Carol City. We’ll give them a proper welcome,” Nie Yan said with a slight smile. If they launched a cross-city attack, Zhandao Shixue’s strength would be significantly reduced. Bull Man Tribe’s position in Carol City was unshakable. Even if Bull Man Tribe encountered difficulties, he could still mobilize all members from the Jialan Temple, the Holy Roman Empire, and Bull Man Tribe’s five subordinate branches, overwhelming them with sheer numbers!

” Understood,” Guo Huai nodded. He wasn’t worried at all about Zhandao Shixue coming to Carol City.

Nie Yan gave Guo Huai some instructions, cut off the voice communication, and continued forward.

Guo Huai posted Nie Yan’s exact words on the forum: Bull Man Tribe’s assassination order against Zhandao Shixue will never be withdrawn until their guild collapses completely!

Upon seeing this message, all players gasped in shock. This statement from Bull Man Tribe meant that every possible escape route had been blocked—it was ruthless! From this message, players also sensed Bull Man Tribe’s absolute dominance. Could Zhandao Shixue withstand Bull Man Tribe’s fierce counterattack?

Initially, Zhandao Shixue’s guild leader, Shixue Kuandao (Bloody Knife), had issued a harsh warning: whoever removed the assassination order first would be a disgrace!

Zhandao Shixue’s situation was indeed awkward—could they afford to keep clashing with Bull Man Tribe indefinitely? In the past few days, their number of departing members had sharply increased, reaching more than 6,000 in just two days. This significantly undermined the confidence of Zhandao Shixue’s players. If this trend continued, more and more members would leave. With Nie Yan’s statement further intensifying the situation, the consequences would become even more severe.

Nie Yan, however, remained calm. After resolving the financial issue, Bull Man Tribe no longer needed to worry about the costs of the assassination order. He could now leisurely complete several quests and return underground in a few days. The second round of transaction revenue would completely rejuvenate Bull Man Tribe!

Navigating through the dark cave, a distant, heavy breathing sound echoed. Scorching heat waves surged outward, enveloping the surroundings in a thick, white mist of steam.

When this heat wave hit Nie Yan’s skin, a sharp burning pain immediately arose. Fortunately, he had the Heart of Magma in hand, making him immune to the fire damage.