Chapter 500 - 499: A Smooth Journey

Chapter 500: Chapter 499: A Smooth Journey

A ring of stonework on the ceiling liquefied into a churning morass, leaving the bricks in the center unsupported. They were immediately crushed by the earth and rock pressing down from above.

Nearly a hundred square meters of the ceiling collapsed, and the layer of earth above it came tumbling down as well.

The charging Oozes were hit and buried under the viscous mud and earth, falling silent.

Perhaps due to the unique structure of Dwarven architecture, this massive collapse didn’t affect the rest of the room. Colin and his companions were completely unharmed.

’It must be the Tier Five Magic, Transmute Rock.’

Colin recalled what he’d read in his books. The spell had two options: "Transmute Rock to Mud" or "Transmute Mud to Rock." Just as their names suggested, one effect could transform a large area of rock into earth, while the other could turn a vast expanse of dirt and sludge into solid rock.

With just that one Tier Five Magic, all the Oozes on the left were almost completely wiped out!

Colin and Ale began Casting simultaneously.

Sparks flew as a lightning bolt pierced straight through the Gray Oozes’ formation. A flash of fire followed, and a fireball blossomed like a flower in their midst.

The Dwarves, who had been under protection, didn’t stand idle either.

They drew their Heavy Crossbows and Battle Axes and began to counterattack.

However, the Dwarves were clearly unaware of the consequences of striking Gray Oozes with non-magical metal. The instant their weapons made contact, they began to corrode at a visible rate. Their brightly polished weapons immediately blackened and started to crumble.

Fortunately, most of the Gray Oozes had already been blasted to bits by Magic. Otherwise, things could have gotten very messy for the Dwarves.

Colin glanced at the battlefield and said to Ale, "No need for any more High-tier Magic. Let’s finish this with Cantrips."

Ale nodded, raising her Magic Staff to cast Frost Ray.

Beams of white frost and small fireballs flew toward the surrounding Gray Oozes, blasting them apart one by one.

A moment later.

WHOOSH—SPLAT!

The center of a Gray Ooze burst open, as if smashed by an invisible hammer.

That was the last living Gray Ooze.

With its fall, the encounter came to a close.

Durkin, who had just finished off the monster, slung his Hand Cannon over his back.

Colin watched him, recalling what he’d read in the library.

’Some Mechanicians specialized in crafting Magic Cannons. They could build stationary turrets or handheld cannons, making them Casters with formidable firepower.’

"Hey! Did you run into Oozes?!" Dorn’s voice called out from the head of the party.

He and Kase were making their way back from up ahead.

Langgrin shouted accusingly at Dorn, "Hey, what’s wrong with you? Why did you lead us through such a dangerous place?"

Dorn didn’t argue, simply walking toward them in silence.

"All right, let’s focus on sorting the loot instead of arguing," Colin cut in, seeing that Dorn wasn’t going to respond. "Oozes can’t digest precious metals and Gemstones. There might be some inside these Gray Oozes."

"Aren’t these things basically just strong acid? Are you sure we can touch them?" a Dwarf clutching a ruined Axe asked.

"The acid in a dead Ooze weakens rapidly," Colin explained. "You’ll be fine as long as you wear leather gloves."

A few of the bolder Dwarves put on leather gloves to test his theory and, sure enough, managed to pull some coins from the Ooze carcasses. Seeing this, the other Dwarves’ eyes went green with envy, and they scrambled to start scavenging the battlefield.

Greed was a trait shared by both Dwarves and Giant Dragons.

Most conflicts between the two races erupted because one coveted the other’s hoarded wealth.

While the Dwarves scoured the battlefield, Ale began appraising the loot, and Orelia started tending to some of the Dwarves’ injuries.

"Durkin, I need to rest for an hour to recover my Spell Slots," Colin said.

"Fine. We’ll rest here for a while."

After getting his approval, Colin found a rock, sat down, and began to meditate.

As his mind relaxed, he could feel the mental sluggishness caused by Casting begin to fade. This was his Specialty, Arcane Acuity, which allowed him to slowly recover spent energy through rest.

’In a Dungeon fraught with danger like this, a Specialty that helped maintain one’s Casting Ability was quite useful.’

While waiting for his energy to return, Colin zoned out, staring at the Ooze remains on the ground.

’All Oozes were, in essence, living acid—or perhaps, living stomachs. They had no organs, and their sole purpose was to move and devour organic matter.’

’Therefore, most of them were resistant to acid Damage, which was why he hadn’t used Acid Ball earlier. Of course, using a Tier Four Magic on such creatures would have been a waste anyway.’

’Beyond that, Flame and ice Damage weren’t particularly effective against Gray Oozes either. The only reason their Cantrips had worked so well was pure brute force.’

’It was also said that High Tier Oozes would split when struck by lightning Damage.’

’Oozes were a particularly troublesome type of monster. Fortunately, Low Tier Gray Oozes weren’t that hard to deal with.’

’Then again, the reason these Gray Oozes had attacked them was probably due to the sheer number of Dwarves. The creatures were likely drawn by the sound of more than thirty of them marching through.’

’After all, Dorn and Kase hadn’t seen any monsters when they scouted ahead.’

’That was why Dungeons were typically explored by small parties. The more people you had, the more noise you made, and the more likely you were to run into trouble you could have otherwise avoided.’

After a while, the Dwarves finished collecting all the loot.

Aside from the coins, it was mostly junk. According to Ale, they’d be lucky to get a hundred Gold Coins for the lot.

"While you’re gathering the loot, remember to collect the Gray Ooze carcasses, too!" Dorn shouted, looking up from his work and wiping sweat from his brow with an arm.

"What for?" a Dwarf asked.

"Their bodies can be made into food."

"Food?" another Dwarf complained. "That’s absurd! We brought plenty of supplies. We don’t need to eat this stuff!"

Just then, Durkin spoke up. "Listen to him. He’s lived underground for a long time."

At his words, the rowdy Dwarves immediately fell silent and obediently began to gather the Gray Ooze’s slimy remains.

The rest time passed in a flash.

The party shouldered their packs and set off once more.

That recent encounter with the Gray Oozes seemed to be some kind of signal, as the party ran into one group of monsters after another on the path ahead.

Fortunately, the more troublesome monsters on the second level generally kept to their lairs and didn’t wander about. Furthermore, with Dorn and Kase’s expert scouting, the party mostly encountered creatures like goblins, giant rats, and Dire Wolves.

To Colin’s party and Durkin’s group, these monsters were no threat at all.

After they had been walking for who knows how long down a corridor, Dorn returned from the front. "Time’s up," he announced. "We need to get some sleep."

The Dwarves exchanged glances, then looked to Durkin. Without needing to be told, they began laying out their bedrolls to make camp.

Colin and the others laid out their bedrolls on the party’s perimeter.

Just then, Dorn silently walked over, his pack on his back.

Kase teased, "Not camping with your fellow Dwarves?"

"I’m a handsome, solitary Dwarf. I fit in better over here," Dorn said, laying out his bedroll next to them. He then moved over to Kase and pulled a bucket of Gray Ooze slime from his Dimension Bag.

’Is he going to cook that?’ Colin wondered, inching closer with curiosity.