Cooking without a kitchen felt anti-climatic. Zen hated using the system skills and game mechanics to craft food. It felt very impersonal, but they were short on time. The evasion cake was not just any cake. It was the key to survival against the boss monster. His party might be able to take care of the monster within five minutes, but there was no meaning in it if Zen died during the first wave of attack. Yet, it was the worst cake Zen had ever created in history.
Of course, the dungeon creator thought to include Lores in this dungeon. Zen was almost certain there was a hidden side quest somewhere. However, he did not have the luxury of time to explore them when he was getting carried to the vanguard members.“According to Greek mythology, when Medusa was slain, she birthed two children that belonged to Poseidon. The flying hogs we saw earlier were Chrysaor’s descendants. However, the boss is the actual twin brother of the flying hog. You wouldn’t guessAfter reaching the eighth stage, Zen spotted the Shady Merchant in a familiar war outfit. However, unlike on floor three, they were not surrounded by castle walls. He looked more terrified than Zen remembered him to be. As if spotting someone reliable from the new group of adventurers appearing from the portal, the Shady Merchant’s eyes lit up with delight as he waved at the new party. “Over here!” he called to Zen’s group. As the other members of his party headed straight for the Shady Merchant, Zen paused to study the new stage. It was odd. They were in the middle of a rocky mountain with no shelter in sight. The portal came out of a shallow rock crevice, and the Shady Merchant did not have any business in the Rocky Mountains. Why was he here? Most importantly, wasn’t the Shady Merchant a main quest-giving NPC? Why was he also dishing out side quests? Zen could not understand why the side quest only appeared on his log until he read the requirements. ===
Monster evolution had always been a strange thing. Even though Zen was an avid gamer in his previous life as a young master, he only knew some basics. For example, a powerful goblin could evolve into a hobgoblin. Ugi, the Goblin Lord, was the final evolution a goblin could turn into. However, he had no idea how this ugly orc general could share Ugi’s bloodline. Apparently, they were cousins.“You slay Ugi! Urum slay you!”Ah, yes. How wonderful. Zen wasn’t expecting such a warm welcome at the cliff when he arrived, much less to be recognised as a cousin slayer. Maybe all green-skinned monsters shared a similar ancestry. Too bad. Zen would never know the truth. Dead orcs tell no tales.“Ugi was a good warrior,” Zen confirmed. “Shall I send you to him?”Angered, Urum brandished his scimitar. Unlike goblins, who preferred blunt weapons, the orcs were stronger and more human-like. They preferred blades that could cut th
Between Zen’s weakening finger grips and Urum’s confusion, the orc general’s confusion caved in first. Unwilling to believe the human had fallen off along with two of his bodyguards, he stepped across to see if the clumsy human had really died. The grumpy orc general kicked aside the two other bodyguards slain by Urum’s scimitar as some warning to the human who might be playing a prank on him.Zen almost jumped out of fright when the first high orc body flew down the cliff. The dead orc’s face passed Zen’s by inches, and it was a look that would give Zen nightmares tonight. However, when the second high orc was kicked off the cliff, Zen had to let go of one arm to prevent getting pushed off the ledge he was clinging to.“There you are! Urum knows sly human don’t die easily! Revenge for Ugi!”With his movement, the Chameleon skill was cancelled, revealing how Zen was clinging onto the side of the cliff, balancing on
“How was it?” Liu Feng asked when Zen finally returned to the starting entrance, where he remained waiting with the Shady Merchant.Grinning, Zen retrieved the special reward he had received after finishing his solo quest. Although Urum was tougher than Zen expected, with Liu Feng’s suggestion, he cleared the mission in one try.===Item: Orc Token (special)Description: Summon the ghost of Urum, the orc general who will lead his fallen army and attack any other boss monsters in boss dungeons.Cool down: 12 hour===After Liu Feng heard what the special reward was capable of, he wondered why an army was required.“It doesn’t sound like the vanguard team is enough to deal with whatever is ahead of us if we need an army,” the long-haired man commented. “The other farming parties might eventually have to join us in raids.”Agreeing, Zen sighed. The other non-combatants in the farming parties wo
Anyone who had seen Party Godly Food battling Urum in the orc army camp would think they’d been working together for many years. Once socially awkward, Zen thought they were now brilliant communicators. If anything, he felt like the alien. They were speaking the same language, but Zen could not understand a single thing as everyone spoke over each other. Yet, their efficiency as they eliminated monsters, filled in unexpected gaps and swapped positions during battle proved how effective this strange communication method was.“Two loose!” Sasha yelled over the call as she dumped another fire spell over a tent further from the boss’ tent.“Cover!” Damian countered immediately after hearing how Sasha could not keep all the orc warriors at bay. Switching his focus from providing the main fighters with additional buff effects and binding the boss, the cyborg cast two missile spells targeted at the loose targets.Zen watched how Urum turne
As Oritha, Sasha, and Damian joined them back at the final boss dungeon for the reward reveal, Zen wondered what it would drop. Unlike the special stage, the rewards should not be as good as the orc token.“It became easier than the first time we cleared it,” Sasha grinned at Oritha. “Do you think we’ve become stronger?”Shrugging, the giantess stretched and eyed Damian strangely. Unlike them, who had a head start with the dungeon, Damian only became acquainted with the game recently. How was he matching their pace? She expected him to miss a few when he was covering the west. However, the engineer had completely gotten used to becoming a magician. His ability to adapt spells to the situation made him a more proficient mage than Sasha or Akiko.“Is the boss not dead yet?” Oritha finally asked after a while. It had been a while since the boss was defeated. However, the portal to the ninth stage was still not available.
“Do you remember how you cleared this stage?” Zen asked Oritha after walking for what felt like an hour. The sun was moving very quickly, and evening was approaching.Grimacing, Oritha admitted how she cleared this stage with Sasha using brute force.“The Seer and Death Princess already knew where the boss was. We simply followed their directions and defeated a huge wolf that stood on two legs. It was too time-consuming to explore this stage, so none of us know what the main quest is like.”Ah, of course, they brute-forced this stage. Why would they follow the main quest? Zen should have known better than to ask. However, he was curious how the forerunners of this stage knew what to do. Akiko and Liu Feng should be the first people to clear this stage. Did they have more information?“I see something,” Damian squinted and zoomed in on the structure in the distance. “Is that a village?”It was too far for Zen or
Throughout the short night, the three pig brothers did not sleep. If anything, they talked with the travellers and provided them with plenty of useful information about this stage.According to Porky, the three brothers initially left to find employment in the big city. However, they were met with a lot of discrimination. Many employers had the stigma that pigs were lazy creatures and did not give them any chance. Unemployed and low on their savings, the three builder brothers decided it was too expensive to continue paying rent in the city. Hence, they used the last of their money to move into the countryside, intending to prove they had the skills to pay the bills. They bought materials for houses and started building them. However, it was a difficult process when a wolf kept terrorising them every month on the full moon.“We didn’t want our mother to worry,” Porky admitted. “After building the houses, we wanted to rent them out to others. However
Collecting the rewards for successfully defeating John’s cousin, the party members of Godly Food jumped into the portal leading to the next floor. Zen knew that the dungeon had different themes on every ten floors. The tenth floor of each themed stage would be different from the other stages in difficulty. It was why the vanguard team struggled with the twentieth floor’s boss. In addition to the stage mechanic’s difference, the final boss was also tougher to deal with. If not for the monstrous capabilities of the combatants, Zen doubted they could breeze through the first ten floors as quickly as they did.Anticipating a village or town vibe similar to the other floors from before, Zen was stunned to find himself in a rocky cave full of darkness. It had ominous vibes, and only Liu Feng moved confidently in the darkness. Everyone else minimised exploring further without a light source.“We’ll log out here,” Akiko informed Damian. “Y
After entering the boss dungeon den, Zen shivered. It wasn’t similar to a wolf’s den. If anything, it appeared closer to an actual dungeon, as if someone had deliberately attempted to imprison the boss here. The stale smell of dogs and many broken chains of different sizes on the ground spoke volumes about John’s cousin.Unlike the short werewolf, who remained in his werewolf form constantly, the boss was a monster who could transform. Depending on the moon cycle, it could be a violent and bloodthirsty monster or a broken man who lived in constant fear and misery of his curse.“He changes according to the moon cycle once the rampage begins,” Akiko explained. “I took a while to figure out how to kill him, even on the first run. He’s immune to damage on a blood moon. We need to finish it as soon as possible.”With a full party participating in a boss battle, Zen had faith they could conclude it before even the blood moon p
Finally approaching the final boss’s cave, Zen wondered if the storyline would change because they had let Han murder John brutally. His body had been hacked into pieces and scattered around the rotting forest. The maggots would get to it soon and reduce it to bones. Yet, the cruel butchering session remained fresh in Zen’s mind.Everyone in the party knew that feeling all too well. Having lived in the underworld, they sympathised with Zen, who had lived like a civilian his whole life. Although not everyone participated directly in the act of murder, they knew what it meant to take a life. Even Damian had seen it happen. He knew how to interrogate for information and was quite adept at the craft when required.“Don’t think too much about it,” Liu Feng was the first to break the silence. “He wasn’t even real. This is a game designed by the Godfather to find the next successor. It’s just another test.”Even if it wer
Even after many years of not being on talking terms with the rest of the family, Hans fitted right in when delving blows at the cowardly werewolf. Mai ripped out chunks of flesh with her teeth, snarling at it the whole time while Laura expertly force-fed the werewolf with different herbs with particularly nasty effects.Even with regeneration abilities, John could not recover from herbs that tasted nasty, gave him muscle cramps or made him itch all over. Laura truly knew how to make someone suffer, and Zen watched with morbid fascination at their different uses. Her apothecary skills were no less effective than those of Herbologist Hernie.“Can you heal him again?” Damian asked. “Han needs another round. Mai roughed him up a little too good.”With a priest in the party who did not worship any known religion, the torture session became smoother and more effective. No apology from John would appease the family’s anger. Although Zen did not
After listening to the story about John, Laura’s expression hardened. “That son of a bitch!” she spat. “How dare he prey on my granddaughter! Where is he now?!” Slightly terrified by the murderous aura, Zen reported that Sasha and Damian had the werewolf at Gabrielle’s hut. Mai had been ripping him a new one each time he regenerated. The girls had been doing a great job of making him miserable. Han was already there. “I can’t believe I’m last at the party. That wolf deserves to die. Even death is too cheap a price to pay after what he did to my husband and son.” For once, Zen agreed. Even if John was merely a character in the game, he deserved death. The fact that the game administrators did not grant John invulnerable stats meant that it was possible to kill the cousin of the floor boss. While waiting for Laura to pack her ‘tools’ and herbal surprises, Zen approached Liu Feng and thanked him for accompanying them. In real time, it was already past regular l
Studying advanced herbalism from Laura took more time than Zen expected. Thankfully, the game had a way of providing cheats for him. Instead of cramming all the knowledge into his head that would give him a splitting migraine, it provided a useful guidebook that would prompt him on what a particular herb does upon location and what combinations he could use it for with other known herbs. The problem was, to truly master this skill, he had to pass the final test. Laura’s pop quiz only had ten questions. However, there was a timer. While Zen could attempt it infinitely, there were thousands of herb combinations to remember. Not having any formal education in either of his past lives, the young chef faltered. “You may use anything in this cottage as a reference for your test,” Laura smirked. “All the best. I hope you won’t disappoint me.” Stressing over the best method to find what he needed, Zen tested a few things. Firstly, when Laura said that the new skill would inst
While the other party members gathered the family members for a reunion, Zen and Liu Feng finally found Laura’s cottage after taking a wrong turn. Funnily enough, it was the Seer who pointed out how they had been going in a circle before Zen realised he had misinterpreted the map. Knocking on the cottage door, Zen waited with his sworn brother. From inside, he could hear someone coughing badly. “Who is it?” the cranky old lady hacked as she cracked open the door. Instead of seeing her sloppy son or nosy granddaughter, Laura saw a cute priest and a handsome, long-haired warrior. The new adventurers surprised her. Were they lost in the forest? “What do you want?” she asked briefly before launching into a new coughing fit. It was a particularly nasty cold that had persisted for a week now without any signs of recovery. Despite all the herbal medicine she made, Laura did not see any signs of improvement. Perhaps she was getting on in age. Smiling, Zen show
It was a shame Zen was not with them. Sasha would have gone for a few more rounds, using the cowardly werewolf as a punching bag after Zen healed him. The more they dug information out from the pervert, the worse Sasha’s temper was. Damian did not stop her. The draconian needed somewhere to vent her anger, and it was best for it not to come his way. In truth, the cyborg felt a little sorry for Gabrielle, even if she were just a fictional character created for this virtual dungeon game. The cowardly cousin of the floor boss was no different from lowly thugs borrowing the influence of their powerful relatives to cause mayhem. Whimpering in fear and pain with his tail tucked in between his legs, the werewolf defect who could not transform into a human no matter the moon cycle kept a close eye on Sasha. Under the watch of the merciless draconian female, there was nowhere for him to run. He told them what they wanted to know and was alive for now. Given how tightly they w
Using hand gestures, Sasha signalled the countdown and Damian prepared his stunning spells silently. They only had one chance to catch the secret admirer off guard. Whatever he was doing was disgusting enough. Han wasn’t lying about the obsession. The stalker werewolf was plucking flower petals and chanting Gabrielle’s name to see if she would love him back. Each time the flower petals ended on a no, he would crush the flower, stomp on it and pick a new one, confessing his disturbing love to her before plucking off the petals of a new flower.“Oh, Gabrielle! What sweet rosy cheeks you have, all the better for me to bite into them when they are ripe! They were pink when you were a babe. They were red when you had a fever. I wonder if they’d bleed if I bit them… would you cry in pain and fear? It makes me so excited to think about it! Just wait a little more, my angel. You’d soon be an adult, and we could finally be together!”Disgu