CHAPTER 908: CHAPTER 702: AVATAR OF THE POLLUTED IMMORTAL SPIRIT

At some point, starting from the 52nd floor, the "Dragon Crucible" has returned to calm.

There are no more long-range bombardments from the 58th floor, and no more dragons flying out from holes burning like magma, only a scant few Thunder Snakes, deformed spiders, and other monsters roam here, drastically reducing the threat of the "Dragon Crucible."

"Have the Cannon Dragons and Flying Dragons all been dealt with?"

Upon entering the 53rd floor and heading to the 58th floor, Reiger realized this, cutting a deformed spider in half while looking downward.

"Looks like the raid team has taken down the 58th floor, much faster than I imagined."

Is it due to the blessing of [Lamu], with the overall speed greatly increased?

Or is it because Ais has learned the Breath of the Wind, making her much stronger than she was at this point in the original story?

"No matter the reason, since everyone has already reached the 58th floor and resolved the Cannon Dragons and Flying Dragons, they might be reaching the 59th floor now."

Thinking this, Reiger decided not to delay any further and jumped into a ground hole he found on the 53rd floor.

Following the free fall, Reiger passed the 53rd floor, entered the 54th floor, and even continued to fall all the way through a hole leading to the 55th floor, downwards into the burning hole blasted by the Cannon Dragon’s large fireball, falling toward the 58th floor.

By the time Reiger reached the 58th floor, it was empty, not a single monster remained.

Reiger stepped here and looked around.

The 58th floor, like the vast wilderness of the 49th floor, had no tangled roads nor the steep labyrinths, only a vast single space.

This is a huge rectangular cavern made of black lead-colored walls and ceiling.

The cavern is so large, it seems almost endless, making one wonder if Orario were thrown in here, would this vast city fit comfortably inside.

"In the past, the familia was defeated here, forced to retreat and couldn’t reach the unexplored floors..."

Having arrived here more than once, Reiger felt some emotions only this time.

The reason is, the highest floor Loki Familia has ever reached is this 58th floor.

Finn and others suffered bombardment ignoring floors here, losing strength, items, and many equipment, making it impossible to continue exploring, and had to give up the strategy and return to the surface on this floor.

This happened just as Reiger joined the familia, when he greeted the returning expedition of Finn and others at Twilight Manor, seeing the numerous familia executives, including Ais, for the first time.

It was this expedition that Finn and others were defeated here.

Afterwards, they prepared to wash away their shame, and by then, Reiger was already Lv.4, joining the expedition team, only to encounter worm-type monsters on the 51st floor, female-type monsters on the 50th floor, all supplies destroyed, and returned defeated again.

That was only about four months ago.

This time, the Loki Familia finally captured the 58th floor with proper preparation.

The evidence is no monsters remain here, and it’s riddled with pits and dents, clearly the aftermath of a fierce battle.

Reiger even saw what appeared to be a patch of ice frozen by Revilia’s [Frenzied Fimbul Winter], and what seemed to be a charred floor bombarded by Rephia’s [Simultaneous Fire Spear].

Besides that, the drop items and magic stones from hunted Cannon Dragons and Flying Dragons were still scattered here, not picked up.

"Are they planning to pick them up on the way back?" Reiger pondered aloud: "Indeed, whether it’s the Cannon Dragon or the Flying Dragon, their drop items are huge and heavy, and the magic stones are not small. Bringing all this to the 59th floor might affect the Supporters’ speed and skills, thus affecting the strategy."

Since this is the deep floors of the underground city, no adventurers other than the Loki Familia would delve this deep to "borrow" drop items easily, leaving them here first might not be a bad choice.

But, at that time, Finn and others probably didn’t expect?

Didn’t expect, ahead of them, in their destination, such a terrifying existence lay.

"......"

Reiger turned his gaze toward the south side of the 58th floor.

At the south end of this floor, there’s a dark large hole.

That is the passage to the 59th floor.

"Swish!"

Reiger activated the teleportation magic and arrived at the entrance to the 59th floor, a place he had reached multiple times but never entered until now.

This time, Reiger stepped in without hesitation.

......

Dungeon, 59th floor.

This is a floor only the male (Zeus) and goddess (Hera) familias had reached.

According to records left by the Zeus Clan, starting from this floor, ahead lies the Glacier Domain.

There, rivers of ice flow throughout, making advancement difficult, with chilling air making bodies sluggish, mirroring the fifth floor of the Nasalik Underground Tomb.

Yet when Reiger arrived here, what met his eyes was not icy rivers, nor were there water currents described in the Zeus Clan records, not even the so-called chilling air, but rather a bit stifling heat.

This is not a Glacier Domain, but a place with eerie plants, overgrown with a variety of green trees and tangled jungles.

The ground is a verdant prairie.

Surrounded by colorful glaring small flowers.

In the large cavernous space similar to the 58th floor, the distant walls or ceiling are towering green meat walls.

Countless buds of varying sizes hang from these meat walls, making one feel physically uncomfortable at first glance.

"Nursery bed..."

Reiger looked at the scene, which was evidently parasitized by a giant flower, completely transformed, exactly like the food storage on the 24th floor, with not an ounce of surprise in his heart.

He had long known that this floor had already become the nursery bed for mottled monsters.

He had long known that this place was not the Glacier Domain, but a lair corroded by monsters.

Whether it was the previous female-type monsters or the worm-type monsters, they all climbed from here upwards, reaching the 51st floor, even the 50th floor, ultimately encountering the Loki adventurers who had ventured here last time.

And the purpose of those monsters was to hunt other monsters, devour magic stones, become stronger and return here to offer their magic power to the "Queen" residing here.

"[Flying]."

Reiger activated flight magic and flew towards the other end of the jungle.

The "Queen" here was undoubtedly the main nutrient supply target of the nursery bed — the "Treasure Bead Fetus."

But, different from the female-type monsters seen previously in the food storage of the 24th floor or the safety floor of the 50th floor, the "Treasure Bead Fetus" here has already metamorphosed, absorbing the magic power offered by the colorful monsters.

There are three forms of the embryos separated from the Polluted Immortal Spirit called the "Treasure Bead Fetus."

The first form is the newly born embryo, which is the most primitive form of the "Treasure Bead Fetus."

The second form is a newborn fetus that breaks out of its shell and parasitizes on a monster, transforming into a female-type monster.

The third form, which is also the final form, is when the "Treasure Bead Fetus" or the female-type monster absorbs enough nutrients and magic power, ultimately metamorphosing into an elevated form.

The "Treasure Bead Fetus" in this form is a true doppelgänger of the Polluted Immortal Spirit, a genuine monster with explosively growing power.

Here on the 59th floor, which has become a nursery bed, such a monster exists.

In the original work, the Loki adventurers also encountered it here, being beaten to the brink of death, almost annihilated.

Indeed, the entire adventuring party was almost wiped out by one monster.

Including Finn, Revilia, Grace, Ais these four Lv.6 and Bert, Theona, Theone, Chun these four Lv.5, forming a total of eight first-tier adventurers’ adventuring party, they were almost wiped out the moment they confronted it.

It was more terrifying than the floor boss Balrog on the 49th floor.

And the classification level of the 49th floor’s floor boss Balrog is — Lv.7.

This implies that at the very least, this monster had to be a Lv.7 floor boss-level monster, and possibly a Lv.8.

A Lv.8 floor boss!

What does this mean?

The answer was quickly revealed before Reiger’s eyes.

""""OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH——!"""""

Accompanied by a familiar cacophonous roar entering his ears, Reiger arrived at the center of the dense forest’s battlefield.

Here, countless worm-type monsters charged in swarms, attacking a group of people ahead.

"Quick! Cast the defensive magic!"

"Revilia!"

"Hurry!"

Led by Finn, the first-tier adventurers fought valiantly, continuously slaying worm monsters, yet each of their faces was anxious, terrified beyond control.

The reason was simple.

There was a gigantic monster, spreading its arms behind the army of worm-type monsters, bearing down on them.

That was a female-type monster with the upper body of a huge plant.

The monster’s upper body was female-type, but that female-type body had long, beautiful flowing hair, tender arms, graceful curves, even beauty not inferior to a goddess.

Her eyes lacked pupils, presented in a lifeless gold.

Her lower body bore immense petals and numerous tentacles.

The monster, with its upper goddess-like body and lower plant body, emitted an aura of ominous, malicious, yet beautiful presence, meshing a chilling divine sense with repulsive ugliness into a polluted being.

This is...

"A doppelgänger of the Polluted Immortal Spirit."

The Immortal Spirit doppelgänger, spreading its arms at Finn and others, smiled gently and chanted.

"[Fire, come forth ——]"

A mind-bogglingly enormous scarlet magic array unfolded instantly.

"[Roar, roar, flame vortex, scarlet cliffs, roar of Karmic Fire borrow the force of sudden strong winds to enclose the world burning sky burning earth burning seas burning springs burning mountains burning life turning all to scorched earth setting forth cannons of rage and sighs paying the heroic (he) life cost command in my executor name my name is Fire Spirit Incarnation of flames Queen of Flames (Monarch) ——]"

What followed was an even more unbelievable ultra-fast chant.

The monster, with a beautiful smile, unleashed the bomb that crafted hell.

"[Flame Storm]!"

The next moment, hell formed.