Chapter 518: No.183 Poison Serpent Pond Part 1

With this, the Sculpture Club had clearly escaped the crisis of disbandment.

The club president had created a masterpiece worthy of going down in the history of Dragon Slayer Academy, and with more commissions from other clubs to come, there would be no shortage of achievements.

That same afternoon, Dang Gyu-young emerged after completing her dungeon run.

Even while grumbling about how tired she was, she immediately began preparing to enter the next dungeon.

By evening, we stepped onto the circular staircase and descended into the underground levels.

The path down to Floor C was remarkably smooth.

Part of it was because Dang Gyu-young had taken over as guide instead of Shin Byeong-cheol, but even taking that into account, there hadn’t been a single tense moment.

I stared into the distance at the Disciplinary Committee member, who looked like a tiny dot from this far away.

“They’re more spread out than usual. Looks like they deployed fewer people.”

“Mhmm, probably pulled some of them for something else.”

“Something else where?”

“The temporary storage facility, I bet.”

For now, we didn’t have 100% confirmation, so even as a thieves club president, all she could do was speculate, but it was a plausible guess.

“Looks like the Disciplinary Committee is really drawing their sword this time. Already making preparations.”

“They don’t have room to back down anymore.”

The next prohibited item wave would coincide with the period when illegal trades were at their peak. It was right before finals.

With about three weeks to go, the fact that the Disciplinary Committee was already working on designing a temporary storage facility meant they were determined to catch every single challenger who dared to try.

That was the only way to restore their damaged reputation and make things less exhausting next year.

“How’s the alliance coming along?”

“Almost confirmed.”

There had been increasing exchanges between the Black faction of the Swordsmanship Club and the Archery Club.

Since their opponent was the Disciplinary Committee, there was a good chance they’d back out halfway, but the fact that they were pressing forward suggested they were confident.

There was still plenty of time left, so for now, we’d just keep watching.

Even after stepping onto Floor C, we still had to descend quite a bit further. The dungeon we were heading for was located near the very bottom.

[No.183][Poison Serpent Pond]

I stared at the teleportation portal for a few seconds, then exchanged glances with the others.

And with that, I stepped forward.

As soon as we entered the dungeon, we were hit by hot, humid air.

Before our eyes stretched a dense tropical rainforest.

Go Hyeon-woo looked around in awe.

“It feels as though we’ve arrived in some place called Nanman.”

“It’s pretty similar.”

Responding as such, I gave a slight signal with my eyes, and Dang Gyu-young lightly waved one hand.

Our shadows stretched long at our feet, and the silhouette of a man in a lab coat rose up.

His body then inflated like a balloon and kept bulking up. This was Undead No.1 Qyu-Lab Director.

With a wide sweep of his arm, the brush and trees in front of us were completely cleared away.

Crackle, crash.

Like a bulldozer, Qyu-Lab Director plowed through everything in his path.

All we had to do was follow behind him.

Of course, while the obstacles were gone, this was still very much a dungeon. So we couldn’t afford to let our guard down.

We stayed vigilant as we walked forward.

Everywhere we looked, there were vividly colored plants, and as expected, nine out of ten were poisonous.

Which meant this entire place was practically saturated with toxins.

On top of that, we could feel large beasts, reptiles, and spiders watching us from a distance.

For now, they were keeping their distance out of unfamiliarity, but who knew when that might change?

How long had we walked like that?

Before us now lay a large pond.

Even though the water was still, it was so clear we could see right to the bottom, and a bluish energy rose from it like a mirage.

Go Hyeon-woo let out a low murmur of admiration.

“Ho… such pure and dense energy.”

The mana density here was on a whole other level compared to the Special Training Room.

It felt like you could reach out and actually touch it.

Maybe that’s why Go Hyeon-woo looked like he wanted to sit down right then and there and start cultivating mana.

Hong Yeon-hwa too seemed just as eager for a core. She had the look of a puppy that had just found a treat.

Since we’d come here to accumulate mana in the first place, everyone would get what they wanted eventually. But everything had to be done in order.

I looked around at the group and spoke.

“First, let’s secure the area.”

“A good idea. I was getting ahead of myself.”

Go Hyeon-woo nodded in agreement.

Hong Yeon-hwa also quietly switched into “wait” mode.

We had no idea when the various threats we’d seen on the way here might come looking for us.

If we started cultivating mana in this state and got attacked while unguarded, we wouldn’t even be able to respond. We’d be in serious danger.

So we needed to secure at least a minimum level of safety.

First, I picked up a large rock nearby and threw it straight into the middle of the pond.

Splash—!

Water sprayed upward, and ripples spread violently across the surface.

We watched in silence. A moment later, one area of the pond began to bubble and turned a murky dark green.

Then something burst through the water’s surface.

What emerged was a huge serpent, thick as a human torso.

Poison dripped from its flickering tongue.

“Hissssss…”

“This is why they call it the Poison Serpent Pond.”

A pond inhabited by a poisonous serpent-like creature.

To clear it, you had to defeat the boss monster. Namely, that thing.

Or, you could defeat a hidden boss that appeared under specific conditions.

Still, it wasn’t the dungeon clear we were interested in. It was the mana.

We’d only just arrived. It would be a waste to leave now.

So I gave instructions to the group.

“Don’t kill it. Just drive it away.”

“Got it.”

Seo Ye-in swapped her mana gun for a pot, and the other party members each prepared for battle in their own way.

The next moment, the giant serpent’s neck swelled, and it spat a spray of poison at us.

Sshhhhh—!

Everyone immediately scattered, and nearby trees and rocks melted under the acid of the venom.

Even after several poison attacks, we dodged them all, and the creature, seemingly frustrated, began crawling out of the lake, likely to engage us in close combat.

With its mouth wide open, it charged straight at me.

“!?”

But halfway through, it suddenly stopped.

At some point….no one noticed when Lab Director had wrapped itself around its body.

Now stuck and unable to move, the serpent’s head became the focus of everyone’s attacks.

Fireballs, shadow clubs, sheaths, pots, and staffs struck it one after another.

Thwack-thwack-thwack! Clang! Thwack-thwack! Clang! —

Just as the creature writhed in pain and finally went limp, I raised a hand to stop the others.

“That’s enough. Any more and it’ll die.”

As satisfying as the fight was, we didn’t want to risk accidentally clearing the dungeon.

I walked up to the giant serpent and said briefly,

“Hey. Move out.”

“Hisssss…”

As if it understood my words, it nodded frantically and stumbled off, disappearing into the depths of the rainforest.

Hong Yeon-hwa watched it go with a strangely sympathetic gaze and perhaps, a touch of kinship.

And just like that, the Poison Serpent Pond was ours, at least for now.

But to truly secure the area, a few more precautions were necessary.

So we set up alarm magic around the pond.

Since this was a C-rank dungeon, every creature in it was a magical beast, but we could safely assume none of them were intelligent enough to detect or bypass the spell.

On top of that, Dang Gyu-young and Seo Ye-in laid traps, while Hong Yeon-hwa drew magic circles, completing our preparations.

At this point, everyone looked like they were ready to dive into the pond any second, but I smiled and said,

“Sorry, but we need to wait a little longer.”

“Is there another problem?”

“Yeah. It’ll be easier if I just show you.”

We stared at the pond like we were longing for a cake behind glass.

Before long, a dark green aura began to seep up slowly from the depths.

The once-clear lake turned murky in an instant, and instead of dense mana, poison began to rise.

I added an explanation.

“Poison fills the lake at regular intervals, then recedes. Right now, it’s the filling phase.”

“How long does it last?”

“Eight hours. Then it clears for four hours before filling with poison again.”

“I see. Then we have no choice but to wait.”

“That’s true, but eight hours is a bit much.”

There’s a way to tweak it to our liking.

After receiving the Book of Chaos from Hong Yeon-hwa, I tore out two pages in one motion.

Whoooosh—!

A wave seemed to ripple out from where we stood, and soon the entire dungeon began to shake.

Everything stretched and shrank, grew and shriveled, twisted and snapped back….over and over.

Then, as if nothing had happened, the wave abruptly stopped, and all was still.

“……”

“……”

The first change we noticed was the pond.

The surface, once dark green, had turned pitch black.

The rising poison was now even more potent, causing the group to instinctively step back.

“Not even Poison Resistance can handle this.”

“Not a chance.”

They had once shared the inner core of a poisonous creature and gained some resistance, but poison of this level would break through something like Poison Resistance with ease.

“One more piece of bad news. The hidden boss is probably stronger now, too.”

“Any good news to go with that?”

“Of course there is.”

If I’d only meant to increase the difficulty, I wouldn’t have used the Book of Chaos in the first place.

I held up eight fingers, then folded two of them down.

“The poison cycle shortens to six hours.”

“A welcome change indeed.”

That gave us two extra hours for mana cultivation.

Since we planned to stay for three days, that meant a total of twelve additional hours gained.

So, what do we do for the next six hours?

First, I looked at Dang Gyu-young and Seo Ye-in.

“One of our bond slots is still open, right?”

“So you did have a plan. I’m in.”

Dang Gyu-young smirked as if he’d figured out what I was planning, while Seo Ye-in’s eyes sparkled.

There was no need for an explanation. It was clear enough, so we got straight to it.

[‘Poison Immunity’ has been registered to the slot.]

▷ Shared Traits [2/2]

1. Distortion

2. Poison Immunity

I pointed at the pond, where black smoke was rising.

“Let’s do some mana cultivation.”

The commonality between elixirs and poisons is that they both contain powerful energy.

The same goes for spiritual and toxic zones.

The issue with poison is that it harms the body before the energy can be harnessed. But that didn’t apply to the three of us, now that we had Poison Immunity.

On top of that, with the poison further strengthened by the Book of Chaos, our cultivation efficiency would no doubt be even higher.

Then I turned to Go Hyeon-woo and Hong Yeon-hwa.

“We’ll go for six hours. Once the poison clears, it’s your turn.”

“Fair enough. Then while we wait, we’ll stand guard.”

Seeming to have grasped how things would play out, Go Hyeon-woo nodded in satisfaction.

When I looked back, Seo Ye-in had already taken off her stockings and was barefoot, while Dang Gyu-young was unbuttoning her shirt one button at a time.

So I asked,

“What’s with the shirt?”

“Aren’t we going in?”

“You only need to dip your feet.”

Dang Gyu-young immediately buttoned her shirt back up.

She pouted and grumbled,

“…You could’ve said that earlier. I got all excited for nothing.”

“Was it… that?”

“Even if it was, you’d better pretend you didn’t know.”

At her icy glare, I made a zipping motion over my mouth.