Chapter 230: Investigating the Ominous, a Trap Dungeon!

Qin Chuan looked around, then found an empty corner and stood there.

"Explain in detail?"

"The player you brought out has regained consciousness." Feng Yin spoke concisely, "Unfortunately, he has been invaded by an unknown power; even the strongest healing-type transcendent of the Special Affairs Group can do nothing."

"Just a few minutes after regaining consciousness, he lost his life."

"A few minutes should be enough for you to understand the true cause of the dungeon's descent, right?" Qin Chuan raised an eyebrow.

"Not bad." Feng Yin's voice turned slightly grave, "But this isn't good news."

"Normally, when a player realizes they cannot win, they can at any time choose 【Give Up This Challenge】 and teleport out directly."

"Even in battle, dungeon creatures cannot block this teleportation power."

"But this player, due to an mishap during exploration, was eroded by a special power called an 'ominous aura'."

"This erosion instantly stripped him of the ability to control himself; although he still retained consciousness, he could not choose to give up the challenge and leave."

Qin Chuan's forehead suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

Ominous aura…

He has also entered a dungeon that possesses this power!

A-rank dungeon, Screaming Magic Lake!

This means that, unaware, he might have followed in that player's footsteps at the time!

Thinking of that gray-black aura that filled him with extreme disgust, and of the Kasakaban corrupted by that aura, Qin Chuan felt a sudden chill, standing silently in place.

Meanwhile, Feng Yin did not notice Qin Chuan's unusual silence.

"A dungeon ends its 【In Progress】 state in only three ways." His voice paused slightly, "First, the player completes the minimum clearance requirements and successfully clears the dungeon."

"Second, the player gives up this challenge and teleports out of the dungeon."

"Third, the player dies during the challenge."

"The ominous erosion prevented that player from giving up and leaving, but it does not kill him instantly; instead, it turns him into a death-like state, maintaining only basic vital signs while continuously eroding his life."

"Thus, the D-rank dungeon Alaraba Mountain Range will remain in the 【In Progress】 state, unable to be challenged by other players."

"This problem is extremely dangerous." Feng Yin's voice grew graver, "After discovering it, we immediately re-screened and found multiple dungeons that had long remained in the 【In Progress】 state, and in some earlier dungeons we also found mentions of 'ominous'."

"This shows that such a power capable of eroding players exists in many dungeons."

"Once a player entering a dungeon encounters the ominous and is eroded, the result could be that the dungeon descends directly after the time limit ends."

Qin Chuan's expression turned grave, "Could we allow players to form teams as much as possible when entering dungeons, so they can watch each other and react immediately if a companion is eroded?"

"Unfortunately, no." Feng Yin spoke solemnly, "Because all dungeon descriptions that mention the ominous share a common point."

"Only one person is allowed to enter and challenge."

"All we can do now is to announce this as soon as possible, so that more players, upon entering a dungeon and seeing the two words 'ominous,' will immediately give up the challenge."

"Then we will try to send higher-tier players in to ensure safety."

"This can only suppress, not completely prevent players from being eroded by the ominous." Feng Yin let out a slight sigh, "But these are all we can do."

The dungeons are open to all players worldwide.

How can the Special Affairs Group make everyone listen to them?

That's unrealistic.

There are far too many thrill-seekers in this world.

"Better than doing nothing." Qin Chuan exhaled lightly and spoke slowly.

"Yeah." Feng Yin's tone shifted, "Besides that, we have some findings about the dungeon descent."

"After descent, the dungeon differs greatly from its state within the time limit."

"Based on methods such as killing all native spirits and destroying the passage core, along with the existence of entry/exit limits, we have a bold hypothesis."

"After descent, the dungeon is a channel linking Blue Star and another world."

"Outside the dungeon's range lies the other world."

"Or put another way, the dungeon is originally part of the other world, merely turned into a dungeon under the influence of a special power."

"Thus, beings from the other world outside the dungeon can cross its boundary into the dungeon, then use the dungeon as a stepping stone to enter Blue Star."

"The dungeon's boundary hinders powerful beings; those whose strength exceeds the limit cannot pass through the boundary—that is what entry/exit limits mean."

Upon hearing this, Qin Chuan showed a thoughtful expression.

He recalled the final moment when he destroyed that passage today, standing outside the boundary and gazing at his own black robe.

The other side couldn't act against him, likely due to the entry/exit limit.

At that time, the entry/exit limit allowed only Elite Tier passage, while the other's strength far surpassed that tier.

Just a brief glance, he could already confirm that the other's strength far exceeded that of the lake-bottom death demon Kasakaban after merging with the "Core."

Thinking of the other's ferocious grin, identical to Kasakaban's, Qin Chuan felt his heart sink.

"The worst news is that the entry/exit limit rises over time." Feng Yin continued, "So even for the lowest-rank dungeon, if the formed passage isn't dealt with promptly, it could allow very powerful otherworldly beings to enter Blue Star."

"At 10:30 AM tomorrow, a new dungeon passage will appear." Feng Yin said solemnly, "It is a B-rank dungeon limited to one person."

"If it transforms into a dungeon passage, there may also be a rank increase and a boost in the strength of internal native creatures, which would be extremely dangerous."

"Qin Chuan, we need your help."

"If needed." Qin Chuan fell silent for a moment, "I will give it my all."

The formation of a dungeon passage is a crisis for all of Blue Star.

He has no reason to stay out of it.

After the two discussed the details, Feng Yin hung up the phone.

Qin Chuan put his phone back in his pocket, rubbed his cheeks, then strode toward the dormitory building.

He pushed open the dorm door; three guys were already inside chatting away.

Besides Ye Zhao and Zhou Xiaochen, whom I had already met, there was another tall, handsome-looking male student with a sunny and refreshing demeanor.

"Wow! Buddy, you're so handsome!" Seeing Qin Chuan, the other guy laughed heartily and strode over, "Looks like I'll have to hand over my title as the Dorm 602 Grass!"

"Du He'an." He reached out a hand toward Qin Chuan.

"Qin Chuan." Qin Chuan shook hands with him, and they thus got to know each other.

"With you here, our Dorm 602 tonight can finally count on having someone to hold the fort!" Du He'an laughed heartily, and Zhou Xiaochen beside him nodded in agreement.

Even the usually quiet Ye Zhao showed a hint of being moved in his expression.

"Anything going on tonight?" Qin Chuan wondered curiously.

"Yes! A dorm mixer!" Du He'an winked at Qin Chuan, "I have a high school classmate in the Supernatural Theory major, and I've arranged with her for our two dorms to have a dinner together."

(End of chapter)