Chapter 273: Dwarf King Ring

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A massive damage burst leapt off Su Sheng's head, startling Su Sheng and the women who hadn't been paying much attention.

I'm going!

And this was under Defensive Stance, only 40,000 damage!

And it was just a tiny aftershock left.

If the Prison Cage Talisman hadn't been there earlier, besides my own pseudo‑Nirvana, probably everyone present, including the dwarf NPCs, would have been wiped out; no wonder the system offered a second option.

Seeing the pseudo‑Nirvana state already triggered, Su Sheng couldn't help but grin wryly, realizing he was still too careless.

At such a distance, and it was only the rebound of the mine‑cave explosion's aftershock, yet the damage was this outrageous; it's hard to imagine the power at the blast's core…

Especially, the central furnace explosion that could destroy the entire Chi Yan City.

That level‑80 Lord‑rank boss is most likely truly gone.

Su Sheng couldn't help but once again think of that Lord‑rank boss's loot.

Lord‑rank bosses guarantee a 100% epic drop, most likely a Red Legend, with a small chance of a Divine Artifact.

Su Sheng watched his HP recovering, stuck out his tongue to lick his lips, thinking that if he could get a bite of the Lord‑rank drop, that would be great.

After Su Sheng blocked the final aftershock rebound, everything settled down.

"Phew, it's safe now," Tie Chui Airen exhaled, looking at the bronze gate before him.

Su Sheng sheathed his Shield, recalling something, and said to Iron Hammer Grandmaster, "Iron Hammer Grandmaster, the furnace in Chi Yan City has exploded, is the little fire spirit still there?"

Although at first the little fire spirit tormented Su Sheng and the others to the brink of ecstasy and death, in the end, if it hadn't held back the falling Demon Race, they probably wouldn't have gotten away so easily.

"Hard to say…" Tie Chui Airen sighed, "It was originally born within the central furnace, and has a symbiotic relationship with Chi Yan City's central furnace."

"However, itself, it draws power from the fire veins below; it may have perished together with Chi Yan City's central furnace, or it may have returned to the underground fire veins."

Hearing that, Su Sheng fell silent for a moment and decided to treat it as having returned to the fire veins.

At that moment, a System Notification came through.

Dungeon Notification: Congratulations, player, you have cleared the Dungeon "Demon‑occupied Zone Chi Yan City Forge".

Dungeon results processing.

Metric 1: Forge, successfully forged a Divine Artifact, rating… S

Metric 2: Eliminated Demon Race in Demon‑occupied Zone, Chi Yan City exploded, countless Demon casualties, rating… S

Metric 3: Protected Dwarf Race craftsmen, zero casualties, rating… S

Overall rating: SSS+

Huh?

All five members of the party saw the Dungeon results and didn't expect the rating to be this high.

After all, this Dungeon was a string of question marks, leaving everyone completely baffled.

Unexpectedly, by sheer luck they achieved a completion rate as high as three S's—truly outrageous.

But the whole journey was indeed not easy.

Dungeon Notification: Rewards distributed.

Reward 1: Level +1

Reward 2: Random component, one additional level‑40 purple equipment for this class.

Swish~

Five golden lights flickered on.

Su Ba, level 41,

Three women, level 42, Su Sheng reached level 43.

Level up instantly!

Su Sheng glanced at the remaining experience, at 70% of level 43.

Su Sheng smiled contentedly, thinking that at this rate he would soon reach level 44.

But only one level‑40 purple equipment was given; isn't that a bit stingy, given the Dungeon's high difficulty?

Afterwards Su Sheng decided to check what his level‑40 purple component was; his armor was already all purple, and there were level‑50 gear waiting in the warehouse for replacement.

Su Sheng naturally felt indifferent toward a single level‑40 purple piece, but having already obtained a Divine Artifact, he had no desire to be picky.

Of course, if it were released publicly, a level‑40 equipment would probably cause players to scramble for it.

But at that moment…

Ding…

Dungeon Notification: Player's Dungeon completion was extremely high, main player reward 2 replaced.

Replacement complete.

Obtained Reward 2: Fire Sprite Core, Dwarf King Ring.

Huh?

Su Sheng stared blankly, "What the heck? Did they notice I was dissatisfied with a level‑40 purple gear and give me a special treat?"

But the main player mentioned must be me, since the main quest of this Dungeon is right here.

It means only my reward was swapped.

I wonder what they gave.

Su Sheng opened his inventory.

Fire Sprite Core (pet item)

After use, obtain the pet Fire Sprite.

Explanation: The fire spirit of Chi Yan City's furnace, as the furnace self-destructed, turned into a core.

Ah?

Su Sheng's eyes widened; although he didn't know its potential, thinking back to when they were in Chi Yan City's furnace, that little guy had tormented them to the brink of death.

This pet will definitely not be weak.

However, it's a pity that I already have a lion beast, and I have no intention of replacing that little guy who likes to lie on my head.

After all, the lion beast is a Mountain Sea Divine Beast, and this fire spirit may not be as formidable as the lion beast.

For fire element, it would actually be best to give it to Li Wenwan, but Li Wenwan already has a fire-eating sparrow, which is still a counter to this fire spirit.

Then next up are Huan Jie, my dad, and Huang Mingxin.

Let them decide for themselves later.

Now look at the last item.

Dwarven King's Ring (Five-Colored Divine Artifact/Seal)

Explanation: Special item

Status: Unusable

Note: This was the ring once worn by the Dwarf King, symbolizing the supreme authority of the Dwarf Kingdom; after a player acquires a stronghold, they can use the ring to summon the Dwarf tribe to serve them.

Su Sheng couldn't help but pause, a Five-Colored Divine Artifact?

Too bad, I can't use it.

This thing is just a special item.

However…

Su Sheng's gaze fell on the Iron Hammer Dwarf; he is indeed a grand master.

That means, once I have a stronghold, I can use this ring to recruit this Iron Hammer Dwarf, a grand master smith, for my own use.

In an instant, Su Sheng's breathing became rapid.

Once the guild reaches level three, one can apply for a stronghold.

Village, town, city… main city…

One can expand step by step.

If my future stronghold had such a grand master–level smith take up residence, Su Sheng would laugh in his sleep.

Thinking of this, Su Sheng put away the Dwarven King's Ring.

When you have a stronghold later, take it out then.

Although this mission was full of twists and turns, it was also a bountiful harvest.

Next, it's also quite humane, after all it's still a game.

After the dungeon ended, Su Sheng and the others exited through the bronze gate.

The Iron Hammer Dwarves had already returned to their mine base in Wutong Town; Su Sheng and the others simply used the Return City Scroll to go back to Zhuque City.

Afterward, they began sorting the loot.

"Wait a moment, you guys divide this up."

Su Sheng called out to everyone, then displayed the fire spirit's crystal core in the team channel…