Chapter 87: Unknown Lands (4) Genuine Feelings Emerged

In an unknown underground dungeon, Zhao Tianhe once again slew the elite monster. The loot drop rate for this creature was truly impressive; it directly boosted Elay’s skill by one level.

Generally, to upgrade the professional skills of Elay and Artoria, three auxiliary materials and one main material are required. However, there is some flexibility: the main material can be replaced with a chess piece corresponding to their class.

That said, Zhao Tianhe had farmed thirty-seven of the Painted Ghost Women, so this time, Elay’s skill was upgraded with three Phantom Dusts and a Cursed Bone.

“Seriously, Cursed Bones have become a rare commodity now?” Zhao Tianhe muttered with some irritation. “What a pity, I can’t use my phone in soul form—can’t chat or play games. It’s so boring!”

Just then, the heavy sound of footsteps echoed. Zhao Tianhe paused, and with a thunderous crash, an iron fist punched through the door!

The Painted Ghost Woman had just stuck her head out, and Zhao Tianhe was still casting protective spells.

Bang! Bang! Crash!

After two heavy punches, the door collapsed. A tall, burly, bald old man with a vicious face and a single blue eye stepped onto the shattered door, glaring at the ghost and Zhao Tianhe, and howled skyward in rage!

“Old... Barton?” The ghost woman’s voice strained as she uttered the name.

“You... have awareness?” Zhao Tianhe looked at the ghost and asked.

“You... enemy... I... am dreaming? No, I... I am Elisha, no, I... I am the Faceless Woman...” The ghost slowly emerged from the frame, clutching her head as if confused.

“Could it be that after I farmed her over thirty times, she awakened?” Zhao Tianhe wondered aloud. “So, Elisha, I’m a hero—can you understand me?”

“Hero...? Save me... I’m afraid of Old Barton...” The ghost clutched her chest, trembling all over.

It seemed the reason this girl had “awakened” wasn’t just that Zhao Tianhe’s repeated farming had gradually made her adapt to the nightmare, but also because “Old Barton” was one of her nightmares as well. The collision of the two had shocked her into clarity.

Old Barton, however, ignored Zhao Tianhe completely and charged straight at the ghost, landing a punch squarely on her chest!

Due to the dungeon’s mechanics, these monsters would prioritize devouring their own kind before hunting “outsiders” like Zhao Tianhe.

But how could Zhao Tianhe stand by and watch?

“Dishwashing Art ×10!” Zhao Tianhe’s left arm split open with two wounds, and dozens of glowing balls shot at Old Barton’s head.

“Damn! Ten misses in a row!” Zhao Tianhe was clearly having a rough day—not even one super spell sense triggered.

“Another ten shots!”

Ten Weakness Hexes flew out, two high-level curses triggered, followed by ten electric sparks.

This time, a massive ball of lightning blasted Old Barton away!

The ghost woman was not to be outdone. From the painting behind Old Barton, a giant tree emerged, knocking him back, while she swung a massive hand and slapped Old Barton flat on the ground.

Zhao Tianhe didn’t continue casting, because, truth be told, he still didn’t quite trust this ghost woman and wanted to hold something back.

What followed was a fierce fight between the ghost and Old Barton.

Old Barton had high attack and defense, but in this haunted house filled with paintings that allowed for attacks from every angle, and with Zhao Tianhe’s support suppressing him, he soon found himself on the losing end.

In the end, the ghost woman pinned Old Barton to the ground, tearing and clawing at him until his body gradually faded away...

From the ground where Old Barton vanished, a translucent cylinder slowly emerged.

It was a nightmare jar, identical to the one behind the Painted Ghost Woman in this room.

“Does that monster have an inner subspace?” Zhao Tianhe looked at the jar, disbelief in his eyes. “And isn’t that tube supposed to connect to the outside world?”

But while Zhao Tianhe was still observing, the ghost woman seized the jar and shoved it into the pitch-dark abyss of her face, swallowing it whole!

“Hey, hey, hey! That’s… damn!” Zhao Tianhe was about to rush forward to stop her, but saw the ghost woman’s body convulse violently. Black mist coiled around her, and her blue flowered dress transformed into a Gothic black gown adorned with bone and metal ornaments.

A strange aura permeated the air. Zhao Tianhe’s sixth sense screamed at him: the monster before him was now extremely dangerous!

“Don’t worry, big brother hero. Devouring just means absorbing another’s nightmare to gain more control over the dungeon’s resources.” The ghost’s head swiveled a full one hundred and eighty degrees, like an owl, as she spoke to Zhao Tianhe. “He’s not dead—Ally isn’t dead. I’ve become stronger, but my head hurts a bit...”

“Mm, getting stronger is good.” Zhao Tianhe quietly cast twenty protection spells on himself before daring to approach, smiling as he asked, “Now that you’re fully awake, can you tell me what’s really going on here?”

“I’m not entirely sure myself. I just instinctively know I must devour other children’s souls to gain control, grow stronger, and after that, things get fuzzy.” Elisha’s voice was confused. “I want to eat, I want to eat, I want to eat, ahhhh~~~”

In the next instant, the entire room vanished with a crash. The jar containing Elisha detached from the wall, broke away from the metal tube that once linked it to the outside, and flew into the ghost’s body.

Although the room disappeared, the paintings did not. They circled around the ghostly form of Elisha, spinning like floating cannons. In fact, their function was similar to gun turrets—except the ammunition they fired consisted of pots, pans, tables, chairs, and stools, which was a bit underwhelming.

“Elisha! Are you still awake?!” Zhao Tianhe gathered his courage to step forward and shout.

“I’m still awake, just so hungry, so hungry—ahhhh~~~” The ghost clutched her face and roared.

‘Though I don’t really know what’s going on, if Elisha can be an ally, then maybe I can use her to clear the dungeon?’ Zhao Tianhe suddenly thought. He jumped onto Elisha’s shoulder, patted her head, and said, “I know a place with lots of souls. Come on, follow my lead. Good girl!”

“Thank you, big brother hero. I want to eat, eat~~~” Elisha howled with excitement, charging off in the direction Zhao Tianhe indicated.

What Zhao Tianhe referred to, of course, was the grand hall he had escaped from. But just as they were about to enter, Elisha was stopped by an invisible barrier!

“Ahhh~~ So many souls! But I can’t eat them!” Elisha stared at the souls in the hall, scratching desperately at the barrier and roaring with frustration, grabbing Zhao Tianhe in the process.

“Calm down! I’m your big brother hero! You can’t eat me!” Zhao Tianhe shouted. “If you can’t eat what’s in there, just go eat something else!”

“Oh, right, heroes are good people, can’t eat them, not even when hungry...” Elisha calmed down a bit, stood up, and turned to run back the way they came.

‘Whew, thank goodness for all that protection magic. Even if she really lost control, I’d still have a chance to escape.’ Zhao Tianhe breathed a sigh of relief, pointed at a burly figure ahead, and called out, “Go, Elisha! Use Tree Combo!”

“Yes~~~”