Chapter 35: The Luminous Lake’s Perils and the Path to the 53rd Floor

The resources on the 52nd floor were primarily found within the Luminous Lake.

At the bottom of the central lake, unique spherical pearls called Lumina Pearls would precipitate. These pearls were perfectly round, resembling clam pearls, and emitted the same ethereal blue-green light as the Luminous Lake itself.

“How do we get them, then?” Hilvyn asked, pointing at an image in the records.

“It doesn’t say,” Elara replied, gathering the records. “Perhaps with a net?”

It was merely a guess, and Elara doubted its effectiveness. She estimated they wouldn’t be able to acquire many Lumina Pearls this time.

Preparations could never be entirely comprehensive. It was impossible for her to anticipate the conditions of every floor and plan accordingly.

• ‘How would a normal adventurer party handle this?’ she mused.
• “What if we use wind magic to stir the lake water, then let the Lumina Pearls surge to the surface with the current?” Hilvyn proposed.

Elara seriously considered the feasibility of this approach.

It was indeed a method, but she had no idea if there were any Lumina Pearls nearby, or how many. Moreover, this would certainly disturb the monsters within the lake.

Though, retrieving Lumina Pearls by any means would likely cause a disturbance.

As for avoiding the water, that was beyond question. The Luminous Lake was home to various Cave Jellyfish.

While jellyfish were typically C-rank, the Luminous Lake also harbored unique B-rank Luminous Lake Jellyfish.

These creatures wouldn’t actively attack people, but contact would result in being ensnared by their tentacles, followed by the injection of venom through clothing and skin.

Even the venom of a C-rank jellyfish could prove fatal to an A-rank adventurer if not treated promptly.

High magic affinity could slow the onset of the venom, but effective treatment still required potions or healing magic with purification properties.

Even with protective gear, other monsters lay in wait, poised to strike from within the lake.

After packing up their camp, the two officially began exploring the 52nd floor.

The Luminous Lake nearest the entrance measured about fifty meters in diameter, which, according to the guild’s data, was considered small.

For Elara, this was precisely what she wanted.

She decided to test a smaller area first. If even a small one proved unmanageable, they would swiftly move to the next floor without wasting time.

“First, let’s launch a couple of wind spears and see.”

Hilvyn nodded, raising her hand to conjure three wind spears. She launched them into three spots in the lake, relatively close to the shore.

The wind spears pierced the water, creating three bursts of spray. Ripples spread across the lake’s surface, yet nothing floated up.

“Send a few more.”

Another five wind spears struck the water, causing it to churn. Finally, something surfaced—a dozen or so spherical pearls glowing with blue-green light, along with some jellyfish.

“It’s Lumina Pearls, Master!” Hilvyn exclaimed, her eyes lighting up as she pointed at them.

Several Lumina Pearls washed ashore with the waves. Elara quickly stepped forward, her hands moving swiftly to collect five of them.

Immediately, that small section of the lake’s surface became covered with surfacing Cave Jellyfish.

“The efficiency is too low, alas~”

Only this much could be collected from five wind spears. If not for an elf’s high total magic power, this amount of magic would be a mere drop in the bucket; such inefficient gathering would be unsustainable.

Moreover, gathering came with risks. Jellyfish tentacles could range from an arm’s length to several meters, their bells were semi-transparent, and their tentacles were utterly indistinguishable, not to mention the blinding glare from the lake.

However, having come this far, they resolved to collect a little more.

Fortunately, Hilvyn was there. Since entering the dungeon, Elara had never heard her complain about running out of magic power.

They hadn’t engaged in any high-intensity battles along the way. Hilvyn would typically recover most of her magic power after a good night’s sleep, a meal, and some time spent gathering materials.

“Let’s try a few more times on the opposite bank,” Elara suggested, pointing across the lake, where the surface was still clear of jellyfish.

The two made their way to the opposite bank. Hilvyn, mimicking her earlier actions, sent several more wind spears into the water.

Elara crouched by the shore, ready to act at any moment.

With several surges, even more Lumina Pearls washed ashore this time.

Elara had only picked up a few when her eyes caught a glimpse of the lake’s reflection darkening nearby. She decisively retreated.

A black hand emerged from beneath the water, grasping at empty air.

“Good thing I was on guard,” Elara murmured. This was the monster she had been wary of since entering: the Bogman.

An A-rank monster, Bogmen only appeared in dungeons, specifically in the water bodies of the Wind Whisper Dungeon from the 50th floor upwards.

They were entirely black, human-like in form, but their bodies were extremely gaunt, lacking facial features save for two hollow, pale eye sockets.

These monsters would lie in wait underwater, using immense strength to drag people, whether in the water or on the shore, beneath the surface.

Upon death, their bodies would dissipate, leaving no materials behind. They were purely generated by the dungeon’s corruption.

“Master, it went back down.”

After its failed grasp, the Bogman retreated back into the water a moment later.

“It won’t engage in a direct fight at all.”

Elara found herself helpless against it.

Winning yielded no rewards, while losing incurred penalties.

Elara weighed the five Lumina Pearls she had just collected in her hand.

“Let’s go. To the next floor.”

Ten pearls in total, a nice round number. They would abandon the rest here.

They had to leave the Lumina Pearls here, but perhaps they could find other monsters or materials to gather on their way.

Along the subsequent path, Elara and Hilvyn encountered no particularly dangerous monsters. By bypassing trees that seemed to be dryads, they smoothly reached the end of the 52nd floor.

The 53rd floor, conversely, returned to the cave’s true nature, consisting entirely of winding, barren cave passages.

“Master, is this enough?” Hilvyn asked, having collected a pile of dry kindling, while Elara was consulting the 53rd floor’s records by the light of the lake.

She glanced at the pile of firewood and stored it in her ring.

“That’s enough. Thank you for your hard work, Hilvyn.”

“It’s no trouble, hehe.” Hilvyn beamed for a moment, then asked,

“Is there anything to watch out for on the 53rd floor?”

“Nothing specific to note. We can just crush our way through, but there will be very powerful A-rank monsters.”

The 53rd floor had a unique characteristic: each exploration route would generate one to two A-rank elite monsters.

These were akin to mini-bosses, stronger than regular A-rank monsters of the same type, but still within the A-rank tier.

“How strong are they?”

Elara pondered, “Stronger than ordinary A-rank monsters.”

“Stronger than A-rank…?” Hilvyn calculated in her mind. “Doesn’t that make them S-rank monsters?”

“No, no,” Elara shook her head, vehemently denying it. “Even five or ten of these A-rank monsters couldn’t defeat an S-rank monster.”

Hearing this explanation, Hilvyn found it incredible.

“Are S-rank monsters that powerful?”

“Mhm,” Elara mused for a moment before explaining, “Just as we need a domain quality-change to reach S-rank, monsters reaching S-rank will fuse with an element to form an external domain, affecting the environment and surrounding creatures.”

“That powerful?!”

It sounded incredibly formidable just to hear about it.

“Of course, there are exceptions like naturally S-rank adult dragons,” Elara shrugged. “But those aren’t things we need to worry about. Don’t fret.”

Elara hadn’t genuinely encountered an S-rank monster since her transmigration. There must be unsung experts quietly contributing.

If they ever truly encountered an S-rank monster, she would undoubtedly make a swift escape.

After walking for some distance, Elara stopped and drew her twin blades.

“There’s movement ahead.”

“Alright!”