Chapter 83 Prisoner God 10

"You're really impressive, you actually figured out a route to the third layer?!"

Upon hearing the Plague Doctor say that they had already figured out a method to access the next three levels, Xiao Ou's eyes immediately lit up.

Concerned that Xia Qi and Xiao Ou might not trust him, the Plague Doctor smiled gently and pointed to the staircase leading down into the darkness. He said, "The 7th Temple leads to the 16th Temple. In the 16th Temple, there's another staircase leading down, which takes you to the 25th Temple on the first layer."

Upon hearing this, Xia Qi furrowed his brow and asked, "How did you manage to figure out this route?"

The route deduced by Mr. Plague was 1→4→7→16→25.

Based on Xia Qi's understanding of the arrangement of rooms on this level—a 3x3 grid with numbers increasing from right to left—the route deduced by Mr. Plague seemed reasonable.

However, they were currently in the 4th Temple on the first layer. How did they know that beneath the 16th Temple on the second level was the 25th Temple?

"Because we have a Beastmaster," the Plague Doctor said, pointing to the Beastmaster who was resting nearby. "His skill has leveled up, and now he can send out a black dog. This black dog can scout for us, but for some reason, it can only go down one layer and can't go beyond the third layer."

Possibly due to a defensive mechanism, the connection with the black dog was severed as soon as it reached the third layer.

Xiao Ou was strongly tempted by the Plague Doctor's invitation. He muttered to himself for a while but then suddenly remembered a warning from Xia Qi.

Xiao Ou's enthusiasm instantly cooled, and he glanced at Xia Qi to ask if they should go with Mr. Plague.

Xia Qi looked at him and then said to the Plague Doctor, "Thank you, but we'd like to explore this level a bit more."

"Very well," the Plague Doctor nodded gently and said, "If you encounter any difficulties, feel free to ask us for help."

"Thanks again," Xia Qi and Xiao Ou thanked the Plague Doctor before beginning their investigation of the 4th Temple.

Inside the 4th Temple, there were two doors: the southern door led toward the 7th Temple, and the eastern door led toward the 5th Temple.

Since they had just fought a big battle in the 4th Temple, the floor was covered with shattered bronze fragments, making it hard to discern what the original bronze statues had looked like. Xia Qi thought to himself that the combined strength of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th groups was quite impressive, judging by how they had reduced the monsters to such a state.

Just as the two were about to push open the door to the 5th Temple, Mr. Plague's voice came from behind them again, "Holy Son, you won't come with us? If you take the wrong path, you might not be able to come back up."

Xia Qi pressed his lips together, turned around, and said toward Mr. Plague, "Thank you, but we'll go our own way."

He neither confirmed that they wouldn't follow the route down, nor did he say they would go down through another room.

Hearing this, Mr. Plague didn't say anything more and continued to rest inside the 4th Temple.

Xia Qi pushed open the door to the 5th Temple and walked in side by side with Xiao Ou.

Upon entering the vast 5th Temple, Xia Qi found that there were no monsters. Instead, there was a three-tiered golden fountain in the center. The two of them circled the fountain and noticed that the water inside was quite clear.

"If this weren't a dungeon, I'd really like to take a bath here," Xiao Ou said regretfully, looking at the clear fountain water.

Xia Qi, of course, knew that Xiao Ou wasn't actually going to bathe in the fountain, so he ignored him and carefully examined the fountain. He found a sign hanging on one edge of the fountain. He picked it up and read:

"Description: The Light God can purify all the filth of the world."

"Maybe you could really bathe in it," Xia Qi said under his breath, glancing at the water in the fountain.

He flipped the sign over and found a line of pink text on the back:

"Personal Message for You: 'Cleanliness is health.'"

Xia Qi: "..."

How ridiculous!

"Xiao Ou, come over and take a look," Xia Qi said, barely restraining his temper from throwing the sign away. He gestured for Xiao Ou to take a look at the pink text on the back of the sign. "Read the words on this."

"Description: The Light God can purify all the filth in the world." Xiao Ou said, puzzled, and turned the sign over. "The text on the front and back is the same. Do you want me to read it again?"

The more Xiao Ou thought about it, the more something felt off. Xia Qi wasn't a illiterate person after all, so why was he asking him to read it? Could it be that he was seeing something different?

Xia Qi put down the sign without expression. "Never mind."

This system had always lacked any decency, and he had long since grown used to it.

Since the 5th Temple was surprisingly safe, Xiao Ou and Xia Qi decided it was a good spot to rest. They fully restored their condition and took turns resting and napped for six hours.

After completely regaining their energy, Xiao Ou walked to the southern side of the 5th Temple, which was the entrance to the 8th Temple.

"Should we go in?" Xiao Ou asked, placing both hands on the door and swallowing nervously.

Xia Qi walked up beside him and prepared to push the door open. "Let's take a look."

They needed to understand the structure of the first floor better to continue determining the correct sequence for descending to the lower levels.

"Creak—"

After opening the door, Xiao Ou quickly pulled out his dagger and walked inside with caution. When they reached the center of the 8th Temple, they found no monsters, just all sorts of miscellaneous items and a silver chest in the middle.

"Too bad, still no monsters," Xiao Ou said with a grin, then swaggered over to the silver chest and pulled out six supply bottles.

Xia Qi looked at him, speechless, thinking that Xiao Ou had become lazy from being coddled.

They then walked to the corner and found that the 8th Temple also had a staircase leading to the 17th Temple on the second floor.

However, this staircase was different. The golden light on the left side flowed downward, while the light on the right side flowed upward.

"Is this staircase bidirectional?" Xiao Ou stared at the staircase for a moment, his mouth watering almost to the point of drooling.

Xia Qi had already taken out his rope and stone. He tried his usual method to test it and found that this path was indeed a two-way passage, allowing both ascent and descent.

"We can take this route," Xia Qi concluded.

Everything had been going smoothly to an absurd degree. They had stumbled upon a path that allowed both ascent and descent. If they encountered danger on the second floor, they could still escape back here.

"Hey, this route is far more reliable than the one the Plague Doctor mentioned!" Xiao Ou nodded. Although the route provided by the Plague Doctor could lead to the third floor, they could only go down, not up!

If they encountered monsters on the third floor and by chance walked into a dead end, who would be at fault if they died?

"Oh right, they haven't gone down yet. Maybe someone else has already met their doom," Xiao Ou said bluntly, given Xia Qi's lingering suspicion of the Plague Doctor.

After dividing the supplies, they planned to head downstairs to take a look.

Just then, a loud "boom" echoed, causing the neighboring wall to suddenly tremble violently. It sounded like a massive object had hit the wall.

It seemed like the others weren't as lucky.

Xia Qi listened closely and realized the sound came from the neighboring 9th Temple.

The eastern door of the 5th Temple led to the 6th Temple, and through the 6th Temple, one could reach the 9th Temple. Xia Qi and Xiao Ou had not entered the 6th Temple when they came to the 8th Temple.

"So, someone didn't follow the Plague Doctor's route?" Xia Qi said, puzzled. He had assumed that the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th groups had followed the Plague Doctor’s route and descended. He didn't expect someone to have explored the 6th Temple instead.

"Let's go take a look," Xia Qi said.

To obtain more information about the rooms, the two of them retreated back to the 5th Temple. Just as they were about to push open the door to the 6th Temple, it suddenly opened from the inside.

Xia Qi recognized the person who staggered out as the captain of the 2nd group, Robber, who was covered in blood. Finding Xia Qi and Xiao Ou standing outside, Robber rushed out and shouted, "Run! The monsters inside carry an infectious disease!"

"Infectious disease?!" Xiao Ou hurriedly shouted in panic, "Retreat, retreat! Let's head back to the 8th Temple!"

"Aoooo!"

Just as Xia Qi grabbed Robber and pulled him away, a twisted hand clung to the door, and a grotesque figure quickly crawled out.

The person's skin had turned brown, covered with purplish-red spots and patches. Countless black holes marked his neck, and most absurdly, the damaged areas on his face resembled the outstretched wings of a bat. His mouth was crooked, and his eyes were two circular holes, filled with yellow, bloodshot eyeballs. He looked even more terrifying than the Saintess.

As the monster flailed its broken limb towards them, Xiao Ou pulled out his dagger and shouted in fear, "What on earth is this thing?!"

Xia Qi pulled Robber away and asked with surprise and uncertainty, "Is this a person or an NPC?"

It looked like leprosy.

"He's a person! My teammate!" Robber sobbed, then wiped his face again, crying painfully, "There's no other choice. Do you have ranged weapons? Please, put him out of his misery!"

"Aoo!"

The monster approached them step by step, holding out his trembling hands and mumbling incoherently, "He...lp me..."

The monster's HP and SP were continuously dropping, especially the SP, which had fallen to a mere 9. He was now in a state between sanity and madness, his expression becoming sorrowful one moment and brutal the next, as if he was about to turn into a full-fledged monster.

Robber wiped his tears as he retreated, his face smeared with blood. "I'm sorry. I can't save you. To ease your suffering, I have to let them kill you."

Since the monster was infected with leprosy and was no longer within the realm of normal humans, regular methods of killing a human wouldn't work. They would need to use weapons provided within the dungeon.

Xia Qi pursed his lips and, with regret, said to Robber, "I don't have any attack skills."

"...My dagger only deducts 1-5 HP," Xiao Ou added, his dagger mainly used for stealing. If he threw his dagger, it would take 7-10 throws to have any real effect.

By the time they retrieved their dagger, they would have already contracted leprosy.

This was the unfortunate reality of the duo.

Robber was at a loss for words. He hadn't expected this pair to be so daring as to tackle such a situation alone without ranged weapons. It was truly admirable.

Watching the monster struggle in agony, Xia Qi's eyes darted. He suddenly recalled the phrase written on the sign: "Cleaner is Healthier."

...Perhaps the fountain water might help?

Xia Qi asked Xiao Ou for a basin and picked up a stone from the ground, throwing it at the monster. "Come and chase me!" he shouted.

Xia Qi then ran to the central fountain, using the basin to scoop out half a basin of water. He poured it over the monster's head.

"Splash!"

The clear water cascaded over the monster, who suddenly halted, staring at Xia Qi in shock.

The monster stiffly raised his broken palm to wipe his water-soaked face. As he wiped, he noticed his fingers regrowing...

This water... could very well be holy water, right?

"Holy crap, he's healed!" Xiao Ou pointed at the monster and shouted.

After the water from the fountain was poured over him, smoke emerged from the monster's head, and the three of them saw that the monster's skin began to return to a normal flesh color. Especially his face, which was no longer grotesque, and his eyes slowly changed from yellow to black.

As the water droplets fell to the ground, the monster looked like a living person again, and when they checked his status panel, they saw that his SP value had increased from 9 to 15.

"Quick, go take a bath!" The thief was extremely excited upon seeing this, wishing he could dunk his teammate's head into the fountain, afraid of the contagion through skin contact.

The monster's intelligence had recovered significantly and, upon hearing the thief's order, he eagerly leaped forward and jumped into the fountain, starting to bathe himself.

Watching the monster gradually return to normal in the fountain, Xiao Ou, clutching his chest in surprise, exclaimed, "My god, it really works!"

After helping his teammate out of the fountain, the thief's eyes welled up with tears, and he repeatedly thanked Xia Qi and Xiao Ou, "Thank you, thank you so much!"

Xiao Ou scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. It was Xia Qi who had discovered the water; he hadn't done anything.

Xia Qi nodded and asked the thief, "Is there anyone else in the 6th Temple? Do you need to go back in and save them?"

"No need..." The thief's eyes reddened, and he sniffled, "They're all dead."

Xia Qi couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Even though they probably couldn't re-enter the neighboring temple, Xia Qi still wanted to know the relevant information, so he continued asking, "Can you tell us what happened in the 6th and 9th Temples?"

Since Xia Qi had saved the thief and his teammate, the thief straightened his demeanor and answered truthfully, "We entered the 6th and 9th Temples, and later, through the staircase in the 9th Temple, we accessed the 18th Temple on the second floor. That's where our teammate caught leprosy."

It was surprising that the thief's group had managed to return from the second floor. Xia Qi paused for a moment, then continued, "Is there also a dual-directional passage in the 9th Temple?"

"Yes, you're right. There is indeed a dual-directional passage in the 9th Temple that leads to the 18th Temple on the second floor. But the room in the 18th Temple on the second floor has no door; it's a dead end," the thief said regretfully, a look of remorse on his face, "If we hadn’t been so curious and explored the new route but had followed the Plague Doctor's path, my teammate wouldn't have died."

After gathering all the information from the thief, Xia Qi began to analyze the situation.

He now had all the information about the staircases leading to the second floor. The paths from the 2nd and 3rd Temples leading to the 11th and 12th Temples were confirmed to be extremely dangerous. Based on the passage leading upwards from the 10th Temple, the 12th Temple seemed to be a dead end.

That left only the path through the 7th Temple, as indicated by the Plague Doctor, and the staircases from the 8th and 9th Temples leading downwards.

Since the thief had already confirmed that the 9th Temple’s path was blocked, by the process of elimination, apart from the route provided by the Plague Doctor, the only remaining path to the second floor was the one that Xia Qi and Xiao Ou had discovered in the 8th Temple.

In other words, the route they had found themselves was very likely the correct one!

Just as Xia Qi was about to tell the thief that following the Plague Doctor wasn't necessarily the right choice, a knock sounded from the western door.

The western door led to the 4th Temple, where the Plague Doctor from the 5th group had previously rested.

"Who is it?" Xiao Ou asked suspiciously as he walked toward the door. Since the monsters in the 4th Temple were already dead, his courage had grown, and he pulled the door open, wondering if the Plague Doctor had come.

As Xiao Ou opened the door, a long, black hand suddenly emerged from behind the door, slamming onto the doorframe and chipping off a few pieces of the ornate frame.

"Damn it!" Xiao Ou jumped in fright and, turning around, sprinted toward Xia Qi, letting out a blood-curdling scream, "Ahhhhh, Brother Xia, your 'date' is here!"

Xia Qi: "..."

As Xiao Ou ran toward him, the door to the 4th Temple slowly opened, and a cloaked figure emerged from the shadows.

The air suddenly became heavy, and Xia Qi, frozen in place, couldn't help but hold his breath.

As the shadowy figure entered, a terrifyingly cold aura spread throughout the hall from the doorway, sending a chill from the soles of their feet up their spines, making Xia Qi shudder.

"Run!" Xiao Ou shouted at him.

Xia Qi turned and fled, but Xiao Ou ran even faster. He had already pushed open the rear door, Door 8, with the bandit.

"Grab my hand, Brother Xia!" Xiao Ou slipped through the door and reached out to pull Xia Qi.

Before Xia Qi could raise his hand, a cold wind swept over his back. Before he could react, an icy hand grabbed his lower abdomen and pulled him backward.

"Hmph."

Xia Qi didn't manage to grab Xiao Ou's hand. He was lifted off the ground and pulled into a cold embrace.

The figure behind him nuzzled against his ear, the icy breath brushing against Xia Qi's temple, causing half of his face to go numb. Then, a hoarse voice intoned in his ear:

"In my dungeon, where could you possibly run to?"

The author has something to say:

Lately, I've been craving marinated chicken feet. I think Xiao Ou's hand would be quite suitable.