The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 308

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 308
Chapter 308
The warriors of the Expedition Party fell into despair.
Since Mir had failed to detect and disarm the trap, there was only one possible answer.
‘We must sacrifice someone.’
Someone had to step forward.
One person would have to become the sacrificial lamb, trigger the trap, and give their life for the entire Expedition Party.
We didn’t know how many more traps lay ahead, but for the future of the Desert, it was an unavoidable choice.
“Seniors, I will go. I know better than anyone that I am the weakest warrior in the Expedition Party. Looking at our future, it makes sense for me to step forward.”
“What are you saying! If anyone should go, it should be this old man who doesn’t have many days left!”
“Elder, is there anyone here who doesn’t know your strength? We might face another enemy like the Sphinx ahead—how could we afford to lose you!”
“Even so, if you step forward, we’ll only be burning the Desert’s future to move ahead!”
“There’s no choice now. If you sacrifice yourself, not just the future but the present itself will collapse.”
“Hah….”
Yet the warriors of the Desert were resolute.
Rather than hesitating and trying to avoid it, they competed with one another to volunteer as the sacrificial lamb.
But then.
“I will continue to lead the way.”
The commander of the Expedition Party.
Mir, who could be called the hero of the Desert for slaying the Evil God and eliminating the Assassins, stepped forward.
Everyone tried to stop him.
Was it since encountering the Sphinx?
Everyone in the Expedition Party had come to realize it.
Without Mir, when they faced the Sphinx after crossing the Abyss, at least thirty percent of the Expedition Party would have fallen.
And after entering the Pyramid, another thirty percent would have been lost to the traps.
Without Mir, the Pyramid cannot be conquered.
That was what everyone in the Expedition Party believed.
But.
“I will trigger the traps as I advance. Once the traps are activated, please follow behind me.”
Mir’s resolve was unwavering.
As everyone watched with concern, Mir pushed past them all and moved forward.
Whoosh!
His entire body wrapped in black flames.
The dragon’s fangs, eyes, horns, and bones that evoked the image of the desert dragon seen in the mirage.
And….
“Dragon scales…?”
Covered in scales harder than any armor imaginable.
At that sight, the warriors who had been trying to stop Mir found their legs frozen without their own volition.
Mir could do it.
Such vague faith was born within them.
Not long after.
Whoosh!
A new trap activated.
Dozens of sharp sand spikes erupted simultaneously around Mir, who had been leading the way ahead.
But that wasn’t all.
Spikes falling from the ceiling.
Spikes jutting out from the walls on both sides.
An attack without mercy or pattern, much like the arrows we’d first encountered in the Pyramid.
These spikes appeared even more formidable than those initial arrows.
“Mir!”
Everyone cried out in shock.
Several warriors rushed forward to save Mir, while the shamans unleashed their magic to crumble the sand spikes and rescue him.
Yet no attack, no magic could penetrate the trap’s defenses.
Then, gradually, the sand spikes began to scatter into grains of sand.
The Expedition Party’s warriors instinctively squeezed their eyes shut.
Could anyone survive such a devastating trap?
We knew Mir’s capabilities, but witnessing the spike trap firsthand, we could only imagine his blood soaking into the dispersing sand.
But.
What emerged as the spikes scattered was.
“M-Mir!”
“You’re unharmed!”
“Thank the heavens!”
Not Mir’s blood.
Not a drop of blood, not even a scratch—Mir stood perfectly intact, advancing with unwavering confidence.
“Everyone, maintain your distance and follow me.”
“Yes!”
Mir continued forward.
And the traps continued to activate.
Protruding poison spikes, erupting toxic gas, cascading boulders from above.
Countless magical traps assailed Mir, yet.
“Mir!”
“I’m fine.”
Mir endured every trap, pressing forward with quiet determination.
Witnessing this.
“Behold, the Apostle protects us…!”
“Hero of the Desert!”
“Everyone, follow Mir!”
Confidence surged through the Expedition Party’s hearts, and morale soared without end.
* * *
Luke’s dragon scales, newly obtained this time.
Dragon scales in Black Flame form grant exceptional defensive power.
Not merely physical defense, but magical defense increases dramatically as well.
So whether spikes erupt from traps, boulders fall, flames burst forth, or toxic gas seeps out.
Against all such attacks, the dragon scales in Black Flame form stand as my bulwark.
However, even this has its limits.
Dragon scales in Black Flame form cannot withstand every attack head-on.
Therefore.
“Luke.”
I supplemented my insufficient defense through items.
The method is simple.
I still carry Scarab.
Advancing cautiously against traps, the moment Scarab spreads its wings.
I swiftly survey my surroundings and identify the trap’s nature.
‘Sand spikes.’
The instant I discern the trap’s form.
[ Steel Golem’s Iron Wall Armor ]
( Non-tradeable )
Type : Armor
Grade : Epic
I retrieve the corresponding item and minimize the trap’s damage.
For physical attacks, I simply don the hastily retrieved armor with high physical defense to block them.
A shield is unnecessary.
Attacks converging from all directions cannot be properly blocked even with a shield raised.
When a new trap appears.
‘Toxic gas.’
[ Basilisk’s Scale Armor ]
( Non-tradeable )
Type : Armor
Grade : Epic
Again, I don the appropriate defensive gear for this threat.
Toxic gas that poisons and melts flesh merely through skin contact, even without inhalation.
That toxic gas, wielded by the named monster called the King of Serpents.
The Basilisk’s armor blocks it.
Of course, this armor alone would have been insufficient.
I can perfectly defend against attacks now because Luke equips me with the defensive gear I need at incredible speed, combined with the defense boost from my Black Flame dragon scales.
[ Sillaion’s Wind Cloak ]
( Non-tradeable )
Type : Armor
Grade : Legendary
When sharp wind blades assault from traps, I block them with the cloak imbued with the power of Sillaion, the high wind spirit.
[ Nemean Lion Hide ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type: Armor
Grade: Mythic
The armor of Heracles, possessing exceptional resistance against spear-blade attacks—those menacing sand-forged weapons that came slashing from all directions.
I blocked them with the Nemean Lion Hide.
Luke’s dragon scales combined with mythic-grade armor.
And on top of that.
– I activate the skill ‘Emerald Stone Bastion’.
With the mythic-grade defensive skill I obtained after defeating the Green Stone Demon, I could now block virtually any trap that came my way.
Though I couldn’t prevent my health from gradually draining away.
[ Supreme-Grade Health Potion ]
My constitution was high enough that my stamina exceeded that of most same-level warriors.
And I was continuously drinking from my overflowing supply of potions.
No matter how formidable the trap, it couldn’t bring me down.
Of course, I wasn’t simply taking the traps passively.
Whoosh!
The moment a trap activated, mummy wrappings burst forth from all sides, attempting to constrict my body.
[ Holy Sword of Luyhart Temple ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type: Sword
Grade: Epic
I slashed through all the undead-attributed wrappings with the holy properties of the sacred blade.
This is grueling.
Maintaining razor-sharp focus like walking a tightrope while deflecting the relentless barrage of traps is no trivial task.
But separate from that difficulty.
‘This is what true dungeon conquest feels like.’
It’s exhilarating.
Most of the dungeons I conquered in Second until now felt like child’s play.
Honestly, they weren’t even worth calling dungeon conquests.
Now I’m finally experiencing what real dungeon conquest should be.
This is it.
This is exactly why I completely conquered First, and why I started Second the moment I escaped my vegetative state.
Thinking such thoughts.
Boom!!
I broke through the fiftieth trap.
Then the black flames clinging to my body began to fade.
The black scales grew translucent, and strength drained from my limbs.
My Black Flame transformation was running out of time.
Separately from that, the warriors following behind me were whispering amongst themselves.
“Good heavens, this is already the fiftieth trap.”
“If we had advanced by sacrificing one person at a time, our Expedition Party would have been cut in half by now, wouldn’t it?”
“If we had advanced by sacrificing one person at a time according to the Pyramid’s malice, we would have ultimately failed to conquer the Pyramid.”
That was true.
Had the warriors sacrificed themselves one by one, true to the name of the Path of Sacrifice, we could never have conquered this Pyramid.
This was what dungeon conquest truly meant.
Evading the dungeon’s malice, breaking through it, and dismantling it as we advanced.
This was the joy and the reason I played the game.
As I pressed forward in that moment.
“A door!”
“Finally!”
“Mir, you’ve worked so hard!”
“Truly, you’ve worked so very hard!”
“Without you, Mir, our Expedition Party would have been reduced to half! No, we would have faced total annihilation!”
At last, the stone door marking the end of the First Floor appeared.
We had conquered the trap-laden path, also known as the Path of Sacrifice, without a single death or even one wounded.
The warriors’ cheers erupted around me.
I could finally end the Black Flame transformation with relief.
Then.
“Phew….”
The tension drained away, and fatigue began flooding through my body.
I had drunk various potions to restore my stamina, vitality, and mana completely.
But there was no way to recover mental fortitude.
So.
“Let me rest here for a moment… then we’ll move to the next floor.”
I decided to stop here for today and logged out of the game.
It seemed I had accumulated excessive fatigue—I hadn’t slept properly the previous night while crafting the Eternal Crystal, and I had pushed myself hard today as well.
After a quick meal and shower.
“That was fun….”
Crafting the Eternal Crystal.
And perfectly conquering the first floor of the Pyramid filled me with satisfaction as I drifted into deep sleep.
* * *
While Mir was logged out.
The Expedition Party’s warriors were delighted to have conquered the Pyramid’s first floor, yet they could not cheer when they recalled Mir collapsing with an exhausted face.
“To think he worked so hard for us….”
“That black flame. It certainly wasn’t ordinary power. He must have pushed himself for our sake.”
“Perhaps the strain of using his power as an Apostle caused his manifested body’s strength to wane.”
“Ah, yes! That’s it! The Apostle pushed himself for us and collapsed!”
Without Mir, conquering the first floor without any casualties would have been impossible.
The Expedition Party remained intact entirely because of Mir.
However, there was a price to be paid.
Perhaps an Apostle of the Desert Trinity.
No—by now, Mir, confirmed as the Desert Trinity’s Apostle among the Expedition Party, had expended his power as an Apostle to protect them all.
He had sacrificed the very strength bestowed upon him as an Apostle.
The Expedition Party understood this, and their resolve hardened.
“We are proud warriors of the Desert! We did not journey this far to burden the Apostle!”
“Such a thing must never happen again!”
“We must all become steadfast warriors worthy of the Apostle’s trust!”
“Rise, warriors!”
“Follow the Apostle!”
“From this moment, any who dare question the Apostle’s word shall be deemed enemies of the Desert!”
“Follow the Apostle!”
Thus, the Expedition Party began to harbor a loyalty toward Mir that exceeded even that of the Kalbera Territory’s subjects.
By the fervor in their eyes, they seemed ready to leap into a pillar of flame itself if Mir commanded it.
An overwhelming devotion and reverence.
“Uoooooooooo!”
The warriors gave voice to their hearts through a mighty roar.
The Pyramid resonated with the warriors’ cries.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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