Chapter 651: Chapter 652: Nature Of World Dungeons
It was an impressive display, no doubt about that. It was flashy and grand, and it made sure the image of a powerful empire filled with hidden dragons and crouching tigers remained intact.
The common folk couldn’t stop cheering from where they stood. Damon was mysterious, powerful, larger than life.
Knights and those who lived on the battlefield liked it. The emperor himself seemed pleased, and it was clear enough why he had mentioned Damon’s actions in his opening speech, calling it the spirit of Valtheron.
But of course there were still those old crows and stubborn nobles who clung to tradition and couldn’t stop badmouthing Damon. He didn’t mind. After all, even they begrudgingly acknowledged his power.
However, Damon was now firmly in the eyes of potential competitors.
"Listen very carefully." Evangeline crossed her arms, standing in front of Damon with a serious expression on her face.
Damon leaned lazily on a stone railing with magic seals and runes carved into it. He seemed to be gazing down below with no apparent interest in what Evangeline was about to say.
"How do you think this thing works anyway?" he asked suddenly, his voice carrying a casual curiosity.
Evangeline frowned at his question.
Damon pointed toward the floating pavilions that hovered above a massive coliseum. The design beneath them resembled a miniature world, filled with all sorts of terrain. There were mountains, rivers, a ruined city, a volcano, caves, forests, and so much more.
Around the coliseum stretched thousands of stairs, wrapping all around. They served as common seating, broken up at intervals by dome-like structures reserved for those who lacked the authority or wealth for a floating pavilion.
Evangeline sighed. "You’re not going to listen, are you..."
She walked toward him, her boots clicking softly against the stone floor, and stopped at his side. Together they stared at the miniature world below.
"This is the passage to the world dungeon owned by the Valtheron Empire. This dungeon has been here long before even the capital."
She nudged him with her elbow, eyes narrowing playfully.
"Do I have your attention now?"
Damon chuckled, reaching out to pinch her, only to come to the disappointing realization that she was clad in armor. Evangeline smirked at his failure, a small snicker escaping her lips.
He chuckled. "Touchè, Eva."
Evangeline smiled lightly. She quite liked moments like this, even if he got on her nerves.
"Right, where was I... This area was built around the world dungeon. It was a good place to decide who got in."
"You remember what world dungeons are, right?" she asked, just to make sure he was actually listening.
"Ahh, I do. Professor Tunpick’s class on space and lesser dimensions." Damon narrowed his eyes slightly, recalling the lessons.
"A lesser dungeon is a small world that is autonomous but not independent of the main world. That is to say, these worlds are still part of Aetherus."
He took a deep breath before continuing, his tone turning thoughtful.
"Tunpick is one of those scholars who opine the nature of world dungeons as shadows of the main world. Similar, but drastically different depending on the one you find yourself in. They might be complete with life, or desolate and empty, or even unbuilt—that is to say, just chaos."
Evangeline twisted her lips, unimpressed. "I hate how you have a know-it-all side."
Damon shrugged, feigning carelessness. "Well, I was sort of a failing student. Unlike you fools, I actually, unfortunately, studied the second-year material."
Evangeline ignored his jab. "Then why is everyone after the world dungeons?"
Damon’s eyes narrowed. His tone lowered. "Do you want an honest answer, or do you want what they teach us?"
Evangeline tilted her head, confused at the distinction, then asked innocently, "Honest, I guess."
Damon leaned closer and spoke in a soft whisper, words that shouldn’t have been said in this place.
"It’s the Unknown God. The worlds inside a lesser dungeon are divergent worlds, so he exerts a lot of control there. That’s why."
Smack!
Evangeline smacked him before he could say more, her gauntlet striking the side of his head.
"Shut up. There are a lot of people here who have superhuman hearing."
Damon scratched his head where she hit him, grinning sheepishly.
"Ahhh, it’s just a theory by some scholars who claimed to have studied in the Demon Continent." He shook his head.
"There’s a book on that in the academy library. The book is sort of about discouraging those theories. You know, you can’t tell what’s heresy if you don’t know what it looks or sounds like."
He smiled suddenly, reaching out to lift her chin, her golden eyes locking with his dark ones, like the sun staring into the abyss.
"Don’t worry. I’ll do a lot of things and piss off a lot of people, but I’ll stay out of the Temple’s hair."
Evangeline closed her eyes helplessly, exhaling softly. "That doesn’t put me at ease."
Damon chuckled. "Anyway... a world dungeon is a miniature world with a lot of rare resources and treasures not found in our world, including elixirs, due to its divergent laws which are laxer and more open."
His voice drifted as a thought struck him. His gaze slowly lifted toward the sky.
Laxer laws... Didn’t the goddess seal away the world of Aetherus? Nothing comes in, and no one goes out.
Valarie had said those in the seventh class should naturally be able to sense the world beyond the realm where the gods live, the open omniverse and its countless realms.
Yet no one in his world even thought of leaving. No one could.
"Those who have reached the fourth class and higher cannot venture into a world dungeon without completely destroying the entrance."
Evangeline heard him mutter and nodded. "Yeah, that’s why this is a game for those of us who are not in the fourth class."
Damon narrowed his eyes. "The laws in a world dungeon are lax...."
He fell into thought.
’Doesn’t that mean you can escape this cage if you could stabilize its entrance, or even enter the world dungeon...’
Damon chuckled softly. No, that was unlikely. If escaping the world of Aetherus was that simple, then all the wise and powerful sages and legends throughout the ages would have used that method.
’A world dungeon is like the main world. There is a threshold of power it cannot carry. If not, why else would the outsiders not be able to fight beyond the seventh class, when they are actually infinitely more powerful?’
Damon had a feeling he was close to something. But like the mysteries of the Unknown God, the Goddess, and the true being, any more theories would be pointless without a complete picture.
He needed facts, not conjecture.
Evangeline glanced up at him, brushing back her hair. "It’s almost your turn to give a speech."
"Damon..." she added more firmly.
He glanced at her. "Ohh right, right... any advice for me?"
She glared at him. "Would you listen?"
He smirked. "No."