The elder squinted and picked up the Moon Dew from the table to examine it carefully.
He retrieved an exquisite alchemical magnifying glass from under the counter, its lens carved with complex runes. Through the lens, fine magical patterns appeared on the fruit's surface, emanating a faint blue glow.
"Hmm, it indeed contains some kind of mental energy." The elder stroked his beard. "But this thing's effects vary from person to person. I can't guarantee it will definitely have the effect you mentioned."
He looked up at Rex: "However... since you're an old customer, take this wand."
Rex nodded and carefully stored Gravcrow's Beak inside his robe: "Thank you."
After watching Rex leave, the elder began studying the Moon Dew. Just as he was using alchemical instruments to test the fruit's composition, the exchange office door chime suddenly rang.
"Boss, what are you holding?"
A young man in luxurious mage robes stood before the counter, his burning gaze fixed on the fruit in the elder's hand. A silver chain at his waist indicated he was a first-tier spellcaster.
With keen perception, he could sense the powerful mental power fluctuations within that fruit—exactly what he needed right now.
The elder's eyes lit up, immediately switching to his professional smile: "Ah, sir has good eyes! This is a rare fruit that can directly enhance mental power—you won't find a second one in all of Saint Lor!"
The young man raised an eyebrow: "Really?"
"Absolutely true!" The elder mysteriously lowered his voice. "Legend says it comes from some ancient ruin. After consumption, it can help first-tier spellcasters directly breakthrough bottlenecks. Look at these patterns, this magical fluctuation..."
The young man interrupted his boasting: "How much?"
The elder extended his fingers: "Ten gold coins!"
Unexpectedly, the young man immediately pulled ten gleaming coins from his money pouch without a word. "Deal."
Just as the elder was happily about to take the money, the young man suddenly pressed down on the fruit: "Wait, I want to verify the effect on the spot. If it doesn't work, I won't pay a single coin."
The elder's smile froze: "Sir, exchange office goods are sold with no returns."
"What? Afraid?" The young man sneered. "Or are you selling fakes?"
Several customers around had already cast curious glances. The elder frowned, bowing to pressure: "Of course. Please."
Without another word, the young man swallowed the entire fruit. As the refreshing sensation swept through his brain cortex, his expression shifted from confusion to shock, finally becoming ecstatic.
"This... this is incredible!"
The young man closed his eyes to savor the moment, then suddenly opened them: "I feel my mental power shackles loosening! Boss, how many more of these fruits do you have? I'll take them all!"
The customers who had entered successively saw this scene and began clamoring.
"Can it really improve mental power?"
"I want this good stuff too!!"
"Examinations are coming soon—I'll pay any price!"
The elder watched the crowd surge forward and quickly waved his hands: "Just this one for now, don't push, don't push!"
...
Meanwhile, Rex had no idea what commotion his casually offered collateral had caused.
He had already returned to his dormitory, locked the door, and eagerly took out his handheld console. These past days he'd worked overtime to slaughter all those wolf packs.
A week of effort was about to bear fruit—he could almost feel his heartbeat accelerating.
[Welcome back, Rex]
The moonlit grassland scene unfolded before him, but unlike previous times, the entire grassland was shrouded in an eerie dark red glow.
The moon in the sky had turned blood red, and wisps of black mist drifted between the grass.
Rex's undead legion immediately appeared beside him. After a week of strengthening, the current team was completely transformed—twelve skeleton warriors in full iron-reinforced leather armor wielding iron spears, with the skeleton wolf king covered in chainmail.
Most eye-catching was Grom.
The giant skeleton's height had broken through three meters, its bones ridiculously thick.
[Minion: Grom (Growing 98%)]
[Rank: Unranked (Elite)]
[Attributes: Strength 12, Agility 6, Intelligence 3, Constitution 11]
[Special Traits: Bone Spike Assault/Poison Resistance/Bone Devouring]
"Just a little more."
Rex was excited, leading his legion toward the final guardian's lair.
Based on previous experience, the guardian wolf king would flee when its pack suffered over half casualties. He had to reserve enough magic to cast Dark Chain.
In the depths of the grassland, on a clearing surrounded by black thorns, the final pack of silver wolves paced restlessly. They were larger than ordinary silver wolves, with faint blue patterns flickering on their fur.
"Prepare for battle!"
At Rex's command, the skeleton warriors immediately formed a wedge formation with spears forward.
The skeleton wolf king led the skeleton wolf pack in flanking maneuvers while Grom charged directly into the center of the wolf pack, his executioner's blade sending blood and flesh flying.
The battle was without suspense.
The well-equipped undead legion against silver wolves was simply crushing. Rex didn't even need to act, just standing in the rear watching the battlefield intently, waiting for that crucial moment.
Sure enough, when the seventh silver wolf fell, a blue light burst from behind the pack, trying to escape toward the depths of the grassland.
"Dark Chain!"
Rex was prepared. With a wave of his wand, five black chains shot forth—the result of a week's continuous practice, with both chain quantity and strength significantly improved.
The blue light was caught by the chains, revealing the wolf king soul's form.
Unlike previous times, this guardian's soul presented a semi-solid state, with the crescent marking on its forehead almost condensed into substance.
"Grom!"
Rex shouted while maintaining the chains with full force. Grom immediately abandoned his current enemies, turning to pounce on the bound wolf king soul.
It opened its massive bone claws, directly grabbing the soul and stuffing it into its mouth.
"Crunch—"
With a teeth-grinding crushing sound, the wolf king soul was forcibly bitten off in a large chunk. The blue light flickered violently as the remaining portion struggled desperately, finally escaping the moment the chains snapped.
[You have angered the second floor guardian 12/12]
[Warning: Dungeon second floor guardian is about to awaken]
Rex ignored the system prompts, his attention entirely on Grom. After the giant skeleton devoured the final piece of guardian soul, its entire skeletal frame suddenly erupted in blinding white light.
"It's about to advance!"
Rex excitedly gripped his wand.
Grom's bones began emitting fine crackling sounds. The originally tall skeleton frame seemed compressed by invisible hands, gradually contracting.
The thick bone joints became refined and compact. Shattered bone fragments didn't scatter, but rearranged and combined like living things, finally forming a set of precise bone armor fitted to the entire body.
"Crack... crack..."
The reorganization process lasted less than a minute.
When the spectral light faded, standing in place was a skeleton with human-like proportions.
Its frame was slender yet full of explosive power, each bone covered with streamlined bone armor, with sharp bone spikes extending from the joints. Most striking were the azure soul fires dancing in its eye sockets and the bone armor radiating cold luster throughout its body.
[Minion: Skeleton Warrior·Grom]
[Rank: First-tier]
[Attributes: Strength 21, Agility 21, Intelligence 12, Constitution 20]
[Special Traits: Bone Spike Assault/Poison Resistance/Bone Devouring/Swift Steps/Brutal Strike/Soul Intimidation]
"It actually got slimmer?"
Rex looked at his ace minion with a sense of accomplishment. A week of tedious monster farming had finally paid off.
Just then, the entire grassland suddenly shook violently. In the distance on the horizon, a light pillar appeared again, thicker than any before.
"What's happening?" Rex steadied himself with his wand as his undead legion immediately contracted formation to protect him in the center.
Grom's frame blocked the front, his bone armor producing teeth-grinding friction sounds.
The trembling lasted about half a minute before gradually subsiding. Rex squinted toward the light pillar direction—there, what had been flat grassland now had a small mountain-like mound rising from its center.
He raised his Gravcrow's Beak wand, phosphorescent fire blazing in the three crow skulls' eye sockets.
"Gravcrow Vision!"
As the spell completed, a gravcrow formed of magic power spread its wings from the wand's tip, silently gliding into the distance.
Through the gravcrow's vision, Rex witnessed a shocking scene.
Atop the mound, a silver giant wolf comparable to a small castle was slowly rising.
Its fur flowed like liquid mercury, the crescent marking in the center of its forehead radiating piercing blue light. Most terrifying were its eyes—vertical pupils composed entirely of condensed moonlight, chillingly cold.
[Warning: You have angered the second floor guardian boss Moon Blade Wolf]
The giant wolf raised its head and let out a long howl.
Immediately after, under the blood moon, a vine thick as a giant tree descended, crystal clear like jade throughout, with a fruit the size of a human head at its tip.
Unlike those seen before, this fruit's surface was covered with golden mysterious patterns, its interior seeming to contain flowing liquid moonlight, radiating energy fluctuations that distorted even the gravcrow's vision.
"Good stuff!"
Rex stared intently. He could sense the terrifying energy contained in that fruit—it would definitely cause a qualitative leap in his mental power.
Maybe even become a first-tier spellcaster directly!
Just as he was concentrating on observation, Moon Blade Wolf suddenly turned its head, its moonlight vertical pupils directly locking onto the invisible gravcrow.
It casually raised its front paw and lightly waved, sending three crescent-shaped silver light blades tearing through the air.
Rex had just thought to control the gravcrow's evasion when his vision suddenly spun wildly. The final image was the gravcrow being precisely cut into four pieces by the light blades, its magic-formed body instantly dissolving.
"Can you beat it?"
Rex looked at Grom. Having just become a first-tier skeleton warrior, after brief consideration, he decisively shook his head.
"Right, each floor's guardian boss is the strongest of the current rank, plus home field advantage. You just advanced to first-tier—definitely can't win."
Rex pulled out a Return Scroll and used it: "Looks like Senior Monica's invitation really can't be refused."