Behind the door was an empty room.
A truly empty room—there was nothing inside but dust. Even if a thief came here, dropping a single strand of hair would count as charity.
This place was clearly meant to mislead intruders, a decoy left behind by the Warrior Jars. Unfortunately, today's intruders were of a much higher caliber.
When the members of the new group saw the completely barren room, they smiled instead.
Ordinary adventurers might have turned around and left, but they were different. Having mastered all currently uncovered information about the Sein Dungeon, they knew about the existence of something called a hidden door.
If nothing unexpected had occurred, this room should have one as well.
Belto's figure darted swiftly around the room as he picked up stones from the floor and tapped against the walls here and there.
Accompanied by a strange sound, a hidden door slowly emerged from the wall, revealing a silent burial ground beyond it.
"Forward, everyone. It's time for the harvest," Luluwo said, flicking her cloak with practiced flair.
Based on past experience, there was definitely treasure hidden within concealed areas like this.
Although the traps and monsters in the Sein Dungeon were disgustingly annoying, the rewards were never stingy—at least, that had been true since the second mutation.
As long as one pushed through all the obstacles and reached the final area, the rewards would always match the effort. Because of that, Luluwo held this dungeon in particularly high regard—far higher than most others.
She had even planned to vote for the Sein Dungeon in the annual Most Popular Dungeon ranking.
Unfortunately, there was something she didn't know—
Some rewards required making the correct choices from the very beginning.
The burial ground was deathly silent. Sparse yellow flowers drooped lifelessly, their heads bowed. There were no living creatures anywhere in sight. In the corners lay piles of oddly shaped jars of various sizes, identical to the Warrior Jars they had encountered earlier.
Belto flicked a pebble at one of the large jars, leaving a shallow crack on its surface. It didn't react at all.
He tested several others the same way, all with identical results, then nodded.
"Safe."
"Good work," Luluwo said as she scanned the not-so-large hidden area. At last, her gaze locked onto a treasure chest surrounded by large jars.
She snapped her fingers lightly, a faint smile appearing on her lips. The twins stayed behind to guard against any sudden danger, while the others followed her toward the chest.
Squatting down would dirty her cloak, so Belto stepped forward. After opening the chest, he raised it with both hands and presented it to Luluwo.
The two of them looked like a servant and a noble reenacting some over-dramatic scene.
"They're at it again…" Mira muttered under her breath, turning her head away.
Their captain was great in every way—except for her obsession with theatrics and her constant desire to imitate noble behavior.
Seeing the purple glow inside the chest, Luluwo tried to restrain herself, but the smile still crept onto her face. She reached in with both hands and solemnly lifted the glowing object.
If she were more cultured, she might have composed a poem on the spot to praise the treasure.
A smell wafted out along with the glow, accompanied by a sticky texture. She thought to herself that treasure really was something special—even its feel was so…
"Hm?"
Luluwo suddenly sensed something was wrong. When she finally realized what she was holding, her face turned deathly pale.
[Shit Chunk]
Excrement of an unknown creature, filled with a strong sense of mockery. It may be used as a crafting material for certain items. Any normal person should discard it immediately.
However, for those who slaughter jars indiscriminately, the appearance of a Shit Chunk signifies that the feast is about to begin.
Resting quietly in her fair palms was something that absolutely should not be described in detail during mealtime.
Her body trembled. A normal person would feel disgust or rage at this moment—but instead, two crystal-clear tears slid down from the corners of her eyes.
"Captain, drop it! Hurry!" Mira shouted. The twins also stepped closer, wanting to see what exactly was inside the chest.
The moment they entered a certain range—
Crack! Crack!
Something began to break.
The next second, the large jars surrounding the new raid group shattered violently!
"Ahhh—!!!"
At the instant the jars broke, an ear-piercing scream erupted, completely shattering the silence of the burial ground.
"Ah!"
Mira clutched her ears and crouched down, her face twisted in pain. The others weren't faring any better.
This wasn't just sound—it was a trap capable of briefly seizing control of the body.
It wasn't merely the roar of monsters emerging from shattered jars; it was mixed with chaotic elements—like the screams of Guardian Apes.
As a result, the sound rapidly built up the Fear gauge, inflicting both physical and mental strain on the adventurers present.
Only Luluwo managed to resist the sonic assault—perhaps due to the bat blood flowing through her veins. Amid the chaos, she finally saw what kind of creature was producing the scream.
The instant she saw it, she nearly vomited.
What a blasphemous sight—
Twisted, rotting flesh forcibly compressed together and molded inside a jar. The mass writhed constantly, emitting nauseating gurgling sounds.
But the most physiologically disturbing part was this—
Within that writhing flesh, there was a human body whose form remained intact.
No… could this even still be called human?
Her body had completely fused with the flesh mass. No matter how one looked at it, it was nothing but a grotesque monster.
They were called—
[Living Jar Contents]!
Luluwo had seen stranger monsters before, but never anything this viscerally revolting. Compared to this, even a Basilisk looked cute.
She staggered back a few steps, but when she saw her teammates writhing in pain, she stopped. With a sharp motion, she flung her cloak open, and several iron chains shot out like serpents, striking toward the Living Jar.
The next moment, she witnessed a scene she would never forget.
The Living Jar's body suddenly twisted violently, opening a massive mouth—
And the "tongue" inside shot out, seizing her body in the blink of an eye!
"Ah—!"
In an instant, she was dragged inside whole. The jar's body continued to writhe, as if chewing.
—It swallowed her entire body.
"Captain!"
The moment the deafening scream finally ended, Belto lunged toward the Living Jar that had devoured Luluwo. The rest of the team followed with a counterattack.
Though the sonic assault had weakened their bodies, dealing with a few monsters was still within their capabilities.
But just then, a strange sound came from not far away.
Everyone snapped their heads around—
Warrior Jars.
Three massive Warrior Jars charged toward them at high speed, spinning like drills!
The Living Jar blocked their escape, and the arrival of the Warrior Jars meant—
They were about to collide head-on with happiness.
Belto and Mira were horrified, while strange flushes spread across Ais and Aim's faces.
"Boom!"
Fireworks filled the air—
No. Not fireworks.
Blood and flesh.
The burial ground quickly fell silent once more. Only the Living Jar that had swallowed Luluwo remained, chewing slowly.
At first, Luluwo struggled—but once the voices of her companions vanished, she went completely still.
When everything finally returned to silence, several small jars crawled out from hidden burial pits and began punching and kicking the incapacitated new group.
Both the Warrior Jars and the Living Jar entered dormancy once the danger had passed.
If not for the punishment mechanism triggered by the death of the Warrior Jar Karl, they shouldn't have existed at all.
And the ones that appeared here were all enhanced versions.
.
..
...
Not long after—
The members of the new group revived one by one at the bonfire.
"Captain!" Belto immediately searched for her upon revival and spotted Luluwo crouched beside the flames, her back turned toward him.
"Captain?"
He approached cautiously. Her body trembled as she hurriedly wiped her face several times. When she stood and turned around, she had already regained her usual calm, confident expression.
"Oh, Belto. You've finally returned from death to my side," she said lightly. "Let us wait a little longer. When our companions gather, it will be time for revenge."
She laughed softly, full of spirit.
About half an hour later, once everyone had revived, the new raid group once again stood before the door leading to the Jar Graveyard.
But Luluwo's smile was stiff. She hesitated, not daring to step inside.
Several times she raised her hand, only to lower it again.
"Captain, let's forget about this place," Belto said at the right moment. "Time is precious. We shouldn't waste it on an area that no longer holds value."
"Yes—yes, exactly!"
Finally finding an excuse to retreat, Luluwo felt an overwhelming sense of relief and immediately turned to leave.
"We wouldn't mind doing it again," Ais and Aim said in unison—
—but before they could finish, Mira clamped a hand over both their mouths.
At the end of this path awaited the Death Knight, whom they had already defeated once.
The information about weakening the Death Rite Bird by defeating three elite monsters was something they themselves had released. That meant the new group had challenged at least four bosses—and aside from the Death Rite Bird, they had defeated all of them.
They truly possessed the strength to compete with Leon for the title of top group.
The only flaw was that, in their pursuit of speed, they had neglected thorough exploration of the map, usually heading straight for boss rooms.
They hadn't even triggered the Warrior Jar "event" before—this was their first encounter with it.
Realizing this, they resolved to adjust their approach. While challenging elite monsters to weaken the Death Rite Bird, they would also fill in the missing details of the Catacombs area.
Being the first to clear the Death Rite Bird was a tremendous honor. If they could also produce a detailed guide to the graveyard zone, their reputation would soar even higher.
Move forward.
Pass through the fog gate.
Defeat the Death Knight.
Heal and rest.
Seeing the newly revealed path in the burial chamber, the new raid group stepped into the dim, lightless, eerie tunnel.
They had entered this path only once before—and hadn't fully explored it. This time, they intended to see what lay at the end.
They naturally noticed the prompt, "Keep the flame lit," but the mage Ais cast Light, placing a glowing orb above their heads to illuminate the surroundings.
Light was light—there shouldn't be any difference, right?
They had used Light last time as well, and nothing had seemed wrong.
The deep, silent tunnel echoed only with the sound of footsteps, occasionally punctuated by dripping water.
It was the kind of environment that invited wandering thoughts.
Luluwo thought of Leon.
At this very moment, he was surely being harassed by invaders, probably already dead several times over—there was no way he could continue exploring the dungeon.
Thinking of that, she smiled faintly, convinced that this move of hers had been the correct one.
Perhaps a fair, head-on duel with Leon might not have been unwinnable—but it never felt safe enough.
Besides, Luluwo had learned one thing since birth—
People should always strive to take shortcuts.
If something could be achieved through a shortcut, there was no reason to waste unnecessary effort. That was her philosophy of life.
Claiming Sein's first clear was her shortcut to promotion. Recruiting Darkwraiths to invade Leon was another shortcut. And the path she was walking now might be one as well.
She would seize every opportunity to climb higher and higher.
Just as the storm of thoughts in Luluwo's mind stirred her emotions—
Drip.
A water droplet sounded beside her ear.
She suddenly felt dazed. When she came back to her senses, there was no one beside her.
"Where did everyone go?"
The sudden change put her on full alert. At the same time, she heard low, chaotic murmuring.
Like the hoarse wheezing of broken bellows mixed with the clamor of a crowd—it was unbearably grating.
As she continued forward, the murmurs grew clearer. Finally, she heard a complete sentence.
"Our family… has fallen."