Chapter 25: The End of the Dark Path

Fang Zhen considered a question.

While fighting goblins and moving through this dungeon world, he didn’t feel like he was in a game at all. On the contrary, everything suggested that this Dark Path dungeon, even as an easy-difficulty one in the Nameless World, was like a real, tangible place.

The experience made Fang Zhen wonder what exactly the mechanics of this ’dungeon life’ game were.

Fang Zhen wasn’t sure what it took to clear the dungeon, or what would happen afterward.

’Still, based on the logic of most games, a dungeon should have an objective. And after clearing it, there should be some kind of reward, right?’

Fang Zhen was eager to find out if clearing the dungeon would trigger some kind of wondrous change.

He was also looking forward to finding out if this counted as clearing the Dark Path and what rewards it would bring.

"Heh, no need to rush."

’There shouldn’t be any other monsters in this dungeon. I’ll pack up the loot and take it back, but before that, while I still have the stamina, I might as well explore this area.’

He looked around the Goblin Leader’s tent and found a grayish-white bag inside.

The bag, which looked to be woven from linen, wasn’t very large. It resembled a drawstring bag, with a hemp rope to cinch the opening. It wasn’t clear what it had held before, but it was empty now and seemed relatively clean, free of the goblins’ filth and stench.

Finding the bag convenient, Fang Zhen placed the Golden Holy Chalice and the Holy Plate from the chest inside it.

The Gemstone Ring and Black Velvet Money Bag weren’t that heavy, so Fang Zhen just kept them on him.

’Next time I come, I’ll have to buy a backpack or something to carry with me. If nothing else, it’s not easy to carry loot without a backpack.’

He carefully searched the tent again to see if he had missed anything.

After searching carefully two or three times, he found nothing else of value. There were no secret compartments or hidden treasures. It seemed all the goblins’ riches had been in that one chest.

Having finished his search, Fang Zhen felt at ease.

He carried the linen bag and walked out of the Goblin Leader’s tent.

At the entrance to the tent, Fang Zhen glanced back at the bearskin draped over a wooden rack inside, clicking his tongue.

"Heh, this bearskin looks authentic. It’s probably the real deal."

’But I have no use for it, and it could be troublesome, so I won’t take it.’

A bearskin had value, but in Fang Zhen’s real world, it wasn’t considered particularly precious.

Wild bear pelts might be relatively rare, but in some northern regions, there are farms for black bears and the like. If you want to buy a bearskin, you just need to find the right channels.

Fang Zhen had initially considered taking the bearskin, but then he reconsidered. It wasn’t exceptionally valuable, and he could buy one in the real world if he really wanted. Besides, he didn’t know if it was protected by any wildlife conservation laws. He wouldn’t know what to do with it back home, and selling it would be difficult. He’d have trouble finding a buyer, and more importantly, he didn’t want to attract the attention of the police.

The thought of using it himself never even crossed Fang Zhen’s mind.

The moment he thought about it being something a goblin had used, Fang Zhen lost all interest in the bearskin.

’Who knows what kind of filth the Goblin Leader might have smeared on it, or if it has fleas, germs, or something.’

So Fang Zhen didn’t feel it was much of a loss.

Carrying the linen bag, he walked out of the tent.

Once outside, Fang Zhen glanced up at the sky.

The sky here in the Dark Path was always gray and hazy. He couldn’t see the sun and had no idea what time it was.

Fang Zhen felt a little hungry. Judging by his level of hunger, he estimated that he had been in the dungeon for about three hours.

He walked to the place where he had fought the Iron Armor Goblin Leader, first retrieving the Anti-Riot Shield, and then also recovering the blade of the Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear.

The shaft of the Bright Silver Spear had been smashed and broken by the Goblin Leader, but the spearhead was still intact. A seventeen or eighteen-centimeter-long piece of the broken mahogany shaft was still attached to it.

Fang Zhen squatted down and detached the spearhead from the broken piece of the shaft. He then used the hemp rope from his linen bag to wrap around the spearhead several times, tying it securely to the mouth of the bag to carry it away.

He then walked into the woods, retrieved the titanium alloy slingshot from beside the Goblin Sentinel’s corpse, and also picked up the goblin’s wooden crossbow.

The wooden crossbow was the only goblin weapon he considered worth taking.

’I’ll go check by the stream again, loot the goblins for anything else of value, and while I’m at it, wash my hands and clean my weapons. Don’t want to bring any germs back.’

「Twenty minutes later.」

Fang Zhen searched the bodies of the nine goblins by the stream.

He found over thirty Copper Coins, and surprisingly, he found a single Gold Coin on the leather-armored elite goblin.

Finding the Gold Coin was a pleasant surprise for Fang Zhen.

He had already assumed that, aside from the leader, the other goblins were extremely poor. The Gold Coin he just found was completely unexpected.

Fang Zhen was all the more pleased.

’Perhaps this goblin was lining its own pockets.’

’Judging by the difference in material lifestyle between the Goblin Leader and the common goblins, the leader probably didn’t reward his underlings with many good things.’

Fang Zhen put the Gold Coin away, then went upstream, washed the spearhead and the Nepalese Curved Saber clean, and also washed his hands.

After doing all this, Fang Zhen took out two Snickers bars and started eating them.

After eating the two Snickers bars, Fang Zhen felt they were so sweet they were almost savory. He drank the last of his mineral water, which made him feel a bit better.

’You know, this stuff really works. I don’t feel as hungry anymore, and my strength is slowly returning.’

He waited until he felt about sixty to seventy percent of his strength had returned, then stood up.

He was more or less rested and could continue moving.

’First, I’ll return to the main path of the Dark Path, then follow it and see where it leads.’

Fang Zhen packed his things, found the path he had come from, and started back the way he came.

The path through the woods was a bit complicated, and since Fang Zhen had only walked it once, it would be easy to get lost.

But Fang Zhen wasn’t worried at all.

When he came, he had considered the possibility of getting lost, so he brought a little gadget to use as a trail marker.

What Fang Zhen brought were sticky notes, the kind you can get for a few bucks at any stationery store.

You know, the kind with an adhesive strip on one side and space to write on the other.

Fang Zhen had bright yellow ones, square, and about half the size of his palm.

After entering the forest, he would stick two sticky notes at the base of a large tree every so often. Two for insurance, so he wouldn’t be lost if one fell off.

The bright yellow sticky notes stood out clearly in the woods.

Using the sticky notes as trail markers, Fang Zhen wasn’t afraid of getting lost. It was also incredibly economical; he still hadn’t used even half of his cheap pack of notes.

Following the sticky note trail markers, Fang Zhen returned without any trouble.

In less than half an hour, Fang Zhen easily returned to the Dark Path he had started on.

After returning to the Dark Path, Fang Zhen could now get his bearings.

A walk of more than ten minutes back would lead to the Light Gate where he had entered the dungeon.

He didn’t know where the Dark Path led ahead.

Fang Zhen took a deep breath, turned to face forward on the path, and continued straight ahead.

...

「A dozen or so minutes later.」

Fang Zhen reached the end of the Dark Path.

The area ahead clearly opened up; the end of the path led out of the forest.

Fang Zhen felt a surge of excitement and continued along the path.

At the end of the path, the trees disappeared, and the view before Fang Zhen opened up dramatically.

To his surprise, Fang Zhen discovered that the end of the Dark Path was on a hillside.

The slope was quite high, over two hundred meters above the ground below.

And down below the hillside, shrouded in a thin mist, he could vaguely make out a small town.

Seeing this, Fang Zhen felt a slight shock.

"A small town?"

"Does this mean... people live there?"