BXBX NOVEL Chapter 6 -6-Phantom Ruins
Chapter 6: Chapter6-Phantom Ruins
Scarlett sneered, clearly not believing him.
Having known John for so many years, she understood him too well.
She was absolutely certain that John had undoubtedly spent all that money on women!
In a cold tone, Scarlett said, "You squandered your money on other women and now you come to me when you're broke? John, you really are a complete jerk."
Seeing he couldn't bluff his way out, John could only concede, "I know I was wrong, and I promise it won't happen again. I swear, I'll come to see you every day!"
"Only an idiot would believe you, not a single truth comes out of your mouth," Scarlett retorted, but still waved her hand and took out a black staff resembling a withered branch from her storage ring.
She handed the staff to John, admonishing, "This is the only Level 1 staff I have, and I've kept it as a keepsake. Don't you dare damage it."
"Relax, relax, I promise it will be returned just as it is," John assured her while taking the staff.
At the same time, the equipment information appeared before his eyes.
[Equipment]: Withered Staff
[Type]: Weapon
[Level]: lv1
[Tier]: iron-tier
[Quality]: exquisite
[Attributes]: Spirit +10, Casting Speed +5
[Skill]: None
Seeing the equipment information, John's eyes lit up.
He hadn't expected it to be an exquisite-tier staff!
Equipment quality is generally classified into four levels: damaged, common, exquisite, and perfect. The higher the quality, the better the attributes of the equipment.
Equipment of the same tier but different qualities can have vastly different attributes, making high-quality equipment exceedingly rare.
After some thought, Scarlett took out a storage ring and handed it to John, saying,
"I no longer need this storage ring. It has a few square meters of storage space. It's yours now."
High-level life forgers can make storage rings, but they are incredibly expensive.
Just this few square meters storage ring would probably cost hundreds of thousands of federal coins.
Scarlett's generosity in giving away such a valuable item was indeed impressive!
John quickly expressed his gratitude, unable to hide his joy.
This visit was not in vain.
With these two items, he would definitely be more at ease in tomorrow's Phantom Ruins.
Scarlett, with a mischievous smile, said, "I did give you items worth several hundred thousand federal coins. You should show some gratitude, right?"
As she spoke, Scarlett's voluptuous and fiery body was already sitting on John's lap, her hand sneaking into his pants, gently teasing.
Wearing only a black spaghetti strap dress, Scarlett's touch felt almost like she was wearing nothing as she sat in John's embrace.
Realizing he was about to lose control, John quickly grabbed her hand, smiling wryly,
"I have to go to the ghost dungeon tomorrow. I need to be well-rested. How about I make it up to you properly when I return?"
It wasn't that John was shy about being with Scarlett; their relationship was far from ordinary – his first time had been with Scarlett.
The main issue was that he had already been with Emma five or six times today.
If he were to be with Scarlett now...
John genuinely feared he would be mentally distracted tomorrow, risking a fatal mistake in the dungeon.
"Losing your energy when it comes to me, but not with other women?" Scarlett glared at John, her tone a mix of grievance and resignation, but she didn't pursue the matter further.
She was aware that tomorrow would be John's first time in a dungeon and didn't want him to be in any real danger.
John breathed a sigh of relief.
The reason he didn't frequent this place was precisely because this woman was too hard to handle.
Today, he considered himself lucky to have escaped unscathed.
Afterward, John returned to his home.
The night passed quickly...
The next morning, John woke up on time.
He had slept soundly and felt exceptionally refreshed, invigorated, and clear-headed.
After freshening up, he took a cab straight to StellarSea Academy.
By then, many classes had already set off.
The dozen or so students of Class 3 Year 1 who had successfully awakened, along with Benjamin, were already there.
However, John didn't see Alex.
Benjamin mentioned that Alex had already gone ahead to Phantom Ruins with the House Foster guards.
John felt a bit disappointed; he had wanted to see Alex make a fool of himself.
Once John arrived, everyone from Class 3 Year 1 of StellarSea Academy was present.
Without delay, they all boarded a bus heading towards Wallfort, located to the south of Stellarburg.
As they drew closer to Wallfort, many, including John, felt a surge of excitement.
For many of them, it was their first time stepping out of Stellarburg, John included.
"John, what do you think it's like outside? Is it really like in the books, full of monsters everywhere? Are we going to encounter a BOSS in the dungeon..." Daniel's face was flushed with excitement as he chattered non-stop.
Initially, John responded, but realizing that Daniel had no intention of stopping, he eventually put on his headphones and closed his eyes to rest.
It was the first time John discovered Daniel's chattiness.
The bus journeyed on, and before long, John was awakened by Benjamin's loud voice.
When he opened his eyes again, the sky had turned a murky grey.
The endless expanse of weeds indicated they had left Stellarburg and were now outside the safe zone.
Not far from them, a massive ruin lay like a decaying carcass of a giant beast, draped in a black shroud, its true nature obscured in the haze.
It was the [Phantom Ruins] dungeon!
At the entrance of Phantom Ruins, awakeners were either calling out to form teams or selling items, creating a bustling adventurer's marketplace.
After disembarking, Benjamin, dressed in a magus robe, spoke solemnly,
"Although all of you have awakened your talents and classes, I must warn you not to take this lightly. Phantom Ruins may be a level 1-10 dungeon, but its elite monsters and Lord-tier Bosses are no weaker than level 15 or even 20 monsters!"
"Every year, too many talents perish in beginner dungeons due to carelessness. I don't want such a thing to happen to my students."
Benjamin looked around at his students earnestly, "You have one last chance to back out. Anyone who wants to quit, step forward now."
After Benjamin finished speaking, he waited silently for three minutes, but no one stepped forward.
Everyone's gaze was firm, showing no sign of hesitation.
After years of study at school and the arduous process of awakening their class, they were now just one step away from becoming official awakeners.
Except for the non-combat life classes, no one was willing to back out.
Benjamin expressed both pride and emotion,
"I am proud of you all! Go forth, children. After you emerge from the dungeon, I will personally apply for the iron-tier class medals from the Awakener Guild on your behalf. Then, you will be true awakeners!"
After speaking, Benjamin allowed everyone to move freely.
Classmates from Year 3 Class 1 began to form teams.
Daniel and a few students invited John, but he declined without a second thought.
He harbored secrets that made it impractical for him to join a team, so he planned to solo the dungeon.
Despite the increased difficulty and risk of going alone, the experience points and rewards would also be more substantial.
Moreover, John wanted to gauge his current strength.
Daniel and others initially wanted to persuade him otherwise, knowing the frailty of a typical magus class was common knowledge.
John, being a regular magus, might face life-threatening dangers.
But before they could speak, John had already approached the entrance of Phantom Ruins and walked in.
Benjamin sighed, "The boy is still too headstrong, perhaps not yet recovered from the shock of his awakening failure."
The others fell silent, only able to pray for John.
Meanwhile, as John stepped through the dungeon entrance, it felt like passing through a curtain of water.
When he opened his eyes again, he was in another world.
It was still night here, the sky devoid of stars, with only a red moon hanging in the horizon.
The crimson moonlight cast a red veil over the ruins.
John looked around and found himself standing in the middle of a weed-covered road.
Abandoned cars and shops lined both sides, while the distance was shrouded in darkness and obscured by tall buildings.
The entire city was eerily silent, as if he were the only person there.