Chapter 29
With the inverted swamp behind him, worker goblins scurried everywhere, gathering the eggs.
All the Chongyot tribe members who could fight had been killed.
He had gone deep into the swamp to make sure.
It was a victory.
And yet.
Dohyun’s eyes remained dark and unsettled.
...Something’s wrong.
He had no idea who had set up a formation like this.
He had overturned the swamp again and again, wiping out every last member of the Chongyot tribe. With the goblins now deployed in force, the eggs and corpses were being hauled back to the Dungeon to be recycled into food for daily use.
Even so, the formation still remained.
The Chongyot nest had already been emptied out, but the swamp was still alive.
It could be used again at any time.
So the formation had to be severed as well.
But there was another problem: the scale of this place.
The nest isn’t just one.
From the size of each area, there was no way the nest was a single location.
At the very least, the reproduction rate would drop.
But is there actually a yokai who can handle a formation like this?
This swamp was sustained by a formation. If a place like this existed, insects would thrive here again.
“Kko-kko... Lord Chiryongwon, the formation master.”
So that’s him.
He immediately remembered the figure he had seen at the forest council.
The forest’s rogue, the one who had sat there with drunken, reddened eyes half-lidded, going through the meeting with total indifference.
A formation artist?
He had heard that formation artists were the sort of people whose minds ran cool and calm with cold calculations.
This was nothing like that.
“Right, I’ll contact Gwiwolrang-nim.”
Yeah, I’m counting on you.
Dohyun had not been given any means of contact, so he simply asked for help and headed out.
When entering, you had to know the exact location. When leaving, any exit point would do.
Once he stepped out of the formation, the gloomy swamp vanished and the forest returned.
...We’re going back.
Leaving behind only the soldiers still handling the cleanup, he led the rest back toward the Dungeon.
He wanted to sprint there alone right this instant, but he forced himself to endure it and walk.
An intelligent Chongyo tribe.
He turned over possibilities in his mind.
There was no doubt they had calculated that the Dungeon was empty.
And they had done it without knowing about Heok-o’s existence.
At the same time, they had to be aware of the Greenskins’ detection abilities in the Dungeon.
As he worried over it, the Dungeon came into view.
Worker. Sort through the byproducts the hunters brought in.
Dohyun quickly issued his orders.
Orcs, rest.
Goblin warriors, free action.
The army gradually dispersed.
With the exception of the minimum number of Greenskins needed to guard the cave, the rest went off to rest.
Moving around the swamp had been hard on the body for everyone except monsters like Geoung.
“Geoung! Time to eat!”
He was always grinning the moment food appeared.
A fine trait in a soldier.
As Dohyun walked through the Dungeon, he caught the smell of blood.
At the same time, he stopped when he saw the ground that had recently been dug up.
His fist trembled for a moment.
Only after gripping his wrist did it stop.
He kept walking.
And entered the core room.
Heok-o had been waiting for him.
“You’re late, dragon.”
...Yeah.
The sly arc of those eyes and that teasing tone made it hard to believe this was the same Heok-o he had seen before.
“Do you know how hard this body’s been working, dragon?”
You’ve done well.
“That’s kind of sad when you only say it with words.”
Do you want something...?
“Dragon, you can listen later.”
Understood.
Dohyun thought that maybe he could trust him a little.
“Anyway, dragon, for a nest, this place was awfully defenseless.”
I know.
Dohyun looked at the state of the system core.
[Core Lv: 28]
[Energy Storage: 200/4300]
[Total Energy Production: 6100/h]
[Status: Continuous Dungeon Expansion]
[Bonus: All production +200% + Forest Area +1500]
On the surface, the production looks high.
But there was a flaw in that total energy production.
[Goblin Production Site] upkeep 160.
Ten of them now.
1600.
[Warrior Rock] upkeep 1600.
One.
[Spring] upkeep 2.
A hundred of them.
200.
Ten [Storage] buildings, upkeep 30.
300.
[Training Ground]
Average usage fee.
200.
The numbers piled up quickly in Dohyun’s mind.
His eyes narrowed.
...Can’t cut it any lower.
Without the boss bonus and the forest area bonus of 1500, it would have been impossible to maintain the current scale.
The forest was only the beginning.
With time, it would grow larger.
And with that, the forest’s energy production would increase, and storage capacity would rise as well.
But just because there was plenty of energy did not mean there was room to breathe.
No matter how much energy he stockpiled, it was never enough.
Most of it was consumed by the Conversion Platform.
Consumables. That was the problem.
As the level of the Conversion Platform rose, the quality of the goblins’ equipment improved little by little.
Gone were the days when something forged on the same day would break apart by noon.
Now, it could last several days without issue.
That said, it also consumed 20 energy per kilogram now.
And since it was random, even if he equipped all six thousand-plus goblins with hoes, dozens still shattered every single day because of durability issues.
The workers who were still stamping out tools every day were nearly driven mad by that randomness.
Of course, he could simply cut back on how he treated goblins, who cost nothing.
Harsh labor? Too little food? Poor sleeping conditions?
It was possible.
But it was inefficient.
The longer a goblin lives, the more useful it becomes.
That was even more true now that this was reality.
In the Dungeon, older goblins could take on multiple roles—hunters, workers, herbalists, and more.
Skilled individuals could handle several tasks at once.
He had to provide the tools and think long-term and efficiently.
One capable worker was worth more than a hundred clumsy ones.
Later on...
He was already thinking too far ahead, so he shook his head.
For now, he had to prepare for reality.
Detection.
That was the one thing he needed right now.
He pictured the corpses he had been unable to see before.
A goblin dead while plowing a field.
A goblin fighting in the herbal garden.
There will never be another situation like that again.
[Detection Totem Lv1]
[Effect: 1. Detect living beings within a 300m radius]
[Effect: 2. Can distinguish hostile/neutral/ally]
[Effect: 3. Detect targets in concealment below Rank 1]
[Upkeep: 200 (-200/h)]
[Installation Cost: 500 energy, stone required.]
Totems.
They were the enhancement buildings found in the Greenskin build.
They were consumption-only buildings rather than production ones.
There were all kinds of totems that could raise combat power immediately, or provide other effects.
...Let’s only build what we need.
He had established a foothold, but it was far from perfect.
The Dungeon was still only on the first floor, and Core Level 100 was the true end of preparation.
By game standards, building totems now was a little early.
But...
This is efficient.
It was better than losing another skilled worker.
He pressed build and sent his will into the goblin workers.
Near the entrance, he transmitted the model for the Detection Totem to the worker.
He had it take suitable stone made through the Conversion Platform and begin constructing the totem.
The worker moved to build an owl-shaped totem, and Dohyun turned his attention to the second totem through the system.
This one?
He still wasn’t certain, but he thought back to the place where the forest council had been held.
Vein of spiritual energy.
One totem came to mind then.
[Convergence Totem Lv1]
[Effect: 1. Converges nearby Dungeon energy and stabilizes its flow]
[Effect: 2. Increases spatial energy density]
[Effect: 3. Reduces leakage of external energy]
[Upkeep: 100 (-100/h)]
[Installation Cost: 100 energy, stone required.]
It wasn’t much of a totem.
But...
If my guess is right, it’ll be efficient.
The Dungeon energy produced within the Dungeon was the same as spiritual energy.
If that energy gathered, this place would become like a spiritual vein, or a spiritual estate.
Ordinarily, a totem specialized for spell enhancement or laboratories would be erected in the center of the forest.
He was satisfied that its upkeep was lower than the Detection Totem because its effect was smaller.
The workers finished constructing the two totems by the next day.
The moment they were raised, the energy that had lost its will and scattered out toward the entrance...
very faintly—
began to flow as though its previously disordered current had been put back in order.
As that small stream of energy gradually grew larger, its density deepened into something different from before.
Dohyun narrowed his eyes.
This is incredibly efficient.
The small things had gathered into something big.
“Dragon, what is this? A formation? No, wait? That’s amazing.”
Heok-o stared at the Convergence Totem in shock, flailing about in a rare display of excitement.
On the other hand, Heok-o was grumbling at the Detection Totem near the entrance, muttering about why Dohyun had erected a miserable owl instead of himself.
Someday I’ll build your statue.
“Dragon, you have to keep that promise, okay?”
Yeah.
He chased the chatterbox away and inhaled the denser Dungeon energy deep into his lungs.
His training would become about ten times faster than before.
The same applied to the other Greenskins as well.
For three days, Dohyun focused on cultivation amid the newly increased spiritual energy when Heok-o flew over to him.
“We’ve got a guest.”
Already?
He recalled the mention that Gyetoo had been contacting Gwiwolrang.
And so, feeling the overwhelming heat and wild power drifting from the entrance, he thought,
...A Great Yokai.
With tension tightening his body, he walked down the corridor.
If Gwiwolrang felt cold and undetectable...
this one was openly violent.
Heavy force spilled from him.
He was definitely no simple visitor...
“Hic.”
From the entrance came a strange, misplaced sound.
...?
When Dohyun stepped outside and turned his gaze, he saw a monkey standing there.
He wore only a top, his posture was slouched, and in his hand was a jade wine bottle. He drank without restraint.
At first glance, he looked like nothing more than a drunkard.
“Kugh...”
But despite that appearance, the mere presence of that one being had made the air near the entrance sink down under its weight.
Welcome.
Keeping his expression as relaxed as possible, Dohyun greeted him politely first.
“Kugh. So we meet again, young dragon.”
The red-faced monkey was Chiryongwon, looking less concerned with Dohyun than with the wine in his jade bottle.
He certainly seemed drunk, and the smell of liquor was overwhelming, but his energy was not off balance in the slightest.
Wisdom gleamed in his red eyes.
“Hic, I heard from Gwiwolrang that there’s a formation here?”
Yes.
“Kek—then let’s get going. I’m busy, after all.”
Chiryongwon staggered forward with one step.
Unlike his drunken appearance, there was force in that step.
And then...
That jade bottle...
It was different from the wine bottle he had seen before.
More refined.
His gaze rose naturally.
The top.
...It was unsettling.
Dohyun’s eyes narrowed.
That’s something touched by human hands.