Under Sun Ge's lead, everyone stepped into the teleportation circle of the Secret Realm and was swiftly transported into a new space.
It was Lu Fan's first time participating in a Secret Realm, and he couldn't help but look around curiously to take in the environment.
This pocket dimension wasn't very large. Its edges were shrouded in a violet-red barrier that couldn't be crossed, and its total area seemed to span about five kilometers in diameter.
There was no sunlight in the Secret Realm, and the area was enveloped in a purple mist, reducing visibility to around a hundred meters.
Farther out, one could only vaguely make out the silhouettes of some buildings within the mist.
The group was currently standing at the edge of the realm. Looking ahead, they could faintly see what appeared to be a village with a number of low, squat houses.
However, the buildings looked utterly dilapidated under the darkness and fog, and not a single light could be seen—eerily silent and foreboding.
After entering the Secret Realm, everyone's quest panel updated with a new objective that detailed the conditions for clearing this particular challenge.
Fortune Secret Realm — Village of Despair (Hard Mode)
Minimum Participants: 8 players
Recommended Level: 20
Clear Condition: Eliminate all zombies in the Village of Despair. Current Progress: 0/1200
Description:
Three hundred years ago, a mysterious plague swept through this unremarkable village. Countless people perished, and their corpses were piled by the lakeside.
But three days later, something horrifying occurred—the bodies vanished overnight.
That very evening, the surviving villagers discovered that terrifying yet familiar figures were smashing through their doors…
Blood, death, fear, and despair soon blanketed the entire village…
"A level 20 Hard Mode Secret Realm…" Sun Ge frowned deeply.
Secret Realms were categorized by difficulty: Easy, Normal, Hard, Terror, and Nightmare. The higher the difficulty, the greater the rewards—but also the greater the risk.
A level 20 Secret Realm on Hard Mode was clearly far more dangerous than Sun Ge had expected.
He had originally assumed that the Fortune Secret Realm refreshed in the Rocky Plains would be around level 15, which his party—averaging level 20—could clear without much trouble.
But a level 20 dungeon on Hard Mode would be a real challenge, even for a full team of level 20 Class-advanced players.
Right now, he himself was a level 28 swordsman and had the strength to protect himself—but their team also included Lu Fan and Qin Qiu, both newcomers at level 13 and 14, whose combat ability was clearly lacking.
This kind of Secret Realm might end up being their downfall.
"Miss…" Sun Ge looked to Qin Qiu, his expression troubled.
Qin Qiu understood his concern. She bit her lip and made a decision after a moment's thought. "It's alright, Uncle Ge. We're already here—there's no reason to back out now."
"It's just a level 20 Hard Mode dungeon. It's not like we can't clear it. Don't forget, I'm a Holy Light Archmage. I have attribute advantage against dark-type monsters."
"Judging by the environment, I'd say the enemies here are all dark-aligned. My combat effectiveness should be comparable to that of any level 20 mage."
Sun Ge gave it a moment of thought. What Qin Qiu said made sense, so he nodded and replied resolutely, "Alright then, let's proceed with our original plan and clear this dungeon."
"Everyone, stay sharp. This Secret Realm is tougher than I expected. Don't let your guard down—protect the young miss, and also that young man from earlier."
Sun Ge and the others weren't bad people. If Lu Fan really was just a student grinding levels for his college entrance exams, then as seniors, it was only right that they look out for him.
Lu Fan noted their attitude and felt his impression of the group improve significantly.
The team quickly arranged themselves based on their class roles and began advancing toward the Village of Despair.
After they had moved roughly two hundred meters forward, a rustling noise came from ahead—something was clearly running toward them at high speed.
Sun Ge raised his massive sword and called out, "Everyone, stay alert—monsters incoming!"
As soon as he finished speaking, humanoid shapes emerged from the darkness and mist, charging straight at them with bloodcurdling screeches.
There were about twenty monsters in this wave. All of them had purplish-black skin, riddled with festering wounds, and reeked of rot.
Lu Fan immediately cast an Identify spell, and the monsters' information was laid bare before him.
Rotting Zombie (Elite-tier, Aggressive-type Monster)
Level: 15
Strength: 45
Agility: 47
Spirit: 20
Stamina: 31
Skills:
Corpse Poison – Claws and teeth carry corpse poison. Causes continuous bleeding and converts victims into Rotting Zombies upon death.
Latching Maul – Grabs the target and performs a vicious bite attack.
These level 15 elite monsters were clearly a few tiers stronger than the Bloodthirsty Grey Foxes Lu Fan had faced earlier.
However, for Sun Ge and the rest, these creatures were still manageable and didn't pose much of a threat—for now.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。