Chapter 4: Steam Sprayer

“Heh, no wonder you dared to stay in room 2012.”“…”

“This ‘407 Abnormal Creature Containment Site’ has been confirmed to have four floors, with one hundred rooms on each floor. Some rooms have monsters, some are empty. During the twelve hours when the iron doors are closed, it is night, and the monsters will go berserk, wandering through the corridors of the bunker; anyone who leaves their rooms will be killed, and occasionally, they will break into rooms to kill as well. Now, during the twelve hours when the iron doors are open, it is daytime, and the monsters are trapped in their rooms, which is the best time to explore this extradimensional space. However, it’s not absolutely safe; if you want to kill monsters and collect materials, you’ll have to explore the rooms. And opening a room door means facing unknown monsters… This is why the death rate is so high.”

“How powerful would a B-class calamity be?”

“So far, it’s known that rooms 1099, 2012, 3045, and 4011 each contain a B-class calamity beast. Apart from the ‘Corrupt Giant’ in 1099, which was killed once, the other three B-class calamities have never been killed, and at least several hundred people have died instead. After all, this space restricts the tier of the entrants, and without a large team, B-class calamities are very difficult to take down.”

“And yet you’re still…?”

“The ‘Fallen Witch’ is very special, and as a psychic-type, she has her own weaknesses. I have some special methods of restraint that could make it much easier to deal with her. I’ll explain some of these details to you later.”

“…”

Although the girl with the mechanical arm spoke with a certain natural indifference and caution typical of strangers, she did not hide or withhold any necessary information.

Her personality was direct and to the point.

Ji Xun found her quite to his liking.

He asked somewhat ambiguous questions to cover up his ignorance and gradually gleaned some useful information.

This mysterious and magical world, with both humans and monsters possessing extraordinary powers, along with magical items like steam machinery and cards infused with magic, was slowly being unveiled in their conversation.

…

Opening doors, staying alert, searching.

The girl with the mechanical arm managed it all by herself.

Ji Xun didn’t need to do anything; it was perfectly fine for him to simply follow behind like a tag-along.

Along the way, they encountered more than a dozen empty rooms.

Ji Xun’s stroll was rather leisurely.

He felt none of the dangers associated with a 70% death rate.

However, as they moved along, he seemed to notice something amiss, his expression shifted momentarily, and he silently pondered, “The doors are twenty paces apart… Is there something wrong with room 2012?”

He didn’t know what his small discovery might mean, nor did he speak up, continuing to follow along.

The gas lamps in the corridor were unstable, the dim yellow light casting lengthy shadows.

As the two conversed, they arrived at the door to room 2049.

Just like before, the girl with the mechanical arm intended to check inside.

But as soon as she pushed open the iron door, there was a sudden change.

The noise of the door disturbed the creature inside; with a loud clang, a strong gust of wind forced the thick iron door open, slamming it against the wall.

A vile stench of rotten flesh, accompanied by a strong, bloody gust, hit them in the face.

Upon seeing this, Ji Xun’s pupils suddenly contracted.

After opening so many rooms, this was the first time he had encountered a monster.

A beast that looked like a flayed two-headed hound lunged out before he had time to react.

Despite being a deformed hound, it had the size of a male lion and that overpowering presence akin to facing a demon.

He also quickly discerned the prompt above the monster’s head.

“Basilisk Twin-headed Hound”

Details: A first-tier D-class calamity beast adept at mental intimidation, an infernal variation of a canine-like creature with astonishing burst speed and biting power.

“Mental intimidation? Monsters in this world really are abnormal…”

Ji Xun instantly understood the tangible pressure that loomed over him and his hand placed on his revolver at his waist reacted instantly, preparing for self-defense.

But clearly, the girl with the mechanical arm was faster.

She seemed unfazed by the possibility of a monster leaping out of the room, raising the steam cannon on her right arm like lightning and pulling the trigger with composure.

With a fierce release of air pressure, her figure shook.

“Bang!”

The deafening blast echoed through the corridor.

The beast, already pouncing less than a foot in front of the girl, was halted mid-air as the steam burst forth from the cannon. After a moment of suspension, the creature’s muscles were torn apart by the high pressure and instantaneously disintegrated into a mist of blood.

“Drip, drip…”

The air was sprayed with a mist of crimson.

The steam quickly dissipated, clearing the sight. Sᴇaʀᴄh the n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

The room was covered in radiating flesh and blood, the stench almost overwhelming even through gas masks.

“What tremendous power.”

Ji Xun looked at this steam-powered marvel, suddenly realizing that not having a conflict earlier was a smart choice.

In such confined bunkers, it was far more useful than bullets, and the range of lethality of the high-pressure cannon was virtually invincible.

It was probably also a warning from her: don’t try any funny business in front of me.

Ji Xun’s brows slightly raised, noting to himself: She’s pretty straightforward.

His peripheral vision caught a glimpse of the pressure gauge on her mechanical arm, now emptied, and he silently estimated the recharge time to be over thirty seconds, which could be considered a weakness.

Should this temporary ally harbor any ill intentions, this detail could be useful.

With the monster dispatched in seconds, the girl with the mechanical arm looked back at Ji Xun, “You…”

Then she swallowed whatever she was about to say.

That shot was indeed a demonstration of power.

But to her surprise, this guy wasn’t even affected by the calamity’s intimidation?

“A talent for mental fortitude, perhaps…”

She thought to herself, without further words, and stepped into the room.

…

On the second floor, they explored some forty-odd rooms out of a hundred, but only room 2049 had a monster.

Those undisturbed rooms were marked as “unknown risk rooms” by information brokers.

The girl with the mechanical arm’s goal was clear: she aimed for the “Fallen Witch” and showed little interest in other creatures within the rooms.

Nor did she show any inclination to use the elevators to move to other floors.

To Ji Xun’s surprise, apart from the two of them, they didn’t encounter anyone else on the second floor, although they came across a dozen or so human corpses.

Eager for more information, Ji Xun asked, “Are there no other people on this floor?”

Since he hadn’t caused any trouble along the way, the girl with the mechanical arm spoke much more amicably: “Most of the aberrations on the second floor are psychic types. These creatures usually have some strange methods of attack, making them difficult to deal with. The easy ones were mostly cleared out yesterday; what’s left are troublesome monsters that require certain methods to deal with. So normal hunters would rather venture to the more lethal third floor than find trouble here on the second. This is a hundred-man team space; there should still be dozens of survivors on other floors, but it’s best to avoid them if possible.”

Adding to her explanation, she said, “Don’t touch the unopened doors; nobody knows what’s inside. If you run into a C-class or higher calamity, you could face total annihilation.”

“Understood.”

Ji Xun didn’t say much else.

These were the benefits of buying information.

One doesn’t walk blindly into an unknown mess with a monster one can’t deal with.

The girl with the mechanical arm said, “Let’s go, to the next room.”

…

While Ji Xun and the girl were searching through a series of empty rooms on the second floor, outside room 1099 on the first floor, about twenty well-equipped individuals were cleaning up the remains of the B-class calamity “Corrupt Giant.”

These weren’t ordinary treasure hunters; they were the vanguard elite of the Blackwater Mercenary Group.

Only such a well-coordinated elite team could hope to take down a B-class calamity among the unofficial professionals.

Even so, the casualties were not light.

But as they looked at their loot, the mercenaries’ eyes gleamed with joy.

“Hahaha… to think we got a silver-quality finished contract card, a rare ‘Four of Clubs-Mysterious’ series. We’ve made a fortune this time!”

“Yeah. If we take this to auction, it’s sure to be hot property. After this venture, a generous share is guaranteed.”

“Hey, you guys notice? Even after a silver card came out, that ‘boss’ still didn’t seem interested. What kind of material is he really looking for by entering here?”

“What do you know? Didn’t you hear the captain say that this ‘boss’ is a real big shot from the upper city? What we consider rare silver talisman cards might not be much to those great personages. That one is obviously looking for rarer materials. Besides, this extradimensional space is less than 50% explored; there are certainly many hidden plots yet to develop. Maybe even the legendary gold cards could appear…”

“Heh, that’s true.”

“What’s the difference? To kill this ‘Corrupt Giant,’ our mercenary group’s two elite teams suffered non-trivial losses. Who could take down those B-class calamities on the second, third, and fourth floors?”

“Yeah. This space even restricts the tier one can enter with; the monsters’ strength is ridiculously high. I’ve explored dozens of extradimensional spaces and never encountered anything as bizarre as this…”

“Who cares? The boss himself went to the fourth floor; we just have to do our job for the money and wait here.”

“…”