New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Chapter 1029: What Comes Next?



To them, it felt like an eternity had gone by, the pace of battle unrelenting, and their minds constantly forced into a state of high alert. But the reality was far from that.

In a fight that went like a rollercoaster, attacks from both sides threatening to take lives at a moment's notice, were a single mistake made; time had seemed to pass by so fast, yet only a few minutes ticked away.

This was both a good and a bad thing, in some sense.

With how short the battle had spanned, the risk of the dragon egg across the doors from them to hatch was low, but it came with its own downsides.

A significant one being that they were all spent.

Alex could tell all of them were running on fumes, aside from him. He could tell he wasn't at a hundred percent, but he still felt fresh enough to battle another pair of dragonkin.

The same couldn't be said for his companions.

Unfortunately, they didn't have the luxury of time to rest anymore.

Alex could feel a source of mana across the humongous double doors growing by the second. They were in a race against time.

"David. Come, give me a hand," Alex said, walking toward the doors.

David looked at Alex, his eyes trailing to the doors, and by the look in the latter's eyes, he knew something was up.

"Coming."

As they reached the doors, stopping just in front of them, Alex whispered to David.

"You can feel it, too, right? It's not just me?" he asked, his tone wavering.

"I can now," David responded, resting his hand on the door before him.

The mana across the large stone doors. It was not only growing at an insane pace.

It was pulsing.

*Oom oomph*

*Oom oomph*

"It's close to waking up," David said, his eyes turning gloomy.

"We need to get in there and break that egg."

"I don't think it'll be enough anymore."

"Then what do you suggest?" Alex asked.

"At this point, I believe breaking the egg won't stop the dragon from awakening. We'll have to kill it while it's still weak. Dragons grow quickly in their first few months if they can feed appropriately. We need to make sure it never leaves this dungeon alive."

Alex nodded, his face resolute.

"What are you guys mumbling over here?" Kary asked playfully, suddenly popping next to them.

David twitched, focusing on the door and what was beyond it so much that he hadn't felt her getting near them.

But Kary didn't need an answer. The moment she got close enough to the doors, which were acting as a barrier to their senses, she felt what was beyond it.

Her playfulness immediately vanished, her face becoming serious.

"That's not good," she commented.

"No. No, it's not," David replied.

"We need to end this now, but everyone is tired, and everyone's mana reserves are running on fumes. Going in there might make some collapse from the sheer pressure alone," Alex pointed out, turning his head to look at the others.

"Yeah, but we can hardly leave them out here, either," David commented, looking at them as well.

"Why not?" Alex asked, confused.

"Because this is a dungeon, but not a New Eden dungeon. It isn't going to stay once we clear the dungeon core out," David explained.

Alex looked at him with a frown.

"Yeah, I'm familiar with onetime dungeons. We've cleared one. We'll all get teleported outside once it's done," he said with a shrug.

"Stop thinking this is New Eden for just a second, Alexander. This isn't a joke. People were lost to dungeons in my timeline. Dungeons that collapse bring with them anything that remains inside.

"Once this dragon is dead, and we grab the dungeon core, an exit will appear, but only for a brief window of time. Anything that doesn't exit through that stays here. And trust me, here won't be pretty once the dungeon core is gone."

Realization set in Alex's mind. There was a genuine danger of staying stuck inside a collapsing volcano dungeon.

"So we all have to be within the boss room..." he surmised.

"Yes."

"But what about those who would collapse from the dragon's pressure?" Kary asked, perplexed.

"We chuck them through the portal that appears if we have to. There won't be a chance to come back in. The portal will be one way. We need to get everyone out inside a minute, or whoever is still inside is royally fucked," David answered.

Kary didn't like the sound of that. Even if they were plenty strong to throw a person into a portal, it was a lot more complicated than that.

"And is there a way to shield us from the pressure of the dragon being born?" she asked, trying to find a solution.

"Alex might be able to, but then our strongest asset will be out of commission to fight the darned thing. I think it's best if we all collapse and he fights it than to waste his strength on

protecting ours."

Kary clicked her tongue in disappointment.

"Actually, I think we have another person who can take the dragon down, even if I'm incapacitated," Alex pointed out, looking at the bow in Jin-Sil's hands.

"Her?" David asked, following his gaze.

"You're kidding, right?" he added.

"No, listen. That weapon is as strong as an artifact. And it's out here. Even if she isn't as powerful as I am, that weapon can close that gap. I sure as hell wouldn't want an arrow from that thing to hit me in the chest," Alex commented.

He had been looking at her fire the weapon for their entire fight, and even if she infused little to no mana into her shots, the arrows that left her bowstring were supercharged. It was like

she was firing magic missiles in a condensed package.

They packed a wallop and came at little cost to her own reserves.

"Are they really that powerful?" Kary asked.

Although her senses covered a wide area, they weren't as sharp as her boyfriends. She couldn't

tell the amount of mana coming from the arrows as precisely as he could.

Even David wouldn't dare say his mana senses were as sharp as his.

"Oh yeah. They are plenty strong. I'd say her current power level on a single arrow equals the

power I could muster during the tournament. I know it's not ideal, but it is plenty. This

dragon is never going to be as strong as an actual dragon. Not at awakening."

"I'll do it," Jin-Sil said, stepping toward them.

She had heard the entire conversation, even though she was meters away.

"If you give me a shot, I'll send that dragon into the next life. I swear it."