The dark outpost, once a place devoid of light, was now bathed in moonlight, as if bringing a touch of warmth to this dark land. Within the vast camp, there were two shimmering sources of yellow light, one large and one small.
Naturally, the large one was the flames still burning in the water storage pool, while the small one was the lingering fire on the mutated corpse monster's body.
Sean's expression turned extremely ugly as he looked at the charred remains of the mutated corpse monster. This meant that he wouldn't be able to obtain any drops from the boss's body.
To completely harvest the "Dark Outpost" dungeon, one had to rely on brute force to push through and obtain the benefits of the entire dungeon. Sean had taken a shortcut to kill those corpse monsters, so it was impossible for him to obtain anything from the drops in the water storage pool. However, he wasn't particularly concerned about those ordinary items in the first place. His true objective was on the mutated corpse monster.
But now, with the flames on the mutated corpse monster still burning, how could he loot the body?
Ask someone to help extinguish the flames?
How should he put it? Was he afraid of causing a forest fire or was there an item on the mutated corpse monster?
Suddenly, Sean's head felt like it had doubled in size.
Since experiencing the "Wandering Darkness" dungeon, Sean had gained an understanding of how monster drops worked in this world: it was exactly the same as in the game "Miracle." In other words, equipment items would only drop from humanoid or humanoid-like monsters, while other monsters like demons or beasts would only drop items such as fur, tendons, or crystal cores. Other materials could only be obtained through gathering.
However, even equipment didn't drop randomly. Humanoid monsters wielding swords would never drop a spear, and those wearing leather armor would not drop plate armor. Moreover, the items dropped would also vary slightly depending on the different attack methods. For example, attacking the throat of a Wind Marked Black Wolf would cause the loss of crystal cores, and even humanoid monsters might become useless if their equipment was too severely damaged.
Among them, jewelry was the most difficult type of item to obtain.
But Sean knew that this mutated corpse monster happened to drop jewelry equipment, and it was the only way for players in the early stages to obtain jewelry from monsters.
However, looking at the humanoid torch in front of him, Sean couldn't help but shed tears. "Why does this fire burn for so long without extinguishing?"
"With such abundant magical energy here, and being close to the magical tide, plus you even threw an accelerant, this fire won't go out in just two or three days," Cecilia commented, standing beside Sean and criticizing, "The flames over there will probably burn even longer, at least for a month."
Glancing towards the water storage pool, Sean cursed in his heart: "Damn it, what I want is the jewelry from the mutated corpse monster!"
Seeing that things had come to this point, being frustrated was useless. Sean could only compose himself and walk towards Durun and Harvey. At the moment, the group was gathered around the guard who had been thrown back by the impact of the mutated corpse monster. Old Peter was doing his best to save him, and the others wore expressions of concern.
"How is he?" Sean approached Durun and asked.
"He's alive, but..." Durun furrowed his brow and sighed. "His left arm's hand bones are completely shattered, his right arm is fractured, and his internal organs have suffered severe trauma. We can't treat these injuries at the moment. Old Peter could only save his life, but without proper treatment, it's likely he'll be disabled."
Durun said a lot, but Sean couldn't quite understand, so he used True Vision to examine the data of the injured guard and compared it to the data of the other two guards. His face darkened, and he fully understood the cruelty of this world.
The guard wasn't just disabled; his strength and agility attributes dropped to one point, even worse than Cecilia. His stamina value also decreased from twenty-four to ten, which was the same as that of a normal adult.
However, his willpower attribute had slightly improved. But in this world where the strong prevailed, what good was a high willpower attribute alone?
Seeing Sean's somewhat dejected expression, Durun and Harvey thought he was blaming himself for the situation.
Durun patted Sean's shoulder and said, "Being a mercenary, such situations are unavoidable. You don't need to blame yourself. You should know that your achievements so far are already remarkable. Even those renowned mercenary groups wouldn't be able to do better than you. Who knows, the casualties might have been even worse."
Sean nodded but didn't delve deeper into the topic. In the month he had spent in this world, he had seen such things more than once.
However, each time he saw it, he couldn't help but feel melancholic.
After all, he had never witnessed such cruelty before coming to this world, even in the game where NPCs were just lines of data and could be deleted if not needed.
Seeing Old Peter still busy with first aid for the injured guard, Sean stepped back. As he looked around, he noticed that the darkness enveloping the entire Dark Outpost had disappeared, but the chaotic nature of this desolate land remained.
It was likely that new monsters would emerge here in a few years, and they might not be undead creatures like the corpse monsters but true dark creatures corrupted by the beasts from the Starfall Forest.
"Don't be unhappy. It's something you didn't want." Cecilia tugged at Sean's sleeve and sighed. "Let me tell you some good news."
Looking at Cecilia's smile, Sean reached out and ruffled her hair, making a decision within his heart. Perhaps this world was indeed cruel, but he had no way back now.
Even if he didn't consider himself, he had to think for Cecilia, and in the future, he might have to consider more and more people.
"What good news?" With his decision made, Sean no longer had any doubts. He was a person with firm determination.
Upon hearing Sean's question, Cecilia proudly took out a ring and waved it in front of him.
It was a ring made of a peculiar metal mixed with inkstone.
The entire ring had a hexagonal shape, and a circle of unknown red liquid had been painted with tiny, tadpole-like runes that connected from start to finish rather than being mere inscriptions.
Apart from these red runes, the ring had no other decorations. If not for these red symbols, the ring would have a somewhat antique and imposing feel.
In the instant Sean saw the ring, his eyes widened, filled with inexplicable astonishment. "This ring... Where did you get it from?"
"That Bloodline Hexagonal Ring dropped from the mutated corpse monster when Durun and Old Peter killed it," Cecilia explained, realizing that Sean was familiar with its origins. "You really seem to know everything... there's hardly anything in this world that you don't know."
Sean chuckled. "I don't know about things from ancient times. Can I take a look at the ring?"
"Of course." Cecilia tossed the ring to Sean, not caring much about it.
As the ring landed in Sean's hand, he felt a peculiar power emanating from it, and he couldn't help but sigh inwardly. It was indeed the Bloodline Hexagonal Ring.
[Bloodline Hexagonal Ring: Enchanted (Bronze), Intelligence +12, Willpower +15, Undead Magic Level +1, Undead Creature Control +1. Equipment requirement: Intelligence 20, Willpower 20. Curse (Weak): Perform a Willpower check every midnight. If the check fails, transform into a corpse monster.]
[Item description: This is a mysterious ring of unknown origin. You can sense the aura of blood and restless spirits entwined within it.
If someone with weak resolve wears it, they will soon succumb to the aura and become a corpse monster.]
The mutated corpse monsters dropped four pieces of jewelry in total—three rings and a necklace—and the Bloodline Hexagonal Ring was the best among them.
However, the rarer and more powerful an item was, the lower its drop rate.
In the game, Sean had only heard of eleven of these rings dropping in seven years, which demonstrated their rarity. Even at the sixth-tier class level, the ring would still be a valuable asset.
But Sean couldn't find any happiness in obtaining the ring. What he truly wanted was something else.
"This is the Bloodline Hexagonal Ring," Sean tossed the ring back to Cecilia. "It's an enchanted item. Although the magical power has diminished, it's still a pretty good item. It would be perfect for an undead mage, but since you're also a mage, it should suit you well. At the very least, it can help strengthen your willpower and perhaps make you more intelligent."
Upon hearing Sean's words, Cecilia burst into laughter. "Wearing a piece of jewelry won't make a person smarter."
Sean shrugged, not bothering to explain further.
He couldn't exactly explain the concept of personal attributes to Cecilia.
Even if he could, she probably wouldn't understand. It would be better for her to discover and understand it on her own. However, there were some things he needed to clarify with Cecilia.
"This ring is not an ordinary item. If you wear it and feel any discomfort, you must take it off. The dark aura on it will constantly erode your willpower," Sean warned.
Cecilia, sensing the seriousness in Sean's tone, nodded. "I understand."
Seeing that Cecilia took his words to heart, Sean nodded and then smiled. "There might be some other things in this camp. Let's go and look for them. We have nothing better to do at the moment... Once they finish their work, we can leave this place."
As he spoke, Sean's gaze turned towards the path leading to the exit, and he muttered to himself, "I wonder if that thing is there now..."