Warden hadn't seen the dungeon yet, but he could feel its pulsation in his nerves. His left palm twitched hard with the energy inside the aperture stirring up in the presence of chaotic energy in proximity.
He forcefully calmed the wild energy, taking a step forward towards the cavern from where the pulse was emanating.
"Dungeon?" Xiv stuttered, goosebumps crawling up his skin. "Is it here?"
"Where else? Can't you feel the stir in the air?"
Xiv shook his head and watched him move into the cavern. "Um, Warden," he called, hurrying after him. "Do you think it's a good idea to enter the dungeon now?"
"Well, I don't plan on entering just yet," he said. For the moment, he had to lead Xiv back to the village before taking on something like a dungeon. The boy alone might make it back to the village, but it was better not to take chances. "I merely wanted to check it first."
After some consideration, Warden decided against entering the cavern just yet. The energy signs were chaotic, giving him some indication of the danger. It was better he waited until he was alone, as it would be quite a tiring job while he had to protect Xiv.
They were about to leave when the very fabric of the reality of the surrounding quaked in unrest. Even Xiv, whose spiritual sense was dull, could feel the disturbance.
"What was that?" Xiv squeaked, almost falling to the ground.
"Xiv, go hide somewhere quickly." Warden didn't have the correct answer, but he felt it was necessary at this moment. The boy seemed transfixed by the shift in the air and didn't seem to hear him. "Xiv, now!"
The lad scrambled away quickly to hide inside a tall hedge, while Warden drew his weapon, charging void energy to turn back the cloak to a darker color. Not only that, for the first time in battle, he used the cloak's ability [Void Shroud].
[Void Shroud] seemed to change the very nature of the cloak, as an ethereal dark cloth covered him from head to toe, intensifying his defense, but more importantly, stealth. The only problem was that it was putting a lot of strain on the Palace of Toil.
Soon, clamors of howls reverberated from the cavern, catching his attention as he took a stance. In no time, dire wolves emerged from the cavern hole in numbers, each one of them as high as his waist or higher, heralded by the tallest one that reached his chest easily.
A cursed creature and over a dozen copper counterparts.
"This isn't going to be easy," Warden thought, especially if I want it to be quick.
Determined, Warden didn't give the dire wolves time to surround him or even come at him. He shot at them, and his blade, which was emitting dark purple tendrils of smoke, plunged into the head of a copper-ranked wolf, killing it instantly.
[Copper grade energy harvested.]
[+0.2 Strength.]
Another copper-ranked creature crashed into him in a mad dash, but something unnatural occurred when it made contact with the [Void Shroud]. The ethereal cloth contorted for a moment, and then, in the next instant, it propelled the creature just as forcefully as it had collided with him.
Well, Warden was surprised, but he expected no less from the sheer amount of void energy he was burning. Now, with the [Void Shroud] completely surrounding him, he could defend himself from all directions as long as he had enough energy.
Feeling a sense of invincibility, Warden charged after the wolves more aggressively, flipping over two of them. His blade found the next target, beheading another of the creatures. He shoved aside one behind him using the [Void Shroud] while facing the other one head-on. He plunged the blade into its paws, eliciting a horrendous scream. Twisting his blade just enough for the other end to reach its neck, Warden finished it as well.
[Copper-grade energy harvested.]
[+0.2 Strength.]
[+0.3 Strength.]
[+0.3 Strength.]
[+0.1 Strength.]
Then something humongous crashed into him. His [Void Shroud] contorted, drawing more energy to withstand the attack. Warden found the Cursed wolf attempting to bite through his defense, but finding no purchase, although it managed to push him backward.
However, Warden wasn't in the mood for taking a loss. He pulled more energy and enforced the shroud forward, even clearing everything from behind. He thrusted all that energy forward as if breaking through a bulwark.
The cursed creature was nothing short of a bulwark, as even when the void energy rammed into its head, it only managed to lift the front two legs of the creature. Fortunately, Warden wasn't aiming to send it flying. Void energy wasn't something you defended with your body, as its nature was to break through defense from the inside.
The huge dire wolf's head became bloodied with just one thrust, dark blood smearing as it descended. Warden didn't even have time to adjust his defense as he plunged his sword into its head before its regeneration ability could take effect.
The blade pierced through its eye, pushing deeper upwards toward its brain. The wolf thrashed its claws at him in agony. Warden didn't have the [Void Shroud] fully intact, so its claws managed to find purchase in his body. Thankfully, the other legendary artifact was there to save his skin.
Although [Maya's Protection] didn't seem to work as well as the cloak with void energy, it didn't take any damage from the claw. Although Warden did feel like he was getting beaten like drums.
But he would be a fool to let go of this chance to rein in the biggest threat. Ignoring the damage it was causing him, he pushed with everything he had, pouring in more void energy to muddle its head completely.
[Iron grade energy harvested.]
[+2.2 Strength.]
[+0.4 Spirit.]
[+0.2 Mind.]
Finally, the humongous beast rested its head down, unable to struggle anymore.
With that, he only had a few counterparts to deal with.