The commotion only died down after half an hour. Lao Ru and Lao De took a deep breath. They were surprised as their eyes fell on the brightly smiling Tepo. In such a situation the young man actually remembered to watch the beasts.
"Did you figure something out?", asked Lao Ru after he calmed down his emotions.
Meanwhile Lao De clenched his fists. He turned his head towards the statue with awe and excitement. A fire burned in his eyes.
Tepo also wasn't unaffected although the Core of Time helped him to recover quickly. Images of the clash played in his mind.
So far, the tales about powerful heroes were too abstract. Only witnessing such might from close range could forever take a spot in one's memory.
Lao Ru's question didn't even directly register in Tepo's mind.
"Sorry… what?"
"I asked if you figured out the pattern."
Despite his best efforts, Lao Ru's voice also shook slightly.
"Oh. Yeah, I think I got it. It's really not that difficult as long as you can observe from the outside."
"Good. Then we will follow your lead."
Tepo rose his brows slightly. Lao Ru basically trusted him with his life by saying this. Although it was in Tepo's interest not to make a mistake as his life was on the line as well.
"I will do my best."
A few minutes later the three warriors had calmed down. Under Tepo's lead Lao De began to use the Sun's Punishment to eliminate any beasts which might pose a threat to them within the dark area.
Terrifying flames continuously rained down on the ruined world. The ground was scorched. Beasts hid wherever they could, fearing for their lives.
Even the armies had long since hidden in caves. They had accepted their defeat, fearing that the destructive weapon might be directed at them if they showed their faces.
And they weren't wrong. Although Tepo wouldn't kill them, Lao De was constantly searching for targets.
An hour later a big part of the dark world was turned into hell. Fires burned everywhere. Of the once mighty empire only the palace remained. Ash dirtied the air.
The three warriors wore solemn expressions as they observed the destruction. Even Lao De didn't feel well. If this world was populated, countless living beings would have died.
"I guess the terrifying potential of weapons is proven here. With the Sun's Punishment one doesn't need high strength to burn entire empires to the ground."
Although Lao Ru spoke like this, the three warriors suddenly turned around as if on a signal. Their eyes held mixed emotions as they stared at the dangerous weapon.
"So. How do we take it away?", asked Tepo with some uncertainty obvious in his voice.
"It's too big and fastened to the tower. We can't just put it in our storage bags."
"Maybe we don't need to take the entire weapon.", suggested Lao Ru. "The Holy Sun Fire will be enough. Together with the schematics a skilled artificer should be able to replicate the rest."
After a moment Tepo agreed with Lao Ru. The young warrior took out the schematics as he approached the Sun's Punishment. Comparing the two it wasn't difficult to find out where the Holy Sun Fire was placed.
The young man opened a plate close to the beginning of the barrel. Immediately a cloud of heat hit his face. A tube made from some special glass entered his eyes.
It contained a viscous, lava-like liquid. A mysterious pressure emanated from it. Everyone could tell at first sight that this liquid was of unimaginable high quality.
Tepo drew a sharp breath. He felt as if his eyes burned just from laying sight on the Holy Sun Fire. Out of curiosity he used his [Scan] but he couldn't get any information. The orange fire was too high leveled for him.
Feeling movement behind him, Tepo glanced over his shoulder. He spotted the two brothers also taking a look out of curiosity. But they didn't show any signs of wanting to take the Holy Sun Fire.
Tepo was amazed by the loyalty the Web's allies showed. But this alluded to the strength the Web might possess.
As everyone had seen enough, Tepo cut two connections. The Holy Sun Fire landed in his hands. Immediately he put it into his storage bag.
The young warrior hissed loudly. From this short duration his palms were already red like fresh meat. And this was while the Holy Sun Fire was in a special container crafted from heat resistant materials.
Even the two brothers let out quiet sighs. It would be a lie if they proclaimed that they had no desire for this terrifying flame.
But in the end, they were content with getting the artificial core. At the same time a good relationship with the Web was more beneficial to them in the long term.
"Ok guys. We should be done here. Let's finally solve the dungeon!"
The two brothers nodded as Tepo spoke up. Soon the trio was standing next to the destroyed elevator, looking down a dim hole.
"So… how do we get down?", asked Tepo awkwardly.
But Lao Ru already held a solution. He waved his hand and five ghosts appeared in midair.
"Let these guys help us."
With those words Lao Ru and Lao De grabbed the hands of two ghosts each. This wasn't the first time they used this method. In order to reassure Tepo they nonchalantly jumped into the elevator shaft.
But the young man was still apprehensive. He eyed the ghostly figure floating before him.
Has the moment come to prove my trust now?
With a wry smile Tepo reached out with his hand. But his mind was tense. He was ready to access his storage bag at any time to take out whatever might prevent him from falling to death.
A cold feeling enveloped his hand. It felt as if reaching for a cloud. The ghostly figure floated above the elevator, waiting for Tepo to jump in.
And the young man wasn't indecisive. He narrowed his eyes as he took a leap of fate.
A strong wind immediately streamed around Tepo's body. His hair stood up, flailing wildly. For a second the young warrior felt as if the ghost had no intention to support him.
But abruptly the young man felt a tug on his arm. His fall slowed down. A moment later his feet safely landed on the ground.
Showing no emotion on his face, Tepo nodded at the waiting brothers.
"Thanks."
"Don't mind it."
Invisibly the bond between the three warriors had strengthened greatly. Dungeons were a great place to form friendships. If you made it out alive…
With a goal in mind the three warriors were ready to leave the palace. But Tepo remembered the Web's purpose. Before he left the young warrior entered the library and began stuffing his storage bag with as many books as possible.
After emptying an entire shelf though his bag was unfortunately filled to the brim. The little bit of space left would be left to store eventual important findings.
With all the preparations done the trio could finally leave the palace.
Outside, the small mountain range was almost non recognizable. Hills had collapsed and no beasts dared to remain behind. The mountain range was bleak and lifeless with small fires still burning. Even the temperature had forcefully risen by a few degrees.
The three warriors endured the heat as they paved a path through the rubble. The journey was exhausting but luckily the Sun's Punishment had eliminated all danger.
Following Tepo's lead the three men advanced rapidly. They trusted that the young warrior kept the path in his memory.
Orienting himself with ruined cities and the map he gained from the tower at the beginning, Tepo stayed on track.
A few days later a sea of lava gradually appeared on the horizon. Everyone's eyes lit up. Finally, some change from the dark, root-covered world could be seen.
The three warriors sped up. They approached the lava in excitement. Now they were so close to reaching the statue.
Tepo scanned his surroundings.
"This should be it.", proclaimed the young warrior.
"From this tile we should be able to reach the statue soon."
"Great. We can finally get out.", sighed Lao De.
"Yes. Just pay attention to your steps. From this lava area we should be teleported to another dark area. We just need to cross it and arrive at the forest. After one more step towards the right we will stand before the statue!"
"Good! Let's go!"
Lao Ru watched the two younger men. He saw the excitement in their eyes and felt the same.
"Everyone alright? Then, let's go! Watch your steps!"
With those words the three men took a step forward. Immediately and enormous heat tried to cook their legs. They stepped on a small rock, their surroundings filled with boiling lava.
An annoyed roar sounded out. Even the viscous lava vibrated but the beast didn't appear.
Fearing that they might get cooked if they delayed even slightly the three warriors hastily took the next step. They vanished into thin air.