The light filtering through the clouds formed strange patterns on the ground. The sky seemed in constant motion, as if the world itself oscillated between two states of existence. Right at the foot of the hill, where the entrance to Lin's dungeon opened, six figures stood out in the mist.
The Iron Arrows.
A veteran group. Average level: 22. Stable regional reputation. No obvious flaws in their coordination. The kind of team that survived because they never overestimated themselves.
But today, they had decided to attempt the climb of a new kind of dungeon.The one whispered about in taverns.The one that had wiped out an entire squad three days ago...before being suddenly rated "balanced" by the central evaluation system.
A riddle.
And Rael, the group leader, hated riddles.
"Stay together. Reminder: inverted cross formation starting from Room 2. No impulsive moves."
Everyone nodded.
They entered.
The initial corridor hadn't changed. Plain. Unsettling in its perfection. The torches cast no shadows. No sound. No dust. A place too clean to be alive... yet too charged with mana to be artificial.
"It's even stranger than the reports described..." whispered Siana, the tracker.
They crossed Room 1 without incident. Three "Shadow Wolf" monsters level 15 appeared. A warm-up. Executed with precision.
But as soon as they reached the entrance of Room 2... everything changed.
The walls reconfigured themselves. The floor trembled subtly, barely noticeable to a non-mage. Ancient inscriptions, resembling a forgotten language, spread across the walls, pulsating with a spectral blue light.
"That wasn't here before," muttered the group's priest.
They stepped inside.
And the rabbits attacked.
Dozens of rabbits.
But not the cute meadow creatures.
No.
Red eyes. Tiny daggers. Blinding speed.
Assassin-type Rabbits – Level 6 to 8 – forming an organized pack.Abnormal behavior.Collective intelligence.
"Passive defense formation! They're aiming for the joints!"
The Iron Arrows regrouped, encircled.
The fight lasted about ten minutes.
Intense. Precise.
Then a scream rang out.One of them — Garran, the central shield — had thrown himself into a trap to block the arrival of a mini-boss nobody had seen coming.
"GO! HURRY!"
His voice drowned out the tearing sounds. A burst of mana. The door opened.
The survivors rushed out. Bleeding. Shocked.
But alive.
From the Heart Chamber, Lin had seen everything. Felt everything.
He hadn't changed a thing manually.
The dungeon had learned.
It reinforced a corridor. Added a mini-boss. Reacted to their fighting style.
And yet...
"It didn't want to kill them all."
That thought lingered. This wasn't just a dungeon. It was a spirit in formation. And today, it had tested something.
The reward dropped:
[System: Interaction observed – Psychological impact triggered][Reward obtained: Progress Seal "Partial Symbiosis"][Level +1 | Lin is now level 26][Additional Mastery Point granted]
Lin closed his eyes, thoughtful. He felt this was just the beginning.The dungeon was adapting.And so was he.
He opened his mental interface.
And looked at the Progression Chart.
A line had just been added to the First Architects Branch:
"Next step: Complete Symbiosis – Create an independent dungeon entity."
He took a deep breath.
"Create a living entity?..."
But before he could think further, a shiver ran down his spine.
Someone... had just entered his world.
Not the dungeon. Not yet.
But the world itself.
A Level 80+ being had appeared nearby.A ranked member.Not Nebula. Not the hooded man. Another.
And this one came with a message. A proposition.
"Dungeon Maker Lin… The Circle of Nine wishes to meet you."