Adventure World Online (AWO)

Kitsune spewed a massive burst of golden fire straight into Cerberus's face. The beast howled furiously, its front paws swiping at the flames that had scorched patches of fur across its heads. The attack painted a target on the little fox—now the prime focus of Cerberus's wrath. The gatekeeper lunged at Kitsune, whose size was no larger than a full-grown dog. Cerberus spread its claws wide, its slavering jaws open, ready to tear. But the beast had to roar in pain instead.

ROOOAAAR

Chang Long had flashed into position right in front of Kitsune. With one swift, diagonal slash of her blade, one of Cerberus's paws was severed effortlessly from its body. Thick, dark-red blood gushed from the wound, hissing on contact with the earth as acrid smoke billowed upward. The ground beneath Cerberus turned into a shallow pool of reddish-brown liquid from the mix of acid blood and dissolving soil.

Cerberus, now enraged, began to rampage wildly. Its blood splattered everywhere, forcing Chang Long's party to dodge frantically while searching for openings to strike back. If they allowed the beast to go on like this, soon there would be no safe ground to stand on.

The twin assassins closed in together, striking hard at the beast's throat. Murder's chainsaw-like daggers cut deep, eliciting a painful howl from Cerberus. The beast thrashed all three heads violently, and Killer was thrown off. One of Cerberus's hind legs came down hard—straight onto Killer.

"Killer!"

Chang Long and Murder cried out in unison. Murder landed nearby, knocked back farther from the beast's fury, helplessly watching as his younger brother's demise. Killer's skin began to corrode from the acidic blood seeping onto him. Cerberus lowered its three heads, maws gaping wide, ready to bite down on the fallen assassin. Killer gave his brother a faint smile, as if accepting his fate. He closed his eyes, waiting for the end. But what he heard was only a heavy thud, the scent of dust in the air, and the system's announcement of Cerberus's death.

.

Killer opened his eyes. The three heads of Cerberus had been severed and now lay not far from him. Just past them stood the figure who had slain the beast in a single blow. She stood with her long blade resting across her shoulder, eyes fixed on the swirling ripples now forming in the void ahead—the entrance to the depths of Hell.

"M... Master Chang Long!"

Killer's voice cracked. Murder rushed over to check on his brother, uncaring of his own injuries.

"We'll need to rest first. Heal up quickly, Killer—otherwise you won't make it any further,"

Chang Long said, turning to look at the younger twin. He sat up, grinning sheepishly, seemingly unfazed by the injuries.

"Yes, I got too excited and let my guard down. This Hell Dungeon is just too thrilling."

Murder chuckled softly at his brother's words. They had both gotten carried away by excitement. If they wanted to survive long enough to face Lucifer, the final boss awaiting them in the lowest level of the Hell Dungeon, they would need to rein in their emotions.

---

Meanwhile, in a small meeting room inside the Dark Horse Guild, Bird Sage and Little Jade were sitting with sullen faces, clearly displeased. The two had been dragged in for a forced etiquette session. They were unable to resist the commands of their assigned instructor—likely because she was a beast trainer, equipped with all manner of skills specifically meant to control disobedient creatures. The leather whip in her hand cracked loudly against the floor whenever Lin Lan gave it a flick, making even these two arrogant students flinch in terror every single time.

Bird Sage now spoke politely and calmly—his manners unexpectedly refined. He was more than willing to flatter just to avoid being hurt. As for Little Jade, she was far more stubborn than expected. Though she followed instructions, it often took multiple repetitions of the same order, plus the threat of the whip, to get her to comply—leaving both trainer and trainee thoroughly exhausted.

"Alright, break time."

Lin Lan finally announced. Bird Sage exhaled in relief and walked off to sip water and nibble on berries brought in by some guild girls, clearly in high spirits. Truth be told, he was quite old now—he understood right from wrong and knew what it meant to act appropriately. Acting spoiled like the willful young Little Jade simply did not suit him. Besides, he wanted no part of Lin Lan's whip—at his level, even one hit would likely be enough to kill him.

Little Jade stared at the so-easily-subdued Bird Sage with a sigh of disappointment. Sure, he was not as rebellious or difficult to teach as she was, but he had once been arrogant in his knowledge, calling everyone else fools—her master Aswa included. Yet now, here he was, respectfully calling Aswa, Master, speaking gravely and wisely, and earning the admiration of those around him. So much for the all-knowing Bird Sage...

Aswa had not shown his face all day, and that made Little Jade feel dispirited. She lacked the motivation to train under Lin Lan and was not in the mood to cause mischief either. Lin Lan observed the gloomy demeanor of her student—so obedient she seemed hollow—and began to wonder if Little Jade was faking it, plotting some kind of disruption later. She sat down to rest and sipped her tea, when suddenly her communication device chimed.

"It's Guildmaster!"

Lin Lan raised her wrist and looked at the screen, surprised to see Aswa calling. She quickly answered, not wanting to keep him waiting.

"Yes, Guildmaster. What is it?"

Little Jade's ears perked up the moment she heard Lin Lan pick up the call. She immediately ran over and yanked Lin Lan's wrist so hard that the woman's arm nearly broke from the raw strength of the little dragon—despite some of her powers being sealed.

"Big Brother Aswa!"

Little Jade shouted into Lin Lan's wristwatch at the top of her lungs, completely ignoring its owner, who was now shrieking in pain with tears streaming down her face. Her health bar dropped by a third.

Aswa had to clamp his hands over his ears—Little Jade's eighteen-decibel screech had hit him without warning. He had thought perhaps Little Jade's manners would have improved a little under Lin Lan's training, but clearly, that was not the case. The little dragon kept whining on, oblivious to Lin Lan's fury as killing intent began to radiate from the trainer.

"Why did you do this, Big Brother Aswa? You left Little Jade with the mean old hag who makes me do pointless things all day. If I don't follow orders, she threatens me by lashing her whip —it's not fun at all. Come get Little Jade. Little Jade wants to see you. Little Jade wants to play with you. Please? Pleeease come get Little Jade!"

"So it seems that kindness and moral guidance are utterly wasted on a beast god like you, huh!"

Lin Lan's cold voice cut in, and at the same time, Little Jade felt a surge of strong murderous intent. Her mouth clamped shut. Even Aswa raised an eyebrow. He was surprised by Little Jade's sudden silence—but once he heard Lin Lan's voice, so tight with restraint, he felt a chill ripple down his spine. Lin Lan had clearly reached the end of her patience.

"Wild Beast Bind!"

Lin Lan activated a Beast Trainer's skill—one specifically used to restrain newly captured beasts that were still wild and disobedient. As soon as her voice rang out, a dozen thick ropes manifested out of thin air and coiled tightly around Little Jade's dragon form. No matter how hard she struggled, Little Jade could not escape their grasp.

The little dragon shrieked in distress, crying out for Aswa to help. But all the young man could do was silently recite a prayer in his heart—there was nothing he could do. He had been the one to assign Lin Lan as Little Jade's trainer, after all. And Little Jade had made a grave mistake by provoking Lin Lan's wrath—awakening the terrifying trainer everyone feared.

…..

No one had ever guessed what Hell dungeon would actually look like correctly. From the moment they set foot inside, they were swallowed by pitch-black darkness. No matter how hard they strained their eyes, they could not see a thing. Even Chang Long's Vampire Eye skill was useless here. They did not know what kind of path they were on. It was like they were walking through a massive underground tunnel, about two meters wide, stretching on for an unfathomable distance.

"Ah, I see light up ahead."

Killer exclaimed with relief, prompting everyone to hurry toward the glow. But the light they saw turned out to be the first floor of Hell Dungeon. It looked like a barren wasteland, filled with rolling mounds of earth, scattered rocks of various sizes, and loose gravel. Not a single tree or blade of grass in sight.

According to the ferryman—or Fierik—all beasts in Hell Dungeon were auto-aggressive. Everyone remained on high alert. While there were places to hide, the beasts could ambush from all directions, making it nearly impossible to survive if swarmed. Chang Long and her team had expected Hell Dungeon to be crawling with beasts, barely leaving space to walk. But oddly enough, after walking for a while, no enemies had attacked them yet.

"Look over there—something's moving."

Brownie whispered. Everyone turned to where he pointed and spotted their first beast. It had a human-like head, arms, and legs—but its torso was a coffin. A pentagonal wooden coffin with an inverted red cross painted in what looked like blood. Others began to emerge too, all with similar appearances, the only difference being the material of their coffin-torsos—ranging from rotted wood to polished lumber, and even metal. Their levels seemed to scale accordingly.

"Coffin-Warden Ghost Beast (Rotten Wood) – Level 43, Preparing to engage.

Coffin-Warden Ghost Beast (Luxury Wood) – Level 47, Preparing to engage.

Coffin-Warden Ghost Beast (Steel) – Level 49, Preparing to engage."

Suddenly, the system announced that all were preparing to attack—even though none of the beasts had so much as looked in their direction. Then came a clattering sound from behind. Only then did Chang Long's group realize that the beasts had crept up from the rear. Once the battle began, the rest of the coffin beasts surged forward and joined the assault. At that moment, the team realized: hiding was meaningless. Any fighting would immediately attract more enemies. No rest, no break—only survival through annihilation.

The Great Hell Beast Massacre began in full force, with the howls of tormented beasts forming the symphony's soundtrack. Devi-chan and Hisa-chan had no trouble dispatching the fiends—they quickly became the frontline force in exterminating the dungeon's enemies. And from the look of it, they were thoroughly enjoying being surrounded by a dozen of beasts themselves. Most groups would have been on edge, nervously fending off attacks and bracing for injury.

Chang Long's team, however, included battle maniacs like the assassin twins and over-leveled spirits who, thanks to their unique access to the Land of the Dead, still retained physical bodies. All of them appeared to be having the time of their lives swinging weapons at an endless wave of foes, entirely undaunted by danger.

Kitsune and Flatear were, the most targeted by the beasts. For some reason, the two were oddly popular among the hellbeasts. Thankfully, Kitsune's fire attacks were highly effective, weakening enemies before others delivered the killing blows. In just over an hour, the first floor of the Hell Dungeon was nearly cleared out. Only a few stray beasts remained, having wandered too far from the battlefield.

"Hell yeah!"

Killer let out a satisfied whoop as he took a swig from his water bottle.

"Haven't had this much fun fighting in forever—but man, it's exhausting too."

"Each floor probably has some kind of special area where we can rest. We should find those areas to recover. Fighting nonstop will build up fatigue quickly, and that's dangerous in a place like this,"

Murder said, sounding uncharacteristically serious for the first time since Chang Long had met him. Chang Long agreed. Letting their fatigue stack too high would lower their combat efficiency—slower reaction times meant more damage taken, and especially in a place like Hell Dungeon.

"My liege, we've been fighting and moving nonstop. Why haven't we seen the door to the second floor yet?"

Devi-chan asked, puzzled. While the first floor was indeed huge, it was also wide open—there was no way they would miss a giant dungeon door if it were there.

"It could be cloaked somehow, or…"

Hisa-chan suggested from his experience.

"Or what, Hisa-chan?"

Anya asked, her hands frozen mid-air with a lollipop Chang Long had handed her earlier.

"Or it's just really that big, Anya."

Hisa-chan smiled at the worried fairy girl.

"Uh-huh, pop that candy in and let's get moving. This isn't the kind of place we can afford to hang around too long. The spawn rate here is insane."

Chang Long urged. She had already noticed some of the beasts they had just slain beginning to respawn.

They set off again, this time more cautious, determined to locate the door to the second level. As they walked, Chang Long opened the quest logs to check the details of the two quests she had received. The quest from the Spirit Shop aligned perfectly with the story the vendor had told her. So, she turned to the one for unlocking Hell Dungeon:

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Quest: Unlocking the Hell Dungeon

Quest Requirements: Must possess the Reaper King profession.

Quest Details: The quest taker must defeat the King of each floor in Hell Dungeon to unlock the path to the next level. To summon each floor's King, the player must slay 30 beasts of each species found on that floor. As players descend deeper, the number of beast types per floor will increase. Upon defeating the required beasts on the final floor, the quest taker will receive the Key to Lucifer's Chamber.

Special Features: Friends may be invited to join this quest.

Time Limit: None.

"Uh-huh. Now I know why we haven't found the way down yet."

Chang Long spoke after finishing the quest description.

"Why's that?"

Murder turned to her, puzzled—just like the others, who were all eagerly awaiting her answer.

"We have to kill thirty of each type of beast on every floor. And it looks like each floor has more beast types than the last."

Her answer brought a wave of relief to the group. At first, they thought they would just have to keep fighting endlessly until they stumbled across the door. But now that they had a clear objective and knew how to move on to the next level, their spirits rose immediately.

"Ah, so that's how it works. That makes things a lot easier to deal with."

Killer grinned. A non-stop beast-slaying mission was exactly his kind of thing. But doing it aimlessly with no clear conditions would have been rough—killing until your arms went numb and still not knowing where to go next. Having a concrete goal like this was way better than charging in blindly.