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Chapter 349 - The Generosi-Bee of Light
Ultimately, Belissar and his council couldn’t decide on a monster without deciding on the other choices as well. After all, he’d have to pick one of the dragonvein rooms if he even wanted to consider the light dragons, so he dove right into the rooms.
Dragonvein Lightspire Desert
- Type: Light, Magic, Field, Resource
- Innate Features: Dragonvein, light crystal spires, light crystal sand, light bursts, elemental monster spawning
- Mana Upkeep: 300 (290 with Blessing of Light)
- Description: A place where a dragonvein meets a light crystal formation. Mana builds up and is transformed into Light attribute by the crystals until it reaches critical levels, resulting in pillars of light bursting up into the sky that leave behind great spires made of light crystal. These further absorb light from the sun and mana from the dragonvein until they, too, reach critical levels, with unpredictable effects. Some crystals glow like suns, becoming perpetual light sources filling the desert with endless daylight. Others channel and amplify the light into beams that scorch the ground and burn through stone. Still others explode in bursts of blinding light. The ground itself is made of light crystal debris, further amplifying and reflecting any light that appears, causing any light bursts to radiate across the entire desert.
Everything in the vicinity of the crystal spires, from living creatures to solid rock, is infused with immense quantities of mana, resulting in unpredictable transformations. The Light mana is even dense enough that it may crystallize. This results in an environment perfect for the creation of powerful mystical resources, though few can survive long enough to find them, as the mana is dense enough that even mana storms may form on occasion.
The environment is utterly hostile to most mundane lifeforms, but perfect for monsters and magical creatures that require dense mana to grow. The Light mana in the desert is dense enough that some Light-type monsters, such as elementals, may spawn spontaneously. These will be friendly to the dungeon but are otherwise wild and will not respond to any commands besides defending their home room.
Well, that one would certainly have enough light mana for the dragons, assuming they could survive in the first place. Belissar glanced over at Tarwantrad.
“Isn’t light good for plants?”
Tarwantrad furrowed her brow.
“It is but...too much light can be bad too. Most plants, unless magically adapted, also need a period of darkness to rest. Plants also need water too, so a desert full of scorching light will dry them out. Your current plants would struggle in such a place, but the star core flowers and the crystal spine cactus in the feature options would be fine there.”
Belissar rubbed his chin. It sounded like the Light version of the dragonvein volcano. He’d...probably have to get some Light features and monsters to work in it, but if nothing else it could be a tough place for an intruder to get through. Plus, if he did take those plants Tarwantrad said would work there...that meant new flowers for the bees, assuming they could travel the room safely enough to reach them.
But there were two more rooms, the next of which Belissar was most curious about...
Hall of Purifying Light
- Type: Light, Dungeon
- Innate Features: Concentrated Purification
- Mana Upkeep: 100 (90 with Blessing of Light)
- Description: A room which can focus a dungeon’s purification inwards. When activated, an intense burst of the dungeon’s purifying light floods the room. When used during a purification, shades and residual corruption within the room will be purified immediately. When used against challengers and non-corrupted invaders, it will instead test them with cleansing light. All deceptive enchantments will be dispelled and the true intentions of the challengers’ hearts will be revealed. Those with malignant intentions towards the dungeon or its patron god will find the light scorching and harmful. Those with pure intentions may find wounds and ailments healed, instead.
The dungeon will need time to reset after each burst to avoid weakening the external purification effect. The strength of the burst can be configured and the time needed to reset is proportional to the burst. If a Hall of Purification is corrupted, the purification burst can still be triggered and will cleanse the corruption, but the room cannot be moved or changed and all features within it will be disabled so long as the corruption persists. Multiple Halls of Purifying Light may exist in a dungeon but share a reset time.
Tarwantrad and Tamosmed both stared with wide eyes.
“Wow. Belissar, you said the humans believe the God of Light made the dungeons, right? This room...kind of supports that.”
Belissar nodded absently as he considered the implications of the description.
“So...this room can instantly finish a purification, right?”
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Both of the Circle masters nodded back. Tamosmed grunted.
“Well, for the smaller purifications. If it’s a multi-stage purification, it would only work on one wave, right?”
Tarwantrad’s eyes widened even further.
“Well, yes but...it says it cleanses the residual purification too, right? AND can be triggered even if the room is already corrupted. So...if you put it earlier in the Tower, couldn’t you cut off the Hunger and reset its progress?”
Tamosmed hummed.
“That’s...a good question. You’d force the shade to spawn back at an earlier room, but wouldn’t the rooms after it still stay corrupted? Wouldn’t the shade be able to pass through them easily once it gets past the hall?”
Tarwantrad crossed her arms.
“Hm, that’s a good point. I don’t know...”
Belissar glanced between the two Circle masters as they talked, then shrugged.
“Well, either way, wiping out an entire wave at once would be really helpful.”
Tarwantrad smiled.
“That’s definitely true. And didn’t that human general say the humans would try and wait for an emergency purification? If you put this room first, you could just wipe out the purification the moment it appears.”
Tamosmed’s face lit up.
“Ah, and it hurts invaders too, doesn’t it? Maybe the God of Light is offering this as insurance?”
His face then fell.
“Still...to give up a choice between two dragonvein rooms just to survive this battle...that’s a heavy price to pay. What we could do with those rooms in the long term...”
Belissar consider it. On the one hand, the dragonvein rooms might give access to all sorts of resources that they could use, not to mention flowers for the bees. If bees could adapt to living there, he could get new bees directly. But on the other hand, being able to wipe out a purification wave whenever he wanted...he could save the lives of a lot of bees with such a room, both in this battle and in purifications to come.
“Hm...well, let’s at least see what the third room is like first?”
Both dungeon masters agreed with that.
Dragonvein Aurora Forest
- Type: Light, Nature, Magic, Field, Resource
- Innate Features: Dragonvein, perpetual aurora, elemental monster spawning
- Mana Upkeep: 300 (290 with Blessing of Light)
- Description: A dragonvein that ends near a light crystal formation at the edges of the world. Here, Light mana rises up into the sky, creating an endless array of color and magic. The constant but softer light creates a nourishing environment for a forest adapted to mana and light.
The area is infused with mana, but most of the mana spreads out across the sky, so the area is not as chaotic or inhospitable down on the surface. Lifeforms gradually absorb mana to empower themselves, while mystical materials may form but at a slower pace. Mana storms are possible, but infrequent and largely confined to the sky. Note that the mana concentration, and thus the danger of the environment, increases closer to the aurora.
Life thrives in the area, particularly plants and creatures adapted to the Light attribute. Up in the aurora, the Light mana is dense enough that some Light-type monsters, such as elementals, may spawn spontaneously. These will be friendly to the dungeon but are otherwise wild and will not respond to any commands besides defending their home room.
“B-Belissar...”
Belissar turned to find Tarwantrad bouncing up and down.
“A-A dragonvein environment...that’s somewhat controlled? That’s so hospitable to plant life it can grow a forest? The flowers we could grow there...”
Belissar glanced over at Tamosmed. He had crossed his arms and furrowed his brow...but his foot was tapping rapidly.
“A dragonvein environment, but the worst of it is up in the sky? The materials will take longer to develop...but once they’re there, we could mine them with ease...”
Belissar smiled. It seemed both of the Circle masters liked this room...and so did he. It was a big, powerful dragonvein room...but one that sounded like his bees could survive in. And if Tarwantrad was right and they could grow all sorts of new flowers in the room flooded with mana and light, the bees would gain a great deal from the room. It sounded like this one would be the best for his bees, by far.
Albeit that it didn’t sound like it would naturally stop shades or invaders unless they tried to fly really high. It seemed that this one would be best for raising his bees but that the other two would be better for defense. Belissar frowned.
“This is tough. I want this one for the bees, but what if we need to hall to stop Starami?”
Tarwantrad and Tamosmed both furrowed their brows but did not reply to his question.
Someone else did, though.
“Hive-Builder! Queen of All Bees says tell her what Hive-Builder wants! Queen of All Light will give more quests so Hive-Builder can get all.”
Belissar blinked...and then started to laugh. Tarwantrad and Tamosmed looked at him with raised eyebrows, so he quickly explained.
“The God of Bees said the God of Light will just give me more quests to get whatever I don’t pick here. Ah, that reminds me, I already have some quest offers from her...I guess she really is trying to help us win.”
“Thanks Velebee! Can you thank the God of Bees and God of Light for me? And we’d love to get that Aurora Forest later!”
Belissar turned back to his council with a big grin.
“I’m going to take the Hall of Purification now. If we put it as the first room, Starami can’t do the emergency purification thing, right? I’ve asked the God of Light if we can get the Aurora Forest later. For now, though, I’m going to set up the Hall of Purification right away. First of the Fifth’s First Daughter, can you contact our allies and let them know about the new room?”
“Ok!”
Tarwantrad and Tamosmed both smiled and nodded at him, so Belissar proceeded with his plan.
Hall of Purification now available!
Belissar immediately moved to place the new room at the front of his dungeon...and the God of Light had given him an extra room slot for every floor as well, so he could slot it in without reorganizing the rest of the Tower.
The new room was a circular building made of polished stone. Big windows lined the walls, the entire roof was a window as well, letting light pour in from all directions. Several statues were carved into the walls. A giant bee, the same as the God of Bees’ statues at her shrines, was the largest of them and occupied the position just above the exit to the room. Surrounding the room were smaller statues: a woman made of flowers, a man made of fire, a man whose clothes were like ripples in a lake and whose hair was like aquatic plants, and a woman whose statue was carved from a gently glowing light crystal.
Despite not seeing them before, Belissar recognized them all as his patron gods. All of them had stern expressions and looked down at the center of the room, where the light from the roof and the windows all coalesced.
Belissar smiled. And, just like that, his Tower was now safe from one of Starami’s major tactics. In fact, he could tell the bees, his defenders, and his allies that they would not need to be as aggressive anymore. They could let Starami occupy the first room for as long as he liked, they had no need to come out and meet him unless they wanted to.
Once again, Belissar was very glad that the gods were on his side.