They left the city soon after, with Jarob leading them into the wilderness. Jonathan had already professed his desire for levels over speed, and Jarob was more than happy to deliver.
Barely an hour into their journey, the Uthraki brought them to a local dungeon, which according to him was a good fit in power from the party. It was situated on the side of a large hill, in a cave whose back was invisible even to Jonathan, shrouded in darkness.
It only took him a few moments to enter, and as soon as he stepped foot into the blackness, reality warped, and he was transported to a massive cavern, filled with bubbling lava pools and pillars of cooling rock. Massive lizards lay splayed out by the pools, and monsters flitted around near the ceiling.
You have entered The Creche, a dungeon of Tartarus.
This dungeon has an average level of 345.
True to its name, thousands of eggs lined the walls of the cave, guarded by the largest lizards in the place. They looked like dinosaurs, with thick, plated scales and rows of spines running up and down their backs. Similar to how the first realm of Tartarus had been filled with dinosaurs, to the point that its denizens rode them into battle, this one also seemed to contain species extinct in the outside world.
Jarob pointed at the center of the cave, where the largest of the creatures lay, curled around a far larger, golden egg. “I've been in here a few times before. The best essence isn’t from the monsters, but from the eggs. It’s a bit of an illusion, but it's constructed like this because the dungeon ends when you kill the boss, not when you kill everything here.”
“So we should stay as quiet as possible, and focus on the eggs?” Eva asked. “Will the monsters not notice our approach?”
“You would think so, but they’re created in a way that stealth actually works. Normally Tier 4 monsters would wake up at the slightest noise, notwithstanding that they normally wouldn’t sleep either, but these ones are different.”
Jonathan cracked his knuckles. “Let’s get to work.”
***
The dungeon went as well as expected, and thousands of eggs were destroyed before even one of the monsters could wake. Although the eggs weren’t Tier 4, they were still close enough that the essence provided was ample enough for the group’s purposes. As all monsters in Tartarus were Tier 4, even the babies, the eggs had to contain enough power to propel their occupants to that rank at birth.
If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Everyone gained a plethora of levels, so easily that it almost felt like cheating. Obviously, it would bottom out before long, which was why the dungeon wasn’t monopolized, but for the lower stages of Tier 4, it was invaluable. Barely anyone used it though, given that all of the Uthraki were created at the midpoint of the Tier, leaving the dungeon’s only use as training.
By the time the last egg, save for the golden one embraced by the dungeon boss, was nothing but a pile of fragments and goo on the ground, Jonathan had gained three levels, and the others, even more. His Great Treasure, the one boosting his usage of his different abilities in unison, took a percentage of his essence gains, making his leveling speed naturally lower. He also had a suspicion that higher rarity classes needed more essence, but that was just an unfounded hunch. There was no real way of telling anyway, given that his leveling speed was still abnormally high as a result of his endless challenging of higher level opponents.
By this point, all that was left were the lizards themselves, all of which were around level 330. The boss was level 350. Jonathan was confident in his abilities, and that of his team, especially with the new levels they had gained.
Opening the battle with a ray of purple fire, straight from the palm of his hand, Jonathan launched himself forwards. The dungeon boss woke with a start as Jonathan’s attack burrowed into its flesh, roaring in pain. It uncurled from around its egg, but refused to move, setting its long tail around the golden orb, while turning to face the newcomers. The roar roused the other lizards, who awoke to find their eggs destroyed. A symphony of wrath-filled howls split the air.
Jonathan’s fist descended towards the boss, but the monster spat a glob of acid out at him, a shimmering orb of virulent green. The Third Eye of Exal’drin activated, and Jonathan sent a pulse of the Void to his left, sending him hurtling away from the incoming attack. The orb of acid burst against the cavern floor, eating away at the rock. Jonathan closed the gap with a quick push against the floor, the sound barrier shattering around him, a cone of air pressure trailing him as he struck.
A massive paw hurtled down, but he continued regardless, trusting in his strength to see him through. Stamina, Mana and Elemental Energy combined into one, a charge of pure power filling his right arm. With a boom, it collided with the dungeon boss’ arm. There was a cracking noise as the beast’s bones broke, and then it was picked up off the ground by the force. It was a comical sight, such a massive beast being sent flying by such a comparatively tiny figure.
Jonathan followed through with an ax kick, driving his leg into the center of the monster’s torso. It bent around the strike, and hit the cavern wall a few moments later, nearly crushing a few of its brethren.
