Core of Knowledge

[Level up!]

[Warrior Level 11]

Through surviving a hostile environment, you have gained a skill!

[Minor Poison Resistance]

Requirements: Level 5 or higher in any class. Survive a poisoning.

You have resistance against the effects of some poisons. You are less likely to be affected by poison and the resistance will also lower the potency of any poison you encounter.

“So, that’s why.” Pos murmured as he looked at the surrounding fog. The fog was poisonous! Pos could see other lights in the fog and quickly realized the trick of this floor.

Hoard Dungeons will just throw creatures at you till you drop, but there are some dungeons that prefer puzzles, traps and obstacles. Adventurers called them Trick Dungeons, and this dungeon, Tome of Ten Thousand Techniques, must be one of those. This is both a problem and a boon to Pos. He did not need to worry about being overwhelmed by dungeon creatures, but puzzle dungeons were tricky. The cores of Trick Dungeons were considered more intelligent and devious than the cores of Hoard Dungeons, and Pos did not consider himself a very intelligent dwarf. He was average at best.

Luckily, Trick Dungeons were considered to be mostly fair.

Dungeons need adventurers to enter in order to gain substance, so most of the Trick Dungeons were smart enough not to have a floor that was unbeatable. There was a trick to most of their floors, and the trick to this one was relatively simple once you understood it.

Once an adventurer enters the floor, he will be spilt from his party by the fog. The fog was poisonous, and there was no way to avoid being poisoned unless you had a skill against it. These orbs of light were the antidotes to the poison. The adventurer needs to find these antidotes, running from orbs to orbs till they reach the end of the floor. The poisonous fog was a formidable obstacle, but not an unbeatable one. You just need to have speed, toughness and the right skills. Pos wasn’t very fast, but two out of the three wasn’t bad.

Pos looked at the various lights in the fog and picked out the one furthest from him. With luck, that was the end of the floor.

[Mark Location]. [Sense of Direction].

Dwarves lived in underground caverns and most gained some skills to help them navigate the underground tunnels and caves systems of their homeland. Pos was no different. [Mark Location] was a skill that let Pos set a landmark, and [Sense of Direction] will allow Pos to sense the direction of the landmark from his location. These two skills would help Pos know the direction he needs to run in even if he got turned around in the fog. The dwarf only hoped the two humans had similar skills.

Pos then looked at the lights between him and the landmark. Pos would need to run from one orb of light to another till he reached it, and he quickly plotted a course between them. The dwarf took a breath to steady himself and took off. He wanted to be out of the poisonous fog as soon as possible.

Pos didn’t know how long he spent on the floor. Time had no meaning in the fog, and Pos quickly lost track of it. However, he never lost track of the landmark. The dwarf did not take any chances and reset [Mark Location] and [Sense of Direction] whenever the skills came out their cooldown. He was also alert for any other dangers the dungeon may throw at him. Just because this was an obstacle floor does not mean the dungeon would not place creatures that can survive the poisonous fog on it.

Trick Dungeons were ‘mostly’ fair.

Between his new [Minor Poison Resistance], and good old-fashioned dwarven endurance, Pos safely got through to the landmark he had set. The landmark was another orb, only this one was floating above a chest. Pos knew he was right. This orb was at the end of the floor, and there were probably treasures in the chest. Pos ran forward, opened the chest, and heard the ring.

The dwarf jumped back, throwing himself to the ground as a gust of green mist shot out of the chest. Pos quickly rolled away from it. He touched his face, checked his body, before sprawling on the ground in relief. He wasn’t poisoned. He had survived!

Pos cursed his stupidity. Of course, the dungeon would trap the chest. It wasn’t an unknown tactic, and this dungeon was a tricky one. Pos knew that, and almost fell for the trap anyway! Thank Diamond for [Dangersense]. The skill was an irritant at times, but it had just saved his life. As he stood up, Pos vowed to keep quiet about his mistake. There was no way he was going to tell anyone in the Guild about this. It would absolutely destroy his reputation as a worldly veteran adventurer.

The fog had dissipated a little, revealing a portal at the end of the floor. It was either the way out, or the way to a lower floor. Pos hoped it was the former. For now, he approached the chest again, much slower this time, and looked into it. A scowl appeared on his face. There was no gold, no weapons, and no treasure. There was only a scroll.

“You dammed stupid dungeon! All that, and you just give me a scroll? Where’s the treasure? Where’s the gold? Where’s the legendary weapon? A stupid scroll? Do I look like a [Mage] to you? Am I a [Sage] or a bloody [Wizard]? I am a [Warrior]! What am I supposed to do with a scroll?”

Fuming, Pos stomped around the chest, screaming at the ceiling. After a few more, or a lot more, choice words, the dwarf finally calmed down. He gave a heavy sigh. There was nothing to it. Pos could only blame his luck. Maybe he should give some alms to the Temple of Agate once he is back in town. The Red Beauty was the God of Luck for dwarfs, and this mess told Pos he was in desperate need of it.

Pos picked up the scroll and opened it. It was a painting. A painting showing a strong powerful white tiger stalking in the woods. There were strange markings on the top right of the painting, but Pos couldn’t make heads or tails of them. His attention was taken by the tiger. Even to the dwarf’s untrained eyes, this was a beautiful painting, and he believed the scroll would fetch him a tiny sum. Pos consoled himself that this delve was not a total-

The painting began glowing.

Pos’ eyes widened as strange symbols began circling his head. The dwarf glanced back at the scroll and realized that the symbols matched the strange markings on the painting. A few heartbeats later, the symbols disappeared, and Pos heard the Voice of the World again.

You have gained a dungeon technique!

[White Tiger Movement]

Requirements: Survival of Tome of Ten Thousand Techniques; Must be within five hundred meters from Tome of Ten Thousand Techniques

First Movement: Tiger Dash- Once every twelve hours, you may dash towards a target within five meters of your location. Please note that this is a movement technique granted by the dungeon, Tome of Ten Thousand Techniques, and is only available if you are within the area of influence of the dungeon. Current area of influence is five hundred meters. Area of influence may increase as the dungeon gets stronger. Should the dungeon be destroyed, the technique will disappear.

An abnormality! This dungeon is an abnormality! Pos had never heard of a dungeon granting a skill before. [Kings], [Queens], or [Lords] could do it, but a dungeon? And what in the Nine Hells was a dungeon technique? This…this will cause a great storm. Even with the location restriction, getting a new skill was something worth celebrating and everyone, no matter the class or level, would want to run this dungeon if there was a chance to get a skill out of it.

“Okay! I take it back! This is a treasure. This is a great treasure!” Pos shouted, his voice firm but respectful. He dropped to one knee and bowed deeply. “All things die. Only the Stones and the Earth survive forever. One day, this dungeon will be destroyed, but I promise you this. It will not be due to the axe of this dwarf! From this day forth, the Tome of Ten Thousand Techniques will forever be safe from Pos Opalhand, son of Balin Opalhand. That is my vow and may the Stones of my Forefathers crush my body, bones, and soul to dust if I ever break it.”

Pos stood back up and walked towards the portal. Before stepping through, the dwarf turned back to face the dungeon, and bowed once more to the dungeon. “Thank you for the adventure!”

With that, Pos Opalhand steps backwards, through the portal, and out of the Tomb of Ten Thousand Techniques. Silence reigned. A few moments later, the air within the dungeon moved and a voice echoed through the tunnels of the dungeon.

“I think that went well.”