Chapter 455: Chapter 455: Dwarf Guardian

Leaving the rock wall passage, Song Jian saw a vast expanse of dark brown land. The ground was covered in gullies and countless large and small cracks, giving a sense of nowhere to set foot.

As gusts of harsh wind blew, ghostly wailing sounds emerged from these cracks in the earth, as if countless people were crying in unison.

“No wonder it’s called the Mourning Wasteland. It must be because of this bizarre terrain!” Song Jian thoughtfully observed. In this land, not even a hint of green vegetation could be seen, indicating that it was severely barren. This was also why the villagers, despite suffering from zombie invasions, were unwilling to migrate here.

Song Jian summoned all his blood crows and, following the map’s guidance, had them fly ahead to scout and locate the Nest of Mourning.

Soon, based on feedback from a blood crow, Song Jian determined the specific location of the Nest of Mourning. After half a day, he arrived at the lair of the demonic bats, the Nest of Mourning.

At first glance, the Nest of Mourning appeared like a gigantic blade that had fiercely cleaved into the towering rock wall, leaving behind a massive crack. From this crack occasionally came piercing howls, while an ice-cold chill poured out from the nest. At the edge of the nest, thick black ice continually spread outward.

“Outsider, halt! This is not a place you should be!” a deep voice sounded from within the nest. Song Jian squinted his eyes, and shortly after, a short and stout figure emerged from the nest.

“A dwarf?” Song Jian murmured with narrowed eyes.

The dwarf before him was clad in thick heavy armor, with magic runes flickering faintly on its surface. The armor radiated a silvery glow, suggesting that it was a set of magical battle armor. Both the silver-quality suit and the warhammer in the dwarf’s hand emitted a faint silvery light and were quite valuable.

The dwarf’s hair and beard were entangled, and apart from a pair of sharp eyes and a high nose bridge, no other facial features could be seen.

“Who are you…?” Song Jian furrowed his brows and scrutinized the dwarf. Strangely, he was unable to detect any of the dwarf’s attributes or information, as if they were concealed from him.

“I am Kambia Ironhammer, the guardian of this cave. Countless monsters lie within, and once one unintentionally ventures inside, it is difficult to come out alive. To prevent the needless loss of innocent lives here, I must stand guard.” The dwarf Kambia shook off the frost from his beard and spoke.

“You are diligently guarding this place simply to dissuade strangers from venturing into the nest and losing their lives?” Song Jian asked, his eyes flashing.

“Yes, young man, leave this place quickly. Even without encountering the monsters in the cave, the chilling winds that blow from within carry the breath of hell that can harm your body.” The dwarf patiently advised.

“I’m sorry, but I came here to hunt the monsters inside!” Song Jian shook his head.

“Hunt monsters?” The dwarf’s face darkened, and he stared at Song Jian. “Young man, do you know how powerful those monsters inside are? Each one is at least level 30, and they number in the tens of thousands. Even a level one combatant would struggle to emerge unscathed. You’re just a level 22 adventurer, so how can you arrogantly claim to hunt monsters?”

The dwarf took a couple of steps forward, and his aura emanated, revealing his previously hidden attributes and information.

“An elite level 28 Boss?” Song Jian glanced at the dwarf. This was his first encounter with an NPC who could hide their information; he had always assumed that this ability was exclusive to players.

“If you can withstand my three attacks, you will be qualified to enter the Nest of Mourning!” The dwarf roared. His aura surged like a tide, shattering the frost on his body as he lunged toward Song Jian.

” What if I defeat you instead of just enduring the three attacks?” Song Jian laughed, gripping his Crimson Fire Heart Ape Sword. With a backhanded sweep, he unleashed a dazzling Sword Qi that rushed toward the dwarf.

Bang!

The longsword and warhammer collided fiercely, producing a deep, muffled clash. The sheer energy surrounding them caused a rumbling noise from the rock wall above, and the falling debris was ground to dust by the surrounding force.

Dwarf Kambia’s complexion changed, and from the power transmitted through his warhammer, he could sense that the human standing before him wasn’t much weaker than himself.

“Very well! You are powerful and a worthy opponent!” Kambia yelled as he leaped into the air. Bolts of lightning appeared out of nowhere, converging towards the warhammer in his hand. In an instant, his entire body surged with electric plasma, making him look like a thunderbolt incarnate.

“Thunderstrike!” Kambia roared, hurtling toward Song Jian like a bolt of lightning.

“This power…” Song Jian narrowed his eyes and a solemn expression crossed his face. Although he had also mastered the lightning-infused sword technique “Flash Thunder Strike,” it was vastly different from Kambia’s “Thunderstrike,” like comparing an earthworm to a giant dragon.

Such terrifying lightning power made it believable if Kambia claimed to be the “Son of Thunder.”

Sacred Parry!

Song Jian tightly gripped his longsword, adopting a defensive stance.

Bang!

A force ten times stronger than before struck Song Jian. Within a radius of ten meters, lightning filled the air, melting more than half of the black ice at the entrance of the Nest of Mourning.

As the blue lightning energy enveloped the area, a flash of brilliant golden light appeared and pierced through the surrounding lightning energy like a sharp blade.

Bam!

A dark shadow violently slammed against the rock wall, leaving a deep crater. Dwarf Kambia’s eyes were filled with disbelief, and despite the pain coursing through his body, he shouted at Song Jian, “What power is this…?”

Staring at the long, deep gouges under his feet, Song Jian panted and replied, “Divine Power!”

Dwarf Kambia jumped down from the rock wall, and his right hand, still gripping the warhammer, involuntarily twitched. He looked at Song Jian with a stunned and cautious expression.

“You are a warrior with great power!” The dwarf Kambia’s eyes flickered, seemingly reluctant to continue the fight. He nodded towards Song Jian and said, “With my power, I can’t stop you. You are qualified to enter the Nest of Mourning.”

Song Jian nodded, preparing to enter the Nest of Mourning. Still, he heard Kambia speak again, “However, even with your strength, it is impossible to penetrate the depths of the Nest of Mourning. There are simply too many monsters inside. By the time you discover them, it may already be too late to escape…”