Great, now we are dead!

Chapter 69 Time is running out!

The shallows are washed by the clear seawater again and again. Among the yellow sand and gravel, not only are there various seashells, but occasionally a dazzling golden light can also be seen.

And after that alluring glittering light, within three seconds a wave of water will surge in, powerful legs will kick up mud and sand to wade through the muddy water, but swift hands will still be able to reach in and accurately scoop up the gold jewelry!

This is a panacea!

Even homeless people begging on the roadside ran over, their legs moving swiftly. The large influx of people turned this once peaceful beach into a chaotic battlefield, with people pushing, shoving, grabbing, and cursing at each other, like a pot of thick soup simmered by demons!

The cargo ship that ran aground and capsized in the shallow sea looked like a stranded whale, and the people who rushed over at that moment became swimming champions, not caring what they stepped on, and killing any monsters in the sea without hesitation!

Nothing could stop them. The adventurers, who had been tormented by the "golden dream" all night, simply could not resist the enormous wealth that was at everyone's disposal.

They transformed into worms and crabs, burrowing in from various places and constantly gnawing at the whale's internal organs, cutting out its glittering, jewel-like flesh.

No one stopped them, and no one recognized or claimed the cargo ship from beginning to end, so it naturally became a feast for the senses!

First the internal organs, then the muscles, and even the bones and skin—even the gilded figurehead was scratched.

It was like watching an animal documentary, with the process of the giant beast rotting accelerated a hundredfold... In less than half a day, only a mess remained on the shallows, and the adventurers had all vanished, leaving only the guild members cleaning up the mess.

But that's not enough... How can that be?

Many people were not full, and some didn't even have a chance to take a bite before the meal was over.

Having tasted the sweetness, they could not possibly be satisfied with just that!

Everyone was speculating about how much others had gained, and all were wary of their own finds being discovered. The day didn't bring the expected revelry; instead, everyone hid in their rooms, clutching their found jewels, their minds a jumbled mess.

"...That's terrifying."

Just as the shallows returned to tranquility, a sailboat quietly set sail. Passing by the scene and seeing the riddled "ship carcass," Chilchak, who was in charge of watching the wind direction, couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Ye Shou... if you go back now, you'll definitely get robbed!"

The halflings were very confident because Ye Shou's previous actions had already provoked them, and the shipwreck was a catalyst that made them break all rules and taboos and plunder wealth that did not belong to them.

Once something is done, it will happen again. If Ye Shou continues to provoke them like that, the outcome will be completely different.

However, Chilchak thought about it again and realized that Ye Shou didn't actually care about this at all—he wouldn't stop the adventurers, and would even encourage them to do so!

This man was prepared when he came up from the first level of the maze; the extravagant wealth he displayed was all for this purpose!

Chilchuck wiped away his cold sweat.

Regardless of Ye Shou's true motives, his actions and financial resources are no different from those of the demons in his hometown's fairy tales!

"Can you tell us now?"

Chilchuck felt like he'd boarded a black ship. He'd initially thought Ye Shou was just trying to create momentum by hiring halflings, but now it seemed he actually wanted to sow discord among the entire island's population!

However, he will still continue to follow Ye Shou, because a contract has already been signed, and the amount given is just too much—how can he not control himself!

"Even if you were to buy the entire island, you wouldn't need to spend this much."

Ye Shou glanced at the map, then looked northeast for a moment. After a black line appeared in his field of vision, he nodded before turning back to look at the others.

Leios, Sensi, Marusir, Farin... none of them quite understood what Ye Shou was planning, but they all inexplicably followed him.

Part of the reason was curiosity, and another was being attracted by Ye Shou's mysterious and dangerous aura—after all, they were both adventurers.

Especially Leos, although he was indifferent to ordinary people, he felt very comfortable spending time with Ye Shou, as if he were with some kind of "non-human being".

"The island is definitely going to be bought, but I don't have that much time to haggle with the island owner, nor do I have time to deal with the adventurers' problems. This method is a bit stimulating, but it's very effective... Now they're going to dance to my tune."

"time?"

Marushir asked, puzzled, "Are you in a hurry?"

"certainly,"

Ye Shou paused, then said something that made everyone's eyes widen: "Because this maze doesn't have much time left!"

"Varied!"

Everyone except Farin was incredibly surprised, and Leos was even more ashen-faced, looking like he had witnessed the end of the world.

"Why do you say that? What's your basis for saying so?"

"Yes, you must find it hard to believe that I'm saying this all of a sudden... Oh right, I don't think I've ever introduced my background before, have I?"

"This……"

They looked at each other, hesitant for a moment.

They assumed Ye Shou had a mysterious background and a powerful connections, so they hadn't investigated him. They never expected him to bring up this topic on his own initiative.

"You're from the East, right?"

"The East is a very broad concept... Let me first tell you about the origin of the maze."

Hmm, where should I begin?

Ye Shou sat at the bow of the boat, organized his thoughts, and began to tell an ancient story.

"Mazes are divided into two types: naturally formed and man-made. The former are usually small in scale and are the most common. The latter, however, are full of dangers and hide secrets from ancient times."

It all originated from a being called a demon—not a monster from a fairy tale, but an unknown extradimensional creature that just happened to fit people's imagination of what a demon looks like, hence the name.

It is said that the first intelligent race to come into contact with demons was the elves. They obtained almost unlimited magic from the demons, which allowed them to fulfill all their desires and thus create a perfect ideal paradise—the man-made labyrinth.

Ancient people imprisoned demons in labyrinths as an infinite source of energy, believing that this would ensure eternal prosperity. But how could such a good thing exist in this world?

Everything comes at a price; that's the truth of the world!

The devil accepts people's desires and then fulfills them, but it's like a canvas that's constantly being painted on; the more emotions people invest in it, the more the colors blend together, the closer it becomes to pure black...

Demons, originally purely neutral beings, developed a predilection for feeding on human desires. Once a demon has satisfied its appetite, it craves more and breaks free of the labyrinthine prison to invade the surface world.

"..."

Everyone was speechless. Although it sounded like a myth, it was very convincing in Ye Shou's words. The dwarf Senxi was the first to believe it, and he looked quite dazed, as if he had understood something.

He muttered to himself, "Indeed... that labyrinth is like a living thing; the stronger one's desires and the more one demands, the easier it is to be swallowed up by it..."

Marushir was getting impatient: "But how do you know all this? I've lived for over fifty years, researching labyrinths and ancient magic, but..."

"Because that is a dark history that needs to be completely covered up for elves, people are forbidden from learning black magic—that is, ancient magic related to labyrinths and demons."

"It's actually like this!"

Marushir covered her mouth in disbelief.

Have you ever heard of the "canary"?

Ye Shousu said solemnly, "That is a special force directly under the jurisdiction of the Elven royal family, specifically for suppressing the labyrinth."

"Canary..."

Marushir frowned.

She is indeed an elf, but she is of mixed race and grew up in a human kingdom with her mother. It's not that she's never been back to the elven kingdom, but she has very few memories of it and could not possibly know any royal secrets. Her understanding of the [Canary] is practically nonexistent.

Chilchak looked frightened: "I've never heard of any canary... but do you mean the Western Elves would be interested in this island's labyrinth?"

Western elves, that's the collective name for the elven kingdom by a short-lived race... Their fearsome reputation is so great that it can stop children from crying at night among halflings!

Because they were a group of people who made no attempt to hide their pride, showed no respect for short-lived species, and had a clear class system within themselves.

Countless halflings and ordinary humans were taken away without any explanation simply because they were associated with "dark magic." The investigation and interrogation alone could take twenty or thirty years—and many halflings simply died of old age in prison!

"When you say you don't have time, does that mean..."

"That's right, the Golden Kingdom labyrinth on this island has reached its final stage and is about to go out of control—I'm absolutely certain of this after personally navigating the labyrinth once."

If I'm not mistaken, the elves from the west should be arriving soon!

Ye Shou looked at Farin, which puzzled the girl. Marusir also cast a worried glance at her best friend.

"What would happen if the elven forces came to the island?"

Farin was resurrected by dark magic!

Marushir is the caster!

Someone skilled in this art would certainly be able to detect the error, and there's no shortage of such people among the Western elves!

At that time, not only the two directly related mages, but even Chilchak, Leos, and Sensi will not be able to escape!

"Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!"

Chilchak nervously covered his face: "I still want to see my wife and children! What if they're captured by the Western Elves..."

"Huh? Chilchuk is already married?!"

Everyone was shocked.

"Is now the time to say this!"

The halfling suddenly grabbed Ye Shou's shirt: "Since you're so calm, you must have some plan, right?"

What should we do?

"Simple."

Ye Shou smiled slightly: "Why don't we just deal with the Lord of the Maze before they arrive?"

"……well!"

"The Lord of the Labyrinth...a mad magician?"

"You said you'd solve it... how do you solve it?"

"In the end, we have no idea what the Lord of the Labyrinth looks like!"

"Calm down, calm down."

Ye Shou gestured for them to calm down: "According to my plan, even if we can't kill the Lord of the Maze, we can still keep the Maze under control within a certain range."

Although the Western elves have a bad reputation, they cannot invade human territory at will in this era. As long as I become the island lord and the labyrinth is not out of control, there is still room for maneuver.

Ultimately, you pose no threat to them. I've heard about the leader of this group; he's not interested in anything other than the Labyrinth Lord and demons. Once you grasp this, it's actually quite easy to... communicate with him.

Is this guy trying to say "take advantage of"?

Reckless and audacious...

"So you call yourself a gourmet?"

"I'm not lying. I only realized it was unsafe when I got deeper into the maze."

Ye Shou's gaze was deep: "And there's also the matter of Farin... I don't want to see you captured by the Western elves."

"Ye Shou!"

Leos was deeply moved: "You did this for us? You were wasting so much treasure!"

“A poet from my hometown once said that a thousand pieces of gold cannot compare to the friendship between friends… Although we have only known each other for a few days, I absolutely cannot stand idly by while you, Leos.”

"Wow! You're such a kind person!"

Leios was so moved that he shed tears!

Farin and Marushiel felt the same way, and Sensi nodded with satisfaction.

"That's right, partners are very important. You look really cool now that you cherish your partners, Ye Shou!"

"...I'll believe you for now."

Chilchuck sat back down as if resigned to his fate, sprawling directly onto Leos.

"This is bad... I was just about to retire, why did this have to happen to me?"

"If all goes well, I'll be able to earn enough money this time to last a lifetime."

Ye Shou said earnestly, "I assure you."

"Ugh……"

"So, the reason you mobilized adventurers was to conquer the dungeon?"

Leios gradually began to understand.

Upon hearing this, Ye Shou revealed a disdainful smile: "Conquer the maze? Them? Don't be fooled by their numbers; when it comes to the final battle, they'll all become nourishment for the maze!"

My greatest hope for them is that they don't empower the labyrinth, nor are they exploited by demons.

"So you set up this scheme?"