Dungeon of Gluttony – The First Battle

The first guy extended his hand toward Lan Tian with a smile. "Nice to meet you. My name is Ma Suho, and I'm a C-rank hunter. And you are?"

Lan Tian also smiled and shook his hand. "I'm Lan Tian, a D-ranker."

But in his mind… Eugh… how disgusting. This guy looks so creepy. And that smile—Euuuuh!

His body shuddered slightly, but he kept his face neutral.

Ma Suho suddenly widened his eyes in shock. "Wait… You're that Lan Tian?! The one in all the headlines—the super hidden ranker?!"

Lan Tian shrugged. "Yes… I think so."

Ma Suho grinned. "Oh, it's our pleasure to work with you, Mr. Lan."

The other guy extended his hand toward Lan Tian for a handshake. "Nice to meet you."

Lan Tian shook his hand. "And you are?"

The man cleared his throat. "Ahem… My name is Sung Ming Woo, and I'm a D-rank hunter."

Lan Tian nodded. "It's also our luck to have you two with us. If you weren't available, we wouldn't be able to clear the C-rank dungeon."

Ma Suho then pointed at Uncle Shin. "So, Mr. Lan, who's this old man standing beside you?"

Lan Tian smirked. "Oh, this? This is my party member, Shin Baek. You can call him Uncle Shin."

Sung Ming Woo reached out and shook hands with Uncle Shin. "Uncle Shin, I've heard about you. They say you're a hidden ranker too."

When Uncle Shin heard that he was popular, his face lit up with joy—but he quickly forced himself to look tough. With a straight face, he shook hands with Ma Suho without saying a word, acting all serious.

Ma Suho's expression twitched. This old man… is he looking down on me?

Smirking slightly, Ma Suho tightened his grip on Uncle Shin's hand, squeezing hard. But to his surprise, Uncle Shin's face remained completely unchanged, as if he didn't feel a thing.

After a few seconds, Uncle Shin finally spoke. "Oh, I'm just an E-rank hunter."

Ma Suho immediately let go, his smirk fading.

Uncle Shin thought to himself, For a moment, I really thought my hand was going to be crushed…

He casually tucked his hand behind his back, pretending nothing happened. Damn brat, if he finds out, he'll laugh at me for weeks…

Lan Tian glanced at him suspiciously. "Uncle, why are you holding your hand like that?"

Uncle Shin immediately puffed out his chest. "Hmph! What are you talking about? I was just testing his grip strength."

Lan Tian raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So how was it?"

Uncle Shin scoffed. "Tch. Barely anything. I've felt stronger handshakes from a noodle vendor."

Meanwhile, his fingers were still numb.

As Lan Tian adjusted his grip, he glanced at Ma Suho. "Mr. Ma, I think we should start the dungeon raid as soon as possible."

Ma Suho nodded. "Agreed. Let's move, Mr. Lan."

The party arrived in front of the dungeon's entrance, its dark, swirling portal radiating an ominous energy. Without hesitation, they stepped through.

Ding!

A system notification flashed before them.

[You have entered the Dungeon of Gluttony.]

The atmosphere inside was unlike anything they had seen before. Strange creatures roamed the depths—humanoid figures, their bodies glowing with an eerie, almost divine light. But something was wrong.

They didn't attack.

Not a single one of them acknowledged Lan Tian's party. They simply wandered aimlessly, as if the intruders weren't worth their attention.

Ma Suho tensed. "This… this isn't normal."

Sung Ming Woo swallowed hard. "Why aren't they reacting to us?"

Lan Tian, unfazed, slowly reached for his sword.

Shing!

As he unsheathed it, a powerful aura erupted from the blade, sweeping through the dungeon like a tidal wave. The air vibrated with sheer intensity, and the once-apathetic monsters froze in place.

Uncle Shin's eyes nearly popped out of his skull. "Brat… where the hell did you get that?"

Even Ma Suho and Sung Ming Woo took an involuntary step back, their faces pale.

Lan Tian smirked, resting the sword casually on his shoulder. "Oh, this? Just something I had made a while ago."

Two Days Ago – World of Equipment Shop

Lan Tian stood before the counter.

"Ms. Shuan, is my sword ready?"

"Yes, Mr. Lan. It's finished."

Lan Tian's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Perfect. By the way, where's your grand—" He paused, quickly correcting himself. "Ahem, I mean, where's Mr. Shuan?"

Ms. Shuan's expression turned apologetic. "Ah, my grandfather isn't in the shop right now. I'm sorry."

Lan Tian's excitement deflated instantly.

Damn… I thought I'd get to meet the Sword God himself.

Back to the Present

Lan Tian exhaled in relief. Good thing I picked up this sword before coming here…

The overwhelming aura continued to dominate the dungeon, sending chills down everyone's spines.

Uncle Shin, still in shock, muttered under his breath. "Just what kind of weapon did this brat get his hands on…?"

The eerie silence of the dungeon shattered as the monsters, who had once dismissed the intruders, suddenly shifted their gazes toward them. Their glowing eyes locked onto Lan Tian's sword, their expressions—if they could be called that—no longer indifferent.

They had acknowledged them as worthy opponents.

A deep hum resonated through the dungeon as two monsters stepped forward. Their bodies shimmered, their forms appearing almost angelic, yet something about them felt utterly unnatural. Their humanoid figures had no faces, only brilliant light where their heads should have been. Their elongated arms pulsed with divine energy, forming weapons made of pure radiance—one wielded a spear, the other a pair of daggers.

Ding!

[Divine Warden – Lv. 25]

[Divine Warden – Lv. 25]

Lan Tian smirked. "Finally, some action."

Ma Suho cracked his knuckles. "Tch. About time they stopped looking down on us."

One Warden set its sights on Lan Tian, twirling its glowing spear with deadly precision. The other lunged at Ma Suho, its daggers slicing through the air like streaks of lightning.

The monster thrust its spear with terrifying speed, the air around it crackling with holy energy. But Lan Tian didn't flinch.

Clang!

With one smooth motion, he parried the attack with his sword, sparks flying as metal met light. He twisted his blade, redirecting the spear's trajectory before lunging forward with a counterattack.

Shing!

His sword slashed through the monster's arm, but instead of bleeding, it emitted a burst of golden energy. The wound quickly regenerated.

Lan Tian narrowed his eyes. So they don't take normal physical damage easily…

Before he could analyze further, the monster retaliated, spinning its spear and releasing a powerful shockwave of light.

Boom!

Lan Tian was forced back, skidding across the dungeon floor.

"Tch… tough bastard."

A shadow darted from behind him—Sneaky, moving like a blur.

"Hissss!"

The little snake lashed out, sinking its fangs into the monster's arm. The Divine Warden flinched for the first time as dark energy seeped into its glowing body. Its light dimmed, its regeneration slowing.

Lan Tian grinned. "So poison works on you, huh?"

With a burst of speed, he dashed forward.

The monster raised its spear to block, but this time—

Shing!

Lan Tian's sword cleaved through its weapon like butter. In the same motion, he spun and slashed upward—

Slice!

The monster's head separated from its body, its glowing form flickering before disintegrating into nothingness.

Lan Tian exhaled, flicking the nonexistent blood from his blade. "That's one down."

Meanwhile, Ma Suho was handling the second Warden. Unlike Lan Tian, he didn't use a weapon himself—he relied on his summons.

"Come out, my beast—Iron Fang Wolf!"

A massive, silver-furred wolf materialized before him, its sharp claws gleaming.

The Warden dashed forward, aiming its daggers at Ma Suho's throat. But before it could reach him—

GRAAAHH!

The Iron Fang Wolf pounced, its jaws clamping down on the monster's arm. A surge of silver energy burst from its fangs, sending cracks through the monster's light-forged body.

The Warden struggled, slashing wildly with its free dagger, but Ma Suho wasn't done.

"Stone Golem—Crush!"

From the ground, a massive stone golem erupted, grabbing the Warden's legs in a crushing grip.

The monster's light flickered violently as Ma Suho crossed his arms, grinning.

"Too late."

With one final command, his wolf twisted its head—SNAP!—tearing off the Warden's arm, while the golem slammed its fists down, shattering the creature into glowing fragments.

Ma Suho dusted off his hands, turning to Lan Tian with a smirk. "Not bad, Mr. Super Hidden Ranker

Lan Tian looked ahead, gripping his sword tightly. A confident smirk appeared on his face as he took a step forward.

"Let's start the party."

Ma Suho walked up beside him, cracking his neck. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he crossed his arms.

"Damn right." He grinned. "Let's rock."

Just as the tension was rising, Sneaky tilted his head in confusion.

"What? Let's rock? What does a rock have to do with this?"

The little shadow beast muttered to himself, completely baffled.