EBE Chapter 18 The Key to the 4th Floor
Chapter 18 The Key to the 4th Floor
In an instant, the dark red light on the altar surged, and a thin line of blood flew from Lin Ye's fingertip, piercing the groove in the center of the altar.
Lin Ye's health bar dropped from 40 points to 30 points, permanently deducting 10 points of maximum health.
Immediately afterwards, the ancient altar emitted a muffled rumble, and the central recess slowly opened.
A key, entirely crimson and engraved with a complete spire pattern, slowly rose from the groove, radiating a scorching light, and landed steadily in Lin Ye's hand.
[Item obtained: Red Key]
[Effect: Unlocks the hidden stone door in the first floor's boss room. Collect all three keys (red, blue, and green) to unlock the hidden final level of Act IV of the Spire.]
The moment Lin Ye received the red key, a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.
I got it.
This red key, which none of the 70 billion players on the entire server knew existed, is now firmly in his hands.
Su Qingyue leaned closer and looked at the description of the red key's effects. She froze on the spot, her eyes wide open, and she even forgot to breathe.
Is there a hidden final level in Act IV?
The spire only has three stories, right? There's actually a hidden fourth act?
Players across the server were struggling to even reach the first level, with ordinary monsters causing them to lose lives rapidly. Yet Lin Ye had somehow managed to uncover the game's ultimate hidden content.
It took her a long time to come to her senses, her voice trembling with disbelief.
"This...this red key can actually unlock the hidden fourth act?"
"This game even has a final hidden level?"
Lin Ye nodded, put the red key into his body, and integrated it into his aura.
The moment the red key merged with him, he could clearly feel that a hidden stone door that was originally tightly closed in the BOSS room at the end of the map had been completely activated.
He turned to look at Su Qingyue, whose face was filled with shock, and explained the core value of the three keys in the most straightforward language.
"Let me make it clear to you now just how important these three keys are."
"In the eyes of ordinary players, the spire only has three floors. After defeating the boss guarding the third floor, you can clear the game and get a basic lifespan reward."
"But in reality, there is a fourth act to the spire, which is a hidden final level that can only be unlocked by collecting the red, blue, and green keys."
He paused for a moment, then explained the acquisition paths for the three keys one by one.
"The Red Key is obtained through the ancient altar event on the first floor. It requires sacrificing 10 points of maximum health to acquire it. There is no other way."
"The blue key can only be obtained in the snake flower event on the second floor, and the green key can be obtained in the final event on the third floor."
"Only by collecting these three keys can the door to the fourth act be opened. In the fourth act, there are the most precious eternal relics in the entire spire, the ultimate reward that can rewrite the real world, and the true ending of this game."
"Regular players who complete all three levels will only receive a basic lifespan reward, and won't even get close to the game's true core content."
Su Qingyue was stunned and completely enlightened.
She finally understood why Lin Ye was willing to lose 10 points of maximum health to choose this option that all players on the server avoided.
This isn't a trap; it's the only ticket to the top of the spire!
Seeing her suddenly realized expression, Lin Ye added another sentence, completely dispelling her concerns about losing health.
"As for the 10 points of maximum health that were deducted, it's nothing at all."
"With this red key, we can unlock the hidden stone door by defeating the boss guarding the first floor, and obtain the boss's exclusive hidden loot. The drop rate of golden relics will be doubled."
"Once I get the relic that increases maximum health, I can easily recover the 10 health points that were deducted, and it might even be several times that amount."
"For this key, even if I lose 20 points of health, let alone 10, it would still be a huge profit."
Su Qingyue nodded emphatically, the worry in her eyes completely disappearing, leaving only excitement and admiration.
All 70 billion players on the server regard this sacrifice option as a monstrous threat, avoiding it at all costs and mocking those who choose it as fools.
Only Lin Ye saw through the essence of the incident at a glance, knowing that this was the only way to unlock the ultimate content of the game. He decisively chose to sacrifice himself and obtained the only red key in the entire server.
His understanding of the game far surpasses that of ordinary players; he even knows the ultimate hidden content hidden deep within.
She looked at Lin Ye and couldn't help but sigh.
"My goodness... there's so much more to this game than we knew."
While everyone else on the server is still dying from the mobs on the first floor, you're already preparing to unlock the hidden final level.
"If the people on the world channel knew that this option, which they considered a trap, could actually yield such an important item, they would probably regret it to the core."
Meanwhile, countless players were still frantically discussing the Ancient Altar incident in the world chat.
Someone curiously posted a message: "Has anyone tried the third sacrifice option? What good stuff do you get?"
The replies below were all unanimous discouragement and mockery.
"Don't try it! It's a complete scam! I tried it, lost 10 HP, and all I got was a useless stone!"
"Exactly! Only a fool would choose that; it's a sure-fire way to lose money. Anyone who chooses that is crazy!"
"Gold coins are still the safest bet; why not take free money!"
"I chose the upgrade card, and now the damage is doubled. Isn't that better than losing health for a piece of junk?"
Unbeknownst to everyone, while they were furiously mocking this option, Lin Ye had already obtained the red key to unlock the ultimate content of the Spire, creating an insurmountable chasm between them.
Lin Ye patted Su Qingyue on the shoulder and walked towards the outside of the altar.
At the end of the map, the enormous castle glowing with crimson light, which is also the room of the first-level boss, has clearly appeared before our eyes.
His tone was calm, yet filled with absolute confidence, as if he had already secured the victory.
"I'm gone."
"I've got the red key."
"Next, it's time to get the world's first kill on the first level's guardian boss and open the hidden stone door."
Ten minutes after obtaining the red key, Lin Ye led Su Qingyue to the last campfire camp in front of the first-level boss room.
Directly in front of the camp is a huge stone gate, entirely crimson and engraved with flame patterns. Behind the gate is the final boss of the first level—the Six-Fire Undead.
A bone-chilling heat wave rushed in through the stone gate; just standing at the entrance, one could feel the earth-shattering aura of flames emanating from within.
Meanwhile, the global player channel was completely flooded with desperate cries of despair.