Drift Of The Multiverse: [Marvel] [Resident Evil] [DC] [Bleach] [DB]

"This is Beckford's trump card?"

Ethan could only smile without saying a word. This might be a serious problem for Brent and the others, but for Ethan's group, it was just a joke. None of them relied on magic stone technology to function—Ethan had invested his entire fortune in the Goddess of Dawn, and he didn't use any magic stone equipment himself.

Moreover, as his own strength increased, he gradually moved beyond the awkward stage of relying solely on items to use magic. Even if all the magic equipment he carried became unusable, he wasn't helpless. Not to mention, this strange sealing effect didn't impact his magic at all.

This made the situation rather interesting.

Perhaps in Beckford's plan, without the aid of magic stone equipment, these adventurers would fall into a tough predicament when facing the various monsters in the castle.

However, Ethan's group was an anomaly, allowing them to rampage through the castle without resistance. Even if a stronger monster occasionally appeared, a single magic projectile was enough to deal with it.

"This game seems kind of interesting."

"What a childish game."

Loki felt that wandering around looking for "companions" locked up in various places wasn't fun at all. Even though he could mow down the monsters like chopping vegetables and show off his strength in various ways, he still found it boring.

"I think it's pretty fun."

The happiest of all was the child, Laura. She saw this as a real-life action-adventure game. She even kept pestering Logan for different kinds of weapons to try them out one by one.

It was supposed to be a tough battle, yet somehow, it had turned into a game.

Since the monsters posed no real threat, the castle—no matter how large—couldn't stop this group from rescuing the "companions" hidden in every corner.

The team grew larger and larger, but after understanding the situation, no one was foolish enough to step forward and cause trouble for Ethan and the others.

Not only did the rescued adventurers stop making trouble, but even Brent and Brad stayed mostly silent, quietly watching Ethan and the others take the lead.

"How many people have been rescued?"

Laura had been counting silently because she was the most immersed in the game. She immediately gave an accurate number. "Seventy-one."

"Only seventy-one?"

Ethan felt like they had already searched almost the entire castle. Though the castle was large, a quick sweep through all the rooms shouldn't have taken that long.

"We've already checked all the rooms, haven't we? And we've only rescued a little over half the people. That means many are hidden in more secret places."

It wasn't surprising for a castle like this to have dungeons or secret rooms, but what was the point? Just to increase the difficulty?

"No, it's to make us stay in the castle longer."

Back in the main hall near the entrance, the area was relatively spacious, allowing everyone to gather. Ethan immediately had Selene examine everyone.

"What's wrong?"

"I feel like something's not right."

Things definitely weren't that simple. Ethan believed Beckford still had something up his sleeve. He not only had Selene examine everyone but also personally checked their conditions.

"As expected, there's a problem."

Upon inspection, he discovered that a "seed" had been planted in the bodies of these "captives." The seed was extremely well hidden, buried deep inside their bodies, and didn't cause any immediate symptoms.

However, it contained a strong amount of death energy, enough to instantly turn someone into a powerful undead creature once activated.

This thing was troublesome, but only if it was triggered. Although Ethan didn't know the exact activation method—or whether Beckford could activate it remotely—as long as it remained dormant, dealing with it wasn't difficult.

He began removing these death seeds one by one. Even Selene, who wasn't especially skilled in Holy Light magic, had become much more proficient through repeated practice.

Everyone present felt a chill run down their spines as they watched Ethan extract energy masses radiating strong death auras from people's bodies one after another. Even if they didn't know exactly what it was, they could tell it wasn't anything good.

After removing the seed from the last person, Ethan finally let out a breath of relief. He also checked Brent and the others—and the results weren't encouraging.

"The situation isn't great."

Brent nodded. He had realized it too. Although Ethan hadn't extracted any energy masses from him just now, the faint wisps of black smoke that were drawn out didn't seem like anything positive either.

"In this castle… even the air we breathe might be filled with potent death energy. The longer we stay, the more it accumulates in our bodies. We just don't know what kind of method was used to keep us from noticing."

The seeds in those people hadn't been deliberately planted. They had formed from the slow accumulation of death energy from being in the castle too long.

"The most troublesome part is that even knowing this, we don't have a good way to prevent it."

Ethan himself didn't need to worry. Neither did Selene. In fact, this negative energy was beneficial to her.

Loki? This small amount of negative energy couldn't harm him—he was an Asgardian god. Logan and Laura weren't a concern either. Maybe they would have been in trouble before, but after coming into contact with Druidic teachings and learning some basic Druidic techniques, even without becoming full Druids, defending against this minor negative energy wasn't difficult.

The real problem lay with those outside of Ethan's group. Carrying around such a large group of people was like hauling a bunch of bombs that could go off at any time.

"They can't stay here any longer."

Brent had realized it too. Not only could those people not remain, but he and Brad also weren't suitable to stay any further.

"Even though splitting up is a bad idea, we have no choice but to separate now."

"But if we leave with this group, there are still almost half of the people who haven't been rescued. What about them?"

Ethan shook his head. "I'm not telling you to leave completely. You take this group out of the castle first and wait outside to meet up with the others we rescue later."

For now, this was the most suitable option. But Ethan had no idea how long it would take to find the remaining people. It didn't seem like it would be a simple task.

"Actually, it's not that hard."

"How are you going to do it?"

"I'm going to tear this castle down, floor by floor."

No matter how secretly Beckford hid people or how many traps he laid, Ethan would no longer follow the game's design. Before, when he hadn't figured out Beckford's plan, he had gone along with it. But now that he knew time couldn't be wasted, he no longer had the patience to play by Beckford's rules and opted for his usual solution.

His signature violent problem-solving method.

Starting from the top floor, tearing down room by room. No matter how secretive the trap or hiding place, if he just blew open the walls, what was there to hide?

He blasted a wall open with a magic cannon shot, allowing Brent and the others to exit the castle. Then Ethan began this unreasonable "cheat-code-style" gameplay. The remaining people were quickly found by Ethan.

Each person found was inspected to ensure they wouldn't turn into undead creatures due to prolonged imprisonment.

"You're playing like you've activated god mode."

Laura was clearly unimpressed with Ethan's "playstyle." It lacked any sense of technique. But Ethan didn't see anything wrong with it. If a problem could be solved simply, then solving it simply was best. Why make it complicated?

Besides, it was their enemy who had set the rules. Making the enemy unhappy was always the right move.

It didn't take long for Ethan to dismantle the castle bit by bit. The newly rescued people also left the castle directly and joined up with Brent outside.

Before long, it hardly mattered whether anyone was inside or not. The entire castle had been reduced to ruins. From a distance, anyone could see what Ethan was doing.

Brent counted the people and found that only one person was still missing, someone he was quite familiar with: Captain Bruno, who had joined the expedition from the very beginning.

"The Magic Heart still hasn't been found."

If he wasn't above ground, he must be below—assuming Beckford hadn't lied. More importantly, even after the entire castle was demolished, the suppression of magic stone equipment remained. That meant whatever technology or equipment was causing it had to be underground.

"How are you going to find it?"

Ethan looked at Loki, and the Asgardian prince immediately understood what he meant.

"I just barely recovered. Can't you think of another way?"

"Just use the scepter. You don't need to draw on the Casket of Ancient Winters. That should be no problem for you."

"I was just making an excuse. I simply don't want to help."

Though he said that, Loki still took out the scepter in his hand. But just as he was about to launch an attack, the last missing person, Captain Bruno, suddenly appeared on his own.

"Captain Bruno?"

Ethan didn't approach but remained on high alert. The man's appearance was strange, and the combat suit he wore was clearly the type only found in the Sea of Miracles.

After Bruno spoke, Ethan immediately realized that the person before him wasn't the companion they were looking to rescue.

"I didn't expect you to be so strong, even destroying Lord Beckford's Death Castle. Truly, it's hard to believe."

(To be continued.)

***

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