At another spot with a similar white orb the size of my head hovering before me, I looked through the designs of this dungeon. It was different though mostly because it was an open terrain one. One that made my Eastern gardens expand into a plain.
Using the Upgraded Dungeon Template to feed to the core made it different in more ways than the Hell's Gate. It came with a level threshold of 100 - 150. But that was beside the fact that all creatures within it were even more powerful beasts.
Unlike Hell's Gate which would be useful for training, this new dungeon was more earth-shaking. At least that was what I hoped to achieve.
'Poor brats'.
I ignored Akasha.
The environment was unchanged. The golden fields of grasses growing knee length spread up till the large walls in the east. Molliwag's canyon up north and the field down south leading to the gate.
The first thing I did here was to set the respawn core. Only one right outside the dungeon entrance. The entrance was marked by two tall trees looking like a gate. Any who walked past the trees would not enter the dungeon. Only walking between both trees would send one inside. And you had to do it from the west facing east.
The respawn core was on a white rock lying to the side, the golden leaves hiding the runic circle from view. A question on if I wanted to add or remove anything within the dungeon was placed.
Declining I moved straight to the part I was more interested in.
> [NO CREATURE DETECTED ON TERRAIN]
> [ADD OR DESIGN A NEW CREATURE]
Since Hell's gate already had the tartarean creatures it meant this one would be empty. I had the feeling once I defeated the next realm I could set it here. Or just set another dungeon.
Sitting down lotus style as I clicked on the design my mind and hands went to work creating the tormentors of my children. With the same templates provided by the dungeon core, it was easier.
Creating dungeon creatures took a while. In the end, I stopped to see what I had made.
The first was a Soul Fae. Tiny finger-sized creatures with blue wisps flowing off them. It was similar to a template used in the spirit realm. Here they were still mischievous and deadly but this time they could actually hurt my kids. Especially since they had the aether feature thanks to aether being this dungeon's energy source.
Their daggers like needles gave tiny soul damage. One wasn't a problem. It was a cluster of them that was.
I decided to teach my kids what the system had force-fed me. Strength wasn't everything to get past the Soul Fae's, since they were too small to be killed.
Due to their size and mostly because of the upgraded core having a thousand creature capacities, I was able to set 200 of them into the dungeon. Sadly I wouldn't gain ORP from here.
The next was the Sun Eagles. Bear-sized eagles with great strength and wind affinity. Their feathers were gold and their talons white. Talons that heated up when in a fight or hunt.
The vine stalkers were a dungeon exclusive. Their abode, the tropical forest. I made the poisonous touch vines, the life steal vine, and the paralytic vines. All working together like a family to take their prey down.
Then there were the Ape Kings, four armed monkeys with great sight. It made for a good long-range and also close combat attacking creature.
In the waterfalls, I put a known creature. The nymphs. But they would come on land to drag prey inside the water. Past the waterfalls and into the cavern hidden by it was where I placed the dungeon boss. I wasn't sure of what reward to put for a clear in the dungeon.
"The elves will have to figure it out".
'It's their jobs'.
Armor would be fitting or maybe a weapon of mine if I got better ones from the Creator shop.
'It would help to spread my lore too'. I nodded at that thought.
The boss I put was a black cat roughly the size of two bears. Its eyes an emerald green, fur blacker than night.
I found something very crazy when making it. By describing it as having an earth affinity I felt a bit of green energy flow out of me into tbe template.
'Seems most of the effects will come from creators and others from the system. ' it was a good thing.
I called it a Great Bast. There were other normal Basts, all the size of a direwolf roaming in the Plains.
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Then I confirmed.
> [Poisonous Touch Vines - Lv10 - x200]
> [Paralytic Vines -Lv10 - x100]
> [Life Steal vines - Lv10 - x100]
> [Sun Eagles - Lv20 - x100 ]
> [Soul Fae - Lv10 - x 200]
> [Nymphs - Lv16 - x50]
> [Bast - Lv35 - x50]
> [Ape King - Lv30 - x150]
Unlike Hell's Gate, this dungeon creatures could breed and reproduce. So getting past a dungeon core's size limit would lead to pressure. When it got too much to bear then a Dungeon break would happen.
"Right into the other realms".
'I still don't get why this should be the players problem when it's your children that would be at fault here'.
"True. But it's a chance for the players to gain merits and also face immensely stronger beings. That and it'll make my children more active to work".
'Cause if it spilled into the gardens...'.
"The Lunar Knights would have to clean it up".
'Hopefully, it doesn't spill over anytime soon. Or their debut would be even harder. That would be bad.' Thinking it over I agreed.
'For them. ' I didn't need to help. But considering it would be my children's fault. 'Definitely not mine'. I would make sure my children were punished for being lazy.
> [Name Dungeon]
"Bast's Domain".
Naming it after the panther within was a great way to warn challengers. Fortunately, Bast would not be able to leave her dungeon.
" Let it not be said I wasn't fair. Unlike a certain system."
Lights flew from the core and went in different directions forming the applied creatures.
I appeared inside the dungeon floating above as I watched the newly spawned creatures look around and try to orient themselves in their new home.
> [UPGRADED DUNGEON - BAST'S DOMAIN]
> [LOCATION - LUNAR GARDENS]
> [DUNGEON TYPE - SHARED TERRAIN]
> [CORE CHARGE - 10,000/10,000]
> [CORE TIER - 0]
> [RESPAWN CORE - 1/1]
After a minute of understanding the dungeon core with my intent, I sighed. Bast's domain was highly different from Hell's Gate. Mostly due to the shared terrain effect.
Since my creatures were all made by me and not shipped from another none affiliated world the dungeon core would have to recreate everything in case of a clear, unlike the Hell's Gate dungeon core that would simply ship in more products.
The disadvantage was using the shards gained from the fallen players to do so. While the energy source could make bodies for them the shards served as life for them. I sighed.
It was saddening to see. Still, my tax applied. The dungeon master would have to be smart about how it applied its mobs.
If there were fewer shards gotten from my defeated children then it would contact me for energy. Meaning I would be lending the brats more strength.
"I don't mind either way".
The last dungeon was empty. An instance dungeon as well with its entrance inside my palace. I set an entire room for it where one had to touch the respawn core set on a pedestal to enter a system-made pocket dimension.
[BASIC DUNGEON - WHAT IF]
[LOCATION - LUNAR PALACE]
[DUNGEON TYPE - INSTANCE]
[CORE CHARGE - 100,000/100,000]
[CORE TIER - 3]
[RESPAWN CORE - 1/5]
I used what if for a simple reason. The dungeon template the system gave made my children face any negative or positive experiences or subconscious thoughts they had. This one sounded like a mental strength battle.
One could enter Alone or together. But this meant one's fears were shown to the others. There were no enemies to hit or kill. Just your thoughts. I was glad this was the last.
There was no boss and it was a timer-based dungeon. Surviving different bad emotions or just hanging on till the very end.
'Winning before the timer shows your mental strength'.
"After shows endurance".
'Fortunately, there's a quit option '.
The dungeon was good since it had no level requirements but bad since you feel terror or emotions from someone in your group's issues.
The pedestal holding the respawn core was in a similar circular dais that sent the challengers into the pocket dimension created.
Done with the dungeons I took a deep breath.
'Well, now you understand why the Abrahamic God was quoted to have rested after seven days'.
*
I didn't know if an in-game sleep was what I needed but I took it. Like Akasha said. I needed rest. Something told me this stress and fatigue wasn't normal for a Creator-like being. So instead of logging out, I decided to stay here, besides was quite interested in what sleeping was like here.
I had not done anything like eating, showering, or sleeping in here. Using the shower room I filled the bathing pool with lava and dipped into it.
"Aaahh".
Akasha appeared on the edge of the pool and kicked her legs while playing with the lava.
Setting my head back I shut my eyes.
Akasha was the first to feel it. The change. It wasn't brought by the event she and the Creator had been waiting for. No. This was something else. Something more personal.
She stopped playing with the lava as her head turned to stare past the walls. She wasn't really looking at anything, she was simply connected to all her tiny constituents across the universe. Together they watched.
'The Creator sleeps'.
It was understandable considering unlike her the Creator's mind was fatigued. Her mind was not capable of holding all the information and duress that Akasha could.
As the Creator slept Akasha looked through the world, searched the fate strings, and scoured the realms. She couldn't see anything. But she could feel it. Sense it. Something was changing. No, not changing. Happening. Something new.
The universe seemed to be taking slow and peaceful breaths. Like it too was asleep. But it was more than that. With each moment that passed something new flickered around. Akasha found herself keeping an active watch.
Then she noticed it. Barely imperceptible and tiny. But unable to hide from her actively searching eyes.
Little streams of red energy. Trailing from the Creator's head and into the universe. She could see flickers of things. Things and entities that should not have existed. Each one flickered in and out of reality. Some stayed as a mirage or illusion.
Akasha checked on them and then the Creator. She realized instantly. The illusions were those given stronger dream energy. Meaning that they were able to completely slip into existence. But they were not real. Mere illusions and sights. Not granted permission or given physicality. Atleast not those outside proper locations.
'Now we know what happens when a Creator dreams'.