Meikyuu Jiin Dababa/Area 3

Area 3-0

• They may look scary, but the headless blue and red monks that you encounter in this stage are no different than the others from previous stages.
• You begin on the left side of the upper left section. There are two hearts that you can reveal in this section, and you may wish to do so. While the first jet flame you encounter can be leaped over, the second jet flame cannot, and you will be forced to take some damage. By revealing the first heart early on, you can restore the damage when you are on the other side. Take the passage to the upper right section.
• In here, you will notice one statue that has a lighter hue to its base than any others. It may be tempting to shoot at it, but if you do, you'll discover that it is a trap, and the floor will disappear. Head south to the lower right region below you. Here you can make monk beads appear by shooting a statue on the far left. Attack some of the other enemies here as one is carrying an item you need. Then return to the upper right section.
• Jump around to the top of the upper right section, then along to the right and back down to the lower right section. Follow this pathway along, down the right side to the bottom, and then all the way to the left until you reach the lower left section.
• The pathway here branches off between the lower and upper routes. The upper route contains a statue that you can shoot to make the original weapon appear. If you picked up the monk beads, you will need to switch back to this weapon. The lower route leads to an island below the door, but there is no apparent way to access the door from this island. Once again, you must know the secret to access the entrance.

How to enter

Just as in the previous area, you must shoot the door to create a bridge that will allow you to access it. However, it is not enough to shoot the entrance. You must also collect a key from one of the headless monks. The monk that carries the key is always a red monk that hangs out along the top path of the lower right section. Attack him and collect the key before you attempt to shoot the entrance, or nothing will happen.

Area 3-1

Although the tiles in this room spell out the word "HIT," there is no significance to it. From the start at the bottom of the H, jump up to collect the mystery square along the left side, and the heart from the center tile. There are four seals, all appearing at the very top and bottom of the I. Watch out for the two jet flames which also appear in that vicinity. However, it is not enough to reveal these seals to make the book appear. You must also destroy enough wizards or the book will not appear. The only reason to explore the T is if you are interested in collecting the lotus blossom from the far right side for fireballs.

Area 3-2

Jump up across the gap and jump on the left tile to reveal a mystery square. Then avoid the floating robot, and leap across the gap to the next tile. This tile contains monk beads, so only continue to jump on it if you wish to have the boulder weapon. To make the next jump to the right, you must time it so that you land on the tile when it is solid. Hold down the A button to ensure that you leap far, since your player will not automatically perform the right jump unless the tile is already solid. Continue over to the right side. There are a total of 11 tiles to reveal, in the shape of a chalice, or wide Y. There is also a red orb that you can collect to briefly clear the room of enemies. Note that there is a small enemy stuck on a single tile near the top of the screen. If you have the card weapon, you can easily destroy it for 500 points.

Area 3-3

There are only three seals to reveal in this room, and they are all found on the left side. You must also destroy enough wizards before the book will appear along the top. The considerable ease of finding them may make you less interested in exploring the far right side, but you should, as there are many valuable items to collect here, even if it means braving the transforming tiles that you must leap on to reach them. There is a potion that will restore all of your health along the bottom path, a red orb that you must double back to the left for, and a card weapon along the upper path, above the potion. But most important of all is the mirror item that can be collected from the tile in the lower right corner of the room. You will need this item in order to reach the boss fight of this area. Be sure to collect it before you pick up the book and leave the room.

Area 3-4

There are, in fact, no seals at all in this room. All that is required to make the book appear is to shoot enough wizards. From the start, leap up to the center tile which contains monk beads, then jump over to the right, and carefully time your leap over to the right over the transforming tile. You can collect the card weapon and the original weapon from some tiles along the bottom if you want them, as well as a mystery square near the right side. Destroy wizards until the book appears. At that time, two entrance will appear. The right one just brings you back to Area 3-4 to repeat, and the left one takes you back to Area 3-3. The only way to advance to the boss fight is to possess the mirror and leap into the waterfall from the small tile below.

Area 3-5

Take out the cocoons one at a time

The boss of area 3 are three strange cocoons attached to the ceiling, the center cocoon lower than the outer two. Each cocoon releases a stream of small creatures which fall to the floor, and bounce along in your direction. While the cocoons are you target, the small creatures that pour out of them are the threat. You can shoot at them, and if they are already on the ground, they will die. If they are falling to the ground, they turn gray and disappear when they hit the floor. While they are falling, they can still damage you. While you avoid the falling creatures, or leap over the ones on the floor, you must attack the cocoons. If you have the original weapon or the flame weapon, it's not too bad. If you have the boulder, it will be difficult. If you have the card weapon, you can actually attack the cocoons indirectly, but the timing of your attacks will be much slower. Focus on one cocoon at a time. As soon as it has taken enough damage, it will disappear. Once all three disappear, you will advance to the next area.