The ground shook and threw me off balance. Lifting my head, I quickly looked around and noticed the golem making arbitrary signs with his arms.
Suddenly, the floor of the cave sank down, forming a huge pit. I was about to jump out when another layer of earth appeared above me, blocking my way.
I was completely trapped, fortunately the golem didn't have enough Mana to bury me alive, and could only trap me in a pit. Unfortunately, the monster's Mana would quickly regenerate and he'd continue his act.
I summoned a Lightning Spear and raised it above my head to Illuminate the place. I was completely buried underground, and there were no exits to be seen. The walls of my new tomb were made out of various stones and rocks.
Through clenched teeth, I cursed the Golem's ability to manipulate the earth and hurled my spear at the ceiling.
Boom...
The projectile tore a small hole in the ceiling, but it was quickly covered by earth and stones coming from the nearby wall.
" Fuck this! "
I exclaimed as I ran to the nearest wall, throwing several shadow Blasts. Unfortunately, the walls were harder to break through than they seemed. The attacks created some small gaps, but they weren't enough for me to fit through.
I took a deep breath and used my last resort.
" Shadow Realm "
I muttered to myself and suddenly everything around me went dark. The Lightning spear I held in my hand lost its brightness and dimmed down. The trembling of the cavern disappeared and everything became silent.
My senses were heightened, I could hear everything, bugs nearby running through the ground, moles digging under the earth, and a huge figure above the ground chanting something. My eyes could also see in the darkness allowing me to inspect my location.
As I lifted my head upward, I noticed that the ceiling I attacked earlier was slightly less protected by the rocks. I reached my hand forward and summoned several Shadow Blasts.
What followed next was a continuous barrage on the ceiling. Finally, After a few minutes, the rocks gave in and the ceiling collapsed, burying me underneath it...
At least that's what should have happened, but with my heightened senses I could clearly see the trajectory of the falling dirt and easily avoided the obstacles easily.
Straining my leg muscles I jumped out of the pit I was trapped in. I also noticed a small timer on the side of my screen.
< Shadow Realm → 57 min >
My only and strongest active skill had a timer. I was in need to finish the battle in less than an hour.
I clenched my fists and grinned as I watched the golem's sturdy body stand still. The monster didn't even notice that I'd managed to escape its trap and was still creating another spell to bury me.
Smiling, I began to summon a Shadow Blast, but this time it wasn't a simple one.
I felt a different kind of energy flowing through my arteries and veins and gathering in my palm.
Click...
A click sounded in a cavern and a grey orb empowered by Shadow Energy appeared floating above my hand.
I noticed that the golem's movements stopped momentarily. Seeing that I didn't have much time left, I used all my strength and threw the spell strengthened by the Shadow Energy at the monster.
Clang...
A grey sphere collided with the golem's chest and produced a rather soft sound.
****
Blink... Blink...
I slowly opened my eyes. It felt like I'd been hit by a bus, my whole body ached and I felt dizzy.
" Wha.. happened? "
I slowly straightened up and leaned against something nearby. I didn't even check what was behind me. I moved my hand and somehow managed to open up my status.
< STATUS >
Name: Leo
Level: 10 < 11120/30k EXP >
Race: Demon
Class: Mage
Subclass: Shadow Mage
~~~~
< ATTRIBUTES >
HP: 153 <+103> → { 27 }
MP: 302 <+127> → { 122 }
SE: 100 → { 3 }
STR: 10
AGL: 103 <+3>
PDEF: 24 <+4>
MDEF: 123 <+83>
INT: 230 <+25>
SP: 0
~~~~
Active Skills:
1️⃣ Shadow Realm < Lv. 1 >
~~~~
Passive Skills:
1️⃣ Mana Regen < Lv. 4 >
2️⃣ Shadow Energy < Lv. 1 >
~~~~
Spells:
1️⃣ Shadow Blast < Lv. 2 >
2️⃣ Lightning Spear < Lv. 4 >
3️⃣ Demonic Flame < Lv. 2 >
~ +3.1% Magical Damage
~ +3.1% Cooldown reduction
~~~~
Inventory:
1️⃣ < Mana Potion > x3
2️⃣ < Dark Sapphire > x14
3️⃣ < 305 Gold Coins >
4️⃣ < Salamander Scale > x15
5️⃣ < Fiery Meat > x15
6️⃣ < Basilisk's Fang > x2
7️⃣ < Poisonous Meat > x1
8️⃣ < Iron Ore > x98
9️⃣ < Stones > x496
🔟 < Copper Ore > x26
....
~~~~
Equipped:
1️⃣ < Darkling Robe > { Copper }
2️⃣ < Salamander Scale Boots > { Bronze }
3️⃣ < Salamander Ring > { Platinum }
4️⃣ < Demon Prince's Crown > { Platinum }
5️⃣ < Eerie Staff > { Gold }
~~~~
Effects:
1️⃣ +2% Magical Damage
2️⃣ Natural MP regen
3️⃣ Unique Shadow Energy; Absorbed in Shadows
~~~~
< Map >
< Friend List >
< Guild >
< Pet >
~~~~
< CLOSE >
I sighed from relief, I was still in the game...
Looking at my HP bar I noticed that my health was low, my MP and SE were also depleted. Looking around, I noticed that I was still in the same cavern.
When my vision returned to normal and everything was no longer blurry, I was finally able to check my position.
< Silver Golem x1 Killed! >
< LOOT >
1️⃣ 1000 EXP
2️⃣ Silver Ore x12
3️⃣ Stones x29
~~~~
The System notification hovered in the corner of my vision.
Slowly, I stood up and stretched my aching back. Turning around, I realized I was leaning against the remains of the Silver Golem.
The condition of the corpse made me pause for a moment. The golem's entire chest had simply been torn off.
Crack...
A stalactite fell further away, snapping me out of my daze. The whole cavern was in ruins. If there were veins of ores before, there was nothing left. Most of the cavern's structure was destroyed, and nothing important remained.
A bemused smile crept onto my face as I examined the destruction.
" Shadows.. huh? "
The power of Shadow Energy was unimaginable. I managed to wreak havoc in a cave dominated by higher level creatures and even destroy its structure.
====
While I was amazed by my newfound power, a beast was creating its lair at the front of the cave entrance.