The duo blasted through the dungeon and made a lot of progress in just three days.
Sol decided to pick up the pace more because of the food that had been disappearing much faster than he thought. This wasn't because they were eating a lot or they were underprepared, but because a certain assassin kept waking up in the middle of the night to attempt to learn how to cook.
Amber wasn't used to failure, as she always completed whatever tasks she was assigned to do. It wasn't until she tried cooking that she faced defeat in the appearance of a burnt fish. All her attempts the past three nights had ended with failure, and while most would ask for help to be taught, she decided to learn on her own.
They were able to zoom through the 5th and 6th floor in one day and the 7th and 8th floor in a day each. They would have gone faster, but there was a new level of difficulty added in these later floors.
The groups of undead would contain ten enemies, and their skills were much higher than earlier floors. If it was just that, then they could still easily defeat them, but with bigger groups, their fights took longer, and the noises they made attracted other undead groups.
This was the true difficulty of the 7th to 9th floor, or at least it should've been.
Sol's sword slammed downwards as he used [Fell Cleave] to split a Skeleton Mage in half. The sheer force easily destroyed the entire skeleton with no chance of recovery. The odd part was the sounds of bones being crushed and the sword hitting the floor were gone. This was because Sol used [Muffled Movements] to silence all the noises from the battle.
With no noise being made to attract other undead, the two were able to fight without any issues. The only downside was Sol having to refrain from using spells like [Explosion], as the louder the sound, the more mana was required to silence it.
You have slain a Lv 69 Skeleton Mage! Gained 124,000 Exp (140%)
[Intelligence Up] leveled up! (9 -> MAX)
[Intelligence Up] reached max level, evolve skill?
'Finally, it took a while.'
Skeleton Mages were the rarest of the four undead one could find in these floors. Even in these deeper floors, the groups would usually only have one or two Skeleton Mages; very rarely would it be three.
Of the five attribute-enhancing skills, only [Intelligence Up] hadn't evolved yet. Without any hesitation, Sol hit yes and awaited the results.
[Intelligence Up] evolved into [Augmented Intelligence]!
Sol didn't bother to check its new description, as he could already guess from the other attribute skills that it would have the same effect.
'Now I can finally combine them!'
Sol had held back on using [Aggregate] on the five skills to not drag down [Gargantuan Strength] and [Endless Vitality]. Although they are still one level higher than the rest, the decrease will be less drastic than before.
Looking over to Amber, who was not far away, Sol whispered, "We can avoid fights now; let's head straight to the exit."
Amber nodded as they both proceeded quietly through the labyrinth. It was very easy to avoid fights if the two wanted to, since they both had stealth skills, with Amber's at a higher level than his. Using [Mana Perception], the duo got a heads up before any got too close, and they would either hide to let them pass or circle around.
An hour later, they arrived at the stairs that led to the next floor. The two headed down to see the usual safe area at the beginning of floors, but instead of normal passages leading inside, there was a massive marble door.
Sol spoke while sizing up the door. "The boss room…"
Instead of charging headfirst into the boss room, Sol created some simple stone furniture, and the two sat down and rested. They had been blitzing through the dungeon much faster than anticipated, and even though their bodies can keep going, it would be unwise to do so.
The two rested, ate food, and Sol even took time to merge his attribute skills. If it was merging one skill, the energy consumption wasn't actually that bad; it was only exhausting last time because of his consecutive combinations. Sol had a clear picture of what it should become, and without much hassle, was able to gain the new skill.
Learned [Perfect Balance] Lv 1!
[Perfect Balance] Lv 1: All attributes grow in perfectly balanced harmony. All stats +60. Increases lifespan by 50 years.
'My lifespan increased?'
Sol wasn't expecting that bonus on top of the original effects. He had also never heard of a skill that directly increases lifespan; the only way people could increase it was by increasing their vitality, but even that had limits.
At most, humans could extend their lifespan by 100 years by heavily investing in vitality, but only the desperate would do such a thing, as it usually left them severely lacking in the other attributes. It could also cause complications if they grew their stats in such an unbalanced manner.
If someone was level 20 and they put every single stat they had into vitality, their body would find it extremely difficult to move. Their body density would rise, and their skin would harden to the point their muscles would be unable to move it. Similar problems would arise if one dumped all their stats into strength and nothing into agility or vitality. Their muscles would tear themselves apart from any strong movements, and they would find it very difficult to control themselves without enough points in agility.
This was why most people were taught to balance their stats and make sure no one stat was three times larger than any other stat. Intelligence and wisdom could be more lenient, but even so, one couldn't forget to put points in them, or they would suffer from hypersomnia.
That was partially the reason for Sol's balanced stats, but it was also because he wanted to excel in both magic and fighting. He had the chance to do both with the help of [Siphon], and he wasn't going to waste the opportunity.
Still analyzing the implications of a skill that increased lifespan, Sol helplessly shook his head and closed the skill description.
'I never really worried about how long I'll live for. I just wish to make a meaningful impact before I go.'
Having rested enough, Sol took a glance at his status page one more time.
Name: Sol
Race: Human
Talents: [Siphoner], [Transformer]
Level: 67
Exp: 7,378,740/17,100,000
HP: 1300
MP: 1250
Str: 65 (+60)
Vit: 70 (+60)
Agi: 65 (+60)
Int: 70 (+60)
Wis: 65 (+60)
Talent Skills:
[Siphon] Lv 4, [Analysis] Lv 5, [Aggregate] Lv EX, [Reinterpret] Lv EX
Passive Skills:
[Muffled Movements] Lv EX, [Counter] Lv 1, [Shortened Cast] Lv MAX, [Increased Mana Regeneration] Lv MAX, [Mana Perception] Lv 6, [Increased Health Regeneration] Lv 3, [Mana Efficiency] Lv 5, [Precise Coordination] Lv 6, [Basic Psychic Mastery] Lv 2, [Intermediate Weapon Mastery] Lv 6, [Wild Hunt] Lv 1, [Invincible Body] Lv 6, [Perfect Balance] Lv 1
Active Skills:
[Cross Slash] Lv 3, [Ground Shrink] Lv 1, [Snap Punch] Lv 4, [Blast Arrow] Lv 9, [Concealment] Lv 9, [Death Cyclone] Lv 9, [Earth Hammer] Lv 5, [Rock Throw] Lv 4, [Burrow] Lv MAX, [Fell Cleave] Lv 8, [Crippling Strike] Lv 8, [Destructive Charge] Lv 8, [Telepathy] Lv 1, [Barricade] Lv 8, [Barrage] Lv 9, [Intermediate Elemental Magic] Lv 5, [Overpower] Lv 3
Confident in taking on the boss behind the door, Sol and Amber stood up and made their way to the large door.