"Roar!!"
Monsters in the parking lot roared in anger.
Countless walking corpses, some wielding damaged greatswords or brandishing shields, charged towards him.
But standing atop the ruins, John had the high ground, and their sluggish pace meant they were hit by his magic and turned into experience points before they could even get close.
They stood no chance against him.
As monster after monster fell unwillingly,
It wasn't long before a white light of leveling up shone again around John!
[Your level has increased to lv3, granting you 10 free attribute points!]
[Current Level: lv3]
[Exp: 0/10000]
John allocated all his attribute points to spirit, boosting his strength once more.
Using Aquakinesis, he conjured a water arrow and hurled it at the head of an unfortunate walking corpse.
Instantly, a huge red damage number rose from the corpse's head!
"-1038!!"
John's damage had now broken the 1000-point mark.
Even a level 8 walking corpse with just 1600 HP couldn't withstand his second attack!
John's monster-slaying speed increased yet again.
For the first time, he experienced the joy of being a magus, turning into a human artillery, his spells firing off like a machine gun!
[You have slain "Ghost Cat lv7," earning 721 Exp!]
[You have slain "Walking Corpse lv8," earning 856 Exp!]
[You have slain "Ghoul lv9," earning 1070 Exp!]
...
[Your level has increased to lv4, granting you 10 attribute points!]
...
[Your level has increased to lv5, granting you 10 attribute points!]
...
Before long, John was enveloped in the glow of leveling up twice in quick succession.
His level had now reached lv5.
Without a second thought, he immediately put on the Hound Paw Necklace, then opened his attribute panel to check his stats.
[Class]: All-Class Magus (god-tier)
[HP]: 500
[MP]: 2000
[Attributes]: Strength 29, Stamina 30, Spirit 100, Speed 38
[Talent]: Divine Favor Tome (SSS-level)
[Skills]: Spring of Soul lv10 (MAX), Mana Recovery lv10 (MAX), Pyrokinesis lv10 (MAX), Aquakinesis lv10 (MAX), Zephyr Shield lv10 (MAX), Vine Thorn lv10 (MAX)…
[Equipment]: Withered Staff lv1 (iron-tier), Hound Paw Necklace lv5 (iron-tier)
…
This leveling up significantly enhanced John's power.
What thrilled him even more was that he had acquired two new skills.
[Zephyr Shield lv10 (MAX)]
[Type]: Basic Skill (Active)
[Description]: Upon activation, you will receive a wind shield capable of withstanding 800 points of damage, and gain a 30-point speed attribute bonus for 60 seconds. Cooldown time: 3 minutes, MP cost: 100.
…
[Vine Thorn lv10 (MAX)]
[Type]: Basic Skill (Active)
[Description]: Upon activation, deals 2500 points of wood-based magical damage to the target, with a 30% chance of poisoning the target. The poisoned state inflicts 50 points of poison-based damage per second for 60 seconds. Cooldown time: 3 minutes, MP cost: 100.
...
These two skills perfectly complemented John's weaknesses.
Zephyr Shield could enhance his survivability, while Vine Thorn could unleash massive burst damage.
Satisfied with his progress, John closed the panel, very pleased with his day's achievements.
In just half a day, he had advanced to lv5, with his damage breaking past 2000 points!
Now equipped with Zephyr Shield and Vine Thorn, ordinary monsters in the Phantom Ruins no longer posed any threat to him.
Next, he hoped to encounter elite or BOSS-level monsters, though such encounters were purely a matter of luck.
Shaking his head, John leapt down from the broken wall, ready to sort through the materials and equipment dropped by the monsters, then head to the deepest part of the Phantom Ruins.
From a distance, he could vaguely see a bronze glow shimmering.
"Could it be bronze-tier gear?!" John's heart began to race.
The rarity of bronze-tier gear was unquestionable.
Even if he couldn't use it himself, selling it to a black market dealer could fetch a substantial sum, easing his financial struggles for the time being.
Quickening his pace, just as he was about to see what the equipment was, John felt a chill run down his spine.
Danger!
John's pupils constricted, and without a moment's hesitation, he instantly activated Zephyr Shield, wrapping himself in a protective wind barrier.
"Whoosh!"
The next moment, an ice-blue arrow whistling through the air struck the azure wind shield!
Simultaneously, a white damage number appeared above John's head.
"-380!"
At this scene, a surprised female voice echoed from a corner of the parking lot: "Instant cast Zephyr Shield? Everyone, be careful, this kid might be a genius with an A-level talent or a rare class!"
Another sinister voice responded, "Who cares what kind of genius he is, dead, he's just a pile of rotting flesh. In the dungeon, only strength speaks!"
"Who's there, show yourself!" John's voice was icy, his gaze coldly fixed on the source of the voices.
"Kid, being too arrogant isn't a good thing!" A rugged voice sounded.
As the voice faded, two men and a woman slowly emerged from the shadows.
One of the men was tall and burly, with a rough appearance, clad in heavy armor, carrying a giant sword - likely the one who had just spoken.
The other was lean and tall, dressed in a magus robe, with a sharp, monkey-like face, holding a cyan staff.
The last, a woman of average appearance, draped in a black cloak, holding a black bow, was probably the one who had just attacked him.
The burly man spoke arrogantly, "Kid, seeing as you're a newly awakened student, I advise you to hand over your stuff quickly. Don't even think about resisting; your little talent is useless here!"
The lean magus sneered at John, "Let me tell you clearly, all three of us are level 10 iron-tier peak awakeners. In this dungeon, there's no one we can't kill!"
John's gaze swept over the three, forming a basic judgment of them in his mind.
He chuckled coldly, "A few Wanderers who can't even reach silver-tier, acting like experts in front of me?"
"Wanderers" are bandits who roam dungeons and wilderness, preying on others for equipment and riches through brute force.
These people generally have mediocre talent and only dare to bully newcomers in low-level dungeons.
John had seen plenty of such scum.
John's words pierced the trio's hearts like a sharp knife, and their faces instantly contorted with displeasure.
Indeed, if they had sufficient strength and talent, who would willingly linger in such low-level dungeons?
Especially the lean magus, who was already envious of John's talent, couldn't hold back any longer upon hearing John's words.
"You'll pay for your words, kid!" he shouted angrily, raising his staff.
But before he could act, John preempted with his own attack.
Pyrokinesis!
A massive fire serpent, several meters long and as thick as a barrel, instantly materialized in the air, like an enraged fire dragon lunging ferociously at the lean magus!
The trio was stunned by the enormous fire snake hurtling towards them.
"This... This is Pyrokinesis?!" exclaimed the female archer in shock.
The lean magus, now utterly terrified, was speechless.
Being a magus himself, he recognized this as the basic Pyrokinesis.
But why was this kid's Pyrokinesis so massive, and how could it be instant cast? Wasn't he just awakened?
Caught in his moment of hesitation, it was already too late for him to dodge.
As the giant fire serpent pounced towards him, terror filled his eyes.
"Save me!!" the lean magus screamed.
"Watch out!" The burly man bellowed, stepping forward to raise his giant sword in front of the lean magus, executing a warrior's blocking skill.
The next moment, the giant fire serpent collided with the man's sword!
"Boom!!"
With a thunderous explosion, the burly man was instantly engulfed by the fire serpent!
The violent heat wave sent the lean magus and the woman flying backward.
"Aaahhh!!!" The burly man's agonized scream echoed through the night sky but vanished in the blink of an eye as he was instantly turned to ash by the intense flames.
All that remained was a crimson number slowly fading in the air.
"-2135!"