Prince ran across the open road, his feet moving on the ground, a blur.
He was so light right now that his steps didn't even make that much noise, even as he pumped into a sprint.
A sprint he'd been running for an hour. A sprint at full throttle.
See, Dean Karnazes completed the longest non-stop run by a human being in 2005, running 350 miles non-stop. It took him 80 hours and 44 minutes to do so.
If that was a pre-System human, Prince was interested in his own limits.
Especially considering that he could jog as fast as a car would ride through the street.
After two more hours, he reached the city again.
His car, which was parked in an empty driveway, was now home to two birds who argued over what appeared to be a shell.
Prince flared his aura, scaring the birds off.
He entered his car and drove it through the ghost town, entering the area where Atlantis was.
Atlantis was a gigantic dome of water that was so thick Prince couldn't see anything within it. It did, however, encompass multiple buildings.
Prince parked his car and quickly walked up to the bubble.
He pressed a hand against it. The water rippled around his hand, but he felt some resistance.
Enter E-Grade Dungeon Lost City of Atlantis?
Yes.
The dungeon absorbed him.
Very literally, Prince was drawn inside. He was pressed by water on all sides, it weighed him down, restricted his movement. Prince drew in a surprised breath-
And found out he could breathe.
You have entered E-Grade dungeon Lost City of Atlantis.
E-Grade Dungeon: Lost City of Atlantis. There are three monster groups that must be eliminated. This dungeon is in the regular dungeon mode. Leaving is allowed. As a result, rewards are permitted.
Objectives:
Slay the Fish King (0/1)
Slay the Great White Shark (0/1)
Slay the Great Squid (0/1)
Rewards:
Soul of the Sea (E-Grade)
Spear of Tides (E-Grade)
Great Squid Ink (E-Grade)
Prince stared at this screen in surprise.
Three bosses, just like before. However, the dungeon gave... Rewards? Though he had no use for a spear, it might just come in handy.
Prince wiped away the System screen and looked around himself.
It was as if he was transported to a different realm.
The buildings and everything- they were still here.
But Prince was underwater. His hair floated around him. Each movement felt sluggish, slow- though he would still be faster than any pre-System human, he felt weighted.
And he would be going up against creatures who were used to this.
"Shit..." Prince muttered. His voice sounder warbled, too.
He started his walk down the road, so far, he had seen a few fish scurry by, but nothing too crazy.
Prince walked around an upturned car. Whoever used to be inside it was long gone.
Finally, Prince got a glimpse of what appeared to be a giant puffer fish swimming out of a restaurant.
By giant, he meant giant. It was as big as him.
Steel Pufferfish - Level 30
A pufferfish with spikes of steel. Will inflate when threatened. Minor mastery over Water Essence.
The minor mobs are literally in their late 30s?!
There was a high chance Prince would die in here.
There was also a chance, however, that he would prevail and come out at the peak of F-Grade. He would've shot up the leaderboard by then.
The pufferfish noticed him. It furiously began to swim toward him with practiced ease.
It glided through the water, leaving a trail of bubbles in its wake.
Prince tried to backpedal, but the pufferfish rammed into him with such force that he flew in slow motion backward.
Prince gasped.
This water made him clumsy. He felt like a pre-System human.
There were no other Essence types other than water down here. No fire, no wind, even earth was buried under pavement.
Prince might have been able to draw air from the particles in the air, but he was too disoriented.
The pufferfish appeared before him, spinning into a tail attack.
The tail landed against him like a steel wall, sending him crashing into the pavement.
Prince's jaw was broken.
Prince rolled away.
Shitshitshit-
The fish swam for him again.
Prince punched toward it, trying to manipulate Water Essence to move out of his way-
A tail connected with his stomach, sending him flying into the open water above him.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do, damn it!
Prince twisted toward the fish, kicking his legs behind him. He shot forward.
No reason to waste any time trying to strike. He resorted to grappling.
Prince never thought he would grapple a fish, but here he was. He spun onto its back and began to squeeze what he hoped was its neck. It felt like squeezing steel.
The fish struggled for a bit. Then, finally, it did what it was meant to do.
Holy shit... Don't pufferfish have toxins?
The fish's mouth gaped open. Prince released it, swimming backward just in time as it inflated multiple times its size.
Large spikes poked at the water. Prince would've been dead if he'd stuck around.
The pufferfish glared at him. Or Prince thought it did.
"Alright," Prince said. "Enough of this shit!"
Prince's palm shot forward as fast as it could with all the water around it. "Give me your EXP!" He said as he charged a Thunderous Palm with all the Water Essence in the area.
A boom and then a clap sounded. While his hand had never touched the pufferfish, the aftershock was enough to send the fist flying into a car.
A wave passed through the area from the attack
"Damn..." Prince whistled at the bubbles left after the attack.
Water Essence was all around him. Why didn't he use it?
Prince shot forward like a bullet, his fist smashing the pufferfish's face. Prince, powered by Water Essence, had broken through the skin and scales.
The water started to become clouded with blood. The pufferfish inflated itself to the maximum, clumsily swimming away-
But it wasn't getting away.
Prince's Dao helped him now. It adjusted him in slight, minor ways, allowing him to adapt to his environment. Conserve his energy.
Prince appeared before the creature, or it looked that way.
His fist went right through its face, leaving it dead without any doubt.
Level-up! You are now level 26.
Level-up! You are now level 27.
Level-up! You are now level 28.
Prince grinned as he withdrew his fist.
Now that I think about it... I should've brought food. But it would be ruined down here... And can I even drink water?
Prince crossed his arms. "Oh well."
With a lazy kick, he swam away.