It made a minor cut on my finger, but I won't try it again. I didn't add my law powers or activate my lightning skill to whack my finger. With my strength, it should have easily cut it off. Knowing that it was this capable already gave me confidence in the talent.
I put my newly gained stat points into wisdom for a total value of 37. I needed the proficiency of my Incorporate Lightning to reach at least 94 to reach an equilibrium. Every point closer to that would make my Mana usage slow down, eventually to a halt with the regeneration working.
I had done enough training and discoveries. Now I would grind to my heart's content.
I encountered a group of 3 Rockscale litts. They huddled closely together as if there was only a small area they could sunbathe in. My confidence was high at this point.
*ZZzzzzzzzz!*
I sent multiple kicks into their defensive yet defenseless bodies. Frying their insides with each. While being careful with dodging around, I couldn't put all my focus into each kick. I whittled them down quickly.
Gaining 3 more high-grade crystals from that encounter, the sum of money that would amount to currently would be massive. Once I left this dungeon, I would sell everything. In addition, I acquired two more scales from the encounter. I just wasn't sure what to do with it yet.
As I walked along the canyon path, I encountered groups of 2, 3, and even 4 litts, with occasional lone ones scattered in between. My level increased during that. I put the points in strength, raising the total to 35, the modified strength showed 52.5! I wanted to make sure I could break the bosses defenses when the time came. If I couldn't defeat the boss then there was nowhere for me to go.
This place heavily favors magic attacks. But with enough offense, you can crush any defense!
The canyon path opened. I could see a vast expanse with interspersed cliff walls spread throughout. The only thing separating me from that area were 7 litts guarding the way. That was the largest group of enemies I've seen so far. I can clearly see the use in having party members, but I don't want to limit myself by waiting for someone who fits the bill. I need to handle things on my own. With my Talent Harvest ability, I can become a one-man army!
I charged. Lightning flickering and snaking all over my body. The idle litts got to their feet in a hurry. They growled at me in unison. Unlike the others, they didn't charge me. My objective was still the same. There were just more targets this time.
"Here's a kick for you! And you! And y— Ouah!"
One of the litts swiped at my leg with its claws. It must've been surprised when it didn't rip my leg off, but it willingly allowed me to uppercut kick its jaw in return. I had to be more careful. If it weren't for my Stone Skin talent, I would've lost a lot more than 3 health from that. It preemptively attacked the air as it saw me dodging from one of its brethren to the next.
I didn't take into account these mobs could be so clever.
As I fought the litts, a surge of adrenaline rushed through me. The thrill of combat mixed with the fear of getting injured, creating a whirlwind of emotions that I had to push aside to stay focused.
I made a mental note. Fight every monster as if they were intelligent! I was thrown off by previously playing with one. The same type of monster can behave differently. I should've been more cautious when I saw them standing their ground.
I released my irritation on these rocky dogs. They might be smarter than the average litt, but my kicks didn't change. I continued to whittle them down. The growls and violent jaw snapping only stopped when they were all lying on the ground.
[LEVEL UP]
The damage I had taken from that one swipe. It was barely anything, but that was my first time taking damage. The realization hit me. This world wasn't just wonder and adventure. People will die because of this, losing their friends and loved ones. I was lucky. I received a blessing. Both of my initial talents were completely incredible. Most people weren't like that. Being this lucky, I would make sure to not let it go to waste in my hands.
I put 4 stats to strength and 1 into wisdom. Both of the base stats were now 40. My Incorporate Lightning proficiency was at 95. I could now endlessly use the skill, nothing could stop my advance.
My mob grinding would be unstoppable in this open area.
I zoomed around from monster group to monster group with the speed of a sports-car. I was kicking and punching savagely, the lightning emboldening my moves.
[LEVEL UP]
That didn't take long. I should meet the boss now.
[TOWER ACCESS]
- You have reached level 10, meeting the requirements for entering the tower.
- The tower contains new worlds to conquer.
- Accessing the tower will reveal new functions.
"What!"
I got access to the tower? New functions? Worlds?!
I took a moment to digest that information. When I went into this dungeon, there had been no news of anyone entering the tower. Could I be one of the first? What excited me the most was the thought of new functions. The system explicitly said it, there would be more to this system, but what? I could only imagine at this point, I wanted to see it. I would go there as soon as I'm finished here, I need to convey this to Tobias as well. This is the biggest news since the system event happened!
I'll tackle that as soon as I finish this dungeon run.
My newest points had me feeling undecided. I could put them to strength, helping to break the rocky bodies of the mobs. The boss will have higher defense for sure. Should I resort to a full frying tactic? It probably won't die immediately in any case, then I should focus on survival. Vitality or dexterity. With my current defense and speed, what did I lack? Finesse? What stats affected wasn't clear yet. Should dexterity be linked to precision, agility, and speed? If so, to what extent? If I had a high dexterity stat, would that scale with Incorporate Lightning? I wanted to try. I put all 5 points in dexterity.
[STATS]
- Strength: 41 (60.5)
- Dexterity: 29
- Vitality: 19
- Wisdom: 41
- Available stat points: 0
…
I dodged side to side. It was faster! Even my running, attacks, and jumps were different. I could feel my motions become slightly more fluid, like my body had practiced the same moves thousands of times. It should have had that same effect from passively gaining stats, but I couldn't tell what was from other training or the dexterity stat. Now I could feel it clearly!
I headed towards the boss zone, killing the monsters on the way there. It was clear where it was located. A large gorge in the center of the open area, those cliffs reached higher than any other.
Ten Rockscale litts guarded the entrance. They didn't pose any problems this time. Not only was I more powerful than when I fought the 7, I was more deliberate and calculating in my moves. The litts showed signs of intelligence, like the 7 guards, but that didn't help them this time around.
Walking past their corpses, I headed deeper inside the gorge. I saw the boss.
It looked to be an evolved version of the same species. It was larger. Its features were sharper, it looked denser. The other litts were like child versions of this one. I could tell my strength wouldn't break through its armor as easy as the others.
But the result will be the same.