Chapter 43: Floor Two
Chapter 43: Floor Two
[Talents:]
Titan Body (Legendary), All Weapon Mastery (Legendary), Dagger Duchess (Legendary), Storm Manipulation (Epic), Combat Precognition (Epic), Mind Fortress (Epic), Apex Senses (Epic), Mana Enhancement (Epic), Ocean Mastery (Rare), Voice of Bewitchment (Rare), Merchant’s Gaze (Uncommon), Water Manipulation (Rare), Phantom (Rare) ,Scent Reading (Rare), Thread Manipulation (Uncommon), Bioluminescence (Common), Minor Illusion (Common), Enhanced Hearing (Uncommon)
Good spread. But I need more combat Talents. Something that gives me an edge against enemies above my level.
He’d have to find the right people to massage once he got back to the city. Warriors. Mages. Anyone with Talents worth stealing.
For now, focus on the dungeon. Clear as many floors as possible. Level up. Get stronger.
His mana crept back up, point by point. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift, conserving energy for the battles ahead.
Nineteen more levels to evolution. I can do this.
The green gate waited patiently at the far end of the chamber, glowing softly in the darkness.
When his mana hit 5,000, he stood up and walked toward it.
Time for floor two.
***
[You’ve entered the dungeon: Abandoned Quarry - Floor 2]
[Floor Boss: Magma Wyrm (Epic) | Level 40]
[Warning: Environmental hazards detected.]
The temperature hit him like a wall. The second floor was a hellscape of molten rock and bubbling pools of lava, the air shimmering with heat that would have killed a normal human in minutes.
Titan Body absorbed most of it, reducing the damage to a mild discomfort, but Nacho could feel his HP ticking down slowly with every second he spent in the heated environment.
[-5 HP per second]
Need to move fast.
The enemies on this floor were different. Fire elementals and magma constructs that reformed whenever he killed them, rising from the lava pools like burning phoenixes. He had to destroy their cores completely to keep them down.
His Storm Manipulation was less effective here, the lightning dissipating in the superheated air before it could do full damage. He switched to pure physical combat, his daggers flashing in silver arcs as he carved through the elementals one by one.
[You’ve slain: Fire Elemental (Rare) | Level 36 x8. +6,880 Experience]
[You’ve slain: Magma Construct (Rare) | Level 38 x4. +5,440 Experience]
[Level Up! Level 31 → Level 33]
The Magma Wyrm was exactly as terrifying as it sounded. A serpentine creature made of molten rock and burning hatred, it emerged from the largest lava pool at the center of the chamber with a roar that shook loose stalactites from the ceiling.
[Magma Wyrm (Epic) | Level 40]
[HP: 15,000 / 15,000]
That’s almost twice the Excavator. And this heat is draining my HP constantly.
He needed a new approach.
Water Manipulation.
He’d barely used the Talent since absorbing it back in the Ocean, but this seemed like the perfect opportunity. He reached out with his will, pulling moisture from the air and condensing it into a sphere of water above his palm.
The wyrm lunged, jaws wide enough to swallow him whole.
Nacho threw the water sphere directly into its mouth.
The effect was immediate. Steam exploded from the creature’s throat as the water hit molten rock, the thermal shock cracking its internal structure. The wyrm screamed, its movements becoming sluggish as chunks of cooled stone fell from its body.
[-3,500 Damage!]
[Magma Wyrm: 11,500 / 15,000 HP]
It works. Keep going.
He pulled more water from the air, forming sphere after sphere and hurling them at the wyrm’s vulnerable spots. Each hit caused more steam, more cracks, more damage.
The creature tried to retaliate, spitting globules of lava that Nacho dodged with Combat Precognition’s guidance. His HP was dropping from the environmental heat, but his damage was outpacing the drain.
[-4,000 MP | 1,290 / 7,790]
[Magma Wyrm: 4,200 / 15,000 HP]
One more push.
He pulled every drop of moisture he could find, condensing it into a massive sphere that hung above him like a small moon. The effort made his head spin, but he held on.
"Drink up."
He dropped the sphere directly on the wyrm’s head.
[Critical Hit! -4,500 Damage!]
[You’ve slain: Magma Wyrm (Level 40). +16,000 Experience]
[Level Up! Level 33 → Level 37]
[+20 Free Stat Points]
[Monster Core (Epic) x1 obtained]
[You’ve obtained a reward: Flame Resistance (Rare)]
[Flame Resistance (Rare) + Titan Body (Legendary) = Talent absorbed into existing Legendary Talent.]
The heat stopped hurting. Titan Body had evolved, incorporating the new resistance into its matrix. Nacho let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
Level 37. Thirteen more to go.
The green gate to floor three appeared, but he didn’t move toward it immediately. His mana was dangerously low, and the next floor would probably be even harder than this one.
He found a relatively cool spot near the chamber’s edge and sat down to recover.
The Rat King’s people went silent after going into this dungeon. I’m starting to understand why.
But he’d cleared two floors now. Whatever was waiting below, he’d face it when he was ready.
For the first time since arriving in the Mortal World, Nacho felt like he was making real progress.
Evolution. Nineteen to go. Then thirteen. Now just thirteen more levels.
He closed his eyes and let his mana regenerate, the faint glow of the green gate painting the inside of his eyelids with soft green light.
The third floor was ice.
Nacho stepped through the green gate and immediately felt his body temperature plummet. The transition from volcanic hellscape to frozen wasteland hit him like a slap from an angry ex-girlfriend. His breath crystallized in front of his face, and the sweat still clinging to his skin from the Magma Wyrm fight turned to a thin layer of frost.
[You’ve entered the dungeon: Abandoned Quarry - Floor 3]
[Floor Boss: Frost Titan (Epic) | Level 45]
[Warning: Extreme temperature hazard. HP drain active.]
[-8 HP per second]
Are you kidding me? From fire to ice? What kind of sadistic dungeon designer came up with this layout?
The chamber stretched out before him, a cathedral of frozen stone and hanging icicles that looked sharp enough to impale a horse. The walls were covered in patterns of frost that seemed to move when he wasn’t looking directly at them, spiraling designs that hurt his eyes if he stared too long.
And in the center of it all, encased in a pillar of translucent ice, something massive was sleeping.
The Frost Titan.