Chapter 9: One Million True Damage!!!! Skill Upgrade!

Chapter 9: Chapter 9: One Million True Damage!!!! Skill Upgrade!

"Shadow Execution."

Nathaniel spoke calmly.

[System Prompt: Shadow Energy consumed.]

The moment the skill activated, the shadows beneath his feet began to writhe.

Darkness spread across the blood-red battlefield, gathering above the Hell Demon General.

The demon raised its flaming sword, sensing the danger.

But it was too late.

A gigantic black blade materialized in the sky.

Its surface was covered in strange crimson markings, and its edge seemed to swallow the light around it. The pressure it released made the surrounding ground tremble.

Then it fell.

Straight toward the Hell Demon General.

"BOOM!!!"

A deafening explosion shook the entire battlefield.

The demon’s supposedly indestructible dark-red armor buckled inward as the enormous blade struck its chest.

A massive damage number appeared above its head.

-1,000,000 (TRUE DAMAGE)!

The Hell Demon General released a shrill scream.

Its health bar, which had displayed two million HP moments earlier, instantly dropped by half.

[Hell Demon General HP: 1,000,000 / 2,000,000]

Nathaniel watched without changing his expression.

Physical defense?

Armor?

None of those mattered when an attack dealt true damage.

The demon staggered backward, its flaming sword dragging across the ground. It tried to raise its weapon, preparing to unleash another devastating attack.

Nathaniel raised his hand again.

"Again."

The shadows above the battlefield twisted.

A second gigantic blade materialized.

The Hell Demon General’s eyes widened.

BOOM!

The blade descended.

-1,000,000 (TRUE DAMAGE)!

The boss’s remaining health vanished.

The ten Shadow Soldiers hadn’t even needed to intervene.

The Level 50 final boss collapsed without managing to unleash a single skill.

Its enormous body struck the ground.

BANG!

A massive crater appeared beneath it.

The Hell Demon General’s body then shattered into countless glowing fragments, which scattered across the battlefield before disappearing.

[Level 50 Boss defeated: Hell Demon General]

[EXP obtained: 80,000]

Golden light immediately enveloped Nathaniel.

The enormous amount of experience flooded his status panel.

[Congratulations! Level increased to 8!]

[Congratulations! Level increased to 9!]

[Congratulations! Level increased to 10!]

...

[Congratulations! Level increased to 13!]

[Current Level: 13]

Nathaniel opened his status panel.

[Class: God of Shadows]

[Level: 13]

[Strength: 1,250]

[Agility: 1,250]

[Spirit: 1,255]

[Constitution: 1,250]

His attributes had increased tremendously.

And he had barely begun exploring the potential of his Class.

Nathaniel glanced at the Shadow Soldiers standing around him.

Their bodies had grown stronger alongside his own growth, and the crimson lights beneath their helmets burned more intensely than before.

He now had an army that could slaughter hundreds of monsters in seconds, a skill capable of inflicting a million points of true damage, and a Class whose growth potential seemed almost limitless.

For the first time, Nathaniel wondered whether the dungeon’s difficulty ratings were even meaningful to him anymore.

Meanwhile, several brilliant spheres of light appeared around the crater.

The boss had dropped its rewards.

Nathaniel walked over and collected them.

[Hell Demon General’s Heavy Armor | Black Iron Grade | Warrior Exclusive]

[Blazing Staff | Bronze Grade | Mage Exclusive]

[Skill Book: Hellfire Sea | Mage]

[Skill Book: Berserker Charge | Warrior]

Nathaniel inspected each item.

They were valuable pieces of equipment and skills. If sold at an auction house outside the dungeon, any one of them could fetch a considerable price.

Unfortunately, none suited his Class.

He shook his head and stored the items in his inventory.

"Shame. None of these are useful to me."

Just then, the blood-red battlefield began to collapse.

Cracks spread across the ground, and the sky broke apart into countless fragments of light.

A settlement panel appeared before Nathaniel, its enormous golden lettering filling almost his entire field of vision.

[Dungeon Clear Rating: SSS]

[System Notice: Hidden Stage "Asura Purgatory" successfully cleared! Special reward bonus activated.]

[Basic Rewards]

100,000 gold coins

1 free skill point

1 Gold-Grade Class Equipment Blind Box

[Hidden Stage Bonus: Rewards Doubled]

[Final Rewards]

200,000 gold coins

2 free skill points

1 Diamond-Grade Exclusive Equipment Blind Box

Nathaniel’s gaze passed over the gold coins and skill points.

His attention locked onto the final reward.

"Diamond-Grade... Exclusive Equipment Blind Box?"

His breathing quickened slightly.

Equipment in this world followed a strict hierarchy:

Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond, Epic, Legendary, Holy Artifact, Semi-Artifact, and Artifact.

At this stage, ordinary newcomers considered themselves fortunate to obtain a complete set of Bronze equipment.

Silver equipment was already valuable, while Gold-Grade equipment was difficult to acquire without substantial resources or powerful connections.

Diamond-Grade equipment belonged to an entirely different level.

It was the sort of treasure that many professionals wouldn’t obtain until they had reached their second Class advancement and surpassed Level 100.

Yet Nathaniel had received one as his reward for clearing a hidden dungeon.

The original Gold-Grade reward had been upgraded to Diamond-Grade because of the hidden stage’s bonus.

He took a deep breath and retrieved the blind box from his inventory.

Its surface shimmered with a brilliant diamond-like glow.

"Let’s see what we get."

He opened it.

Click.

A soft light flashed.

[Equipment obtained:Umbral Phantom Boots | Diamond Grade]

A pair of beautifully crafted long boots appeared in his hands. Their surfaces shimmered as though fine golden sand flowed beneath the material.

Nathaniel immediately inspected their properties.

[Umbral Phantom Boots]

[Diamond-Grade · Class Exclusive]

[Defense: 0]

[Passive Skill: Phantom Stride]

[Effect: Movement Speed +200%.]

[Description: Forged from condensed shadow essence, these boots allow their wearer to move like a phantom between patches of darkness.]

Nathaniel stared at the description.

Then he looked at the boots.

There were no bonuses to Strength, Agility, Spirit, or Constitution.

Nothing except movement speed.

But that single effect was astonishing.

A 200% increase meant his movement speed would become three times its original value.

At low levels, when most people still relied on their own legs to move around, that was an enormous advantage.

He could chase enemies, evade dangerous attacks, or escape a battle that couldn’t be won.

And with his Shadow Soldiers protecting him, he could remain out of danger while his army dealt with the enemy.

"Not bad at all."

Nathaniel immediately equipped the boots.

The moment they touched his feet, his body felt noticeably lighter.

It seemed that even a small movement could carry him several meters farther than before.

He flexed his legs experimentally.

The boots were far more practical than their ridiculous description suggested.

After confirming the equipment worked, Nathaniel turned his attention to the two free skill points.

The dungeon had given him another opportunity to strengthen his Class.

"Time to upgrade my skills."

He opened the skill panel and selected Shadow Execution.

[Skill Upgrade Available]

[Shadow Execution: Level 1]

[Effect: Consumes Shadow Energy to summon a massive blade of condensed darkness, dealing 1,000,000 true damage to the target.]

[Upgrade Cost: 1 Free Skill Point]

Nathaniel selected Upgrade.

[Skill "Shadow Execution" upgraded successfully!]

[Shadow Execution: Level 2]

[Effect: Consumes Shadow Energy to summon a massive blade of condensed darkness, dealing 1,500,000 true damage to the target.]

The damage multiplier had increased.

From one million to one and a half million.

A simple, direct improvement.

Nathaniel was satisfied.

He tried to upgrade the skill again, but the button had turned gray.

[Notice: Insufficient level. This skill cannot be upgraded further at your current level.]

"So there’s a level restriction."

Nathaniel didn’t dwell on it.

He still had one free skill point left.

He returned to his skill panel and selected Shadow Summoning.

This was one of the core abilities of his Class. Strengthening it would improve his army’s long-term potential.

He used the remaining point.

A flash of dark light passed through his status panel.

[Skill "Shadow Summoning" upgraded successfully!]

[Shadow Summoning: Level 2]

[Effect: Summons Shadow Soldiers from darkness. Shadow Soldiers inherit 150% of their master’s primary attributes. Shadow Energy is consumed when summoning soldiers.]

Nathaniel read the updated description carefully.

His Shadow Soldiers would now inherit a greater share of his attributes.

That meant every future summon would be stronger.

And since he had no fixed maximum number of Shadow Soldiers, his army’s potential remained enormous.

Nathaniel closed the panel.

The ten Shadow Soldiers stood behind him, silent and motionless.

He looked at the blood-red sky as the dungeon began to disappear.

The Initial Dungeon had been intended to test newly awakened students.

Instead, he had cleared its ordinary stages in seconds, destroyed its hidden boss with two attacks, and obtained a Diamond-Grade equipment reward.

He had even strengthened two of his core skills.

Nathaniel smiled faintly.

"Not a bad first dungeon."

Darkness gathered around his feet.

The Shadow Soldiers disappeared into his shadow, ready to emerge whenever he called.

Then the settlement light swallowed him.

His first dungeon adventure was over.

But for Nathaniel Beaumont, the real journey was only beginning.