Chapter 68. Seoul Western Dungeon Clear (2)
Shweeeek—!
A spear made of wood fibers tore through the air toward Jeonghyeon's back.
“!”
He ducked immediately, but the spear still grazed his shoulder.
Kwa-duduk!
The moment it touched, the spear splintered into dozens of thin branches in midair, slamming into his left shoulder.
Red blood sprayed into the air with the explosion.
“Kuhk!”
It had merely grazed him, yet his shoulder was shredded in an instant. Flesh hung in tatters, blood pouring out relentlessly without stopping.
Bleeding... an attribute effect...?
No wonder it had been too easy up to the mid-boss. This was a monster with the most annoying attribute of all—bleeding.
Bleeding! It's a Dryad Lancer with the bleeding attribute! Can the Punisher withstand the merciless bleeding assault from the Dryad Lancer that dominates this massive dungeon?!
The drone's booming mechanical voice, which had been hyping things up moments ago, was starting to grate on his nerves.
“Are you okay?!”
Jeonghu, having grasped the situation, rushed toward the wounded Jeonghyeon.
“Dodge!”
Jeonghyeon blasted mana from his hand, shoving Jeonghu backward.
Shweeeek—!
Another spear ripped through the air like a bullet, passing right in front of Jeonghu's nose.
If he'd taken even one more step, or widened his stride just a bit, the exploding spear would have obliterated his face.
“Be careful. It's a bleeding-attribute exploding spear! From now on, focus on dodging.”
Jeonghyeon concentrated power into his Demon King's Eye, implanting mana into Jeonghu to sharpen his reflexes and senses for better evasion.
Tch. Waste of mana like this.
He needed to staunch the bleeding on his shoulder first, but bleeding attributes ignored normal hemostasis. He had no choice but to coat it with mana for protection.
The problem was how mana-intensive and annoying that made it.
“Hmph. You idiot. I said dodge! You think I told you to get stupidly hit like that?!”
From behind, Nus unleashed a barrage of colorful curses before peeling off a chunk of its body and slapping it onto Jeonghyeon's shoulder.
A thin mana membrane formed over the wound, quickly staining red with the flowing blood.
“That should stop the bleeding.”
“...Thanks. Do it a few more times.”
“'A few more'? Shut up and fix this now!”
“Just watch.”
Jeonghyeon immediately channeled mana into his gauntlets.
Mana coated the claw-grooved mana stone weapon.
Attribute Liberation: 97%
Three percent more to fill.
Recalling the sensation of casting Fireball, Jeonghyeon infused his mana with the fire attribute.
Nothing compared to a real mage... but this should do!
With that, he charged at the Dryad Lancer again.
“Try... running away.”
The Dryad Lancer spread its arms wide once more.
Thin, dagger-sized wooden shards burst from the gaps in its wood-grain body, like muscle fibers.
Papapang—!
Dozens of wooden daggers flew crudely toward Jeonghyeon to burst his body open.
He couldn't dodge them all, but he didn't need to. Jeonghyeon crossed his mana-packed fists in an X.
Mana formed a circular shield centered on the gauntlets, exploding against the incoming daggers.
Thupapang—!
Five steps, three steps, and finally one step.
Just as he was about to smash his fist into the annoying Dryad Lancer's face—
“As expected!!”
Jeonghyeon twisted his body, swinging a punch into empty air at his side.
Pang—!
A massive explosion that would have vaporized his upper body scattered wooden shards everywhere.
“This time from the side...!”
By the time he regained his senses, the Dryad Lancer had hidden its body in the floor vines and fled farther away.
This is getting irritating.
Harboring an unpleasant, unresolved doubt, Jeonghyeon decided on a swift strike this time. He drew out half the mana in his body.
Reaching the mid-boss meant A-rank dungeon monsters were coming now.
Holding back on mana could make things more dangerous, so he had to clear this floor before taking fatal damage.
“Huu...!”
He steadied his breath and circulated mana through his body. Matching the Storm Dragon Fist style Jeonghu had taught him, the closest to what he'd learned.
Back in Afraksas, he'd faced countless Jo clan traitors who betrayed humanity. He could mimic it based on memory and instinct.
“Hup!”
He expelled the mana coursing through his body out through his soles in an instant.
Pa-ang!
With enough thrust to shatter the floor vines, Jeonghyeon launched himself like a bullet.
Storm Dragon Fist, Leap Strike.
The red mana trail left like an afterimage marked his blindingly fast path belatedly.
“Die!!”
Before the Dryad Lancer could blink, Jeonghyeon circled behind it and unleashed a Shout, spewing mana from his mouth.
Kuduk.
Sensing danger, the Dryad tried to hide in the vines, but the overwhelming pressure froze its body instead.
Kwaang!!!
Its upper body exploded under Jeonghyeon's accelerated punch.
Shit!
As the Dryad Lancer shattered, it self-detonated like a suicide bomb, scattering shards. Jeonghyeon barely dodged, but a thin gash opened below his thigh.
Jiiik—.
No further explosion since it had already blown once, but blood flowed like an open faucet, unrelenting.
What the hell...?
And as if mocking him, another Dryad Lancer descended from the ceiling, wrapped in vines.
Was this not the main body? Or were there multiples?
This is pretty fucked.
Even murmuring inwardly to maintain his breathing, Jeonghyeon charged at the new Dryad Lancer from the ceiling.
Thud-kwang!
The moment he pierced the new Dryad Lancer's torso, following the ceiling vines—
Shweeeek—!
That instant, the unresolved doubt peaked with an incoming attack.
A wooden spear flew from an unexpected corner of the dungeon, precisely targeting Jeonghyeon's position.
Kwang!!!
Thanks to his vigilance, he defended with mana, but he sensed the situation turning sour.
Shweeeek—! Shweeeek—!
Now two spears flew from various spots.
He easily dodged the one coming head-on, but another dropped from above his head.
Shweeeek!
Gradually, more spears targeted his position with eerie precision.
As he dodged dozens while his mana dwindled, Jeonghyeon finally realized.
Someone... is watching my movements...
The Dryad Lancer wasn't even summoned in this room.
So the monster was hiding somewhere in the room. If the whole room was the monster, it wouldn't just activate Dryad Lancers.
Moreover, it wasn't targeting Jeonghu at all.
As if testing how long Jeonghyeon could hold out.
Shweeeek—!
The whistling spears filled his ears, leaving no room for thought.
Pushuk!
Gaps began forming, allowing thinner attacks to graze him.
Damn, the drone's gonna get noisy again...!
Already pissed, he thought the drone yapping would double his rage—
[......]
The drone said nothing, merely trailing behind Jeonghyeon and relaying the broadcast.
Why so quiet...? Wait, quiet?
The drone always hyped with flowery language whenever Jeonghyeon got hit, engaging viewers. And now, heading to smash the Jo clan, he was in peril against a mere presumed mid-boss.
The drone should be thrilled, booming through the dungeon.
Yet silence.
As if focused on something.
Let's test it.
Like a scholar verifying a hypothesis, Jeonghyeon poured nearly all his remaining mana into dashing toward the drone.
The moment he checked behind the drone—
[......]
About two seconds.
In the time the drone—no, whatever it was—turned its back and looked at him, no attacks came.
“You bastard...!”
Jeonghyeon's right eye glowed red. Mana surged so intensely it blackened even the whites.
Insight.
As if reading every detail of the entire dungeon, his mana swept through it. Only then could Jeonghyeon let out a hollow laugh.
Rank: F, A+
Weakness: Physical ability.
Traits: Physical prowess is pathetically F-rank, but it expands the Dryad collective's field of vision. With intelligence, its utility skyrockets. Travels in packs. Intelligence rises with controlled territory. Annoyingly chatty, but flying form is kinda cute. Nicknamed Evil Eye.
Ignoring the shitty Demon King's final snarky comment, Jeonghyeon's Insight revealed one more detail.
Form Change: Broadcast Drone
“You fucking...”
Ha... Didn't think you'd catch on so quick.
As Jeonghyeon lunged with a fist, the drone—no, the Evil Eye—shed its hard, heavy shell, reverting to its true form and flying backward.
An eyeball with three wings on one side. Veins stitching wing to orb made it even more grotesque, fueling disgust.
“Kiririk...! Viewers hate this!!”
The Evil Eye spread its wings wide, still yapping about viewers.
Holes opened in the dungeon walls behind it, unleashing dozens of large and small wooden spears like a tidal wave at Jeonghyeon.
“Can't do this... Nus!”
Jeonghyeon finally yelled.
“Always useless without me, you trash!”
Nus stretched its body, yanking the oblivious Jeonghu.
“Uwaak!”
It ballooned into a hemispherical dome, bouncing the spears away.
The massive jelly-like barrier absorbed them with its squishy texture.
“Won't hold long! Find a way quick!”
“Kuhaha! Find a way for what?”
The chatty Evil Eye floated leisurely before Jeonghyeon and Jeonghu, as if enjoying the taunt.
“You think I'll die here to trash like you, with all my achievements?”
It even planted its own death flag while rambling.
“Of all the arenas and drones you saw, was I the only Evil Eye? Think this is the end of the dungeon?”
“What bullshit.”
He loathed being lectured from above by a mere monster.
Jeonghyeon scowled, glaring at the Evil Eye with his Demon King's Eye.
The Evil Eye flinched momentarily under the pressure, then feigned calm and continued.
“This dungeon's territory... is half of Seoul West. My viewers aren't petty humans betting coins at the center.”
The Evil Eye approached past Nus, giggling through its nonexistent mouth, enunciating clearly.
“My true audience... are the great demon beasts.”