Chapter 71: 5th Floor (9)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 71: 5th Floor (9)
The Zone 3 boss plummeted, its head completely obliterated.
The climbers of the Black Star Society, watching from a distance opposite the Security Force, were frozen in a state of profound shock.
In particular, those who had been present when Wang Kai died suddenly shared the same thought.
Ah, Wang Kai never stood a chance.
How could a human possibly withstand something that could wipe out a Zone 3 boss in a single hit?
‘This makes no sense...’
Li Zeyan, a 14th-floor Hard difficulty climber and the current public leader of the Black Star Society, gulped.
He had heard countless stories about how Wang Kai died, but even after seeing it with his own eyes, he couldn't comprehend how such a game-breaking skill could exist.
Was the reward for a Nightmare climber truly on a different dimension compared to other difficulties?
Furthermore, the man was clearly a magic-type, yet he had unleashed that power without any sign of mental focus or a casting chant...
Clap, clap, clap...
The sound of clapping shattered the silence.
Ye Chenwei, who had been watching from the front, had suddenly begun to applaud quietly.
The other climbers of the Black Star Society, including Li Zeyan, exchanged glances before following suit.
Ye Chenwei turned around, a flushed smile on his face.
“That was quite a rare sight. Let’s head back.”
* * *
A message appeared, informing me that I had obtained the first-clear reward.
The boss's corpse soon scattered into the air like ash. I recalled hearing that unlike regular monsters, zone bosses don't leave behind byproducts for harvesting. Well, even if they did, I didn't particularly plan on lugging anything back.
“So easy.”
The boss raid ended much more anticlimactically than I had expected.
[1:52]
I checked the timer on the warp device.
There was no need to cancel the activation. Since the boss was dead, I could just warp straight back to Zone 0.
I looked around at both sides. The Security Force and the Black Star Society were both standing still in the distance, staring my way. Feeling burdened by their intense gazes, I activated Stealth.
[0:01]
The warp device’s timer hit zero.
I warped back to Zone 0 and immediately headed to the portal to enter the Reward Room.
The rewards I received for defeating the boss were twofold: the first-clear reward given to only one person, and the general reward given to each individual. The system messages confirmed as much.
I was most excited about the first-clear reward.
Now then... let’s see what the Zone 3 boss dropped.
“...A bracelet?”
First was a bracelet. I picked up the accessory, which was crafted from a material resembling red scales.
[Flame Scale Bracelet]
A bracelet imbued with the power of a Red Wyvern. Increases the power of flame-type skills by 70%.
The description was simple and clear. And its effect was simply and clearly amazing.
Whoa... a 70% damage boost?
Since my main skill was Flame Strike, this was an incredibly potent effect. I also had Scorching Zone, after all.
‘It’s lucky I got the fire attribute.’
What would I have done if it had increased the power of something like lightning, which I don't even have a skill for? It was a huge relief that Zone 3 was lava-themed.
Instead of putting it in my subspace, I slipped it onto the same wrist where I wore Bandiul's Bracelet. I needed to go out and test the effect immediately.
And... next was the general reward.
Judging by the color, it was a Rare-grade skill stone. Hoping it was a magic-type, I checked the skill information.
[Skill: Flame-Type Lesser Organization (Rare+)]
Organizes and strengthens flame-type magic. Increases the power of flame-type magic by 10%, reduces willpower consumption by 10%, and reduces cooldown by 10%. If a higher-tier skill exists, the effects do not stack, and only the effect of the higher-tier skill is applied.
Category: Magic-Type (Passive)
Willpower Consumption: None
Cooldown: None
“Oh...?”
Wait. Something completely unexpected had popped out.
It was a magic-type, but it was a passive. I suppose since physical-types have passive skills, there’s no reason magic-types shouldn't. But I had never heard of a passive magic-type skill before... Is it because it's a boss reward?
‘The effects are... actually pretty good.’
Increased skill power, reduced willpower consumption, and reduced cooldown. A triple-threat effect!
I didn't really care about willpower, but the power increase and cooldown reduction were great. Especially the cooldown reduction. Of course, at 10%, it wasn't a massive figure... but skills can be enhanced, can't they?
And fortunately, this was also flame-related. I hadn't expected much from the general reward, but something quite decent had turned up.
[You have learned ‘Skill: Flame-Type Lesser Organization (Rare+)’.]
By the way, I wonder if the power increase from the bracelet and the skill would be calculated multiplicatively? I certainly hope so.
Having finished checking the rewards, I returned to the 5th floor. Since the Zone 3 boss was dead, Zone 4 should be open now...
[Zone 1 (39.2%)]
[Zone 2 (20.4%)]
[Zone 3 (0%)]
[Zone 4 (0%)]
Checking the boss gauges, I saw that the display for Zone 4 had appeared. I decided to head there immediately to test how much my flame skills had improved.
I rode Phligas and arrived right in front of Zone 4.
Whooooosh!
As soon as I crossed the boundary, the air shifted from sweltering heat to a bitter cold. It was an icy wasteland where freezing winds howled. My clothes were thin, but at my level, ordinary heat or cold had no effect on me.
“Where are you, monsters?”
Entering Zone 4, I wandered around, the snow crunching beneath my feet. I soon found one. It was a shaggy monster that brought the word 'Yeti' to mind.
The Yeti spotted me and charged like a lion that had found a fresh piece of meat. I reached out my hand.
Fwoosh!
As I cast Flame Strike, fireballs manifested in the air.
‘Oh.’
The size of the fireballs had grown noticeably larger. Five massive spheres of fire shot toward the Yeti.
KABOOM!
A massive explosion. Amidst the swirling flames, the Yeti was instantly blown to bits. Judging by the destructive power of the explosion, it felt nearly twice as strong as before. The effect was definitely tangible.
“Nice.”
I continued wandering in search of other monsters. This time, I found a floating chunk of ice that felt like some kind of spirit.
Is that... a monster too?
Feeling a bit unsure, I watched it for a moment. Just then, a blue aura sparkled around the Ice Spirit. My Sixth Sense rang with a faint warning.
Cr-cr-crack!
Sharp ice suddenly erupted from the ground, surging toward where I stood. I hopped backward, dodging the spikes.
This guy uses a pretty flashy technique, doesn't he?
Anyway, it was definitely a monster. I immediately fired a Flame Strike and blew the Ice Spirit apart.
As I continued through Zone 4, I encountered various other monsters. There were wolf-type monsters as white as snow. Unlike the others, these moved in a fairly large pack. They prowled around, surrounding me as if I were prey, so this time I tried using Scorching Zone.
Several wolves within the range were instantly incinerated. I could feel that Scorching Zone had also become significantly more powerful. Perhaps they were quite intelligent, because as soon as a few of them died, the rest immediately turned tail and fled.
Bzzzzzzzt!
I also ran into a Giant Wasp whose entire body was covered in ice crystals. It flew toward me with a deafening roar, sounding like a helicopter taking off. The stinger felt particularly dangerous, suggesting it was venomous.
I didn't give it a chance to get close and fired a Flame Strike. The wasp was surprisingly agile; it even managed to dodge a few fireballs with mid-air evasive maneuvers. It couldn't dodge the rest, however, and was eventually blown out of the sky.
Yetis, Ice Spirits, wolves, giant wasps...
The monsters appearing in Zone 4 were roughly of this variety. As expected, they all seemed to be around level 40. The level was one thing... but the overall hunting difficulty of the monsters felt trickier than in Zone 3.
Of course, it wasn't a problem for me, but other climbers would likely suffer quite a bit if they entered Zone 4 recklessly.
‘I should post this information too.’
For the sake of public safety, I decided to organize the information on the Zone 4 monsters and post it on the Communication Window.
I checked the Zone 4 gauge.
[Zone 4 (0.1%)]
The monster density felt even lower than in Zone 3. I wanted to try challenging the Zone 4 boss before attempting the 6th floor...
‘Will it be possible?’
The Zone 4 boss would be at least level 80. A one-shot kill with Destruction Ray... surely even that would be a stretch for a Zone 4 boss?
My current level was 60. Trying to cheese a boss at least 20 levels higher with a simple click was, admittedly, a bit shameless. Besides, I wasn't even sure if I could fill the gauge before it was time to challenge the 6th floor.
I suppose I'd have to wait and see. At any rate, that was enough for the first scouting mission. Time to head back.
* * *
By the time the Zone 3 boss appeared, rumors had already spread that Saram123 would be challenging it.
Naturally, people were anxious. Everyone knew Saram123 was strong enough to kill the level 60 Wang Kai in an instant, but surely a boss would be different.
However, as if mocking those anxieties and worries...
The rumor that Saram123 had one-shotted the Zone 3 boss spread like wildfire. While people were astonished, they were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
Similarly, the governments of various countries, who had been watching the situation with bated breath, also felt a weight lift off their shoulders. Saram123's life was effectively the life of the world. If he were to engage in even the slightest bit of risky behavior, it was a threat on the level of someone hovering their finger over a nuclear launch button.
In any case, Saram123 was far more absurdly powerful than people thought, and the Zone 3 boss fight ended safely without a single casualty. The fact that Saram123 posted information about the Zone 4 monsters afterward was a bonus.
For the top-tier climbers who would be entering Zone 4 for the first time, this information was worth its weight in gold. Monster byproducts were a resource as important as mana stones—especially from new monsters whose composition and components were unknown.
On the 5th floor, hunting in Zone 4 began to take place little by little, and reality outside the Tower flowed busily as always.
* * *
[Nightmare]
Personnel: 279,559
Time Limit: 64 days 2 hours 33 minutes 11 seconds
Floor Reached: 5th Floor
Time flowed quickly. The time limit for the Nightmare difficulty was drawing closer.