Chapter 27: Gongcheongseokyu
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 27: Gongcheongseokyu
The taste was awful, but its effect was certainly worthy of the name Gongcheongseokyu.
A massive performance boost to a random skill.
This was a pretty big deal.
So much so that the name Gongcheongseokyu felt entirely deserved.
【Skills】
「Dragon's Claws」「Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps」「Small Heavenly Cycle」「Ten-Poison Immunity」「Baekran Mental Cultivation Method」「Gecko Wall-Walking Art」
「Tail Severing LV9」「Sprint LV8」「Crisis Detection LV7」「Tail Severing LV2」「Eyes of the Wild LV2」「Cold Blood LV1」「Predation LV1」「Gourmet LV2」「Hardened Skin LV1」...
Enhancing performance was probably the same as raising its level.
Since it was a massive boost, I could even hope for something to go from level 1 to level 10.
There might even be cases where a skill evolves entirely.
But what if it landed on one of my martial arts, which don't have skill levels?
With skills, you can confirm they've gotten stronger when their level increases.
But martial arts were different. They had no levels, so there was no systematic way to tell how much stronger they'd become. It was harder to increase their power compared to skills.
In that case, what if a martial art's performance was massively enhanced?
There would be no bigger jackpot.
I knew what I had to do.
I brought my hands together.
With a reverent heart.
I prayed.
Please, a martial art.
Not something like Hardened Skin.
...If it gives me something stupid like Tail Severing, it had better watch out.
Even enhancing the Small Heavenly Cycle would be quite useful.
If it opened the path to the Great Heavenly Cycle, I could expect tremendous growth.
The same went for Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps.
I was already putting it to good use, so there was no harm in it getting better.
Since it was a footwork technique, it even had the potential to develop into a leg art later on.
The Baekran Mental Cultivation Method wasn't a bad choice either.
It was the only internal energy cultivation method I had.
A heart method like a white egg.
It meant it could develop in any direction.
But the best one, of course, would be Dragon's Claws.
Dragon's Claws had become my main offensive technique. I'd even given up a higher weight class and evolved into a Crocodile Monitor just for this martial art. It was already devastatingly powerful, but if it got enhanced, I would literally become the king of lizards.
Ting.
A message appeared in the status window.
Something started spinning wildly, like a slot machine.
Please.
Please!
Only a martial art!
[「Ten-Poison Immunity」 evolves into 「Impervious to a Hundred Poisons」.]
I give up.
So much for martial arts.
...
I have the worst luck.
Of all the things it could have picked, it had to be Ten-Poison Immunity.
I mean, it's true that this one doesn't have a skill level either, but...
What a letdown.
Increased resistance to poison wasn't a bad thing, of course.
The problem was that it was useless right now.
If it had been any other martial art, the increase in power would have been immediately obvious.
It was all show and no substance.
[「Impervious to a Hundred Poisons」 reacts to 【Crocodile Monitor】.]
Huh?
[You have acquired 「Poison Fangs LV1」.]
Now, this changes things.
「Poison Fangs LV1」
Ejects poison from your fangs. You can spray poison continuously, but it will constantly consume MP.
MP Cost: 5.
My eyes sparkled.
Honestly, it didn't seem like an amazing skill.
It felt like the kind of starter skill you'd get if you went down a poison tech tree.
But I was grateful for it.
I desperately needed a skill like this.
Because I could finally make meaningful use of my overflowing MP.
The MP cost for severing my tail was 1.
The MP cost for using Sprint was 2.
My total MP was 50.
I'd have to sever my tail 50 times just to use it all up.
An increase in HP was immediately noticeable, but my MP felt no different from when I was a gecko. No matter how much it increased, I had no way to use it.
I'd felt like I was losing out, but with a skill like this, I could put it to good use.
Besides, it was a poison skill.
My species was a monitor lizard.
And now, I was a monitor lizard that used poison.
Wasn't that basically a Komodo dragon?
It was a little disappointing, though.
If I had learned Poison Fangs before evolving, I might have been able to evolve into a Komodo.
Of course, if I had come to this place before evolving, I likely would have been controlled by those mushrooms.
Should I give it a try?
I found a millipede corpse among the scattered bodies that was in relatively good condition and brought my fangs to it.
Crunch.
The moment my teeth bit into it, poison flowed from my fangs.
The initial MP cost was 5.
Then, a little more MP was consumed over time.
So that's how it works.
Not bad.
Not bad at all.
Not only could I activate it at will when biting, but I could also use Poison Fangs in mid-air.
Chiiik.
The green liquid dripping from my fangs evaporated the instant it hit the floor.
The floor looked slightly dented. The power wasn't bad either.
I couldn't be sure what kind of poison it was, but this would be a great help in catching the Piranha Caiman.
My plan to catch it was almost complete.
All that was left for me was to draw out more of my own strength.
A new body and a new skill.
I had to research a fighting style that suited them and raise my level as much as possible.
And right now, I was in a place where that was possible.
After the Titanoboa died, no one stood at the top of the Silver Dragon Cave.
That unbearable vacuum is now over.
I will stand at the top of the Silver Dragon Cave.
Residents of the Silver Dragon Cave.
A poison-wielding Crocodile Monitor.
How are you going to stop me?
A week passed.
A lot happened during that time.
Facing the two snakes that used Snake Fist was a story that still made my heart drop. They covered each other's blind spots, unleashing their Snake Fist from both sides. I was flustered time and again by their uncanny technique.
In particular, the Twin-Hand Snake Fist they used in the final moment, their bodies coiled around each other, was enough to make me flinch even now.
If I had been a Green Basilisk, I would have been helpless.
The Snake Fist was defeated by my Dragon's Claws.
The giant mantis that used Mantis Fist was no pushover either.
The sight of it freely wielding giant scythes larger than my feet reminded me of a master from the Unorthodox Faction. On top of that, it used its wings for mobility, making it anything but an easy opponent.
Overwhelming and vicious violence. If I hadn't lured it to a place with a low ceiling, I would have been its prey.
The Mantis Fist was defeated by a kick adapted from my Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps.
There were many other masters on par with them, but if I had to pick the most memorable, it would be the giant scorpion.
Just its two pincers, wielded as fluidly as twin swords, were a handful, but its venom-coated stinger tail pressed me like a spear.
It didn't end there. Its shell was so hard it felt like I was fighting a master among masters clad in armor.
The first time I fought it, I couldn't help but curse.
It's huge, and it has armor? Plus its front claws are sharp and it uses poison?
What kind of opponent is this?
Of course, my opponent probably thought the same thing.
A lizard that's huge, has armor, sharp front claws, and uses poison.
That's me.
【Crocodile Monitor LV5】
HP: 312/312
MP: 75/75
【Titles】
「Beloved by the Spider」
「Master of the Silver Dragon Cave」
Look at these incredible stats.
I'm overwhelmed with emotion.
It reminds me of when I was a Green Gecko LV1.
Back then, I was busy running away from a single Oviraptor.
Even as a Green Basilisk, I wouldn't have dared to fight one.
But now, the moment I spot one, it becomes a meal.
They say dinosaur meat tastes like chicken. I'm quite curious.
Something new has appeared under "Beloved by the Spider".
That's right. Master of the Silver Dragon Cave.
「Master of the Silver Dragon Cave」
You have conquered the Silver Dragon Cave, the cavern where a dragon hides. The creatures of the Silver Dragon Cave will no longer attack you first. The effect of Night Vision is enhanced, and you receive a bonus to various resistances.
I succeeded in conquering this demonic cave.
This medal was earned by defeating countless powerful foes in succession.
If I could brag about it, I would.
To be honest, I'm a little puzzled that I received this title.
I think I got it because the Titanoboa died, but the gap between first and second place is just too large. I thought there would be at least one creature with about half the Titanoboa's strength.
...Baek Yeon-yeong. That woman must have done something before she left.
Seeing as she took the Titanoboa's inner core, did she hunt down all the other strong beasts here too?
There's no way to know. And it has nothing to do with me.
What's important is that I got this title thanks to it.
I have become the master of the Silver Dragon Cave in both name and reality.
Even if I were to sleep here on my back, no one would dare touch me.
...That's not to say I'm just going to lie around scratching my belly.
I've trained as much as I possibly can in this Silver Dragon Cave.
【Skills】
「Dragon's Claws」「Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps」「Small Heavenly Cycle」「Impervious to a Hundred Poisons」「Baekran Mental Cultivation Method」「Gecko Wall-Walking Art」
「Tail Severing LV10」「Sprint LV10」「Crisis Detection LV7」「Poison Fangs LV5」「Tail Severing LV2」「Eyes of the Wild LV2」「Cold Blood LV1」「Predation LV1」「Gourmet LV3」「Hardened Skin LV3」...
I've definitely gotten stronger.
Of course, a head-on fight with the Piranha Caiman might still be difficult.
I'm definitely outmatched in terms of weight class.
However, I don't think I'll lose.
I looked down at the man-made objects at my feet.
A straw doll and five-colored thread,
and the new poison art I just acquired.
These are the keys to catching the Piranha Caiman.
All preparations are complete.
It's time to go up.
Caiman.
Your adversary has returned.