Mist Blade
As I said, Smoke possesses physical force.
Having physical force means you can touch it with your hands.
'And if you can touch it, you can step on it.'
That's why I decided to use the Smoke as a foothold to leap across the chasm.
I leaped over the chasm and gritted my teeth, manipulating the Smoke.
Flow out from my arm to beneath my feet.
And condense firmly under my feet so I don't fall.
With great difficulty, I stomped on the Smoke and leaped again, repeating the same command.
"Urgh……."
Something warm trickled down from under my nose.
My overloaded brain screamed that it couldn't process any more commands.
But there was no choice.
If it couldn't handle it, I'd just plummet to my death.
I bit down hard on the flesh inside my mouth to snap myself alert and issued the command again.
Like that.
Like that.
After dozens of leaps, I finally reached the other side of the chasm and collapsed powerlessly to the ground, tumbling across the floor.
"Huff, huff."
My mouth tasted metallic.
My face was sticky, and my brain throbbed like it was burning up.
I took ragged breaths and covered my face with my hand.
"……I made it across."
One tiny mistake, and I'd be dead for real.
I pulled it off, but I have no idea how.
I lay there spread-eagled, heaving for a long while, then slowly sat up.
"But something's off."
"Kkung?"
"Think about it. If that's the only exit, how did the Bloody Mantis and Earth Bear get over there?"
I'd assumed they walked in.
But that place was a dead-end with no exit.
How the hell did they get in?
"Did the tower creator just drop them in there?"
I smacked my lips and shook my head, forcing myself to stand with great effort.
I'd caught my breath somewhat, so it was time to move forward again.
"Let's go, Cheori. Gotta get out of here quick."
"Kkung."
How long had it been since I entered this cave? I already missed the forests of the Evergreen Tower I'd grown used to.
With that, I trudged along the path.
Hiding behind a rock, I peeked out at what lay ahead.
A single Bloody Mantis was blocking the passage.
I could just charge in and smash it with my fist.
Bloody Mantises were no longer a threat to me.
I knew that, but for some reason, I couldn't move.
'It's different from the ones I've seen so far.'
The Bloody Mantis standing there now.
An unidentified purple haze rose around it.
Because of that, its exoskeleton didn't look blood-red—it had a reddish-purple tint.
The appearance was the same.
But it was different.
It exuded a dangerous aura.
My instincts screamed not to approach.
That's why I couldn't bring myself to get close and just watched it from afar.
'Not showing any signs of moving.'
But even so, I couldn't wait forever.
This was a single path.
I couldn't pass unless it moved.
Yet the purple Bloody Mantis showed no sign of budging, even after a long time.
'Guess I have no choice but to fight it.'
Damn it.
No clue why, but I really didn't want to tangle with that thing.
The silver lining was that my body had recovered somewhat on the walk here.
I exhaled calmly and slowly rose from behind the rock.
That instant.
"Huh?"
It vanished.
The massive creature evaporated into thin air.
The moment I registered it.
"Kkung!"
Cheori's urgent cry came from behind me.
I gritted my teeth and instinctively ducked my head low.
A razor-sharp blade whistled past overhead.
Insane.
When the hell did it get here?
My eyes trembled wildly as I stared at the purple Bloody Mantis now right behind me.
It tilted its triangular head sideways and slammed down its foreleg toward me.
'Can't dodge……!'
I wanted to evade, but my stance had collapsed—I couldn't.
Only one option.
I threw my fist at the descending foreleg.
That moment.
"Guh……!"
A pain like my skin melting—except my right arm—engulfed my body.
My right arm wobbled for a split second.
That threw off my punch's trajectory, sending me ricocheting off in a weird direction.
Thud, thud, thud, smack!
I bounced across the ground several times before crashing hard into the wall.
It hurt.
My back, my whole body.
Especially my right shoulder, which hadn't transformed into the Black Dragon—it burned viciously.
I panted raggedly and gingerly touched my right shoulder with my left hand.
"……Fuck."
The flesh had melted.
Not figuratively—literally melted away.
Looking closer, it wasn't just my right shoulder.
Every part of me that had faced it was slightly corroded.
"Kirik."
Step, step.
The creature approached me, pinned against the wall.
Everything the purple energy leaking from its body touched melted away.
I let out a hollow laugh at the sight.
"What the hell is that?"
Up close, it was clear.
It was definitely a Bloody Mantis.
Just wrapped in that unidentified purple energy.
And that energy made it several times stronger than a normal one.
I fixed my gaze on the purple-energy-clad Bloody Mantis and slowly rose to my feet.
It hadn't been standing still out of laziness earlier.
It had sensed me long ago and was just waiting for me to move.
"……."
It's coming.
As I stood, I caught its body trembling faintly.
I had to react.
React and counter with a punch.
But.
'Then what?'
I'd felt it when my fist met its foreleg earlier.
Its exoskeleton was several times tougher.
That hard? No one-shot like with regular Bloody Mantises.
At least two hits needed.
'Will my body hold out that long?'
Pain? I could endure.
Compared to burning to death hundreds of times, this was nothing.
What worried me was that the Evergreen Tower had no revives.
I'd collapse before landing a second hit.
And then it wouldn't just be me dying—Cheori, coiled around my neck, would die too.
"Kkung!"
It's coming.
At Cheori's short cry, I hurled myself to the right.
"Guh……!"
Boom!
The Bloody Mantis slammed down, shaking the ground.
The moment my right foot—still in my shoe—touched the faint purple energy leaking from it, excruciating pain shot up.
Gritting my teeth, I clenched my fist mid-air.
Close range no good? Then long range.
Smoke - Mist Shadow
Kraka-boom!
A swirling vortex of fists shot out.
With its foreleg embedded in the hard stone floor, the Bloody Mantis took a direct hit from the black mist vortex.
But.
"That damn energy……!"
The purple energy blocked the vortex before it could reach the Bloody Mantis.
In the end, not a scratch on it.
I ground my teeth and launched myself again.
Once more, it smashed down where I'd been.
Luckily, no part of me touched its energy this time.
But the hasty movement sent flashing pain up from my right foot.
"Hoo, hoo."
Grrrrrind.
It hurt.
My body hair stood on end.
I heaved breaths and scraped the cave wall with the Black Dragon's claw.
A light groove etched into the clay-like wall.
Close range? Obviously not.
Long range? No sign it'd work either.
What the hell was I supposed to do?
My mind raced.
Every method to break this situation flashed through, then discarded.
No good.
No good.
No good.
Every idea led to one end.
'Death.'
My brain was accepting this situation as 'I'm gonna die.'
That's why.
"Bullshit."
I smacked my melted right shoulder with my left hand.
Blood sprayed everywhere.
The moment a drop hit my face, my mind cleared.
Die?
Me? Why?
I hadn't achieved my dreams yet.
More days ahead than behind.
And if I lost here.
"I'd rather hand my body to the Black Dragon."
Better that than croak in a place like this.
I absolutely wouldn't die.
Even if I did, my grave wouldn't be here.
The master of the Twisted Underworld is satisfied with your indomitable spirit.
I can do this.
Nothing in my life has ever been easy.
So I can do this too.
I calmly watched the charging Bloody Mantis.
Straight at me again.
Guess that's all it knew.
I dodged backward and eyed the wavering purple energy.
That energy blocked everything.
Without it, taking this thing down would be easy.
So then.
"Just rip it apart."
Why hadn't I thought of that?
I immediately spread my right hand wide.
Then, in an instant, I extinguished the Smoke rising from it.
"Kiik."
The Bloody Mantis charged, sensing its chance.
I ignored it.
I just glared piercingly at my right hand, eyes wide.
'Compress it.'
Smoke has physical force.
The denser the mist, the stronger the force—enough to stand on.
Then.
'Limit the Smoke emission point to my nails.'
If I made the Smoke outlet tiny from the start.
And it erupted at full volume anyway.
Wouldn't the power intensify?
My head throbbed like it would split.
No room for respite—every nerve focused here.
One second felt like a minute.
One minute like an hour.
In that brief yet endless time, the mantis's foreleg smashed down.
And from the tips of my five spread claws, faint black mist began to leak.
The derivative technique of 'Smoke' , 'Mist Blade' has been created.
Mist Blade
Creates an extremely compressed, sharp, and precise blade of mist.
Dark lines of inky black began forming over my sharp claws.
Smoke - Mist Blade
I gritted my teeth and swung my right hand viciously.
My right hand slashed through empty air.
Then, five black lines—no longer misty—followed swiftly along the swing's path.
"Kik?"
Five black lines trailing at razor-close intervals.
The Bloody Mantis ignored them lightly and charged me.
That prey's swing wouldn't land.
Thinking that, it didn't stop its foreleg from smashing toward the unmoving target.
But it overlooked one thing.
Those deceptively ordinary black lines wouldn't stop for anything in their path.
Not even the purple energy that blocked attacks.
"……!"
Shrick!
A hollow slicing sound echoed.
The five blades from my claws shot fiercely along the swung arc.
They pierced the purple energy.
Sliced through the Bloody Mantis's exoskeleton.
And vanished only after carving deep gashes into the cave wall.
I panted raggedly and stared at the Bloody Mantis halted right in front of me.
It stopped.
The endless purple energy pouring from it suddenly dwindled.
Soon, five diagonal lines etched across its torso.
"……I win."
And with that, it crumbled completely.
My legs gave out, and I slumped to the floor.
My head felt numb.
Even staying conscious was a struggle.
I focused only on deep breaths as my vision blurred, staring up at the ceiling.
Then.
"Who's there?"
A somewhat familiar voice rang in my ears.
"You—you're that human who vanished a week ago?!"
With the sound of that voice's owner rushing toward me as the last thing I heard.
"Wai—human! Snap ou—"
I lost consciousness.