The Black Mage's Final Laboratory
A massive boulder loomed before him.
But Mu-hyuk acted against their expectations.
Suddenly, he took a massive step forward. His body shot ahead naturally, closing the distance to the boulder as if he were about to crash into it.
Whoosh.
Of course, no collision occurred.
Mu-hyuk, who hadn't glanced at the chat window once since logging in, couldn't care less about the reactions from the Illusion TV audience.
He simply pulled a lantern from his inventory the moment he stepped inside.
At that instant, faint pings echoed in rapid succession, shattering the silence.
Ping, peep.
The black mage's final laboratory was rigged with traps from the very start.
He remembered that clearly and had prepared accordingly, fully shielding himself behind his shield.
But only after some time did he realize he didn't even need to block.
Armor Knight 3 has taken damage.
Armor Archer 7 has taken damage.
Bone Sword 5 has taken...
The skeletons in front had taken the hits for him.
Numbers are indeed overpowering.
Checking the floor nearby, he found nine slender iron needles scattered about.
Any player unaware of the trap would have likely eaten the attack.
Pretty dangerous.
But Mu-hyuk just chuckled lightly.
Easy for me.
Using summons made bypassing trap sections a breeze.
"Charge."
The skeletons advanced.
Pew, boom, thud!
Various traps revealed themselves, warping the space.
The skeletons caught in them saw their HP plummet to zero and get forcibly dismissed, but he didn't mind.
Even if they all despawned, he could resummon them after a cooldown anyway.
Just repeat the process and stroll through the trap zone at leisure.
Just then, all the skeletons had been forcibly dismissed.
Mu-hyuk sat down, pulling out disposable crafting tools from his inventory.
He swung the hammer with practiced ease.
Clang.
A sword took shape in an instant.
Mu-hyuk wore a dissatisfied expression.
Again.
He forged another sword.
Plenty of time left.
Clang, clang!
Only after crafting five did he stop.
Finally got one decent one.
He immediately listed it on the auction house.
In the meantime, Mu-hyuk stowed the disposable tools and pulled out cooking utensils.
Then it happened.
Amid the confusion, one comment rose above.
That settled most complaints.
Yeah, ranker.
A top ranker at that—one not seen every day. That was Mu-hyuk.
The resummoned skeletons pressed forward again.
Clatter.
Traps poured down once more.
Pop, boom! Thud!
Arrows and flames were standard, boulders dropped from above, spears flew, floors collapsed sending skeletons plummeting.
The ground turned to quicksand sucking some in, others were yanked skyward only to perish.
But traps had limits.
When a few ran dry, Mu-hyuk sauntered through leisurely.
Another trap appeared.
Mu-hyuk sent the summons first again. The trap zone was longer than expected, but he never rushed.
When skeletons died, he'd craft and cook to pass time until resummon cooldown ended.
After repeating this three more times, he spotted an iron door at the passage's end.
At the iron door, Mu-hyuk hesitated to reach out. He'd been casual through the traps, but now tension gripped him.
Chimeras are in here.
He worried if he could hunt them.
"Hm."
Hesitating after coming this far was ridiculous.
I came prepared for this.
Steeling himself, he extended his hand.
Creeeak.
The grating screech shattered the quiet, and from the widening gap, a bony, withered hand shot out.
Gasp...!
Startled, Mu-hyuk twisted away, slashing upward with his sword.
Scraaape.
Regrettably, the frail hand didn't sever. So tough—what was it made of? His hand even went numb.
He urgently ordered an Armor Knight charge, but the hand was faster.
Pulled by the force, Mu-hyuk flew through the air.
Crashing through the door onto the floor, he twisted to face it.
A mummified thin body. Long, slender arms and legs.
Humanoid shape, but the skin was anything but human.
Chimera Corps.
No time to marvel at the grotesque form. Its arm moved.
He hurriedly shielded his front.
Bam! Boom!
The relentless slams dizzied him.
"Armor Knight, Armor Cavalry—charge!"
Skeletons rushed in, striking it, but dealt negligible damage. It still hammered his shield.
Boom!
Tremendous destructive power.
-295 HP
-297 HP
His current defense was around 180.
Shield absorbed 68%, Grokion's Armor added 7% more.
Total shock absorption: 75%.
Yet damage neared 300. Spotting an opening, he cast Weakness on it.
-267 HP
Damage dropped a bit.
"Strength Increase, Stamina Increase!"
The skeletons powered up. The chimera, ignoring attacks before, flinched and retreated.
Grrr, grrr.
He scrambled up, coating an arrow with slow poison.
"Hoo, haa..."
Fired at it.
Slow Poison applied to Chimera a4.
Next, weakening paralysis and bleeding tears.
Weakening Paralysis applied to Chimera a4.
Tears of Bleeding applied to Chimera a4.
It slowed, weakened, HP ticking down.
For good measure, hallucinogenic poison too.
Chimera a4 falls into hallucination.
The chimera froze.
Mu-hyuk's gaze turned fierce.
Time to pay it back.
"Armor Mage 1, 3—Fire Wall."
Flames bloomed, walling it off.
"Armor Mage 2, 4, 5—Ice Fist."
Three ice fists plummeted from above, crushing it.
"Armor Mage 3—Wind Storm."
A gale shredded its flesh.
"Armor Mage 7—Thunder Spear."
Lightning pierced its skin. They combined in a massive explosion—but it wasn't over. Fourteen regular mages unleashed spells simultaneously.
Booom!
Blast wave filled his vision.
Whoosh.
Dust scattered everywhere.
The chimera charged.
So fast—everything obscuring vision vanished.
Wind St—!
No dodging it.
Thud.
Struck, Mu-hyuk hit the ceiling then slammed the floor.
"..."
Seeing his HP drop, he cast desperately.
Ex-Change.
Ex-Change
MP decreases, HP recovers.
MP drained, HP filled.
Springing up, the chimera was already upon him.
Thud.
Another hit sent him flying.
This bastard...!
HP nearly gone again. Hitting the ceiling might wipe the rest.
Even dazed, Mu-hyuk thrashed for survival.
Latent Power Ignition. Wind Step.
His ultimate: Latent Power Ignition.
HP and MP recover.
All abilities +15% for 5 minutes.
The world slowed.
Sloooow.
He twisted midair, regaining balance.
Kicked off the ceiling, landed using rebound.
Pushed off the ground, rocketing toward it.