Army of Chimeras
The chat room's energy spiked even higher.
Current viewers: 12,371.
The scene of him battling the chimera had left many in shock.
But some of the criticism vanished with the next development.
Of course, it didn't end there.
At that moment, the chat's frenzy died down.
Those watching via VR had taken their hands off their keyboards.
They had no choice.
With Latent Power Activation boosting his physical stats, he'd unleashed Wind Step. Anyone viewing that in VR—especially in view mode—wouldn't even breathe.
Space warped, the ceiling came into view, and suddenly he landed on the floor. As he rocketed forward, Mu-hyuk's sword wavered.
Storm.
Then crimson energy surged up around him.
Cross Slash.
In an instant, he closed the distance to the chimera.
Everything around him sharpened into crystal clarity.
His body slicing through the agonizingly slow space.
A euphoric high, as if this power could conquer anything.
But soon, an inexplicable dread welled up.
Swish.
The chimera's fist shot out.
Just dodge, right?
Insane...!
Everything moved in slow motion—except one thing. The beast was still fast.
The silver lining: it wasn't as untouchable as before.
He ducked and twisted, slipping past the punch with room to spare. Charging in, he grazed by and slashed.
Slash.
He tore into its impossibly tough hide, landing a solid wound.
He wheeled around for another strike, but the chimera was faster.
Its leg whipped out. Mu-hyuk, already low, barked an order.
"Burtan, Ki Wave!"
He dodged erratically until Burtan moved.
Kieeeaaah!
The Ki Wave fired just in time, buying breathing room.
Mu-hyuk circled behind and slashed wildly. At the same time, he commanded the Armor Archers and Bone Bows to unleash volley after volley.
With his skeletons' stats boosted too, they had to pull out all the stops.
ArmorArcher1 deals 257 damage.
BoneBow7 deals 145 damage.
BoneBow8...
Stacked up, it wasn't negligible.
Mu-hyuk's strikes hit even harder.
Deals 311 damage.
Additional 556 damage.
The Storm effect was tremendous.
Storm, Cross Slash.
Chaining skills amplified the power.
Storm, Storm.
Without skills, just Storm alone was devastating.
Whoosh.
As the Ki Wave effect faded, the chimera lunged with another fist.
Still deadly. Without Latent Power Activation's boost, even mid-Wind Step, he'd have eaten the hit.
A truly monstrous beast.
What level even is this thing...?
The question was fleeting.
Focus on the fight. Balancing on a tightrope with the beast, Mu-hyuk's eyes sharpened.
The mages' cooldowns were up.
He fell back urgently, sending a swarm of Armor Knights forward.
As the chimera smashed them, Mu-hyuk pulled a Veil Potion from his inventory.
Flash.
He coated his blade and closed in.
The sensation of slicing flesh.
Steals enemy's vision for 3 seconds.
The potion took effect; the beast flinched.
ArmorMage1 first.
Including its exclusive Fire Wall, 21 spells erupted.
Blinding lights filled the air, crashing into the chimera with devastating force.
-------!
The 3 seconds ended with that barrage.
But one more remained.
Amid the spells, he'd coated arrowheads with Confusion Potions. Now, Mu-hyuk's arrow pierced the chimera's hide.
Steals enemy's body control for 3 seconds.
The chimera staggered like it was drunk. Armor Knights and Mu-hyuk's sword cleaved down from above.
Mu-hyuk chained Storm and Cross Slash.
The Armor Knights delivered heavy blows.
Followed by Armor Archers' Power Shots and Bone Bows' barrages.
Thud, thwack-thwack.
Three seconds wasn't enough to unleash everything.
His hands moved again, slashing, rending, then thrusting deep.
Still not dead.
Kiiiiiee—
Mu-hyuk smirked at the reactivating chimera.
Slower now.
Damage had piled up substantially.
His instincts screamed: press now to finish it.
Mu-hyuk didn't hesitate, closing in.
Hup!
With more leeway to read its moves, he struck.
*
The audience swelled by another 2,000 in that brief span, hitting over 14,000.
Newcomers chatted, but veterans ignored them in the eerie lull.
Just then, Mu-hyuk's blade sank true into the beast's neck.
Thud, roll.
The brutal five-minute clash ended.
Mu-hyuk was probably the same.
No—even worse.
"Hoo..."
He exhaled deeply, then hurriedly activated Corpse Dissection.
As he swapped the fresh bones into his skeletons, exhaustion crashed over him.
Latent Power Activation duration ends.
All stats reduced by 20% for 30 minutes.
The penalty.
Thud.
He slumped down for a breather.
Pull out?
Or push deeper?
No more Latent Power Activation.
But he could Revive the chimera as an ally.
At 60% power, it'd still be massive firepower.
Two of them?
Without the activation, no chance.
Still, greed tugged.
Hmm, think a bit more.
His hand drifted to his inventory on instinct.
Their predictions missed the mark.
Mu-hyuk decided to test a little further.
Revive.
As the skill activated, deep furrows creased his brow.
"Ha, damn it."
A curse slipped out.
Idiot.
Why didn't I think of this?
This was a lab, right?
Dead chimeras must litter the place.
Souls fade after time, but in a special space like this, they might linger. He'd overlooked it.
Detected 5 lingering monster souls nearby.
How many to revive?
Five. A sigh escaped at the prompt.
If I'd used it sooner?
The first chimera would've been easy.
He shook his head.
Better late than never.
He chose two.
Summon rejected due to level gap. MP cost increases for forced summon.
MP required per soul: 1,000.
Force summon using original monster bodies? [Yes/No]
He'd expected it, so he hit Yes without flinching.
2,000 MP used.
Two chimeras materialized ahead—grotesque in a different way from the last, but it didn't matter.
As long as they packed punch.
Forward.
With the two chimeras and remaining skeletons, he pressed on.
Kihaaaak!
They soon met another. This time, no need for Mu-hyuk to fight directly.
The two revived chimeras and skeletons sufficed.
Still, he stayed vigilant.
This was the main episode for a reason.
Solo? Impossible.
But he'd delve as deep as possible.
For the sweet rewards awaiting.