Combat Power 271,750
I didn't swallow the orbs hastily, taking my body's limits into account. I gave it plenty of time to recover, consuming them slowly in batches. Every time I put an orb in my mouth and swallowed, I could feel my body growing stronger. Sensing the changes, I thought to myself.
Resistance is building slowly. If it wasn't just my imagination, the mid-grade orbs seemed to induce resistance more slowly than the lower-grade ones I'd eaten before. Were they worth the price tag—over ten times more expensive? Maybe my Digestion Ability was simply more effective against higher-grade orb resistance. Or perhaps it was all in my head.
"...Hoo."
After absorbing around 3,000 mid-grade orbs, I took a short break to catch my breath. Eating orbs wasn't something to take lightly. I opened the Gallery to check the time—two hours had flown by already. I wondered how much my combat power had risen. Pulling up my status window revealed the number.
"...Whoa, fuck."
It was an absurd number. My combat power had skyrocketed to a whopping 78,000. Was it even possible to grow this strong in one go? I clenched my fist tightly.
Muscle fibers bulged, and my arm felt heavy with power. I stepped outside the cave and stomped the ground hard—cracks spiderwebbed across the floor, and my viewpoint shot up as I leaped.
"Wow."
This was the power of 78,000 combat power. Even lightly clenching my fist sent explosive force surging through my fingertips.
It feels like just yesterday I was at 17 combat power on the 103rd floor... And now 78,000 already. It was dizzying to think I still had over 10,000 mid-grade orbs left.
"Still, there are way more people stronger than me."
The thought sent a chill down my spine. Just how monstrous were they? Especially that Big Hand Floater who'd casually dropped 7 million gold on content fees... From the vibes, there were probably even stronger folks out there.
"This place is seriously insane."
I turned my gaze to the central area of the 98th floor. The Gate Bound was still coiled up like a snake, deep in slumber. Ideally, it'd keep sleeping until I'd finished growing, planned my strategy, and was right on the verge of ambushing it. Hell, if it slept forever, even better.
I settled back into the cave and resumed eating orbs. Each swallow brought a clear transformation to my body. I savored the thrill of getting stronger, focusing intently. This time, I ate a bit faster—3,000 orbs in just an hour and a half. About 7,700 left, give or take; it was a rough estimate.
I poked my head out to check on the Gate Bound, then opened the Gallery for a breather—without stopping the orb-munching, of course. The feed was flooded with posts from floaters and high-nicks searching for me.
NoPension seemed to be scalping mid-grade orbs this time.
Even excluding white orbs, same-grade orbs had price differences. Red and blue were pricier, yellow cheaper. Probably because yellow cognition orbs felt less impactful in real fights.
Scavenger had just caught wind of my situation.
Scavenger. She'd been helping me from the start. I didn't want to see her get pissed like she did on the 99th floor. So, while munching orbs, I dropped a quick reply.
She responded instantly.
One at a time felt too teasing. Glancing at the comments, I swallowed two, then three at once. My body had adapted; the growth pains were milder now. I could handle multiples easily.
Almond Water? Come to think of it, she'd mentioned it back on the 100th floor too.
I kept eating orbs while watching their chat.
The floaters started piling on Scavenger. It pissed me off, so I cut in sharply.
"Is this idol power?" I shuddered briefly, then got straight to the point.
Her answer blew past my wildest guesses.
Such a convenient item existed? I froze for a second.
A surge of intense curiosity hit me.
By the time I'd finished the orbs while scrolling, resistance had spiked hard after the 10,000 mark—last ones barely bumped combat power by 1. Eating's a chore too. I clenched and unclenched my hand. Muscles responded with heavy power. Inhaling deeply, my body expanded further. And combat power—
270,000.
"......"
The number hit me with a strange shiver. "...Hoo." But what surfaced next was the monster I'd soon face. Minimum 50,000, maximum 500,000 combat power. A beast with a 50k-500k variance. My stat sitting smack in the middle stirred odd relief and tension.
At least more manageable than Orkan.
I stepped out, did some light jogs in place. Applying force like usual felt smoother than before—like freely tensioning and releasing a rubber band. I could set power boundaries effortlessly. Body coordination had improved too.
I checked the Gate Bound. Still sleeping. Then I inspected my gear, reviewed Gallery info, and mentally simulated the fight. Prep complete.
"...Hoo."
Oh, right before heading out. I posted a proof shot of the whole layer.
Comments flooded in instantly from high-nicks and floaters. But one stood out.
Gate Bound. A massive serpent form, but no ordinary snake. Wings folded on its back, dark blue scales swallowing light like the night sky. Scattered blue glowing spots like constellations trailed afterimages with every shift.
Hoo—.
I deep-breathed, scanning its body. Still coiled, swimming in dreams.
Piiiing—.
Its long breath echoed.
...Here goes.
I unraveled mana threads, wrapping them around my rapier. Steadying my breath and stance, I unleashed Bolt Haul—Swift Insight Thrust.
Whoosh.
First strike. A lightning-sharp thrust pierced the scales near its neck.
Stab—.
Perfect trajectory. Short but solid feedback. But as it pierced the dark blue scales, the beast stirred.
Kiiiiaaaaa—!
An ear-shattering roar tore air and earth. I braced with both feet planted. Ears rang, breath shook, but I didn't waver this time.
Manageable.
Roar faded; it swam through air, lashing its massive tail. The sharp snake tail plunged like lightning.
I twisted aside.
Boom!
The ground where I'd stood cratered, dirt exploding everywhere. I Swift-ed, kicked off, and lunged blade-first at its scales.
Clang.
Unlike the first strike sans mana, the blade bounced. Palm scraped, shock rippled to my shoulder.
Fuck.
Landing and backing off, it S-twisted its body. What—then it shot forward like a bullet.
Insane.
Instead of dodging, I charged in. As dark blue scales filled my vision, I planted and leaped.
Stabbing toward its back, I thought: Won't pierce like this.
Plain thrust couldn't breach this monster's scales. Needed mana infusion. But in combat, unraveling threads was too slow. Couldn't use properly. So I had a planned workaround.
Swift—.
I focused Swift in my dantian. Nerves twitched; mana threads unraveled fast. Sparks leaped, coiling the rapier.
I stabbed with the compressed-mana blade.
Stab.
Scales pierced; it roared.
