Crunching Snow and Hidden Nests
Crunch— The pristine white snow blanketing the ice left clean footprints behind. The chill seeping into his skin felt no different from the real thing.
Screech—! As he headed downstream, a monster lurking at the path's edge approached.
[Ice Spider (Lv.33)]
A spider emitting a translucent blue glow from its entire body. Its target bore fangs laced with frostbite poison. The creature's red eyes glared at Hanbit. Its razor-sharp legs were more than enough to shred enemies.
Hanbit extended his hand and murmured an incantation.
"Fire Burst."
Boom—! The fireball hit on impact, erupting in a massive explosion. By the time the flames scattered, the spider was gone.
*Ding—*
[You gained 300 EXP.]
-Look at that stingy EXP lol
-Field mobs are always trash.
-But why's a 2-rank skill this weak?
-Bug?
-Bug devs, come out already.
-Newbie viewers are so cute.
The newly arrived viewers reacted with shock. The regulars were flexing a bit, but even they didn't know the truth. This power was just one result of his past experiences manifesting as a title.
"Hmm, no drop, as expected."
Nothing lay where the monster had vanished—not even the most basic materials came that easily.
Shing—! Hanbit drew his sword while scanning the surroundings. He immediately activated Attribute Manifestation.
Whoosh—! The preheating began with intense heat. Watching it, a question occurred to Hanbit. He promptly opened his title list.
[55 Regressions’ Recorder]
The recorder's accumulated experiences are unlocked.
1. Proficiency in all experienced skills builds at an extreme rate. Performance is boosted based on experience level.
2. All spirit affinity is activated, and effects from spirit power increase exponentially.
3. Freed from equip/use conditions for all experienced items. (Stat gap performance penalties remain but are minimized.)
4. Unlocked (Keyword: NPC)
'Proficiency is building, alright.'
The title's effects were limited to his experiences. But the recently acquired hidden skill Attribute Manifestation was something even Hanbit was using for the first time. And since it was a spirit skill, both effects 1 and 2 applied fully.
Whoosh—! Even though it wasn't a skill he could spam, changes were already noticeable. Not just stat boosts—with full proficiency, it might pack serious power.
'Sylph can barely materialize anymore.'
Since gaining Attribute Manifestation, the spirit's wind had naturally taken a support role. He missed the cheerful bird chirps, but these were unstable times. He'd have to thank Sylph from the heart.
"Let's keep going."
Hanbit resumed walking downstream. Avant-garde took the lead on any monsters they encountered, clearing them swiftly. After about ten minutes, they reached a deeply sunken ice floor.
"This is what you were aiming for. I've passed by here a few times myself."
Avant-garde, the thorough traveler, had been here before. But there was nothing special beyond the scenery.
Hanbit examined the ice floor and drew his sword.
"This world has things called nests."
"Nests... you mean habitats for flying monsters?"
"No, not limited to monster types. They're places where monsters unnaturally spawn and grow."
"Pardon? Places like that exist...?"
Whoosh—! At that moment, wind mixed into the pale blue flames rising from Hanbit's sword. He slid slowly onto the ice and said,
"Come on down."
"Got it!"
Avant-garde quickly caught on and followed. A bit further in, they stood at the center of the ice floor.
"It's dropping."
"Pardon?"
Crack—! In an instant, Hanbit's pale blue sword plunged into the ice. Simultaneously, the preheated flames burst outward fiercely.
Whoosh—! The immense heat melted the thick ice layer in one go.
And then.
Whoosh—! The two atop it plummeted below.
"Woooah!"
Avant-garde let out a thrilled scream at the sudden drop. Meanwhile, Hanbit focused on the sight unfolding beneath his feet.
Slide— A vast underground space glowing with faint purple light. It was packed densely with tiny white grains.
"No way... all of these are ice spiders?!"
Avant-garde, mid-plunge in excitement, realized what the grains were. Easily hundreds—no, over a thousand.
-Holy shit
-So gross lmao
-This place existed?
-Who breaks the glacier floor?
-What's that silk blob?
-Cocoon?
The chat exploded at the horrifying scene. Some viewers spotted the white silk clumps. As someone said, those were cocoons, with dormant spiders surely breathing inside.
'More than last time.'
Including the cocoons, about two thousand spiders. Plenty for the special materials he wanted.
"Where should we land?!"
Still falling, Avant-garde scanned for a spot. But there was no need.
"Here we go."
"Pardon?"
Swish—! Gripping his sword two-handed, Hanbit steadied his stance.
'Just focus on firepower.'
Precision was pointless. He needed raw power—pure destructive force to wipe out hordes.
Whoosh—! Flames pushed nearly to their limit fused with raging winds, spewing a fierce heat blast. The optimal spot to hit the spiders and cocoons below. That was his target.
Whoosh—! Hanbit concentrated on the closing distance to the ground mid-fall. The moment he passed his mark.
Swoosh—! He swung his sword with full power.
Fwoosh—! A flame whirlwind erupted, blotting out his view. The descending attack blanketed the ground instantly.
Kaboom—!
"Urk!"
The backlash heat disrupted Avant-garde's form. Meanwhile, Hanbit, shoved sideways, kicked off the wall and dove lower.
"Fire Burst!"
Boom—! He'd already eyed the areas untouched by the whirlwind. Extending his hands toward key spots, Hanbit unleashed spell after spell.
Bang—! Boom—!
The nest was now a total mess, visibility zero.
"Fire Burst!"
Boom—! Hanbit finished his final incantation and halted the magic. Then came the result messages.
[EXP increased by 650,400.]
[Level up by 7.]
[7 stat points granted.]
-Wtf lmao
-650k?!
-How many did he kill?
-Like 2,100?
-This a nest?
[FieldDemon sponsored 10,000 won.]
[Camping nest entrance from today.]
[FlameCharisma sponsored 50,000 won.]
[Insane spot lol]
The massive EXP numbers lit up the viewers' eyes. Understandable excitement, but pointless hope.
Thud—! Landing on the floor, Hanbit surveyed the scorched wasteland of a nest.
He delivered the harsh truth.
"Destroyed nests can't be reused. Better to hunt for a fresh one."
-Where tho lol
-There are more, right?
-Buying nest coords.
-Sold.
-?
As the chat buzzed again, Avant-garde landed nearby.
"What a spectacle. Witnessing that many monsters swept away firsthand..."
His voice brimmed with excitement. No EXP for him thanks to the 100:0 split, yet his eyes shone purely.
Hanbit scanned where the monsters had vanished.
'There.'
Ice spiders dropped ordinary legs. Amid them gleamed a faint dark blue light—the telltale sign of Frozen Spider Fangs.
Tap—! Hanbit leaped over the rubble and landed right there. Pushing through the legs, he crouched.
[Frozen Spider Fangs]
Rank: 2
Grade: Hero
Description: Fangs possessed by only a rare few ice spiders. Handle with care—touching them wrong can cause freezing and paralysis.
The description matched Hanbit's knowledge perfectly. He pocketed it in his inventory and stood.
"Should grab some legs too."
Hundreds of legs from over two thousand ice spiders. Useful, but collecting them would take time.
"Ah, I'll handle that."
Avant-garde, following behind, pulled a pouch from his inventory. Hanbit looked mildly surprised.
"No way—that a Sandstorm Pouch?"
"You know it. Got it from a quest traveling the central regions. A godsend for farming."
The magic item Sandstorm Pouch. It sucked in duplicates of whatever you put inside. Essential for mass hunts like this.
-He has one of those?
-Travel streamer perks.
-Server probably has like 100.
-Leading groups snagged 'em early.
Slide—! Avant-garde fed a spider leg into the pouch. Winds immediately began sucking in the rest.
Whoooosh—!
All the legs in the nest flew into it in under a minute. Party share handled ownership naturally.
"Thanks. Made this quick."
"A gift."
Avant-garde offered the pouch without hesitation. Hanbit shook his head.
"Nah. I'll get something similar later. Helping till then is plenty."
"Even something like this exists? Understood. Assisting from the sidelines is my joy anyway."
With that, they exited via a hidden outer passage—easy enough.
"Didn't expect to snag one this fast. Got plans for the last one too?"
Avant-garde asked, glancing curiously at their path. The remaining material: Snow Flower Deer Leather. Unlike the fangs, it required hunting a special specimen.
"Got an idea, but it'll take time. Not something I spot right away."
"I'll scout as much as I can. Then..."
"Hold up."
Suddenly, a voice echoed from above the ravine. A hooded man peered down.
"You're..."
Recognition hit the moment he saw the face. Riwei, from the advance team in that private zone cave.