Chapter 38
by lion“Huuu…”
Having suffered a rapid decline in stamina from the axe, and despite using a healing potion, immediately following it with a full-charge Crushing Blow meant the strain on his body was indescribable. It was at that moment that the ‘Spirit of the Mighty Bear’ came into play. If not for the unwavering endurance of the bear, he might have succumbed to the terrible pain and collapsed when his vitality was depleted by the axe.
Anyway…
As the burden on his body significantly eased thanks to the level up, Jun-sang felt a kind of pleasure and quickly got to his feet. He hadn’t checked yet, but two messages had arrived on his phone in quick succession with the level up. With no knowing when the quest completion might pop up, he had to move quickly.
First, he forced the large axe into his inventory. Then, he searched the fallen boss and armored monsters’ heads, obtaining three Seeds. He then thoroughly searched the boss’s location but couldn’t find anything else useful.
“Phew…”
As Jun-sang searched the cave, a strange thought suddenly crossed his mind. Compared to a completed quest, not many messages had arrived, and by time, they should have already been sent.
“…”
Only then did Jun-sang take out his phone from his pocket and check the messages. The first message, as expected, was about his level up, but the second message, contrary to Jun-sang’s thoughts, was not a message indicating the completion of the main quest.
Defend the Village.
- A cursed army, moved by the overflowing dark power, is invading the village. Protect the village until reinforcements arrive from the city. [Time Remaining: 53 hours 18 minutes]
- [Multiple individuals are participating in this quest simultaneously.]
- Status: Incomplete
(Hidden) Uncover the hidden secret in the Valley of Death. (Cooperation) -> Complete!
(Hidden) Subdue the master of the Valley of Death. (Solo) -> Complete!
(Hidden) Subdue the minions protecting the master of the Valley of Death. (Solo) -> Complete!
“This is…”
It wasn’t just one. The message showed that three hidden quests had been achieved. One ‘Cooperation’ quest and two ‘Solo’ quests. This meant Jun-sang would receive a total of three additional reward boxes, but the other three party members who did not participate in subduing the master of the Valley of Death would only receive the additional reward for the ‘Cooperation’ item. It would certainly be unfair if his reward was the same as the three people who remained in the village, considering all the hardship he went through to defeat the boss alone.
By the way…
He had naturally assumed that defeating the boss of the Valley of Death would immediately complete the quest, but it seemed he would have to wait until the relief forces arrived at the village.
Jun-sang first closed the quest message and then opened a Random Card.
Card Information
- Name: Counter
- Level: 1Lv
- Experience: 0
- Grade: Uncommon
- Category: Skill
- Growth: Normal (Large)
- Attribute: None
- Effect: Delivers a powerful counterattack in sync with the enemy’s attack timing. (Cooldown: 2 seconds)
- Cost: 10
- Seed: 3 slots
- It’s a powerful counterattack that combines the enemy’s attack power with your own and returns it.
“That’s good.”
Satisfied, he closed the card information, but another message arrived.
Congratulations!
- It is possible to combine Combo Cards.
- The currently combinable Combo Cards are as follows:
- Dark Martial Artist of the Underground Fighting Arena [View Details]
- If you wish to combine Combo Cards, press the corresponding number, or press ‘n’ if you do not wish to combine (1/n) _
“Oh…”
Surprised by the unexpected appearance of another Combo Card, Jun-sang quickly checked the details.
Dark Martial Artist of the Underground Fighting Arena
- This card combination contains the power of a great dark martial artist who built an undefeated legend in the blood-and-flesh-splattering underground fighting arena. This combo specializes in using martial arts skills.
- Combination Details:
- Frenzy, Counter, Shoulder Charge, Crushing Blow, (1 or more Beast Spirit Effects)
- Effect:
- Increased power for Counter, Shoulder Charge, Crushing Blow (Number of Spirit Effects X 100%)
- Reduced skill cooldown for Counter, Shoulder Charge, Crushing Blow by 50%
- Increased critical hit chance when using Counter, Shoulder Charge, Crushing Blow.
Unlike the Berserker, which provides an attack power increase to all general attacks, this one only amplifies the skill attack power of Counter, Shoulder Charge, and Crushing Blow. However, it had the advantage of significantly boosting skills that already exhibited immense destructive power. Especially in Jun-sang’s case, since he possessed two spirit effects – the Spirit of the Wolf and the Spirit of the Bear – the amplification effect was a staggering 200 percent. If he used Crushing Blow while using this Martial Artist Combo… it meant he could exert at least 1.5 times more power than when using the Berserker combo. Furthermore, considering the increased critical hit chance… it would be fair to say he could extract more than twice the power.
Additionally, the Martial Artist Combo had the advantage of being free from the Berserker’s penalty of not being able to equip armor. Of course, there was the problem that its effect was halved due to the Frenzy Card, but even considering that, this was a significant advantage. Jun-sang immediately emptied his card slots and equipped the new Martial Artist Combo. The one empty card slot, naturally, was for Bloodbath (R). This meant he couldn’t use Two-Hit Combo, but since all other attack skills belonged to the Martial Artist Combo, he could simply equip it as a dedicated attack skill for the Berserker combo.
As he equipped the cards, sure enough, another message arrived.
Congratulations!
- You have successfully combined the ‘Dark Martial Artist of the Underground Fighting Arena’ combo for the first time!
- In praise of your feat, you are granted the title ‘First Dark Martial Artist’.
- [Click here to check detailed title information.]
“Haha…”
Other conditions aside, the Beast Spirit effect was only possible by obtaining specific cards like Wolf’s Fury or Spirit of the Mighty Bear. Jun-sang quickly checked the title effect.
[First Dark Martial Artist]
- A title granted to the first person to successfully combine the ‘Dark Martial Artist’ combo.
- Effect: Overall speed increases by 2% for each Beast Spirit effect achieved.
- Titles are automatically applied upon acquisition.
“Oh…”
This meant that the overall speed increase effect accumulated by 2% for each Beast Spirit effect achieved, not just when the spirit effect was active. In other words, in Jun-sang’s case, since he had achieved both the Spirit of the Wolf and the Spirit of the Bear, he would retain a total of 4% overall speed increase even if he later unequipped these two effects.
“Good.”
Jun-sang reorganized his card slots to allow for easy swapping between three combos: Mad Dog, Berserker, and Martial Artist, each with their own shortcut commands.
Once the card organization was complete, Jun-sang took out the boss’s axe, which he had put back in his inventory, and inspected it again.
Item Information
- Name: Bloodsucker
- Level Restriction: None
- Type: Weapon
- Grade: Unique
- Attack Power: ?-?
- Effect: Activates Blood Explosion upon equipping.
- Seed: 5 slots
- Description: This is a monstrous weapon that always thirsts for blood. If you become intoxicated by its power and overuse it, you will never escape the darkness.
“Unique?”
Jun-sang was surprised by the item’s grade. So far, the highest grade among the cards and items he had obtained was the Two Plus Rare grade Bloodbath. But he had found a Unique grade item in an entirely unexpected place.
“Hmm…”
The damage display was just a question mark, and there was only one item effect: Blood Explosion. He tapped on Blood Explosion just in case.
Blood Explosion: Explodes the power latent in blood to unleash immense force.
- Consuming more vitality results in a higher amplification rate.
- Possessing more vitality increases the amount of vitality consumed at once.
- [WARNING!] If vitality is depleted to its limit by using Blood Explosion, the user dies instantly. In this case, the user transforms into an undead and falls into slavery to darkness.
“…”
Jun-sang felt a shiver down his spine. It wasn’t just about feeling tired… this was a weapon that could kill its user. As he was feeling perplexed, a new message suddenly arrived.
Congratulations!
- You have acquired your first Unique item!
- In praise of your feat, you are granted the title ‘First Unique Acquirer’.
- [Click here to check detailed title information.]
“…”
Jun-sang first checked the effect.
[First Unique Acquirer]
- A title granted to the first person to acquire a Unique item.
- Effect: Increased Seed acquisition rate.
- Titles are automatically applied upon acquisition.
As expected, the exact numerical value wasn’t provided, but the opportunity to acquire more Seeds was an excellent effect.
“Come to think of it…”
Jun-sang looked at the Guardian’s Emblem he was wearing. Its grade was Rare, but it was still a set item, and he had only now realized that he hadn’t received a separate title upon acquiring it.
“Does that mean someone completed a set item before me?”
It was a bit disappointing, but Jun-sang put the axe back into his inventory for now. While it might be fine for occasional use, carrying it around and using it constantly would be too burdensome. At least without a way to replenish vitality, like the boss here—for example, life drain or raising his regeneration rate to the necessary level—using it occasionally as a trump card seemed to be the best option.
Jun-sang then took out the three Seeds he had acquired here and began to examine them. The Seeds were a 7% Vampiric Seed for life drain, a 4% physical attack increase Physical Seed, and a 6% physical resistance Shell Seed. These Seeds had appeared before, but the previous ones had lower effects. For instance, the Vampiric Seed he had acquired from exploring the cave in the tutorial had only a 5% absorption rate.
Jun-sang equipped all three newly acquired Seeds to his Cat’s Eye Necklace.
“Phew…”
Having finished checking all the rewards and items, Jun-sang exited the cave with the wolves. He had originally intended to just quickly defeat the boss, but judging by the quest details, he had no choice but to endure for over 50 hours. The good news was that since the boss was defeated, the number of undead would no longer increase. After a moment of contemplation, Jun-sang decided to clear out the remaining undead in the valley, partly to test the increased Seed acquisition rate effect. He also planned to test the power of his newly acquired Martial Artist Combo while he was at it.
Looks like Jun-sang’s getting quite the power boost! What do you think he’ll encounter next in the Valley of Death?