The front line of Flans were blasted by the torrent of energized water, forced backwards into their companions. They arrived just in time to be struck by a second bolt of lightning that fell from the steadily shrinking storm cloud. With a harsh boom, the lightning crashed over all four Flans. They instantly started to crackle and steam. Alan was both surprised, and pleased when the energy surging between their rapidly crystalizing bodies began to Fuse the creatures together
Cutting off the Mana flowing into his Spells, [Shocking Water Cannon] ceased almost immediately, but an astonished Alan watched as the shrinking storm cloud was hesitant to leave. The Spell finally dissipated in a teeth-rattling roll of thunder, and a third and final [Lightning Strike], this one far more powerful than the others, rushed from the vanishing cloud and struck the melting pile of Flans.
The burst of forked lightning landed with such blinding ferocity that even Alan's recently upgraded eyesight was unable to handle the strain.
Remarkable your Spell (B)[Lightning strike] has grown to Level 3!
...
...
Remarkable! Your Spell (B)[Lightning strike] has grown to Level 5! +1 Free Status Point!
WARNING! You have been afflicted with the (Blind) Debuff. You are unable to see during the duration of Debuff.
Duration: 30 seconds
Left with a Debuff and unable to see, Alan breathed in a deep, calming breath. Instead of following his first instinct and panicking, he began channeling Mana into [Healing Fog]. Once wrapped in the Spells calming embrace, Alan activated [Mana Perception] and was amazed at the new lens through which he now viewed the world.
The dense fog of his healing Spell instantly became visible. Materializing before his eyes as a vibrant green haze. The dazzling sight somehow bypassed his blinded eyes, the image instead appearing within his mind.
At the forward boundary of the vibrant mist, Alan could 'see' where his Spell came into contact with the unmoving, mostly glassed-over Flans. The haze of [Healing fog] surrounded the monsters, yet never actually touched them, leaving an empty hole in his Spell.
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Mana perception] has grown to Level 5! +1 Free Status Point!
There was no time to wonder why his Spell had just gained two Levels. Alan chalked it up to his rapidly increasing Luck, and activated [Dual-casting]. Feeling his Skill take effect, he called up two [Spectral Firebolt]s. With [Mana Perception] still active, Alan was able to watch as his Mana tendrils performed their duties without issue, promptly forming into his Spells.
Not bothering to wait for his (Blind) Debuff to end, Alan instead sent his Spells hurtling into the obvious void within the boundaries of [Healing Fog]. Lost within the new sight provided by his [Mana Perception] Skill, he watched in wonder as the ghostly green flash of his [Spectral Firebolt] Spells flew through the vibrant haze of [Healing fog].
Penetrating the void within the mist, the Spells released an phantasmic shimmer as they slammed remorselessly into their unsuspecting targets. Engulfed in the resounding crash of glass shattering, a blinded Alan saw with his strange Mana vision as the void within his healing Spell disappeared. Swiftly filled in as though the surrounding green fog was in a hurry to fill in the gap.
A powerful wave of Experience rushed through Alan's body, invigorating his entire being. As his cells hummed in ecstasy, the expected notifications arrived.
Remarkable! Due to your unhealthy habit of losing your eyesight, you have acquired the (Common) Skill [Blind Resistance]!
(C)[Blind Resistance] Lvl 1- This Passive Skill provides a minor reduction to damage received from blinding attacks and minor chance to resist (Blind) Debuffs, and/or shorten Blind Debuff times.
Reduction to damage, chances to resist (Blind) Debuffs, and/or reduce (Blind) Debuff times increase with Skill level.
Remarkable! You defeated a Lvl 8 Juvenile Desert Flan! +1024 Exp gained!
Remarkable! You defeated a Lvl 8 Juvenile Desert Flan! +1024 Exp gained!
Remarkable! You defeated a Lvl 8 Juvenile Desert Flan! +1024 Exp gained!
Remarkable! You defeated a Lvl 8 Juvenile Desert Flan! +1024 Exp gained!
+4096 Total Experience gained!
Remarkable! You have reached level 8! +24 free status points! Evolution to next Evolutionary Stage (F) is still available. You have 26 unallocated status points.
1134 Exp to next Level!
When all was said and done, it had taken him less than a minute to finish the Flans.
Alan's vision returned in a disorienting pulse of light, interrupting his concentration which forcibly canceled his active Skills. Rubbing his eyes to clear his vision, he was only partially successful. Through blurry eyes, Alan was just in time to watch as the fused Flans, that were now nothing more than a pile of glass shards spattered with turquoise liquid, were absorbed into the floor.
Strangely, as Alan impatiently awaited his loot boxes, instead of the expected four chests, only a single chest arose from the sand. "What the Hells is this?" Alan complained while approaching the Loot Box. "Did I just get jacked by a murder dungeon?!"
At first glance, Alan had assumed it was just another (Common) loot box, but as his eyes fully focused, he was left gazing upon an ornate Silver-colored chest. Gilded with gold filigree, just the box itself seemed to be a legitimate treasure. Alan found he was unable to help himself and activated [Examine].
(Uncommon) Dungeon Loot Box- A Dungeon provided reward.
Placing his hand upon the glittering lid, Alan selected Yes and the chest slowly opened up, bathing Alan in a soothing silver light.
Caution! You have been bestowed the (Mana Regen) Buff. Mana Regeneration rate increased by 10% for duration of Buff.
Duration: 5 minutes.
"Holy shit! It gave me a Buff?!" Lost in the unexpected gift given by the silver radiance, it took Alan a moment to get around to inspecting the actual contents. Peering into the box, Alan's eyes opened wide with wonder.
Not only did he receive 200 (Silver Grade) Lotus coins, and a (Silver Grade) Tutorial Token, but resting in the corner of the box was a ring. Blending in so well with the bottom of the chest Alan would've passed it by if not for the list of rewards received currently blinking on his PSA Screen.
It was called the (Uncommon) Ring of the Phoenix' Rebirth. The name gave Alan pause, but after a quick activation of [Examine] the description left him dumbstruck.
(Uncommon) Ring of the Phoenix' Rebirth- Carved from the claw of a Phoenix by a Master Level Crafter, Upon reaching 1 Hp this ring will break, releasing potent Phoenix Flames that instantly restore the owner to 25% Health, while dealing severe fire damage to all surrounding enemies within 20ft of affected individual.
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"NOW THATS WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT!" Alan yelled, thrusting his fists into the air. Gently placing the ring onto his right pointer finger, he was at first disappointed, as the ring appeared far too small. However, as Alan watched in amazement the ring began to spin in place. Under Alan's surprised gaze, the ring resized itself, fitting snugly onto his finger. "Gotta love magic..." Alan remarked, walking over to collect the rest of his Loot.
Remarkable! Your Skill (B)[Walking] has grown to Level 4!
At the far end of the hall, nestled up against the wall sat another waist high pedestal supporting a (Common) treasure chest. Alan assumed this one had also been trapped. He was soon proven correct. Same as before, in between the chest and pedestal he located a small opening and knew it to be another exit point for projectiles. Peering at it under the effects of [Trap Detection] proved him right, as the anxious buzzing within his mind was unmistakable.
Remarkable! Your Skill [Trap Detection] has grown to Level 2!
Once again Alan found himself stupidly walking into a trap. He approached the iron box from the left side, scanning for signs of any hidden traps. He reached towards the chest with a trembling hand and brushed his fingertips lightly across the top. As expected, a metal spike shot out of the pedestal and flew across the room. With the trap dealt with, he cautiously pressed Yes and cringed as the lid opened. He unconsciously flinched when instead of the usual burst of cool grey light, several 6 inch long metal spikes were shot almost soundlessly from inside the depths of the chest.
The closest projectile shattered Alan's [Aqua Shield], plunging into and through his left shoulder just above his heart. Although it missed his major organs, it still left him with a fist-sized exit wound on his back. When the spikes hit the ceiling above the pedestal, they were imbedded almost halfway into the stone. The damage to the roof caused stone debris to briefly rain down upon his head. Grunting in pain, Alan turned to grab his punctured shoulder just in time for a fountain of thick, viscous brown fluid to spurt from within the still open chest. The unknown substance covered the entire left side of his face.
Alan slammed the lid to the fountain of sludge, and for just an instant nothing happened. But just as he started to think that maybe he'd gotten lucky, that maybe the liquid was only effective if allowed to enter into his puncture wound, his entire world became pain. The sticky liquid seeped down his chin onto his shoulder, taking with it massive lumps of flesh. The unseated portions of his face dropped to the floor, landing with meaty slaps.
WARNING! You have been afflicted with the (Acid-burn) Debuff. -10 Hp per second, and Hp Regeneration reduced by 80% for the duration of Debuff.
Duration: 30 seconds.
Unable to withstand the anguish any longer, Alan unleashed a piercing scream. His jaw tore further, which muffled his ear-rending shriek. Now exposed to the acidic substance, his jawbone, along with most of his teeth started to bubble as they began to melt. With a thick plume of smoke pouring out of his ruined mouth, Alan dove face-first into the sand. He propelled himself forward by kicking his legs.
His plan of grinding this horrid substance from the remains of his face before it could spread any further were swiftly proven worthless. Alan stopped once he realized that his only accomplishment had been packing his rapidly opening wounds full of sand. And that sand had begun to melt along with everything else. With his only healing Spell on cooldown, he had no other option but to rely on his stash of Health potions.
Watching his Health bar plummet below 40%, Alan rolled onto his back. He slid his hand under what little still remained of his belt, looking for the long destroyed Health potion he'd hidden there as a backup. Realizing that it'd probably been gone for quite some time, Alan pulled two of his remaining five Health potions from his Storage Ring.
Fumbling with the stoppers on the bottles quickly got him nowhere other than aggravated. I don't have time for this shit! Alan raged internally as he yanked on the lid of the first potion. He shoved the second glass vial in-between the teeth still remaining on his right jaw and bit down. Luckily he had just enough strength remaining in the unmelted portion of his jaw to enable him to crack the vial, allowing the soothing liquid contained within to be released. The pain began to recede as the potion attempted to restore what the acid had already destroyed.
Finally, he managed to pop the top from the other vial of potion. Alan poured the contents over the ruined left side of his face, concentrating his efforts on the fuming puddle that was only a moment ago his eye.
Struck with a sudden thought, and clueless as to what else he could realistically do, Alan cast [Stone Skin] with the idea that it should at the very least make it easier to get the acid off of himself. His idea was far less effective than he had hoped, as all it honestly accomplished was a very slight lessening of the pain. The Spell simply wasn't enough to end his suffering.
The Potions were able to slow the loss of Hp, and [Stone Skin] helped to dull a small portion of his pain, but his Health bar still dropped much faster than the 10 Hp per second lost to the (Acid-burn) Debuff. Without further hesitation, Alan summoned two more potions from inventory and swallowed one, while dumping the remaining potion directly into the weeping hole above his heart.
Taking aim at the ceiling above, Alan activated [Dual Casting] and [Mana Regulation], immediately launching two Mana over-loaded [Water Jet]s. As they impact the ceiling, the pressurized streams of water sprayed out in all directions, bathing Alan and the majority of the dead-end corridor in cool, soothing rain.
Taking advantage of this short-lived downpour, Alan grabbed handfuls of sand and vigorously scrubbed the areas of his body most effected by the acid. As he worked, he both tried and failed to stifle the whimpers he unconsciously released while scrubbing the loose meat and skin from the bones of his face.
Though the constant pain made it feel like an eternity, the combination eventually worked. His Health Potions, [Stone skin], and [Water jet] shower, in addition to his severely reduced Hp Regeneration soon overpowered the damage. Allowing his health bar to stabilize at just under twenty percent. Ever so slowly, Alan's injuries healed. Only then did he notice the angry flashing released from his PSA Screen, signifying multiple unseen notifications.
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Pain Resistance] has grown to Level 8!
Remarkable! Due to your flesh being exposed to an extremely caustic substance, you have acquired the (Common) Skill [Acid resistance]!
(C)[Acid resistance] Lvl 1- This Passive Skill provides a minor reduction to damage received from caustic attacks and minor chance to resist (Acid-burn) Debuffs, and/or shorten (Acid-burn) Debuff times.
Reduction to damage, chances to resist Acid-burn Debuffs, and/or reduce (Acid-burn) Debuff times increase with Skill level.
Hells! A triple trapped loot chest! Now I'm gonna have to work out some kind of a plan for dealing with that nonsense too. That was a load of bullshit! What kind of a sick fuck would make something like that? I really hate this Dungeon... If I somehow make it out of here... I swear I'll destroy this place. I might need help, but this place has to go. I wonder if I could somehow collapse the entrance barrier?
When his health crossed the fifty percent mark, Alan felt his mending flesh slowly knit together. And similar to peeling an onion, a whole new layer of pain was revealed. Clenching his teeth, Alan could only endure through what seemed like an entire colony of ants stinging him at once.
Mercifully, the pain was short-lived. The duration of his (Acid-burn) Debuff reached its conclusion and the speed of his healing skyrocketed, allowing his Hp Regeneration to take full effect.
Upon reaching eighty percent health, Alan's left eye regrew. In a dazzling blaze of light, his freshly regrown eye saw the world for the first time. Beyond ravenous from the healing, Alan helped himself to more of his dwindling rations.
As he ate, Alan decided to put his unallocated Status Points to use. Which he planned to use as an opportunity to satisfy his growing curiosity. "What EXACTLY does a single Status Point provide?" Mumbling under his breath, Alan began another experiment. He simply placed a single Status Point into each of his Stats, one at a time, intently observing his Statistics tab as each Point took effect.
I wonder if applying Status Points would've boosted my healing.
Guess it's too late now...
Aside from a minor tingle felt from head to toe as his body was empowered, Alan saw that the only Stats that Visibly changed on his Statistics tab were Constitution, Vitality, Endurance, Intelligence, Wisdom and Willpower.
1 Point added to Constitution provided him with +9 Hp, +1.5 Hp Regeneration, +15 Stamina, and +3 Stamina Regeneration.
1 Point to Vitality provided him with +15 Hp, and +9 Stamina.
1 Point to Endurance provided him with +6 Hp, +3 Hp Regeneration, +6 Stamina and +1.5 Stamina Regeneration.
1 Point to Intelligence provided him with +9 Mp, and +3 Mp Regeneration.
1 Point to Wisdom provided him with + 15 Mp, and 1.5 Mp Regeneration.
And finally, a single point added to his Willpower Stat provided Alan with +6 Mp.
While the gains seem pitiful when I look at them individually, with the amount of Status Points I'm receiving from every Level gained, the increases to my energy pools and Regeneration times are really starting to stack up. I still have 14 free status points, I guess I'll use them to even up my Stats a bit...
Making good on his word, Alan placed 2 points each into Constitution, Vitality, Endurance, Perception, Agility, Dexterity and Luck. Once again he was left without any free Status Points. Finding that he'd become addicted to viewing the increasing numbers and the increasing benefits they seemed to be providing, Alan hungrily viewed his Statistics tab.