Kai stepped toward her.
His knees buckled, and he came down, coughing globules of thick blood. He was bleeding internally, and his muscles were like shredded meat, making him wince with every movement.
The saber in his right hand vanished into specks of sparkly dust.
Serpent's God Wrath was the most potent technique in Kai's arsenal. As usual, he was supposed to perform it with two sabers. But he couldn't because of the wounded shoulder. The cost? His left hand.
All the built-up strength which he should have channeled into the saber found no outlet source.
That strength rebounded, crushing his bone from within.
The HP boost he had gained before executing the move didn’t mean instant regeneration, letting him heal the wounds caused by Cuckoo’s bullets. Not to mention, the use of Forbidden Technique had been eating away his HP way faster than his enhanced HP Regeneration Rate.
Kai looked at the blackened left hand as if it had been mortified ages ago. The only thing that was keeping him sane was the Titan's buff.
Losing sensation in his left hand pained Kai, but not as much as thinking of letting go of the loot from a 4th-floor Contestant.
Kai stood up, pushing the ground. Another step and the masked woman would be within his reach.
Suddenly, a bright, golden glow appeared in his vision.
Kai saw another golden ring carving itself in the space in front of him. The scene on the other side this time was of a lavish room.
Kai's heart thumped.
Forget it! Forget her! Forget everything! Kai's Perception screamed. Whoever was coming out was stronger than Sparrow.
There was no time to waste.
Damn it! My Pokeballs, Kai suddenly remembered. One of the Pokeball, which had struck the golden disc, was near him. He picked it up, his eyes searching for the second one.
There it is! Along with the Pokeball, Kai found the guns' barrels aimed at him.
Cuckoo fired.
Bang! Bang!!
Her aim faltered, though.
Kai struggled to not fall and decided to leave the second Pokeball, though reluctantly.
As he passed by the masked woman, he activated his Misdreavus Blood Essence and absorbed her fear, enhancing his MP and HP Regeneration Rate.
Then, like a snake eying a prey, his bloody eyes lit up.
Kai suddenly crouched, still running, and swept his hand against Sparrow’s ring-wearing hand.
The 4th-floor Contestant was already on the verge of death. Seeing Kai robbing her like this made her cough blood on the spot.
Suddenly, two enormous golden discs came flying at him from the another ring in the space, hitting squarely on his back.
Boom!
Kai felt as if a boulder had hit him.
His entire body got thrown out, dragging, rolling over the floor like a pebble. Kai didn't know if he was alive or dead.
His body just lifted itself, and he dashed towards the Tower of Hand without looking back. Any moment now, the Titan's buff could wear off, he knew. Kai would rather be in the sewers when that happens.
Then, from afar, thunderous shouts of guards and hooves trampling the ground reached them.
"Here!" a guard screamed in front of Kai. "He's here…"
Kai took out the remaining saber and hacked.
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The guard hid behind the shield. But the force behind the blow was so great that the dented shield slipped out of the guard’s grip, letting him see Kai’s monstrous state.
Fear oozed out of the guard like a geyser.
Kai drank the fear before changing his Blood Essence again.
A hiss resounded as he slithered around the guard, letting the saber nick at the back of his neck. The black saber tasted a few drops of blood before Kai stored it in the Inventory.
Behind Kai, the guard remained standing for a few seconds with a confused expression on his face.
Then he died.
*
*
Past midnight,
Sewers
Kai’s body was motionless as if it was him who had been poisoned with the Light Neurotoxin.
Only the shine of a bronze helmet which kept appearing on his head after every half hour gave an indication that he had yet to die for a second time.
I am alive, Kai told himself. I have survived. Haha!
On one hand, Kai was excited that he had bested a death prophecy. On the other hand, his heart pained, thinking of the lost Pokeball.
But then there were the things he had snatched out of this adventure’s grip, too.
Kai lifted his left hand and planted his gaze on the weird slab-like ring, a hint of a smile lingering across his lips.
…
[
Item: Sling Ring
Grade: Uncommon
Specification: A small two-finger mystical ring
Requirement:
1. Correspondence >10
2. Perception >10
3. Breath >7
4. Elementary Sorcery/Elementary Magical Aptitude
Attributes:
1. Mana Consumption: 0-100 MP
2. Spiritual Energy Consumption: 0-50 SP
3. Reach: 5000 km
Skill: Not Applicable
Effect:
1. Create an Inter-Dimensional Portal to another location
2. The further the location, the more the Consumption
Warning:
1. Subject to failure due to lack of accurate and precise visualization
2. Each ring is uniquely crafted for its wearer
Quality: 73%
]
…
Kai’s smile died.
It didn’t matter to him if he didn’t fill the Item’s Requirement. He was still new to all this. With time, he would certainly figure out a way to use it, Kai knew.
But the second point of the Warning felt odd and ominous to him.
A few people would have only saw the Warning and put the ring away, but Kai was Kai, so his gaze went to the Quality, too. He then remembered Roland’s words about an Item’s Quality, especially when crafted by Contestants.
Is it… Kai thought, biting his lips. Is it crafted by a Contestant… exclusively for that Sparrow woman…?
Sling Ring’s Quality was 73%. It could have fallen naturally to this value from a percentage above 80, too. But Kai had already seen Sparrow’s fighting style. It wasn’t centered around much physical fight which could damage the ring.
The only assumption that made sense to Kai was that it’s Original Quality was already around 73%.
She isn’t dead, Kai then observed, seeing the Item not returning to the Contestant’s Inventory. Well… I can always find buyers for these things. Or… Hehe! Maybe I can sell it to Sparrow herself…
Finding some solace in the imagined Mission Credits, Kai thought of the other rewards he had gotten out of the deadly fight.
…
[
Elementary Slither Footsteps: Proficiency 60% (+9%)
Elementary Twin-Saber Style: Proficiency 65% (+15%)
Elementary Snake Instinct: Proficiency 30% (+9%)
Elementary Fear Absorption: Proficiency 20% (+9%)
]
…
Kai looked at the massive increment in the Proficiencies and nodded to himself. Fighting with an opponent way above my floor is totally worth it. I just have to survive… Haha!
Of course, Elementary Twin-Saber Style’s Proficiency stood out even among these.
Even if Kai knew the obvious effect, he wouldn't dare to use the Forbidden Technique again. There was a reason this technique was forbidden. Kai looked at his left hand, which now looked gray like ash. It was healing, but any other wound would have healed a hundred times by now.
Sigh! Kai let out a scant breath, taking his mind off it. Then he looked at another notification.
…
[
WARNING: Black-Steel Saber - Quality: 0%
WARNING: Steel-Bone Brigandine - Quality: 45% (-17%)
]
…
In one slash, Kai had lost his brand new saber. Anger welled up within him, thinking of his Item.
It erupted when he thought about how he had even failed to cut her in half. It was obvious that poison had failed to kill her as his Sabers were drenched in it.
Kai almost shook his head, but his muscles refused the command.
Now there was only one thing to look forward to.
The Hidden Mission’s Rewards!