Langa was giddy with excitement. He was about to create his own fusion bomb, and he wondered if it would live up to the image in his mind. He had always loved watching things blow up in action movies, and he was curious if his explosion would be that great too.
The gully—he knew that it technically was not a gully, but that was the only thing he could think to call it—appeared to be a deep hole, its walls slimy with damp red grass all over them that exuded an uncomfortable heat. Its foul stench filled the air, and made Langa's nose wrinkle in disgust. He had to move closer to the edge so he could accurately judge the distance and aim correctly. There were depressions along the wall of the cliff that acted like a ladder for the trollimps to go up and down, so he knew he had to cut them off from that.
Upon looking further down there, he knew that he had to do it now. He could not stand the grotesque sight inside the pool. The oblivious trollimps were bathing in the allemak lifeblood, their hulking bodies dripping with both sweat and the viscous liquid, content in the pleasure of the bath. These vile creatures revelled in the blood of the poor allemaks to enhance their already formidable regeneration abilities. Little did they know that Langa had killed their families while they were busy relaxing. Well, it wasn't as if they were going to find out either. They were also about to die.
"Now I just need to be quick," Langa said. "I'll use my lightning-infused Exploding Jarecium Orb to blow them all to smithereens. I don't think that the explosion will be big enough to shake the entire gully, but it is better to be safe. Allemaks, take cover from this side and do not go anywhere near the pool. Once the trollimps are dead, I'll dash across the gully and take out the boss."
"It is not going to be that easy," the Legacy said with an exasperated shake of the head.
"I'm not just going to use one orb. I have plenty of other tricks in my arsenal, Legacy, trust me," he told it confidently.
"I bet you just want to see things go boom, don't you, simpleton?" It fired back at him.
That statement was partly true, but there was no way Langa was going to dignify it with an answer, therefore, he chose to ignore the Legacy. Before he infused his mana into the jarecium metal orb, he gave another instruction to the allemaks. "Once I'm done here, you guys can use the ladder to crawl down there. I need you to get me every single one of those trollimps' healing sacs for me. It's the least you can do after I saved your lives, right?" Langa said. He believed in paying back debts, and he had no interest in owing or being owed a life debt.
"Of course, Chosen One of Life! We exist to serve the deities of life, always. And they finally answered our prayer by sending you here to save us," the elder allemak said eagerly and the other allemaks screeched in agreement.
Well, that was easy. On Earth, getting someone to pay back their debt was a nightmare. Maybe that was why he did not tell them that he was not a Chosen One of Life...wait, since The Lackadaisical Herald had issued him this Challenge, that meant that he was Chosen, right? That was a strange thought because he had always loved those cliche novels about chosen ones defeating a demon lord.
The Legacy cleared its throat. Right, his mind was wandering again. "Alright, I'm going to get the kill notifications, so I'll know if any of the healing sacs are missing," he said. "But hold on, if the bodies are completely burnt, then you guys won't be able to get the healing sacs, right?"
"Don't worry. Even if the bodies are burnt into dust, the healing sacs will remain intact," the allemak elder assured him.
That was great, and Langa should have known considering that he had blown up the trollimp warden and still managed to get its healing sac. Therefore, with a deep breath, Langa activated his mana, infusing his lightning mana into the metal orb in his hands.
[You have 100% lightning affinity, 2% earth affinity, and 0% earth resistance! Lightning and earth have a neutral relationship. + 2% extra earth damage. Jarecium conducts 50% of the lightning it is exposed to! + 50% extra lightning damage applied to Exploding Jarecium Orb]
Aria had been right to give him this orb. The result was better than he expected, and Langa resisted the urge to smile, instead focusing on the task ahead. While the trollimps continued their oblivious bath in the lifeblood pool, Langa hurled the orb down there with all his might. It flew through the air, and with a small splash, it dropped into the pool.
Instantly, chaos broke out.
The moment that it made contact with the pink liquid, a brilliant explosion of lightning and metal erupted, catching the attention of every trollimp in the vicinity. The Exploding Jarecium Orb, detonated with a deafening boom. A blinding flash of light illuminated the surroundings, momentarily blinding the visions of both Langa and the allemaks. The explosive force shattered the peaceful atmosphere of the pool, sending shards of metal spikes that were brimming with lightning hurtling in every direction.
The lifeblood pool turned into a frenzy of violent waves, the lightning and lifeblood repelling each other like a violent vortex with an uncontrollable fury since a part of the lifeblood was made of water, which had an inverse relationship with lightning. This vortex of electric lifeblood was excellent for dealing extra damage. The ladder up the gully was also destroyed in the explosion. Unfortunately for the poor trollimps, the lightning was striking them numb and there was nowhere to climb up. Seeing the lifeblood brimming with lightning, Langa poured most of his remaining Kiribo's Sweat into the lifeblood pool. The flammable substance ignited the lightning in a fiery inferno, intensifying the explosion as pink fog filled the gully, all the way up to the top.
As an extra measure, Langa threw in the defective Unstable Exploding Fire-wind Orb down there as well without infusing it with his mana, he could not risk it backfiring on him. Besides, there was plenty of volatile mana down there. Sure enough, the ground shook when the orb exploded, the wind and Kiribo's Sweat propelling the explosion so much that even Langa was blown back. He could no longer hear the trollimps' screams. Without the allemaks controlling it, the lifeblood would not be able to give them instant healing, since it was more useful for building up regeneration over a long period of time.
The thick stinking pink fog from the explosion came forth from the pool, shrouding the area in an eerie haze. The fog, a result of the evaporating water and the smoke from burning trollimp flesh, obscured the view of the aftermath. Still, Langa peered inside.
It was still chaos as the monsters within the pool were caught in a storm of pain and death, the smell reaching up to where Langa stood. The once peaceful pool had transformed into a scene of horror and death as the lightning-infused metal spikes tore through their flesh, leaving trails of crimson in their wake. Their agonised screams pierced through the fog, the sounds of suffering echoing in the dungeon.
More of the monsters, disoriented and wounded, desperately tried to escape the wrath of the explosion. Some thrashed about, their bodies in anguish, while others frantically clawed at the lifeblood, their eyes filled with terror.
[You have killed a level 9 Trollimp Warrior
Rewards will be issued upon quest completion.
Please wait]
[You have killed..]
However, suddenly, a guttural growl sounded through the chaos, causing Langa's heart to skip a beat. From inside the gully, a trollimp emerged with a jump, its disfigured form dripping with lifeblood and covered in gruesome burns. Its matted hair clung to its scalp, as it landed on the edge of the cliff. It had clearly jumped up here, and Langa could scarcely believe that was possible.
The trollimp lunged forward, claws outstretched, in a desperate attempt to inflict one final blow upon Langa, but he easily dodged the clumsy swipe. He pivoted on his left leg, holding Tonare in both hands and infused it with his mana. Langa drove his spear forward, its sharp tip piercing through the trollimp's already weakened body. The creature let out another howl of pain and frustration, and its body convulsed for a moment before collapsing and Langa kicked it causing it to fall back into the burning pool.
[You have killed a level 10 Trollimp Warrior
Rewards will be issued upon quest completion.
Please wait]
[You have killed a level 8 Trollimp Enchanter
Rewards will be issued upon quest completion.
Please wait]
[You have killed...]
[You have killed...]
"Now I have become death, the destroyer of trollimps," Langa muttered, looking at his handiwork. It was both disgusting and interesting. He had just killed so many creatures, yet there was no blood on his hands. It was the epitome of minimum effort for maximum reward.
"You know, at first I thought maybe The Lackadaisical One Chose you because of your lightning, or maybe the Brand, but no... the more time I spend in your presence, the more I see it. " the Legacy said quietly looking at the destruction below. "It's because the two of you think alike, always looking for the quickest solution. This is exactly the kind of thing he would have done."
This was the second time that the Legacy had said that, and Langa looked inwards, wondering if The Lackadaisical Herald would disagree, but all he felt from the god was a mysterious smile. He shrugged, he had things to do.
Before making his way toward the throne room, Langa decided that he needed to recharge Tonare. He only had two rare lightning lucent stones, so he lifted the glaive, resting the shaft on the ground. He didn't know how to do this, so he just lifted the lucent stone and pressed it against the blade of the glaive stupidly.
"Infuse your mana into it, idiot," the Legacy said, and for some reason, it sounded impatient.
Rolling his eyes, Langa infused his mana into the stone, and a system prompt asking him if he wanted to charge the Thunderbird's Stunning Strike Skill appeared. After he said yes, one of the glyphs on Tonare's shaft lit up, and opened into a hole. while it surprised him, Langa placed the lucent crystal inside it. Immediately, the glaive vibrated with a soft hum, and a spark of electricity coursed throughout its entire body. He did it again with the second lucent stone.
"Well done, that was very good," the Legacy said, a broad grin on its face.
Langa frowned, the joy on the Legacy's face creeping him out. "Why are you so happy?"
"Don't you have a boss monster to kill?" It asked him instead.
"I actually do, yeah. I hope this one will be as challenging as the trollimp archers. Since this place is like a trollimp village, the boss should be a king or something right? Do you think it will be as strong as a level 10 maestril?" he asked hopefully.
The Legacy once again looked at him as if he was the biggest idiot that it had ever seen. "Of course not. It's probably a level 11 chief or lord or something, so maybe it will be as strong as a level 7 maestril, at most."
That would be about the tutorial mini-boss Calpu's level. At his level, could Langa solo kill Calpu? He did not think so, but that just made him more excited to meet the boss.
"Let's go."
The allemaks would take care of the bodies, now it was time for Langa to cross the gully. There was really only one way across, and that was flying, but he did not have a skill like that. What he did have was his attribute. He breathed and stepped backwards. His heart was already racing because of the explosion, so he latched onto that momentum and said, "Impulse Pulse!" activating his attribute. For the direction, he chose straight ahead, and then he ran.
He forgot to consider how he would land.
Whenever he'd used the Velocity before, most of the time there had been someone to attack or someone to save at the end of the skill, but this time there was none of that, as it was the first time that he had to learn how to brake at such a fast speed. As soon as he landed, before he could reorient himself, something invisible and heavy struck him in the back and he was sent flying forward, crashing headfirst into the wall of the boss' room. He landed on the ground, rolling and howling in pain.
[-167HP]
He lost half his health, but there was no time to waste, he had to get up. From where he had fallen..erm, landed, he could see a throne right in front of him, but the problem was that it was empty. The boss wasn’t sitting on it so he could be anywhere.
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”Roll left!” the Legacy shouted, and it was a testament to how much Langa trusted it that he rolled to the left without hesitation. There was a gust of wind and impact, and then the rubble he had just been lying next to was crushed by something invisible. He scrambled to get up and orient himself quickly, as he couldn’t Flash Step away since his stamina was still regenerating.
However, the moment that he tried to turn around, searing pain exploded in his head as a heavy club struck him and he lost his balance again, staggering and falling onto the throne room floor. The air shimmered in front of him and a large trollimp appeared from there and stood towering over him.
The boss had huge muscles and a large body that towered over Langa. His skin was a sickly green colour, covered in oozing sores and patches of decaying flesh. He held a massive, spiked club that dripped with a vile, black substance.
Psike: Corrupted Trollimp Boss (Lord)
Level 12
HP: 4500/4500
"You have killed my children and destroyed my garden, human. Tonight you will die,” the trollimp boss growled, and he disappeared in front of Langa's eyes. He bit back the urge to ask why Psike had not left his throne room to come and save his children.
Langa groaned in pain as he struggled to get back on his feet. The impact from Psike's club had left him disoriented and weak as blood trickled down his forehead, obscuring his vision. He wiped it away with the back of his hand.
“Listen for any sound, any movement, and be ready to strike at any moment,” the Legacy whispered, and Langa closed his eyes in concentration. He still had the allemak lifeblood in his system from what Rila and her friends had done for him, so his health regenerated faster than usual. He was still below 50% health, but he wasn’t dying.
Suddenly, the air shimmered once more next to him and his reflexes kicked in, and he dodged to the side just as Psike's club swung through the space he had occupied moments before. The force of the swing sent a gust of wind that brushed against his cheek, and the vile black substance on the club dripped onto his face. He ignored the pinching sting on his skin that felt like he had been stung by a bee, instead shrinking Tonare and cutting into the trollimps's abdomen. The wound healed just as quickly as he cut into it and the trollimp disappeared again.
"Shit! You can't hide forever, trollimp!" Langa shouted. He hastily coated Tonare's blade with more of the anti-heal potion and Kiribo's Sweat, his frustration with the creature's high health regeneration rate starting to show. Despite that, however, he could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, sharpening his senses. An invisible stalker hounded him, and he could appear from anywhere. It made him alert and excited, as evidenced by his rapidly increasing heartbeat.
He knew he had to keep moving, as the boss appeared behind him again, club raised. A spool of black goo erupted from the spiky club, headed straight for Langa's face, but it was moving slowly enough for him to duck, allowing it to pass over his head. Unfortunately, that movement allowed Psike to inch closer to him, and since the club was already outstretched, all he had to do was swing it down hard as Langa raised his head.
Just as his head was about to be bashed open by the club, Langa Flash Stepped backwards, and the club missed him, striking the floor of the throne room with a loud bang that made a crack in the floor.
"Filthy rat! All you do is run!" Psike shouted, disappearing once more. The trollimp was in no position to talk, though since he kept pulling a disappearing act and sneak-attacking Langa.
His voice came in shifting sounds throughout the chamber, filled with anger. Langa could sense the presence of his invisible foe, but he couldn't see him. He knew he had to rely on his instincts and reflexes if he wanted to survive this battle. As Langa darted around the chamber, he remained in motion so he wouldn’t be caught unawares when the trollimp attacked.
But Psike was persistent, and his invisible form moved with surprising ease, instigating attacks from unexpected angles. Langa narrowly avoided them, his body moving much better now that Legacy of The Tonare Thunderbird Spearmanship's footwork was ingrained in him. However, with each dodge, and each use of Flash Step, his stamina dwindled, and his movements slowed.
Psike's regeneration was the biggest problem. The lightning-infused slashes from Langa's glaive could barely keep up with the trollimp's rapid healing, even with the anti-heal potion and Kiribo's Sweat. The wounds he inflicted upon Psike closed in front of Langa's eyes, impeding his efforts to kill his opponent. Those that did not heal became like the rest of the sores on the monster's body, dripping with pus.
Langa hurled his daggers one by one in the air around him, hoping to force the monster out of stealth or whatever skill he was using. He also used them to try and find a weak spot in Psike's defences but the Trollimp's sores and corrupted flesh seemed to hurt the blades, and they decayed and fell to the ground, useless now.
Langa mustered all his remaining strength and called upon the last of his stamina to teleport beside Psike using Flash Step to close the distance. He drove Tonare deep into the trollimp’s back, dealing as much lightning damage as he could. The trollimp roared and turned, his eyes locking with Langa's own. He was clearly in pain, but the lightning damage alone was not enough to stop the regeneration. He quickly pulled out Tonare but not before a heavy punch landed in Langa's side, the sores on Psike's fist surprisingly penetrating his armour so that when he was sent flying back from the force of the strike, the pus from the sores ate into his armour as well, eroding his skin.
Langa would have screamed and thrashed in pain if he did not have to be on alert for the once again invisible monster. What the fuck was the cool-down on that skill?
"This is my kingdom!" Psike shouted, his voice all around Langa and filled with anger.
"Buddy," Langa said, panting as he tried to get up, the corrosive pus spreading into his body. He needed to get moving again since Flash Step was on cool-down. "The surface area of this dungeon is barely a town, what do you mean, kingdom?"
Okay, maybe he shouldn't have said that because, before he could do anything, he felt the force of Psike's club hitting his head with a power that sent him crashing back to the ground.
As Psike loomed over him, the trollimp's voice filled with triumph. "You are weak, human. You will die here, and become fuel for our corruption."
The pain in his head was agonising and Langa felt himself starting to lose consciousness. As he lay on the cold stone floor, more burning radiated through his body from the rapidly spreading pus. He struggled to catch his breath, his vision blurring. He was aware of only three things, the pain, Tonare next to him, and the eyes of The Lackadaisical Herald watching him. The god had said that this was a trial within his means to complete, and Langa found that he hated to disappoint him, to make him feel like his faith in Langa was misplaced. He knew that the god would not forsake him if he failed, but he wanted to do his best. Langa had never wanted to make anyone proud of him since his father. That was the only person who had ever encouraged Langa to do better for himself, and no one else.
The world blurred in and out of focus.
Why was Langa thinking about his father right now? Gritting his teeth, he refused to have his life flash before his eyes, he was not going to die here. First of all, he knew he had to find a way to counter Psike's invisibility if he wanted to stand a chance. His skill was off cool-down now, so, taking a deep breath, he Flash Stepped towards the wall, away from Psike, and downed his newest vitality potion. If worst came to worst, he still had the allemak lifeblood and the vitality saffrons.
Since it was an inferior vitality potion, it did not heal him completely and he felt better, but he was still in pain. He focused his mana, infusing his glaive with lightning magic as he straightened up, and prepared to defend himself if he was attacked. He was alert and he could feel the trollimp's eyes on him right now, even though he was invisible.
Langa stood still, wanting to allow his stamina to regenerate as much as possible before he used his attribute. The Berruka’s Ring of Stamina Regeneration allowed him to regenerate 1 Stamina per second as long as he was standing still.
Suddenly, a gust of wind alerted him to Psike's presence behind him. Reacting on instinct, Langa spun around, evading the club, his glaive slicing through the air. The glaive connected with a solid thud with Psike's thigh, revealing Psike's startled figure. The trollimp let out a roar of pain as the lightning surged through his body, momentarily stunning him. Seizing the opening, Langa poured Kiribo's Sweat onto the sizzling wound before it could regenerate, and used his footwork and agility to quickly create some distance between them.
”Right leg forward, slash-“ the Legacy started, but Langa was already in motion, knowing which way he needed to move both himself and his glaive before it reminded him of the motions.
“-stab, and then retreat,” he finished without delay, as he unleashed the attack, each blow seamlessly following the Legacy of The Tonare Thunderbird Spearmanship skill and cutting into Psike's body.
“Not bad,” the Legacy said with a smile.
Langa was sure that he knew every step and stance as well as every spear motion in the beginner level by now, but the skill was not moving beyond Beginner level 10. His last stab had perfectly struck the trollimp’s shoulder. However, Psike's regenerative abilities proved to be the worst obstacle, as his wounds began to heal again. Now, when Langa gave him a wound, a black pus that turned into a misty substance and smelt terrible would ooze out of the wound into the air.
If he used Thunderbird's Stunning Strike, he would deal about 500-600 damage at once, and adding that with Flash Step, it would increase, and would also double with his lightning affinity. He wondered if the affinity would not double the damage from Flash Step since it was not a lightning-based skill, or if it would double that as well since he would be using Thunderbird's Stunning Strike in conjunction with Flash Step. Well, he still wasn't sure what his attribute meant by that his skills involving his affinity would be 100% more potent, but he was sure that it was not a damage modifier.
Either way, even using those three together as a combo was not enough to instantly kill the trollimp, he needed to disrupt Psike's regeneration, get him below 2000 HP and then use the combo. To reach that point, Langa retrieved four flaxes of the anti-heal potion from his inventory. Uncorking the vial, he threw them around him and one hit the invisible trollimp, the liquid splashing across Psike's decaying flesh. Now that he knew where Psike was, Langa hurled five more flaxes of the potion at the trollimp and he let out a howl of agony as his regenerative abilities were temporarily nullified, causing his sores to worsen, the pus dripping onto the floor.
Taking advantage of this, Langa unleashed his enchanted short swords that had bonus fire damage, each blade finding its mark on the trollimp's many sores and bursting into flames. The Kiribo's Sweat-soaked daggers intensified the fire damage, preventing Psike from healing. But even so, Psike was not easily defeated.
With a powerful swing of his spiked club, he sent Langa flying across the chamber, crashing into a pile of rubble. Fuck, if he let his guard down for even a second, he would die. It was good that his physical body resistance was high, as well as that a lot of the shock was absorbed by his armour, but fuck did it hurt.
Struggling to catch his breath, Langa knew he couldn't let his guard down, as the monster screeched defiantly, "You won't win!" Pushing himself up, Langa locked eyes with Psike, his gaze firm. The monster's HP was now down to 2573. He was close now.
"We'll see about that," he said, reaching into his inventory once more. His hand closed around the familiar shape of his last Exploding Fire Orb.
After quickly infusing the explosive with his mana, Langa tossed it towards Psike. He jumped back, but thankfully, this one was not defective and he was still within its range. The orb detonated in a brilliant display of flames, engulfing the Trollimp in a fiery inferno. The intense heat from the flames burned Psike's flesh, preventing his regeneration and weakening his defences.
As Psike stumbled, screaming, his aura of decay intensified. Ignoring the heat as he breathed, Langa drank the not-so-useless-after-all Inferior Scorching Breath Solution to raise his fire resistance for a bit. He then stood tall, his spear at the ready as the trollimp let out a thundering roar. With lightning-fast reflexes, he dodged the wild swings of the trollimp's club. How the hell was he still able to fight in this state? Langa laughed as the thrill of using his speed against this monstrous creature overcame him. He was fucking dodging a spiked club from a corrupted monster whose body was on fire inside a dungeon! How could that not excite him? Any moment now, if he missed a step, he could die! His heart raced in excitement as more black pus oozed from Psike's wounds. Langa quickly sidestepped the trollimp, slicing his ankle with a low strike, and then darted away.
The foul pus of decay being released from Psike’s wounds was now filling the entire throne room as a mist. Langa didn’t know what it was, but he knew that this was corrupted magic. Although he was enjoying the fight, the cloudy pus began to take its toll on Langa. His strength started to wane, and his movements became sluggish. He could not move fast enough anymore. Each breath felt like a struggle as if the very air around him was suffocating him. But he refused to slow down.
Psike's claws slashed at him, but he was not quick enough to dodge and they scratched his neck, causing the corrupted pus to seep into his wound. It was the most awful pain that Langa had ever felt. The battlefield was engulfed in a thick cloud of toxic mist, making it almost impossible to breathe or move properly. Even with his high darkness resistance and the ring protecting him, he struggled. Each inhale felt like daggers piercing his lungs, snuffing out the air from the inside.
It reminded him of being choked by the smoke inside that burning car, all those years ago. He remembered his father screaming desperately for help. Langa’s heart raced as he desperately held on to the memory. He wanted that memory to tether him to reality, to remind him that he was alive because of his father's sacrifice, therefore, he needed to keep fighting. Then and now, the air was rotten, and he was losing consciousness while banging on the car door. He was dizzy and he couldn't see a damn thing. Where was Tonare?
From the space in front of Langa, Psike’s appeared, his club raised, and his muscles bulging more than ever before. His decaying pus surrounded his whole body as he brought the club down. Langa, of course, was faster than him, and he Flash Stepped backwards. The club once more struck the floor. This time, however, the strength was too much, and the floor underneath Langa shattered.
”Shit!” Langa screamed. Flash Step was still on cool-down and the broken floor encompassed too wide an area for him to run away from it. For the second time in two days, Langa fell into a hole.
Excruciating pain burst forth from his head as it hit the ground, and pieces of rubble ripped into his body as he fell into the hole like a rag doll. His head swam as his mind drifted into unconsciousness. There was no safe place for him except to hold on to the memories of his father as he lay bruised inside the hole.
[Critical Hit!
-211 HP]
He had just lost roughly 70% of his total health, but he could not dwell on that right now as that fall had broken something inside him because now a new memory from that moment inside the burning car entered his head, a woman’s voice. He had never heard it before, perhaps because he didn’t understand the language, or perhaps because the memories of that day were locked away in the depths of his mind. However, now he heard the voice louder, the words blending as his mind drifted, struggling not to open that memory. The only words he could piece out from that voice talking to his father on that day were strange and distorted.
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